--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Faith is not a certainty. Faith is the…" description: "\"Faith is not a certainty. Faith is the courage to live with uncertainty.\" — Jonathan Sacks" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7dd/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_faith-is-not-a-certainty-faith-is-the-co_3089122.png" --- # Faith is not a certainty. Faith is the courage to live… ![“Faith is not a certainty. Faith is the courage to live with uncertainty.” quote by Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7dd/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_faith-is-not-a-certainty-faith-is-the-co_3089122.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7dd/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_faith-is-not-a-certainty-faith-is-the-co_3089122.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7dd/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_faith-is-not-a-certainty-faith-is-the-co_3089122.png) > “Faith is not a certainty. Faith is the courage to live with uncertainty.” [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Faith embraces uncertainty, providing courage to live despite unknown outcomes. **In simple terms:** Faith is courage amid doubt. Key Takeaway Live with uncertainty. Themes faith uncertainty courage Mood reflective hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal growth - spiritual practice - decision making Key Concepts existentialism theology Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance faith and doubt? - What actions stem from courageous faith? A Different Perspective Too much uncertainty can cause paralysis. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) [Certainty Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty-faith-1328774/) [Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) [Courage to live](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage-to-live/) [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Faith Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith-certainty-918992/) [Faith Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith-courage-284797/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Uncertainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncertainty/) ## Related quotes > [Out of the element of participation follows the certainty of faith; out of the element of separation follows the doubt in faith. And each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tillich/out-of-the-element-of-participation-follows-the-certainty-of-faith/) [Paul Tillich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tillich/) > [“Faith is not certainty. It is the courage to live with uncertainty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/faith-is-not-certainty-it-is-the-courage-to-live-with-uncertainty/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [I believe faith is not certainty but the courage to live with uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the-courage-to-live-with/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [Faith is the courage to live your life as if everything that happens does so for your highest good and learning. Like it or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-millman/faith-is-the-courage-to-live-your-life-as-if-everything-that-happens/) [Dan Millman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-millman/) > [ “I don’t know,” \[my father\] said, after clearing his throat. “But I know that he loves you.” . . . Twenty years later, I’m… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-held-evans/i-don-t-know-my-father-said-after-clearing-his-throat-but-i-know-that/) [Rachel Held Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-held-evans/) > [“Her ballad did nothing to make the serpants lovely. Her ballad hid nothing of their dread. But the music itself spoke of faith and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-wangerin-jr/her-ballad-did-nothing-to-make-the-serpants-lovely-her-ballad-hid/) [Walter Wangerin Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-wangerin-jr/) > [There are no means of attaining faith and certainty except through the Qur'an.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-qayyim-al-jawziyya/there-are-no-means-of-attaining-faith-and-certainty-except-through/) [Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibn-qayyim-al-jawziyya/) > [There have been times when the church seemed afraid, but she is no longer. Analyze, dissect, use your microscope or your spectrum till the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/there-have-been-times-when-the-church-seemed-afraid-but-she-is-no/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [When prayer removes distrust and doubt and enters the field of mental certainty, it becomes faith; and the universe is built on faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-holmes/when-prayer-removes-distrust-and-doubt-and-enters-the-field-of-mental/) [Ernest Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-holmes/) > [“Certainty in faith and doubt in reason removed the means by which to reach understandings or agreements on the basis of what is reasonable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reilly/certainty-in-faith-and-doubt-in-reason-removed-the-means-by-which-to/) [Robert Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reilly/) > [When you accomplish these feelings of Certainty and Faith even for a few seconds, you have the proof of who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-accomplish-these-feelings-of-certainty-and-faith-even-for-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The disappointed man turns his thoughts toward a state of existence where his wiser desires may be fixed with the certainty of faith; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts-toward-a-state-of-existence/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [I do believe that there is a conflict between science and religion ... the spirit or attitude toward the facts is different in religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/i-do-believe-that-there-is-a-conflict-between-science-and-religion/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [Moses became America's true founding father because he evangelized action; he justified risk. He gave ordinary people the courage to live with uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/moses-became-america-s-true-founding-father-because-he-evangelized/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [The first spiritual quality we need to have is not faith; it is courage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-first-spiritual-quality-we-need-to-have-is-not-faith-it-is-courage/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## More by Jonathan Sacks > [We from every religion feel comfortable in Britain because there is a host. The Church of England is a good host, it has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/we-from-every-religion-feel-comfortable-in-britain-because-there-is-a/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [Food prices are often kept artificially high. The result is that the Millennium Development Goals set out by the United Nations at the start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/food-prices-are-often-kept-artificially-high-the-result-is-that-the/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [In her religious role, the Queen is head of the Church of England, but in her civic role she cares for all her subjects,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/in-her-religious-role-the-queen-is-head-of-the-church-of-england-but/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [The market economy is deeply congruent with the values set out in the Hebrew Bible. Material prosperity is a divine blessing. Poverty crushes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/the-market-economy-is-deeply-congruent-with-the-values-set-out-in-the/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [Man was not made for the service of economies; economies were made to serve mankind; and men and women were made - so we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/man-was-not-made-for-the-service-of-economies-economies-were-made-to/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [A perfect storm is in the making: financial uncertainty, economic downturn, government cuts, rising unemployment and a future that looks less clear the more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/a-perfect-storm-is-in-the-making-financial-uncertainty-economic/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [“To whom is an international corporation answerable? Often they do not employ workers. They outsource manufacturing to places far away. If wages rise in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/to-whom-is-an-international-corporation-answerable-often-they-do-not/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [A survey carried out across the U.S. between 2004 and 2006 showed that frequent church- or synagogue-goers are more likely to give money to charity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/a-survey-carried-out-across-the-u-s-between-2004-and-2006-showed-that/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [The Holocaust survivors are among the most inspiring people I have had the privilege to meet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/the-holocaust-survivors-are-among-the-most-inspiring-people-i-have/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [Jews read the books of Moses not just as history but as divine command. The question to which they are an answer is not,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/jews-read-the-books-of-moses-not-just-as-history-but-as-divine/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [What I find fascinating about Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights we celebrate at this time of the year, is the way its story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/what-i-find-fascinating-about-hanukkah-the-jewish-festival-of-lights/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [Find people not to envy but to admire. Do not the profitable but the admirable deed. Live by ideals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/find-people-not-to-envy-but-to-admire-do-not-the-profitable-but-the/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [The message of Passover remains as powerful as ever. Freedom is won not on the battlefield but in the classroom and the home. Teach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/the-message-of-passover-remains-as-powerful-as-ever-freedom-is-won/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [Which European leader today would not relish the wonder-working powers of a Moses? Budget deficit? Unpopular cuts? How about just a little miracle, an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/which-european-leader-today-would-not-relish-the-wonder-working/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [The twenty-first century is, and will remain, the Age of Insecurity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/the-twenty-first-century-is-and-will-remain-the-age-of-insecurity/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) [Explore all 150 Jonathan Sacks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) ## More Certainty quotes > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [Sometimes we have the absolute certainty there's something inside us that's so hideous and monstrous that if we ever search it out we won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr/sometimes-we-have-the-absolute-certainty-there-s-something-inside-us/) [Hubert Selby, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr/) > [The past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-past-and-the-future-become-unimportant-there-is-only-that-moment/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [In the mental disturbance and effort of writing, what sustains you is the certainty that on every page there is something left unsaid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/in-the-mental-disturbance-and-effort-of-writing-what-sustains-you-is/) [Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/) > [Of course I doubt. I do not practice a certainty. I practice a faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/of-course-i-doubt-i-do-not-practice-a-certainty-i-practice-a-faith/) [Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/) > [The world is a wonderfully weird place, consensual reality is significantly flawed, no institution can be trusted, certainty is a mirage, security a delusion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-world-is-a-wonderfully-weird-place-consensual-reality-is/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [As a businessman, I know that businesses need certainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-foster/as-a-businessman-i-know-that-businesses-need-certainty/) [Bill Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-foster/) > [It is suggested that in domestic violence at least the presence or absence of a firearm, or of any other type of weapon, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-greenwood/it-is-suggested-that-in-domestic-violence-at-least-the-presence-or/) [Colin Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-greenwood/) > [Every single person who is a member of our party deserves to have certainty. They deserve to know that my attention and focus is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annamie-paul/every-single-person-who-is-a-member-of-our-party-deserves-to-have/) [Annamie Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annamie-paul/) > [The significance and volume of repairs that are needed across the country demand that we give state and local governments the long-term certainty they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-graves/the-significance-and-volume-of-repairs-that-are-needed-across-the/) [Sam Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-graves/) > [“Death is the one great certainty in life. That’s what my dad used to say. Nothing else is certain. Not love. Not happiness. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mila-gray/death-is-the-one-great-certainty-in-life-that-s-what-my-dad-used-to/) [Mila Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mila-gray/) > [ \[I\]f in other sciences we should arrive at certainty without doubt and truth without error, it behooves us to place the foundations of knowledge… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bacon/i-f-in-other-sciences-we-should-arrive-at-certainty-without-doubt-and/) [Roger Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bacon/) > [Do not lose hope; St. Joseph also experienced moments of difficulty, but he never lost faith and was able to overcome them, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/do-not-lose-hope-st-joseph-also-experienced-moments-of-difficulty-but/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [As the future is never known with certainty, the evaluation of the prospective benefits requires the formation of expectations. 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