--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I believe faith is not certainty but the…" description: "\"I believe faith is not certainty but the courage to live with uncertainty.\" — Jonathan Sacks" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the_2196351.png" --- # I believe faith is not certainty but the courage to live… ![“I believe faith is not certainty but the courage to live with uncertainty.” quote by Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the_2196351.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the_2196351.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the_2196351.png) > “I believe faith is not certainty but 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 is not about absolute certainty but about courageously living despite unknowns. **In simple terms:** Faith means being brave with uncertainty. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty with courage. Themes faith uncertainty courage existence Mood hopeful thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal decision making - spiritual practice - leadership - creative work Key Concepts theology existential philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - What uncertainties do you face? - How can you balance faith with reason? A Different Perspective Overreliance on faith may ignore practical evidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believe Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-faith/) [Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) [Certainty Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty-courage-4572794/) [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/) [Uncertainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncertainty/) ## Related quotes > [“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/) > [Faith is not a certainty. Faith is the courage to live with uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/faith-is-not-a-certainty-faith-is-the-courage-to-live-with-uncertainty/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [ “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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“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/) > [Moses became America's true founding father because he evangelized action; he justified risk. 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We cannot but desire truth and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/we-desire-truth-and-find-within-ourselves-only-uncertainty-we-seek/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Uncertainty is the only certainty there is, and knowing how to live with insecurity is the only security](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-allen-paulos/uncertainty-is-the-only-certainty-there-is-and-knowing-how-to-live/) [John Allen Paulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-allen-paulos/) > [Of course, I don't know everything. Considering the infinite amount of knowledge that one could acquire in a virtually innumerable array of intellectual disciplines,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/of-course-i-don-t-know-everything-considering-the-infinite-amount-of/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## 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. 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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. 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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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Mortensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-t-mortensen/) > [Finding someone that trusted my vision helped me find certainty in who I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/finding-someone-that-trusted-my-vision-helped-me-find-certainty-in/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) [Browse all 1,776 Certainty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I believe faith is not certainty but the courage to live with uncertainty.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jonathan Sacks" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the-courage-to-live-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Certainty" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the-courage-to-live-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the_2196351.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the_2196351.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/jonathan-sacks-2788_certainty_i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the_2196351.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I believe faith is not certainty but the courage to live with uncertainty.” — Jonathan Sacks", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jonathan Sacks", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I believe faith is not certainty...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the-courage-to-live-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/i-believe-faith-is-not-certainty-but-the-courage-to-live-with/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```