--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The problem is that people think faith is…" description: "\"The problem is that people think faith is something to be admired. In fact, faith means you believe in something for which you have no evidence.\" — Vic..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/victor-j-stenger-16236_belief_the-problem-is-that-people-think-faith-i_546491.png" --- # The problem is that people think faith is something to be… ![“The problem is that people think faith is something to be admired. In fact, faith means you believe in something for which you have no evidence.” quote by Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/victor-j-stenger-16236_belief_the-problem-is-that-people-think-faith-i_546491.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/victor-j-stenger-16236_belief_the-problem-is-that-people-think-faith-i_546491.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/victor-j-stenger-16236_belief_the-problem-is-that-people-think-faith-i_546491.png) > “The problem is that people think faith is something to be admired. In fact, faith means you believe in something for which you have no evidence.” [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) ## 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 belief without evidence, not a virtue to be admired. **In simple terms:** Faith is belief without evidence. Key Takeaway Question unexamined belief. Themes faith reason skepticism Mood critical skeptical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - debates - education - public policy - personal decisions Key Concepts epistemology philosophy of religion Questions to Reflect On - What evidence would you require to believe? - How do you balance faith and reason? A Different Perspective Blind faith can hinder critical thinking. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Evidence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evidence/) [Fact Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fact-faith-1309120/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Faith Admired](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith-admired-4559112/) [Faith Means](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith-means/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Think Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-faith/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Most people think that faith means believing something; oftener it means trying something, giving it a chance to prove itself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/most-people-think-that-faith-means-believing-something-oftener-it/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [“I don’t think faith is positive, because faith means belief without evidence, and you shouldn’t believe anything without evidence. \["The Daily Show" 24 Sept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-don-t-think-faith-is-positive-because-faith-means-belief-without/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [A belief may be larger than a fact. A faith that is overdefined is the very faith most likely to prove inadequate to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vannevar-bush/a-belief-may-be-larger-than-a-fact-a-faith-that-is-overdefined-is-the/) [Vannevar Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vannevar-bush/) > [One must conclude that, contrary to the established and current wisdom, a scenario describing the genesis of life on earth by chance and natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-yockey/one-must-conclude-that-contrary-to-the-established-and-current-wisdom/) [Hubert Yockey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-yockey/) > [“Stick with it in faith my friend, Don't Quit! Help is being sent of God, and will appear at the very moment you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-d-longoria-jr/stick-with-it-in-faith-my-friend-don-t-quit-help-is-being-sent-of-god/) [Raymond D. Longoria Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-d-longoria-jr/) > [What does it mean to believe rather than to know? To surrender to something that's not fact but faith?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/what-does-it-mean-to-believe-rather-than-to-know-to-surrender-to/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [“The fact that faith has motivated many people to do good things does not suggest that faith is itself a necessary (or even a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-fact-that-faith-has-motivated-many-people-to-do-good-things-does/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [When you say if you have faith in America, I think it's the faith in the fact that we're going to end up changing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/when-you-say-if-you-have-faith-in-america-i-think-it-s-the-faith-in/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [I say that they can be solved; there is no problem that cannot be, but faith is necessary. 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"But He Always believes in you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-evangeline/i-don-t-think-i-have-the-faith-to-believe-in-elohim-but-he-always/) [Molly Evangeline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-evangeline/) > [My Bible tells me that if we train a child in the way he should go, when he is old he will not turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/my-bible-tells-me-that-if-we-train-a-child-in-the-way-he-should-go/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [“Most people hammer your mind with Thesis>Antithesis>Synthesis or as my old friend, the late Robert Anton Wilson, said: "Here's what it is, here's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-matheny/most-people-hammer-your-mind-with-thesis-antithesis-synthesis-or-as/) [Joseph Matheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-matheny/) > [“Seasons of life can make a big difference. Sometimes people are great believers while in college, but when they're young parents with their second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-anderson/seasons-of-life-can-make-a-big-difference-sometimes-people-are-great/) [Lynn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-anderson/) > [Religious teachings and teachers have conditioned us to think of faith as a magic catalyst that makes God work for us. In no way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-butterworth/religious-teachings-and-teachers-have-conditioned-us-to-think-of/) [Eric Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-butterworth/) ## More by Victor J. Stenger > [People want to be at the center of the Universe...and they're going to flock to anybody who tells them that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/people-want-to-be-at-the-center-of-the-universe-and-they-re-going-to/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Is there a place in a church where you leave your brains when you enter?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/is-there-a-place-in-a-church-where-you-leave-your-brains-when-you/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [To most theistic believers, human life can have no meaning in a universe without God. Quite sincerely, and with understandable yearning for a meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/to-most-theistic-believers-human-life-can-have-no-meaning-in-a/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [ Until recent times, absence of evidence for his \[Jehovah's\] existence has not been sufficient to rule him out. However, we now have enough knowledge… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/until-recent-times-absence-of-evidence-for-his-jehovah-s-existence/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [In short, evolution is as close to being a scientific fact as is possible for any theory, given that science is open - ended…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/in-short-evolution-is-as-close-to-being-a-scientific-fact-as-is/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Debating is not an honest intellectual exercise. It's like a trial in which the goal is not to get to the truth but to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/debating-is-not-an-honest-intellectual-exercise-it-s-like-a-trial-in/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Fifteen years of skepticism has done more for me than 20 years of force-fed religion and 30 years of indifference in between.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/fifteen-years-of-skepticism-has-done-more-for-me-than-20-years-of/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Just because quantum mechanics is weird does not mean that everything that is weird is quantum mechanics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/just-because-quantum-mechanics-is-weird-does-not-mean-that-everything/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [In fact, current cosmological observations indicate that the average density of matter and energy in the universe is equal, within measurement errors, to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/in-fact-current-cosmological-observations-indicate-that-the-average/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Selling eternal life is an unbeatable business, with no customers ever asking for their money back after the goods are not delivered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/selling-eternal-life-is-an-unbeatable-business-with-no-customers-ever/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [“The myth of quantum consciousness sits well with many whose egos have made it impossible for them to accept the insignificant place science perceives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/the-myth-of-quantum-consciousness-sits-well-with-many-whose-egos-have/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Any strategy that attempts to reinforce faith by undermining science is also doomed to failure. Showing that some scientific theory is wrong will not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/any-strategy-that-attempts-to-reinforce-faith-by-undermining-science/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Nature is capable of building complex structures by processes of self-organization; simplicity begets complexity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/nature-is-capable-of-building-complex-structures-by-processes-of-self/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Define self-awareness and tell me what it is about it that requires something more than a material explanation. I do not accept the burden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/define-self-awareness-and-tell-me-what-it-is-about-it-that-requires/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [Assuming the universe came from nothing, it is empty to begin with... Only by the constant action of an agent outside the universe, such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/assuming-the-universe-came-from-nothing-it-is-empty-to-begin-with/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) [Explore all 40 Victor J. Stenger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) ## More Belief quotes > [“Cine a ucis stelele? 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