86154 - Transcription: Faith is not a chosen religion

N. Lygeros
Translated from the Greek by Athina Kehagias

I would like to initiate this differentiation between faith and religion using a very simple expression: we say, “He took my faith away.” Why? Why don’t we ever say “he took away my religion”. Faith is within us, our religion is on the outside. Faith is about values, religion is about principles, we follow a religion due to principles, whereas faith is so well embedded within us, because it has depth, it has no compromises, it has no codes, it simply has substance, so that if someone takes that faith away from us, then we consider it to be something very grievous. But we also say ” faith conversion “, whereas we say of a different religion. The expressions we use are very indicative, we just don’t pay attention to them, at least in an adequate manner, but in actual fact they tell the truth. The truth, the light, the substance, are related to faith and not to religion. And we ought to also understand that there are some who function ideologically as if they are following a religion, but it is not a matter of faith. Faith is not merely a chosen religion, it is something deeper which is related, as we said prior, to the light, to substance, but of course also to Humanity. When the context is multi-local, when it does not have a universality, when it does not function intertemporally, then it cannot be faith, it is simply a religion which has expanded and this may have some magnitude in both space and time, but in actual fact it has been imposed. Faith is not imposed, faith illuminates, and therefore it is related to people who freely experience its harmony.