What Is Faith Really?

When people today speak of faith, they often mean something quite ordinary. Faith can mean belief — “I have faith that this statement is true.” It can mean trust — “I have faith in you,” confidence that a person won’t let us down. Or it can mean acceptance — “I believe what you are telling me,” taking someone at their word.

All of these meanings are real, but in the Christian life, faith goes far deeper. The Apostle Paul calls faith “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). And St. Ignatius Brianchaninov, one of the great spiritual Fathers of Russia, writes simply: “Faith in Christ is life.”

So what is faith really? Let us unfold it.

More Than Belief: Faith Is Life

Belief accepts truths; faith lives in them. Through faith, the soul already experiences a foretaste of eternal life. It is not only knowing about Christ but living in Christ, receiving His life as our own. Even a mustard seed of faith, if alive, carries within it the power of eternity. As St. John Chrysostom says: 

“Faith gives reality and substance to what is expected; it makes them present to the soul and causes them to be realized in it.”

More Than Trust: Faith Endures

Trust relies on promises, but faith clings to Christ in every storm. St. Ignatius teaches that those who truly believe must “patiently bear cruel temptations” and “accept the pain of sorrows.” Faith is not mere optimism; it is the strength to remain with Christ when trials come. This endurance is itself a miracle of grace — a quiet fire in the soul that outlasts both joy and sorrow.

More Than Saying “I Believe You”: Faith Sees Providence

Words can affirm, but faith interprets reality. St. Ignatius explains that true faith means to ascribe all events to God’s providence. Whether in joy or in grief, success or loss, the faithful heart rests in God’s wise care. Faith looks at the world sacramentally: every circumstance, even painful ones, is part of God’s saving plan.

A Deep Relationship: Love, Obedience, Humility, and Union

At its heart, faith is relational, ethical, and mystical. It is a deep relationship with Christ that transforms the whole person.

• Love: Faith awakens love for God and neighbor. As St. Paul says, “faith working through love” (Gal. 5:6) is the true measure of the Christian.
• Obedience: Faith listens to Christ’s commandments. “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15).
• Surrender of ego: Faith is kenosis, self-emptying. It lets go of pride and control so God can reshape us. St. Ignatius insists that true faith immerses the soul in deep humility.
• Desire for union: Faith longs to be one with Christ, sharing His life now and forever. It is not content with moral improvement but hungers for theosis — participation in God’s own life.

This is why in every Liturgy we pray: “Let us commend ourselves and each other, and all our life unto Christ our God.”

Faith and Zeal

Faith is not static; it burns with zeal — the soul’s eager fire toward God.

• St. John Chrysostom: “Faith produces zeal, and zeal produces works.”
• St. Isaac the Syrian: “Zeal for God is a fire in the heart that burns up everything earthly and brings the mind into the presence of God.”

Yet zeal must be rightly guided: true zeal is humble and compassionate, not arrogant or judgmental. Faith gives birth to zeal, and zeal carries faith into action.

Faith as the Spirit’s Indwelling

Faith is not just mental conviction or emotional warmth. St. Paul says: 

“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Cor. 3:16).

 To have faith is to become a living temple.

This is not a passing feeling. The Spirit’s presence is known by His energies: peace, illumination, repentance, love, patience, transformation. The Fathers caution us not to seek feelings in prayer, but God Himself. St. Theophan the Recluse writes: 

“Do not seek feelings in prayer. Seek God Himself. The feelings will come in their own time, as He wills.”

Faith, then, is not primarily emotional but ontological: God dwelling in the soul, making it His temple.

The Fruit of Faith: Transformation and Power

Faith that is alive produces fruit. For St. Ignatius and the Fathers, this fruit appears in two ways:

• Hidden miracles: endurance, forgiveness, humility, repentance — the inward resurrection of the soul.
• Manifest miracles: the saints, through faith, healed the sick, raised the dead, cast out demons, and foretold the future. These are not human feats, but God’s power working through those whose hearts are fully surrendered.

Thus, faith is both quiet perseverance and radiant power — the Cross and the Resurrection joined together.

Faith Moves Mountains

Christ says: 

“If you have faith as a mustard seed… nothing will be impossible for you” (Matt. 17:20). 

Faith moves mountains — not by magic, but by aligning our will with God’s. The “mountains” are the obstacles of sin, fear, despair, and even death itself. By persevering in prayer, repentance, and the sacraments, the faithful see these mountains cast into the sea.

The Western Contrast

It is worth noting how faith has been understood differently in the West.

• In much of Western Christianity, faith often became tied to justice, duty, and social welfare — Catholic theology framed works of mercy as “meritorious,” while Protestant traditions often emphasized charity as either a sign of faith or the main expression of Christian life.
• In Orthodoxy, works of mercy are not simply social programs or moral duties but ways of encountering Christ Himself (cf. Matt. 25). They are ascetical, healing the soul from selfishness, and sacramental, extending the Divine Liturgy into daily life.

Thus, while both East and West feed the hungry, Orthodoxy understands faith’s works as part of theosis, not only social ethics.

In the Words of Christ

Jesus Himself gives the most concise summary:

“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live; and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.” (John 11:25–26)

Faith is not only to accept that Christ exists, but to believe in Him so deeply that His life becomes ours, conquering even death.

Conclusion

So what is faith really?

Faith is more than belief, more than trust, more than words. It is life itself — the soul’s union with Christ. It is the foundation of hope, the foretaste of eternal life, the quiet fire of zeal, the indwelling of the Spirit, the humility of surrender, and the power that moves mountains. Faith endures trials, sees all things in providence, and expresses itself in love and obedience. It transforms the believer and, through the believer, the world.

Faith in Christ is not an idea we hold. It is the life of God at work in us.