August 15

On Faith: Definition of

“The old writers, who are by far the most sensible—for you will notice that the books that were written about two hundred years ago, by the old Puritans, have more sense in one line than there is in a page of our new books, and more in a page than there is in a whole volume of our modern divinity—the old writers tell you, that faith is made up of three things: first knowledge, then assent, and then what they call affiance, or the laying hold of the knowledge to which we give assent, and making it our own by trusting in it.” (107.2)

“It is one of the most notable points about faith that it is sanctified common-sense. That is not at all a bad definition of faith.” (1421.369)