by Clifford A. Cole
This book is written in the firm conviction that one of the most crucial problems faced by man is that of establishing a sound faith in God. Never has the need for such a faith been more desperate. The turmoil of our times leaves people grasping for some security, yet feeling that so much of what they once thought was solidly nailed down in life is now coming loose. It is our hope that this study will help open the way for the reader to see faith not as something in a little compartment off to one side of life but as the very heart of life itself, sound and real and vibrant.
Faith in God is not some new need of modern man; it is his eternal need. It is the chief responsibility of the Church to establish such a faith upon the earth. If this study helps some persons build their foundations of faith more solidly in Jesus Christ and His Church, then let them reach out a warm, helping hand to others yet adrift.
Faith has two aspects. The first we shall call the passive aspect in which faith is seen as the body of beliefs and assumptions which are passed on by society from generation to generation. The individual who grows up in the faith assimilates and accepts the way of life into which he is born.
The second is the dynamic aspect. Man has agency; he not only accepts the faith of his inherited culture, but he has the power to move out on new frontiers beyond the charted way. In so doing, he may change his culture and direct it toward the Kingdom of God. In this book we have tried to point out the importance of both these aspects.
It is our hope that courageous men and women of our time will arise to grasp the outstretched hand of God, knowing that faith in God is not outgrown; it is the very essence of life itself.
Faith in God is not some new need of modern man; it is his eternal need. It is the chief responsibility of the Church to establish such a faith upon the earth. If this study helps some persons build their foundations of faith more solidly in Jesus Christ and His Church, then let them reach out a warm, helping hand to others yet adrift.
