Is belief a choice?

Do we use volition to determine our beliefs?

Worrying at the question, I came across this:

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/belief/

and now I have a headache.

Originally posted by apathist
Do we use volition to determine our beliefs?

Worrying at the question, I came across this:

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/belief/

and now I have a headache.

Assuming you are talking about spiritual beliefs, as you've posted in here. I'm also assuming therefore that you will be expecting some Biblical angle and explaination.

A personal perspective:
Much depends on our understanding of the word "belief" itself, which is probably why academics can make a web page like the one you linked. Faith is not belief in my opinion, although the two are linked in general understanding and also in Biblical scripture. Faith is God given, belief comes from evidence. However Christians are exhorted to believe, as though it is possible to believe by choice. This can create much confusion. How on earth can I choose to believe something which I don't believe? The difference is faith, and this is what an atheist might call wishful thinking, delusion, self-deception. Deliberate unbelief certainly hinders faith; meaning that if God gives some insight (for want of a better word) to his being and the person flatly rejects it due to a firmly held counter-belief, then that insight, will die. Faith grasps it and provides the recipent traction to move forward into belief expressed as a change in behaviour, change in world view etc.

Originally posted by apathist
Do we use volition to determine our beliefs?

How else would you explain Messianic Jews?

I don't think anyone can choose or decide to believe something that they find unbelievable.

I believe so.

Originally posted by apathist
Do we use volition to determine our beliefs?

Worrying at the question, I came across this:

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/belief/

and now I have a headache.

We are creatures of faith. I once nearly fell into a hole in the ground that was covered over
in tundra while hiking in Alaska. The ground looked solid, I take steps on it all the time
walking in faith that it is hard and will support me. We go out to our cars believing they will
start, but they don't always, we take the words of people we trust or believe in. We live our
lives making he best choices we can on all topics where the unknown is there. If it is right
by you estimation you may go down a good path or a bad one, but odds are you will go
down one.

Originally posted by KellyJay
We are creatures of faith. I once nearly fell into a hole in the ground that was covered over in tundra while hiking in Alaska.

If you had seen the hole first, would you have been able to choose to believe it wasn't there and try and walk over it?

Originally posted by KellyJay
We go out to our cars believing they will start, but they don't always...

If your car doesn't start, can you choose to believe it has?

Originally posted by apathist
Do we use volition to determine our beliefs?

I would say 'it depends'.
I think that when we lack sufficient evidence to decide either way, we can choose to believe something (or at least act like we believe it) but often retain the knowledge that we could be wrong.
I think that in many cases we can choose to want to believe something and then over time force ourselves into believing it.
There are a number of examples of case where we might believe something because the alternative seems undesirable so we simply refuse to think about the possibility of the alternative. For example you may have reason to think your spouse is cheating on you but refuse to even consider it.
I have also often heard theists say something along the lines of 'I could not believe in a God that would (insert bad deed) '.

Originally posted by apathist
Do we use volition to determine our beliefs?

Worrying at the question, I came across this:

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/belief/

and now I have a headache.

Belief is required for things you can't prove.

Then there are things you think are facts but later learn are not facts at all.

Belief is the glue that helps you make sense of the world around you. Without it, facts would be meaningless, assuming you can even prove their veracity.

In short, you could not function without belief, so you must create something to believe in to make sense of the world around you. In this regard, it is not a choice, but what is a choice is the type of belief you have..

I have no "belief" and I function just fine.

Originally posted by Great King Rat
I have no "belief" and I function just fine.

According to who? 🙂

Originally posted by Great King Rat
I have no "belief" and I function just fine.

The fact that you say you function just fine is a belief.

You have assigned value to your present perceived state of being and said it is "fine" the way it is..

For all you know you could drop dead today and/or your life has been a complete waste of time up till now.

Originally posted by KellyJay
According to who? 🙂

According to myself of course.

Originally posted by whodey
The fact that you say you function just fine is a belief.

You have assigned value to your present perceived state of being and said it is "fine" the way it is..

For all you know you could drop dead today and/or your life has been a complete waste of time up till now.

We seem to have a different idea concerning to meaning of the word "belief".

Why do you say my life has been a waste of time? What time has been wasted?