I've been thinking over the last couple days about the difference between faith and belief. Somehow, I get the feeling that these are two different things, though they are of course connected.
The way I understand it, belief is basically a cognitive thing, in which you hold that a set of properties, for want of a better word, about the world are true. Belief isn't entirely based on facts. Emotions and biases, which are ingrained emotional predilections towards particular beliefs, can play a big role, as can other beliefs. In fact, social science research has shown that many people won't change their beliefs when presented with evidence to the contrary, for example with global warming deniers. They will make up all kinds of excuses to cling to their beliefs.
Faith, on the other hand, is somewhat trickier. Basically, it seems to me to be a purely emotional thing, a feeling that something feels right, a connection. So it might be part of a romantic relationship, that you have faith that your partner will treat you fairly and so you feel comfortable extending him or her unconditional love. Or it might be part of the relationship you have with a teacher, that you have faith they will guide you well on your path to awakening. For a Christian of course, faith in Jesus is important, that Jesus will stand by them and help them in times of trouble. Or it might, as in Theravada, be part of your relationship with yourself. In Theravada, faith that you have the capacity to wake up is an important part of achieving the confidence to practice meditation, to put in the effort every day needed to walk the path.
Where the two connect seems to me to be when you hold a belief that then leads to faith. This is the classical Christian situation. In order to have faith that Jesus will stand by you in times of trouble, you need to believe that God actually, in some way or another, exists, and that what the New Testament says about Jesus is true. This belief is based on the 2,000 year old teachings of the Church, if you are Catholic, or, if you are fundamentalist, on the teachings in the Bible, or, if you are a charismatic Christian, on your own experience of the Holy Spirit. Similarly, for Theravada Buddhists, if you have faith in your capacity to wake up, you need to believe that waking up is possible. That belief is based on the Pali Canon which contains the Buddha's teachings, that he walked the path and woke up, and therefore you can too. For many Buddhist mediators, their faith in their ability to wake up is based on the experience of actually having done it, and having talked with others who have done it.
Holding a belief that doesn't lead to faith is of course possible and vice versa. You can believe that global warming isn't happening or that it is, and not have any emotional connection to the belief. In that case, the belief is a loosely held view and probably isn't connected to any strong emotion. Faith in people tends to be based on one's experience with them over the years. Experience with a teacher leads to faith in them, without any specific belief, except maybe an acknowledgement of their competence in Dharma.
In the Pali Canon, the Buddha cautions against holding fixed views, in other words, not holding strong beliefs. Not holding strong beliefs seems from the above cited research to be quite contrary to the basic human psychological tendency. In order to get motivated to do something - vote for a political candidate, change jobs to a new company, etc. - you need to have a strong belief that your actions will somehow change your situation or the situation of others. Otherwise, people find it difficult to take action, and if they don't take action, then often a situation continues that really needs to change.
But maybe, instead of strong belief, what you need instead is strong faith in the power of your actions to cause change. Then you can set your intention, take action, and not be attached to the consequences. Naturally, you and others will have to live with the consequences, so it makes a lot of sense to align the intention with wisdom and compassion, rather than greed, hatred, and delusion. In the end, I think all you can do is have faith that your positive intentions will somehow lead to positive results, then act.
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