The realization of Holy Faith is a transformation in the very experience of who you are. It is not based on a belief or a conviction; nor is it a memory. It is knowing that there is Essence and that it is one’s inner nature, taken for granted as a given. This faith is a tremendous help on the path because when things get difficult and you’re scared or unhappy, when you are not experiencing Essence and there is no one around to help you connect with it, what keeps you going besides faith? Without faith, it becomes very difficult to continue. The faith has to be real faith, because when you’re terrified, feeling disintegrated, or deeply hurt, a mental belief will not get you through. The true transformation that we call faith gives the soul courage which makes it persevere, because it has the unquestioned certainty that there is true reality and support even though it is not explicitly obvious at that moment. The Spanish Christian mystic, St. John of the Cross, discusses this faith in his writings about the “dark night of the soul.” When you don’t know what is happening and you don’t feel any support, only this faith will keep you going; trying to remember what your teacher said or what you experienced yesterday will not. – Facets of Unity: The Enneagram of Holy Ideas, Ch. 18