i'm going to mash two things together here, and then hopefully undo it. i have two friends who told me these two things: (1) "i dont know if im saved", and (2) "there is a value: goodness". now is for the mixing, if you'll just hold on for the ride. some will ask what 'good' is, and that is surely great to do. what is 'good'? in part, it's a value. knowing this goodness or the fact that it exists as valuable, is but another thing to consider. actually, i started /r/originaryChristianity for this pursuit of the value of goodness, if you are ever interested - although, i doubt it.

others will say 'we cannot deny that we exist'. ok, to that, too, i suppose. i can grant the sentiment, though i may quibble about the specific consequences and entailments. both some and others are probably right, as right as one can be, with appraised views on goodness which either let whatever goodness be or seize upon any available goodness. generally, "values" are involved in each investment of this certain type, whether impoverished or indeed capitalized. richly or poorly obtained, conceived, or understood, then, goodness is there.

it's so disjunctive in that those transactions will continue to go "on" by this functional imperative, which is kind of funny to me. thus altogether can people (they are called "christians", in particular) say, without well-formed definition, that without "good works" there is no such salvation awaiting. we are now in the thick of the goodness mixer. so, quite simply for a shorthand of all the above: the 'view' in 'itself', does nothing. all three are good, as applied.

that is to say nothing substantial of faith, but what it does indicate here is that 'belief is not an issue'. in this great mixer of good knowledge, who actually cares to 'believe' 'true' 'things'? what specifically is 'true' about goodness and its value of course involves faith - that is, however, if you're seeking truth. most go for the object of beauty, instead. i don't really blame them anymore, for not caring about it.

here, you can see how it is already more about an 'us/them' negotiation. so, draw a line in the sand wheresoever you want. yes, i understand that you want honesty. in this, i can say that trusting your integrity usually pays off. but you don't seem to be seeking anything truthful to believe about goodness. and that's totally okay, if one is determinately under the sway of such sublime beauties. something else must be going on: you probably just want reassurance that everything will be fine, somehow.

im afraid that i cant provide that guarantee for you, for us. let's so, i am going to leave that negotiation table and let the great mixer do its work. god? is that you? in other words, to recapitulate, what humanity calls "salvation" is not ultimately a state that depends in any way on the mere 'viewing' of it. so, again, (1) i dont know if im saved, for i necessarily lack any effective view by which this knowledge of goodness is seen, let alone authorized in truth. in this way, (2) i can minimally recognize that there is this value, goodness, even if it is wholly unbecoming of me to do so.

perhaps this is sort of what is meant by "faith without works is dead"