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Oh, My God
by Guy Spiro God has had an increasing presence in the media in recent years. Neitzsche proclaimed God is dead, but the report proved to be greatly exaggerated. In recent years, God has been boffo at the box office and said to be as active as ever in the affairs of humanity. While Christianity may be on the wane in Europe, Islamic immigration is bringing him back with a vengeance. Rightwing evangelicals gave a slim majority to the Bush campaign in the U.S. and who knows what brought about His wrath as seen in the tsunami. Fundamentalists of all varieties see the proof of their version of God in current events. American fundies will tell you that it is God’s will that Bush be president. Radical Islamists think God condones beheadings on websites, and all manner of good and bad things in the world are chalked up to God smiling on some or his displeasure with others. It seems that every culture has a creation myth and a view of God. Others’ versions are seen as quaint or primitive or just plain wrong while the version of one’s own culture is correct. It often surprises me that people don’t realize that their creation myth is as much a myth as anyone else’s creation myth. They all are attempts to make some kind of sense out of existence. They all offer much to think about, and they all provide a framework of sorts for dealing with the fact that We Are and It Is. Our approach to the concept of God is much the same. It matters little what culture or religion you were raised in or converted to, whatever version of God you subscribe to, even the atheist who worships at the altar of science, we all are seeking to define the indefinable, to describe the indescribable, and to know the unknowable. All that being said, most of us still need a way to think of and deal with existence. Problems set in when individuals or groups of people seek to impose their version on others. In my years of exploring these ideas, I have evolved my way of seeing things. It pleases me when others agree, but I am accepting of anyone else’s view and certainly of their right to it. Sometimes it’s tempting to be a little smug in thinking that mine is more evolved than someone else’s, but there it is again. We have to remember that we are talking about something we cannot fully understand. How can anyone think that what they believe is right and everyone else is wrong? I have my relationship with my God and I leave you free to have yours. |
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