Epistle to the San Franciscans

Epistle to the San Franciscans

Exploring the Depths of God

Americans overwhelmingly believe in God. However, it is not clear that we overwhelmingly think about that belief – what it means, whether it is credible and its consequences for everyday life. For Christians, however, an unreflective faith is not possible if we take seriously the injunction to love God with the mind as well as the heart and soul. A faith immune to open and self-critical reflection is not a Christian faith, nor is it an authentic standpoint for any Christian who acknowledges the biblical insistence that we should “be prepared to give a reason for the faith” that guides our lives.

The ASLC Adult Discussion Group is examining the question “What does a Christian Believe?” Many of us have held our individual beliefs for so long that we no longer appreciate Why we hold these beliefs. The following statements present some unorthodox beliefs that may challenge us out of our complacency. They are stated as though they are dogma – an established belief or doctrine thought to be authoritative, and not to be disputed, doubted or diverged from – but they are not.

The following points are exerpted from Chapter 4 of “What Does A Progressive Christian Believe?” by Delwin Brown.

“ Many Christians view God as the all-powerful ruler of the universe whose will controls the direction of human life, the development of history, and the destiny of the entire creation. God is the cosmic monarch. Whatever happens, good or evil, is caused or permitted by this God in “his” infinite wisdom.

There may be temporary comfort in believing that everything is determined, or at least permitted by God, but there is also puzzlement and moral distress. One puzzle is why, if all that happens is in accord with the will of God, we should try as diligently as we do to make things better. Why seek to improve upon the course of events that accord with the will of God? Or, if God has ordained that we should seek improvements on the things that “he” has caused or permitted, why did God cause or permit them in the first place?

This puzzle leads to great personal anguish when it is coupled with the belief that this all-powerful monarch is good and loving. Why, indeed, would a loving God bring about, or even allow, the wasteful destruction that besets nature, history, and every human life? Surely an omnipotent God could, and, if loving, would, end, or at least diminish, the wanton brutality all around us.

The development of belief in a monarchial God emerged in the ancient world when powerful rulers arose to impose order and protect their subjects. These developments were deemed to be good. Since it soon became apparent that no human ruler is absolutely good, the equation of absolute good and absolute power was made to a divine ruler – God.

Many Christians have wrestled in the depths of their souls with the question that arises from this view of God: “Why, if God is all-powerful and good, is there so much utterly pointless evil in the world?”

There is another understanding of God – the view that God is incarnate – that God has descended into human form on earth. This view can not be proven; it can only be tested against everyday realities for its adequacy as a guide to living in the world.

The fulcrum of this faith is belief in a God who is fully in and with the world. The world is God’s place, its processes are the means through which God works, its destiny and that of the divine are intertwined. There is no one way to think about the incarnate God. However, if you begin with the conviction that love is the fundamental character of God, then everything else that is said must be compatible with saying that God is love. God is intimately connected to the world, caring for it, and committed to its good. God makes a real difference in the world, and the world makes a real difference in God. The key element of love to be considered is the vulnerability that it entails. God is vulnerable; the life of God is a dynamic process that is affected by the world. The joys in our personal lives are joys to God, and God suffers in our suffering as well.

The vulnerability of a loving God leads us away rapidly from the concept of a cosmic monarch. A God who is open to the world can not do everything that God might wish to do, and to know everything that God might wish to know. The process of the world in which God is incarnate are characterized by an element of contingency or chance. Further, it is a world in which humans are in some measure free agents who make choices. The autonomy of human beings is not and can not be abrogated by God. Instead of absolute power, God interacts with the world through the persuasive influence of love. This means that, at any given point in time, the future is to some degree open, unclear, undecided, indeterminate.

Christian faith is experiential, as well as conceptual. God impacts Christians’ lives as a divine guide. The call to repent and move away from self-centeredness and towards justice is an experience of God. God is also experienced as a presence, an immediacy that is intrinsically valuable, valuable simply for its being-with-us. A gripping experience of nature is an experience of the God incarnate in nature. An experience of communing with other individual is an experience of the God incarnate in human relationships. God is experienced as a mystery – there is an inexplicable power that affects us in the forms of healing.

Our concept of God is always an interpretation, never a straightforward description of what is there for all to see. The “absolutizing”of religious belief is a sign of fear, a desperate attempt to hide the fact that our fundamental orientations toward life are always interpretative adventures, always a risk.”

In my opinion, if people "absolutize" a religion, there is absolutely no need for dialogue i.e." I'm right. If you don't agree with me in every aspect, you are wrong. QED"

Absolutism in religion led to The Crusades, The Protestant Reformation, the Spanish Inquisition, Al Quaida, and the Taliban. Absolutism is the scourge of religion.

I think people who pray to God to stop a flood (or to cause a flood to punish sinners) are only deluding themselves with a false sense of control over inherently random processes.

To some people this gives a sense of comfort, because I think the most terrifying concept in the world is the realization that much of existence is inherently random, and that repeating a cause will not guarantee an identical effect. I think this is a remnant of primitive society's attempts to establish some control over the humanly uncontrollable e.g. throw a virgin into the volcano so the volcano god will not erupt. Today many people try to "be a good person" either cause they are trying to earn their way into heaven, or they want to ward off disasters in their own lives. Wearing a scapular around your neck or lighting a candle or saying the rosary will not prevent you from getting hit by a truck while crossing the street. God doesn't micro-manage!

I don't believe God created everything as described in of Genesis. (Even Genesis does not agree with Genesis on how God created everything.) He may have set up processes for the creation and for the evolution of both the universe and of life, but God doesn't micro-manage!

I think the concept of God is solely a human experience I.e. I don't think dogs have an awareness of God, nor do inanimate, yet dynamic systems such as tornadoes and hurricanes.

As far as holding God responsible for human suffering, consider The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism - (from Wikipedia):
1. Life as we know it ultimately is or leads to suffering (dukkha) in one way or another.
2. Suffering is caused by craving or attachments to worldly pleasures of all kinds. This is often expressed as a deluded clinging to a certain sense of existence, to selfhood, or to the things or phenomena that we consider the cause of happiness or unhappiness.
3. Suffering ends when craving ends, when one is freed from desire. This is achieved by eliminating all delusion, thereby reaching a liberated state of Enlightenment (bodhi);
4. Reaching this liberated state is achieved by following the path laid out by the Buddha.
Buddhists believe that suffering is not caused by some external power (God) but by one's own personal craving.

I do not maintain that God has no power. (What is the difference between God and Superman? God has a big G on his chest.) The God you seem to be looking for is the God of the ancient Israelites (and of many modern Christians) - a God to be feared else he will wreak destruction upon you. The God of the ancient Israelites did not establish a covenant with them - he made them an offer they couldn't refuse - You keepa my commandments or I kicka you ass!

One of the earliest Christian sects (later determined to be heretics ) were the Marcionites. They believed there were two different Gods, the Jewish God who created the world, made Israel his people, and gave them his Law;
and the God of Jesus, who came into the world to deliver people from the vindictive creator and law-giving God of the Jews. The God of the Old Testament seems to be on a power trip - demonstrating his physical powers so that the people would fear him, worship him, obey him. The God of the Old Testament lives apart from his people - they cannot even view his countenance without dying (Remember what happened to the Nazi in Raiders of the Lost Ark).

The natural order of things, under either evolution or the God of The Old Testament is survival of the fittest. Creatures are born they feed, they grow, they reproduce, they die. Those who are weak or injured or slow are known as 'prey" and they die sooner. Creatures who put their own survival first live longer. Greed is good. You see this among humans in the Afgani society - me against my brothers, me and my brothers against my cousins, me and my cousins against my clan, me and my clan against other clans, etc.

In a sense I am a neo-Marcionite. The God of the ancient Israelites is irrelevant to me. The God of the New testament is with us. He exerts his power, not by controlling us, not by demanding worship, praise and sacrifices, but a lot more subtly by quietly urging us to follow his example by sacrificing our own selfish impulses for the good of others. Do not underestimate the power of The Two Great Commandments:
“And one of them, a doctor of the Law, putting him to the test, asked him, "Master, which is the great commandment in the Law?" Jesus said to him, "'Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind.' This is the greatest and the first commandment. And the second is like it, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.' On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:35-40)
And what is the extent of this love?:
“John 15:12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”"Love" means a whole lot more than a list of specific "Thou shalt nots" - it means that you will actively not put your own self interest above those of your neighbors.
It means that you will you will reach out and help another, not because by doing so that you will earn your way into heaven (unless you are willing to take John 15:13 to its extreme), and not because by doing so you will avert catastrophe being wreaked upon you, or that you will "buy" yourself good fortune and prosperity.
It means that you will you will reach out and help another simply because they need help and you have the capability to help them.
And it means that you will do so out of your own free will because you love God and you appreciate that he loves you.
Can an atheist perform the same actions without the motivation of loving God? Sure, but that does not mean that God is not subconsciously whispering in his ear and exerting his subtle power to influence love rather than hate.
This ability to choose to love your neighbor - to choose "good" actions over "evil" actions is what distinguishes human beings from animals.
Predator animals are neither good nor evil - they are merely surviving. Predator humans are evil because they have chosen to be evil.
If we lived in a perfect world all of our needs and desires would have been already fulfilled, and we would have neither opportunity nor motive to choose to love our neighbor.
Would we then be human? God has delegated to us the power to be human.
Does this mean he has no other power?
What are you looking for as a manifestation of God's power?
Do you expect your own full time "guardian angel" to keep you from stubbing your toe?
Or do you need to be shown "magic tricks" in order to believe the power of God. Parting the Red Sea? Walking on Water? A plague of locusts?
Or can you look within yourself for examples of God's power of love working?
Quasi-Scientific “Proof” of the Existence of God

In contemporary particle physics, theory leads to the postulation of sub-atomic “particles” that are too minute to be observed directly. Instead, their existence is proven by observing the effects of their existence. If such-and-such particle exists, then it will have thus-and-such effect, and if we can observe this effect then such-and-such must exist.

The test for the existence of a Cosmic Architect (God) is this: If a design is to be created, the designer must convey information (plans, specifications, etc.) In information theory, this information is known as the signal.

From direct observation of the universe we are aware of the existence of a great deal of pure randomness, called noise. Over a long period of time, there will be a great deal of activity, but no overall change in the mean (average).

Contemporary physics postulates that the universe began as a uniformly distributed primordial soup i.e. pure noise. Over eons of time the various particle of mass/energy coalesced into universes, galaxies, solar systems, planets, etc. Because of this effect, there must be an underlying signal in the noise. Similarly, over billions and billions of years, life evolved on earth from the primordial ooze, through single-cell life, yada-yada-yada, to man. Now if there were a strong signal-to-noise ratio, this could have occurred in seven days, as Genesis maintains, but the length of time for this evolution to occur implies a weak-signal-to-noise ratio that is not directly observable. Strong signal-to-noise ratio implies a deterministic, almost error free time line. If you observe enough past occurrences, you can figure out the equations and predict all future behavior. Weak signal-to-noise ratio implies a non-deterministic future in which randomness (i.e. The Butterfly Effect) has a major impact on the future, so that specific events can not be predicted. Observation of the universe indicates that the existence of a weak signal-to-noise ratio (at least over the current observation period) i.e God Exists, but God Co-exists with randomness. God is neither omnipotent nor omniscient, but this does not imply that God is weak or ignorant. QED

Next – is God good and loving? I suggest that good and loving are not absolute identities, but good/evil and loving/indifference, like beauty/ugliness are yin/yang observables whose existence is relative to each observer. Exodus says that God ordered the Israelites to slaughter the inhabitants of Jericho. This event was good for the Israelites but evil for the Jerichoans. If God’s plan benefits us, we conclude that God is good; if it harms us we conclude either that God is evil, or that we have motivated God to vindictiveness by our actions (sins.) (And isn’t the latter rather presumptuous on our part – God will “obey’ us!)

Third – what is the point of prayer and worship? Thinking selfishly, if God is not all powerful, good and loving, what do we get out of it? Jumping back to communications theory, there are two sources of noise external (universe) noise and internal (receiver) noise. Perhaps the effect of prayer and worship is not to modify God’s behavior, but to modify our own – to suppress our internal noise, to quiet things, so that we can decode God’s message with fewer errors. Perhaps this is why we experience God more clearly during serene experiences – on a mountaintop, in a vast desert, during meditation. We need quiet, open space to absorb God’s energy. Buddhists maintain that the only meaningful change comes from within. Is the Buddhist tenet that the root cause of all suffering is selfishness all that different from Jesus’ precept to love your neighbor as yourself?

Lastly, consider this from http://deoxy.org/h_bohm.htm :
“Every cubic centimeter of empty space contains more energy than the total energy of all the matter in the known universe.”
“Michael Talbot and David Bohm in The Holographic Universe, Chapter 2: The Cosmos as Hologram, p.51
According to our current understanding of physics, every region of space is awash with different kinds of fields composed of waves of varying lengths. Each wave always has at least some energy. When physicists calculate the minimum amount of energy a wave can possess, they find that every cubic centimeter of empty space contains more energy than the total energy of all the matter in the known universe!
Space is not empty. It is full, a plenum as opposed to a vacuum, and is the ground for the existence of everything, including ourselves. The universe is not separate from this cosmic sea of energy, it is a ripple on its surface, a comparatively small "pattern of excitation" in the midst of an unimaginably vast ocean. "This excitation pattern is relatively autonomous and gives rise to approximately recurrent, stable and separable projections into a three-dimensional explicate order of manifestation," states Bohm.[12]
In other words, despite its apparent materiality and enormous size, the universe does not exist in and of itself, but is the stepchild of something far vaster and more ineffable. More than that, it is not even a major production of this vaster something, but is only a passing shadow, a mere hiccup in the greater scheme of things.”Think about it! Empty Space is the ground for the existence of everything! Maybe that's why empty space is so sacred - it is where God resides, and we are merely figments of His imagination!

Ask Not What God Can Do For You; Instead, Ask What You Can Do For God

People are sometimes disappointed when their prayers are seemingly unanswered, and they conclude that either God does not exist, or that he does not love them, or that he is powerless.

They overlook the simple answer - God is not Santa Claus. Every good little boy does not get a shiny new bicycle at Christmas, and every good little girl does not get a pony.

Many prayers and worship follow the same "Gimme" format:

You are so great!
You are so clever!
You are so talented!
I love you!
I adore you!
Gimme {Insert Desire Here}

Since this approach usually does not work on your wife, who loves you, why are men constantly amazed and disappointed when God responds the same way?
The lack of response does not mean that God does not love you, nor that God is incapable of fulfilling your request. It simply means that God has other items on Her agenda (Perhaps She has a headache!)

Jesus initially prayed that he not be sacrificed, but when those prayers went unanswered, he eventually prayed for the strength to persevere. Perhaps our prayers should follow the same pattern. Instead of "Gimme" prayers asking that the world be altered to suit us, perhaps we should be asking for the wisdom, courage, strength and love to persevere through whatever the world deals us. Instead of praying for God to perform miracles to tend to the needy, the homeless, the destitute, the incurably ill, perhaps we should pray to God for guidance, motivation, and means to tend to these tasks ourselves. Perhaps then we would realize that our prayers are being answered.


God vs. The Existence of Pain

“It is one thing to pray for new Lexus and not get one; it is quite another to pray for relief from agonizing pain. Certainly you would have to be delusional to expect a new Lexus, unless maybe you belong to Joel Osteen's Prosperity Church. However, the pain issue is totally different. Any god who would allow such pain is either sadistic and the equivalent of a terrorist or powerless.” The short answer is that pain exists, despite the existence of God, because The Kingdom of God is not yet with us. John the Baptist, Jesus, St. Paul and John of the Book of Revelation all were apocalyptic preachers. Their message was things may be tough now, but hang in there baby, the Kingdom of God is nigh, and everything will be perfect then. Problem is, their perspective of “everything” and “nigh” was a bit (excuse the term ) “parochial.”

Going “quasi-scientific” on you once again, the universe is a really, really big place and it has existed for a really, really long time. Two “forces” account for the existence of the universe as we know it. One is the force of randomness, or chaos, which is indifferent to pain and suffering. The other is consciousness, or God, which seeks order and perfection, a result of which pain and suffering will cease. Now God may (or may not) be infinitely powerful (infinity is a difficult concept to grasp for us humans) but God also has an infinite area of responsibility, and an infinite amount of time to act. As a result God’s power is spread pretty thin at any particular point and time. In an analogy I used before of Signal-to-Noise ratio, at any given time the God-to-Chaos ratio is pretty, pretty low. From our human perspective, God will probably not achieve his goal of perfection anytime soon, and almost certainly not in our lifetime, as John the Baptist, Jesus, St. Paul and John of the Book of Revelation all expected. This is not God’s problem; this is a problem of our very, very limited perspective.

Now, if you and I are not going to experience The Kingdom of God on earth during our lifetime, what hope is there for us? Because all of the arguments about the existence or non-existence of a good God boil down to “Is there hope for us as individuals or not?” This is where the promise of the resurrection and of eternal life offers us hope. We are not going to see the cessation of pain and the establishment of perfection in the microcosm of our earthly existence. But eternity is a long, long, long time and over that time scale God will achieve his goal, which we humans have named “Heaven”.

So, what does this have to do with the effectiveness of prayer? Earlier I stated:

“People are sometimes disappointed when their prayers are seemingly unanswered, and they conclude that God does not exist or that he does not love them or that he is powerless.”

While prayers for the immediate cessation of pain may seem to be unanswered, this does not necessarily lead to any of the above conclusions, and while I may not have “proved” my thesis with the argument above, I think it is plausible, if not convincing.

Incarnate
Last Sunday in Adult Discussion we had a brief discussion of the meaning of the concept incarnate, as in:

“There is another understanding of God – the view that God is incarnate – that God has descended into human form on earth. This view can not be proven; it can only be tested against everyday realities for its adequacy as a guide to living in the world.”

A that time I had difficulty grasping the concept of incarnate – I could read the words, but I did not understand what they meant. Here is what I now think “incarnate” means to us.

“Incarnate” means that God is with us in the sense that he is not off somewhere else (Heaven?) controlling things. God will work with us – humanity – in alleviating our pain and suffering, but he will not do the job for us. He has endowed us with the capability to solve our own problems, and he wants us to grow up and to use that capability.

Those who ask: “If God is both good and all-powerful, why is there so much pain and suffering here?” are still waiting for the “real” Messiah to show up, not that Jesus fellow who was claimed to be The Messiah two-thousand years ago. The “real” Messiah they are waiting for would not have been born in a stable, would not have been an itinerant preacher, would not have suffered and died an ignomious death. No, the “real” Messiah would have been one the Israelites were expecting – a successor to King David who would have arrived at the head of an invincible army and defeated all foes. The “real” Messiah would be that “Son of Man” who that Jesus fellow said was coming. When the “real” Messiah arrives, we – humanity – will not have to exert any effort, for all our pain and suffering will miraculously dissappear, and everything we desire will be given to us.

Could be. But what if God has a different plan for humanity? What if God wants us to grow to be more self-reliant? To work in partnership with God? What if God considers our existence on Earth to be “basic training” for his ultimate plan for us? What if God decided to set a leadership example for us, and Jesus is that “follow me” guy? If we want to eliminate the suffering of cancer, then we – humanity – must find the cure, not depend on God to miraculously cure all cancer victims. If we want to eliminate the suffering of starvation, we can not depend on God to miraculously provide food for all, but humanity must share some of the bounty we enjoy. If we want to eliminate the suffering of war, then humanity must learn to love our neighbors, rather than to pray to God to smite the oppressors.

And yes, the suffering is not equally distributed among all. The rain falls on both the just and the unjust. And “goodness” is no guarantee that an individual (or his loved ones) will not suffer. For the lesson God is trying to teach us is not “Do good and thou shalt be rewarded,” but rather “Love thy neighbor as thyself!” This is what incarnate means – God is with us, leading us, cajoling us, but not performing miracles while we sit idly by.