God's Limits? - An Item In One Of My Journals

[VickySGV]

I found this following entry in some of my older personal journal stuff and clearly remembered the time it talks about, kinda fits in with some of what I see going on around us recently. Enjoy and comment, it is meant to be loving and humorous.

"One Sunday back in my pre-teen years, an event occurred that has shaped my own views on religion ever since. I was in a Sunday School class and the teacher declared in class that “God was omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent.” Unlike most of my fellow students, I was not put into a state of awe by the words themselves. I was the worst of all types of Sunday School student; I was one who was ahead of the general group in reading and vocabulary skills. To me the words were old friends whose meaning was clear and concise. What they did that day was to pad out a twenty minute lesson by the teacher who took delight in impressing my fellow students with the definitions of the new polysyllables they could use on “non-believing” victims during the week. I was getting bored, but still the teacher bored on.

The argument began in the parking lot when I simply reported to my mom and dad that the teacher had taught us that God was all powerful, all knowing and was always present. One of my fellow students from the class was with his parents who were gossiping with mine, and HE was the authority who told my parents what the teacher had really said about God. I was wrong, wrong, wrong!! As was age appropriate, I could not let the name calling go by, and while I cannot remember the polysyllables that I threw back at him (several were synonyms for “imbecile”), the four parents terminated their conversation and almost literally threw us into the cars at that point.

Contrary to what it may have seemed, the entire concept of omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence did impress me no matter what words were used. I was able to fit the concept of God’s attributes into either set of words, and in fact, many others, and it made sense then and still is one of my own core beliefs. The shaping problem for me came in later weeks, when it puzzled me to find out that: “God won’t ever be in a place like that” “God would never know anything about that, it’s the devil that does it”, and what God had no power to do!! All of this was taught while the people still proclaimed that “God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent.”

At that formative age, I learned that even the nicest and supposedly most learned members of my church had shortcomings about really making the best sense when they were teaching us about religion. I learned that “words” had meaning in church that they did not have in the secular world. It was blasphemy at worst and troubling at least to use a non-church word to define or explain a church word or belief. Only if you had studied for your whole life, and had been subject to the required number of church rituals could you attempt to use words other than the church words in church. It did not make sense to me then, and nothing has changed that over the years.

The other lesson I learned was that too many people have a tendency to make God in an image that suits their purpose and level of comfort. If they are not comfortable in a bar or had a parent who drank too much in one, God cannot be in the bar and cannot even get the door to one open. God has no knowledge of what slow dancing can be like, especially if it evokes erotic thoughts in your daughter’s boyfriend while he and she are on the dance floor. If a church ritual has been performed and the boyfriend is now the daughter’s husband, then God knows infinitely more, and has a “divine purpose” for the same thoughts that were TROUBLE at the boyfriend stage. It is truly amazing that the church can impart so much knowledge to God merely by holding a ceremony in the church building. Astounding!!

Secretly, I held to my own belief that God did indeed know considerably more than people gave Him credit for. I also had a sneaky thought that God was in what many people considered to be the WORST places that humanity could create. (Including other belief's worship centers.) God’s power could also hold elements of capricious humor, as when I observed badly damaged churches during several earthquakes, and the nearest bars down the street from them that did not have a single broken bottle. It would have been “God’s righteous and wrathful power” had the bars gotten the worst, but the churches’ being hit was “God’s Will working in strange and un-knowable ways (translated to God didn’t do it Himself).” None of this made me cynical, but it has enabled me to lovingly question many beliefs and practices of my religion and to give them a place in my life that I choose, and not places that others tell me I must have them in."

How far back do we really start our ideas? In re-reading this, I have found another piece of an inner puzzle that fits into my current life. God did in fact know of my gender issues then, even though I did not, and was giving me some preparation to meet with them.

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Very very very well written. I agree, it's also a situation where the teachers are taught by teachers that were taught by the teachers that were....... and so on. Christianity is a blessing from the CREATOR(as are other spiritualities and religions). The Creator WILLS US a way to understand the unknowable.

Christianity is a moral and worthy path. But its the so called Christians that are the weak link in Christianity, at I feel that way now after being so utterly rejected by so many. There are very wise Christians (look in the mirror Vicky - grin) and there are very stupid ones. (turn on the television set especially the talk shows). Our challenge in life seems to be to learn to tell the difference.

OF COURSE God knows you (we) are transsexual, or transgender, or gender dysphoric... or whatever He has made for you (us) to carry, to be in this life. He made us all as we are. God does not make mistakes.

God does not make mistakes? HOLD ON HERE... isn't that against this argument? Not really, hear me through if you will.

Here we go...

That said? God never put us here to spend a lifetime at Disneyland! HA! Misery and injustice, and war, and disease... there is no room here to list everything... what the HELL is all that about?

Grin, I use the word HELL on purpose. Like much we are taught it is an invention of sorts. The devil is an invention of sorts. Even God is an invention of sorts - as we all know the Creator has no gender. We can actually use many words for the CREATOR and we actually do that. My path is the Creator in her feminine aspect, The Goddess - but that is another topic (I also believe in Jesus, but not Jesus as God - I am a Uniterian Universalist, actually). Everyone has their own path including the agnostic and the atheist... which ... grin... in my opinion are as much a type of spirituality as anything else called religion.

BUT

Those who teach us, regardless of their path? What is their intent? That is the main question here I think. Are they trying to help us find wisdom and the way through this lifetime (something that is very noble and commendable)? Or are they trying to show their superiority, inferring their interpretations of God is the correct one, and condemning us if we disagree? (Judgmental is the word I am reaching for) In my opinion being judgmental a worse sin than not honoring God - well, wait? Being judgmental IS dishonoring God, right? I think there is the main point of what you wrote.

Teachers claiming “God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent.” Their interpretation, their teaches interpretation, and the teacher before that one, and .. ad nausium.

I suggest this instead:we should say "The Creator is unknowable." And we work to understand our place in the universe, our meaning of life here on earth, our immortal (we hope) soul... all that... through the Creators Grace.

So where is that putting us? We can think of the CREATOR as omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent, sometimes. Sometimes the Creator doesn't even seem interested in us at all. What the HELL is that about? (Remember I don't believe in hell).

But I say this to everyone that I can reach? I talk to the Creator all the time. I KNOW my soul is immortal. I know my body is but a vessel - and I KNOW the damnn vessel is FLAWED!

So why am I here on the earth?... this beautiful place almost beyond understanding itself? Donno - I get only silence when I ask THAT question. I can only conclude it's up to me to figure it out, the meaning of my life. All the joys. All the suffering. All the love. All the hate, so much indifference. All of that day to day stuff.... sigh.

So

Maybe its to help others - that seems to be my fondest endeavor!

I suspect it is a different answer for everyone.

Lizzie

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Vicky - I only picked a part of what you wrote to comment in the above. I especially wanted to say that I agree that there are certain 'church words' that seem to have become 'holy' for some reason. Applying modern day language, or just synonyms to all that, seems to cause the most GOD-Awful controversy (there I go again making fun - sorry). But I think most intelligent people today look for a 'rational' approach to spirituality. Afterall, that is how we personally find our answers. The opinions of thers, while useful as a guide, should NEVER be the final words in our head.

I should end this by saying something like,'that's why God gave us a brain." But {smiling} I am not sure everyone got a brain! This Republican Party attempt to capture so called 'family values" voting block scares the HELL outta me! I mean, maybe that is a radicalism being generated similar to the Islamic religious fever that brought about 9 -11? I hope it never goes that far.

Lizzie