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Which GodWhich God Do You Prefer?The term God is used a lot by everyone from politicians, priests, ministers, rabbis, as well as us common folks. We use the same term as if it had one special, specific meaning. We all seem to assume that my God is also your God and our understanding of what God is, is universal. Just because 80 percent of us agree there is a God (according to a recent poll), why is it automatically assumed we are referring to the exact same God? There are many names for God, depending on the religion you embrace, but according to the different attributes, we must be referring to different Gods. There is the God of Christianity, the God of Judaism, the God of Islam, and the God as represented by the hundreds of various denominations and sects within each of these major religions. There are hundreds more major religions and sects than I have mentioned and each has a different concept of God and attribute different characteristics to this God. Some will say it is the God of Abraham and Isaac, the God of the Bible. But, is it the God of the Old or New Testament? The God of the Old Testament is portrayed as tribal, vindictive, and jealous while the God of the New Testament is portrayed as universal, kind, and loving. The attributes of God changed. Is this the same God or did the perceptions of the writers change? As if the above weren’t enough, the God of the Roman Catholic Church doesn’t have the same attributes as the God of the Protestants. The God of the Methodists is different from the God of the Southern Baptists. You may say these are all the same God, just being seen in different lights by different minds but how can the same God be so different just because of the religious tenants?. How can we be referring to the same God when we redefine God and endow that deity with differing and sometimes conflicting attributes? We can’t even agree on the gender of God. Christianity favors a male God but why should a supreme being be confined to one gender? Why can’t God be female, male, both, all, or none? You say "Read the Bible; God is the God of the Bible". But all of the Christian-based religions use the Bible as their basis and each denomination interprets the Bible differently. The Bible is even used by terrorist groups such as the Christian Patriots and white supremacist groups to claim that Caucasians in America are the lost tribes of Israel and all other "mud people" should be destroyed so Jesus can return. ("Mud people" are all non- Caucasians.) While I think the Bible has a lot of wisdom, it also causes a lot of problems because there is no one clear meaning to most of it. This is no different from any other well-written book. The reader determines the meaning and, therefore, the Bible can be used to justify anything from murder to genocide or love to hate, depending on the mine-set of the reader. There isn’t a universally accepted litmus test for interpreting the Bible and I really don’t believe there can ever be one. And, if such a litmus test were found, I and many others wouldn’t agree with it or abide by it because religion is an individual thing not a group thing. When I hear the term "God", it is much like hearing the word "car". I immediately know a car is usually a four-wheeled, motorized vehicle but I have no real understanding of which car is actually being described. Without other attributes such as make, model, color, and other specifics, the word car is useless as a description and devoid of real meaning. "God" is also a generic, neutral term for an unspecified, undefined supreme being and its use in our Pledge of Allegiance and imprinted on our money implies an agreement in attributes and definitions that does not exist. Using the term serves only to booster the feeling of superiority of those who desire to believe the term refers exclusively to their "God". While I don’t disagree with the idea and concept of a supreme deity, I do question that each of us are referring to the same deity even when we use the same term. NOTE: Author: Don Miller
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