March 18, 2024 ~ 5th Monday in Lent
[A] personal God can become a grave liability…a mere idol
carved in our own image, a projection of our limited needs, fears and desires.
We can assume that [God] loves what we love and hates what we hate, endorsing
our prejudices instead of compelling us to transcend them.
~ Karen Armstrong*
In an “us and them” world, where do
we place “God” as maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and
unseen**, in the image
of God that we have been given? Is it that there is only one side that God is on? Is it always our side
or their side? At what age do we start thinking about what image of God
we’re holding, praying to, wondering about? How difficult is it really to let
go of any humanized vision of our Creator? Is God in the sun and moon and
stars, the breeze that becomes wind that becomes as tornado, rain that becomes
a flood or a hurricane? Who, What, and How does “God” look like in your mind’s
eye?
Dear God,
Of course you're
on our side ~ don't we always kneel on the
field and pray to You before the game to help our team win? Aren't we
the correct color, political party, gender, sexual orientation, and citizen of
the best country?
For today, I
will give up trying to have You act on my will. I will take on looking more closely for ways to try to discern Your will.
At the very least, I will think more deeply about the teachings of Jesus to
love You with all we have and to love others as ourselves ~ to love them as if they were us
because they and us were ALL
created by You. I will pray for the will and the courage to walk this walk for as long as
I am given and think differently about what image I serve. amen.
*Karen Armstrong [1944 - ] is a British commentator and
renowned author of a multitude of books on quite a breadth and depth
of comparative religion studies. A former Roman Catholic nun,
she has given us such books as A History of God: A 4,000 Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and
Islam; Through the Narrow Gate; and Jerusalem: One City, Three Faiths. Her
work centers around the commonalities across major religions and, in
particular, the importance of the Golden Rule, which spans multiple faith
traditions and Compassion. Her work, research, and authorship has
garnered her ~ among many other awards - the $100,000 TED prize in 2008
with which she started the Charter for Compassion: "A document
that transcends religious, ideological, and national differences. A cooperative
effort to restore compassionate thinking and action to the center of
life." Individuals, groups, and even countries can sign and participate in
this most human quest to develop humanity to its highest ideal. http://charterforcompassion.org/
**From The Nicene Creed: https://www.bcponline.org/
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