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E-mail StoryValerie Schultz: Whose side is God on?
| Thursday, Jul 3 2008 11:30 AM
Last Updated: Thursday, Jul 3 2008 1:42 PM
Ah, the eternal questions: Is God a Democrat or a Republican? Male or female? A warrior or a peacenik? A Yankees or a Mets fan? Does God say “to-may-to” or “to-mah-to”?
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If God created us in his/her image, what could God possibly look like? And since I pray to the Judeo-Christian God, does that mean that the God of the Hindus or the Muslims or the Buddhists is out to get me?
We all like to think that God is on our side. We also like to feel that we are on God’s good side. But if God is our cheerleader, that must mean that God is booing those who oppose us. After all, God can’t be on everyone’s side. That would not make sense.
In our righteousness, we proclaim that God’s opinions jibe with ours. We are certain that God is of the same political bent as ourselves, and we sift through the Bible for nuggets that justify our claim to God’s favor. In the process, we present a vision of God that is fragmented, partisan, divided. We divvy up God in little divine pieces among us.
And just about every group is guilty. On the left, the actress Sharon Stone recently surmised that China’s May 12 earthquake was due to bad karma.
“I’m not happy about the way the Chinese are treating the Tibetans,” she said, “ … and then I thought, is that karma? When you’re not nice that the bad things happen to you?”
If Stone is right about God being anti-oppressive-governments, why didn’t God send an earthquake to the Third Reich? To the Khmer Rouge? Or, for that matter, to the occupying Romans of 33 A.D.?
On the right, as San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom officiated at a same-sex wedding, a protester predicted, “God is going to destroy this nation, not just … California.” And of course we have heard from Pastor John Hagee that Hurricane Katrina was God’s punishment for a gay pride parade, and from Jerry Falwell that the attacks of Sept. 11 were God’s payback for abortion, feminism, the ACLU and general godlessness.
I don’t know whose side God is on. Like every other human, I have no insight into the mind of God.
I do believe that while God calls us into an intimate, personal relationship, that does not mean that random natural disasters or other cataclysmic events are an indication, or a vindication, that we are God’s favorite. I also believe that we only begin to act according to God’s will when we follow the path outlined in the Gospels, which is pretty much the way of every religion: Treat others with dignity and respect, as you would want to be treated. Honor God, your elders, your children, the earth. Use your gifts for good. Be kind, fruitful, faithful, humble, and just. Love without judgment. Forsake violence. And be careful in assuming that God likes you best.
Opinions expressed are those of Valerie Schultz, not The Californian.