Guest Post: Is God for Everyone?
by Andreas
Since Tim is being studious, covered in economics; a guest post seemed like a good idea.
And since I (and other readers) know what Tim will write about next, I think it would be a good idea for me to modestly act like a focused fuel towards an issue not mentioned much in previous posts, but I’m sure will be important for future ones.
My question is simple and unoriginal: Is God for everyone?
Not being a professional psychologist, my ability to answer the question relies on recreational reading and personal experience. Psychology seems to show that some people are more likely to form a relation to something like the Judeo-Christian God, depending on their life experience, upbringing, culture etc. This is repeatedly verified by our everyday experience, perhaps most clearly when we notice the approach to religion by our peers who are without a religious upbringing.
This tendency shouldn’t come as a surprise to us. We have no problem imagining that people who are seeking a meaningful worldview will be likely to search for the traditional mono-theistic God, depending on the geographical location of their native town. Of course a lot could be said about whether Christianity could hold as an existential lifestyle for, let’s say, the whole population of India. Some Hindu converts show that it is possible, but will it for the majority of people be a better way to conquer anxiety and achieve meaning than their native religion, which so deeply rooted in their culture and therefore the unconscious parts of their minds? This should also bring up the question of whether Christianity could have the status of being the best religion for everyone and deserving it based solely on pragmatism (its ability to conquer anxiety and achieve meaning). But perhaps an even more important for those in the west, is if Christianity is to be preferred above non Christian systems of living during a time when people lack the ability to take religion with the seriousness it deserves (this possible cry for new religious symbols in Christianity is notoriously used in the works of theologian John Shelby Spong).
Just how theists might feel threatened by the existence of non-believers, I find it quite obvious that the opposite also holds. Therefore the very existence of Christianity could actually produce more anxiety and a deeper feeling of meaninglessness in people. This might be positive in the light of Gods plan trying to draw people closer to him by making people dependent on him, but what if Christianity is false?
My entry has a lot of loose ends and they are not very detailed. Now let’s just hope that Tim could help us sort some of them out.
Since Tim is being studious, covered in economics; a guest post seemed like a good idea.
And since I (and other readers) know what Tim will write about next, I think it would be a good idea for me to modestly act like a focused fuel towards an issue not mentioned much in previous posts, but I’m sure will be important for future ones.
My question is simple and unoriginal: Is God for everyone?
Not being a professional psychologist, my ability to answer the question relies on recreational reading and personal experience. Psychology seems to show that some people are more likely to form a relation to something like the Judeo-Christian God, depending on their life experience, upbringing, culture etc. This is repeatedly verified by our everyday experience, perhaps most clearly when we notice the approach to religion by our peers who are without a religious upbringing.
This tendency shouldn’t come as a surprise to us. We have no problem imagining that people who are seeking a meaningful worldview will be likely to search for the traditional mono-theistic God, depending on the geographical location of their native town. Of course a lot could be said about whether Christianity could hold as an existential lifestyle for, let’s say, the whole population of India. Some Hindu converts show that it is possible, but will it for the majority of people be a better way to conquer anxiety and achieve meaning than their native religion, which so deeply rooted in their culture and therefore the unconscious parts of their minds? This should also bring up the question of whether Christianity could have the status of being the best religion for everyone and deserving it based solely on pragmatism (its ability to conquer anxiety and achieve meaning). But perhaps an even more important for those in the west, is if Christianity is to be preferred above non Christian systems of living during a time when people lack the ability to take religion with the seriousness it deserves (this possible cry for new religious symbols in Christianity is notoriously used in the works of theologian John Shelby Spong).
Just how theists might feel threatened by the existence of non-believers, I find it quite obvious that the opposite also holds. Therefore the very existence of Christianity could actually produce more anxiety and a deeper feeling of meaninglessness in people. This might be positive in the light of Gods plan trying to draw people closer to him by making people dependent on him, but what if Christianity is false?
My entry has a lot of loose ends and they are not very detailed. Now let’s just hope that Tim could help us sort some of them out.
posted by Timothy at 9:19 PM
5 Comments:
Stress, worry and so forth are sometimes a sign of the times. For a free MP3 that really helps release the presure and anxiety, go to www.mindmint.com. Use their pull down menu under free downloads. Thanks for the blog.
Nice post Andreas. I have felt the same way. The last thing you brought up about Christianity increasing anxiety is perhaps a bit to radical, but interesting.
/Chris
Fear and stress go hand in hand. Thanks for the blog and take a look or should I say, try the free MP3 subliminal at www.innertalk.com/mp3.html#free because it really works for me.
I like your blog, I have put a link to it from my own. Hope you don't mind.
Interesting topic. What I think is interesting is that God gave us free will, to believe, or to not believe. We, as humans would anxiety and stress in our lives regardless of other people being of faith and those who are not. We have anxiety and stress just because there are Other people.
just a thought,
Cheers, Nathan.
Hey guys, sorry for the lack of updates, when study gets strenuous this blog is the first thing that gets put on the backburner. I will, however, write a new post next week.
At the moment I am going to divert from my recent posts on meaninglessness, and maybe do something else, whatever i want to write at the time i guess.
Cheers for the link on your site nathan, next week i will most likely put your blog on my list.
Post a Comment
<< Home