God Is

This past Sunday I had the honor of being the guest speaker at Harmony Fellowship of Fort Worth.  As I sat in the sanctuary awaiting the start of the service, my focus was drawn to the message that is posted on the front wall above the platform.  In large beautifully scripted letters are the words, “God is…”  I contemplated those words and assumed that they are the beginning of a phrase which each one is invited to complete for themselves.  It was a present reminder of how each of us defines ‘God’ in our own way, and how our concept of ‘God’ greatly impacts every area of our lives, at times enriching it, and at other times confounding it.  To some, ‘God’ as a concept can provide comfort and peace of mind in times of need.  To others, ‘God’ can also create much suffering.  ‘God’ can stimulate a great deal of pain and guilt for one who has learned that God judges and punishes. 

Over the past few years I have participated in discussions within our Unity of Arlington community about ‘God’ and the use of the word ‘God.’ One person said, “I do not believe in God: I am an atheist.”  Another said, “I am agnostic: I do not believe that any person can know the cause of reality without firsthand experience; therefore, there is no way to know if ‘God’ exists.”  Still another questioned, “If we are not talking about the big guy up in heaven somewhere that is controlling everything, the God of most Christians’ understanding, and we have a more evolved understanding of what it is, why do we still use the word ‘God’: Why not use ‘Life’ or some other word?” 

While it is just a word and as all words are, is used to represent a concept, the word ‘God’ is imbued with centuries of meaning, not all of it in alignment with what we teach in Unity.  When one, such as I, has been indoctrinated in a religion that uses ‘God’ to judge, punish and abuse, he or she often has a mental and emotional imprinting of the word that is not conducive to feeling centered or inspired when hearing ‘God’ spoken in the spiritual community.  There was a time in the not so distant past when I chose not to use the word ‘God’ and was often disturbed when I heard others use it, especially those in Unity or other New Thought communities.   And, while I now use the word freely, I completely understand that it can be disconcerting and even confounding for some.  I am sure it can be for them much like it is for me when I go back to a Baptist church service; I find myself reinterpreting nearly everything that the minister says, as well as all the hymn lyrics.  It can be tiring and trying.

When I use the word ‘God’ today I am certainly not referring to the God of my childhood, a man with a white beard and white robes sitting up in heaven somewhere judging me and everyone else and most likely damning me to eternity in hell because I do not measure up to his criteria for admittance to heaven.  When I say ‘God’ I am not referring to a being or beings; and while I do not consider myself an atheist, neither do I subscribe to theism.  I am, instead, to the best of my ability giving voice to that which is ineffable. 

After further consideration, perhaps the words on the wall at Harmony Fellowship are not the beginning of a phrase, but a complete sentence.  The ‘God’ of my understanding today is not noun, pronoun nor verb: God is.  God is “no thing,” yet is All.  God is the Essence of all that is real.  As Unity co-founder, Charles Fillmore stated, “God is the eternal verity of the universe and humankind.”

Our concepts of ‘God’ are worthy of further consideration and exploration.  I hope you will join us this Sunday as we go “Back to Basics” and explore ‘God’ and “God is….” from a Unity perspective.