MrStakhanovite wrote:Here is my definition of worship:
S is worshiping G if and only if S is expressing maximal deference and reverence towards G.
This definition of worship strikes me as highly intuitive, and falls right in line with the first commandment(s) in the Decalogue that unities the Abrahamic faiths:
Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God [am] a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth [generation] of them that hate me
(Exodus 20: 3-5)
God is to be number one in your life, nothing gets priority over God, and if God is the maximally greatest being, this makes sense. But if God isn’t the maximally greatest being, is it right to worship God?
Discuss
Stak,
Let me start by saying how happy I am that you bring this discussion forward to me. I had hoped you would discuss a
similar topic before. The fact that a guy who chooses to spend his time with the heavy works of the philosophical geniuses of history has chosen to spend time with me, is an honor.
Your post stirs profound thoughts and ideas. I hope I can adequately set my thoughts to words. I'm going to try my best to dissect your post and address every thought. First - your definition of worship.
Maximal deference might suggest to us a requirement that God be way, way beyond us in power, wisdom, might, judgment, and love. We might even feel it necessary for God to be so far beyond us, God becomes
infinitely powerful and wise. Keep this adjective in mind: infinite. This term has huge implications, many of which are negative. This God definition would indeed cause - no, force - any person to express maximal deference and reverence.
Now, let me make it clear that I wholeheartedly reject your assertion that we worship only upon the condition of a maximally powerful God. I don't understand at all how this is highly intuitive or even more intuitive than worshipping a less than maximal God. Here's why:
Worship is not a Boolean. Worship is like perception of art. It is deeply personal a subject to individual tastes and circumstances. Heaven forbid we suppose otherwise! Worship does not begin only after we meet a specified threshold. Worship begins in very small ripples and continues on through a spectrum of both color and intensity. We cannot and should not give worship an ultimatum but rather, we should feel it grow in all its shades.
It is time for me to address your question, "is it right to worship God if this God is not maximally great?" I would like to immediately answer this with a resounding YES. Yes, it is right to worship a flawed, finite God.
First, I must point you to the lack of infinity in the Abrahamic God. This God is bound by massive constraints. At a minimum, this "all-powerful" God must obey free agency and justice. Do you agree with this? This must reduce God to just a very, very powerful entity. How much better is a very muscly God than a less muscly God? Why are people prejudiced against the less muscly one?
Second, I point you to the importance of our bond with humanness. We generally have a need to join ourselves with other humans and human-like objects. We even go so far as to humanize the things we interact with. We do this with animals, computers, dolls, constellations, and much more. I personally feel that the closer God is to us, the more we can truly feel and show reverence towards this God.
Third, wanting God to be maximally great does not make God such. We have books that talk about the Abrahamic God just as we have books that talk about the God of Athens. Nobody can provide evidence that God is maximally great, let alone infinite.
Fourth, multiple Gods is not foreign to Christians. Like it or not, they have the heavy burden of explaining how a single God lives in the context of the Trinity. Three parts of Infinity must be thought of as indiidual, finite parts.
Fifth, mortals find great meaning in a God that visits the earth and walks with us. This single aspect is probably more profound than any other. We sing about it and write poetry and paint pictures about it. This is what brings God into our life. It is knowing the God is/was walking around the earth like us.
Why do people worship their perfect God? The answer is complex but we can agree on some things. It is to find peace, hope, forgiveness, goodness, love, companionship, wisdom, etc. An imperfect God can help us find these things too. Why not?
An argument might be made: if you worship/follow an imperfect God, you might be led astray. It is true. You might. But this is why you must always try to use your own mind to solve problems as well. We all agree that God expects us to try our best to use our own judgment in our decisions, no? I see no difference.
Let me conclude with one of my favorite images. It is this:
This is a marble bas-relief of the Mourning Athena from the Acropolis, 470 B.C.E., courtesy of University of Haifa Library. With helmeted head bowed, Athena leans on the spear she holds as with her left hand on her forehead, she contemplates the names on a gravestone. We see from this image sympathy and adoration for her people.
I find in Athena a being that could embrace us with love and understanding. I find a
person very close to my heart - the one I started out with as a child. Somehow, this being feels my insecurities and my troubles as if she had seen them all herself. She lives in the images and words of the Ancients. While she doesn't have the power of the stars nor the stoic grandeur of the God of Abraham, she does seem to understand. She makes me feel that all will be well despite the uncertainty that is bounded around us
and Her. I've since prayed to Athena and laid before her feet all my doubts and concerns with trepidation. She answered with calm and love.