God's role in evil and tragedy

In our quest for the God of Reality we must move beyond simplistic explanations that evil and tragedy are a manifestation of God’s will. We must engage in a process of working in partnership with God to eliminate or at least diminish evil and tragedy where they exist. We must seek God’s inspiration, encouragement and influence through prayer and meditation. It is in this way that we can bring our concern and our love for fellow humans to the forefront, not being overcome by evil, but overcoming evil with good. This is a goal of the rational Christian and a faith beyond mere belief.  FBMB p. 79

 

The Ultimacy of God

When God is not our ultimate concern, we lose sight of what is important and what can bring lasting meaning to our lives. There are other concerns we can substitute for God as we have explored in this chapter. In the end, however, they all prove less than ultimate and a disappointment or distortion of what meaning in life can be. The search for the God of Reality is not simple. However, if we are truly open to God’s most basic message and use the reasoning skills God has given us, casting aside any fear that demagoguery may throw at us, we can live the life God has meant for us. Further in the spirit of partnership  we can help create the kingdom as God would have it. It will not be tomorrow, or the next day, but at our end time on earth, with God as our ultimate concern, we will know that we have been a part of something transcendent, something eternal that will be decisively meaningful. We will not have put any concerns ahead of the God of Reality. It will be our salvation.  FBMB p. 99

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A Distant God

A song made famous in the early 1990s contains the lyrics “From a distance, God is watching us.” The real distance is the aloofness we too often maintain between ourselves and God. It is the distance that keeps God at the boundaries of our lives rather than at the center. It is why so many of us never fully transcend out of the state of moderation into the state of fulfillment. It is the task of the rational Christian whose faith goes beyond mere belief to address unjust societal conditions so that love can more readily prevail in our world.  FBMB p.151

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A Distant God

A song made famous in the early 1990s contains the lyrics “From a distance, God is watching us.” The real distance is the aloofness we too often maintain between ourselves and God. It is the distance that keeps God at the boundaries of our lives rather than at the center. It is why so many of us never fully transcend out of the state of moderation into the state of fulfillment. It is the task of the rational Christian whose faith goes beyond mere belief to address unjust societal conditions so that love can more readily prevail in our world.  FBMB p.151

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Deviations from Orthodoxy

Our deviations from orthodoxy may disturb some. However, its intent is to bring more Christians to an understanding of God that is consistent with a postmodern view of the world, thus opening the rooms of God’s rare and beautiful treasures for them. It is an attempt to ground Christianity in reality and a faith beyond mere belief.  FBMB p. 250