what (or who) we talk about when we talk about god
TRANSCRIPT
Who We Talk About When We Talk
About God
Gratitude
For what are you grateful?
Take these shoesClick-clacking down some dead end streetTake these shoesAnd make them fitTake this shirtPolyester white trash made in nowhereTake this shirtAnd make it clean, cleanTake this soulStranded in some skin and bonesTake this soulAnd make it sing, sing
Yahweh, YahwehAlways pain before a child is bornYahweh, YahwehStill, I'm waiting for the dawn
Take these handsTeach them what to carryTake these handsDon't make a fist, noTake this mouthSo quick to criticizeTake this mouthGive it a kiss
Yahweh, YahwehAlways pain before the child is bornYahweh, YahwehStill, I'm waiting for the dawn
Still waiting for the dawn, the sun is coming upThe sun is coming up on the oceanThis love is like a drop in the oceanThis love is like a drop in the ocean
Yahweh, YahwehAlways pain before a child is bornYahweh, tell me now
Why the dark before the dawn?
Take this cityA city should be shining on a hillTake this cityIf it be your willWhat no man can own, no man can takeTake this heartTake this heartTake this heartAnd make it break
QuestionWhat themes is the song pointing at?
A Few Themes
• Redemption
• “Polyester white trash made in
nowhere… make it clean”
• Beauty
• “Make it sing”
• Ethical Transformation
• “Take these hands and teach
them what to carry”
• Expectation
• “Always pain before the child is born”
• Politics
• “A city should be shining on a hill”
• Repentance
• “Take this heart and make it
break”
• Agency
• “If it be your will”
Thinking About God is Hard
• “The structure of the universe
(multiverse) as such”
• God is not an object in the
universe, rather God is the
precondition of there being
any structure of the universe
at all
• This is why, in a certain
sense, everyone believes in
God – everyone believes the
universe has a determinate
structure (e.g. hostile or
welcoming, ethical or ethically
uninterested). The question
is: What else can we say
about it?
The Moral Law
• The Universe is not an
obviously moral place – it is
generally “red in truth and
claw.”
• Yet we have this sense that
how we behave is important,
that there is a “should” at
work.
• Why?
• How can it be that the very
impersonal seeming universe
could have anything at all to
say about morality? How
does “is” become “should”?
A Personal God
• The Christian tradition so
insistent that God is best
described in personal terms
But Moses said to God, ‘If I come to the Israelites and say to them, “The God of your ancestors has sent me to you”, and they ask me, “What is his name?” what shall I say to them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’*
He said further, ‘Thus you shall say to the Israelites, “I am has sent me to you.” ’ God also said to Moses, ‘Thus you shall say to the Israelites, “The Lord,* the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you” Exodus 3:13-15
Talking About God
• If God is not an object in the
universe able to be
scrutinized scientifically, then
how can we best search?
• In Christianity, there is a
strong tradition that says the
only way to do it is
relationally. Only by trusting
in God can we begin to know
God.
O taste and see that the Lord is
good;
happy are those who take
refuge in him.
Psalm 34:8
Problems
• Can you have a relationship
with God without relating to
people too?
• Is a “personal” relationship
with God an adequate
description?
• Does God answer prayer?
• What does it mean to pray?
• What does it mean to “Trust
God”
• Why keep the Bible?
• Does God interfere? What
does “interfere” mean here?
• Why is God silent?
• What kind of “relationship” is
it? Is it like a person to person
relationship?
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
Go in peace;
may you carry God’s Wisdom,
speak forth God’s Word,
and embody God’s Presence
wherever you are.
In the name of Christ. Amen.
