But which God? 2

Oct 13, 2010 @ 0:09 By 17 Comments

Written by a theologian in 1907, and scholarship has strengthened the observations: “The savage man has a savage God; the cruel man has a cruel God; the effeminate man has an effeminate God; while the good man lifts up holy hands to a God who rewards goodness” (37).

So we read a quotation in Paul Froese and Christopher Bader, America’s Four Gods: What We Say about God–and What That Says about Us.

Our earliest childhood images of God determine or at least deeply shape both who we become and how we live. But this doesn’t mean God is our Parents to the nth degree.

Where do we get our views of God? How influential is our church community on our view of God? What groups most favor an Authority God and which groups most favor a Distant God? Why?

But God is either strikingly like our parents or a compensation for our parents, leaving parents very much at the core of what we think of God. 51% of those who believe in the Authoritative God had parents who often spanked; those with a Distant God image had parents who spanked only at 26%.

It is rare for a person to adopt a view of God that differs markedly from the story received from parents and community. As we age that view — that view — matures and develops. Here are some observations on how our past shapes our view of God:First, those who read the Bible most literally are the most likely to have The Authority God. But the correlation might be more the other direction: those with an Authority God favor literal readings. These authors think the view of God is more important than the approach to Scripture.

Second, Authority God and Benevolent God believers are more likely to feel “called by God” — and miracles were experienced by this group too. The numbers decrease dramatically for the Distant God and Critical God groups.

Third, religious communities matter:

RCC: Authority (22%), Benevolent (30%), Critical (21%), Distant (30%)

Evangelical: Authority (51%), Benevolent (26%), Critical (14%), Distant (11%)

Black Prot: Authority (68%), Benevolent (12%), Critical (20%), Distant (0)

Mainline: Authority (22%), Benevolent (28%), Critical (20%), Distant (30%)

Filed Under: Theology Tagged With: 17 Comments
About Scot McKnight

Scot McKnight is a recognized authority on the New Testament, early Christianity, and the historical Jesus. McKnight, author of more than thirty books, is the Professor of New Testament at Northern Seminary in Lombard, IL.

  • E.G.

    The best literary description of a developing view of God that I know of is in W.O. Mitchell’s “Who Has Seen the Wind.”

    The young boy, who the novel follows, has his first impression of God from the stained glass windows in his town church. This leads him to ask, “Does God like to be all grapes and bloody?”

    It is interesting to read his development beyond that, as his life twists and turns. Truly an excellent book.

  • http://www.abcwesterville.org Mark Farmer

    An interesting contrast is provided by the title of G.K. Beale’s book: We Become What We Worship. The worshiper of dead idols becomes dead (Psalm 115:1-8); the worshiper of the living God becomes fully alive (Luke 6:40; I John 3:2). So the point is to move from our learned notions of God to knowing and worshiping God as he really is. This is possible through Christ (John 14:9; Hebrews 1:1-3). And it is through the Scriptures that we come to know Christ more as he really is – to the extent that we are able to hear what the Scriptures are really saying instead of reading our prior notions into them. This is how I understand the expression “growing up into Christ” (Eph. 4:15).

  • Rick

    I find it interesting that those churches that experience either high church, or at least a more extensive liturgy, also figure high in the “distant” category.

    I am not sure why that is, and it may be something you, Scot, said in regards to another group: “…the correlation might be more the other direction.”

  • David Johnson

    “There is no other God than the God revealed in the face of Jesus Christ” (Thomas F. Torrance).

  • http://www.studyyourbibleonline.com Wesley Walker

    I still struggle with the fact of how they reduced these categories. Adults should be able to understand that God is multifaceted. Also it should be obvious that an authoritative God can also be benevolent.

    As to our parents influence, somehow the Gentiles and Jews of the First Century were able to get past their parents view of God (or gods), so I think there is hope for us as well.

    http://www.studyyourbibleonline.com

  • Scott Lyons

    Rick, don’t miss that they also have highest % in “benevolent” cat.

  • Scott Lyons

    Nor sure how to use the study, but the wrong thing for us to do w this, is judge our brothers and sisters, or feel too good about ourselves.

  • Rick

    Scott-

    You’re right, but the “benevolent” does not surprise me, and it is not far off from the rankings found with the other groups.

    “Distant” surprises me, including how it ranks in comparison to other groups.

  • http://cdntheologianscholar.wordpress.com Amanda

    To add another dimension to this conversation: Donald Bloesch, in “God the Almighty”, wrote that how we view God also affects how we view salvation.
    “The way we understand the mystery of salvation is closely tied to the way we understand God himself. If we picture God as a remote, benevolent ruler who allows the world to run by its own laws, then our salvation depends on our ability to discover and to master these laws.
    If we view God as an impassible, self-sufficient Absolute who attracts our wonder by the beauty and grandeur that he possesses, then salvation is entirely a matter of self-purification and human striving, a product of eros rather than agape.
    If we conceive of God as an absolute monarch with unlimited power who has predetermined whatever comes to pass, then salvation is a matter neither of grace nor of works but of abject resignation to fate.”

    So if the four understandings of God we are looking at are Authority, Benevolent, Critical, Distant, how does emphasizing one of these four affect our understanding of salvation?

  • Pat

    But I think there are variations within groups. While I might consider myself an authority God adherent, there are some that I would describe in the same way and yet I differ theologically from these individuals greatly. Also, I believe one’s view can change from what they may have been inclined to believe about based on their parents. This can only happen however with growth in Christ and a determination to believe otherwise. After all, our parents are fallen human beings while God is perfect and all-wise. With work and determination, I believe we can correct our view of God that is based on the image of two faulty individuals.

  • Dana Ames

    Rick, the thing I noticed about the “high church” groups was that in both of them the percentages are nearly the same for each view, and fairly evenly distributed among the four views.

    I didn’t expect “authority” to be so high and “benevolent” to be so low among Black Protestants.

    Dana

  • Rick

    Dana-

    Great points.

    Would like liked to see EO included in that study. From your experience, how do you think those stats would have come out? Along the same lines of RCC and Mainline?

  • Rick

    Sorry, #12 should have read, “Would have liked to see….”

  • http://LostCodex.com DRT

    My mind keeps adding the distant number to the authority number to come up with a distant authority. In that case all four exceed 50%.

    Said another way, I would bet that those who feel god is distant also think he is the authority but his distance is the feeling manifestation of that.

    To go further, I bet it would be good to use the same methodogy for this as a Meyers Briggs.

    Authoritative – Permissive
    Benevolent – Wrathful
    Critical – Supportive
    Distant – Close

    So, I would be a permissive benevolent supportive closer in my impression of God.

  • Dana Ames

    Rick, I honestly don’t know. I’d kind of like to see what the results would be if EOs were asked, and further broken down between “cradle” and “convert”. If I had to guess, I would say like RC, but it would only be a guess. Orthodox in this country are all over the map, for various reasons and about various issues.

    Dana

  • Tim

    “It is rare for a person to adopt a view of God that differs markedly from the story received from parents and community.”

    Well, through me in that group. I just don’t “know” as much about God as I used to. It is interesting though to see how detailed a picture so many people think they can accurately paint of God.

  • Tim

    …”through” should be “throw”. Jeez, I never used to type like this.