{"id":57727,"date":"2019-11-04T05:19:37","date_gmt":"2019-11-04T10:19:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/?p=57727"},"modified":"2019-11-01T06:46:51","modified_gmt":"2019-11-01T10:46:51","slug":"attributes-of-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2019\/11\/attributes-of-god.html","title":{"rendered":"Attributes of God"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

A while back Facebook reminded me (and several other people) of a meme with a quote from me from a couple of years ago<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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A friend responded by pointing out passages in Joshua in which the ESV renders the command as one to\u00a0cling<\/em> to the LORD. And so here\u2019s what I wrote in response to that:<\/p>\n

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There is definitely a place for clinging \u2013 but I think that both you and the author of Joshua would probably agree that a real deity will not be lost or misplaced if we stop clinging\u2026whereas we might!<\/span><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n
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My point when I said this so many years ago was to address the panicked defense of doctrine that one often experiences when one sets up one\u2019s belief system as an idol. Any question, uncertainty, or affront is a threat that could bring the whole thing crumbling down. I think that if one\u2019s god or idea of the divine requires that sort of constant maintenance, it is an idol. Our relationship with God requires attention, but that experience is very different if the focus is not on an idol that we are responsible to keep from toppling\u2026 <\/span><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

Elsewhere:<\/p>\n

Richard Beck shared his rule for thinking about God<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Charles Allen<\/a> shared a couple of thoughts<\/a><\/p>\n

Did complex societies give birth to big gods?<\/a><\/p>\n

Gods: What Are They Good For?<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n