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Ultimate Reality Higher Power

Ultimate Reality Higher Power. Or The Nature of God. The Metaphysical Mystery Behind All That Is. Ultimate Reality cannot be discerned by empirical methods God is beyond reach of the senses. Personal Impersonal Invisible Eternal Natural (immanent) Supernatural (transcendent)

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Ultimate Reality Higher Power

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  1. Ultimate RealityHigher Power Or The Nature of God

  2. The Metaphysical Mystery Behind All That Is Ultimate Reality cannot be discerned by empirical methods God is beyond reach of the senses

  3. Personal Impersonal Invisible Eternal Natural (immanent) Supernatural (transcendent) All present (omnipresent) All powerful (omnipotent) All knowing (omniscient) Creator Preserver Destroyer Loving Merciful Just Judge Wrathful Characteristics vs. Names Characteristics (the nature of a god)

  4. God Allah Yahweh Jehovah Brahma Vishnu Shiva Tao Buddha Nature Brahman Kami Names we give to the higher power

  5. What is a god?

  6. Beliefs about Ultimate Reality • Theism: belief in a personal god • Monotheism = one God • Polytheism = many gods • Atheism: belief that there is no personal god • Dualism: there are two powers, good vs. evil • Deism: god is no longer active in this world or our lives • Pantheism: all (pan) is god and god is all • Agnosticism: “not knowing”

  7. Kinds of gods: From female to male… • Venus of Willendorf: Goddess of fertility? • Gods of the sun • Gods of the earth • Gods of fire • Warrior goddesses • Storm gods • Gods of life • Gods of death

  8. From many to one… The evolution of human belief about the Higher Power: From nature gods to the creator God of nature

  9. Personal or Impersonal Animism: all life is filled with spirit Monism: Higher Power as a singular, non-personal force or energy behind life: • Chi (life force) • Buddha Nature (potential for awakening) • Tao (the “way” of nature) • Brahman: “not this, not that” • “The Force”

  10. Which comes first… Is God the source of energy… (personal: God has power) Or The manifestation of (vehicle for) energy? (impersonal: God is power)

  11. Personification & Anthropomorphism • Personification: in our minds we personify higher power, making it out to be a “person” much as we are • Anthropomorphism: in our language we attribute human characteristics to our gods; we envision God as having a body much like our own • God “hears” • God “speaks” • God “sees” • God “walks in the garden” • We attribute gender to this god: “He” (or “She”)

  12. Some books of interest: • God Against the Gods:The Historyof the War Between Monotheismand Polytheism by Jonathan Kirsch • A History of God:The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam by Karen Armstrong

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