Theos-Talk Archives (August 1995 Message tl00360)

>The Bibical interpretation of God would include;
>
>that God is anthropomorphic, having human-like properties of
>consciousness and emotion (I guess this is roughly what you mean by
>"Personal"), though usually incorporeal, and usually the "personal"
>qualities are present in a magnified, idealized, or perfected sense
>(often expressed independently for various qualities).

When we seek to understand the unknown, we draw upon experiences
that we have previously had, and make analogies. The analogy of
a parent is readily drawn upon to explain the creation of the
universe and its oversight and nurturing. Any analogy eventually
reaches its limits of usefulness. A parent gives birth to us, and
nurtures and looks after us in our state of helpfulness. This
"creator" in Genesis, the Elohim (a plural term translated as the
singular "God") are what in Theosophy would be called the Dhyani-Chohans.
They also correspond somewhat, perhaps, with the Archangels, Thrones,
Dominions, etc. of early Christianity?

 God is usually
>considered responsible for the existence of that which exists, to have
>the potential power to do anything, and to be particularly concerned
>with humans and their behavior (in particular, he is viewed as
>potentially capable of granting people's desires, as well as being
>concerned with people's actions and reactions). Many people
>associate with God the idea that (perhaps if they fulfill certain
>conditions) they will continue to exist in some sort of perfected
>state after their death. However true biblical interpretation suggests
>that divine compassion has purchased the less than desireable for
>that which would be most desireable "perfection"(ie Heaven).

The Old Testament God was vengeful, the New Testament one was forgiving.
The temperament perhaps mirrored the ideas of the cultures that created
them. When we think of the highest spiritual, the highest that we can
know, we take every good quality that we know of, and magnify it. What do
we end up with? A mask of ourselves, blown up to cosmic proportions! Our
image of perfection won't contain any virture or good quality that we are
completely unaware of; it therefore is an image of our own idealized self,
rather than an objective picture of perfection.

-- Eldon