Reflections on the Schema

Reflections on the Schema

of interpretations

about God, the world, mankind, and religion

Second Part

5. Third interpretation: God does exist; but, what kind of God?

As I said before, we do not have words or categories to say who God is, because he is indescribable; and, when we try to think how God might be, that which we think, is not God. Given our limitation, we can not penetrate the sphere of the divine.

We may have ideas or use words that are mere symbols; we may use analogies and make speculations according to what we know from our personal experiences and from the physical world; but this is far from saying what the reality itself is, or who God is. To think that we truly know him would be ridiculous and arrogant.

As far as we can understand, there can be only One divine and eternal; that one Who is, the Being himself, as the Bible says: I Am Who I Am, (Exodus 3.14). If there would be an eternal Universe, or universes, parallel to God, then God wouldn't be the Being which, by definition, is what God is. If the Universe is eternal, then there is no need for God. We'd come back to atheism. (More on 2.)

5.1. God is impersonal, not-communicative

The next question is whether God is personal or impersonal. In this context we call God personal in the sense that we can predicate of him that he is communicative.

For some, God is an impersonal entity, self contained; for others, he does relate to, and act in the world, but only in a physical way; there is no particular communication to and from intelligent beings. On this assumption, intelligent creatures can not communicate and "talk" with God, and there are no obligations toward him. God is impersonal.

For some physicists God is not a living being but rather a kind of "unknown" of the physical world, a link in a chain of phenomena, something (not someone) that they need to complete their mathematical equations. This god therefore does not see, neither hears nor has communication with us. He is a "dead" god.

Some philosophers have a similar opinion. God is impersonal because he is a mere concept as the necessary being, the beginning of all, the cause of everything or the prime motor; but nothing else. God is an idea, not a personal God.

Einstein (1879-1955) believed in an impersonal God, akin to "the God of Spinoza," as he said, but does not deny religion. His is the famous saying: "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind."