The gospel according to Arthur C. Clarke:
“Perhaps our role on this planet is not to worship God–but to create Him.”
Such an intriguing thought.
Clearly this is what most people do.
They carve their idol out of wood, stone, plastic surgery, or electronic circuitry and they “bow down.” This is the story of humanity. It is nothing new under this sun and sky setting that we find ourselves in.
Perhaps this is the biggest part of the problem that people have with religion. There are all these people who create their version of their god and then worship him in their way and step all over everyone else’s version of god and worship. This is a legitimate issue to be concerned with. One that would find fuller expression in a different post that might deal with if God exists then how would he reveal himself if he would reveal himself at all. The diversity of religious expression in every culture in the world begs a few questions that can not be off-handedly dismissed as so often done.
Why is there this inherent need in humanity to worship?
Why is there this inherent need to create something in order to worship?
Answering these questions ought to involve more than tossing God out with the proverbial baby and bath water. These are significant questions that remained unanswered in any significant way by those who contend them to be insignificant. The rise of secularism in some western cultures has not been matched by the westernization of the rest of the world. Assumptions of God having died have to deal with the obvious fact that his coffin is empty. This is an argument from silence and of emptiness. Some would say that both sides argue in this way. Perhaps. But that reminds me of two questions that have yet to be answered. Too many believe otherwise. To deny this characteristic of humanity is to close one’s eyes to the reality that is all around us.
One obvious answer to the questions of needing to worship and creating things to worship is that we were created to worship.
Humans are created to worship.
This is one answer to this inherent desire within mankind to follow after something greater than self. There may be other answers to such a characteristic, but some have a way of seeming more contrived than I am comfortable with.
Perhaps you have an answer other than the one I have offered.
