The Person ( hood ) of God: Fanning the Flame

In many or most Christian circles, you're likely to hear, sooner or later, to whatever extent, reference to the 'Person' of the Holy Spirit, ( Father, Son ), AKA 'the three persons of the holy trinity'. But the question we should ask ourselves ( most don't, sadly ) is, 'can the Source of All ( Life ), a spirit-being by all reckoning ( even our own Holy Bible ) be called a 'person'? According to Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary, the definition of a 'person' is, 'human, individual —sometimes used in combination especially by those who prefer to avoid man in compounds applicable to both sexes'. So, by definition, 'God' IS one of us ( as the song goes ), a walking, talking human being! I mean, I realize that the Hebrew & Greek Scriptures seem to tell us that Man ( 'what about woman?' ) was created in the Image of God, but this is getting ridiculous! Yes, Jesus, by all accounts, was a human being, but He often referred to a 'Father in Heaven' ( a separate Being? ) as to One who, unlike us, did not have a biological Body ( ?? ). Some Christians seem to actually believe that 'Heaven' is an actual, literal ( physical? ) 'location' up in the sky ( the literal 'heavens' ), so I guess, in this instance, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to imagine that 'God', or 'Yahweh' rather, IS a 'person'! 

You will never hear me refer to the Spirit ( Energy ) that animates every human being as 'the Third Person of the Trinity'! I won't do it! Not just because I'm not a Trinitarian ( another story for another day, perhaps ), but because that perception is based on the idea, culled from the Hebrew & Greek Scriptures, that there are three ( separate ) Persons within the so-called 'God-head'. Considering the fact that the Hebrew & Greek Scriptures seem to make the claim that they were written ( by men ) through the inspiration of 'the Holy Spirit' ( II Timothy 3:16, II Peter 1:21 ); when we read, strangely enough, only in the Greek Scriptures, of 'the Father', 'the Son' & 'the Holy Spirit', we have been taught that this proves ( 'beyond a shadow of a doubt'? ) the existence, within the 'God-head', of what is dogmatically referred to as 'the Trinity'. In the same Divine Vein, I do not deny a Holy Trinity, but that, as well, is probably best left for another story on a different day! 

In the fairly recent past, I have come face-to-face, rather blatantly, with the statement that 'God is a Person'! In fact, in one of my most recent 'discussions', one might have gathered that the 'Image of God' is actually our humanity ( biology? )! This sort of 'discussion' has rather interesting, even dangerous, implications, not least of which is, 'if the Source of All ( Life ) is simply a Glorified Human Being; then maybe the Mormons are right about us becoming Gods ( the whole 'planets' thing is a bit far-fetched ). If the Mormons are right about this, then what else are they right about? I'm not here to preach Mormonism, though, so I'll say no more on that subject, but the point is, to conceive of the Source of All ( Life ) as a Person is simply part of the human condition, as evidenced by the story of the blind (East ) Indians who attempted to describe an elephant according to the physical sense of touch. I've related this story previously, but, as each of the men had a hold of a different part of the elephant, they were all right ( in part ), but none could offer a complete description: so is humanity's conception of 'God' ( at best )!

Although the Source of All ( Life ) is most definitely NOT a human being ( Glorified or not ), it can rightly be claimed that ALL human beings have the Divinity within! To many, this claim falls flat on its face & for the many out there who do not bear the fruits of this glorious fact, one cannot really blame those who deny this Glorious Truth. However, as the case may be, there exists within us all that Divine Spark ( call it 'Spirit' or 'Animating Principle' ), which, when fervently fanned ( or not ) becomes a raging inferno which engulfs the Forest, or 'world' around us! When that Flame becomes an Inferno, imagine what dreams may come! 

To bring it all down to a precise point, you may call me 'Frank'; I will lay it all out for my readers & plainly say, 'WE ARE GOD!' There; those who wish may promptly condemn me to a 'Hell' which doesn't exist! Before I go, though, let me just say that by this startling truth, I simply mean to say that, whether it's a faith-based belief ( based on an ancient document ), or based on our human experience, every human being has their own ( unique ) conception of What & Who 'God' is. Some may even be ( rightly ) accused of creating 'God' in their own image! The point is, while the Source of All ( Life ) is NOT just some conception of humanity, as I may be accused of preaching, neither is this Source ( 'Energy' ) completely encapsulated within the Greek & Hebrew Scriptures. What we read in the Bible ( a weak translation, in many different versions ) is simply 'their' ( Hebrew & Greek ) conception of Who & What this Source looks like.

By writing thusly, I do not wish to alienate those brothers & sisters of mine who may believe somewhat differently, or even those who believe we are separated by a Great Gulf. To be abundantly clear; I write thusly ( as always ) to try to clear up some of the misconceptions that humanity has foisted upon itself for centuries, even millenia, all in the name of 'God'. Some of these misconceptions have smoothed themselves out over time, at least to the point that something positive has transpired through them, but for the most part, these errors have led to strife & division, where there should be peace & unity! Those who wish to worship the 'God' of the Bible as the Source of All ( Life ) certainly are within their rights to do so, so long as they follow this universal tenet; 'An ye harm none, do what you will'. Jesus said it this way, 'just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.'

Charles Haddon Shank