God most commonly refers to the deity worshipped by followers of monotheistic and monolatrist religions, whom they believe to be the creator and ruler of the universe.[1]
Theologians have ascribed a variety of attributes to the various conceptions of God. The most common among these include omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, perfect goodness, divine simplicity, and eternal and necessary existence. God has also been conceived as being incorporeal, a personal being, the source of all moral obligation, and the "greatest conceivable existent".[1] These attributes were all supported to varying degrees by the early Jewish, Christian and Muslim theologian philosophers, including Augustine of Hippo,[2] Al-Ghazali,[3] and Maimonides.[2] Many notable medieval philosophers developed arguments for the existence of God,[4] attempting to wrestle with the apparent contradictions implied by many of these attributes. Philosophers have developed many arguments for and against the existence of God.
Wednesday, 19 September 2007
Wednesday, 12 September 2007
God is an Elephant?
Examining the Blind Men and the Elephant
philosophic argument in philosophy of religion
philosophy of religion - philosophic arguments about God
adapted from David A. Horner
philosophy of religion - philosophic arguments about God
Email article to a friend
There is a popular analogy used to show that all religions are valid ways to describe God. Religion professors especially love this philosophic analogy, because it equalizes all religions, making all religions equally "true" in their description of God.
The analogy is this: there are four blind men who discover an elephant. Since the men have never encountered an elephant, they grope about, seeking to understand and describe this new phenomenon. One grasps the trunk and concludes it is a snake. Another explores one of the elephant's legs and describes it as a tree. A third finds the elephant's tail and announces that it is a rope. And the fourth blind man, after discovering the elephant's side, concludes that it is, after all, a wall.
Each in his blindness is describing the same thing: an elephant. Yet each describes the same thing in a radically different way.
According to many, this is analogous to the different religions of the world -- they are describing the same thing in radically different ways. Thus one should conclude that no individual religion has a corner on truth, but that all should be viewed as essentially equally valid.
This is a powerful and provocative image, and it certainly seems to capture something of the truth.
If God is infinite and we are finite, it is reasonable to believe that none of us can fully capture His nature. But does this philosophic analogy demonstrate the truth that all religions lead to God? To conclude that it does would ignore several points...
First, there is a fact of the matter: the elephant. What the blind men are attempting to describe is in fact an elephant, not something else. Just so, there are factual questions regarding God. "Does God even exist?" is a question of fact, much like, "Was Abraham Lincoln ever President of the United States?" If so, it would be true whether anyone believes it or not, and to deny it, one would be mistaken. Thus, not all opinions, whether concerning elephants or the nature of God, are equally true.
Second, all four blind men are, in fact, mistaken. It is an elephant and not a wall or a rope or a tree or a snake. Their opinions are not equally true -- they are equally, and actually false. At best, such an analogy of religious pluralism would show that all religions are false, not true.
Third, and most important, the philosophic analogy does not take into account any kind of special revelation. If a fifth man were to arrive on the scene, one who could see (and who was able to demonstrate his credentials of having sight), and he were to describe the elephant as an elephant, then it would change the analogy entirely.
Jesus Christ, unique among all religious leaders of history, claimed to be such a "fifth man," a definitive revelation of God. Many of the people who watched Jesus' miracles and heard him speak were offended by his clear statements about his deity. "This was why [they] sought all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but also called God his own Father, making himself equal with God."1
Jesus however, invited us to believe in him if we want our search for God satisfied... "I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst."
philosophic argument in philosophy of religion
philosophy of religion - philosophic arguments about God
adapted from David A. Horner
philosophy of religion - philosophic arguments about God
Email article to a friend
There is a popular analogy used to show that all religions are valid ways to describe God. Religion professors especially love this philosophic analogy, because it equalizes all religions, making all religions equally "true" in their description of God.
The analogy is this: there are four blind men who discover an elephant. Since the men have never encountered an elephant, they grope about, seeking to understand and describe this new phenomenon. One grasps the trunk and concludes it is a snake. Another explores one of the elephant's legs and describes it as a tree. A third finds the elephant's tail and announces that it is a rope. And the fourth blind man, after discovering the elephant's side, concludes that it is, after all, a wall.
Each in his blindness is describing the same thing: an elephant. Yet each describes the same thing in a radically different way.
According to many, this is analogous to the different religions of the world -- they are describing the same thing in radically different ways. Thus one should conclude that no individual religion has a corner on truth, but that all should be viewed as essentially equally valid.
This is a powerful and provocative image, and it certainly seems to capture something of the truth.
If God is infinite and we are finite, it is reasonable to believe that none of us can fully capture His nature. But does this philosophic analogy demonstrate the truth that all religions lead to God? To conclude that it does would ignore several points...
First, there is a fact of the matter: the elephant. What the blind men are attempting to describe is in fact an elephant, not something else. Just so, there are factual questions regarding God. "Does God even exist?" is a question of fact, much like, "Was Abraham Lincoln ever President of the United States?" If so, it would be true whether anyone believes it or not, and to deny it, one would be mistaken. Thus, not all opinions, whether concerning elephants or the nature of God, are equally true.
Second, all four blind men are, in fact, mistaken. It is an elephant and not a wall or a rope or a tree or a snake. Their opinions are not equally true -- they are equally, and actually false. At best, such an analogy of religious pluralism would show that all religions are false, not true.
Third, and most important, the philosophic analogy does not take into account any kind of special revelation. If a fifth man were to arrive on the scene, one who could see (and who was able to demonstrate his credentials of having sight), and he were to describe the elephant as an elephant, then it would change the analogy entirely.
Jesus Christ, unique among all religious leaders of history, claimed to be such a "fifth man," a definitive revelation of God. Many of the people who watched Jesus' miracles and heard him speak were offended by his clear statements about his deity. "This was why [they] sought all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but also called God his own Father, making himself equal with God."1
Jesus however, invited us to believe in him if we want our search for God satisfied... "I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst."
Inner Strength Through God's Plan
What about heaven? The Bible says that God has "set eternity in the hearts of men."18 Maybe that means we know, in our hearts, what a better world would look like. The death of people we love convinces us that there's something very wrong with this life and this world. Somewhere deep down in our souls, we know that there must be a much better place to live, free from heart-wrenching difficulties and pain. To be sure, God does have a better place He offers us. It will be a completely different system in which His will is done all the time. In this world, God will wipe every tear from people's eyes. There will be no more mourning, crying, death or pain.19 And God, by His Spirit, will dwell in people in such a way that they will never sin again.20
The events of a terrorist attack are horrific enough. Refusing an eternal relationship with God, which Jesus offers you, would be worse. Not just in light of eternal life, but there is no relationship which compares to knowing God in this life. He is our purpose in life, our source of comfort, our wisdom in confusing times, our strength and hope. "Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him."21
It has been said by some that God is just a crutch. But it is likely that He is the only reliable one.
Jesus said, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."22 For those who will rely on Jesus during their lives, He says it is like building your life on a Rock. Whatever crises attack you in this life, He can keep you strong.
The events of a terrorist attack are horrific enough. Refusing an eternal relationship with God, which Jesus offers you, would be worse. Not just in light of eternal life, but there is no relationship which compares to knowing God in this life. He is our purpose in life, our source of comfort, our wisdom in confusing times, our strength and hope. "Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him."21
It has been said by some that God is just a crutch. But it is likely that He is the only reliable one.
Jesus said, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."22 For those who will rely on Jesus during their lives, He says it is like building your life on a Rock. Whatever crises attack you in this life, He can keep you strong.
Tuesday, 11 September 2007
Fears, Tragedy, Disaster: Where Is God Now?
Many of us--no, all of us--choose at times to stiff-arm God and His ways. Compared to others, certainly compared to a terrorist, we might consider ourselves to be respectable, loving people. But in the raw honesty of our own hearts, if we were to face God, it would be with the knowledge of our sin. As we begin to address God in prayer, are we not caught short, paused by the sense that God is well aware of our thoughts, actions and self-centeredness? We have...by our lives and actions...distanced ourselves from God. We have often lived like we could run our lives just fine without Him. The Bible says that "We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way."13
The consequences? Our sin has separated us from God, and it affects more than this life. The penalty for our sin is death, or eternal separation from God. However, God has provided a way for us to be forgiven and know Him.
The consequences? Our sin has separated us from God, and it affects more than this life. The penalty for our sin is death, or eternal separation from God. However, God has provided a way for us to be forgiven and know Him.
Tragedy, Disaster, Sadness: Our Free Will
inner strength, reducing stress in the midst of tragedy, fears, disaster, sadnessGod has created humanity with the ability to choose. This means that we are not forced into a relationship with Him. He allows us to reject Him and to commit other evil acts as well. He could force us to be loving. He could force us to be good. But then what kind of relationship would we have with Him? It would not be a relationship at all, but a forced, absolutely controlled obedience. Instead He gave us the human dignity of free will.
Naturally, we cry from the depths of our souls..."But God, how could You let something of this magnitude happen?"
How would we want God to act? Do we want Him to control the actions of people? In the case of dealing with a terrorist attack, what could possibly be an acceptable number of deaths for God to allow?! Would we feel better if God allowed only the murder of hundreds? Would we rather God allowed only the death of one person? Yet if God would prevent the murder of even one person, there is no longer freedom to choose. People choose to ignore God, to defy God, to go their own way and commit horrible acts against others.
Naturally, we cry from the depths of our souls..."But God, how could You let something of this magnitude happen?"
How would we want God to act? Do we want Him to control the actions of people? In the case of dealing with a terrorist attack, what could possibly be an acceptable number of deaths for God to allow?! Would we feel better if God allowed only the murder of hundreds? Would we rather God allowed only the death of one person? Yet if God would prevent the murder of even one person, there is no longer freedom to choose. People choose to ignore God, to defy God, to go their own way and commit horrible acts against others.
Nutritious meals for people living with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other serious illnesses.
Welcome to God's Love We Deliver. We improve the health and well-being of men, women and children living with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other serious illnesses by alleviating hunger and malnutrition. We prepare and deliver nutritious, high-quality meals to people who, because of their illness are unable to provide or prepare meals for themselves. We also provide illness-specific nutrition education and counseling to our clients and families, care providers and other service organizations. All of our services are provided free of charge. We also provide volunteer opportunities in our kitchen, with delivering meals and in our offices for those who wish to help people living with serious illnesses.
Extracting the Precious from Nehemiah
by Angela Watkins Thomas
Deep down, you know God created you for a reason. He’s told you that you’re a child of God. You’re made in His image, and He has a plan for you. You sense in your heart of hearts that you have wings to fly, but worries, fears, and insecurities drag you down to earth, preventing you from spreading your wings and taking flight. The first steps toward reaching the skies include releasing the worry, learning to relax, and trusting God fully for the “happy ending” you seek. Click here to read excerpts
Donna Partow is the bestselling author of numerous books and has been a popular guest on hundreds of radio and TV programs.
Lin Johnson has written over sixty books, specializing in Bible curriculum, and is a Gold Medallion Book Award recipient. She teaches at conferences across the country.
There are two ways to learn life lessons God has in store for us: the easy way and the hard way.
Repentance alone can lead to revival.
Nehemiah is a powerful book because Nehemiah's life sets a powerful example.
Nehemiah was a thoughtful man of prayer and a man of action.
If you're ready to set work on your portion of the wall, join Donna in this study as we discover principles from Nehemiah's life that can make a difference.
Her home church hosted a 5-week series based on her recent book, This Isn't the Life I Signed Up For...But I'm Finding Hope and Healing.
God resources are truly unlimited.
God can provide for his children any way He wants to.
Nehemiah spent time in prayer and fasting, seeking God's perspective and wisdom before doing anything else.
Preparation begins with prayer, but it doesn't stop there.
Nehemiah not only asked for supplies to rebuild the temple and the city wall but for his own resident as well.
You'll notice goldsmith's, perfume makers, merchants and priests working side by side. Because they were all focused on the larger purpose, suddenly their common cause was more significant than their differences.
Deep down, you know God created you for a reason. He’s told you that you’re a child of God. You’re made in His image, and He has a plan for you. You sense in your heart of hearts that you have wings to fly, but worries, fears, and insecurities drag you down to earth, preventing you from spreading your wings and taking flight. The first steps toward reaching the skies include releasing the worry, learning to relax, and trusting God fully for the “happy ending” you seek. Click here to read excerpts
Donna Partow is the bestselling author of numerous books and has been a popular guest on hundreds of radio and TV programs.
Lin Johnson has written over sixty books, specializing in Bible curriculum, and is a Gold Medallion Book Award recipient. She teaches at conferences across the country.
There are two ways to learn life lessons God has in store for us: the easy way and the hard way.
Repentance alone can lead to revival.
Nehemiah is a powerful book because Nehemiah's life sets a powerful example.
Nehemiah was a thoughtful man of prayer and a man of action.
If you're ready to set work on your portion of the wall, join Donna in this study as we discover principles from Nehemiah's life that can make a difference.
Her home church hosted a 5-week series based on her recent book, This Isn't the Life I Signed Up For...But I'm Finding Hope and Healing.
God resources are truly unlimited.
God can provide for his children any way He wants to.
Nehemiah spent time in prayer and fasting, seeking God's perspective and wisdom before doing anything else.
Preparation begins with prayer, but it doesn't stop there.
Nehemiah not only asked for supplies to rebuild the temple and the city wall but for his own resident as well.
You'll notice goldsmith's, perfume makers, merchants and priests working side by side. Because they were all focused on the larger purpose, suddenly their common cause was more significant than their differences.
A Family Strength by Barbara Beck-Elam
Our family with which we are blessed,
So chosen by God,
Long before we are planned for,
And from dirt we were formed.
He knows what we'll look like,
And by whom we'll be adored.
To our parents we are given,
By their precious love we are born.
Their arms will be warm and loving,
These arms to protect us from harm.
In their presence we to quickly grow,
Taking a loved one, a family of our own.
Then from love, children,
or a child we are blessed.
Our family so grows now in numbers,
With god's precious strength, comes the rest.
We all end up in places, chosen by our dreams,
To far away, but love stays within.
So we come back together, wishing to feel,
To the arms of our family, where we know
love is real.
So chosen by God,
Long before we are planned for,
And from dirt we were formed.
He knows what we'll look like,
And by whom we'll be adored.
To our parents we are given,
By their precious love we are born.
Their arms will be warm and loving,
These arms to protect us from harm.
In their presence we to quickly grow,
Taking a loved one, a family of our own.
Then from love, children,
or a child we are blessed.
Our family so grows now in numbers,
With god's precious strength, comes the rest.
We all end up in places, chosen by our dreams,
To far away, but love stays within.
So we come back together, wishing to feel,
To the arms of our family, where we know
love is real.
International News
In This Issue
The Trinity -- Is It Biblical?
How does the trinity and the traditional view of the nature of God compare with the Bible?
Understanding Jephthah
No matter what conclusion we come to in regards to the man Jephthah, the Lord God has already settled the matter for us.
The Feast of Tabernacles... Just My Type
A picture is worth a thousand words!
Love Never Fails—Do you?
1 Corinthians 13–memorize it–Live it!
Sabbath School Advocacy Program
Sabbath School Advocacy Program was created and developed in the early 1990s while I was attending the Sabbath School Conference of the Church of God International.
A True History According To Scripture
JOSEPH BORN TO JACOB IN HIS OLD AGE (91!) His early life of sheep herding and dreaming!
Why Old Age?
Pride was the original sin, causing Lucifer to become Satan the Devil. Pride leads to a multitude of sins, including unchaste behavior, anger, greed, and drunkenness. Pride leads to every other vice: it is the consummate anti-God state of mind. “For Pride is spiritual cancer: it eats up the very possibility of love, or contentment, or even common sense.”—C.S. Lewis
Questions & Answers
What does it mean to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling? If I can work out my own salvation, why do I need the sacrifice of Christ?
God’s Seasonal Plan
Why does your Bible say Christ’s FIRST GREAT EDICT after He sets up His world-ruling Kingdom will be His command to all nations to come to His new world headquarters in Jerusalem to KEEP THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES? And much more... And much more...
The Trinity -- Is It Biblical?
How does the trinity and the traditional view of the nature of God compare with the Bible?
Understanding Jephthah
No matter what conclusion we come to in regards to the man Jephthah, the Lord God has already settled the matter for us.
The Feast of Tabernacles... Just My Type
A picture is worth a thousand words!
Love Never Fails—Do you?
1 Corinthians 13–memorize it–Live it!
Sabbath School Advocacy Program
Sabbath School Advocacy Program was created and developed in the early 1990s while I was attending the Sabbath School Conference of the Church of God International.
A True History According To Scripture
JOSEPH BORN TO JACOB IN HIS OLD AGE (91!) His early life of sheep herding and dreaming!
Why Old Age?
Pride was the original sin, causing Lucifer to become Satan the Devil. Pride leads to a multitude of sins, including unchaste behavior, anger, greed, and drunkenness. Pride leads to every other vice: it is the consummate anti-God state of mind. “For Pride is spiritual cancer: it eats up the very possibility of love, or contentment, or even common sense.”—C.S. Lewis
Questions & Answers
What does it mean to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling? If I can work out my own salvation, why do I need the sacrifice of Christ?
God’s Seasonal Plan
Why does your Bible say Christ’s FIRST GREAT EDICT after He sets up His world-ruling Kingdom will be His command to all nations to come to His new world headquarters in Jerusalem to KEEP THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES? And much more... And much more...
Why Old Age?
By Jean Jantzen
According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind. me
For Pride is spiritual cancer: it eats up the very possibility of love, or contentment, or even common sense. - CS Lewis
is the complete anti-God state of mind.
Old…It’s a dirty word! Why do we grow old anyway? I have been trying to figure it out as it sneaks up upon me. Why is old age included in God’s plan and purpose for us? Each phase of our lives passes quickly leading into the next exciting stage or season of our lives…but why old age? Why did God put this timing device into our bodies causing it to run down? We know that Adam was warned not to eat of the tree or humankind would die. So we know sin is the big reason for death, but why old age? We could just go to sleep at a certain age and that would be that. In some respects old age seems worse than death. King David certainly wonders about old age and admits"…verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity" (Psalm 39:5). So where does that leave us when we are old? It seems we end up where we begin…dependent, vulnerable and like a little child. Only we aren’t little or cute or cuddly, we are old and bent and wrinkled. Maybe we haven’t quite learned everything we need to be in God’s Kingdom. Perhaps old age may provide the final touches needed in our character like the icing on a cake.
I realize as I watch my own body age and the care I do for older folks that it is not a fun time. And I must admit it has helped me face my own mortality…that I have been given a temporary body to use or abuse…and if I am smart, I’ll take good care of it, but more importantly I’ll learn what God wants from me before getting too old.
As we age we discover the body doesn’t work so well and we become more and more dependent on others and in the process we become more humble, appreciative and accepting. For many years we do what we want, moving our bodies with great agility and grace, being self sufficient, even taking this wonderfully constructed body for granted. We are independent, sometimes pushing and shoving our way through life like a headstrong ox. We may have been successful monetarily in our chosen endeavors, raising or providing for a family, trusting in our own abilities. Yet, in this process we may have become self absorbed, hard and cynical and abrasive in our attitude toward God and others. As adults many of us lose our sense of wonder, our appreciation for life, relationships, and for the beauty that surrounds us. We lose our openness, our innocence, our humility, and thus we lose the childlikeness we once exhibited. In fact, God calls us a stiff-necked people or in simpler terms, stubborn, arrogant and aloof.
Childlikeness is such an important character trait that Jesus said to the crowds: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18: 3-4). The exact opposite of pride is humility. Humankind clothes itself with pride throughout life but old age teaches humility.
It doesn’t seem so out of line then that old people become physically dependent on others, even for basic toilet and dressing needs, forced into a childlike existence by a body that no longer functions. Can you imagine someone helping you onto the toilet, bathing you, putting a diaper on you and helping you into your clothes? Christopher Reeve in his book Still Me says "When two people have to roll you back and forth in order to put on your underpants at age forty-five, it’s a difficult lesson in patience and acceptance." This must bring about that important ingredient, humility and a meekness of spirit, that vulnerability that might have been missing from our character since early childhood. And humility comes before honor. (Proverbs 18:12)
Think about it…when all is well with our world we can be pretty cocky, pretty self-assured, bossy, but get ill or disabled or old, and see how quickly our attitude and demeanor change. I remember having an acute case of vertigo and couldn’t raise my head off the floor. I was entirely dependent on my husband. I was talking softly, humbly, meek even, and thankful, any cockiness or self-assuredness gone. Temporarily I fulfilled most of the characteristics in the beatitudes. We are slow to learn so you can see why the period of old age is so necessary. By the time we die, hopefully we have put on humility and gentleness.
One ninety-year-old woman tells me her daughter includes her own grocery tab in her bill and she has to pay for it. They hold the threat of a nursing home over her head. She says, "I never say anything, I never get mad about anything to them." Like Christ when he was being crucified…he opened not his mouth and he suffered in silence. Older people learn not to complain otherwise family and friends would stay away. The elderly feel invisible, vulnerable, dependent, and must learn patience, meekness and thankfulness for what everyone does for them.
Also, I am beginning to understand the effects of sin as we age and it’s hard to imagine that old people’s suffering is a result of sin. Sin engulfs the world like a scourge; still it tears at one’s heart to see old people suffering. One 94-year-old woman has macular degeneration…which means she is legally blind. Once she was a wife and mother and health nurse traveling all over Vancouver Island. Losing her eyesight happened when she was 80-years-old and it happened quickly. So one day she could only see slightly from the sides of her eyes. I am daily amazed at her ability to cope and laugh at herself in spite of this major change in her life. I have learned patience from her and that you can still give joy to others. I dance with her a dance every time I go to her apartment and she laughs and sings to the music. She takes joy in the smallest pleasures, smallest pleasures we are too busy to appreciate in our overly busy lives. I have developed a sense of how tough it is to be old and how brave older folks really are. My understanding of "strength" deepens as I come to realize their unique strength.
God says we must humble ourselves as a little child if we are to enter the Kingdom. Obviously many of us haven’t learned in the other stages of life what is required of us. Pride cannot exist with humility. But pride’s roots go deep. If nothing else, old age is a powerful antidote for pride, arrogance, smugness and impatience. Paul instructs us in Colossians3:12 "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." We should take hope in Solomon’s words, "Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit" (Ecclesiastes 7:8). So what I have seen through my friendships with the elderly is a compulsory classroom of rooting out pride and replacing it with humbleness. How much better a voluntary humbleness of spirit given to us by God almighty… how sweet it is. And if we are already old… take heart because God promises "Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you" (Isaiah 46:4). We are always in God’s awesome Hands!
According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind. me
For Pride is spiritual cancer: it eats up the very possibility of love, or contentment, or even common sense. - CS Lewis
is the complete anti-God state of mind.
Old…It’s a dirty word! Why do we grow old anyway? I have been trying to figure it out as it sneaks up upon me. Why is old age included in God’s plan and purpose for us? Each phase of our lives passes quickly leading into the next exciting stage or season of our lives…but why old age? Why did God put this timing device into our bodies causing it to run down? We know that Adam was warned not to eat of the tree or humankind would die. So we know sin is the big reason for death, but why old age? We could just go to sleep at a certain age and that would be that. In some respects old age seems worse than death. King David certainly wonders about old age and admits"…verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity" (Psalm 39:5). So where does that leave us when we are old? It seems we end up where we begin…dependent, vulnerable and like a little child. Only we aren’t little or cute or cuddly, we are old and bent and wrinkled. Maybe we haven’t quite learned everything we need to be in God’s Kingdom. Perhaps old age may provide the final touches needed in our character like the icing on a cake.
I realize as I watch my own body age and the care I do for older folks that it is not a fun time. And I must admit it has helped me face my own mortality…that I have been given a temporary body to use or abuse…and if I am smart, I’ll take good care of it, but more importantly I’ll learn what God wants from me before getting too old.
As we age we discover the body doesn’t work so well and we become more and more dependent on others and in the process we become more humble, appreciative and accepting. For many years we do what we want, moving our bodies with great agility and grace, being self sufficient, even taking this wonderfully constructed body for granted. We are independent, sometimes pushing and shoving our way through life like a headstrong ox. We may have been successful monetarily in our chosen endeavors, raising or providing for a family, trusting in our own abilities. Yet, in this process we may have become self absorbed, hard and cynical and abrasive in our attitude toward God and others. As adults many of us lose our sense of wonder, our appreciation for life, relationships, and for the beauty that surrounds us. We lose our openness, our innocence, our humility, and thus we lose the childlikeness we once exhibited. In fact, God calls us a stiff-necked people or in simpler terms, stubborn, arrogant and aloof.
Childlikeness is such an important character trait that Jesus said to the crowds: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18: 3-4). The exact opposite of pride is humility. Humankind clothes itself with pride throughout life but old age teaches humility.
It doesn’t seem so out of line then that old people become physically dependent on others, even for basic toilet and dressing needs, forced into a childlike existence by a body that no longer functions. Can you imagine someone helping you onto the toilet, bathing you, putting a diaper on you and helping you into your clothes? Christopher Reeve in his book Still Me says "When two people have to roll you back and forth in order to put on your underpants at age forty-five, it’s a difficult lesson in patience and acceptance." This must bring about that important ingredient, humility and a meekness of spirit, that vulnerability that might have been missing from our character since early childhood. And humility comes before honor. (Proverbs 18:12)
Think about it…when all is well with our world we can be pretty cocky, pretty self-assured, bossy, but get ill or disabled or old, and see how quickly our attitude and demeanor change. I remember having an acute case of vertigo and couldn’t raise my head off the floor. I was entirely dependent on my husband. I was talking softly, humbly, meek even, and thankful, any cockiness or self-assuredness gone. Temporarily I fulfilled most of the characteristics in the beatitudes. We are slow to learn so you can see why the period of old age is so necessary. By the time we die, hopefully we have put on humility and gentleness.
One ninety-year-old woman tells me her daughter includes her own grocery tab in her bill and she has to pay for it. They hold the threat of a nursing home over her head. She says, "I never say anything, I never get mad about anything to them." Like Christ when he was being crucified…he opened not his mouth and he suffered in silence. Older people learn not to complain otherwise family and friends would stay away. The elderly feel invisible, vulnerable, dependent, and must learn patience, meekness and thankfulness for what everyone does for them.
Also, I am beginning to understand the effects of sin as we age and it’s hard to imagine that old people’s suffering is a result of sin. Sin engulfs the world like a scourge; still it tears at one’s heart to see old people suffering. One 94-year-old woman has macular degeneration…which means she is legally blind. Once she was a wife and mother and health nurse traveling all over Vancouver Island. Losing her eyesight happened when she was 80-years-old and it happened quickly. So one day she could only see slightly from the sides of her eyes. I am daily amazed at her ability to cope and laugh at herself in spite of this major change in her life. I have learned patience from her and that you can still give joy to others. I dance with her a dance every time I go to her apartment and she laughs and sings to the music. She takes joy in the smallest pleasures, smallest pleasures we are too busy to appreciate in our overly busy lives. I have developed a sense of how tough it is to be old and how brave older folks really are. My understanding of "strength" deepens as I come to realize their unique strength.
God says we must humble ourselves as a little child if we are to enter the Kingdom. Obviously many of us haven’t learned in the other stages of life what is required of us. Pride cannot exist with humility. But pride’s roots go deep. If nothing else, old age is a powerful antidote for pride, arrogance, smugness and impatience. Paul instructs us in Colossians3:12 "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." We should take hope in Solomon’s words, "Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit" (Ecclesiastes 7:8). So what I have seen through my friendships with the elderly is a compulsory classroom of rooting out pride and replacing it with humbleness. How much better a voluntary humbleness of spirit given to us by God almighty… how sweet it is. And if we are already old… take heart because God promises "Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you" (Isaiah 46:4). We are always in God’s awesome Hands!
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