God Survey Results

July 30, 2006

 


 

It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind.

 

The First approached the Elephant,
And happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
"God bless me! but the Elephant
Is very like a wall!"

The Second, feeling of the tusk
Cried, "Ho! what have we here,
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me 'tis mighty clear
This wonder of an Elephant
Is very like a spear!"

The Third approached the animal,
And happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up he spake:
"I see," quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a snake!"

The Fourth reached out an eager hand,
And felt about the knee:
"What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain," quoth he;
"'Tis clear enough the Elephant
Is very like a tree!"

The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear,
Said: "E'en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
Deny the fact who can,
This marvel of an Elephant
Is very like a fan!"

The Sixth no sooner had begun
About the beast to grope,
Than, seizing on the swinging tail
That fell within his scope.
"I see," quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a rope!"

And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!

Moral: So oft in theologic wars,
The disputants, I ween,
Rail on in utter ignorance
Of what each other mean,
And prate about an Elephant
Not one of them has seen.


 

 

Two weeks ago, the United States Senate unanimously passed a resolution which requests senators and all American citizens “To commemorate, celebrate, and reaffirm the national motto of the United States on the 50th anniversary of its formal adoption.” Not our more ancient motto – e pluribus unum – but a newer motto, inspired in the heat of the anti-communist era: IN GOD WE TRUST. OK, but

¼          Which God is that? Allah? Jehovah? Siva? Isis?

¼          And what do we mean by “trust”?

¼          Finally, who is “we”?  A majority of Americans will answer “yes” to the innocuous question, “Do you believe in God?” But can it really be called a majority when individual believers hold millions of different understandings of “God”?

 

Last spring in a Sunday service called “Mr/Ms Potato God,” we spoke about the varieties of characteristics that we individually attribute to “God” or to our understanding of the ultimate ground of being. The following data is based upon 69 responses returned that day.

 

Those who responded were encouraged to check multiple boxes if applicable. Still, I think “agree” would be too strong a term to apply to those who checked off any of these boxes -- especially since many people checked boxes which, taken too literally, would be perceived as self-contradictory.

 

So rather than describing the results below as “beliefs,” a better way to put it is that a certain percentage of respondents found particular phrases meaningful – though likely not sufficient to encompass their views of The Whole.

 

So, the survey says (with additional comments added below each question):

 

1. Time is unfolding

¼          largely according to a plan within the mind of a higher consciousness                          5          7%

¼          according to the natural laws of the universe                                                            48        70%

¼          with some random variability                                                                                   34        49%

¼          with input by freely chosen human action                                                     36        52%

¼          whether by a higher consciousness or by natural law, everything is fixed/fated             1          1%

 

¥       time is an illusion

¥       time is unfolding according to a plan within the collective human mind

 

2. The ultimate outcome of time shall be

for ME                                     Benign              22        32%

                                                Indifferent                     28        41%

                                                Malign                2          3%

 

for EVERYTHING                  Benign              16        23%

                                                Indifferent                     27        39%

                                                Malign                7        10%

 

¥       for me: filtered thru my perception, benign; empirically, indifferent

¥       malign for everything if things stay as they are ~ wars and killing

¥       everything has to come to an end

¥       malign only because time will lead eventually to the destruction of this world as we know it

 

3. Reality/Truth/God is knowable

¼          through love, art, science, nature....                                                                       54        78%

¼          through communion with something beyond nature and humanity                34        49%

 

¥       3 went out of their way to specify: NOT knowable

 

4. God

¼          exists independent of human experience                            27        39%

¼          is a function of subjective human experience                                  39        57%

 

¥       Both (2)

¥       We are of the world. God is of us. God is not of the world.

¥       A living universe exists independent of human experience

 

5. I SEEK a view of God/Reality which...                 6. I HAVE a view of  God/Reality which...

           

             33       48%    Reminds me that I have dignity and worth                                  32        46%

             38       55%    Inspires me to make it through difficult times                  32        46%

             45       65%    Motivates me to act for the good of all creation             44        64%

             30       43%    Helps me to outgrow my illusions                                              22        32%

 

¥       I have a view... which inspires me to make it through difficult times...by providing perspective

¥       Motivates me to act for the good of all creation  being

¥       I have a view... which is limited to my own experience

¥       I’m not really looking for God

 

7. The Divine is

¼          an exclamation (emotional...something I experience viscerally)                                  42        61%

¼          an explanation (intellectual...a means to explain the way the world is)                        21        30%

 

¥       both

¥       maybe both, maybe neither

¥       ...an exclamation: in contact with people I respect and love

¥       I can’t seem to find God via the intellect

¥       ...an attempt to escape the mundane. We often elevate the mundane to the divine. Why do we humans have the need/desire to do that?

 

8. I feel in touch with creation/God/the fullness of life...

¼     often enough                             19        28%

¼     not often enough                       41        59%

 

¥       Often

¥       Rarely

¥       Intermittently, largely affected by time and schedules

 

9. God is         ... Life itself                                                                   24        35%

                        ... The creative process of time unfolding                       29        42%

                        ... The sum of all matter and all experience                     35        51%

            ... The spark of encounter...when I engage with

                something/someone with ultimate respect                   23        33%

 

¥       living universe

¥       dead

¥       a sense of something/someone larger than oneself

¥       God is beyond life itself... he/she is not of this world which is full of destruction, hate, death decay. God is Love! ... God dispels the creative process of time unfolding. ...God is separate from all matter and experience.

¥       A transcendent being of whom I am a part

¥       Contingent

¥       All of the above, and more J

¥       The spirit of God is everywhere

 

10. The Universe/God

does                 26        38%

does not           35        51%

...have a position on general social questions (e.g. war; medical ethics...)

 

does                   9        13%

does not           51        74%

...have a position on specific social questions (e.g. specific candidates for election; whether Terry Schiavo should have been allowed to die...)

 

¥       momentum has us rolling in a particular direction

¥       ...humanity’s genetic makeup requires us to be free individuals and live accordingly. Our creation may have been the result of random events, but our resulting genetic makeup requires us to live in a manner respectful of others’ freedom

¥       what hurts us makes us stronger

 

11. Divine intervention occurs

¼         Constantly...God is omnipotent                                                         10        14%

¼         Periodically...when God acts for the cause of Justice                           8        12%

¼         Never...God experiences life with us but does not intervene  31        45%

¼         Never...there is no God                                                                    12        17%

 

¥       periodically, when individuals are open to the light

¥       periodically, when god influences us to act for the cause of justice

¥       if it happens, it’s via us

¥       God is omnipotent but always allows personal choice

¥       Divine intervention occurs constantly because God is nature and nature has consequences

¥       Who knows

 

12. Justice unfolds    

¼         in this life                                                      13        19%

¼         after this life                                                   5          7%

¼         over the course of history                             18        26%   

¼         Justice is a purely human concept                 41        59%

 

¥       is evolution a form of justice?

¥       I think balance occurs (yin/yang) but fair and unfair things happen in equal measure

¥       Haphazardly

¥       In this life: karma

¥       ...is unlikely equivalent to our definition

 

13. Communication with the divine occurs

¼     Directly                        20        29%

¼     Indirectly                      38        55%

¼     Me to god                    18        26%   

¼     God to me                    13        19%   

¼     Not at all                      12        17%

 

¥       I pray but I’ve never been sure why J

¥       Not at all... that I’m aware of in the textbook sense

¥       Me to God -- if communication means awareness

 

My preferred means of communication is:

¥       Meditation (13)

¥       Prayer (6)

¥       Nature (2)

¥       Listening

¥       Seeing

¥       Knowledge

¥       Consciousness

¥       Reflection (3)

¥       Self-reflection that improves my relationship with all

¥       Thought (3)

¥       Thoughts and actions

¥       Internal thoughts and feelings

¥       Focus/paying attention (3)

¥       Through my inner spirit

¥       Awe-inspiring experience

¥       Through interactions with people and nature (3)

¥       Association, contacts with others

¥       To see the “divine” thru those I love

¥       Sometimes it is a surprise – time and place, people, experiences trigger it

¥       Divine is a property of a person, idea, nature... not a person itself. Communication is through consciousness

¥       God to me

 

14. And

There is a voice beyond me which guides me.  I seek to understand and to follow.         15        22%

There are many voices...and I seek to discern and evaluate which to follow.       34        49%

 

Any God you can define is an idol                                                                                 17        25%

Any statement about God is an understatement                                                  24        35%

 

I have had direct experience of a transcending mystery/wonder... moving me to

a renewal of the spirit and an openness to the forces which create and uphold life           34        49%

 

¥       There are many voices and I respect all of them

¥       There is a voice inside of me...

¥       I have had direct experience [etc] to the forces which create and uphold life which separate me from life as we perceive as reality, yet unites me to a collective wholeness of spirit closer to God.

¥       Direct experience... childbirth

¥       Direct experience... my son

¥       Direct experience... music

¥       [one person, who wrote “don’t know” or “can’t know” to almost all of the questions, here wrote: “I MAY have had direct experience of....”

 

A Name:                    

¥       GOD – Good – Creator – confidant

¥       Not sure, it may not have a name

¥       (Maybe) The Universe, because I don’t believe in a God, but do believe that life and how we live it in our universe is what is important.

¥       Buda seemed in touch

¥       Any/all or none

¥       Higher power

¥       Energy

¥       Universal consciousness

¥       Yes, hope, free

¥       Unity of all things

¥       Spirit, inner light

¥       Adonai

¥       Un-nameable

¥       Everything

¥       Tao/Way

¥       Socially convenient to use “god the father” which is totally inaccurate, but I have no knowledge of what is accurate

¥       Flying spaghetti monster?? J

 

A Symbol:                              

¥       flaming chalice – light – energy

¥       natural places and sometimes a place like Stonehenge built by humans or an old cathedral that hasn’t been embellished to death

¥       none – do we really need one?! Or is it just another thing that can be used to divide us into separate camps?

¥       Mother god... warm enfolding... not sure

¥       XO

¥       Circle

¥       Spiral

¥       Light

¥       dog

¥       sun

¥       [ (yin-yang - 2)

¥       ¥ (infinity symbol - 2)

¥       Y 

 

An Image:                  

¥       WIND, light –water

¥       Nature is my idea of God. God is there, and he/she watches the world, but leaves us to our own devices. That’s why we each must strive to do our best to help each other, because I think we’re all we’ve got on this earth!

¥       ...I believe we all have an innate knowledge of right and wrong and a desire to love and be loved. How we join together to nurture and respect the unique variable qualities of each individual and how we become stronger by working, living, and loving together is a force of “god.” We need to be brave and share ourselves with each other to make a better world for everyone.

¥       None

¥       Peacefulness – cultural and racial diversity; social, political, and economic equality; nature

¥       There are many. I think the Muslims are most correct: there is no image

¥       Drawing of a cat

¥       Between

¥       Seeing my son’s face when he was born

¥       River

¥       Nature

¥       Lover

¥       Expanding ripples of water from one tiny drop...

¥       All-encompassing emptiness

¥       butterflies

¥       once – and a voice

 

What else?

¥       We can feel at one with God now but God is never fully known until after death when we become one with the divine

¥       Do boyfriends necessarily need to believe the same things? And if we don’t will there be problems in the future?

¥       This changes a lot over time and experience

¥       Telescope to watch stars... natural world, nature... music

¥       10 am, 1959, parking lot of a paint store. I was carrying my baby in one arm – and a can of paint [in] the other. I was overwhelmed by a sensation a thrill of complete accord – rightness of the entire – of everything – for that one perfect moment [Note: the rest of this person’s survey indicated emphatic atheism]

¥       an energy throughout and within... personally: a feeling – a connection... the sum of the parts

¥       redwood trees, dinosaur bones, music, space seen through Hubble telescope

¥       being in the Swiss Alps

¥       god is energy, creative, in constant process

¥       god is humorous

¥       I am unable to relate to much of this

¥       I’m comfortable with my perceptions of God

¥       I hate the word “worship” associated with UU

¥       God is energy, creative, in constant process

¥       Deist/agnostic

¥       I am a spiritually confused person

¥       “don’t know” should have been an option to check

¥       my views are developing/transforming/dynamic

 

 

Belief-o-matic live

We concluded the service today by attempting to complete the Belief-o-Matic quiz as a group. This is a website which asks 20 questions about your approach to religion and about how important the questions are to you...and then tells you what religious group you might find kinship with. We got through about half of the quiz. It was a little tricky to pick from the multiple-choices when about one-third of our group would vote for one choice, one third for another...and the rest found all the choices unsatisfying. Anyway, time ran out and we clicked “finish” and we were told that we are most like Unitarian Universalists.

 

Try it for yourself at: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/76/story_7665_1.html