The Pageless Book

I have a formula I’ve been working on. Now, it isn’t a perfect formula, nor is it a particularly original formula, as bits and pieces of it has existed since before the fall of Rome. It is just another iteration of what philosophy, religion, and science has been telling us for hundreds of years. What makes this formula different is its brevity. This is the God Equation…

God = Truth = Life = Love

God is Truth, God is Life, God is Love, and all three of these concepts are also equal to each other. Now, for all those who like to think literally, I’m well aware that the dictionary definitions of these four words do not lend itself to my formula. However, from a philosophical and theological point of view, this formula makes sense.

In the Christian tradition, there are a number of bible verses that support my formula. John 8:32: reads: “…you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 2 John 1:2 reads “…because of the truth that resides in us and will be with us forever.” What other truth do these verses refer to other than the Holy Spirit? John 1:4 reads: “In him was life, and the life was the light of mankind.” In John 6:48, Jesus said: “I am the bread of life.” Does it not sound like Christ is equating himself with life itself? 1 John 4:8 reads: “The person who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” In John 15:12, Jesus said: “My commandment is this - to love on another just as I have loved you.”

Granted, I do not consider myself a Christian, and read into scripture the meaning that I understand as a Unitarian Universalist, and an Omnitheist. As such, I know that Christian readers may not agree with all the conclusions I come to further in this article. I’ve also have utilized only one of the four Gospel writers. What can I say? Guys named “John” tend to be great writers…

What does it mean to equate God with Truth? Does this mean to say that God is undeniable real? Yes and No; it means that our understanding of what God is should be grounded in that which is undeniably real. If I believe that God is literally a great, thunderbolt wielding, old man in the sky, I’m going to have a hard time proving this. To quote Michael Dowd, a fellow UU, God is nothing less, but may be infinitely more, than the totality of reality.

Everything that can be proven to be true reveals something about the nature of God. Science can be and should be viewed through the lens of understanding the creation in order to understand the creator. The God and Truth does not change - only our perspective changes; there are hundreds of religions only because there are so many different ways of relating to God. Even more interesting is how misunderstanding and deliberate falsehood actually reveal more about the nature of the Truth and God than it obscures… At least that is my observation.

What does it mean to equate God with Life? Far too many people concern themselves with the noun “God,” and yet pay little attention to the verb “God.” God is in every moment, every choice, and every outcome of every “thing.” God is a process, just as Life is a process. This is what is meant by “Process Theology.” Every moment of our lives is a new revelation of our God’s glory, as is every moment of all other life. Some would claim that the sum of all things are encompassed by God. I would correct them and say that the sum of all change is encompassed by God.

When I say that every moment of our lives and the lives of others is a revelation of God, I am not being figurative. Even our dreams, hallucinations, and fantasies reveal some part of God that we might not have known of before. Every reaction to our action is a lesson waiting to be learned - a teaching of God. Sometimes the lesson is obvious… other times the lesson challenges us to find meaning in that which seems senseless.

What does it mean to equate God with Love? Think about what love is for one moment; it brings parts into something greater than there sum. Two human beings that share love towards one another, lift each other up, learn from each other’s differences, and become stronger individuals through that relationship. What happens when we apply love to all things? We become one with all things as mystics. We learn from all things, are lifted up by the totality of reality, and become stronger individuals through that relationship.

Through our understanding of Truth, Life, and Love, we gain a better understanding of God. This is far better an understanding than what we could ever achieve through rote memorization of Holy Text or constant theological philosophizing (of which I am just as guilty as anyone else). The God Equation puts all of religion and spirituality in perspective, allowing each human being to follow his or her own path. I think this has the potential of creating harmony between religions while maintaining the viability of all religious traditions… but I’m sure some would differ with my assessment.

First photo by Got Jenna. Second photo by Bart. Third Photo by Alice Cornelia. Final Photo by Jennifer R.