This is the second part of a six-part series about the many different invented gods that Christians worship. Personally, I prefer to worship Creation. You can find Part 1 here.
I have a difficult time saying the Lord’s Prayer—for many reasons.
- Jesus never said the prayer we use in church, which is in English and has Christian stuff added in. Jesus spoke Aramaic and was Jewish.
- The Lord’s Prayer consists of me telling Big Daddy what Little Billy needs him to do or begging him to my bidding. I refuse to be Little Billy. I need to be Grown-Up Bil who takes responsibility for my life.
- The universe contains two to four trillion (that’s twelve zeros) galaxies. Nobody has found one called Heaven where Our Father lives in a mansion.
- God as a father is sexist, anthropomorphic, and has limited capabilities.
- Only the Gospels of Matthew and Luke have a Lord’s Prayer, and each version is different. Which one was the original?
- We ask for God’s kingdom to come. Is this a kingdom based on agape? Or is this a kingdom built on white nationalism, deep-seated prejudices, and bigotry?
- In the Lord’s Prayer, people beg for forgiveness from Big Daddy and leave it at that. They don’t have to do anything further. Healthy adults know Big Daddy isn’t going to clean up our messes. We have to.
- The Lord’s Prayer is an example of Santa Claus theology. If you’re good, Big Daddy will be good to you. If you’re naughty, watch out—he’ll give you a heavenly zap.
Sigmund Freud taught me that religions, especially Christianity, are built on the image of a Big Daddy (really the church) controlling every human life from conception to death—and beyond. That’s unhealthy in my book. I need to be captain of my own ship and make sure that no church, cult, political group, or charlatan takes over my life. I need to guard, at all costs, my free will. And I need to be fully responsible for my actions or lack thereof.
I say the Lord’s Prayer whenever requested, but I put a twenty-first-century spin on it.
My Creator, which is in Creation (that means the Universe),
Holy be Creation. (You and I have to keep it holy.)
May agape (unconditional love) be done on earth as in Creation.
I am thankful for my daily bread. (This means all my blessings.)
And may I forgive myself (for being a jerk) as we also have to forgive everyone. (No matter what.)
And may I lead myself from temptation (I know the difference between right and wrong),
But may I resist temptation. (I know evil when I see it.)
So be it! (Amen.)
I prefer to act according to agape, which helps me lead a rich and full life.
Big Daddy is no more. I need to take charge of my own life. What’s your relationship with Big Daddy?