This is the fifth 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, and Part 2 here, Part 3 here, and Part 4 here.
Many see God as the Great Planner or Master Puppeteer who masterminds every detail of all seven billion–plus human lives on earth. The Great Planner supposedly designed the entire universe, all two to four trillion galaxies. Nobody knows whether the Master Puppeteer manages other planets besides Earth.
I guess that means the Great Planner arranged my motorcycle accident in 1958 and had my friend Brad killed by a fire truck. One person actually told me, “God must have needed two Episcopal seminarians in heaven.” Fortunately for me, the Master Puppeteer didn’t do the job very well, so I was spared.
Years later, I heard that the fire-truck driver ended up in a mental institution and died of a drug addiction because of the accident. Did the Master Puppeteer punish the driver for not doing the job correctly, or was that part of a new plan designed for me?
Have you ever heard people say “There’s a reason for everything”? This implies that God has a special plan for everybody. Unfortunately, NoOneUpThere never shared that plan with me, so for eighty-seven years, I’ve been doing my own thing.
I’ve heard from too many clergypeople that God has a plan for everyone. I guess that means every action, even writing blog posts, is the result of the Master Puppeteer pulling strings. I have often wondered if divine plans are actually created by scammers hiding behind religion.
Religious folks like to impress people, so they use big words to describe the Great Planner. For example, they like to use omnipresent, which means this god is in all two to four trillion galaxies at the same time. How exhausting! Another favorite word is omnipotent, which means all-powerful, invincible, and indestructible. The third tongue-twister is omniscient, or all-knowing. That’s a lot of knowledge!
The Great Planner god has other names: Santa Claus, the Master Builder, the Benevolent Dictator, and Superman.
When I see all the wars, destruction, starvation, senseless killings, poverty, and injustice going on in the world, I can only conclude that the Master Puppeteer is either a terrible planner or nonexistent.
The only place such a god could exist is in the minds of people who refuse to act like adults, use their brains, and take responsibility for themselves.
I like my god, Creation, which flourishes all over the universe and requires that I live my life creatively and to the fullest.
People who promulgate the Great Planner are the reason why churches are dying and viewed as irrelevant. Critical thinkers are not interested in such an infantile idea.
We have the choice to believe in either free will or the Great Planner. The daily news always reassures me that free will reigns supreme.
What are your thoughts?
Image courtesy of George Redgrave (CC BY-ND 2.0)