Ask Bil Anything

Joan asks,

Is there anyone who answers prayers?

Sixty-six years ago, in my second year of seminary, after a tragic accident in which my best friend was killed, I was forced to abruptly deal with this issue when a priest came into my hospital room the next day and asked, “What did you and Brad do to deserve this?” His inference was that God was punishing us for something we had done in the past.

That rocked my theological boat. Under the effect of serious pain pills, my immediate response was “Get out and never come back!”

But I still had to deal with the issue: Was there a God up there, like a master puppeteer, pulling strings to make bad things happen to good people? If so, I wanted no part of such a religion and would have to leave seminary.

Quietly, I wrestled with this issue, but by the time I graduated and became ordained, I had nixed the idea that there was a traffic cop or master puppeteer God up there. “The Bad Cop in the Sky” was the dead God that Time magazine referred to with its headline, “IS GOD DEAD?” (Time, April 1966).

Unfortunately, that god is still alive and well in most Christian churches.

By the time I arrived at my first parish, I had decided my God was Creation, a force for good in the universe, still creating and evolving, without gender, no judging, and no Son. No one has ever questioned that idea.

However, when I started referring to God as “NoOneUpThere,” some church folks weren’t pleased, but I made it blatantly clear that I have no interest in a nonexistent god who lives in a nonexistent mansion above a nonexistent firmament of a nonexistent flat earth.

Immediately then, the question arises, “Do you pray?”

“Yes, daily.”

“To whom?”

“Myself.”

“Huh?”

I’m telling me, not NoOneUpThere, what I need to do to be a presence for folks going through a crisis. I am not asking for outrageous miracles (cure someone’s cancer, etc.) but for that person to have the strength and courage to face reality. It also means I need to become an active participant, not a “list maker” for NoOneUpThere.

The space age has been most helpful for me because it has taught me that the size of the universe is almost beyond human comprehension, with its up to two trillion (that’s twelve zeros) other galaxies. Earth is like one grain of sand on a huge beach, like Waikiki in Hawai‘i. This eliminates such antiquated ideas as an anthropomorphic god, heaven, hell, purgatory, judgment, Second Comings, and so on.

Instead of sending a list of miracles that NoOneUpThere needs to do this week, you and I need to take our own actions—write a note, prepare a meal, make a phone call, pay a visit, clean up the yard or house, or whatever else needs doing. Being actively involved is much more creative than praying to NoOneUpThere. (My Spanish teacher in Ecuador taught me that the word Jesus is not a proper noun but an action verb.)

This is not going to be an answer for most people. They still think in terms of NoOneUpThere and continue to say, “You are in my thoughts and prayers,” which I find trite and meaningless. I would rather you ask, “What can I do to help?”

Thank you, Joan, for another great question. I hope my ideas help you decide what makes sense. This concept has worked well for me, but I am still trying to perfect it.

PeaceLoveJoyHopeKindness

Bil

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P.S. People often ask me provocative questions about current events, both religious and secular. I have found that some of these questions are being asked universally. I’ll be periodically alternating regular articles with one of those questions and my answer. I invite you to send me your question to bilaulenbach@yahoo.com.

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