A personal God?

[Nightshade]

I was reading a news article on the BBC that says somthing about

"It shows that two thirds of the UK population 'have no connection' with the church and that only a quarter 'believe in a personal god', just one of the several minimum requirements to qualify as a Christian," he said.
so my question is what is a personal god? what does that mean?

[Virgil]

Here are definitions from Wiki:
Personal God:

Definitions
The broadest definition of this term is a God who is a personal being, i.e. a being with a personality, including the capacity to reason and feel love, as in the cases of Zeus, Apollo and Athena and other deities common to European Pagan polytheism. In the case of the Christian belief in the Trinity, God is an impersonal 'ousia' or substance, manifested in three 'hypostasis' or persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These views are intended to challenge the concept of deity which is merely a guiding principle, a blind creative force or a philosophical ideal.

A narrower interpretation of a personal God is a deity who takes a personal interest in the world in general and worshippers in particular. This view is intended to challenge a deistic outlook.

A still narrower definition would be a God whose personal interest in His worshippers is so great that the deity communicates directly with them and actively intervenes in their lives through miracles.

The most restrictive interpretation of a personal God is a deity that is solely concerned with his worshippers, having pity at best and animosity at worst towards non-believers. Jehovah, the jealous God of the Torah, was the personal God of the Jews. Most modern denominations believe that they have the clearest understanding of what God wants, but some modern fundamentalists suggest that those who are not members of their church will experience damnation.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_God

[Madhuri]

Does this also include following some spiritual leaders? Like Osho or Sai Baba ( I dont know, if many are aware of these personalities), as they fall under this category


The broadest definition of this term is a God who is a personal being, i.e. a being with a personality, including the capacity to reason and feel love.

They all are personal being. And some people do consider them God like.

[Virgil]

Does this also include following some spiritual leaders? Like Osho or Sai Baba ( I dont know, if many are aware of these personalities), as they fall under this category



They all are personal being. And some people do consider them God like.

I'm not familiar of Osho and Sai Baba. Are they leaders or dieties?

[Madhuri]

Leaders, not deities.

Osho (now deceased) and Sai Baba are spiritual leaders

Osho --


Rajneesh Chandra Mohan Jain (December 11, 1931 – January 19, 1990), better known during the 1970s and 1980s as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and later taking the name Osho, was an Indian spiritual teacher. He lived in India and in other countries including, for a period, the United States, and inspired the Osho movement, a controversial spiritual and philosophical movement.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osho

Sai baba --


Sathya Sai Baba (born Sathyanarayana Raju on November 23, 1926, or later than 1927 — with the family name of "Ratnakara") is a South Indian guru, religious leader, orator and philosopher often described as a godman and a miracle worker. According to the Sathya Sai Organization, there are an estimated 1,200 Sathya Sai Baba Centers in 130 countries world-wide. The number of Sathya Sai Baba adherents is estimated sometimes as around 6 million, and followers cite "50 to 100 million".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sathya_Sai_Baba

Lets say, leaders like the Pope (I mean he is a Christian, follower of a religion), but some people may start considering him their personal god. Similarly, like Osho and Sai Baba have followers.

I understand that this definiton is from believers point of view. Who they consider their personal god, and that can be anybody. Is that so?

PS:- I am not refering to their teachings, but more to their God like status.

[Pendragon]

To me, a personal God simply means that God is real to you personally, and nothing will shake your belief in God. I have always said that until the words of any Holy Writ become meaningful to you personally, they might as well just be words on paper, because to you they mean nothing. But when they do mean something to you, then God becomes personal, you know Him for yourself, and not because others said that it is so. You become convinced in your own heart and mind.

God Bless.

[Redzeppelin]

I might also add that I think the term "personal" could also be applied to God as a person - that He has a character, a personality - that He is not a "force" or a being that is untouched by our experiences, but rather that He emotionally engages with us, and feels like we do.

[billyjack]

of all the beings in the universe, god chose us to match his personality to. says who? we sure can't figure out and completely understand the behavior of other species from our perpsective. so if god's perspective (his personality and emotional schema) is just like ours, then how does he do it?

[Scheherazade]

Are they leaders or dieties?No, I don't think so but I think Dr Robert Atkins is considered one of the most eminent 'dieties' of modern times! :D

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/63/AtkinsDietBook.jpg

;)

[Nightshade]

No, I don't think so but I think Dr Robert Atkins is considered one of the most eminent 'dieties' of modern times! :D

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/63/AtkinsDietBook.jpg

;)

Is this a spelling joke ??:confused:

[JGL57]

No, I don't think so but I think Dr Robert Atkins is considered one of the most eminent 'dieties' of modern times! :D

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/63/AtkinsDietBook.jpg

;)

Not so much a deity (or diety) as someone who didn't have his head up his arse regarding diet. I'm pretty sure the facts are in now - dietary fat per se is not the problem, sugar and refined starches are.

Why don't you start a thread on this? Man cannot live on god alone. :lol:

[Redzeppelin]

Man cannot live on god alone. :lol:

Revision: man cannot live at all without God.

[andave_ya]

Second that. "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every Word of God."

For me, personal God means that God isn't some far off, stern being who tells you to be good. God is a Friend. You can talk to Him without having to worry about being on His level (we'll never get there.) And He loves to hear you pray and speak with Him.

[Virgil]

Leaders, not deities.



Oh, thanks. But then they couldn't be personal Gods. I think you get the drift of what a personal God is by the discussion here, and the definitions.

Certainly not Dr. Atkins. :lol:

[Madhuri]

Oh, thanks. But then they couldn't be personal Gods. I think you get the drift of what a personal God is by the discussion here, and the definitions.

Certainly not Dr. Atkins. :lol:

I am following the discussions here :nod:

I am thinking does God have these attributes?


personal being, i.e. a being with a personality, including the capacity to reason and feel love

If yes, then won't it make Him like a human being, given God like status?

Well, i'll wait and see how the discussions unfold. :)

[Virgil]

If yes, then won't it make Him like a human being, given God like status?



Yes, that's why Catholics (or is it Protestants too? I don't know) that believe this from the definitions:

In the case of the Christian belief in the Trinity, God is an impersonal 'ousia' or substance, manifested in three 'hypostasis' or persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Which makes this highly complex in that it is both an impersonal and personal God at the same time.

[cuppajoe_9]

The protestants are divided on the issue of the trinity. Some believe in it, some don't. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nontrinitarianism#Nontrinitarian_Christian_groups)

'Personal', in the context of that article, refers to having the quality of personhood. I would imagine that the percentage of Britons who believe that they have their own individual gods is even lower.

[Pendragon]

Second that. "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every Word of God."

For me, personal God means that God isn't some far off, stern being who tells you to be good. God is a Friend. You can talk to Him without having to worry about being on His level (we'll never get there.) And He loves to hear you pray and speak with Him.I like that. There is a song I sing sometimes, I don't know who wrote it, I first heard it sung by The Gaither Vocal Band: He came Down to My Level, When I Couldn't Get Up to His. God Bless.

[JGL57]

So, then, from the standpoint of an atheist or western materialist/physicalist, a belief in a personal god would be explicable as a psychological state wherein the believer in such has personified nature to the point that he, the believer, hears god's voice, has conversations with god, feels god's presence, etc.

So, then, no matter where you are, you are never alone, because your special friend is there too (either lurking over your shoulder, inside your head, or just permeating everywhere, inside and outside your skin.

I think I'll stick with atheism. When I close the door to the bathroom I like to feel confident that I am alone. TOTALLY alone.

[cuppajoe_9]

So, then, from the standpoint of an atheist or western materialist/physicalist, a belief in a personal god would be explicable as a psychological state wherein the believer in such has personified nature to the point that he, the believer, hears god's voice, has conversations with god, feels god's presence, etc.Umm, no. Belief in a personal God means belief in a God who is also a person. Whether or not one can have conversations with him is an entirely different question.

[JGL57]

Umm, no. Belief in a personal God means belief in a God who is also a person. Whether or not one can have conversations with him is an entirely different question.

That's why I included "feeling god's presence" as an option. Certainly, more liberal or sophisticated believers don't view god as a personal friend - many may think of "him" as a reification of love, intelligence or whatever that is far removed from mundane experience. My late brother was an Episcopalian who viewed god in this way.

I am speaking of those who have a personal relationship with a person, named "god", who just happens to be invisible, immaterial, all-powerful, a strict but loving parent, a close personal friend, etc. THAT'S the idea of god that engenders the thought that paranoia would be the result. Personally, I must eschew that kind of thinking. I would find it incompatible with my goal of maintaining my sanity at all costs. :thumbs_up

[hyperborean]

Your own personal jesus
Someone to hear your prayers
Someone who cares --Depeche Mode

[Nightshade]

Humm You know what Ive just got myself confused now....*sigh* God is God hes not a person , :confused:

[cuppajoe_9]

God is God hes not a personNot a person in the sense of a member of the species Homo sapiens sapiens, but a person in the sense of having the qualities of personhood, such as a distinct personality, the capacity for emotion and rational thought, &c.

[Neo_Sephiroth]

Humm You know what Ive just got myself confused now....*sigh* God is God hes not a person , :confused:

I second that!:D Word.

[blazeofglory]

We have Godhead in India, for India is a fertile ground where God and His offspring can flourish and expand and that is why there is a billion Gods for a billion people, each has his own particular deity. It is amazing.

[hellsapoppin]

"each has his own particular deity"


The Bible speaks of each person having guardian angels. Are these personal deities that you speak of angels or gods?? How do people communicate with them or do they do so at all???

[Madhuri]

The deities are Gods.

For example, if a person is starting a new venture or any new task, they will pray to Lord Ganesha, for good luck; there is a goddess of knowledge and learning -- Saraswati, there is a goddess of money -- Lakshmi, and likewise. So, people pray accordingly to each. There are different manisfestation of the same god. They can pray to all the gods and godesses or only one.

[hellsapoppin]

Aha, I see.

BTW, you're not Memsahib from "Lagaan" are you? That was one of my all time favorite movies! :)

[Beautifull]

God is the savior, and if he saved me, he can save you too before you go to hell!

[Gracewings]

"each has his own particular deity"


The Bible speaks of each person having guardian angels. Are these personal deities that you speak of angels or gods?? How do people communicate with them or do they do so at all???

I grew up hearing that I had my own guardian angel but have never come across this in the Bible. Can you please tell me where to find it?

[Madhuri]

Aha, I see.

BTW, you're not Memsahib from "Lagaan" are you? That was one of my all time favorite movies! :)

Not the Gori-memsahib of Lagaan. I am very much Indian, more like the village girl in the movie. The name was given to me by Pendragon :) . Lagaan is a good movie, I really liked the songs :) .

[dzebra]

I grew up hearing that I had my own guardian angel but have never come across this in the Bible. Can you please tell me where to find it?

The closest that the Bible says to that is from the following two passages:

Matthew 18:10 - "See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven."

Hebrews 1:14 - "Are they [angels] not all spirits for public service, sent forth to minister for those who are going to inherit salvation?"

Mostly it comes from the first one, but I've found someone who uses the second one to argue it.

[Dark Muse]

In Paganism it was often common, and still is among some Pagans, myself included, to have what was known as an Altar God, which could equate to a personal god. In which each household had a particular deity what was sacred to them and the name altar god came from the fact that it was common for an altar in honor of that god to be made within their house.

It was a deity that was believed to look after the household and in which the members of the household would share a close personal relationship, giving regular offerings and prayers to, having conversations with and seeking guidance from for personal and daily matters.

It was a deity the individual could have a relationship with, without having to go through a priest, priestess, or other holy figure.

[blazeofglory]

In Paganism it was often common, and still is among some Pagans, myself included, to have what was known as an Altar God, which could equate to a personal god. In which each household had a particular deity what was sacred to them and the name altar god came from the fact that it was common for an altar in honor of that god to be made within their house.

It was a deity that was believed to look after the household and in which the members of the household would share a close personal relationship, giving regular offerings and prayers to, having conversations with and seeking guidance from for personal and daily matters.

It was a deity the individual could have a relationship with, without having to go through a priest, priestess, or other holy figure.

Here I suppose gods are guardians. I like the very idea very much. I like paganism very much. Paganism could not flourish because of Christianity.

[hellsapoppin]

Not the Gori-memsahib of Lagaan. I am very much Indian, more like the village girl in the movie. The name was given to me by Pendragon :) . Lagaan is a good movie, I really liked the songs :) .



~~ village girl ~~

Only prettier, I bet. :)

Which reminds me: the beautiful sport of cricket has inspired much literature. On another forum, we have had discussions on some of the great novels and novelletes which were based on the sport.

Here in the States, baseball has inspired much literature as well.

[Gracewings]

The closest that the Bible says to that is from the following two passages:

Matthew 18:10 - "See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven."

Hebrews 1:14 - "Are they [angels] not all spirits for public service, sent forth to minister for those who are going to inherit salvation?"

Mostly it comes from the first one, but I've found someone who uses the second one to argue it.

Thanks for the reply, I had never considered those verses in that light before.

[Whifflingpin]

dzebra quoted: "Matthew 18:10 - "See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.""

This passage ought to have spawned another view of angels. Angel means messenger, and it is usually assumed to mean a messenger from God. This passage seems to say that the messenger derives from the little ones, and implies that messages from children reach God directly.
This is quite a different idea from that of guardian angels sent from above to look after each individual.

[hellsapoppin]

Woops, sorry: I missed the question about protective angels. Here are a few quotes from the Bible:

Psalms 91:11-16

For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways. In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone. You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot. "Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him, And show him My salvation."


Acts 12:6

Matt 2:13

[blazeofglory]

A personal god is something that has to do with the person's imagination or something that is woven or fabricated by individuals.