What Does It Mean To Live "Under God?"

Is God as serious, strict and somber faced, as some people proclaim?

Or does God have an extraordinary sense of humor and who enjoys a good laugh?

Or a pleasant combination of both?

Here is a great question to wrestle with: Does following all the rules -- keeping all the traditions, rituals, opinions and ideas -- of the institutional church fathers (I use the male reference on purpose) save us?

That is, does following all the rules, and "doing good," mean we are pleasing God?

Or is it okay-- alright -- to simply be you and to be human?

All of the above questions have to do with how people view God and God’s will.  These questions, in one way or another, have been the avenues leading away from what once were the core values of follower of Jesus/God for centuries.

Think about it, our nations was founded on the belief that we were a people living “under God.”  That is a nations who was formed with a religious freedom to be free to live our faith without constraint — without restriction.

That my friends was a seemingly broad, yet narrow, assumption.

It the beginning America was basically a two religion nation: Roman Catholic and The Church of England.

After the penning of the Tenth Amendment two was multiplied by hundreds.  It is thought that over nine-hundred Christian denomination exist today.  

What does it mean to live in a country “under God?”

That question is loaded!

I’ll repeat my original questions: 

Is God as serious, strict and somber faced, as some people proclaim?

Or does God have an extraordinary sense of humor and who enjoys a good laugh?

Or a pleasant combination of both?

Here is a great question to wrestle with: Does following all the rules, keeping all the traditions, rituals, opinions and ideas of the institutional church fathers (I use the male reference on purpose) save us?

That is, does following all the rules and doing good mean we are pleasing God?

Or is it okay — alright — to simply be people and to be human.?

To be continued.

I invite you to enter the conversation.