Moonshadow made a comment on Michele’s blog that I must make my own beer because I use the word “home-brew” so much. Well she’s wrong. I don’t even drink anymore so except for an occasional fruit or veggie that is rotting away in my fridge, there is no alcohol being made in my home.
But she is right that I have been stuck with my description of “home-brew God” to describe the God of some people that is a creation of their own thoughts and feelings (instead of the one true God revealed through the Bible). So I will try to come up with some new descriptions for the home-brew God.
All I have so far is “homemade God” and “al a carte God”. Not terribly original.
Any ideas?
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5 comments:
I like the term "homebrew" God - and I do brew my own beer (and wine).
However, on reflection, I don't think the term goes quite far enough. You can make varied brews, but the level of variation is not high compared to say, world cuisine. In fact, if you're German, there's only four permitted ingredients - water, malted barley, hops and yeast. And a lot of homebrewers stick to traditional recipes.
"A la carte God" sounds better - in fact, it's rather like the term "cafeteria Catholics", because it connotes picking and choosing to suit oneself.
I kept thinking Chesterton had a word for this, but when I started looking the only one I could find right off is a subset of what you're talking about, but not the whole. But the term appears in such a wonderful passage, I'd like to share it here:
"Of all conceivable forms of enlightenment the worst is what these people call the Inner Light. Of all horrible religions the most horrible is the worship of the god within. Any one who knows any body knows how it would work; any one who knows any one from the Higher Thought Centre knows how it does work. That Jones shall worship the god within him turns out ultimately to mean that Jones shall worship Jones. Let Jones worship the sun or moon, anything rather than the Inner Light; let Jones worship cats or crocodiles, if he can find any in his street, but not the god within. Christianity came into the world firstly in order to assert with violence that a man had not only to look inwards, but to look outwards, to behold with astonishment and enthusiasm a divine company and a divine captain. The only fun of being a Christian was that a man was not left alone with the Inner Light, but definitely recognized an outer light, fair as the sun, clear as the moon, terrible as an army with banners."
I've heard the term "Salad Bar Christian" before. They pick and choose what they want and leave the rest behind. I don't know what you'd call their god though.
Hm - very interesting topic...I don't know how else you could discribe a god that really is not the God?
How about "smorgasbord theology?"
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