The Christian God Seen as Big Brother
Unfortunately, our western culture seems to have a gross misunderstanding of the Christian God. Many people seem to view God as an extreme version of Big Brother. If your not familiar with George Orwell's 1984, then I would encourage you to check it out.
For those who haven't read 1984, the book is set in a futuristic society (1984 was completed by Orwell in 1948, and the title of the book was arrived at by inverting the last two digits of the current year). This society has perverted Socialism to the extreme (Some have misinterpreted 1984 as an attack on Socialism. This interpretation is most certainly incorrect due to the fact that Orwell was a known advocate of Socialism; he simply did not like the Russian perversion of the social doctrine.). This government is extremely overbearing, monitoring people with television-like devices in every home. The government regulates when couples have sex (and sex is only allowed for procreation, not pleasure). The government controls literally every aspect of the people's lives. The government is personified in a figure known as "Big Brother". He appears on television advertisements, on posters plastered on every corner, in every elevator, and in every home. "On coins, on stamps, on the covers of books, on banners, on posters, and on the wrapping of a cigarette packet--everywhere. ... Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimetres inside your skull" (1984--Orwell: 29).
The way society at large views God is even worse than Orwell's Big Brother. Society's portratal of God is that he even wants to control those few centimeters in your head. Thankfully, this is not the biblical picture of God. Too long have Christians portrayed God as an angry tyrant, waiting to cast people into hell at the slightest sin. On the contrary, the biblical view of God is that of a loving father, who desperately wants a relationship with his lost child (c.f. Luke 15:11-32).
God does not use terror as a motivational tactic, like so many Christians have in the past. The Bible tells us, "God is love ... There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love" (1 John 4:16-18).
If you do not know God and do not know his love, I encourage you to seek him out. He is not someone to be scared of. God is not Big Brother. He is not looking for an opportunity to cast you into hell. God wants everyone to come to him and have a relationship with him (2 Peter 3:9). The only fear we should have of God is the fear of his absence because his presence is the only way to live a truly fulfilling life. If you do know him, but you have been living in fear, live in fear no longer. God loves you and you are his child. Be free to love those around you with his love!
Feel free to comment or ask questions. If you want to know more about God, please feel free to ask. I would love to help you or share some of my experiences with you.
God bless!
For those who haven't read 1984, the book is set in a futuristic society (1984 was completed by Orwell in 1948, and the title of the book was arrived at by inverting the last two digits of the current year). This society has perverted Socialism to the extreme (Some have misinterpreted 1984 as an attack on Socialism. This interpretation is most certainly incorrect due to the fact that Orwell was a known advocate of Socialism; he simply did not like the Russian perversion of the social doctrine.). This government is extremely overbearing, monitoring people with television-like devices in every home. The government regulates when couples have sex (and sex is only allowed for procreation, not pleasure). The government controls literally every aspect of the people's lives. The government is personified in a figure known as "Big Brother". He appears on television advertisements, on posters plastered on every corner, in every elevator, and in every home. "On coins, on stamps, on the covers of books, on banners, on posters, and on the wrapping of a cigarette packet--everywhere. ... Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimetres inside your skull" (1984--Orwell: 29).
The way society at large views God is even worse than Orwell's Big Brother. Society's portratal of God is that he even wants to control those few centimeters in your head. Thankfully, this is not the biblical picture of God. Too long have Christians portrayed God as an angry tyrant, waiting to cast people into hell at the slightest sin. On the contrary, the biblical view of God is that of a loving father, who desperately wants a relationship with his lost child (c.f. Luke 15:11-32).
God does not use terror as a motivational tactic, like so many Christians have in the past. The Bible tells us, "God is love ... There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love" (1 John 4:16-18).
If you do not know God and do not know his love, I encourage you to seek him out. He is not someone to be scared of. God is not Big Brother. He is not looking for an opportunity to cast you into hell. God wants everyone to come to him and have a relationship with him (2 Peter 3:9). The only fear we should have of God is the fear of his absence because his presence is the only way to live a truly fulfilling life. If you do know him, but you have been living in fear, live in fear no longer. God loves you and you are his child. Be free to love those around you with his love!
Feel free to comment or ask questions. If you want to know more about God, please feel free to ask. I would love to help you or share some of my experiences with you.
God bless!
Labels: Literary Musings, Spiritual Musings
posted by Justin | 3:11 PM
1 Comments:
Thank you for reminding humans that God created us because he loves us, not because he wants to make them miserable. God is love, and for some reason, people seem to think he is easier to deal with as a maniacal tyrant. You should think about writing a Christian version of 1984, maybe inverting the story, satirizing the gross misunderstanding some Christians have given the world.
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