Playing God

Most people in our society enjoy playing god. We even teach our children how to play this game practically from the moment they are born. A person who plays god well is admired as a successful person, and the person who plays poorly is condemned and outcast from the social playing fields. What does it mean to play god? It is the simple act of pretending to judge the merits of other people and circumstances. Our entire culture is permeated with the paraphernalia of this game. Newspapers, TV, magazines, the Internet, are all primarily concerned with providing us with the superficial information that we need to play. We become addicted to this game at a very young age, so young that we typically cannot even remember a time when we did not judge every person we meet and every experience we have. To judge seems completely natural to us, and we typically feel the need to do so constantly. For most people sitting quietly for a few moments without judging something creates a strong sense of unease and anxiety. And like any sport, there are many different levels of play, from the amateurish judgement of backfence gossip, to the world impacting judgements of polititians and religious leaders. But no matter at what level we play, it is still just a game. To BE God is a completely different matter. To BE God is never a game. Each and every one of us has the ability to Be God, but very very few have the courage to do so. So we PLAY god instead. I'm playing god right now as I write these words. I am judging myself and other people's ability to play the game. It is not a conscious process for me, but at least I am conscious of it. I realize that I am playing god because I exhibit all the behavioral indicators of the game (and the addiction). First and foremost, I am engrossed in human language. The fact that I am using words is a primary indication that the game is being played. Human language has become one of the greatest facilities of the game. Not all human language is used for playing god. But generally speaking, the more a pesron's lips are moving (or pen) the more likely they are caught up in the game. This is especially true any time that words are used to form some sort of opinion, of course, even if that opinion is only vaguely implied (as I am doing now, by vaguely implying that I know what the hell I'm talking about!) Yet for all the pain and suffering that playing god entails, it is not “bad” or “wrong”. And while it certainly envokes “evil”, it is not evil in and of itself. Ultimately it is still only a game played by the children of God. It helps us to learn so we can grow up and someday take on the responsibility that comes along with Being God. As we mature we eventually begin to lose interest in the game, and naturally become more involved with the process of creation (which, of course, is an ongoing miracle). We do this because as we judge less we begin to understand (and hense love) more. Through understanding we aquire the ability to shape and change our world (and the universe). Pure understanding, uncontaminated with judgement, has the ability to create. But pure understanding requires complete non-judgement, a return to innocence if you will. This is also what it means to truly forgive, and be forgiven. A person who is BEING God does not need to judge. But, God lets His children judge themselves, so that they will know when they are ready to stop playing children's games and grow up, becoming One with Him. Though the game is one of judgement, we are not learning how to judge. We are learning how (and why) to not judge. We are learning how (and why) to forgive. Only by learning this lesson will our need to judge (and to play god) diminish. And, pretending that we know how to forgive (i.e. by judging first so we can then pretend to forgive) is just another way to play the game (one that seems particularily popular with the least mature children of god who frequently call themselves Christians). You will know when you have learned this lesson (how to not judge and to genuinely forgive), because you will at that moment realize that you ARE God! And it will be the most humbling realization you ever have!