My basic belief about God is that God is energy.  This energy is neutral.  It is present in everything and everyone at all times.  Merriam-Webster.com offers this definition of energy as dynamic quality:  the capacity of acting or being active <intellectual energy>; usable power.  Wikipedia says this about energy- “It is impossible to give a comprehensive definition of energy because of the many forms it may take, but the most common definition is that it is the capacity of a system to perform work.”

 We as observers of the energy have an effect on the course. We cannot directly observe energy, only the “results.”  God is different for each person given we each have our own theology and therefore God may take many forms.  I consider an example of a vengeance God of the Hebrew Scriptures to be a reflection of the consciousness of the writers.  Yes, God is the capacity to perform work.  And, yes, we are this capacity also, given this energy is in us.  I find God in the spaces.

Sin is in the observation.  When we see the energy as a negative, it goes in that path.  Therefore, the resulting manifestation of the energy is in compliance.  Salvation is the changing of the direction to a positive route.  This is the meaning of the saying that we change the world when we change our minds.  There is no inherent “evil.”  We create or manifest the bad with our thinking.  I view evil as the opposite of “live.”  In other words, in “evil,” it (a person or thing) is not living and growing.  My interpretation of prayer is the act of connecting into this field of energy and allowing it to inform my thinking and feeling.  And finally, I must practice this connecting when living in a world that has a choice.  I personally do not want a shrinking anti-living world.  My practice is to reassure myself and others that we can have a world that works for everyone.  Heaven is not a physical place, but a level of consciousness, as is Hell.

A church is a support for people to practice remembering that God is good and always available to us.  It provides the teachings and community to empower everyone in the congregation to grow spiritually.  This implies that it is not merely a place for people to be told their truth, but where they can safely discover for themselves the Truth, meaning the changeless principles that allow us to experience a life of growth, abundance and understanding.  In this community, with our without walls, they can connect with others in this pursuit, hearing others, speaking, learning, expressing, and trying out theologies.  While I am saying this, I realize that a church has a commitment to teach their theology, but also I maintain that it has a duty to allow conversations and explorations as to the viability of those teachings.  As Thomas Paine said “It is error only, and not truth that shrinks from inquiry.”