As my friend Rusty Lopez once asked, \u201cWhat is it about our culture that causes us to consider the creator of the universe just another one of the gang?\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Good question. The cause, in my opinion, can be traced back to American Protestantism, particularly in the popular strands of evangelicalism. As a religious movement we have almost completely abandoned the concept of a transcendent creator in favor of a God who is our \u201cbest friend.\u201d\u009d I remember as a young Baptist how we would gloss over the commands to \u201cfear God\u201d\u009d in favor of singing hymns about \u201d\u009dWhat a Friend We Have in Jesus.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Even the Gnostic literary critic Harold Bloom is able to see where we err, as he wrote in his book The American Religion:<\/p>\n
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The American finds God in herself or himself only after finding the freedom to know God by experiencing a total inward solitude. In this solitary freedom, the American is liberated both from other selves and from the created world. He comes to recognize that his spirit is itself uncreated. Knowing that he is the equal of God, the American Religionist can then achieve his true desideratum, mystical communion with his friend, the godhead.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The idea of Jesus is mainly our \u201cfriend\u201d\u009d is deeply rooted in our particular religious culture. Our lack of reverence expresses itself in everything from our worship to our evangelism.<\/p>\n