Swanson Religious Projection
November 11, 2018
[Outside Reading][Religion as Projection]
On the journey to discovering the nature of God, many theologians argue for and against the possibility of knowing his nature. An argument from Ludwig Feuerbach supposes that God is a projection of the human subject onto an "other". He says that humans yearn for a higher being to account for the things they don't understand. And that this lack of understanding results in the belief that there is a higher being that must be all-knowing and all-powerful that can understand any shortcomings of humans. He says that we limit ourselves by placing an external locus of control onto God for things that we are actually capable of. In this case it makes sense why when an incident or variable is outside of someones control they look to God to help them with it seeking guidance. He also supports that the personification of God, as often seen in the text of Abrahamic religious scriptures, is due to our desire to be limitless in power, goodness,knowledge, and being perfectly loving and just.
Is the reason we project personal qualities on God because we are made in the direct image of God and should then be able to understand him through his creation, or are we solely projecting ourselves onto an exterior being in order not to despair from death and explain our limits?
[Outside Reading][Religion as Projection]
On the journey to discovering the nature of God, many theologians argue for and against the possibility of knowing his nature. An argument from Ludwig Feuerbach supposes that God is a projection of the human subject onto an "other". He says that humans yearn for a higher being to account for the things they don't understand. And that this lack of understanding results in the belief that there is a higher being that must be all-knowing and all-powerful that can understand any shortcomings of humans. He says that we limit ourselves by placing an external locus of control onto God for things that we are actually capable of. In this case it makes sense why when an incident or variable is outside of someones control they look to God to help them with it seeking guidance. He also supports that the personification of God, as often seen in the text of Abrahamic religious scriptures, is due to our desire to be limitless in power, goodness,knowledge, and being perfectly loving and just.
Is the reason we project personal qualities on God because we are made in the direct image of God and should then be able to understand him through his creation, or are we solely projecting ourselves onto an exterior being in order not to despair from death and explain our limits?
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