"Story Teller, we are concerned about the images of God that you are putting in our children's heads," said the village elder. A second elder nodded.
"No, not all of us," said another. "Mostly just you two."
A Council of Elders from various villages gathered every third moon to confer on needed topics. Two of the elders had made sure that Story Teller was an agenda item for this particular meeting.
"What are your concerns?" asked Story Teller, though he already knew. He knew the consciousness states of all the community members, especially the elders.
"You are not portraying God as All Wise, All Powerful, and Perfect In Every Way."
"I am telling the Stories as they have been passed down to us from the Ancestors," said Story Teller.
"Yes, but you are emphasizing God's weaknesses, as if he is new at the game and still learning."
"You would agree that one's relationship with God is highly important, perhaps the most important part of being a human, would you not?" asked Story Teller.
The two elders who had put Story Teller on the agenda hesitated, smelling a trap beneath the scent of the Walking With God perfume they knew and assented to so well and deeply. How could they say no?
"Well, yes. Of course." said the more outspoken of the two. "But that doesn't mean that we agree with the picture you are painting of God."
"It is okay if you do not agree," said Story Teller. "Disagreement about who God is and what God is like and even if God exists has always been the case with us humans."
Uh oh. Now they were put in the position of claiming that their view was the only right view. So they said nothing.
"I agree that relationship with God is important whether you call God God or Our Source or The Wellspring or some other descriptive name of reverence. It is the relationship that counts, that matters." said Story Teller.
"Think of your relationships with others, with me for example. Are they not always ongoing, evolving? Is not a relationship a lively dynamic process with all parties involved ever changing?"
The two elders thought of their relationships with their mates, the one with his wife, the other with her husband. What the Story Teller said was true. They were not the same giddy teens who had met long ago.
"Yes, but God is always the same," said one. "All powerful, all knowing, all wise."
"Not according to the stories," said Story Teller. "He is in relationship with his creation, especially the humans and they are all changing together as each experiences the other more deeply and more fully. As you have seen, God gets mad, gets jealous, gets destructive as well as nurturing, caring , and protective. God is on the move with his personality, learning as he goes."
A third elder spoke up. "What Story Teller is saying is obvious to anyone who listens to the stories without overlaying them with their own preconceptions and insistences. We must take off our thought helmets we fashioned in younger years and open to fresh understandings."
A fourth smiled and said, "We tell each other when we part to 'Go with God.' Perhaps we should add 'Grow with God.'"
The Story Teller smiled. He knew that the doubts of the two elders would not be resolved at this one meeting. He knew that all of us are in continuous relationship with the stories we tell ourselves and those told to us. He knew that all is Story and that all true stories are open-ended, always solving and resolving.
"I ask for blessings on all elders gathered here," he said. "And I will keep in mind the Story of God you two told us today about God All Perfect and Never Changing. At some point, I will tell the story of that God."
He got to his feet.
"Thank you for letting me know your hearts," he said. "I will let you continue your meeting."
"Go with God," chorused the elders.
"Grow with God," smiled the youngest and most mischievous of the assembly.
"No, not all of us," said another. "Mostly just you two."
A Council of Elders from various villages gathered every third moon to confer on needed topics. Two of the elders had made sure that Story Teller was an agenda item for this particular meeting.
"What are your concerns?" asked Story Teller, though he already knew. He knew the consciousness states of all the community members, especially the elders.
"You are not portraying God as All Wise, All Powerful, and Perfect In Every Way."
"I am telling the Stories as they have been passed down to us from the Ancestors," said Story Teller.
"Yes, but you are emphasizing God's weaknesses, as if he is new at the game and still learning."
"You would agree that one's relationship with God is highly important, perhaps the most important part of being a human, would you not?" asked Story Teller.
The two elders who had put Story Teller on the agenda hesitated, smelling a trap beneath the scent of the Walking With God perfume they knew and assented to so well and deeply. How could they say no?
"Well, yes. Of course." said the more outspoken of the two. "But that doesn't mean that we agree with the picture you are painting of God."
"It is okay if you do not agree," said Story Teller. "Disagreement about who God is and what God is like and even if God exists has always been the case with us humans."
Uh oh. Now they were put in the position of claiming that their view was the only right view. So they said nothing.
"I agree that relationship with God is important whether you call God God or Our Source or The Wellspring or some other descriptive name of reverence. It is the relationship that counts, that matters." said Story Teller.
"Think of your relationships with others, with me for example. Are they not always ongoing, evolving? Is not a relationship a lively dynamic process with all parties involved ever changing?"
The two elders thought of their relationships with their mates, the one with his wife, the other with her husband. What the Story Teller said was true. They were not the same giddy teens who had met long ago.
"Yes, but God is always the same," said one. "All powerful, all knowing, all wise."
"Not according to the stories," said Story Teller. "He is in relationship with his creation, especially the humans and they are all changing together as each experiences the other more deeply and more fully. As you have seen, God gets mad, gets jealous, gets destructive as well as nurturing, caring , and protective. God is on the move with his personality, learning as he goes."
A third elder spoke up. "What Story Teller is saying is obvious to anyone who listens to the stories without overlaying them with their own preconceptions and insistences. We must take off our thought helmets we fashioned in younger years and open to fresh understandings."
A fourth smiled and said, "We tell each other when we part to 'Go with God.' Perhaps we should add 'Grow with God.'"
The Story Teller smiled. He knew that the doubts of the two elders would not be resolved at this one meeting. He knew that all of us are in continuous relationship with the stories we tell ourselves and those told to us. He knew that all is Story and that all true stories are open-ended, always solving and resolving.
"I ask for blessings on all elders gathered here," he said. "And I will keep in mind the Story of God you two told us today about God All Perfect and Never Changing. At some point, I will tell the story of that God."
He got to his feet.
"Thank you for letting me know your hearts," he said. "I will let you continue your meeting."
"Go with God," chorused the elders.
"Grow with God," smiled the youngest and most mischievous of the assembly.
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