God is Goodness in General
Definition of Goodness:
For every actual thing, there is an ideal that the thing ought
to be. The degree to which the actual thing is the ideal determines
its goodness.
We can measure the goodness of a thing by comparing the actual
object or situation to the ideal. We make this comparison by first making a list
of the properties that the thing ideally should have. Then, we make a second list
of the properties that the actual thing does have. We measure the goodness by comparing
the actual list to the ideal list.
When properties are in the ideal list and lacking in the actual list, it produces
a tension in us. This tension can be compared to the tension that
exists between the two poles of a magnet. It is like the magnetic field of tension
that we can see in the iron filings that have been spread about on a sheet of paper
over a magnet.
People have been designed in a way that makes them want to transform actual objects
and situations into their ideal ones. This need to transform actual things into
their ideal is so great that it has been given the name goodness or, more precisely,
the process of creating goodness.
Some may object that this idea of goodness makes goodness a relative term that depends
on whose ideal is being used measure how good some actual thing is. That is true
in a sense when the comparison process is going on, but there is an absolute
standard for selecting the best ideal. The best ideal is the one that
leads to the most fulfillments of ideals in general. For example, if someone is
trying to decide between the ideal of health and disease for the body, health is
a better ideal in an absolute sense because health allows us to fulfill many more
ideals – like being able to swim, dance, etc.
One final point is that just there is an ideal for each actual thing, there is also
an ideal for each person. We feel good about ourselves to the degree
that we live up to the ideal of our self. When we fall short of being our ideal
self, we feel bad because the tension within us is increased.
Definition of God:
God is goodness in general.
God is not goodness in particular. A good car is not God; nor is a good career,
house, or whatever. However, the set of all good things is God.
God is the sum of all goodness. God is not just our ultimate concern
– God is all of our concerns wrapped up into one.
The tension that we feel when things are less than ideal is the same tension that
exists in God. God feels all the tension that exists in us and in every living creature.
We directly experience a small part of what God feels when we feel tension.
When we transform an actual situation into an ideal one, the divine is working through
us because we are doing what God would do. When we become more of our ideal self,
or help someone else move closer to their ideal, we experience the same enjoyment
that God does.
God is the ideal of the universe because if God were anything less than that, it
would not be the best God possible. Each step that we take toward transforming this
actual universe into the ideal is a step that we take toward God. On the other hand,
each action that we perform that increases the distance between actual universe
and the ideal one causes us to take a step away from God.