Revamping How We Talk about God

Studies have found that the way we understand God, or our “image of God”, directly impacts our own sense of well-being. Another way to say it is: how we relate to God impacts not only how we feel but also how we live. If we think of God as angry and judgmental, we will likely feel scared and act out of that fear. If we think of God as distant and avoidant, we will likely long for intimacy but find it not available. We too might become distant and avoidant. If we think of God as a comforter and refuge, we might feel seen and safe. Do you see how our image of God directly links to how we move through the world? 

This week, we are talking about the gender of God. For many of us, the gender, genders, or genderless of God has directly been linked to our own spiritual well-being. For many of us, when our “image of God” was an angry-old-white-man we felt scared, and for many of us not male-identifying we have felt missed, left out, or out of sorts by the maleness of God. As a female, I have asked, “Well if God is a male, what does that mean for me?” 

To move out of male dominated God images, I have had to completely “revamp” my God-talk. 

One of the keys to doing this for me has been coming back to the imago dei. In Genesis, the author writes about God creating creation in God’s image, “Then God said, “Let us make humans in our image, according to our likeness…”

We are all created in the image of God. 

I’ll meditate on the imago dei by praying: 

I am created in the image of God. 
God created a woman in Her image. 
My neighbor is created in the image of God. 
God created a nonbinary person in Their image. 

As we reimagine our image of God, let’s come back to the imago dei. God created us in God’s image. We all are uniquely crafted and mirror different pieces of God. How beautiful. 

May we see the good in ourselves and our neighbors. May we let this goodness shape our understanding of God. May we all continue to be open and curious to seeing, feeling, and experiencing God in new ways that lead to inclusion, wholeness, and flourishing. 

- Dottie Oleson