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Samuel J. Hood's avatar

Thank you for this, Ben. I'm looking forward to diving into the two books you recommended on the creeds!

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Dennis Doyle's avatar

When we try to understand God by piling on abstract adjectives like “ almighty”, “ omnipotent” or “all-knowing,” we often do more harm than good. These words can feel like intellectual gymnastics, contorting language just to make God’s nature fit neatly into human categories. The result? Sophistry—a clever-sounding explanation that ultimately avoids wrestling with the real mystery of God and suffering.

If God truly is “all-powerful” in the usual sense, why does pain and injustice persist? Attempts to answer this question by redefining “power” or “might” often sound like evasions rather than honest engagement. They tend to gloss over the very real experience of human brokenness.

Instead, understanding God should start with Jesus—who reveals God not as a distant, controlling force, but as a loving Father who enters into weakness, suffering, and vulnerability. Trying to return to abstract, creedal terms without this grounding risks missing the whole point of Christian faith.

Labels like “almighty” and “omnipotent” mean little if they don’t connect to the God who loves sacrificially and suffers alongside creation. Using these terms as a first step can distract us, pulling attention away from the lived reality of God’s love revealed in Christ.

In short, trying to explain God by these heavy, impersonal words often sounds like dressing up an uncomfortable mystery in fancy clothes—when what we really need is to meet God in the concrete, messy reality of Jesus.

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