God After Deconstruction for
Christians influenced by Buddhism
John Cobb, Tripp Fuller, and Thomas Oord
see also Emptiness and Abba: Zen (Metamodern) Christianity
In "God After Deconstruction," Thomas Oord and Tripp Fuller point to a "universal Spirit of uncontrolling Love" as a central force in the universe. Always we are within the milieu of this Spirit, but never are we controlled by it. So is the whole of nature and the stars and planets. This Spirit is God and can be addressed as You.
As Christians, Oord and Fuller believe that this Spirit was revealed in, but not exhausted by Jesus. Christians can walk with Jesus, sharing in his journey, in a spirit of openness to the Spirit.
Much of the book is devoted to showing how this Spirit is open, relational, loving, and limited by creaturely freedom, such that the Spirit is all-loving but not all-powerful. Their aim is to show the difference between this way of thinking about God and the more authoritarian images that so haunt the imaginations of many people, including Christians. The God who emerges after deconstruction is this Spirit.
Their book, then, speaks to people who are alienated from the authoritarian images and must, of necessity, deconstruct the images. Many are post-evangelical Christians. They speak of the alternative as open and relational theology. The tradition of which I am a part, process theology, is one form of open and relational theology, of which there are others, such as narrative theology and a more biblically-based open theism. In the house of open and relational theology, there are, happily, many rooms.
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In the course of their book they introduce some of the readers they have in mind: people who are traumatized by the pointless pain of things that happen in the world, including church abuse and sexual/gender discrimination, people who want to reconcile science and religion, people wrestling with the rise of Christian nationalism, and people who want to appreciate and learn from the many world religions.
Among the latter are Christians who are drawn to Buddhism, and want to continue in their walk with God while learning from Buddhist wisdom. Some will practice Buddhist meditation; many will be attracted to the Buddhist themes of mindfulness in the present moment, the interconnectedness of all things, and the spirit of deep listening which Buddhism brings to the world. See Why Christians Turn to Buddhism: Six Reasons.
These Christians, too, will be in a process of deconstructing authoritarian images of God. They will understandably wonder if there are alternatives to such images, and open and relational theology can indeed provide such an alternative, in a surprising way. It does not ask that they give up the notion of a personal God and replace the idea with that of a non-personal force or even an Emptiness of which all things are expressions. Instead they say that Christians influenced by Buddhism, and for that matter Buddhists influenced by Christianity, can honor the ultimacy of the Spirit and the ultimacy of Emptiness, without equating them.
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While Oord and Fuller emphasize the importance of this Spirit, they also challenge the notion of a single ultimate reality, acknowledging the existence of multiple ultimates that reflect the varied goals and values of different religions. They encourage a receptivity to insights from diverse traditions, encouraging a synthesis of ideas that enriches and deepens spiritual understanding.
Their perspective is indebted to John Cobb's approach, particularly in his groundbreaking article "Buddhist Emptiness and the Christian God." Click here for the essay. Here, Cobb argues that Emptiness and God represent distinct ultimates, each real in its own way. Emptiness is the absolute interconnectedness of all things as well as the openness a person can feel and know when her own heart/mind is purely open to all that presents itself in the immediacy of experience. God is the universal Spirit of non-controlling Love.
He proposes that an awakening to Buddhist Emptiness can foster a more profound realization of God's presence, and conversely that faith in God can include a sense of being lured into an openness akin to the awakening to Buddhist Emptiness. In a way, Emptiness leads to God and God leads to Emptiness.
Cobb's point of view resonates with Oord and Fuller's point of view in still another way. All three see God, not as an impersonal power or as Being Itself devoid of personhood and agency, but rather as "a being among beings" in the universe. God is a Thou and not an It; a living Subject and not merely an object. This means that they differ from those who, alienated from images of God as a tyrannical and controlling power in the sky, turn to Being Itself as a more authentic image of God. Fuller, Oord, and Cobb propose that the deconstruction of the God of authoritarian can be followed by an awakening to the Spirit of noncontrolling love, and that this Spirit is indeed a being among beings, not the undifferentiated ground from which all things emerge, or the formless ultimate of which all things are manifestations.
For Cobb, there is no formless ultimate with energy of its own. There is no Being Itself. There is instead the Emptiness of all events, all connected to one another even as unique, of which the personal God is an expression. This Emptiness is not merely an idea in the head, it is, or can be, an experienced reality amid which human beings find themselves ever more open to the sheer interconnectednss of all things. If follows that deconstruction and meditation can go hand in hand. From meditation there can emerge greater openness to the universal Spirit of noncontrolling love. These are directions to which the works of Oord, Fuller, and Cobb, taken together, rightly point. Read below for more detail:
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Many Christians, alienated from images of a patriarchal God in the sky, rebel against the idea that God is a being among beings and turn instead to the idea that God is a generative source beyond all beings. In the spirit of Paul Tillich, they say God is Being Itself. The shift from thinking of God as a being to thinking of God as Being Itself is, for them, liberating. It is their way of moving past religious authoritarianism. The God who they end up with may not be addressed in prayer, as a subject with whom they interact in an I-Thou way, but God is still important as a ground from which all things emerge. Often the transformation involves a shift from height metaphors to depth metaphors. God is not so much a higher power as a deeper power. For lack of a better phrase, I will speak of these Christians as the mystically minded, God-is-Being-Itself Christians.
John Cobb's vision offers three challenges to Being-Itself Christians:
- It challenges the idea that Being Itself is a reality.
- It challenges the idea that God is Being Itself, rather than a being among beings.
- It challenges that there is, and can only be, one ultimate reality.
The alternative, proposed by Cobb, is that:
- Being Itself, rightly understood, dissolves into what Buddhists call Emptiness.
- Emptiness is not a generative source with agency of its own. It is no sense a creator.
- The God is not Emptiness as such but rather a supreme expression of it; God is a being among beings.
- No beings, not even the divine being, are solidified substances. All are what they are in interdependence with others.
- Emptiness and God are both real and ultimate, but in different ways. Emptiness is real as the ultimate reality of which all events are expressions; God is the ultimate actuality in whose life they are held and loved.
For Cobb in his recent years, the God of whom he speaks is rightly understood as the Abba of Jesus. God is a limitlessly loving presence who embraces each and all also works within each person as an inwardly felt lure to love. God is the Abba to whom Jesus prayed.
In proposing that God is a being among beings, Cobb is closer to traditional Christian devotionalism than to more mystical points of view, albeit in ways that move past images of God as an authoritarian or dominating presence. He, too, rejects images of God as a patriarch in the sky, while at the same time opening up possibilities for affirming God as a loving presence with whom one can have an I-Thou relationship. In this Cobb is closer to the kind of open and relational theology developed by Thomas Oord and ably articulated in “God After Deconstruction” by Oord and Fuller.
God After Deconstruction
Interestingly, in “God after Deconstruction,” Oord and Fuller lift up the idea that there may be multiple ultimates: God on the one hand and an “impersonal power at the heart of life” on the other. In rejecting the idea that all religions are pointing toward the same ultimate reality, they write:
While all religious people want to align with what they consider ultimate, they have different views of what that ultimate is. In fact, we have reasons to think there are many ultimates. While religions share some values in common, they differ in what they think most important. Diverse values vie for our devotion. The idea of many mountains can help those who deconstruct. Many Christians were taught God is wrathful, fickle, or plays favorites, for instance, and controls all. No wonder they’re now attracted to the idea of an impersonal power at the heart of life, an idea common in Buddhist traditions. They doubt it makes sense to say ultimate reality is about controlling others.
Oord and Fuller recognize the attractiveness of the “paths up the mountain” analogy, but reject it.
But the “paths up the mountain” analogy fails to account for what religions actually say. Christians who believe in God aren’t pursuing the same end as Buddhists who want emptiness or harmony with life’s flow.
All of this will ring true to John Cobb’s ears. He does not think of Emptiness as an impersonal “power” at heart of life, but the point is the same: people can find things beside God ultimate: an impersonal power, Emptiness, the natural world. Oord and Fuller rightly recognize that not all paths need lead to God.
Still, they believe God is an actual and loving Spirit at work in the world: “a universal Spirit of uncontrolling love.” John Cobb does as well.
Finding God through Emptiness, Finding Emptiness through God
Oord and Fuller also affirm the fact that some Christians may adopt practices from other paths, integrating them into their own practice of the Christian life. They write:
Because various religions offer wisdom, a growing number of people who deconstruct integrate multiple religions into their thinking and practice. Instead of limiting their adventure to the ways of just one path, they gather wisdom from many. In academic circles, this practice is sometimes called “comparative theology” or “syncretism.” Amalgamation like this bothers purists, of course. But history shows that a mix-and-match approach to religions occurs often. In fact, blending has been a factor in the perpetual change that religions undergo… The key is finding what is life-giving and non-oppressive in each. If the goal of religion is to make us better people, Christianity isn’t the only game in town. We can point to friends in other traditions more virtuous than some Christians we know. If we’re seeking to offer insights into God and/or the universe, Christianity also isn’t the only way. All the main wisdom traditions provide insights.
Cobb’s essay points to this possibility, too. He suggests that Buddhists who awaken to Emptiness are open to each element in experience (concrescence) and that, in this openness, they are naturally open to the presence of God as a guiding power in experience. God is, in his words, the principle of rightness, of love, that is part of every experience. seem naturally open to this love. Cobb writes:
The realization of Emptiness is the realization of oneself as an instance of dependent co-origination or the concrescence of all things. This is often held to be beyond the distinction of good and evil, right and wrong. Nevertheless, from the perspective of the concern for rightness, the realization of Emptiness appears as a fulfilment of this principle.
This can be explained if we assume that God as the principle of rightness participates in dependent co-origination, that to be empty is to be open to each element in the concrescence playing its own proper role, and that God's proper role is to guide the concrescence. In this case, the realization of Emptiness is at the same time conformation to the principle of rightness. It may be that faith in God as conformation to the principle of rightness can also lead to the realization of Emptiness.
The last sentence in the quote suggests conversely that people who walk in the way of faith in God can find themselves lured toward openness to Emptiness: that is, openness to the presence and interconnectedness of all things as revealed in the immediacy of experience.
In short, people can find God through Emptiness and find Emptiness through God. Not only do the two ultimates not compete with one another, they can complement each other in the lived experience of Christians drawn to Buddhism. The God of love may well call or guide people into the radical openness of Buddhist awareness, and in that awareness a person may become still more open to the God of love.
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Practicing Christianity and Buddhism with a process or open and relational understanding of God involves integrating principles and practices from both traditions in a way that emphasizes interconnectedness, love, and dynamic engagement with the divine and the world. Here are some practical ways to embody this integrated spiritual practice:
- Meditation and Prayer: Embrace both Christian prayer and Buddhist meditation practices. For example, engage in contemplative prayer to seek a deeper relationship with God, while also practicing mindfulness or Zen meditation to cultivate awareness and presence. This combination can help deepen your sense of interconnectedness with all beings and the divine.
- Compassionate Action: Both Christianity and Buddhism emphasize compassion and loving-kindness. Engage in acts of charity, volunteer work, and social justice initiatives. Practicing compassion in action reflects the loving nature of God and the bodhisattva ideal in Buddhism, which strives to alleviate the suffering of all beings.
- Interconnectedness: Embrace the Buddhist concept of interdependence and the Christian understanding of the body of Christ to foster a sense of connectedness with all life. This can involve environmental stewardship, recognizing and acting upon the interconnectedness of all creation.
- Study and Reflection: Engage in the study of scriptures and teachings from both traditions. Reflect on the teachings of Jesus, Buddhist sutras, and writings from process theology and open and relational thinkers. This study can provide insights into how to live a life that is aligned with these integrated spiritual perspectives.
- Community Engagement: Participate in communities that are open to interfaith dialogue and practice. Engaging with others who are exploring these paths can provide support, insights, and opportunities for shared practice and service.
- Rituals and Practices: Incorporate rituals and practices from both traditions in a way that feels authentic and enriching. This could include Christian sacraments, Buddhist meditation retreats, or creating your own rituals that reflect your integrated spiritual understanding.
- Mindful Living: Apply mindfulness in daily activities to cultivate a deeper awareness of the present moment, a key aspect of Buddhist practice, while also embracing the Christian call to live in a way that reflects God’s love and presence in every moment.
- Embracing Mystery: Both Christianity and Buddhism acknowledge the mystery of the divine and ultimate reality. Cultivate a humble and open attitude toward the unknown, recognizing that the journey is as important as any destination or doctrinal certainty.
- Personal Relationship with the Divine: Develop a personal relationship with God through prayer, reflection, and practice, seeing this relationship as dynamic and evolving, much like the process and open and relational perspectives suggest.
- Interfaith Exploration: Actively engage in interfaith dialogues and experiences to enrich your understanding and practice of these traditions. This can enhance your appreciation of the unique and shared aspects of both paths.