“So bye-bye, Miss American Pie, drove my chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry. And them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye singin’, ‘this’ll be the day that I die, this’ll be the day that I die.’” The now famous words of Don McLean singing about the fateful day of February 3, 1959. The day a plane crash took the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and “The Big Bopper,” J.P Richardson. The day some say the music died.
March 9, 1996, another date remembered by many. Why you ask? For the simple reason that the date is the day that for many, God died. What? God is dead? How can one possibly say such a thing!? Really it’s quite simple. On March 9, 1996 the cigar smoking actor who played God in those wonderful Oh God! movies died. At the age of 100, George Burns passed away in Beverly Hills on March 9, 1996.
Gott ist tot. A widely quoted, but often misunderstood German phrase made popular by philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. Translated from German it declares — God is dead! — However, when taken out of context, it means something totally different than what Nietzsche originally intended.
“God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?”
—Nietzsche, The Gay Science, Section 125, tr. Walter Kaufmann
With those words, Nietzsche was asking the atheist, those who do not believe in God, to come to grips with morality. For where does one find morality and balance when there is no belief in a God who sets standards for humankind?
God is dead is not a phrase for believers, but atheists faced with the problem of retaining any system of values in the absence of divine order. Nietzsche believed the death of God resulted not only in the rejection of order, but also a rejection of values. Suddenly, without God, everyone is left to do what is good in their own mind, instead of a standard of good for all. The end result, a selfish society where standards are left up to the varying belief systems of each individual. This is known as situational ethics, but the problem with such a system revolves around the situation and the individual. While one individual in a given situation may believe killing someone is right and true no matter what, another individual in the same situation will arrive at a totally different conclusion.
So, how does one find a balance in the midst of the rhetoric of the day. Some continue declaring God is dead, while others say, God is multi-faceted and many religions combined. Some say Buddha while others say Allah. Some say He’s only known as Jehovah, and while He did have a Son, the Son was only human and not divine.
Is God dead? Of course not. He was “in the beginning” and He is the “Alpha and Omega.” When speaking of our spiritual journey a Seminary teacher of mine once said — If you’re feeling distant from God it can only mean one thing. You’ve moved, not Him. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Keep encouraged!
Dr. Rus
