God is a diamond
I WILL OFTEN use the traditional masculine terms for God, like “He” or “Him” for simplicity. But that’s doesn’t mean I think that’s the only way to address or see God. In fact, I see God as an unbelievably complex diamond that each religion, culture, and person gets to see certain facets of. The diversity of facets is infinite— for me alone, I have experienced God as a woman, an energy, a wonderful chain of events, or a dream; everyone has their own experiences of God, depending on how God has been revealed to them.
Despite how different each facet may look, though, I believe they are all equally real and valid parts of God.
So, when I say “God”, it is my way of acknowledging that whole diamond, including all the facets that I don’t know yet. I want my journey to include the discovery of these other facets, to see the same thing from different angles. For example, I want to understand how the prophets of other religions, i.e. Buddha and Muhammed, may share similar ideas with Jesus, the prophet I am most familiar with. That way, I can gain a more complete view of the whole diamond.
At the same time, I want to understand what’s at the center of the diamond. To do that, I need to drill deeper in. Using “God” and other traditional terms, then, allows me to focus on one facet and just start digging in towards the center of God, the essence and core, the source from which all else radiates.