Hearing Voices

I’m not a huge fan of the BBC sitcom “Jam and Jerusalem” (“Clatterford” in the USA), but this is a wonderful scene from that show. As well as being very funny, it is quite thought-provoking, with the vicar reflecting the despair many people feel when reaching out to the God of their religion, only to hear nothing in return.

I remember, as a young man, crying out to God like the vicar does at the beginning of the clip. I never did hear anything, and it took me years of thought and soul-searching before I came to understand why there was never any reply. There was no God there to hear me.

When I came to America, it was astonishing to see how cavalier some pastors and Christian leaders were when telling people that God had told them to do this or say that. It was funny how often God’s wishes were exactly the same as their own—to buy the ministry a private jet, or to install the pastor’s children into salaried positions in the church. What was more astonishing was how their congregations would swallow it all, hook, line, and sinker.

Not only is it sad to see so many people duped by this charade, but it can be downright dangerous. When you have your flock believing that God is personally directing your every decision, then you have an inordinate amount of power over them.  After all, if they believe that God is commanding you to do something, then how can they possibly disagree with your actions?

That is how cults are born, and how people suffer and die as a result. And while many Christian leaders who claim a direct line to God don’t take it that far, it can still cause all kinds of problems on a smaller scale, not least by duping millions of believers into giving money—money they can ill afford to lose—to help sustain their lavish lifestyles.