Is The Force With You? Is It?

A common new age idea these days is to think of God as a force-- Star Wars style, not a personal God, not a Supreme Being…in fact not a being at all, just a force.

I do not think that this construct stands the test of reason.

Let’s look at existence, being itself. A rock exists. It is a very low level of existence. An insect is higher. Why? Because an insect has life and life is higher than non-life. What about a mouse? A mouse is on a higher level of being because a mouse can learn. It does not simply exist following patterns of instinctual behavior. It can learn to follow a maze to find food, for instance.

What about a dog? A dog is higher than a mouse because a dog exhibits some characteristics that suggest higher feelings. A dog demonstrates loyalty, for instance, and protectiveness of its people. And a dog can learn much more than a mouse. It has a larger capacity of intellect. It can be trained in a great number of ways.

Now what about a human? The intellect of a human far surpasses that of a dog. Humans have language, distinguishing them from every other animal. Humans also have a strong sense of will. They choose actions not simply based on instincts for survival. A human has the capacity to sacrifice for others and to choose right from wrong, and humans have creativity, an appreciation of beauty and knowledge. The human person has abilities that greatly exceed those of any other animal and no other animal possesses the same level of existence as humans. We can say, then, that human beings are at the highest level of existence for life on Earth.

Now back to the question of a force. Gravity, for instance, does not even have the same capacities of intellect as a mouse. Gravity just is. It can’t learn anything. It can’t feel anything. Electricity is only power. It has no volition, no feeling, no knowledge. If we can see that a human being is on a higher level of existence than a rock, then how can a force be any kind of god? A force is just a force, a law of nature.

God, by definition, is a supreme being, on a higher level of existence than any other creature on Earth. God, to be God, must be all powerful, all knowing, and possessing a capacity of intellect, feeling, and thought that exceeds that of human beings. Human beings cannot be on a higher level of existence than God. God, by definition, is the highest being.

A force has no feeling. It can’t love. It can’t give. It can’t reason. It is completely impersonal—like a rock. Therefore, God cannot be only a force. God must be much, much more or he would be less than humans.

The force is not with you. A force doesn’t care. Only a being similar to humans but infinitely exceeding human capacities could be God. God cannot be impersonal. That’s a contradiction in terms. God must be the highest plane of existence, the highest of all beings. God is not a force. He must be a personal being, a being suggested by all that is good and transcendent and loving in a human being—only infinitely more so.