I’m curious as to what gender your creator, if you believe in one, might be and what makes you so sure?

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Farrah Nuff

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All my life I’ve been led to believe, by well meaning persons, I’m sure, that we were created by some supernatural being known only as “God”. It seemed, for the most part, that this deity was male and in most other religions that I’m aware of, the main figurehead (for lack of a better term) seem mostly to be male as well. But since these deities seem to keep their identities shrouded in mystery, how can anyone know, for sure, if they are female or male or, confusing the term further as it seems is being done these days, something else?

And if you’re of the opinion that there is no such being, that we arrive by some force or magic that is genderless, that’s fine. But I’m only curious about those who believe that “God”, whatever your conception of that may be, has a gender and what makes you certain of it.
 

If you have a Christian faith you will know that in Luke’s gospel chapter 11, verse 1. Jesus was praying, and when He finished, one of the disciples asked Him, “Lord, teach us to pray.” The prayer that follows is one of the most quoted expressions in all the Bible.

“Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on Earth as it is in heaven.”

To me, Our Father is enough.
 
Farrah Nuff said:
All my life I’ve been led to believe, by well meaning persons, I’m sure, that we were created by some supernatural being known only as “God”. It seemed, for the most part, that this deity was male and in most other religions that I’m aware of, the main figurehead (for lack of a better term) seem mostly to be male as well. But since these deities seem to keep their identities shrouded in mystery, how can anyone know, for sure, if they are female or male or, confusing the term further as it seems is being done these days, something else?

And if you’re of the opinion that there is no such being, that we arrive by some force or magic that is genderless, that’s fine. But I’m only curious about those who believe that “God”, whatever your conception of that may be, has a gender and what makes you certain of it.
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Seems reasonable to question the gender. But for me questioning who or how the creator & and the angels were created? Asked on another site but never got an answer.
 

chic said:
Whoever wrote the bible considered God's gender male without question. All you have to do is read it.
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Not all religions though follow "the bible". And not all religions have the same idea of a "god".

I've read portions of the bible and it's very confusing. It makes little sense that one who was
able to create everyone and everything, wasn't able to inspire a book that most anyone could
agree on what was meant by the written passages alone. Other religious works I'm less familiar
with but they all seem to have at least some validity to their believers.
 
Gary O' said:
Or no beginning
Try figuring that out

My mind is too finite for those kinda things
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Actually, although it seems beyond comprehension, science has agreed that the universe has no end, if it did what would be beyond it and why doesn't our universe fall into that void? So it does follow that if the universe is eternal and has no end, having no beginning either is.....................you're right, it's mind blowing!

When I was at college all those centuries ago, women's lib was on the rise. One of the best, and funniest snippets of graffiti that was seen here, there and everywhere, was:
"When God created man, she was only joking!"
 
Gary O' said:
Or no beginning
Try figuring that out

My mind is too finite for those kinda things
Click to expand...
Asking who & how the "creator" became the creator isn't a popular question. Never got/get an answer


@ horseless carriage.
Quote
"So it does follow that if the universe is eternal and has no end, having no beginning either is.....................you're right, it's mind blowing!"

Similar question about where does the "creator " reside? Supposedly there was no heaven & earth until the "creator" created heaven & earth. Given that as a fact then the "creator would have to be outside what was created. So your post would have to mean there is no creator.
 
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Farrah Nuff said:
All my life I’ve been led to believe, by well meaning persons, I’m sure, that we were created by some supernatural being known only as “God”. It seemed, for the most part, that this deity was male and in most other religions that I’m aware of, the main figurehead (for lack of a better term) seem mostly to be male as well. But since these deities seem to keep their identities shrouded in mystery, how can anyone know, for sure, if they are female or male or, confusing the term further as it seems is being done these days, something else?

And if you’re of the opinion that there is no such being, that we arrive by some force or magic that is genderless, that’s fine. But I’m only curious about those who believe that “God”, whatever your conception of that may be, has a gender and what makes you certain of it.
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That's like asking me what a reverse-flow flux capacitor looks like. Let me have a peek at it first.
 
RadishRose said:
Why is there a "gender"?
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Maybe there isn’t one but gender is something that most people can picture in their minds eye. Most things religious don’t seem very simple to understand but when a creator is spoken of or depicted there seems to be a clear gender represented.

If such a being or “thing” is without gender, in your mind, then how would it be represented? Woman, man, black, white, day, night, comparisons like those seem understandable to most and I was just trying to keep things simple.
 
@Farrah Nuff,

It is always hard to imagine the infinite, much more so the eternal. That is why humans have always imaged gods, or if you prefer God, as something that we can understand. The Hebrews had a prohibition about reducing Jahwe to an idol or statue. They also refused to name God in the way that other civilisations named their gods. Jesus respected that tradition but to his followers he taught them to relate to God, not in awe and fear, but in the same way that a child relates to their father. He said to pray using the word Abba, which means Daddy.

However, in his parables he also provided other images - God is like a hen sheltering her chicks and like a woman who has lost one of her gold coins. The old testament also contains passages that compare God to a woman. That is not to say that God is either man or woman, neither male nor female.

In Isaiah 49:15 God is compared to a comforting mother
“Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.”

Personally, I relate to God as the giver of life and the source of love. These are actually female images but when I pray it is the earthly incarnation of Jesus that I am talking to. I see no conflict in having several images of the mysterious and the infinite held together in loving tension.
 
Knight said:
But for me questioning who or how the creator & and the angels were created? Asked on another site but never got an answer.
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John chapter 1, specifically verses 1-3 and 14 describe Jesus as "the Word". It also says that this "Word" became flesh and dwelt among us. It was this Word that made all things, and there is nothing that He didn't make. This would include the angels.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

John 1:14
'And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.......'

​


As far as Jesus' beginning;

He is the only begotten Son

The well known John3:16

'For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.'
 
@Warrigal

Thank you for sharing that. I appreciate your candor. I'm just curious about a lot of things and wondered if one were to draw a picture of god, as they see it or them in their mind, what would it look like and how they came to that decision. I think that most people on here would draw an older looking, probably bearded man. But I did a search for just "god" online and when I checked the images for it, there were both genders represented and quite a few non-human or animal/human combinations as well but gendered, more or less, as in it seemed clear that it was either a male or female entity being represented.

This is a link to those different depictions

And just because one book says this and another book says that, how is one to know, without a doubt, without verifiable proof, that what is written in that book is true or not? I'm just curious as to how one knows, with certainty, the gender of god. Or how one knows, again with certainty, that god or gods, are genderless?
 
Gary O' said:
John chapter 1, specifically verses 1-3 and 14 describe Jesus as "the Word". It also says that this "Word" became flesh and dwelt among us. It was this Word that made all things, and there is nothing that He didn't make. This would include the angels.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

John 1:14
'And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.......'

​


As far as Jesus' beginning;

He is the only begotten Son

The well known John3:16

'For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.'
Click to expand...
That's great that your holy book says that but what makes your holy book any truer than someone else's, of a different belief and every bit as certain as you? Why is there such mystery surrounding most things religious? If a being or deity had the power to make everything imaginable and to make it from nothing at all then why do you suppose such a being or force would choose to keep secret the answers to the many questions people have about how things came to be?

It seems like a few plausible explanations would be easier to produce than a universe without beginning or end, to me it does, anyway. But if it's all just a fabrication, that seems believable enough for me. Is god male or female or neither seems like a harmless enough question, to me but I'm not sure that anyone can answer with any degree of certainty. But that the story in your book is the only one, of that I'm certain that it's not.
 
Warrigal said:
@Farrah Nuff,

It is always hard to imagine the infinite, much more so the eternal. That is why humans have always imaged gods, or if you prefer God, as something that we can understand. The Hebrews had a prohibition about reducing Jahwe to an idol or statue. They also refused to name God in the way that other civilisations named their gods. Jesus respected that tradition but to his followers he taught them to relate to God, not in awe and fear, but in the same way that a child relates to their father. He said to pray using the word Abba, which means Daddy.

However, in his parables he also provided other images - God is like a hen sheltering her chicks and like a woman who has lost one of her gold coins. The old testament also contains passages that compare God to a woman. That is not to say that God is either man or woman, neither male nor female.

In Isaiah 49:15 God is compared to a comforting mother
“Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.”

Personally, I relate to God as the giver of life and the source of love. These are actually female images but when I pray it is the earthly incarnation of Jesus that I am talking to. I see no conflict in having several images of the mysterious and the infinite held together in loving tension.
Click to expand...
Consider this:
Jesus spoke Aramaic and although translations may vary in some instances…the true meaning of Abba is “Father, I will obey you.” Abba is found only three times in the New Testament.
Jesus himself called God Elāhā (Aramaic). What must be remembered is that Jesus wrote nothing down. Everything was hearsay.
 
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