Hear, O Israel

Deuteronomy 6 is at the center of faith. It shows the change from religion with many Gods to a monotheistic religion – a religion with one God. While scripture shows evidence of the remnant of the idea that there were many gods through the Hebrew and Greek testaments, the voice of scripture is clear that we are to move to worship the One.

The book of Psalms talks of God sitting in the council chamber with other Gods. The worship of a feminine God remains in the references to Asherah. Paul confronts the idea of a multitude of Gods in the acropolis and uses the altar to an unknown God to introduce the God of Christianity. And with all the references to gods and differently named gods the message remains clear. There is one God and we are to worship that one God.

That’s simple but not always easy. It is simple in that we have a focus one which to concentrate our worship. It is difficult because that for which we look comes in many and surprising ways. We cannot just carve an image in stone and worship that. No, we are called to do as our God wills and do that in the midst of crushing doubt and tempest tossed waves of uncertainty.