Crucifixion

From an evolutionist’s view, worship is an attempt to control what can’t be controlled. In other words, what we can’t control, we worship. This illusion of control has thrust us toward greatness, as well as hindering us when greatness has been within our grasp. It has made us fearless in the face of overwhelming odds and has made cowards of us when no real threat has confronted us. Such contradictory behavior might well be explained by the kind of God we worship and the confusion inflicted by the duality portrayed in the behavior of all gods; the world can be a wonderful experience one moment and a deeply troubling one the next. Some solve the dilemma by worshiping more than one god -- some helpful, some hurtful. Others attribute mood swings to God. Still others blame themselves or their neighbors for God’s support and for His vengeance. Some see existence as a training ground for an incomprehensible future beyond death, with both good and bad experiences as tests of our character and as opportunities to learn and to develop character.
The fundamental question in all this that religion seems unable to answer is the nature of God. Is God hostile (satanic) and if so why do we worship such a deity (in other words, can a hostile deity be controlled)? Is God benevolent (just) and if so is He bound by His affection for us? If He is so bound, He is not free and thus is at best a feeble deity. Would not those to whom He is bound be His deities insomuch as His caring puts them in control of Him? In both the case of a hostile God and of a benevolent one, the question becomes, “How do you control (worship) a deity?
Since a hostile God intends to do you harm, you must first protect yourself. Charms, gestures, sacred words, spells, all serve this purpose. Once you are assured that these are effectively rendering Him relatively harmless, some will attempt to conjure God (it has been assumed by many that knowing the name of God gives one access to and control over Him/Her/It; others rely on ritual and other protective devices) to use Him for their own enrichment in this world and/or the next.
In dealing with a hostile God, a basic problem is how to appease Him; what does He want in return for letting us continue to live? If we admit that we have no way to protect ourselves from Him, submission is usually the first step, saying “I accept the fact that you can kill me anytime you want. I offer you my life to take or to use as you please.” If what you offer is accepted (you continue to live), you assume that more is expected from you and so you offer more to see if more (good fortune) will be returned. If all goes well, you continue to bargain (offering and receiving). Since such a God can be appeased, the next step is to tame Him. Flattery first (telling Him He is great and good and in complete control and that you are very thankful for His largesse), and if that works you cajole Him with sacrifice and with promises of more to come.
The problem with this behavior is that we tend to become the deity we worship; our behavior mirrors what we see in our deity. Worshiping a hostile God means we become hostile. We will sacrifice those around us to curry favor with our deity. We will do horrendous things to ourselves and to others, believing this hostile God will take pleasure in our pain and in the pain we inflict on others. He will, in fact, take so much pleasure in the pain that He will reward us by granting us eternal life in a paradise.