As a young person growing up in the church, and for the twenty-five years that I served as a Lutheran minister, the existence of God was simply a given. I had a personal relationship to the creator of the universe. I preached in God's name, performed weddings with blessings from God, personally prayed to God, and comforted many people as they faced death. The promise of life after death gave hope to them, and to me. I lived within a belief system in which there was a creator who not only set in motion all that exists, but who was intimately connected in an ongoing, ever-present way, with the world and all of life, including my own.  This creator cared about my life, both presently and eternally.  I had a spirit that would never die (or if it did, that would be resurrected), to live eternally with the Creator and all those who were departed.  I believed that I would one day be reunited with my father, my grandmother, and all those who preceded me into eternity.

I no longer find myself in that place. It now seems to me, given much reading, reflection, and life experiences, that there are many different kinds of conditions that exist in many different universes, and that we on this planet have been "blessed" by being able to evolve in a niche that has all the prerequisites for life as we know it.

Many modern people have now come to the point where they no longer believe in a God who sits outside this universe and who will judge us when we die, sending us to heaven or hell. For them, fear of damnation is gone. Some of these same people do however still believe in an intelligent design to the universe, where the creative process operates from within the cellular and structural framework of the universe.

While I may believe that life simply emerges wherever the conditions necessary for life exist, the bottom-line point for me is this:

If there is no judgment, if there is no need to fear being sent to hell, then it doesn't make any difference whether you believe in God or not, either a God outside or inside this universe. If judgment and fear are gone, then we are truly free to live and breathe as we choose (unless we break earthly laws).

If there is no God who will judge you, then you can believe in any form of God or no God that you want, because your eternal life is not at stake. If there is no judging God, then you are free to question and explore and learn as much about life and living as you can. For many, not believing in God is a risk they are unwilling to take. They believe "just in case." To me that just sounds more like an insurance policy, and if there is a God, I don't think that is what she would want.

Frank.