Ethics and Religion Talk: What is a Legitimate Religious Practice?

Does the idea that human beings are created in the image of God gives us the divine ability to create and destroy the world around us? Science gives us this ability, but might it lead to something equivalent to "witchcraft?" Why are we not to practice such things? Is it okay to "practice" anything besides worship?

Rev. Salvatore Sapienza, the Senior Pastor at Douglas Congregational United Church of Christ in Saugatuck/Douglas, responds:

As a Christian pastor, I often quote from John 14:12, in which Jesus says, “All of the things that I have done, you can do. These things and greater!”  However, most Christians today view Jesus as the sole exception rather than as the great example. Yet, Jesus never said, “Worship me,” but he often said, “Follow me.”

In saying that we could do all of the things that he did (even greater things!), Jesus was encouraging and empowering us to follow in his steps so that we, too, could heal and work miracles, but most of us don’t believe that. I suppose it’s easier to worship Jesus than to follow him.

The contemporary spiritual writer and Franciscan priest, Father Richard Rohr says, “We worshipped Jesus instead of following him on his same path. We made Jesus into a mere religion instead of a journey toward union with God and everything else. This shift made us into a religion of ‘belonging and believing’ instead of a religion of transformation.”

Jesus said that God’s dwelling place is within us (Luke 17:21). Wonderfully made in the very image and likeness of God, we were created to continue the process of Creation by transforming ourselves and the world around us. The power to do “greater things” isn’t “witchcraft,” but rather our Divine birthright and purpose for being.

The Rev. Sandra Nikkel, head pastor of Conklin Reformed Church, responds:

I really like this question and I believe it’s one that is worth wrestling with. Yes, God tells us that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). The Bible also tells us that we are made in the image of God (Genesis 1:16). This means that we are creatures created by the Creator to bless and to create good, because that is the nature of our God. This also means that we do what we do, under His guidance and inspiration, because we are His creatures. The problem we run into is when we want to create aside from Him and when we want to rule led by our wisdom and understanding. This is exactly what led Satan to his downfall and it will lead to ours as well—if we choose to pursue it. In Proverbs 3:7 God warns us not to be wise in our own eyes and in Proverbs 3:5-6, He tells us this: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” We would be fools not to follow His advice! Finally, let me give you my answer to the last question: Is it okay “to practice anything besides worship?” The fact is that, any time we make room for God to inspire us, and any time we create anything, yielding to the leadership of God in our lives, this becomes an act of worship!   

Father Kevin Niehoff, O.P., a Dominican priest who serves as Judicial Vicar, Diocese of Grand Rapids, responds:

The fact that God created human beings in God’s image is not an end but a beginning. Creation in the image and likeness of God means “individuals possess the dignity of a human person who is not something, but someone” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, p. 91). As a result, human beings are “capable of self-knowledge, or self-possession, and of freely giving and entering into communion with other human beings” (Ibid.).

There is nothing given to us that does not come from God. Scientific developments are more than simply human findings. The relationship between God’s creation and humanity is complete when humans “conform themselves to the image of God through contemplative prayer” (Ibid., p. 651).

If the author of this question intends for worship to mean prayer, then it is not okay to practice anything other than worship. On the other hand, prayer comes in many different forms and styles. One may freely choose a prayer mode and type that is fulfilling.

Fred Stella, the Pracharak (Outreach Minister) for the West Michigan Hindu Temple, responds:

From the Hindu point of view, we are part of the Divine, which expresses itself through us. If you took this argument to its full length one could assert that we never should have discovered fire or domesticated animals.  And do we not attempt to mold the world into our image by prayer? 

The Reverend Colleen Squires, minister at All Souls Community Church of West Michigan, a Unitarian Universalist Congregation, responds:

Some Unitarian Universalists are also practicing pagans or Wiccan. Mainstream Americans by and large poorly understand both these practices. UU is a pluralistic tradition, we are okay with a variety of worship and practices.

Rev. Ray Lanning, a retired minister of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, responds:

It is not for mere creatures to usurp the place, power, or privileges of their divine Creator. “Ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5) was the lie that brought our first parents down to grief. Knowing good and evil by personal experience of disobeying the revealed will of God did not deify them or elevate their humanity in any way. It was the beginning of sorrows, and resulted in the degradation and misery of all humankind everywhere. Witchcraft is one of the “unfruitful works of darkness” which are not so much as to be named among the children of God (Ephesians 5:11, 12).