Do you think God is authoritarian?

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

That speaks to the pastoralist source, or, in the case of the nt, imitation of said source.  Sounds weird today, but these weren't bad things back then.  Sheep were wealth and warmth and food - they did not have the negative connotations we associate with them today.  In it's time, that sort of stuff was life affirming.  It comes out of the development of small hillholding families and communities.  The Shepherd was very often the pater familias (or his responsible sons) and the good shepherd is, essentially, the picture of a good family man.  Some of the best descriptions of the abrahamic god and gods relationship to man come out of these semantics.  If it were written here and today, god would be the good company man.  He'd be a union boss...or a randian hero.  

Leads me into a comment on some other things in thread.  The idea that the religious cannot think for themselves.  It's not that.  They can.  Even in the hypothetical of a family religion or ancestor worship it may be that the people do the thing but they do it because they also agree with the thing.  Ancestral gods that people no longer agree with or organize around have become imps and devils and demons in the new religions, when they're remembered at all.  I have a private little giggle everytime that the faithful tell me their god is immortal and immutable.  I know that's not true. In the wider view, it's usually not because a person believes in some private god that they act out in novel ways.  It takes gods whole society to keep gods children in line..so much as they can, god himself is not up to the task - anymore than any of our own dead fathers were up to the task of controlling every aspect of their childrens lives and thoughts.

Well, maybe "can't think for themselves" were not the right words, but for those who can think for themselves, it is still a thing for them to worship a being that does not really exist that is authoritarian/dictator like. In fact, there are those abusing God's word for their own power over others, so even if those who believe in God do realize he is authoritarian, chances are they don't care, and want to use the idea of God and God's being authoritarian to take advantage of others. It's quite sad, really.

(bold mine)

'That's not a bug, it's a feature.' - The Grand Nudger (PBUH)

Boru