7/28/2019 Is God Merely an Imaginary Friend for Adults

1/3

dangerousintersection.org

Earlier this week, I was watching one of the Christian-content religious channels on television (there

are two such church channels in my city) and I was listening to the televangelist say that even if

you have no friends in this world, God will be your friend. Immediately after hearing these words, I

was struck by how much God sounds like the imaginary friends that children sometimes invent to

keep themselves company. If your child were to tell you that she played with Magna all afternoon,

and you know she was alone in her bedroom the whole time, you might worry about your childs

emotional well-being. What, then, should we think when adults say they talk with God (or

Jesus)? Given that there is no more tangible proof for the existence of God (or Jesus) than

there is for Magna, are we not justified in asking if God (or Jesus) is merely an imaginary friend

for adults? Indeed, God appears to serve the same purpose for adults that Magna serves for littlechildren: providing comfort and companionship when no actual human is available.

Indeed, the one unquestionable difference between God and Magna is the social cost: God

provides adults with an imaginary friend at a much lower social cost that Magna would incur. By

naming their imaginary friend God, adults can gain the same sort of internal emotional comfort

that children gain from their imaginary friends, but without the social stigma that would otherwise

arise from talking to invisible people. Indeed, God provides even more emotional comfort than

Magna, because God opens the door to fellowship with other adults who declare their own beliefin God. Perhaps this is why so many adults strongly defend their belief in God: because to do

otherwise would risk depriving themselves of a socially-acceptable imaginary* friend.

* Please note that I have referred to God herein as imaginary merely because there is no physical

proof that God exists. Thus, it is logically correct to refer to God as imaginary.

Postscript: After thinking further about Erichs comment, and watching the What is God? video on

this website http://meaningoflife.tv/1 , Ive decided to change the subject of this post from Jesus to

God. Readers are encouraged to watch the video, because it illustrates the core message of thispost.

Related posts:

1. Religious rituals as creative play for adults?2

2. What turns children into science-resistant adults?3

3. Ed Markey: A good friend for each of us who believes in a vigorous First Amendment4

4. One out of 99 American adults is in prison.5

5. Proof of God #387: by motorcycle jumping through wall of fire6

Category: American Culture7 , Culture8 , Meaning of Life9 , Religion1 0

Is God merely an imaginary friend for adults?

M A Y 4 , 2 0 0 6

2011-05-22 Is God merely an imaginary friend for a

www.readability.com/articles/in8zfiub 1/3

7/28/2019 Is God Merely an Imaginary Friend for Adults

2/3

References

1. ^ http://meaningoflife.tv/( http://meaningoflife.tv/ )

2. ^ Religious rituals as creative play for adults?( http://dangerousintersection.org/2008/06/23/religious-rituals-as-creative-

play-for-adults/ )

3. ^ What turns children into science-resistant adults?( http://dangerousintersection.org/2007/06/02/what-turns-children-into-

science-resistant-adults/ )

4. ^ Ed Markey: A good friend for each of us who believes in a vigorousFirst Amendment

( http://dangerousintersection.org/2007/01/15/ed-markey-a-good-friend-for-

each-of-us-who-believes-in-a-vigorous-first-amendment/ )

5. ^ One out of 99 American adults is in prison.( http://dangerousintersection.org/2008/02/28/one-out-of-99-american-

adults-is-in-prison/ )

6. ^ Proof of God #387: by motorcycle jumping through wall of fire( http://dangerousintersection.org/2006/09/11/proof-of-god-387-by-

motorcycle-jumping-through-wall-of-fire/ )

7. ^ American Culture( http://dangerousintersection.org/category/culture/american-culture/ )

8. ^ Culture( http://dangerousintersection.org/category/culture/ )

9. ^ Meaning of Life( http://dangerousintersection.org/category/meaning-of-life/ )

10. ^ Religion( http://dangerousintersection.org/category/religion/ )

2011-05-22 Is God merely an imaginary friend for a

www.readability.com/articles/in8zfiub 2/3

7/28/2019 Is God Merely an Imaginary Friend for Adults

3/3

Original URL:

http://dangerousintersection.org/2006/05/04/is-jesus-merely-an-imaginary-

friend-for-adults/

2011-05-22 Is God merely an imaginary friend for a

www.readability.com/articles/in8zfiub 3/3