When Beyoncé released her visual album Lemonade in 2018, I was surprised by the religious imagery throughout. In one song in particular, the theological statement was a little more explicit. The screen flashes away from the singing and dancing to a stark black background with a bold font reading “God is God and I am not”. If I had to sum up my theology in seven words, these seven would be a serious contender! Beyoncé was bringing new life to an ancient Christian belief that God should not be confused with God’s creation (including us!).

This passage from Augustine’s Confessions expresses the theological sentiment of “God is God and I am not” in a beautiful, poetic manner. I hope you will enjoy it 🙂

"And what is this God? I asked the earth, and it answered, I am not he; and everything in the earth made the same confession. I asked the sea and the deeps and the creeping things, and they replied, We are not your God; seek above us. I asked the fleeting winds, and the whole air with its inhabitants answered, Anaximenes was deceived; I am not God. I asked the heavens, the sun, moon, and stars; and they answered, Neither are we the God whom you seek. And I replied to all these things which stand around the door of my flesh, You have told me about my God, that you are not he. Tell me something about him. And with a loud voice, they all cried out, He made us.
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And I turned my thoughts to myself and said, Who are you? and I answered, A person... For the truth says to me, Neither heaven nor earth nor anybody is your God... But your God is the life of your life."

Confessions Book Ten, Chapter VI