Convenient Theology: How the Limits of Human Imagination Shape the Spiritual World

Humans struggle to conceive of realities fundamentally different from their own. Biological needs, cultural symbols, and everyday experiences shape our cognition. As a result, when contemplating the spiritual realm — whether it be gods, ghosts, heavens, or hells — we inevitably project human qualities and assumptions onto what is by definition beyond our understanding. This tendency is not merely innocent myth-making; it reveals a deeper psychological limitation that results in what might be called convenient theology — a way of conceptualizing the divine and the spiritual in terms that are familiar, manageable, and deeply anthropocentric.

Anthropomorphism: The Comfort of the Familiar

At the heart of convenient theology lies anthropomorphism—the instinct to attribute human traits to non-human entities. This makes abstract or invisible concepts easier to understand. Whether it is imagining gods with human emotions or spirits with sensory organs, we construct a supernatural world that mirrors our own because we find it difficult to grasp something that operates by radically different rules. We assume that beings in other realms would speak our languages, share our desires, and navigate moral dilemmas just as we do.