ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Paul Tillich

Paul Tillich was a famous theologian who lived a long time ago. He liked to think about big ideas like God and faith, and he talked about them in a way that was different from other theologians.

Tillich believed that God is the ultimate reality, or the thing that is most real in the entire universe. He also thought that human beings have an innate sense of being connected to this ultimate reality, and that this connection is what gives life meaning.

One of Tillich's big ideas was that people use symbols to help them understand God. Symbols are like pictures or stories that help us understand something that is too big or complicated to explain in words. For example, the cross is a symbol of Jesus and his sacrifice, which Christians believe is a way to connect with God.

Tillich also talked a lot about anxiety, which is a feeling of worry or fear that everyone experiences sometimes. He believed that anxiety is actually a good thing, because it reminds us that we need something beyond ourselves to help us feel secure. For Tillich, that something was God.

Overall, Tillich believed that God is the most important thing in our lives, and that we can connect with God through symbols and our own understanding of what is most real and meaningful in the world.