I'm sure, but as I am sure you understand, I do not accept the Baha'i writings as authoritative.The Baha'i writings also have a lot of explanations about predestination and fate ...
I'm sure, but as I am sure you understand, I do not accept the Baha'i writings as authoritative.The Baha'i writings also have a lot of explanations about predestination and fate ...
I rather disagree, I think there's more to it than that.So you could have asked 1: Do you think God actually created evil?
No, there is no independant force of evil, it is all a relative state of our rational mind.
In universal metaphysics, there is a tendency, one might describe as negative, entropic, downward, and so on, as inescapable element of a finitude – at the level of the world, where there are virtues, there are vices. Where there is light, there is darkness, and where there is a tendency to the light, there is a tendency to the dark (at the risk of superficial Star Wars comparisons).I see Isaiah 45:7 "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things." In the following light.
Creation is founded on all virtues, so why is it also subject to the opposites of those virtues? I personally see it is to allow for free will choices. It is the reality of this matrix.
Very unfortunate.".. I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things."
".. O Light of the worlds? Lament not because of the wicked. You were created to bear and endure, O Patience of the worlds...."
There is no darkness, only the lack of Light. There is no hate, just the lack of Love, there is no evil, only the lack of good. etc, etc.
That is the choice God gives us all.Very unfortunate.
And then, sayIng in simple English, You were created to bear and endure. (God talking in Chauser's English)
I do not take the uneducated 19th Century Iranian as the light of the world (what narcissism) and then, "O Ppatience of the worlds" (What narcissism).
There is no light only absence of darkness. (does not mean anything, take it this way for that, just useless utterances). ..
God has created more evil than good.The purpose of this matrix being the bounty and grace of free will choices, to give us the chance to embrace all the virtues and morals, that are of God in the age we live.
Hmmm ... I'd say humanity has.God has created more evil than good.
I disagree. The human race thrives due to our capacity for survival. In the natural order, nothing sustains itself without the alteration or consumption of other forms of life—it's the essence of existence. Linking any perceived "evil" in humanity's survival to a biased perspective, particularly a Christian one, is the only basis for such associations. Without such biases, the dualities of good and evil are rendered nonexistent.Hmmm ... I'd say humanity has.
I don't think anyone's doing that?Linking any perceived "evil" in humanity's survival ...
However, the Abrahamics don't, so ...It is a common belief in many religious traditions that humans are created in the image of God. If one were to perceive humanity as inherently inclined toward evil, the source of such inclination would indeed be traced back to the divine image in which humans are supposedly created.
It's a common, but ill-conceived idea, with regards to both God and the world. I've answered it here.If one accepts the narrative that an all-powerful, all-knowing deity fashioned this world, it implies a deliberate decision to incorporate elements like earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes, tornadoes, and diseases.
No, that's not 'logical' at all.The logical deduction is that, if a god exists, such a being appears to possess sadistic and malevolent tendencies, making it unworthy of veneration.
And you can rest assured such observations have been made, and adequately answered, for some time.A clear example (of which there are many) is immediately after receiving the Ten Commandments “Thou shalt not kill.” God commanded Moses to “Take vengeance on the Midianites for the Israelites” (Numbers 31:1)
I'm glad to see that you agree with me about Duality . . . it doesn't exist, there are only gradations of This or ThatI don't think anyone's doing that?
However, the Abrahamics don't, so ...
It's a common, but ill-conceived idea, with regards to both God and the world. I've answered it here.
It sure is logical . . . If God had the power to create something from absolutely nothing, God would have the power to prevent genuine evil.No, that's not 'logical' at all.
You speak of Christian Apologetics . . . the least convincing arguments born out of attempts to explain flaws in Christian scripture.And you can rest assured such observations have been made, and adequately answered, for some time.
Such statements teach us nothing.It sure is logical . . . If God had the power to create something from absolutely nothing, God would have the power to prevent genuine evil..
It is not a problem for those who understand it.Theological determinism is the thesis that God exists and has infallible knowledge of all true propositions including propositions about our future actions; the problem of free will and theological determinism is the problem of understanding how, if at all, we can have free will if God (who cannot be mistaken) knows what we are going to do..
If that were true, there would be no believers!The existence of suffering is an impossible problem for believers in an all-good, caring God to solve..
No, coming to grips with reality does not include fantasy and make-believe . . . life is too short to be spent in delusionSuch statements teach us nothing.
We are dealing with this reality, however it came about.
..so if's and but's of a hypothetical reality is a mere distraction.
Kind of falls apart when the fact is there is no evidence of any god . . .It is not a problem for those who understand it.
It's all about HOW G-d knows what we will do, and that is due to the nature of time.
What we perceive "has not happened yet" is a perception.
Simply, G-d's perception is different .. time is a part of the creation .. part of the universe.
Therefore, G-d's omniscience does not affect our free-will .. it is similar to relativity in Physics.
I realise that many people cannot grasp this .. they see time as immutable
i.e. what has not happened yet cannot be known by any means .. or time is greater than G-d
If that were true, there would be no believers!![]()
..in your opinion.Kind of falls apart when the fact is there is no evidence of any god . . .
And you know that God exists.The fact is, that you do not KNOW whether G-d exists.
..and btw, the concept of G-d is not the same as goblins in children's story books.
If you think that it is, then you must be either a dim-wit, or lying to yourself.
The Bible and Qur'an are for adults .. it is not classified as fiction for a very good reason.
i.e. It isn't.
Absolutely not !Bible and Qur'an are adult fiction, any other classification will be wrong.
Who knows if Bible and Qur'an are or are not?Absolutely not !
Fiction are books that have been written by an author, through their imagination.
I do..Who knows if Bible and Qur'an are or are not?
Feel free to show me proof your god exists outside of your imagination . . ...in your opinion.
The fact is, that you do not KNOW whether G-d exists.
..and btw, the concept of G-d is not the same as goblins in children's story books.
If you think that it is, then you must be either a dim-wit, or lying to yourself.
The Bible and Qur'an are for adults .. it is not classified as fiction for a very good reason.
i.e. It isn't.
..feel free to show me your proof of conspiracy..Feel free to show me proof . . .
It is and is not a conspiracy. The earlier writings were of the people who believed so, the later writings were to convince people that what was written earlier was true.I do..
The Bible is a collection of scrolls written by many authors.
Are you saying that these authors ranging over 100's of years
have conspired to pretend to report events, and have made them all up??
Non-fiction!
If it were known that it was all a conspiracy, then yes .. fiction.
OK – but as 'Us' is generally understood as fallible, ephemeral and contingent by both science and religion, and you haven't offered any reason, proof nor evidence why one should think otherwise, I'd say there's a gulf between the two positions.. . . it fits in with the WLHP in that 'We Create our Heaven or Hell". Since I don't believe in an external God, this concept works for the WLHP in that our God is Us and what we do or don't do here on the physical plane determines our next Consciousness.
As said, allowing for the nature of the Infinite and the All-Possible, there might well be such a world, but it is not this one.If God had the power to create something from absolutely nothing, God would have the power to prevent genuine evil.
Yes, but there are 'strong' and 'weak' determinisms, and the arguments against both, tell us the thesis is not cut and dried.Theological determinism is the thesis that God exists and has infallible knowledge of all true propositions including propositions about our future actions; the problem of free will and theological determinism is the problem of understanding how, if at all, we can have free will if God (who cannot be mistaken) knows what we are going to do.
Difficult, yes, but not impossible, and not dependent on your 'wriggle room'.The existence of suffering is an impossible problem for believers in an all-good, caring God to solve.
This is the argument of popular entertainment, not theology.What kind of God, we may ask – and Fry does, more colourfully – has created a world ...
But a God who was benevolent and loving ...
This and subsequent comments are matters of opinion, and I shall leave them with you.