Define "evil".
We all know what suffering is, but what is evil?
God and Suffering
by AK - Jeff 322 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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leec
What a bunch of miserable filth, deceipt, and ignorance ... all supposedly in the name of Christ.
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cofty
Perry is making the common error of the "reification" of evil.
To reify is to 'thingify': to treat an abstraction as a material thing.
Invent a word that expresses our utmost revulsion for things that cause extreme unnecessary suffering. Then reify that concept to give it an independent existence. Then use this "thing" as a scapegoat for all that is bad, and juxtaposition it with ultimate good which we call god.
Voila!
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shamus100
leec,
Just remember that not all Christians are ignorant or self-righteous as Perry is. Don't hold it against anyone who believes in god. It's probably the worst mistake that you can make in a recovery from the cult.
Most are very well adjusted, kind people.
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Perry
And cofty is crawling back into his deep WT hole after opening the lid briefly and simple declaring with a wave of his hand...evil doesn't exist. Dawkins waves his magic wand and bada bing...the universe appears out of nothing. Cofty waves his hand, and drives evil into nothingness.
Mortals tremble at the display of such power.
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Perry
Shamus ... it's the deeeemonz
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Perry
Perry, why does evil and suffering need an explanation, esp a supernatural one?
UUUmmmm, because the title of this thread is about how God and Suffering can both exist?
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cofty
Perry - If you actually have a point be sure to speak up.
I thought the thread was about theodicy? Where did Dawkins and cosmology come in?
The reification of Evil - any thoughts?
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Perry
cofty,
Everything I post has a point. For instance, in my first post on this thread, I used the bible's explanation to destroy the entire God hate-party that Jeff was throwing in his opening post, by undermining his faulty premise of "we're all God's children". All kinds of people repeat this non-sense including false ministers.
Predictably, this of course went totally unanswered ..... because this premise (which is the correct one) will logically ONLY lead to the foot of the cross. This of course would actually create victory, and cheat certain people out of their cherished victimhood persona.
Regarding suffering. "Natural" disasters of course are not directly caused by evil people. But indirectly they are. Because of evil (which I define as things like lying, stealing, and Nancy Pelosi's eye twitch) God cursed the entire planet and doesn't prevent disasters like he would be EXPECTED to do if we were indeed all his children. The fact that people lie and steal (among other things) when they even have sworn to themselves to stop it, is evidence in itself that we are not descended from God.
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agonus
According to the Bible, God created both good and evil.
At the risk of sounding simplistic, that's about as good an explanation as I've yet to come across...