No one has the ability to love God apart from the work of the Holy Spirit. It is He who generates desire and compassion within us. Those who do not have compassion or love are actively working against the Holy Spirit, which is part of our human nature.
That says very little about the nature of, and influences on, a small child.
This is not any kind of Lutheran standard, but rather a Lutheran colored interpretation of many religions: I think that the issues you raise involve an interplay between adherence to the law (in previous lifetimes, aka karma) and the temptations or persecutions of Satan. That is to say, sometimes it is their fault and sometimes it is not, i.e. some bad fates are the result of transgressions in the past and some are the result of past virtuous lives causing the Devil to bring persecution.
I don’t think you can talk about horrible things happening to infants and youngsters theologically without addressing karma. DaRev, your notion does not address what youngsters can go through, good or bad, without relying solely on genetic notions of adherence to the Holy Spirit, i.e. they must be born with a genetic predisposition towards “the ability to love God”. I don’t disagree with this on the face of it, I agree completely, but I think that there are more complex underlying causes as to why someone is or is not born with the genetics to ‘hear the still small voice of God’.
And even then, the innate “ability to love God” does not mean that the child will have good fortune. The more powerful “the ability to love God”, the more likely is persecution by the Devil. So it is a very complex issue, more complex than mere mortals can fathom, and thus it is impossible to judge.
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Karma, LM? Really? I don't find the concept of karma in my bible anywhere.
If we are talking about autistics and similar people, I would think that they are no less sinners than any other child of Adam and Eve and yet no less able to be saved by God through his promise of salvation through the forgiveness of sins by the Word in the waters of Holy Baptism.
These poor little ones are in fact very similar in many ways to completely helpless, totally self-centered infants who are the very youngest of baptized believers, and no less precious to him than any of the other children of Almighty God.
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Born without a conscience? Who said that? The conscience is a reflection that God has put his law in our hearts so that none are without excuse. Rom. 1.
Original sin does not mean that children are born without a conscience. Free will means simply that people sin willfully. I agree with that. But to say that free will allows a person to choose to do good, choose God, choose to become good, that is where the problems begin.
Man's nature is corrupt from birth. But it does not mean he does not have a conscience. It's like using a bad batch of flour. anything you make, cakes or cookies, is going to reflect the bad batch of flour.
Tell us where you get such an idea.
They have shown some people unable to feel empathy or compassion, or even feeling at all, for others. This is what I am meaning by a lack of conscience.
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Let me understand, are you talking about children who suffer from autism, Asperger's syndrome, or similar disorders?
I mean those children who can become serial killers, or else don't become serial killers but just don't seem to have a conscience or the ability to love or care about anything.
Originally Posted by CantateDomino
Karma, LM? Really? I don't find the concept of karma in my bible anywhere.
If we are talking about autistics and similar people, I would think that they are no less sinners than any other child of Adam and Eve and yet no less able to be saved by God through his promise of salvation through the forgiveness of sins by the Word in the waters of Holy Baptism.
These poor little ones are in fact very similar in many ways to completely helpless, totally self-centered infants who are the very youngest of baptized believers, and no less precious to him than any of the other children of Almighty God.
I wasn't meaning to imply children who have these disorders. Most of them are detached from the world or others to a degree but I was thinking about other types of people, who just do not have the ability to have empathy and compassion.
Originally Posted by LutheranMafia
And even then, the innate “ability to love God” does not mean that the child will have good fortune. The more powerful “the ability to love God”, the more likely is persecution by the Devil. So it is a very complex issue, more complex than mere mortals can fathom, and thus it is impossible to judge.
It may end up being this way, something we can't have answers on.
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"Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent." - Victor Hugo
"There is no joy in the soul that has forgotten what God prizes." - Oswald Chambers Please pray for the soul of my recently departed friend, John Gugie, Nov. 2, 2011
You mean like those teens that set the boy on fire over a bike? These are not just innocent children who fail at compassion. They represent man's fallen nature and how ugly it becomes when unchecked by legal and moral codes. Think vikings run amuck.
Karma, LM? Really? I don't find the concept of karma in my bible anywhere.
Yes it does, its called works. The devil deals with works while God focuses on faith. People who did bad things in the past will be tormented by the devil if they don't continue to, sort of like drug addiction. Only through faith can one break free of such patterns of behavior.
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I wasn't meaning to imply children who have these disorders. Most of them are detached from the world or others to a degree but I was thinking about other types of people, who just do not have the ability to have empathy and compassion.
Sounds like you're talking about people who would be diagnosed/labeled as sociopaths. Basically, no emotion whatsoever (not even actual anger or rage if/when they hurt or kill someone, just sort of... empty, I guess). Am I right, or way off base here? (Just trying to understand before I even attempt a stab at an answer).
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