Good & Evil

[ChristianCenturion]

Things that were believed to be good in the past are now evil. (ie - Slavery)
Things that were believed to be evil in the past are now good. (ie - Bathing)

When all evil is destroyed -- the lesser good becomes the new evil.
When all good is destroyed -- the lesser evil becomes the new good.

I would disagree in hope that there would still be objectiveness/perspective.

 

[ChristianCenturion]

Jane Elliot has consistently reproduced her experiment's results with various age groups. That having been said, I don't take one source as having the absolute and universal truth.

I wasn't speaking of source, I was speaking of the degree of truth or application of that truth. Non-issue, it was commentary from me... dropped.

But people do have this prejudice -- I hope you don't.

Prejudice has a bad rap. I do have prejudice and I see where it is appropriate at times. To clarify, I have prejudice against wickedness, I have a prejudice for Chrisitians, for someone to convince me that all prejudisms are bad they would have to rationalize many scriptures away and that hasn't happened for some two thousand years and counting.
So, I suppose in short... sorry to disappoint you, but yes I am in some respects prejudice and am OK with it.

The general idea of the thread is "If your best friend one day told you `I'm gay`...would you still be best friends, or would you avoid them? If everyone sins, including you, then what makes your friend not worth keeping?" and was inspired when I heard that a person on this board disowned their best friend upon discovering their sexual orientation.

Then I suggest that this thread was insidious in its creation. I thought it was about good and evil. I didn't know, but I suppose that I shouldn't be surprised, that this is yet another thread that will be re-routed to cover that subject. It could be that the 'best friend' was sick of dealing with or having this issue constantly be the center of attention.

I am finding this proven true over time (and you can quote me on this):

Moral people have who they are dictate what they do; whereas, immoral people have what they do dictate who they are.

To lay it out plainly: Should what someone does sexually be what defines that person and all aspects of the person? "Gay Pride", "Gay activism" says yes and I see many homosexual persons constantly having their lives and everything revolving around this subject, yet the same groups complain that it is constantly being 'ridiculed' or obsessed by respondents and tout that it is a 'private matter' and that what a person does in the bedroom shouldn't label them as something.

That being said, your scenario has little to do with the generalized fit with 'good and evil'; especially when you have stated (and I agreed) that action can be seen one or the other but people are people. If the one friend can't respect the practices of the other and the issue is predominate, why should the one be confined to the relationship when the relationship has shifted at the foundation (values)? Likewise, why is the 'friend' now the fiend because he may or may not be currently mature enough to handle that situation?

This is true of other religions as well -- when someone feels that what they do is wrong, they strive to stop doing it. When someone feels that what they do is right, they continue to do it.

To some degree, sure.

But they do not call you a sinner, ChristianCenturion...do they?

Sure, I get all kinds telling me all sorts of things. I don't claim to be perfect and sometimes they have their points. It's a delicate work to dismiss what should be dismissed and listen when we ought to listen. Being a Christian, I am accountable to many things, but subject to only One.
I get called sinner, hypocrit, saint, self-righteous, heartless, bleeding-heart, preachy, sniper, articulate, bias, ignorant, insightful, Bible-thumper, naive... well, you get the idea. I get called much, why should I let that have more power than is proper?

 

[morningstar2651]

To be prejudiced is to judge before knowing all of the facts. Is it wise to judge before knowing the truth?

This thread is about good & evil -- the "Loving the sinner" thread was the one inspired by the scenario I presented earlier -- sorry for not clarifying.

I don't see Gay activism saying sexuality should be the way to judge people -- all they ask for is equality.

If someone had truely "loved the sinner" as they claim, they would still be friends regardless of which sins their friend commits. I have several friends that are conservative Christians. Several clergy members in this area know me on a first-name basis. We disagree on several moral and theological topics, but that doesn't mean that we're enemies...and if we were...aren't they commanded to love their enemies?

 

[ChristianCenturion]

To be prejudiced is to judge before knowing all of the facts. Is it wise to judge before knowing the truth?

Correction, it can also be having a verdict without having to weigh and balance everything and constantly having to re-determine if something is bad or good.

This thread is about good & evil -- the "Loving the sinner" thread was the one inspired by the scenario I presented earlier -- sorry for not clarifying.

K

I don't see Gay activism saying sexuality should be the way to judge people -- all they ask for is equality.

Been through this before, I don't accept the false premise... pass.

If someone had truely "loved the sinner" as they claim, they would still be friends regardless of which sins their friend commits. I have several friends that are conservative Christians. Several clergy members in this area know me on a first-name basis. We disagree on several moral and theological topics, but that doesn't mean that we're enemies...and if we were...aren't they commanded to love their enemies?

I don't 'not love you' myself and the fact that I try communicating and (I think) patiently explaining shows an aspect of love if not respect in several dimensions.
Christians are commanded many things and have boundaries/rules that apply in multiple ways and areas. The typical non-believer's interpretation and dictation to the believer has it's limits.

Mark 12:29-31 (New International Version)
29“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’There is no commandment greater than these.”

Notice that "Love your neighbor" takes the back seat to "Love the Lord your God". Obedience to God isn't superseded by the latter nor is compassion a tool that can be as a weapon against the believer.

A strawman example: If someone was going to rape a woman and I shot him dead, I'm not going to be held condemned for 'not loving' the dead guy.

 

[morningstar2651]

Been through this before, I don't accept the false premise... pass.

Which false premise?

 

[fugeelala]

im typing this cuz im too lazy to find the current page

 

[cross-eyed]

Not that I have complete understanding of the issue or anything, but a way I've heard good/evil described that seems to make sense is something like this (forgive me if I don't make sense in explaining it, I'm not the smartest person on earth):

What is darkness, but an absence of light? When we speak of thermodynamics, we speak not of "cold" but rather an "absence of heat" ...to relative degrees, of course (ex: 100 C is hot to human touch). Now, evil is not so much a measurement of itself as it is an absence of good. As the Bible says God is good, so satan is called evil, but for the reason that he is an absence of the presence of God, or an absence of good.

That's my understanding.

 

[morningstar2651]

To the Lakota Sioux there are two types of light.
The bright light (light) and the dark light (darkness).

Exploring the colours of dark light

 

[ChristianCenturion]

To the Lakota Sioux there are two types of light.
The bright light (light) and the dark light (darkness).

Exploring the colours of dark light

The dark light can only exist because of the power of the bright light.

 

[morningstar2651]

I think this thread on good & evil is weaving its way from ethics to metaphysics.

w00t!

 

[ChristianCenturion]

I think this thread on good & evil is weaving its way from ethics to metaphysics.

w00t!

And I understand the Truth to transcend those barriers.