Why is there evil in the world?

[elman]

If he knows what we will choose then there is no choice, we have to make that choice. This is another thing about Christians that offends me, as soon as you know you cannot win, you leave.

I don't know that you can win in this argument. If God knows what I am going to chose to do-who is making the choice to do what I do? Knowing what I am going to do is not the same as making me do what I do.

 

[Lilly of the Valley]

If he knows what we will choose then there is no choice, we have to make that choice. This is another thing about Christians that offends me, as soon as you know you cannot win, you leave.

No, I know I can't make you see what I do. Is it prudent to continue something that you know someone won't believe no matter what you say? No...I find it foolish.

 

[Soul_Searcher]

Hi Mortensen,

"Why is God letting there be evil in the world?"

Because that is what we choose for the world. When we stop choosing it, it will go away.

 

[somaoe]

No, I know I can't make you see what I do. Is it prudent to continue something that you know someone won't believe no matter what you say? No...I find it foolish.

If I am watching The Wizard of Oz for the umpteenth time, I know that Dorothy slaps the Cowardly Lion on the nose, but I didn't make her do it.
If I wrote the screenplay, I made her do it.
Either way, I know she chooses to slap the Lion.

 

[somaoe]

Hi Mortensen,

"Why is God letting there be evil in the world?"

Because that is what we choose for the world. When we stop choosing it, it will go away.

That is incorrect.
According to Isaiah 45:7, God creates evil:
"I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things."
(KJV)

 

[Soul_Searcher]

Hi Somaoe,

"That is incorrect. According to Isaiah 45:7, God creates evil: "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.""

No, it's not. My conclusion is based on observation; yours is only based on faith, not fact. Sorry.

 

[lawtonfogle]

Why is God letting there be evil in the world?

A simple question, no? Well, first, does evil exist. The answer can be found in another question, does cold exist, what about darkness. Both of these do not exist, but are just a term for the absence of something that does exist. Evil does not exist, it is just the lack of good. Humans have free will, they can chose not to have good, and then they are evil. But I am sure this point has been beaten to death many times.

 

[Mortensen]

Evil does not exist, it is just the lack of good

So if I go to my neighbour and kill him, why is this a lack of good? Why isn't "good" a lack of evil?

 

[somaoe]

Hi Somaoe,

"That is incorrect. According to Isaiah 45:7, God creates evil: "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.""

No, it's not. My conclusion is based on observation; yours is only based on faith, not fact. Sorry.

You mean that yours is based on your faith that your are correct in your observation and your faith in your reasoning.
I gave up philosophy, in favor of the Truth of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, because philosophy leads nowhere, only around in circles.
So, true to my beliefs, I leave this conversation to the philosophizers.

 

[elman]

That is incorrect.
According to Isaiah 45:7, God creates evil:
"I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things."
(KJV)

That is a mistranslation. Check it out. God did not create evil and does not. He created us and we do the creating of evil. That verse is talking about the effects of bad weather-natural disasters, not one person being unloving to another.

 

[Soul_Searcher]

Hi Somaoe,

"You mean that yours is based on your faith that your are correct in your observation and your faith in your reasoning."

No, observations are just that, observations that can be noted and seen by others. My faith in God is mine, because it is totally subjective to my life experiences; my faith in Jesus is mine because it is subjective, just as yours is.

"I gave up philosophy, in favor of the Truth of Jesus Christ of Nazareth..."

And this Truth is objective and not philosophy/faith how?

 

[lawtonfogle]

So if I go to my neighbour and kill him, why is this a lack of good? Why isn't "good" a lack of evil?

Why is light not a lack of dark?

I would have to say that utopia would be good, and so evil is the lack thereof. Is matter the opposite of anti-matter, or vice-versa.

 

[lawtonfogle]

That is incorrect.
According to Isaiah 45:7, God creates evil:
"I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things."
(KJV)

I have found to many translation errors with the KJV. It may say the same thing in another version, but the KJV is to me, not athoritive. For if it were, we all should be gay. Since gay is never used (I have never at least seen it used) to mean happy anymore, it is left to mean homosexual. Also, some words in the KJV are tranlated different ways, as in one case where a group of people are called kids, while they are actually military age, which gives a different meaning for the passage.

 

[Lilly of the Valley]

If I am watching The Wizard of Oz for the umpteenth time, I know that Dorothy slaps the Cowardly Lion on the nose, but I didn't make her do it.
If I wrote the screenplay, I made her do it.
Either way, I know she chooses to slap the Lion.

Yep and either way she choose to do it. Now if you wrote the screenplay, then yes you made her do it. But God didn't write or decide our actions.

 

[Blackguard_]

It may say the same thing in another version, but the KJV is to me, not athoritive. For if it were, we all should be gay. Since gay is never used (I have never at least seen it used) to mean happy anymore, it is left to mean homosexual.

That verse does use an older meaning of evil, more modern versions translate it as "calamity" or similar.

And that makes more sense in context as well, light and dark are opposites, but how is moral evil the opposite of peace?

I think the verse does still address the Problem of Evil though, or would a universe with a God that lets no one sin but still allows things like tornados to kill and destroy be a universe without evil?

 

[spdnet75]

It seems to me that, from a Biblical stand point, anything that goes against the scripture, could be considered wrong or evil.

From a more Scientific view, it's simply a matter of having an observer in any given situation. It would be pointless to mention that it is light outside, if there weren't some other state to be observed.

 

[Emmy]

Dear Mortensen, I agree absolutely with Lilly of the Valley, in all she said. Saeph, however, made a quite important point, Christians will insist that Lilly of the valley is right, but he, Saeph an Atheist, will speak up for the thief, because the thief justifies his stealing from the Rich, simply because they HAVE, and he HAS NOT. If I make an important point, Mortensen, God sees all, He knows our hearts, our very thoughts, and I know that God is all Love and Forgiveness. Is the thief sinning? is he doing evil? In this case, I would rather God be my Judge, than some worldly judge. I say this humbly and lovingly. Greetings from Emmy, sister in Christ.

 

[AtheistPerson]

If you are starving and need food to survive and you must steal, then it is only reasonable to do so. If you want to steal when you have money and a well paying job then that is simply immoral.

 

[elman]

It seems to me that, from a Biblical stand point, anything that goes against the scripture, could be considered wrong or evil.

From a more Scientific view, it's simply a matter of having an observer in any given situation. It would be pointless to mention that it is light outside, if there weren't some other state to be observed.

It seems to me from Jesus' teachings, evil is being unloving.

 

[Logicalthinker]

Im going to post this in a new thread later on, but Ill take it here to. If God is allmighty, he knows everything that have happenes in the past and everything that will happen in the future. He knows our choices (if he didn't, he wouldnt be all mighty) and there for our choices is pre-dessided. Either God is not allmigthy or humans do not have free will.

What if he sees many outcomes. Because of our free will we roam about doing what we please. But that doesn't change the big picture. Or pictures. What if the Universe is multi layered and when a fork in the road comes God sees all the out comes that could be. Not just a single linear time line. Prophecy being only where these parallel universes connect in points or are similar at the same time in separate universes. Or what if 97% of the parallel universes ultimately follow the same path and all prophecy is based on percentages in the course of multiple out comes from multiple time lines. Not predestined. Sorry I little off topic. But because of the freewill we have evil. It's not a force. Man is easily tempted to do evil because of the excitment of it all. My opinion anyways.