"The Problem of EVIL & SUFFERING" Thread!

by UnDisfellowshipped 8 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • UnDisfellowshipped
    UnDisfellowshipped

    For all individuals who are Atheists, Agnostics, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Jehovah's Witnesses, or anyone else: This is the thread to post the very best argument AGAINST God OR defense/case FOR God based on the problem of evil/suffering.

    If there is an all-good, all-powerful, all-knowing God, why does He allow all of the suffering and evil we have today (and down through the millenniums)?

    Also, for those who believe in God (like myself), how do you harmonize/reconcile your belief in God with the fact of all of the evil and suffering in the world?

    I will post my beliefs on this shortly.

  • Darth plaugeis
    Darth plaugeis

    Are going to make an excuse for God Now?LOL

  • UnDisfellowshipped
    UnDisfellowshipped

    Darth,

    The main purpose of this thread is to widen myself and others intellectually. To get out of our "comfort zones". To think deeply about God and why there is suffering or evil.

    I don't plan on making any "excuses" for God.

  • Darth plaugeis
    Darth plaugeis

    Well have fun on this one........... if I take the Evil side on this one I remembered what happens next....

    I get consumed by fire.

  • UnDisfellowshipped
    UnDisfellowshipped

    Quite often, I have observed individuals who are atheists that will attempt to use the "Argument From Evil/Suffering" to prove that an all-good, all-powerful God cannot exist. Otherwise, if an all-good, all-powerful God did exist, He would put a stop to (or would never have allowed) all the suffering and evil in the world.

    One question I have for those who do believe in God is, what definition are you using for "evil"? And what definition are you using for "good"?

  • Balsam
    Balsam

    I particularly like the concepts of Deism, it makes more sense when looking at religion...................................Ruth

    Welcome to Modern Deism

    Deism is a reason-based faith that postulates a belief in God through a foundation of Reason, Personal Experience and Nature (nature of the universe) with emphasis on freethought rather than a foundation of Divine revelation(s) and Holy texts. Essentially, through the use of Reason, God’s existence is revealed by the observation of nature and our own personal experiences. For the Deist, the order and complexity found in nature coupled with our rational experiences of nature leads to a belief in God.

    It must be noted that Deism has been defined as the religion in which God abandoned the creation. This was rarely the case. During the Second Great Awakening, Deism was attacked by the revialists who wanted to degrade its influence. They created the notion that Deists believed that God had created and then abandoned his creation in favor of greater things. No Deists truly believed this. Some believed that God was no longer active in creation but had not abandoned it but watched to observe.

    As with the past, modern Deists have many different beliefs regarding the nature of God. This is because that nature can never truly be known but only infered from our perspective. As such, there are many different beliefs among Deists regarding what God may or may not be like. This is encouraged as Deists want all to use their own Reason and Experiences to develop their views on God and associated aspects.

    This causes Modern Deism to be a belief system that thrives on diversity of thought. Deism is based on Reason and Reason tells us that humans are freethinkers that will develop their own beliefs. Therefore, Deists have a common belief in God based on Reason but the view into the nature of God varies among Deists as this nature is generally unknown to us at this time.

    Modern Deism seeks to bring these different viewpoints about the nature of God under the umbrella of Deism. The only real requirement is that the faith of Deism is based on Reason, Experience and Nature. Furthermore, Modern Deism incorporates the latest interpretations found in the fields of science, philosophy, psychology and history so that it integrates classical and modern viewpoints with the wisdom of the past with the discoveries of the present.

    For the Modern Deist, Reason is not just used exclusively for spiritual belief but is also used in all other aspects of daily life as well. This leads to a pragmatic view of life in aspects such as the personal, the political, the moral and the functional. This pragmatic view coupled with Reason leads the Deist to believe that all men and women are created equal and have inherent freedom based on the laws of nature.

    Ultimately, the Deist is one that can be understood in simple terms. The Deist looks at existence and infers that this wonderous thing could not have been an accident. They also desire a sense of astonishment and connection to something greater than themselves and define that “something” as God. Finally, Deists believe that Reason is one our most important gifts and that we should use our own Reason to develop our beliefs regarding God.

    The goal of Modern Deism is the promotion and education of Deism to the modern world. Most people have never heard of Deism and our goal is to change this problem. Unfortunately, the dictionary definition of Deism tends to push the idea that Deism is a “dead religion.” However, this is a fallacy as Deism is “alive” and growing.

    All of the sections here are created to help others learn about Deism. Please take a look through a your own pace. Their is quite a bit of material on a wide range of subjects that involves Deism. This site is updated periodically so check back frequently to see what new items have been added.

    Thank you for visiting Modern Deism and we hope that you learned about the natural religion of Deism. Please visit again as this site is updated periodically. If you have any questions or comments please contact us.

    http://moderndeism.com/

  • ProdigalSon
    ProdigalSon

    Because of a corrupt priesthood who perverted and distorted the true cosmology of the myths, we have confused nature with a single, above all-else benevolent God that thinks about everything before he lets it happen. The universe(s) is/are so vastly complicated that we haven't even imagined how complex the hierarchy "above" us is. The Kabbalah "Tree of Life" would be a good place to start.

    There is nothing moral or perfect in the creation of a world. For spiritual energy to become physical matter is an extremely violent process, and once it is set into motion, it doesn't think about right or wrong, it just does what it is programmed to do. It is an evolutionary process, and rather than creating a perfect world that humans messed up, instead it was a primeval world that needed to be refined into perfection over billions of years. The only way for that to happen is through suffering, as they say, "whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger", but let's not forget that along with the gift of life comes great joy and pleasure. It's not ALL about suffering and never has been.

    A great website to learn about how the galaxy sends out electromagnetic waves of information to cause evolution is www.divinecosmos.com.

    PS

  • yadda yadda 2
    yadda yadda 2

    Romans 2 - Paul was basically saying that God has imbued a moral law in humankinds hearts and conscience, and that you don't need scripture to follow this law.

    If we are the product of an intelligent creator (or creators, as in aliens), this 'moral law' or 'conscience' is all we have been given to guide us, along with our minds and the power of reason, and there is nothing else we can expect from the 'gods'. We can't expect divine intervention or an after-life. If human longevity can be greatly extended then it will be discovered through science, not by eating trees described in the book of Revelation.

    If there is a 'God' silently watching us, whatever the reasons it has for not intervening until now must be so fundamentally compelling that they are reasons for it to never intervene, ever.

    Existentially, we are as good as alone.

  • *lost*
    *lost*

    Equally there has to be sufficient research and study of the scriptures, and knowledge of the story/history to be able to answer or format view on any of the topics.

    If you want to believe in/about anything you have to study/learn/know it. whether anyone agrees or disagrees is irrelevent. Being able to hold a well informed balanced debate/discussions/conservation is the product of actually learing about what it is they are actually talking about.

    that is one area where jws and ex jws (and possibly some other religions) really do have an edge, as a rule they have exceptionally high knowledge of not only the Bible and the scriptures/information but the history and stories. they do have the package, and they know it very well as a lot were born in and raised in. they ate it, slept it, breathed it. It was/is their very fibre. Which showed remarkable qualities in these people as individuals, and what they have endured. they are experts.

    There are a lot of answers in there, but it was kept from us, and never taught us, so we don't know it or haave forgotten it. Doesn't mean any of it isn't true.

    If it is, then we are seeing events unravelling in our very day and age, and it will be interesting to see what does happen. Like the past, we dont actually know. Nor do we know the future.

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