Question for Believers - Why did god "create" poison ivy, poison toad stools, and marijuana?

by Comatose 31 Replies latest watchtower bible

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  Comatose

  If he created them, then he would have had to use divine intervention to protect people from eating them or burning them. Even after being told not to and passing that knlowedge on, small children could inadvertently get into poison berries or mushrooms. What about bacteria that causes extreme stomach problems like Giardia? Did it evolve or did he create it? Black mold is deadly and if not deadly it makes you sick.

  Sooner or later someone was going to gather up some chopped down "weeds" and burn them in a brush pile. A few hours later and giggling, they would be devouring fruits and vegetables. And wondering what the heck just happened. Someone would likewise eventually burn tobacco and like the smell. The list goes on as long as you want.

  Why would an omniscient, omnipotent, and perfect god create things he would then have to shield his creations from?
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  cantleave

  This is still my favourite one of god's wise creations

  
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  sir82

  A JW (or fundy for that matter) response:

  Ever since man was cast out of the garden of Eden, he has been living out of harmony with nature. It was never God's will for man to sin and thus be exposed to those things. A perfect man would not react negatively when exposed to poison ivy, poisonous toad stools, marijuana, etc. Unfortunately, in our imperfect sinful state, our bodies are not sufficiently equipped to deal properly with those things.

  All will be wonderful again when the earth is transformed into a paradise. We'll be perfect, with perfect immune systems, and thus will be able to eat poison ivy salads with a toadstool milkshake if we like.
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  Larsinger58

  This is an excellent question. No one, including myself likely knows the precise answer. But it does seem that many things were adapted after the flood occurred.

  That is, we read that once Christ begins his 1000-year reign, no animal will do harm. Poisonous snakes will not be poison any more and Lion's will eat straw like the ox and thus not hunt and kill other animals. So maybe some of these harmful things were meant to be temporary.

  But I don't believe that as far as certain plants like marijuana and coca or poppies, which have medicinal value. That is, cocaine that comes from the coca plant is used as an anesthetic. I worked as a medical secretary for a while for the head of the ophthalmology department for a county hospital in Los Angeles. So I know the ophthalmogists sometimes use cocaine as a topical anesthetic. It seems that marijuana as well has medicinal use. Doctors even used tobacco cigarettes to help administer anti-asthmatic inhalants for a while. Plus tobacco smoke was known to impede tuberculosis. So it would seem many substances were provided for their medicinal or psychological effect. Alcohol alters the mental state and is most common. But that doesn't mean one is meant to abuse it.

  Question is, is what is illegal always immoral. That is, does God care if you want to smoke crack cocaine or use morphine and codeine to kill pain? That answer is apparent, since in Admsterdam, drug use is legal and not immoral,

  I came back to the "truth" because I was experimenting with drugs, namely, THC which is the concentrated chemical in marijuana. It helped me to think clearly and to know my true emotions. Once I took the THC, I understood my priorities and immediately went home to get back into the truth. I had been living as a woman before that. Some drugs help you to concentrate or sleep,

  Many things that are out there can be harmful if misused or abused, like cocaine. But otherwise, they have great medicinal value. Lots of drugs can be deadly in large quantities or concentrations. But otherwise, they have beneficial effects.

  I think God expects you to use personal wisdom and common sense. A lake can be a fun place, but you could also drown.
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  cofty

  Poisonous snakes will not be poison any more and Lion's will eat straw like the ox and thus not hunt and kill other animals.

  Your lack of understanding of the natural world is staggering.
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  Mum

  Maybe for the same reason he put that "tree of knowledge" in the Garden of Eden, to see if we would be dumb enough to try it in case a talking snake came along.
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  sir82

  See what did I tell ya?

  20 minutes after I post, Lars comes along and says exactly what I did (in 10 times the number of words, per usual).
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  Comatose

  Sir82 - I know you are just parroting the JW response, and I am not arguing with you here, but just that logic.

  A JW (or fundy for that matter) response:

  Ever since man was cast out of the garden of Eden, he has been living out of harmony with nature. It was never God's will for man to sin and thus be exposed to those things. A perfect man would not react negatively when exposed to poison ivy, poisonous toad stools, marijuana, etc. Unfortunately, in our imperfect sinful state, our bodies are not sufficiently equipped to deal properly with those things.

  All will be wonderful again when the earth is transformed into a paradise. We'll be perfect, with perfect immune systems, and thus will be able to eat poison ivy salads with a toadstool milkshake if we like.

  The response does not hold water. Because of other "created" things like Cane toads which kill almost all animals who eat them. Why the need for that protection mechanism if no predators exist?

  Similarly, those plants mentioned above kill and affect animals as well. So, it isn't mans punishment or mans lack of perfection. It's poison and it kills. He made plants that kills animals too.
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  Larsinger58

  SIR:

  See what did I tell ya?

  20 minutes after I post, Lars comes along and says exactly what I did (in 10 times the number of words, per usual).

  LARS

  See? We agree! But I'm not sure why I'm so wordy. Even the Bible teases me about that. In Revelation it mentions how Christ, when he arrives, strikes the nations with the LONG sword of his mouth. The "long" sword is a reference to my wordiness.

  Anyway, I'll spare you a long, unrelated sermon this time! I've got to get showered and out to drink and gamble today. I just got paid yesterday. Have a great day.

  Why did God create crack cocaine for black people?
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  The Quiet One

  LARS said: "we read that once Christ begins his 1000-year reign, no animal will do harm. Poisonous snakes will not be poison any more and Lion's will eat straw like the ox" -- So besides changing the dna of lions that were otherwise perfectly happy+healthy as vegetarians, God actually changed snakes so that they could poison his other creative works (mice etc) ? Do you love a God that would do this? (serious question)