...God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. God is good all the time. All the time God is...
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...The strongest argument that explains why a good, loving God would allow evils such as the Holocaust was made by the “attorney” appointed to defend God. He states that God was purifying the Jews for their sins, and with this purification the Jews would be better off. He quoted the Testament and used previous historical events to justify his claims. The objection to this argument is that why would God sacrifice good Jews in order to help make them better off. That would be illogical because by the end of the Holocaust the only surviving people would be the evil servants of Hitler. I don’t believe this is a good explanation why God would allow such suffering because the suffering is supposed to purify the Jews, but I don’t see why God would almost kill 4.9 to 6 million Jews to make them “better off”. The strongest argument that explains why a good, loving God would never allow evils such as the Holocaust is made by the “attorney” appointed to persecute God. He stated that since God is all knowing and all powerful, then he is aware of the evil going on and chooses not to do so. Therefore the God that exists is evil and not good, loving God. Someone could object to this argument by saying that God has a plan of punishing people for their sins, therefore he chooses not to intervene to teach humanity, or in this case the Jews, a lesson. Yes I believe this provides a good reason to conclude that a good, omnipotent God doesn’t exist because if he had the power to create humanity and...
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...A good God will not allow people to suffer. Discuss. Some people believe that this statement is true. They believe that God is benevolent and therefore he is all loving, creating a positive image of himself where people believe that he wouldn’t inflict pain on any one of his creation. However, it’s not always down to God, for example some people believe in the act of free will, this means that the actions humans do such as murder, rape etc… don’t involve God. He gave humans free will so we’re responsible for what we decide to do with our life with little involvement from God. When God created the world he made it perfect. He then left his stewards to take care of and look after the world therefore a good God did create a world without suffering however it is the humans of the world that have designed a world full of pain and suffering. It is known that the Devil is the creator of evil therefore it may be possible to believe that it isn’t Gods decision but the devil has created the suffering in the world. Other people believe that this statement is false. They think that if there is no pain or suffering in our life then we won’t appreciate the good things when they happen. We would be emotionless because we can’t differentiate the good things from the bad things. Also, Christians say that God is omnipotent however if He really is all powerful then why doesn’t he intervene when a natural disaster, for example tsunamis and tornados occur instead of letting them destroy innocent...
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...| Can We Be Good Without God? | Clashing Views on Controversial Issues in Religion Can Morality Exist Without Religion? | | Rajoo Kamal-Wilnoff (10781867)Sociology 321.3, Section X01Professor Bryan PukMay 28, 2014 | “Never let your sense of morals get in the way of doing what’s right.” – Isaac Asimov | Can We Be Good Without God? Can we be good without God? The question has been a controversial one throughout history and a variety of positions are apparent regarding the relationship between religion and morality. Theists undoubtedly find in God a source of moral strength and resolve which enables them to live lives that are better than those that they would live without Him, but it would seem arrogant and ignorant to claim that those who do not share a belief in God do not often live good moral lives. Should the question really be about the objectivity of moral values, and whether said moral values are simply social conventions, or mere expressions of personal preference? Are they valid independently of our apprehension of them, and if so, what is their foundation? Moreover, if morality is just a human convention, then why should we act morally, especially when it conflicts with self-interest? Are we in some way held accountable for our moral decisions and actions? This paper explores the ontological claim that the morality does not require religion, religious motivation or guidance to exist, based on the opposing views presented in two essays “Religion, Morality...
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...Title 1: Is there good evidence for or against the existence of God? Throughout the ages, the topic of religion has always been discussed and argued over. Some people will always argue that God does exist, whilst others will argue that he doesn’t. Firstly I would like to start my argument with the famous 13th century philosopher, Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas’ argument is known as the cosmological argument. This is the idea of: the unmoved mover, the uncaused causer and idea of contingency, these three arguments are all a posteriori (based on the evidence in the universe around us). The unmoved mover is the concept that, in theory (is logically acceptable even for an atheist), that nothing can be in motion without something first putting it into motion. This argument is very similar to Aristotle’s, which is the idea that everything that changes shape, temperature or simply into something else must be changed by something. Aquinas argued that one thing leading to another infinitely, must be wrong. Something must have been there to cause the first movement. This is why Aquinas rejects the idea of infinite regress, as he believes, that something must have set the whole chain of reactions off, for example something has to push the first domino for the chain reaction to start, and this being for Christians is the unmoved mover or in other terms God. However, many atheists reject this theory as they believe that the idea of infinite regress is very plausible. For example Aquinas...
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...what extent are things only good because God commands them? (10) To find out the extent to which things are only good because of God commanding them you would first have to decide whether an action or thing becomes good because of God commanding it or if it is good before. Other questions which should be examined include whether the things God has commanded you to do are actually ‘good’ and if the things God has said are wrong and immoral really are. Personally I believe that many things can be good even if God has not declared it to be so and this point has become increasingly obvious throughout time; one of the most renowned and obviously ridiculous examples of things that God has informed us is not ‘good’ is homosexuality. In my opinion this is the best example of why the answer to our question is a ‘very small extent’; God, Christianity and many other religions are absolutely against homosexuality with no exceptions at all taking a strictly deontological view on the matter. Despite the act you would think, not hurting anyone Leviticus 18:22 clearly states that this is an abomination and those who practice homosexuality should be put to death, yet the entire religion of Christianity is based upon love, love of oneself, love of your neighbour, and most importantly love of God. But why should the love of another man be considered evil? God has clearly commanded that humans should not be gay and that the act is wrong, evil, and most poignantly not ‘good’ but then sets the double...
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...creates a sense of peace and confidence for the patient. Who is this God we should trust? The more we know of God's character, the more we are open to trusting Him during our trials. God wants us to trust Him, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your understanding.” Proverb 3:5 This lesson focuses on three pertinent characteristics of God: His Sovereignty His Wisdom His Goodness God’s Sovereignty Definitions of sovereignty: “Supreme and independent power or authority in a state.” “Sovereignty of God, his absolute right to do all things...
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...FAGBURE L6CG RELIGIOUS STUDIES (Philosophy of Religion) A. Explain what is meant in the Bible by the phrase “God is good” The goodness of God is first revealed in his actions as a Creator. Genesis chapters 1-3 contain the Creation story. God created the world out of nothing – “creation ex nihilo”. Each act of creation is seen to be good. "And he saw that it was good" (Genesis 1: 10). The end result of God's creation is the Earth and mankind. Everything created was made for man to take control of. God is the image of goodness and as mankind was created in the image of God. (Genesis 1:27, "God created man in his own image.") This tells humans that they are required to be good, as good as God. Exodus 20 describes the Ten Commandments given to the Hebrews by God. Moses received the commandments by revelation from God on the peak of Mount Sinai. They were guidelines given for God’s people to live by. The underlying principle is that humans are to be good and being good means following the Ten Commandments. God's goodness demands that mankind worship only one God and nothing or nobody else "You shall have no other gods before me and you shall not make for yourself an idol." (Exodus 20: 3-4). These commandments show that God is the primary source governing how people should lead their lives because God is entirely good. The Ten Commandments show man how to be good by giving strict guidelines. (Thou shalt not murder; thou shalt not commit adultery; thou shalt not steal). God’s...
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...What is Good and what is Evil? Recently while I was surfing Pinterest, I ran across an e-card that quoted Einstein: “God did not create evil. Just as darkness is the absence of light, evil is the absence of God.” This brings me to the question of what is good and what is evil. Good versus Evil is a very subjective topic. I believe what is good and what is evil are based on my beliefs as a Christian and the scriptures of the Bible. In my opinion, good is having the acts and characteristics of God and in contrast, evil is the opposite of good or as Einstein stated: “evil is the absence of God.” To begin with, good is a characteristic of God. For instance, the Holy Bible describes God as love (John 4:8), great, powerful, glorified, victorious and majestic (1Chronicles 29:11 ); all of these can be synonymous with good. In the epistle to the Romans, chapter 8 explained that those who love God will have all things work together for good according to God’s purpose. When a person obtains the same characteristics and acts of God, they become endeavored with noble and righteous characteristics that are based on the unmerited favor of God’s grace. An example of this is the story of Joseph in Genesis. Joseph was greatly loved by his father and was given a coat of many colors as a gift of love. His brothers became envious of Joseph’s special treatment from their father. Joseph’s brothers sold Joseph as a slave. During his time in slavery, God blessed Joseph with ability to...
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...The main big issue which occurs in problem of evil is that how God and evil can exists together, for instance if God exists, then there should be the prevention of evil, and if evil exists in the world that shows that God does not exist. This problem is logically explained by the Augustine in this paragraph. All powerful, all knowing and perfectly nice God would not allow any evil or suffering in the world. Augustine considers God as “completely innocent of evil”, the almighty all powerful God all good wouldn’t create anything evil or do anything evil. Evil is although a corruption in the good created by the God. It is not anything that God created by itself but it is the beings who did corruption in the good, which leads that to evil. Evil and bad deeds...
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...existence of an omnipotent God, however like Augustine, we struggle to understand how evil comes into being. Evil corrupts our free will and enables us to sin, but if God is all-powerful and all good, how can he allow this to happen? “Whence comes evil? Was there a certain evil matter out of which he made these things? Did he form and fashion it, but yet leave within it something that he would not convert into good? Why would he do it? Was he powerless to turn and change all this matter so that no evil would remain in it, even though he is all powerful?” As these questions found their way into Augustine’s mind, they also manage to exist and remain unanswered for most people today. However Augustine addresses these questions by justifying evil in this world with God’s creation of free will. By granting us free will God makes us responsible for our wrongdoings, as a result of this we can knowingly choose either right or wrong. In the infamous biblical passage on the creation of original sin, God accommodates men by giving Adam and Eve all the necessities of life: partnership, water, food and land. However, despite God’s warning Eve chose to eat the fruit from the tree of life. The serpent persuades Eve who later convinces Adam to eat from the tree. From this persuasion and act from men, original sin is born. Men are now born with a predisposition to sin; in other words, they can knowingly choose what places them further away from God. Choosing the lesser good, in Adam and Eve’s case...
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...questioning the existence of God. The main question being “If God truly does exist why does he allow evil to occur, why doesn’t he protect the innocent”. In the dialogue between Athea, Bea and Agnos, Bruce Russell uses the characters to tackle that exact question by focusing on the argument of the problem of Evil. Athea in this dialogue is used as the protagonist in the attack of theism, he lays the foundation of the dialogue by providing the premises on which he believes that God must not exist due to the presence of evil. Bea in this dialogue is considered the protagonist in the defense of theism, he role is to highlight the weakness in the problem of evil argument and furthermore suggesting alternative reasons for the presence of evil despite God’s existence. In this essay I shall summarize the setting of the dialogue between the two main characters, then delve into the arguments that are presented. I shall first highlight Athea’s argument against the presence of God, explaining the structure and conclusion of the problem of evil argument, as this lays the foundation for the whole dialogue. I shall then focus on Bea’s reaction to Athea’s argument, clarifying her perceived weakness of the argument and furthermore pointing out her theories on why the presence of evil exists despite Gods existence. Finally I shall present my opinion on the Problem of evil, illustrating the weakness in the premises and its inadequate consideration of the ways in which God might prevent evil without...
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...Euthyphro, “Are morally good acts willed by God because they are morally good, or are they morally good because they are willed by God?” (1) How does this question relate to the Divine Command Theory of morality? (2) What are the philosophical implications associated with each option here? Divine command theory is widely held to be refuted by an argument known as “the Euthyphro dilemma”. This argument is named after Plato’s Euthyphro dialogue, which contains the inspiration for the argument, though not, as is sometimes thought, the argument itself. The Euthyphro dilemma rests on a modernised version of the question asked by Socrates in the Euthyphro: “Are morally good acts willed by God because they are morally good, or are they morally good because they are willed by God?” Each of these two possibilities, the argument runs, leads to consequences that the divine command theorist cannot accept. Whichever way the divine command theorist answers this question, then, it seems that his theory will be refuted. This argument might be formalised as follows: The Euthyphro Dilemma (1) If divine command theory is true then either (i) morally good acts are willed by God because they are morally good, or (ii) morally good acts are morally good because they are willed by God. (2) If (i) morally good acts are willed by God because they are morally good, then they are morally good independent of God’s will. (3) It is not the case that morally good acts are morally good independent of God’s...
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...Is God Evil? Alan Gleisinger Walden University Is God Evil? “God either cannot or will not prevent evil. If God cannot prevent evil, then God is limited in power. If God will not prevent evil, then God is limited in benevolence. But if God is not limited in power or benevolence, why is there evil in the world?” Epicurus (Chaffee, 2013) Have you ever heard someone say, “I don’t understand why people believe in God when there is so much pain and suffering in the world?” This question, and others similar in it’s message are becoming more and more reasonable things to be asked. If God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and if God is good as he is believed to be in the traditional Western conception of God, then why would he allow evil to be such a prominent force in the lives of all of mankind (Soloman & Higgins, 2014)? In this paper I will show how the various arguments regarding the existence of God relates to the problem of evil in our world today. I will also show how these arguments relate to the different theories that try to answer questions about the problem of evil. With any attempt to answer the question of how can God exist with so much evil in the world, one must first have a clear understanding of what the problem of evil is. Simply stated, the problem of evil is: God is omnipotent (all-poweful), God is good, and evil still exists. Evil has two general categories, natural evil and moral evil. (Chaffee, 2013). Natural evil consists human suffering...
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...Mackie argues that God does not exist because of his idea of the 3-0-God which states that God has to be omniscient, omnipotent and omni-benevolent to fulfill the properties of a true God. Perhaps the strongest argument that Mackie gives is that God can only be two out of the three properties in order for evil to exist thus stating that god cannot exist because he does not fulfill all three properties. In this paper, I will argue that this argument fails because Mackie is basing his points on his own thoughts about God. Mackie starts out his argument by stating that the problem of evil proves that either no god exists or at least the god of Christianity, Judaism and Islamic does not exist since the problem of evil provokes the three properties of God. Mackie supports this claim by saying, “These additional principles are that good is opposed to evil, in such a way that a good thing always eliminates evil as far as it can, and that there are no limits to what an omnipotent thing can do.” (Abel p.91) and concludes this claim with, “…propositions that a good omnipotent thing exists, and that evil exists, are incompatible.” (Abel p.91) Adequate solutions are also what backs up his major point about the problem of evil and states that God cannot be all knowing while being all-powerful and all-good because evil exists and would mean that God is unaware of evil in the world. God can be all-knowing and all-powerful but cannot be all-good since evil exists and gives God the false impression...
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