Posted on 05/07/2010 6:57:41 AM PDT by Zionist Conspirator
What do we mean by professing that G-d is good and man was created in His image? When G-d allows and even causes unbearable pain to befall man, afflicting him with sickness, cruel death, earthquakes and the most horrible wars, there seems little room for these claims. If G-d, by our moral standards, cannot be justified for many of His actions, as we have suggested previously, how are we to revere Him?
(Excerpt) Read more at jewishworldreview.com ...
There is no evil counterpart of G-d who has chased Him off His throne and become "the gxd of this world." There is only One G-d Who is the King of All Worlds.
Ping. Sorry if I forgot anyone.
“”unbearable pain to befall man, afflicting him with sickness, cruel death, earthquakes and the most horrible wars””
If you hold that these are bad, then your errant way of thinking can’t be set right.
You truly “can’t get there from here.”
Further discussion would be pointless.
God doesn't cause that....not since Jesus died on the cross. Most wickedness is chosen by man.
G-d, th-t’s s- d-istr-ct-ng!
Why w-n’t y-u pe-pl- j-st br-ak d-wn and b-y th- f-ll pr-ce k-ybo-rd th-t h-s th- f-ll s-t -f v-w-ls?!?
So for two thousand years the world has operated randomly (as the atheists maintain), or does "the devil" control the forces of nature?
Not everyone is a chr*stian, you know. Please check the author of the article again.
Why w-n’t y-u pe-pl- j-st br-ak d-wn and b-y th- f-ll pr-ce k-ybo-rd th-t h-s th- f-ll s-t -f v-w-ls?!?
It's nice to know that after all these thousands of years there are still people out there unafraid of parading their ignorance and bigotry before the world. Thank you for confirming my faith in human nature.
RM, is it valid to horn in on a thread--even a non-caucused thread--to which one was not invited merely to make fun of the religious scruples of the other posters?
Ridicule is to be expected on “open” Religion Forum threads. If this had been an “ecumenical” “caucus” “prayer” or “devotional” RF thread, it would not be tolerated.
Too true. I really should have run my opinion by you first.
Sorry.
He told on you. Har!!
Isaiah 45:7 says exactly this: “I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things.” He never said He “created” evil
Disaster and darkness are not the same as evil. God did not create evil- we did that. One of the hardest things for man to do is accept the fact that evil (as we understand it)exists because it is what we demanded. We CHOSE to know good and evil, to be “as gods”. This was not God’s original plan for us, but He gave us free will, and pride brought us the rest.
It's possible that you and I are talking past each other, but I don't think you understand the point of the article (or at least my interpretation of it, which may be incorrect). Some people believe that evil is a creation of an evil "gxd" or an evil counterpart to G-d (G-d forbid!). But this is not so. The very creation of a being with free will and given a code of conduct makes evil possible, and thus is ultimately responsible for the existence of evil. Furthermore, G-d created HaSatan and gave him his assignments which he faithfully carries out (he is not a "fallen" or "rebellious" angel, G-d forbid).
It seems to me (and please forgive me if I am wrong) that you are simply saying that G-d does not force people to be evil, and indeed, we are all given free will (though after the primordial sin our nature has changed to such an extent that resisting temptation can be very difficult). What I am trying to say (and what I think Rabbi Cardozo is saying) is that evil is not an unforeseen force created by an outside entity but was built into the world from the beginning and in some mysterious way serves G-d's ultimate purposes. (There is a midrash that the first sin was actually committed not by man but by the ground when it brought forth `etz `oseh peri instead of `etz peri `oseh peri as G-d commanded in the first chapter of Genesis.)
We couldn’t live without natural “evil” of earthquakes, volcanoes, weather systems, etc.
We might not be able to live without man-made evil either. We never have.
The greatest religio-metaphysical debate, Lao Tzu, is the one that falls flat in the forest with no one there to hear it, because some arsebung kicked the props out from under it before it got going good.
How about this ?shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiach23 The steps of a man are established by YHvH, And He delights in his way.24 When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, Because YHvH is the One who holds his hand.
25 I have been young and now I am old, Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken Or his descendants begging bread.
26 All day long he is gracious and lends, And his descendants are a blessing.
27 Depart from evil and do good, So you will abide forever.
28 For YHvH loves justice And does not forsake His godly ones; They are preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.
How about it?
G-d is good, but evil is not the creation of an evil entity. The possibility of evil is part of G-d's design of the universe.
7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:
8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto G-d: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.
10 And G-d saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and G-d repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.
G-d did not do the evil that he said he would do....interesting side note, the people of Nineveh were forgiven through prayer and repentance. No animal sacrifice, no shedding of blood.
Could evil be our free will and our rebellion ?
shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiach
Is this ecumenical or open for debate?
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