rationalskepticism.org

Ichthus77 wrote:

Hm. What do you think of hotshoe's latest reply, wherein he says there is no evil?

Naughty, naughty, Maryann. Would you care to quote me on that ? No, nevermind, I'll quote myself:

myself wrote:We don't believe in an objective "evil" as opposed to an objective "good."

Would you care to point out where in that sentence I said "there is no evil" ?

Is it that you have reading problems ? Really, I would be so much more understanding if that is your handicap, than if you just choose to distort and lie about what everyone else says for your own political purposes.

Evil does exist--it is a clue to God's existence (a clue to the existence of a real good--of which evil is a real privation...not opposite, just to be clear).

Is that a fact, Maryann ? What's your evidence for this hippy-dippy assertion ?

The evil dictator part had only to do w/ the sort of God (unworthy of the title) who would not allow free will. Free will makes choosing love possible, but also its alternative...evil...and without the possibility of that alternative, there really isn't a choice...and love is not 'really' love unless it is chosen. In order to prevent all evil choices, or all pain (not just "physical" pain), the consequence ultimately would prevent love as well.

Is that a fact ? My my, what a shame you believe that. Guess you don't believe in heaven then. All will freely, of their own wills, choose to sing the praises and bask in the glory once they reach heaven. And yet, there won't be any evil in heaven, so we were told. An omnipotent god who could arrange for there to be no evil in heaven while allowing for the free will of the "risen" could surely make - at the very least - less evil on earth while allowing for - at the very least - enough free will of the "fallen" to allow love as a meaningful choice. Or maybe the difference is that you really don't believe in omnipotence. That's OK. Omnipotence is a truly fantastically ridiculous thing to believe in. It's just such a shock to find a true christian like you contradicting omnipotence in public like this.

Many leaders history deems evil dictators in hind-sight, start out w/ what they feel are good intentions. Preventing all evil choices at first blush looks like a good intention, but only an evil dictator would actually do it. The happy ending (despite circumstances that others may label "evil"...think Job)

Fuck that goddamn "god just wants us to learn from our own mistakes" shit. Anyone who would say that is less moral than a gorilla, who actually has empathy for others. Even stupid parents try not to let their children jump off the roof or eat poison just so the kids can learn from their mistakes. Your so-called omniscient god would have the knowledge to make a better plan, one which still resulted in the happy ending but without so much torture along the way. The truth is, if your god existed, it would be the most heinous dictator ever imagined, and all the suffering which we do in fact incur would only exist because it was gleefully rubbing its hands in sadistic pleasure.

actually starts the moment you choose it here and now (your kingdom come...on earth...it is within you).

Sure thing. Just keep lying to the children being eaten to death by parasites that the kingdom of heaven is within them. Just keep lying to the woman being raped that the kingdom of heaven is within her. Just keep lying to the young man, working to feed his family, trapped in the coal mine, that the kingdom of heaven is within him. You're a privileged white woman. Of course, the kingdom of heaven is within you.

The kind of smarmy self-satisfied self-serving hypocritical bullshit you write is sickening.