One might ask why we should not expect god to be at least as reasonable and compassionate as the average person? Take a simple scenario that was given to me on a yahoo group: You are in the kitchen. You see a toddler headed towards a stove where a pot of oil bubbles away furiously. He reaches up... do you sit there and watch him do grievous harm to himself when he pulls it down, thinking pain, fear, scarring or death are just rewards for wanting to know? Or do you get up and pull him to safety? This is a good one. Where’s god;s warning when people are nearing unknown but certain danger? Here are my ideas: First, it is possible that the value system that is placed on this equation is meaningless in relation to some HIGHER PURPOSE? Perhaps the history of death and pain and suffering is a spit in the pan compared to what the ultimate goal is? Does a mother focus on the pain of child birth when she first holds her infant in her arms? Or is she elated with the result such that the pain becomes meaningless? Chaos, pain and suffering are inherent propensities in this system, but in the evolution of biology toward man they were certainly necessary components of the equation. Unlike the animal, whose pain is a conditioned response mechanism, man (now conscious) has an understanding of these things. He understands pain, suffering, mortality. Now he must suffer the consequences of that knowledge. But given the loftier goal of creating new personalities, perhaps the awareness of the chaotic nature of our environment and the pain and suffering and death we know in our conscious states is well worth attainment of another goal? In other words, maybe the means justify the end. Quite possibly not even the intervention by God would change the final outcomes. Secondly, this scenario assumes god can intervene. I believe god is just another word for perfection or morality and that saying that god could grab the infant or give him some warning is the same as saying your morality could grab the infant and save him. You (being moral or godly) want to save him because you have god (morality) within you.
Monday, June 26, 2006
Where Is My God Warning Before I Screw Up?
One might ask why we should not expect god to be at least as reasonable and compassionate as the average person? Take a simple scenario that was given to me on a yahoo group: You are in the kitchen. You see a toddler headed towards a stove where a pot of oil bubbles away furiously. He reaches up... do you sit there and watch him do grievous harm to himself when he pulls it down, thinking pain, fear, scarring or death are just rewards for wanting to know? Or do you get up and pull him to safety? This is a good one. Where’s god;s warning when people are nearing unknown but certain danger? Here are my ideas: First, it is possible that the value system that is placed on this equation is meaningless in relation to some HIGHER PURPOSE? Perhaps the history of death and pain and suffering is a spit in the pan compared to what the ultimate goal is? Does a mother focus on the pain of child birth when she first holds her infant in her arms? Or is she elated with the result such that the pain becomes meaningless? Chaos, pain and suffering are inherent propensities in this system, but in the evolution of biology toward man they were certainly necessary components of the equation. Unlike the animal, whose pain is a conditioned response mechanism, man (now conscious) has an understanding of these things. He understands pain, suffering, mortality. Now he must suffer the consequences of that knowledge. But given the loftier goal of creating new personalities, perhaps the awareness of the chaotic nature of our environment and the pain and suffering and death we know in our conscious states is well worth attainment of another goal? In other words, maybe the means justify the end. Quite possibly not even the intervention by God would change the final outcomes. Secondly, this scenario assumes god can intervene. I believe god is just another word for perfection or morality and that saying that god could grab the infant or give him some warning is the same as saying your morality could grab the infant and save him. You (being moral or godly) want to save him because you have god (morality) within you.
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