Shit happens because you are evil and you don't work hard enough.
This, I have come to understand, is an unspoken tenet of the specific denomination of Christianity (LCMS) with which I grew up. Let me tear it apart and build on it for you.
Why do bad things happen? The existence of evil is certainly a problem for theists. Does gratuitous evil (i.e. evil that does not further the greater good) exist or are all seemingly evil things part of a 'master plan'? If God is so wise and powerful, couldn't he have made the world exclusive of evil?
Well, the LCMS handles this by saying that originally there was no evil in the world - until the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was eaten by Eve and Adam, at which time evil entered the world. My question is...why would such a Tree needed to have been made at all? (and do remember that I am speaking with tongue firmly in cheek here, I do not necessarily believe/disbelieve in God or the literal truth of the Judeo-Christian bible - no claims made yet!) Such an omission would not have taken good away from the world, surely, only evil. Free will would still exist; free will does not depend on the ability to choose between good and evil, only the ability to choose. (I have heard Adam/Eve and the Garden of Eden compared to a toddler left in a room with a loaded gun. A bit harsh, perhaps, but something to think about nonetheless.)
One starts off from behind, paying for the sins of the father so to speak. The concept of original sin is rather tricky, really. No matter what one does one can never get away or work out of it.
One could be tempted to give up: what's the point of trying? That's where the grace of God comes in! This deity first gave man curiousity, then the temptation of knowledge - an animate, crafty one at that - and then when man succumbed, as He surely knew they would, He laid the burden of original sin on every subsequent life, which one can only be rid of by whole-heartedly buying into the grace thing. Even though this grace is 'a gift, freely given,' one is morally compelled to strive to do all the good works possible, and to feel guilt if one doesn't do all one can to better other people without concern for personal needs. Selfless God-ordained service is the theme here.
Which leads me to the absurdity of the personal God concept. Humans are so very narcissistic. A quote from Robert Heinlein's Time Enough For Love articulates my feelings here exactly: "The most preposterious notion that H. sapiens has ever dreamed up is that the Lord God of Creation, Shaper and Ruler of all the Universes, wants the saccharine adoration of His creatures, can be swayed by their prayers, and becomes petulant if He does not receive this flattery. Yet this absurd fantasy, without a shred of evidence to bolster it, pays all the expenses of the oldest, largest, and least productive industry in all history."
What is an alternative to all of this? Step away from original sin, from the Garden of Eden, from God, even, if you wish. A subject for another post, perhaps.
What is an alternative to all of this? Step away from original sin, from the Garden of Eden, from God, even, if you wish. A subject for another post, perhaps.
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Point of contention: Creation of the Tree of Apples.
Few human creatures would consent to be changed into any of the lower animals for a promise of the fullest allowance of a beast's pleasures; no intelligent human would consent to be a fool, no instructed person would be an ignoramus, no person of felling and conscience would be selfish and base, even though they should be persuaded that the fool, the dunce, or the rascal is better satisfied with his lot then they are with theirs [. . .] We may give what explanation we please of this unwillingness; we may attribute it to pride, [. . .] love of liberty and personal independence, [. . .] to the love of power or excitement, [. . .] but its most appropriate appellation is the sense if dignity [. . .] which is so essential a part of happiness of those in whom it is strong that nothing which conflicts with it could be otherwise than momentarily an object of desire to them.” JS Mill, Utilitarianism 2nd ed. Chapter II
Perhaps God was just giving us what we truly wanted. So the real evidence is in yourself, do you suppose that if God were to give you the choice, would you give it all back? Even according to such “vulgar” moral philosophies as this one, God's creatures are far happier, to the extent that a certain amount of misery is quite acceptable.
I think a theist would try to argue that with increased intelligence comes the ability to do evil. Those with bad wills in the Garden had no chance to DO evil, and this it would be impossible to tell if they were bad people or not. Lazarus would most likely be angry with me with such a personification, but perhaps God knew what he was doing?
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