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Firstly, I can’t take any credit for the writing you see below. I received a link on Facebook to this piece, which was originally a ‘Facebook note’ written by an American. (so excuse the references to American situations) I got in contact with the author and received his consent to share it on MyNews24.
I share this article mainly because I found it to be a very enjoyable and thought provoking read, I also agree with the author’s views completely and feel this is an interesting angle on the usual ‘theist vs atheist’ debate.
So Enjoy.
How does anybody know God is more moral than Satan? If it’s because the bible says so, then that is arbitrary and followers of the bible are basically just listening to God saying “I’m the good one, follow me.” If it’s due to observing actions and judging god’s actions to be better, then can’t we just use those standards to judge our actions, making god unnecessary? Besides, Satan hasn't even bothered authoring a book and telling his side of the story.
What if God was actually the evil one and Satan was in fact good? After all, God is responsible for 250 million deaths, while Satan is responsible for only 10, all of which God commanded of him. If something bad happens like an earthquake or a Tsunami, we tend to call it 'an act of god' not an 'act of the devil'. Why?
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Considering god's law expects people to love one another, follow rules, and be "good", why would anyone see him as bad? -
Stories need dramatic tension. They need a villain.
Without Voldemort, the story of Harry Potter would just be that of another schoolboy (abeit with a cool magic background, but that would get boring quickly). Plot needs drama, suspense.
Of course the Bible contains a fall guy, someone who imperfections can be blamed upon. "If he didn't exist, you'd have to invent him".
You see it every day in politics, where Jews, or black people, or welfare queens, or drug addicts or pornographers are blamed for all the ills of society. They're demonized, painted in the worst light possible. It isn't enough for some people to say they disagree with President Obama's policies - they have to make him out to be the anti-Christ, a Marxist, a person with no redeeming feaures whatsoever, the worst person to exist since Hitler.
It is very human. If the enemy is bad enough, then anything you want to do in the name of opposing him is justified.
Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that two supremely powerful supernatural beings did exist: Jehovah and Satan and, for some reason, they were so evenly matched or constrained by some rules, that one of the couldn't just wipe out the other one. And NEITHER of them wanted to give absolute proof that either existed.
What reason is there to think that, in that case, that either one of them would be 100% pure good? Relatively good, sure, one of them is likely to be more ethical than the other. But that doesn't mean the 'good' one is necessarily sufficiently ethical to correct any false impressions pathetic humans might have, that happened to favour the being's cause.
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God isn't the villain. God just is.
Evil is people who twist their own beliefs of what God is, to suit their own agendas, and then try to force that on everyone else.
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Because he murdered millions of people in the bible including innocent children and Satan didn't?
Quoting Susan0805:
Considering god's law expects people to love one another, follow rules, and be "good", why would anyone see him as bad? -
Me, too. :)
Quoting NWP:
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Good point!
I can see a lively discussion happening between me and my MIL over this,lol.
Quoting Clairwil:
Stories need dramatic tension. They need a villain.
Without Voldemort, the story of Harry Potter would just be that of another schoolboy (abeit with a cool magic background, but that would get boring quickly). Plot needs drama, suspense.
Of course the Bible contains a fall guy, someone who imperfections can be blamed upon. "If he didn't exist, you'd have to invent him".
You see it every day in politics, where Jews, or black people, or welfare queens, or drug addicts or pornographers are blamed for all the ills of society. They're demonized, painted in the worst light possible. It isn't enough for some people to say they disagree with President Obama's policies - they have to make him out to be the anti-Christ, a Marxist, a person with no redeeming feaures whatsoever, the worst person to exist since Hitler.
It is very human. If the enemy is bad enough, then anything you want to do in the name of opposing him is justified.
Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that two supremely powerful supernatural beings did exist: Jehovah and Satan and, for some reason, they were so evenly matched or constrained by some rules, that one of the couldn't just wipe out the other one. And NEITHER of them wanted to give absolute proof that either existed.
What reason is there to think that, in that case, that either one of them would be 100% pure good? Relatively good, sure, one of them is likely to be more ethical than the other. But that doesn't mean the 'good' one is necessarily sufficiently ethical to correct any false impressions pathetic humans might have, that happened to favour the being's cause.
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Grab your hip boots boys! -
That's your definition of evil??
Quoting SLTmom:
God isn't the villain. God just is.
Evil is people who twist their own beliefs of what God is, to suit their own agendas, and then try to force that on everyone else.
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Meh, people will believe as they will, what they want. They will twist and turn God's words to fit what ever moment suits them. Or they will not.