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Question: How can evil be justified in terms of free will!?
It is sometimes said that God permits evil in order to give people free will to choose right or wrong!. But surely this is self-defeating, as some people will exercise their free will in such a way as to deny it to others!. For example, if someone is attacked and suffers brain damage, they may lose the mental capacity to choose anything!. So if you're one of the unlucky ones, that's just too bad!. It sounds a bit hit-and-miss to me - not the sort of thing a perfect God would permit!.
Without evil, everyone could have free will!. Most of the everyday decisions we make are morally neutral, so there would still be plenty of scope for choice!.
We normally think it right for freedom to be limited so as to prevent harm to others!. God, if he exists, clearly does not follow this principle - so why do believers still regard him as 'good'!? Especially as he already KNOWS that people will abuse their free will!.
Of course, if you're an atheist, there's no problem!. I'm agnostic myself!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
I am agnostic also!. IF there is a god or gods, how do we know if they themselves are not the evil influence on our lives!. It seems in some religions that fear is the motivation to be faithful to a specific god!. I think that the "free will" part is expressed so emphatically by certain religions as a way of explaining why their god does harmful things or does not answer them at all!. We all have free will god or no god!. We are both good and evil within ourselves and it is our choice as to which we choose to express!. I personally do not believe in an ALL good or ALL bad deity!. If there is a creator a supreme being over us all, it is both good and evil, a complete balance of everything!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Free will means you are free to do what every you want!.
You need to have ethical values and a moral standard in order to know right from wrong and to lose the selfish ego!. Without them, then people feel free to do what they like!. None of this as anything to do with god!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
I too am agnostic!. If there is a God, there's no way of knowing he himself is good!. Just because religion and our predecessors have told us God is all about love and sh1t, doesn't mean they are right, he could be sadistic and have only created us for nothing more than entertainment!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
yeah but without bad, there is no value to good!. if you don't have the option of being bad, your goodness is meaningless, so you don't get into the kingdom of milk and honey or whatever!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Evil is like cancer - it wants to live too, but as it lives, love and health die!. So f it, it's getting the scalpel!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Evil isn't justified by "free will" and your argument sounds like a page out of a sophomore yearbook!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Will is subjective and ergo never free!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Evil and rebellion are already judged, but repentance and seeking after God is acceptable!. It's a choice to ignore God's promises by blaming self issues on Him and not having the will to seek Him!. It's His house, heaven and earth, and only He has the power to sustain souls after physical death!. Evil like goodness is all around us, how we choose to respond to it is our ticket to where we will live it out for eternity!. People don't have to accept it, but that won't make it go away!. also, if that choice is taken away from you, it's in God's hand's to decide your fate as only He knew the true heart of the person at the time of their demise!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
You have put some good thought into your question!. The theology I subscribe to credits God with judging every individual according to their own unique situation!. A person who is brain damaged is not accountable to obey God, and he will not be judged for falling short!.
A person who knows better and refuses to conduct himself well will be held accountable!. Each case is dealt with individually!. Therefore justice will be done to all!.
A quote from scripture which applies is: "Where more is given more is required" Meaning we will be judged by how well we do with the knowledge that we have!.
If a person knows nothing about God or his commandments, and goes to the cemetery that way he will not be accountable!. If a person is taught about God, learns of the Ten Commandments etc!. and then rejects it all and lives a vile life and goes to the cemetery, he will be judged unworthy to enter Heaven!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Some questions will be debated for ever!.!.!.!.why!? because we do have free will!.
Good and evil are like goals in a game!.!.!.it's a way of keeping score!. Some people choose to say that good is better than evil, so the more good they have in their lives, the closer they are to winning their game!. Others choose just the opposite!.
In life, there really isn't any good or evil!.!.!.there is only what we human beings create!. Morality is a creation!. Consider what makes drivers stop at a red light, rather than running through it; or driving in the right hand lane (in the U!.S!.) ratther than in the left!. The majority of people do obey the rules of the road, because it's the game they choose to play!. It's a game we created!. The more times they stop at a red light, the better, the more they drive in the right lane the better, it has value!. Notice that when they stop doing those things, something else has value--whether it be your sick wife you must get to the hospital as fast as possible, or you're trying to escape an attacker or feel your life is threatened or endangered in some way!. Whatever there is, the game has changed!.
In my opinion God is beyond good or evil!. People believe God to be good, because that's the game they are playing!. There are those who play the opposite game!. Both camps can benefit from being responsible for their own choices!. Good and evil is a matter of where you stand, which game you choose to play!. Free will is choosing the game you want!. Good is just a label we use to say we're in right game: to identify possible actions we can take and their possible outcomes!.
Unfortunately, most of the time we didn't choose at all!. We're just going along with the current around us!. Like a ship with a lot of people aboard but not one person at the wheel!. Where you end up, is wherever the currents take you!. If someone does happen to take the wheel, you end up where he wants you go go!. Still not your choice!. But, you may think it "good" that you were on the right ship!.Www@QuestionHome@Com