I think you are wrong and ignorant on so many levels.
Notice you don't say what I am wrong about and offer facts, nor do you explain how I am ignorant. You only seem to say this because you are a believer in rather implausible religious concepts, and i am not. We see quite a few believers who think they are correct ONLY because they believe what they believe. I think this bad confidence is because believers do not have to reason through evidence to make sound judgments so understand the weak points of their belief. Rather, believers are taught and conditioned to believe non-factual ideas, and these ideas become a sort of background software that cannot be questioned. It must be very confusing to encounter critical thinkers who use a process to make conclusions.
It’s discouraging, but then at one time I was just as blind and confused as you.
Ah, more precious Christian judgment. At least you didn't knock me down and kick me in the ribs, so you're OK. These judgments illustrate that believers believe in dogma, they don't understand the teachings of Jesus.
Jesus and the first Christians were all Jews. I understand the OT the way they did.
You're not a Jew, and you're making excuses to judge others hiding behind Bible verses. The irony of hiding behind the Bible and God is that if you are ashamed enough to hide, you probably have a sense that your beliefs are pretty nasty.
How do you know I haven’t lost a child to cancer, know someone who has …
I never said you didn't. This is irrelevant to my comments about your religious beliefs about a God that is supposedly loving and moral, but creates children with the genes that cause cancer. If God is powerless to change it, then why worship such a God?
yet still unwaveringly understand God is good?
The God of Abraham isn't good. It even admits it in Bible stories. And if you think that God really exists and is the creator, then the fact that it does nothing to stop child cancer, or even any cancer (who hasn't lost a friend or family member to cancer, it sucks), then the creator sucks, too. You might as well worship cancer if your God sits back and does nothing to stop it.
Everyone dies and everyone suffers to one degree or another in this fallen world. No one is immune. Millions of Christians throughout history have experienced tragedy, yet know that God is not the author of evil. It is because those who are born again to new life in Christ see the eternal picture and experience God’s eternal love. Fear plays no part…
What's wrong with dying of old age? Do we really need cancer as a means to die? A mother of three who dies at 37 from cancer, and leaves crying children makes sense to you? My friend Beattie died of Luekemia at 40. He was a great athlete and artist. He is missed by many people. Explain how it's no big deal to die in the prime of life.
…There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18
Then why do you believe in a God that is a monster? Don't you deserve a better God?
God had no intention of preventing A&E from gaining knowledge of their natural environment and world, science, art, music, etc. The forbidden tree was specifically His loving protection to prevent them from having to know and experience evil first hand, with its damaging effects of suffering and death.
But unfortunately they didn't have the cognitive tools to resist temptation of the Serpent that God sent to dupe them into eating the fruit. It was a set up.
It was one simple, understandable command for their good and well-being, like telling a child not to touch a hot stove or use fentanyl .
But parents don't sent a neighbor to tempt the child to touch the hot stove or take drugs. A&E never had a chance. It was a set up.
They were not naive, but were created intelligent adults.
The Bible doesn't say this, you are making it up. They lacked knowledge, they lacked wisdom. They were naive.
So it’s not like they didn’t know and see God’s love and goodness expressed towards them daily. Yet, they chose to disobey and believe the lie that they could “be like God”. They foolishly thought their wisdom was superior to God’s.
They sure as hell didn't see God's love when the Serpent showed up to tempt them. They didn't have any knowledge, how could they know right from wrong? They had rules, but the Serpent was sent by God to tempt them, and it worked. Are you saying God didn't know they would be duped? God is that foolish? Did God regret sending the Serpent after A&E were tempted to break the rule?
It was all a set up if your God knew the outcome of what he did. If God didn't want A&E to be tempted, then God would have made them able to resist temptation. God didn't.
Again, your outrage that babies die of cancer or suffering occurs, only serves to validate that things are very wrong in this world and there is a God who has given you a conscience with a moral understanding to distinguish good and bad.
Well thank you very much for acknowledging that my outrage that children die of cancer is morally justified. Good job ignoring that it is your God that causes the cancers that children suffer and die from.
The Genesis account explains how sin entered and brought damage to God’s good creation.
And God is to blame since it is him who made the Fall a consequence to a simple rule violation.
The rest of the scriptures reveal the contrast between good and evil and God’s redemptive plan to deliver creation and all who desire from evil, suffering, and death for eternity.
Almost as if God realized he messed up. What was the next step after humanity got immoral? Flood the earth. Did that fix anything? No. Another total screwup by this God. What was God's next plan? Impregnante a woman to have a son who would be sacrificed to himself so then humans sin can be redeemed. Why not just make it hapven without all the drama? Did a guy really have to die? And look at Christianity over 2000 years, some 42,000 sects that can't agree of what the Truth is. What a catastrophe.
“if we are only the accidental inhabitants of a random and purposeless universe, how can we justify all our moral indignation about evil and suffering?”
Ask the Lutherans and Catholics who exterminated some 6 million Jews. What would Jesus say?
It is an accident that so many believe that a God exists, and offers justification for their evil.
