Why Do We Assume That God Is Good ?

[Operahaven]

Interesting piece in today's  Guardian:

http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/guy_dammann/2008/03/good_god_why.html

[Norbeone]

Maybe God is Goood...

[Sergeant Rock]

Interesting piece in today's  Guardian:

http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/guy_dammann/2008/03/good_god_why.html

Why do we assume God is good? I don't. He's a sonofabitch.

Okiay, I don't really know His origin, whether He was legitimate or not    but any god who invents birth defects, miscarriages, hurricanes, lingering disease, death, isn't good in my book...unless, on the off chance, Mahler's Resurrection is right and we're all going to have a non-judgmental happy end. But I kinda doubt that. Still, I'll keep listening to the music with a certain amount of hope.

Sarge

[Bonehelm]

Don't know if God is good, but Goode is God.

[DavidW]

That egghead's dismissal of free will is not that compelling or thought out.  In fact that whole article is a waste of time-- old ideas reiterated poorly.  Meh.

[Brian]

Why do we assume God is good? I don't. He's a sonofabitch.

Okiay, I don't really know His origin, whether He was legitimate or not    but any god who invents birth defects, miscarriages, hurricanes, lingering disease, death, isn't good in my book...unless, on the off chance, Mahler's Resurrection is right and we're all going to have a non-judgmental happy end. But I kinda doubt that. Still, I'll keep listening to the music with a certain amount of hope.

Sarge

I absolutely agree with Sarge - but thought that article was just about worthless. The author's argument that God isn't necessarily good is about as compelling as a dead fish. They should have asked Sarge or me to write the dang piece. And the last paragraph is where his simple-mindedness really shows - compare his declaration that Jesus "was a good egg" to Bertrand Russell's far more thoughtful consideration of why we assume that Jesus is good. I guess for this author, God is a problem but Jesus untouchable.

[The new erato]

Instead of that article, you'd better read:

God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher Hitchens

http://www.amazon.com/God-Not-Great-Religion-Everything/dp/0446579807

[david johnson]

Why do we assume God is good? I don't. He's a sonofabitch.

Okiay, I don't really know His origin, whether He was legitimate or not    but any god who invents birth defects, miscarriages, hurricanes, lingering disease, death, isn't good in my book...unless, on the off chance, Mahler's Resurrection is right and we're all going to have a non-judgmental happy end. But I kinda doubt that. Still, I'll keep listening to the music with a certain amount of hope.

Sarge

i believe you misunderstand.  He 'invented' nature & all that comes with it.  what is in the universe where we exist is what must exist.  if it were different, we would be something else.

God can not put a 5-dimensional creature into a 3-dimensional universe.  He creates what can be created.
the place He created where the tragedies never occur is somewhere else.

you can go there if you wish, but He will not force you.

dj

[Expresso]

Which god is he talking about?

Mars (or Aris in Greek), the god of war wasn't supposed to be good  0:)

[BachQ]

Why do we assume that Satan is evil?

[Norbeone]

Why do we assume that Satan is evil?

Something tells me if hell and heaven exist, hell would be much more fun, or better 'craic' as us Irish say.  I even think Satan might have a pretty good sense of humour. Dry though....very dry.

[Josquin des Prez]

God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher Hitchens

http://www.amazon.com/God-Not-Great-Religion-Everything/dp/0446579807

Proof that religion doesn't poison anything: Johann Sebastian Bach.

Hitchens sounds like a smart chap but that axe is surely being ground to a fine point. His words are barely audible over the noise.

[Norbeone]

Proof that religion doesn't poison anything: Johann Sebastian Bach.

True true. Though the title of the book is probably more to get a point across. Similarly, Richard Dawkins' BBC programme - The Root of all Evil - is an intentionally provocative title, and it should be said that Dawkins himself disapproved of it.

Words....

[Brian]

Instead of that article, you'd better read:

God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher Hitchens

http://www.amazon.com/God-Not-Great-Religion-Everything/dp/0446579807

Instead of that book, you'd better read:

Why I Am Not a Christian by Bertrand Russell

[Brian]

Something tells me if hell and heaven exist, hell would be much more fun, or better 'craic' as us Irish say.  I even think Satan might have a pretty good sense of humour. Dry though....very dry.

"Heaven for the climate, hell for the company." - Mark Twain

[The new erato]

Proof that religion doesn't poison anything: Johann Sebastian Bach.

I think that all that proves is that it didn't poison J S Bach. Not that it didn't poison anything.

[Norbeone]

I think that all that proves is that it didn't poison J S Bach. Not that it didn't poison anything.

It proves that it doesn't poison everything, which is the word used in the title of the book.

[Brian]

It proves that it doesn't poison everything, which is the word used in the title of the book.

"God Is Not Great: Why Religion Poisons A Lot of Stuff, but Not Everything, Because Some Things Are Still Really Nice" by Christopher Hitchens.

Not very catchy ... 

[The Emperor]

God is prettyy pretttyyyy pretttyyyy Good. 

Actually i don't know, never met him.

[Norbeone]

"God Is Not Great: Why Religion Poisons A Lot of Stuff, but Not Everything, Because Some Things Are Still Really Nice" by Christopher Hitchens.

Not very catchy ... 

For sure, as an earlier post points out.   

I must stop been facetious so often, I think.