RE: Another hypothetical for theists.
March 22, 2018 at 9:40 pm
(This post was last modified: March 22, 2018 at 9:51 pm by Edwardo Piet.)
(March 22, 2018 at 3:34 pm)Neo-Scholastic Wrote: That you believe the world could be better has nothing to do with whether or not it actually could be.
Again, which kind of possiiblity are you talking about? Almost everything is logically possible, but IMO absolutely nothing besides what is actual, is physically possible now, will be physical possible at the time when it will be or was at the time when it was.
If God willed and determined the world to be the way it is, then indeed no better possible world could exist, nor no worse one. If we're talking about physical possibility. But better and worse worlds are indeed logically possible.
I also think no better or worse world could exist, if we're talking about physical possibility. Because I'm a determinist. Not because I think a God determined the world, but because I believe everything is governed by cause and effect.... one event after the other. I'm also a presentist and I believe only in what is.... what was isn't but it was, what will isn't but it will be, etc. The past and future were but no longer are real and aren't yet but will be real when they are actually present (and the present) respectively.
But again, there are many worlds that are logically possible that we can imagine that are better and worse than this one. An otherwise identical world but without child rape is logically impossible and a huge improvement over this one. An otherwise identical world but where there is a great deal more rape and murder and other evils, is a logically possible world that is a huge disimprovement over this one.
Physically possible and logically possible are not the same thing. There's also metaphysical possibility, but we can't even speak of that until we've defined our metaphysical terms.... and in many cases it wouldn't make much of a difference as a different version of metaphysics are often two sides of the same coin or two different ways of viewing the same reality we live in. Although, sure, some theories of metaphysics are just plain false.
(March 22, 2018 at 9:38 pm)Losty Wrote: Hopefully a world created by a god would not have insects at all
* Edwardo Piet desperately searches google images for a cute insect.
(March 22, 2018 at 3:34 pm)Neo-Scholastic Wrote: That we choose not to do so isn't God's fault
If an omniscient omnipotent God exists then either everything is his fault because he is the only one who has the ultimate power and knowledge to be responsible for everything, or nothing is anyone's fault including himself because he doesn't have any more control over what he MUST do than anyone or anything else without free will.
