(February 26, 2013 at 11:21 pm)cato123 Wrote: You obviously don't get it either. I already assumed god's existence and his rules to concede that god has the power to forgive rule transgression; however, the Christian 'position' takes no account of Ted's rightful grievance except for the fact that god will send Ted to hell if he doesn't forgive Bill.
Am I overlooking a consideration?
I'm not saying that it's a moral or a justified answer. I'm just saying that from the point of view of the Christian belief, Drich has successfully answered the question. Ultimately, all sins are an affront to God, and being the arbiter of right of wrong, he is the one that from whom you must seek forgiveness. Ted's grievance is secondary.
Like I said before, it's an unsatisfactory answer for the atheist. It ends up making God look like a narcissist that lacks consideration for how actions affect others. Personally, I would like to see a god that has restitution to the victim as a condition for forgiveness. This, however, is a question about Christianity to which a valid, albeit unsatisfactory, answer has been given.
Even if the open windows of science at first make us shiver after the cozy indoor warmth of traditional humanizing myths, in the end the fresh air brings vigor, and the great spaces have a splendor of their own - Bertrand Russell
