RE: The Problem of Evil, Christians, and Inconsistency
August 29, 2014 at 1:21 pm
(This post was last modified: August 29, 2014 at 2:53 pm by Michael.)
Pickup. You ask why we would consider something virtuous. That to me is something I explore through my faith. I do have a trust that God is good (something all faiths share, despite those faiths coming from times of great hardships). And I trust that God calls us all to goodness, to virtue. Though we have the life and teachings of Jesus to help guide us as Christians, I think all people sense that in their conscience. The Catholic Church puts it rather poetically ....
"Deep within his conscience man discovers a law which he has not laid upon himself but which he must obey. Its voice, ever calling him to love and to do what is good and to avoid evil, sounds in his heart at the right moment. For man has in his heart a law inscribed by God. His conscience is man's most secret core and his sanctuary. There he is alone with God whose voice echoes in his depths."
I could be wrong, but I sense that all people who are concerned about doing the right thing will end up with a lot in common, though the are always points of tension (the tension between justice and mercy being a key one, and that is still a tension and point of theological difference within Christianity).
So I explore virtue through my faith, through scripture (especially the life and teachings of Jesus), and through prayer and being quiet enough to let my conscience speak.
How would you explore goodness as an atheist? (And I don't mean that as saying you can't).
"Deep within his conscience man discovers a law which he has not laid upon himself but which he must obey. Its voice, ever calling him to love and to do what is good and to avoid evil, sounds in his heart at the right moment. For man has in his heart a law inscribed by God. His conscience is man's most secret core and his sanctuary. There he is alone with God whose voice echoes in his depths."
I could be wrong, but I sense that all people who are concerned about doing the right thing will end up with a lot in common, though the are always points of tension (the tension between justice and mercy being a key one, and that is still a tension and point of theological difference within Christianity).
So I explore virtue through my faith, through scripture (especially the life and teachings of Jesus), and through prayer and being quiet enough to let my conscience speak.
How would you explore goodness as an atheist? (And I don't mean that as saying you can't).
