Questions for Christians

[Tonus]

I'll take a shot at these with what I can recall from my time as a believer.

#1 Are you sure leaving the garden wasn't part of God's plan?

The JW view is that expanding the garden to fill the Earth was the ultimate expectation. Adam and Eve would start to populate the planet, and as humanity grew we would continue to expand the borders of the garden until the whole planet was a paradise.

#2 If so, why do you think God was incapable of making it work out the way he wished, and, does that make you wonder what other intentions God has been unable to actualize?

This is where free will comes into play. In order to be truly free of mind, humanity had to have the freedom to do wrong as well as right, and thereby prove themselves loyal or not. I think the JW point of view is that, had there been any humans who had not sinned, then only the wrongdoers would have been removed and the rest would continue to live in the garden. Since Adam and Eve were the only ones around, the whole plan was derailed.

(It's an explanation that sounded reasonable when I was a theist, but doesn't stand up to scrutiny now.)

#3 If not (i.e., if you agree that leaving the garden was God's plan all along), what does sin have to do with it?

Since the plan was to turn the whole world into a garden of Eden, the derailing of the plan meant that it would be put off until the mess was sorted out. The ground would now be cursed, and not plentiful. The animals would be fearful and dangerous instead of subjugated. Woman would suffer birthing pains. Man would suffer... woman, I guess.

#4 For that matter, if man's nature is sinful and God is man's creator, who is really responsible for sin?

Man, of course, since god cannot possibly be blamed for the mess. Adam and Eve misused their free will and tainted humanity with sin. Jesus showed that it was possible to remain loyal and free of sin until death, thus removing any possible excuse that Adam and Eve might have.

(As with question 2, this is one of those answers that is designed to patch a hole, not provide a compelling reason for belief. It doesn't hold up once the questions start.)