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The little old man that lives across the street from me is 96 years old. We were discussing this very thing...evil humans and he said he has heard too much and pointed out that if I live to 96 that I will understand the soul scar of knowing the evil human horror stories of a lifetime.
Reminds me of my wife's maternal grandfather who lived to be 102. When he turned 100, he told my wife, "kid, being this old isn't all it's cracked up to be. If you ever get here you'll understand." He was healthy and not senile at the time; it's just that he had outlived virtually all his friends and some of his children and of course his wife, had seen and done what he wanted to (a life of very great accomplishment too). And as an FBI agent and judge he had definitely seen "the evil human horror stories" too.
I see, and how did you come to this conclusion? Where were you when God created the universe?
Irrelevant, and in any case I don't predate the existence of the universe and never claimed to.
The question is where god was when I needed him, where he was when my wife needed him, and far more germane, where god was / is / will be when humanity needs him, and what he was thinking when he created humans to fall short of his own specifications, and then punished them for doing so.
I am just curious if Matadora is capable of posting rejoinders to my posts without making crass statements such as what I bolded above?
I didn't think it was crass. I think Matadora made a VERY good point. And it may be something we all want to ask ourselves when we paint the next person out to be terrible in some way. It's a known fact of the psychology of the human mind that we DO project. Seeing the world around us as evil or seeing other people as terrible and undeserving definitely can mean (but doesn't have to mean) the person pointing the finger is seeing that evil (as s/he defines evil) because s/he sees it within him/herself, or fears it in him/herself, or both.
IMO it was a legitimate point and something to consider.
Reminds me of my wife's maternal grandfather who lived to be 102. When he turned 100, he told my wife, "kid, being this old isn't all it's cracked up to be. If you ever get here you'll understand." He was healthy and not senile at the time; it's just that he had outlived virtually all his friends and some of his children and of course his wife, had seen and done what he wanted to (a life of very great accomplishment too). And as an FBI agent and judge he had definitely seen "the evil human horror stories" too.
My husband's grandfather said something about getting older that I never forgot, though it wasn't technically about people being evil, but about how living longer is no blessing. He died a few months before his 100th birthday. He was in his late 90s when he said this. We were all at his house for his birthday. I wished him a happy birthday and asked what his secret was...you know, all the usual stuff you say to a much older person. He said, "I actually wouldn't wish living this long on anybody. One by one, you see all your friends die."
Yikes.
He was a cool old man and very, very sharp. But the hollow, hopeless, dead, resigned grief when he made that statement...I'll never forget it.
My husband's grandfather said something about getting older that I never forgot, though it wasn't technically about people being evil, but about how living longer is no blessing. He died a few months before his 100th birthday. He was in his late 90s when he said this. We were all at his house for his birthday. I wished him a happy birthday and asked what his secret was...you know, all the usual stuff you say to a much older person. He said, "I actually wouldn't wish living this long on anybody. One by one, you see all your friends die."
Yikes.
He was a cool old man and very, very sharp. But the hollow, hopeless, dead, resigned grief when he made that statement...I'll never forget it.
Yes, much the same lament from my wife's grandfather.
Paradoxically every centenarian I've known -- and I've met several -- are extremely low-stress, laid-back people. That kind of sadness and survivor's guilt coming from that kind of person is doubly remarkable.
I'm approaching 60 and hang out with some 70 and 80 year olds and one of them is definitely past his "best used by" date ... says he didn't expect to live to be 75 as it was, and sees his existence as a series of operations (most recently a knee replacement and months of painful physical therapy). He puts up with it because of his wife but I now understand why when one spouse dies the other one often follows in a few months.
I've always said every story needs a beginning, middle and end; when the end is dragged out with negligible quality of life it serves no one.
Irrelevant, and in any case I don't predate the existence of the universe and never claimed to.
The question is where god was when I needed him, where he was when my wife needed him, and far more germane, where god was / is / will be when humanity needs him,
Ah, I see. So it actually is about you feeling like you and your wife are above everyone else that you don't feel you should go through evil like everyone else.
Where is God when we need Him? He is everywhere. Why should He be obligated to undo what happened to your wife? He gave her life and many blessings in life. I guess that wasn't good enough. You two enjoyed each other for many years after He brought you together. Again, I guess that wasn't good enough.
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and what he was thinking when he created humans to fall short of his own specifications, and then punished them for doing so.
We already discussed this. Need I repeat myself over and over again?
I could reply to the bolded part above by restating it back to him: Perhaps you are clinging to your beliefs to hide your own evil. However, I would be lowering myself to his level.
Why do you view asking you a perfectly honest question as crass?
The fact that you don't get that evil brings nothing good to humanity...makes me wonder what kind of person would vehemently try and justify this?
Are you clinging to this belief that evil serves a good purpose to justify or hide behind your evil?
Sounds like a perfectly sensible question to me.
Evil hurts humanity, evil makes humans lose faith in humanity, evil damages lives for a life time, evil leaves a dark imprint on humanity as a whole.
Why do you view asking you a perfectly honest question as crass?
Because it wasn't a question. It was a put-down.
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The fact that you don't get that evil brings nothing good to humanity...makes me wonder what kind of person would vehemently try and justify this?
You don't get the fact that God is working all together for good for mankind.
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Are you clinging to this belief that evil serves a good purpose to justify or hide behind your evil?
No, not at all. Why do you ask?
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Sounds like a perfectly sensible question to me.
You didn't originally ask it as a question.
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Evil hurts humanity, evil makes humans lose faith in humanity, evil damages lives for a life time, evil leaves a dark imprint on humanity as a whole.
If that is what it does then that is what it was created to do. The length of our lives are like the smallest microscopic dot when compared to eternity. All our sufferings are within that little dot. And the evil we experience doesn't even fill the dot. It is mostly filled with joy.
You don't get the fact that God is working all together for good for mankind.
And according to your logic it's being done through evil.
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Originally Posted by Eusebius
No, not at all. Why do you ask?
Because of the fact that you don't get that evil brings nothing good to humanity...makes me wonder what kind of person would vehemently try and justify this?
Your logic is damaging for humanity. There is nothing good, kind, or compassionate in believing that evil was created for good.
It's beyond a barbaric belief and it really shines the light on who you are.
A person trying to vehemently justify evil tells me a lot about that person.
And according to your logic it's being done through evil.
That is the whole point.
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Because of the fact that you don't get that evil brings nothing good to humanity...makes me wonder what kind of person would vehemently try and justify this?
Sorry, I can't help you with that.
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Your logic is damaging for humanity. There is nothing good, kind, or compassionate in believing that evil was created for good.
Okay, if you say so.
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It's beyond a barbaric belief and it really shines the light on who you are.
Sure.
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A person trying to vehemently justify evil tells me a lot about that person.
If you say so.
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However, I would be lowering myself to his level.
