So far in this series I have assumed that evil does exist and that we as Christians want to believe that God is both all powerful and all good. However, it seems like we can have at most two of these three options. I want to argue that we tend to hold two misconceptions as
The Problem of Evil, Part 2 – God Behind Suffering?
In my previous post, I introduced the dilemma caused by the existence evil. There is another angle which is unique to people of faith: believing that God specifically wills or allows bad things to happen for some good purpose. This one which is particularly troubling because it sounds really good in certain respects so long
The Problem of Evil, Part 1 – Introduction
At first, it seems that if God is all good and God is all powerful, then there would be no evil, no wrong in the world. Now obviously there is evil in the world, so we have a problem. (A few people try to ignore or deny evil, but for the most part, all of
Psychology
I am far from an expert on psychology. However I think I’ve learned a few things which may be of some help. I think the basics are important enough that we should all be taught about this subject. As I understand it, psychology is essentially the exploration into the reason we do what we do.
2015 Year End Summary
Another year is coming to a close. I’ve had this blog for nearly ten years now. For most of this time, writing has just been a hobby. I’ve written only when I’ve felt inspired and have had the time. I believe it was a bit over a year ago when I realized that I write
Freedom Builders / Soulation
Sometimes I forget, since I don’t stay in these environments myself, that not all churches / spiritual communities are healthy. In fact, I expect that many are not at all healthy (though I don’t know how one could measure the extent of this). One big example is that many religious communities have the paradigm that
The Ridiculousness of the Crucifixion (Part 2)
In my previous article, I stated that we correctly desire to see the end of injustice and evil. At the end I observed that God is doing something about this. However, he does so in a previously incomprehensible way. If you are on God’s side, Jesus’ crucifixion makes no earthly sense. (It makes perfect sense
Judging People: Good Guys Fight Bad Guys (Part 1)
As I mentioned in my previous post, we all recognize that there is evil and injustice in the world. We correctly recognize when a person does certain acts which are evil and injustice. We desire for these to be corrected and the injustice removed. I think it is human tendency to judge people and place
Judas Verses Peter (Part 3)
I’m picking up here where I left off in my last post, Judas Verses Peter (Part 2). If Judas couldn’t be forgiven, I’d argue that it is only because he wouldn’t allow for it. If Judas is in hell, I’m not sure it’s because God is getting his revenge. At most I would suggest it
Judas Verses Peter (Part 2)
In my previous post, I compared Judas to Peter looking at their big failures. I now continue by considering how Jesus responded to Peter. Jesus’ harshest criticisms were directed at the religious leaders of his time. For this reason they often get a bad rap. However, a while ago I realized that, if we are