Is God Responsible – Or Isn’T He?

[naomi24]

When people, especially the young, fall foul of unavoidable diseases and die, the religious often justify the loss by saying “It’s God’s will”, and yet when asked why they think a loving God would have willed that disease on the victim, they say “It’s not God’s fault”. How does that work?

[naomi24]

anneasquith, So never consider the untimely death of a young person to be God’s will?

[naomi24]

So *you* never ....

[anneasquith]

I don't even know why I came into this topic,,,,, :(

[naomi24]

If you've no intention of joining the conversation, neither do I.

[Khandro]

anne; It's for masochists only, - you're far to nice :0)

[naomi24]

Khandro, don't be rude.

[anneasquith]

Khondro. its not a nice place, but each to their own,,,,,,,,,,,, :)

[naomi24]

He likes it here. ;o)

[mibn2cweus]

Not such a bad place really . . . if you like pie. :o)

[naomi24]

Sperlatt!! :o)))

[Hypognosis]

@Khandro,

would you be so kind as to save me the bother of reading an entire essay and just summarise - in a sentence or two - why he persecuted religious people?
You were the one who brought this up. You were trying to make a point, I am trying to comprehend what that point is. Thanks.

We've done the numbers game in previous threads: religion killed X; ideology killed Y (not corrected for world population in the appropriate centuries).

The influenza virus was about neither religion nor ideology. Neutral ground for both of us. Was it God's will or God's fault?

[Hypognosis]

*the influenza pandemic, I meant!

Mmm, banana cream? Or is it scented shaving foam?

[Khandro]

Hypo; He didn't persecute religious people solely on the grounds of their upholding religious beliefs, he persecuted everybody because he was nuts.

[naomi24]

Khandro, for a moment there I thought you were talking about God, but I went back through the posts and now assume you're talking about Stalin?

[Hypognosis]

@Naomi,

I don't know why, but every time you run a thread along the lines of "religion has bad effect X or peculiarity Y, Khandro often reminds us of how evil Stalin was, by way of illustration of how bad atheism is/will be, if allowed to prevail.

We know all about Stalin's evils. Maybe they don't get Discovery History channel in Germany so he doesn't realise this?

[pixie373]

What's stalin got to do with it?
God is responsible for everything good and people are responsible for everything bad ("free will" ) I think that's how it works.

[agchristie]

Pixie - so you do not subscribe to the term 'force majeure'? Natural disasters are not 'acts of god' and so must always be human induced?

[Lie-in King]

OP - it doesn't.

[Hypognosis]

@pixie373
//What's stalin got to do with it?//

I think the word I'm looking for is canard. Khandro's favourite canard, on the theist/atheist threads.

//God is responsible for everything good and people are responsible for everything bad ("free will" ) I think that's how it works.//

So, people fell victim to the 1918 flu pandemic of - or due to - their own free will?
(naomi's OP specifically mentioned disease, which might be why Khandro used Stalin to steer the thread away from that area).

[agchristie]

Yes Hypno - ive followed this thread closely and despite valiant efforts from including your good self,it seems that an answer to the OP is as far away as ever...