Jobs & Education1 min ago
Epicurus
40 Answers
Happened to come across this quote. Can anyone argue with this?
Is God willing to prevent evil, but he can not?
Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing?
Then he is malevolent.
Is he both willing and able?
Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able or willing?
Then why call him God?
Is God willing to prevent evil, but he can not?
Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing?
Then he is malevolent.
Is he both willing and able?
Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able or willing?
Then why call him God?
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The ancient Greeks did not speak of 'God' in the singular and there is no evidence that Epicurus ever said that 'quote'. There is evidence in the small amount of his writings which survived, that he believed the gods (plural) did neither punish or reward humans which was controversial in his time, (300BC).
The subject of evil begins and ends with man.
The subject of evil begins and ends with man.
naomi I spent some care writing this for another thread this morning which you may have read already, but it explains my position on this type of subject;
"We cannot say "God exists" and "we exist" in anything like the same way, we cannot argue from one to the other - from our being to that of God.
God is unknown and unknowable, a mystery. When we are aware of this it generates awe, reverence and an admission of incomprehension.
Augustine said, "if you comprehend it, it is not God" and, invenitur quaerendus - "he is found in order to be sought".
"We cannot say "God exists" and "we exist" in anything like the same way, we cannot argue from one to the other - from our being to that of God.
God is unknown and unknowable, a mystery. When we are aware of this it generates awe, reverence and an admission of incomprehension.
Augustine said, "if you comprehend it, it is not God" and, invenitur quaerendus - "he is found in order to be sought".
One needs no evidence to be able to muse over the existence of a deity for there is a beginning of all things that is unexplained, so I can postulate a deity of some type to account for that if I wish.
However having decided to consider a deity to exist as the cause, for the purposes of further discussion, then claiming it has attributes and furthermore claiming to be able to assign some to them, does need justification for what has been assigned.
If there is no such thing as 'evil' how can a deity have created it ? There is no evidence that God has claimed there is such a thing. Things can be just as they are. It is always humans that have claimed that there is 'good' and 'evil'.
However having decided to consider a deity to exist as the cause, for the purposes of further discussion, then claiming it has attributes and furthermore claiming to be able to assign some to them, does need justification for what has been assigned.
If there is no such thing as 'evil' how can a deity have created it ? There is no evidence that God has claimed there is such a thing. Things can be just as they are. It is always humans that have claimed that there is 'good' and 'evil'.