for encouraging ex-Christians
Nauseating Theodicies
Apparently, this summer's recent Midwestern flooding, like we experienced in the Lake Country and in Iowa, is a judgment from God.
The pastor also recalled televangelists who in 2005 said Hurricane Katrina was God's judgment on New Orleans.
"In a sense it is God's judgment because it's part of the curse. On the other hand, it's God's mercy because it's less than what we deserve and we're still alive and have the opportunity to repent," Schumacher said.
If you believe that Bible is literally true like this pastor does, then you have no choice but to accept that this catastrophic flooding and the misery that it has created is the will of God. In fact, there is great Biblical support for it: "I make light and create darkness. I make blessings and create disasters. I, the LORD, do all these things." (
Isaiah 45:7) In this sense, the pastor's conclusions are coherent within their own worldview. The pastor is obligated to turn evil events into good events. A reasonable person will find this type of "up is down" reasoning incoherent.
It's also nauseating.
Theodicies are a response to criticism against Gods existence (The Problem of Evil) by Christians or other theists like our dear pastor above.
The Problem of Evil persists because evil persists. This is why this Problem of Evil continues to be one of most challenging arguments against God's existence for Christians, or other theists, who attempt to reconcile evil in the world with a God who is alleged as an omni-benevolent, omniscient, and an omnipotent being. If we were to predict a universe without God, then we should expect to find that the world would have human suffering and environmental devastation as a necessary condition.
And this is exactly what we find.
The pastor also recalled televangelists who in 2005 said Hurricane Katrina was God's judgment on New Orleans.
"In a sense it is God's judgment because it's part of the curse. On the other hand, it's God's mercy because it's less than what we deserve and we're still alive and have the opportunity to repent," Schumacher said.
If you believe that Bible is literally true like this pastor does, then you have no choice but to accept that this catastrophic flooding and the misery that it has created is the will of God. In fact, there is great Biblical support for it: "I make light and create darkness. I make blessings and create disasters. I, the LORD, do all these things." (
It's also nauseating.
Theodicies are a response to criticism against Gods existence (The Problem of Evil) by Christians or other theists like our dear pastor above.
The Problem of Evil persists because evil persists. This is why this Problem of Evil continues to be one of most challenging arguments against God's existence for Christians, or other theists, who attempt to reconcile evil in the world with a God who is alleged as an omni-benevolent, omniscient, and an omnipotent being. If we were to predict a universe without God, then we should expect to find that the world would have human suffering and environmental devastation as a necessary condition.
And this is exactly what we find.
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