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Is Anything Evil? Does Evil Exist?

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Author Topic:   Is Anything Evil? Does Evil Exist?
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3483 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004

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Message 66 of 105 (398982)
05-03-2007 10:06 AM 		Reply to: Message 63 by Rob
05-03-2007 9:15 AM

Good Absence of Evil
STR writes:
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So donut holes don't exist; they're just the absence of donut. Shadows don't exist; they're just the absence of light. And evil doesn't exist; it's just the absence of good.
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Good is not a thing either. So good doesn't exist; it is just the absence of evil.
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In literature and speech people personify objects, abstract concepts, and human emotions, opinions, and personalities to name just a few.
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Evil is an descriptive word that has been personified.
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What is deemed evil or good, as has been mentioned already, is relative to the person or group using the word.
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So there are things that can be described as good or evil, but good and evil are not things that exist.
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"Peshat is what I say and derash is what you say." --Nehama Leibowitz
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 Message 63 by Rob, posted 05-03-2007 9:15 AM Rob has replied
Replies to this message:
 Message 78 by Rob, posted 05-03-2007 1:55 PM purpledawn has replied
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3483 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004

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Message 83 of 105 (399041)
05-03-2007 2:37 PM 		Reply to: Message 78 by Rob
05-03-2007 1:55 PM

Re: Good Absence of Evil
quote:
So what is your comment?
What part of my Message 66 or your own STR quote in Message 63 didn't you understand?
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You quoted my comment: So there are things that can be described as good or evil, but good and evil are not things that exist.
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And Message 66 contained my reasoning.
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quote:
Is it good, right, wrong, nothing?
What is "it"?
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"Peshat is what I say and derash is what you say." --Nehama Leibowitz
This message is a reply to:
 Message 78 by Rob, posted 05-03-2007 1:55 PM Rob has replied
Replies to this message:
 Message 84 by Rob, posted 05-03-2007 2:40 PM purpledawn has replied
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3483 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004

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Message 89 of 105 (399056)
05-03-2007 3:20 PM 		Reply to: Message 84 by Rob
05-03-2007 2:40 PM

Re: Good Absence of Evil
quote:
Then what are you?
I'm a human being with good and bad inclinations. I'm not a good and I'm not an evil.
As I said in Message 66, evil is a descriptive word, not a living thing or an object.
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In literature and speech we tend to personify such words.
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Whether my comment is good, bad, or neutral is in the eye of the beholder.
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"Peshat is what I say and derash is what you say." --Nehama Leibowitz
This message is a reply to:
 Message 84 by Rob, posted 05-03-2007 2:40 PM Rob has replied
Replies to this message:
 Message 91 by Rob, posted 05-03-2007 3:54 PM purpledawn has replied
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3483 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004

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Message 93 of 105 (399070)
05-03-2007 4:12 PM 		Reply to: Message 91 by Rob
05-03-2007 3:54 PM

Re: Good Absence of Evil
Please address my arguments concerning evil.
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This is the science forum, please give some support if you disagree with what I've said concerning evil, which BTW is supported by your STR quote in Message 63.
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Are you saying that evil does exist in its own right as an entity or an object? If yes, then please provide support. A picture would be even better and not pictures of people doing evil actions.
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"Peshat is what I say and derash is what you say." --Nehama Leibowitz
This message is a reply to:
 Message 91 by Rob, posted 05-03-2007 3:54 PM Rob has replied
Replies to this message:
 Message 96 by Rob, posted 05-03-2007 5:31 PM purpledawn has replied
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3483 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004

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Message 99 of 105 (399097)
05-03-2007 8:47 PM 		Reply to: Message 96 by Rob
05-03-2007 5:31 PM

Re: Good Absence of Evil
quote:
That is not what I am suggesting. I am suggesting that as evil is void of good, darkness is void of light, and nonsense is void of reason, and that in 'Light' of that, you have said nothing.
Actually nonsense would be void of sense.
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Nonsense definition: That which makes or has no sense, especially language or behvaior that is meaningless; absurdity. Language or conduct that is annoying evasive, or otherwise lacking in good sense.
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So how can you console me with your nonsense? Nothing is left of your answers but falsehood! (Job 21:34)
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The Bible is replete with personifications.
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How can you know when a poet has used personification? It is not complicated: whenever a poet attributes human qualities to some- thing inanimate, often an abstraction, he or she has used personification.
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Numbers 16:32 (and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, and their...)
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Wisdom in Proverbs 8.
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The Adversary in Job
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We aren't talking about voids, we are talking about the existence of evil.
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"Peshat is what I say and derash is what you say." --Nehama Leibowitz
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