Is man inherently good or inherently evil?

You were blameless from your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you.-Ezekiel 28:15This is a philosopical question that may never be answered.Is man inherently good or inherently evil? Edited by -messenjah of one, : No reason given.

Thread moved here from the Proposed New Topics forum.

I'm with Nietzsche on this one. Man has no Will to Good or Evil, just the Will to Power. It also fits in nicely with the ToE.But like you said it's a philosophical question that may never be answered.

Good and evil are social constructs.Something that is now "Good" will be "evil" in the future (as has already occured) and vis-versa.

Depends upon if you agree with Peter or with Paul.Was that a Biblical contradiction I just spotted....?

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Rrhain
WWJD? JWRTFM!

Yes.

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Aslan is not a Tame Lion

C.P. We are not inherently good or evil,we are inherently human. First off who determines what is inherently good or evil? Why does their opinion of the matter become the arbiter of everyone else's actions? Good is a matter of consesus as is evil. Is stealing always evil? Is killing always the same as murder?How about this commandment,Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work? Do any of you always follow this?I do not understand the basis for assuming good and evil to be an essential character trait of humans but I accept that humans as a group form cultures that agree to abide by certain behaviours and form laws and punishments accordingly.These same laws are not rigid but are malleable as cultural changes occur. I would assume if evil and good were a matter of inherent behaviour then it would be the same laws throughout time and across cultures, yet such is not the case.

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Was that a Biblical contradiction I just spotted....?

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Where?

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"Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."Ephesians 5:14

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I'm with Nietzsche on this one. Man has no Will to Good or Evil, just the Will to Power. It also fits in nicely with the ToE.

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I think man has a "will" to good and evil. Otherwise people would fit into the animal kingdom quite nicely. "only the strong survive" would be looked at a lot differently if Man had no "will" to Good or Evil.

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"Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."Ephesians 5:14

You tell me. During the Middle Ages, it was good to people to burn other people that didn't agree with their theology. Then the reformation came, and it was good for some people to establish new theologies where they could burn those that tried to burn them in the first place. Then came the New World and it was good for some people to own other people. Then came the 20th century and it was good for some people discriminate against others. Then came today when it is still good for some people to discriminate others and actually come up with constitutional amendments to show how good it is to discriminate certain people.So, you tell me what good or evil is.

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The Laminator
We are the bog. Resistance is voltage over current. For goodness's sake, please vote Democrat this November!

What is good?What is evil?

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I think man has a "will" to good and evil. Otherwise people would fit into the animal kingdom quite nicely.

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Who says people don't fit into the animal kingdom quite nicely?We are animals, after all, just really intelligent ones who are able to adapt to and manipulate our environment.

prophex responds to me:

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Was that a Biblical contradiction I just spotted....?

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Where?

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Weren't you paying attention? The question is whether or not humans are inherently good or inherently evil. The Bible contradicts itself. Peter says one thing, Paul says another.That is, after all, what I meant when I said, "Depends upon if you agree with Peter or with Paul." Is that not clear that I am stating that the two have contradictory opinions about the matter?

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Rrhain
WWJD? JWRTFM!

prophex writes:

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Otherwise people would fit into the animal kingdom quite nicely.

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I'm confused, if humans aren't part of Animalia, what kingdom would they fit into? They're certainly not Plantae, Fungi, Protista, or Monera.Are you suggesting humans are minerals?If humans aren't animals, what are they?

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Rrhain
WWJD? JWRTFM!

Mankind, like other species, is driven to survive. In order to survive, mankind performs certain critical deeds. Certain critical deeds require the destruction of other species, or require deeds that may appear hurtful or harmful to other species. Is this "evil" by definition? Whose definition? Only mankind defines "evil." Is mankind therefore a self-hating creature. Is that an inherently evil trait in and of itself? Damned sin!