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The university professor and Albert Einstein

Discussion in '2004 Archive' started by North Carolina Tentmaker, Sep 28, 2004.

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  1. North Carolina Tentmaker

    North Carolina Tentmaker New Member

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    I am not sure if this is the right forum for this topic, but I was not sure where else to put it. If a moderator feels it should be moved please do so.

    I received this by e-mail and I have no idea if it is accurate but it does a great job of explaining the question of "Who created evil?" and similar questions. I hope you enjoy it.
     
    #1 North Carolina Tentmaker, Sep 28, 2004
  2. Craigbythesea

    Craigbythesea Active Member

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    Apparently the young Einstein did not believe in the devil.

    There is nothing neutral about evil. It is NOT merely the absence of God. It is a force in and of itself.
     
    #2 Craigbythesea, Sep 28, 2004
  3. Sularis

    Sularis Member

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    I thought Einstein was lousy at school and thus never attended anything past elementary?

    Meh - but I could be wrong - prolly am in this case
     
    #3 Sularis, Sep 28, 2004
  4. rsr

    rsr <b> 7,000 posts club</b>
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    The above story is almost certainly apocryphal, at best, and at worst just a made-up story for the Internet.

    Einstein, though an indifferent student at times, earned his doctorate from the University of Zurich; it was at that time that he published on the special theory of relativity.
     
    #4 rsr, Sep 28, 2004
  5. Marcia

    Marcia Active Member

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    Evil is not a force in and of itself. It is the absence of good. I think the way it was explained in the Einstein story (whether it is a true story or not) is pretty good.

    Satan is evil but he is a creature, not a force. Evil is defying God or being in disobedience to Him. Evil is not a force like a ray from a ray gun roaming the universe. This idea has been popularized in movies and books, but there is no Biblical support for evil existing in and of itself.

    Evil comes from the fallen nature and to sin, not to a force.
     
    #5 Marcia, Sep 28, 2004
  6. Michael52

    Michael52 Member

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    Evil is not a force in and of itself. It is the absence of good. I think the way it was explained in the Einstein story (whether it is a true story or not) is pretty good.

    Satan is evil but he is a creature, not a force. Evil is defying God or being in disobedience to Him. Evil is not a force like a ray from a ray gun roaming the universe. This idea has been popularized in movies and books, but there is no Biblical support for evil existing in and of itself.

    Evil comes from the fallen nature and to sin, not to a force.     </font>[/QUOTE]I agree with you Marcia.

    "It [evil] is a force in and of itself." sounds like dualism to me. God created everything "good". Evil is the decrease of good brought about by the free-will actions of His creatures. God hates evil (sin), but allows it anyway.
     
    #6 Michael52, Sep 29, 2004
  7. Craigbythesea

    Craigbythesea Active Member

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    If you really believe that—you have never encountered evil. Evil is a very powerful, sinister force. (Try pastoring an inner-city church for six years and you will learn soon enough the true nature of evil).

    Eph. 6:12. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. (NASB, 1995)
     
    #7 Craigbythesea, Sep 29, 2004
  8. danrusdad

    danrusdad New Member

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    But evil does NOT exist on its own as a force as you imply. It is NOT some power that Satan and his followers tapped into. It is a perversion of the perfection that God intended. Surely, the powers of darkness have the ability and desire to promote evil; however, they are using their own God-given abilities (forces) to do it.
     
    #8 danrusdad, Sep 29, 2004
  9. North Carolina Tentmaker

    North Carolina Tentmaker New Member

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    I believe this is probably a made up Internet story. Einstein had very definite feelings about the existence of God (as almost anyone who studies the creation with an objective mind does), but he did not believe in a God that would concern himself with the lives of individual men. I do not believe Einstein was a Christian but then again, we can never know the heart of a man.

    Craig, the existence of the devil and demons is not in question. There are forces that promote evil, but these are God created beings. We know that God created the devil. If evil were to exist as a force or substance of its own then who created it? Did God create evil? Did God create sin? How could God create evil when everything else he created was good? Can we blame God for sin and evil in our world?

    These are hard questions to answer and questions that I was asked regularly when I pastored and continue to be asked. The explanation of evil as the absence or rejection of God has helped me understand this. If it does not help you that's OK, but how would you answer those questions if you consider evil to be a force or substance?
     
    #9 North Carolina Tentmaker, Sep 29, 2004
  10. Lori

    Lori New Member

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    I agree with the position that Evil is the absence of good. Satan had free will and chose to rebel in that he felt he was above God. The angels he took with him chose to follow him. We choose everyday which path to take, what to eat, wear, think, say, react. Now Satan can tempt us and manipulate us to the point of us feeling like we have no choice, but we do have a choice. I believe that God allows for us a way out of every situation. Every temptation where we are to choose good or to sin, we are given a way out where we do not have to sin, we just have to look for it.

    azwyld
    &lt;*}}}&gt;&lt;
     
    #10 Lori, Sep 29, 2004
  11. LarryN

    LarryN New Member

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    #11 LarryN, Sep 29, 2004
  12. Craigbythesea

    Craigbythesea Active Member

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    North Carolina Tentmaker,

    You misunderstood my words. I do not believe that the powers of darkness exist apart from Satan and his hosts. However, Satan and his hosts do now exist and together they make up a formidable force. Evil is NOT simply the absence of God as the original post incorrectly teaches. It is a force that must be resisted.
     
    #12 Craigbythesea, Sep 29, 2004
  13. Marcia

    Marcia Active Member

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    If you really believe that—you have never encountered evil. Evil is a very powerful, sinister force. (Try pastoring an inner-city church for six years and you will learn soon enough the true nature of evil).
    /QB]</font>[/QUOTE]Craig, I didn't say evil doesn't exist! I said it does not exist as an independent force. A force cannot be evil or good -- evil and good are moral qualities and there must be intelligence behind them.

    I know evil quite well having engaged in it for most of my life -- I had a spirit guide, did astral travel, practiced the occult, communicated with the "dead", saw apparitions (which of course now I realize were demons), did some rituals with Pagan friends, and more.

    The concept that evil is a force is an occult concept. They believe that good and evil are forces that are needed to balance the world, though they usually use the terms "light" and "dark" to describe them. I have an article on this called "The Dark Side" on my site at
    http://cana.userworld.com/cana_darkside1.html

    I think maybe the disagreement is semantic. You are using the term "force" to maybe mean the power of and intentions coming from Satan and his minions. But that is different from saying evil is an impersonal force exisiting on its own, which is what I was responding to at first. [​IMG]
     
    #13 Marcia, Sep 29, 2004
  14. Marcia

    Marcia Active Member

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    If you really believe that—you have never encountered evil. Evil is a very powerful, sinister force. (Try pastoring an inner-city church for six years and you will learn soon enough the true nature of evil).
    /QB]</font>[/QUOTE]Craig, I didn't say evil doesn't exist! I said it does not exist as an independent force. A force cannot be evil or good -- evil and good are moral qualities and there must be intelligence behind them.

    I know evil quite well having engaged in it for most of my life -- I had a spirit guide, did astral travel, practiced the occult, communicated with the "dead", saw apparitions (which of course now I realize were demons), did some rituals with Pagan friends, and more.
     
    #14 Marcia, Sep 29, 2004
  15. Marcia

    Marcia Active Member

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    Part 2 of post (it would not let me post all this together so I had to divide it up -- it's those evil forces on the BB! :mad: )

    The concept that evil is a force is an occult concept. They believe that good and evil are forces that are needed to balance the world, though they usually use the terms "light" and "dark" to describe them. I have an article on this called "The Dark Side" on my site at
    http://cana.userworld.com/cana_darkside1.html

    I think maybe the disagreement is semantic. You are using the term "force" to maybe mean the power of and intentions coming from Satan and his minions. But that is different from saying evil is an impersonal force exisiting on its own, which is what I was responding to at first. [​IMG]
     
    #15 Marcia, Sep 29, 2004
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