The Problem of Evil

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by Angrist

Isn't the definition of heathen anything that isn't your religion? So when christianity introduced teachings of other religions, those could be called heathen teachings.

Well most scholars believe that the oldest form of Christianity that is still in existence is Russian Orthodox, and their view of Christianity could not be more divergent from yours. They view the bible as a book of parables: story's based in truth but meant as guides for living your life. There is no literal translation. Now considering they do not view the bible as strict law, does that make their view heathen since it is not specific to the exact Word?

[Angrist]

I should be a heathen in your eyes, since I have a different religion than you. End of discussion?

Originally Posted by Professor S

that is still in existence

Bingo. So because they're the oldest, they must have it right? Look at the Bible books that were written after Jesus died and compare it to Christian religions these days.

One (hopefully) last thing: I don't get it, it seems so pointless to me. First people came up with teachings that caused the misunderstanding of evil. Then they don't want you to explain it by telling what the Bible says about it.
So it's about the discussion and not about understanding/solving, if I am correct?

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by Angrist

I should be a heathen in your eyes, since I have a different religion than you. End of discussion? Bingo. So because they're the oldest, they must have it right? Look at the Bible books that were written after Jesus died and compare it to Christian religions these days.

One (hopefully) last thing: I don't get it, it seems so pointless to me. First people came up with teachings that caused the misunderstanding of evil. Then they don't want you to explain it by telling what the Bible says about it.
So it's about the discussion and not about understanding/solving, if I am correct?

1) No. Its not the end of the discussion. Actually, I think its just the beginning. To call someone heathenb who is Christian falls into the same mistakes the Catholic religion fell into when converting pagan tribes in Brittania, where Christian faiths were slaughtered in their entirety for believing in Christ and the church differently than they. As I say, many paths to one God is my belief. Religion should be based on love and inclusion, not exclusion, but thats my personal belief. Most of what I've written has been simply impersonal discussion and consideration of possibility, unless specifically noted as my personal belief system.

2) I think you misunderstand. We consider evil to be beyond just Christianity, or more specifically, its definition in the literal Bible. This is why I talk about western/christian themes and not specific text. We're trying to analyze evil objectively through religion as a whole, and not just one's personal faith.

Also, I'm not Russian Orthodox. I'm not even Christian, but instead a deist. I think Christ was a brilliant man, but I'm not certain he was the son of God by any means.

[Bond]

This discussion is free to continue, but I have started a new one on utilitarianism.