Our group discussion was on Zoroastrianism. This philosophy was the first to focus on the nature of god and evil and the conception of a single Creator God. As to good and evil we discussed that evil was a reinforcement of faith, similar to the book of Job where he is "tested" by God with personal disasters but Job maintains his faith in God. "he insist that his ways need not be comprehensible to human beings, thus the need for faith despite the apparent injustice " (17) We also said that most evil stems from stems from greed.
Zarathustra explained suffering as a war between which two spirits?
What kind of world would we live in without evil? Do you think people lose "faith" because of evil?
I believe that the world would not be able to exist without evil. Everything has something or some way to balance itself out. Without evil there would be no such thing as good. I think that evil is what gives people faith in good.
ReplyDeleteFactual Question: How did Socrates approach philosophy?
Discussion Question: How important do you think that asking questions is to philosophy?
Well, people have their own ideas of what evil is. What one person may consider evil, another person may not. Evil can come in different shapes and forms. So I don't feel the world could ever be without evil. However, if it could, how would a person be able to determine what's good? To me, people would try to make something better than the next thing. Furthermore, I don't believe people lose faith because of evil. Personally, I feel people lose faith because they are weak-willed. The world isn't perfect, and we know that. A person shouldn't let temporary situations change their faith. Sometimes, people go through situations in order to help them grow and mature.
ReplyDeleteFactual Question: What is the name of Socrates's student that made him famous?
Discussion Question: Do you feel people should be persecuted because of their beliefs?
We also discussed that the definition of evil varies among different people, but were all in agreement that between our group we believe that evil is a result of our sin and that the belief in it stems from our faith. I believe that evil is necessary to show people how much better things can get or even to teach important lessons we can learn from.
ReplyDeleteFactual question: What did Socrates believe was the most valuable of all possessions?
Discussion question: Do you think that Greek philosophy would have happened if there had been no Socrates? Why or why not?
I believe that evil is the counter or balance of good, in a way its there so that we can discern whats good and whats not. We discussed that greed is the main emotion of evil, and that selflessness is the emotion of good. Prof. Oliver also brought up the point that Zoroastrians question if God is omnipotent, considering he can't defeat the devil or evil as a whole. My thought on that are that God leaves the devil and evil in the world so that we can recognize whats good, sort of as a reminder.
ReplyDeleteFactual question: How was Socrates killed?
Discussion question: There are many similarities throughout the most popular religions in the world. Do you think it's possible that the main religions all stemmed from a singular religion of the past?
I obviously do not think that it is possible for the world to be perfect anymore, but there was a time before sin when it was. We were created as perfect beings in the beginning and, as we briefly discussed in class, man sinned and corrupted the world. This is the reason for sin or evil and suffering in the world today. "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23). People lose faith because they are not strong enough when tempted by evil. The Devil is the master of deceit and many believers do not have deep enough roots to overcome the temptations that he tests us with.
ReplyDeleteFactual question: What did Socrates say to the jury at his trial?
Discussion question: How do we know what is real?
I think that for good to exist, there needs to be evil. I don't believe that people deserve to have evil thrust upon them but that it does come from our sin. Maybe not our personal sin, but the sin of the world as a whole. Evil is sometimes Gods way of strengthening your faith.
ReplyDeleteWho were two other philosophers Socrates borrowed his logic from?
Do you believe as Socrates did that there are answers to the basic questions to life?
i think that if there are no evil in the world, the world would be so peaceful. i think every single days people lose faith because of all the all the evil.
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