Man does not have to judge God

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Parent debateThis argument is used in the debate Does God exist?.
Keywords: God, Evil, Suffering[ edit ].

SummarySummary

We cannot "judge God". By definition, his power and intelligence surpass human beings in every way. So we must assume that God does everything he does for reasons that escape us, but which are by nature perfect according to his qualities.

Cf. Book of Job

QuotationsQuotes

“If God exists, he is perfect; if he is perfect, he is wise, powerful and just; if he is just and powerful, my soul is immortal; if my soul is immortal, thirty years of life are nothing to me, and are perhaps necessary for the maintenance of the universe. If I am granted the first proposition, the following will never be shaken; if it is denied, there can be no dispute about its consequences. [...] All the subtleties of metaphysics will not make me doubt for a moment the immortality of the soul, and a beneficent Providence.”

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, “All is well, or all is well for all”, Letter on Providence, 1759.

ReferencesReferences

Arguments forJustifications

Arguments againstObjections

  • Argument againstHans Jonas' quote on God's incomprehensible goodness
  • Argument againstThe argument of God's goodness is an arbitrary postulate
  • Argument againstReligious people have no problem judging God positively when it feeds their belief in a just world.
  • Argument againstGod is described as all-powerful, but paradoxically endowed with typically human flaws.

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