12/28/22

Questions such as 'Does God Create Evil?'

Philosophers of the 20th century developed the idea that categorical errors are the basis of numerous philosophical disputations. Questions are based in language and language has meaning lexicons or as Quine called them 'ontologies' with their own vocabulary that is not translatable into other lexicons since the meaning is embedded within a particular lexicon. Assumptions about God as the ‘author’ of this or that tend to have several implicit categories regarding meaning, what can be known of God directly, indirectly and so forth that would fall into the criterion of categorical errors or inter-lexical disconformities of meaning.

If evil refers to natural events like volcanic eruptions and the burial of Vesuvius I think it reasonable to assume that the physical mechanics of this Universe; the boundary conditions, were foreknown by God. It is likely that he set them too. The Universe has thermodynamics and evil and that is just the way it is. It seems to be a containment facility for mankind after the fall in order to prevent wicked disobedience from automatically obtaining everlasting, uncorrected life. Some pots the pot-maker breaks and others he destinies to salvation; who can argue with the Maker-of-Pots of what purpose he has for them? Perhaps mainly those pots that are broken or unredeemed or reprobate.

Can anyone understand the limits if any of omnipotence and omnipotence? I believe the answer is probably not. Can God create anything beyond his control in any possible Universe? Would all things God wills into existence exit in some way from eternity with God? There are innumerable wonderful questions to consider in regard to God’s power. Certainly though the questions tend to be reductionist and use implicit and nearly tautological premises since God is infinite in power and knowledge and people are not. Temporal questions concerning eternal issues tend to fall short of being competent and hence categorical errors or misclassifications arrive. People must ask some questions on a temporal foundation and assume there parameters are correct or somewhat comprehensive of eternal parameters when in fact they might not be and it is even unlikely that they are.

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