THE CHRISTIAN CONCEPT OF GOD
Christians claim that their concept of God is found in the Bible. Known as classical theism, this view of God has long been considered the orthodox theistic position of the Western world. Though there are numerous divine attributes that we could examine, for our present purposes it is sufficient to say that the God of classical theism is at least (1) personal and incorporeal (without physical parts), (2) the Creator and Sustainer of everything else that exists, (3) omnipotent (all-powerful), (4) omniscient (all-knowing), (5) omnipresent (everywhere present), (6) immutable (unchanging) and eternal, and (7) necessary and the only God.
Let us now briefly look at each of these attributes.
1. Personal and Incorporeal. According to Christian theism, God is a personal being who has all the attributes that we may expect from a perfect person: self-consciousness, the ability to reason, know, love, communicate, and so forth. This is clearly how God is described in the Scriptures (e.g., Gen. 17:11; Exod. 3:14; Jer. 29:11).
God is also incorporeal. Unlike humans, God is not uniquely associated with one physical entity (i.e., a body). This is why the Bible refers to God as Spirit (John 4:24).
2. The Creator and Sustainer of Everything Else that Exists. In classical theism, all reality is contingent on God — that is, all reality has come into existence and continues to exist because of Him. Unlike a god who forms the universe out of preexistent matter, the God of classical theism created the universe ex nihilo (out of nothing). Consequently, it is on God alone that everything in the universe depends for its existence (see Acts 17:25; Col. 1:16, 17; Rom. 11:36; Heb. 11:3; 2 Cor. 4:6; Rev. 4:11).
3. Omnipotent. God is also said to be omnipotent or all-powerful. This should be understood to mean that God can do anything that is (1) logically possible (see below), and (2) consistent with being a personal, incorporeal, omniscient, omnipresent, immutable, wholly perfect, and necessary Creator.
Concerning the latter, these attributes are not limitations of God's power, but perfections. They are attributes at their infinitely highest level, which are essential to God's nature. For example, since God is perfect, He cannot sin; because He is personal, He is incapable of making Himself impersonal; because He is omniscient, He cannot forget. All th...
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...o right action. Natural evil confers no additional benefits that moral evil cannot accomplish to the same degree and extent, and in fact natural evil is not even adequate to foster interpersonal moral virtues, such as forgiveness and tolerance. A benevolent God would allow no more evil than is absolutely necessary to achieve his ends. Because natural evil is gratuitous, its existence is incompatible with the existence of God. God, if he existed, could conceivably alter the laws of nature so that evil would only result when triggered by human action. However, manifest natural evil independent of human will, such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tornadoes, and disease, undeniably exists. Since the existence of God and the existence of natural evil are incompatible and natural evil exists, the following revised argument from evil is both valid and sound, entailing a true conclusion:
1) If God exists, then there exists a being who is omniscient, omnipotent, and perfectly good.
2) If there existed a being who were omniscient, omnipotent, and perfectly good, then there would be no natural evil.
3) But there is natural evil.
C) God does not exist.
http://hem.passagen.se/nicb/evil.htm
When speaking about God, we naturally tend to give God characteristics or attributes that otherwise would be considered un proper. Two approaches that we use when speaking about God are Analogical and Metaphorical. Analogical and Metaphorical approaches are all about giving attribution to thing, in this case God. There are three predications, univocal, equivocal, and analogy. The univocal approach talks about the same term for different subjects that have the same exact meaning. The equivocal approach takes the same term, but it has a different subject and meaning. An analogy is a comparison of two things, in this case God is going to be compared to different things. The analogical approach is also called proper proportionality. When speaking about God in the analogical (proper proportionality) approach, we use the same term, but a different subject. For the metaphorical approach when speaking about God, we compare God to something and give him characteristics that he would not normally have. For example, when talking about proper proportionality, I may say that God is heroic. Now God is heroic may seem simple, but if I replace God with the word George Washington, now I have George Washington is heroic. While George Washington may have been heroic, comparing him to God using the same term gives me a different proportion. Now when I talk about the Metaphorical approach of God, I am ...
The question of God’s existence has been debated through the history of man, with every philosopher from Socrates to Immanuel Kant weighing in on the debate. So great has this topic become that numerous proofs have been invented and utilized to prove or disprove God’s existence. Yet no answer still has been reached, leaving me to wonder if any answer at all is possible. So I will try in this paper to see if it is possible to philosophically prove God’s existence.
Throughout the world, most people believe in some type of god or gods, and the majority of them understand God as all-good, all-knowing (omniscient), and all-powerful (omnipotent). However, there is a major objection to the latter belief: the “problem of evil” (P.O.E.) argument. According to this theory, God’s existence is unlikely, if not illogical, because a good, omniscient, and omnipotent being would not allow unnecessary suffering, of which there are enormous amounts.
#3. The existence of a contingent being must be explained by something other than itself.
the body as an extension, and God as the supreme being. He attests that he came to these
In light of Craig Stern’s excerpts, from the book, A Higher Law by Jeffrey A. Brauch, he writes concerning four Christian ideas-doctrines “Four Christian ideas-doctrine in fact-are both especially important to that religion and especially important to the rule of law in the common law tradition.” Stern’s begin to explain what formulates the doctrinal belief of the Christian faith. “The first of these is the doctrine of God himself, that is, his being and his work.” By this, Stern’s means that God is the creator of all things he is the beginning and the end. “The Christian faith holds that God is the “I AM,” the uncreated creator of all that is, who is from everlasting to everlasting.” He is also the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, a God of relationship, of covenant. In this way, he is both transcendent and immanent.”
There is so much evil in the world such as: murder, child mortality, torture, rape, assault and more. So how can there be an all loving God if these things are constantly happening? In this paper, I will be arguing that there is in fact no such thing as an all loving and all powerful God due to Evil. When I think of an all-loving God, I think of God as someone who would never allow a child to be kidnapped, raped, tortured and killed. I think of God as someone who would not allow anything bad or evil to happen in this world. I am not saying people would not get their fair share of misfortune now and again, but they would never experience evil, pain or suffering. That being said, there would be no evil or vindictive people in this world
Question #1: Compare the Ways that Descartes, Leibniz, and Berkeley each deal with the problem of evil and human error in a world created by an omnipotent and perfectly good God/creator.
Prominent figures like Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens have all argued that God does not exist. However, there is historical proof for God’s existence. Using different theories, this paper will show that God, the creator of the universe exists. The proof that God exists is also seen in the fact that we have a savior, Jesus Christ. Our compassionate God sent his son Jesus to die for all the world’s sin. The sting of sin is death, but thanks to God Christ took away this sting by dying on the cross. Jesus made atonement for sin. It is through Christ that we live. Paul wrote triumphantly in 1 Corinthians 15:55, “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” Similarly, Christians rejoice because we have victory over death.
In this paper, I will examine the ontological argument of Anselm for the existence of God. Anselm defines God as “that-than-which-nothing-greater-can-be-thought,” which means, at least for Anselm, that God must exist because he is the greatest being that can be conceived. Furthermore, he argues that all people, whether or not they believe in the existence of God, at least understand his definition, including the fool who denies that God exist. Anselm, in addition to that, describes two main differences between understanding the definition of God, and understanding God to exist.
These ideas can be found in Christianity as well. In the Christian faith, it is believed that there is a perfect being that is eternal, unchanging, has absolute truth, and creates all that is seen in the universe, this being is one they call God.
shame and doubt. This second stage appears in a child’s early years. The primary focus of this stage is the general development of a greater sense of one’s control and autonomy- very similar to what Erikson believed about the importance of toilet training at this particular stage of development. Erikson recognizes that it is crucial for a child to learn and establish at least some sense of independence- successfully of course. This stage also covers the period of time when the child must learn, or begin to learn to control his or her bodily functions; meaning he or she must learn to gain control over food choices, selection of clothing/toys. Children who do not lack of this stage feel not only confident, but also secure, whereas those who do lack of this stage are found to gain a sense of inadequacy, frailty, instability and
This God is the sole origin of reality, creating what is good, and a world of order
The conception of God in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam is monotheism, the belief in the existence of a single indivisible God. The three of religions maintains that there is only one God, who is active in and concerned about the world. These religions are also patriarchal, male-dominated, which has resulted in God being described as “He.” However, how Christians, Judaism and Islam conceptualize God in their respective theologies is actually quite different. In Christianity, God is the supreme creator and ruler of the universe. Christians believe God is infinite, omnipotent, all-powerful, perfect, personal, eternal, unchanging, holy, all-knowing, and all-loving. Their idea of God is shown in the belief of the Trinity. God is one, but with three aspects: God is Father, the creator, ruler, and sustainer of all life, and divine judge; God is the Son, who is Jesus, God made incarnate and savior of humanity; and the Holy Spirit, who is God working in the world. Both Muslims and Christians love and respect Jesus, however, the major difference between Islam and Christianity is the Christians insistence on the supposed divinity of Christ. In Christian scriptures, God never claimed divinity while the emphasis in the Islamic theology of God is “absolute unity;” God is sublimely one. Muslims think that by believing in the Trinity, Christians believe in three Gods. For them, God is One God. Judaism views the existence of God as a necessary prerequisite for the existence of the universe, and the existence of the universe is sufficient proof of the existence of God.
The concept of God can be a difficult one to grasp especially in today's world - a world in which anyone that believes in God is trying to define exactly what God is. To even attempt to grasp such a concept, one must first recognize his own beliefs in respect to the following questions: Is God our creator? Is God omnipotent (all-powerful) or omniscient (all-knowing) or both? Does God care? Is God with us? Does God interfere with life on earth? These questions should be asked and carefully answered if one should truly wish to identify his specific beliefs in God's existence and persistence.