Is God selfish and evil?

[Union Of Canadorian Socialists Republic]

The Bible tells us that Satan convinced Eve to take the bite out of the forbidden fruit. What we are told, however is that Satan had evil intentions. Is it possible that Satan was in fact the Prometheus of humanity, bringing us the knowledge to rebel against our god and lead more independent lives?

Then comes the story of God and his attempts to eliminate all sinners through floods and plagues. It would appear that an all powerful god wouldn't have to wipe out humanity and nature in order to dictate his will. Perhaps God is selfish? He casts those who don't believe in him into hell and prevents us from becoming a fully independent civilization.

Christianity and its related Abrahamic religions describe God as a caring and loving father, but how exactly is he either of these? Why is Lucifer, the angel who rebelled against the totalitarian rule of God, automatically evil when we ourselves believe in the values of freedom and Independence?

I myself am an Atheist, but I am still puzzled by the reasoning behind these religions. Even if a God was proven to exist, I would still refuse to worship him. Why exactly should I? A loving god would still love me for being myself. Since he would have made me, god would be at fault for my sins.

Where do you stand in this scenario?

[Jormengand]

There's a reason that some people refer to God as a tyrant. Yes, the gods of Christianity, Judaism and Islam are all assholes (or different takes on the same asshole) if you just stick to scripture. That said, a lot of Christians have never read the Bible and don't intend to, and the same goes for a few Jews and probably at least one Muslim with their holy texts. In some of these cases it's due to ignorance, but you have to remember that the Bible doesn't even claim it's the word of God, and it's really just a collection of old wives' tales and assorted "Wisdom" that was written by random people. With the Qur'an, it's harder to get out of unless you assert that the part of the Qur'an saying that it's the word of Allah is wrong, and so is the rest of it, but it is possible.

So yes to the Biblical (and Qur'anic and... Torahic?) god, but no to a lot of the variations of those deities. After all, we have a word for people who take the whole Bible literally and that word is "Fundamentalists."

[Sun Wukong]

Well that god certainly is.

Madoka's not, though. Hail Madoka!

[United Marxist Nations]

Considering that, if he is real, we are all nothing more than figments of his imagination, allowing us to think things like this (or even giving us the ideas himself) is pretty weird.

[Gallifrey Secundaria]

Well, if he should exist (which is incredibly improbable, if not impossible) and you follow what is said in the bible, then yes. He's a selfish, evil son of a bitch with sadistic streaks as wide as the milky way.

[Central Kadigan]

"God can either do nothing to stop evil, or he doesn't care to, or he doesn’t exist. God is either impotent, evil, or imaginary. Take your pick, and choose wisely."

or, to quote Epícuros of Athens (341–270 BCE):
"Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?"

[Lordieth]

The God of the old testament was pretty vengeful. He seemed to lighten up a little in the new testament. I don't know where people get the idea that God is love. They have read the bible, right?

[Big Brain City]

"God can either do nothing to stop evil, or he doesn't care to, or he doesn’t exist. God is either impotent, evil, or imaginary. Take your pick, and choose wisely."

or, to quote Epícuros of Athens (341–270 BCE):
"Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?"

^what Epicurus said.

[Kelinfort]

That's why I worship Luna, goddess of the night. Old religions are filled with fairy tales and myth, yet we have proof the moon exists each night. Coincidence? I think NOT!

[Vancon]

Considering that, if he is real, we are all nothing more than figments of his imagination, allowing us to think things like this (or even giving us the ideas himself) is pretty weird.

So then we must ask the question, who gets to be the devil on this god's shoulder telling him what to do, and also, does this god have a god who also acts like this? What about that god's god? Or that god's god's god? Maybe we're part of a larger machine, like blood cells in a human body, or rather we're just simply characters in the God's Sims game. Who knows?

Not me.

[The United Districts of Wanderers]

The God of the Bible tries to portray himself as a father, watching over us and disciplining us when necessary. His wrath became so great at the end of the Old Testament that there was only one way to satisfy it: the ultimate sacrifice of a person who had never sinned. This is why Jesus stepped in: He was the One to atone for every evil deed. He did is job in full knowledge of His fate, which was death. He arose after His death to tell his disciples that all the world's sin was taken, and by believing in Him, you shall go to heaven.

The God of the Qu'ran, known as Allah, is similar to this but one thing makes him different: how he chooses who goes to heaven or hell. He condemns all infidels, or non-believers, like the God of the Bible, but Allah is trying to force people to convert. God gives us a choice: believe or not. In addition to that, people who believe in Allah still have a chance to go to hell, if their good deeds do not outweigh their bad, and even so it is still not s sure way to heaven, unlike God who gives it to everyone that believes, even if they turn away. Allah punishes sin at all costs, but God says the only sin that will not be forgiven is calling His Work the work of Satan. Allah gives the Muslims a mission: convert people, and if they won't, they die. God says that not everyone will turn to His way, due to Satan and other sinners.

Satan, also known as Lucifer, was the greatest angel in heaven. He was loved by all, and his power was great. However, he committed the first sin in the Universe: pride. He wanted to be God. When he realized that was not going to happen, he tried to get rid of God, but got banished to the newly made Earth. Satan then made it his mission to turn as many people away from God as possible, which is why God sent Jesus to fix all of this. So, God is planning a time when Jesus will come back again, and Satan will finally be defeated and thrown into hell. Satan himself acknowledges this, and hopes to drag as many people down as he can with him. God doesn't want to send us to hell, but if we still have our sin, we can't enter heaven. Only the blameless can enter, hence why Jesus died. Nowhere in the Dead Sea Scrolls, the oldest surviving Biblical documents, is a purgatory mentioned. If there was one, Jesus wouldn't have been necessary. God and Jesus is trying to save us, while Satan is trying to destroy us.

I hope this sheds some light on God, Allah, and Satan, and the roles they play. If you should still have questions or comments, then please reply. I will answer them as best I can. I;m not all-knowing, but God will provide the knowledge when I need it.

[Ifreann]

Is Luke Skywalker selfish and evil? In the Star Wars movies we're told that Darth Vader had evil intentions, but what if he just wanted to bring peace and stability to the galaxy?

[United Marxist Nations]

Considering that, if he is real, we are all nothing more than figments of his imagination, allowing us to think things like this (or even giving us the ideas himself) is pretty weird.

So then we must ask the question, who gets to be the devil on this god's shoulder telling him what to do, and also, does this god have a god who also acts like this? What about that god's god? Or that god's god's god? Maybe we're part of a larger machine, like blood cells in a human body, or rather we're just simply characters in the God's Sims game. Who knows?

Not me.

"This is really Yahweh's finest work as an author. The characterization was brilliant, you really felt like the characters were real people, and the way he worked the fourth wall into the storyline was incredible. 9.5/10."

[Olthar]

The Bible tells us that Satan convinced Eve to take the bite out of the forbidden fruit.

No it doesn't. Nowhere in the Bible soes it say that the snake is Satan. That's just a piece of bullshit invented by the Catholic Church.

[The United Districts of Wanderers]

Is Luke Skywalker selfish and evil? In the Star Wars movies we're told that Darth Vader had evil intentions, but what if he just wanted to bring peace and stability to the galaxy?

The Star Wars movies doesn't follow the Christian religion, but ones like Buddhism. In Buddhism, there is no god, but only a central energy or force. We all have the essence of god within us, and we must learn how to use it. How we use it is up to the individual.

[Vancon]

So then we must ask the question, who gets to be the devil on this god's shoulder telling him what to do, and also, does this god have a god who also acts like this? What about that god's god? Or that god's god's god? Maybe we're part of a larger machine, like blood cells in a human body, or rather we're just simply characters in the God's Sims game. Who knows?

Not me.

"This is really Yahweh's finest work as an author. The characterization was brilliant, you really felt like the characters were real people, and the way he worked the fourth wall into the storyline was incredible. 9.5/10."

I feel like you've outsmarted me, but I don't know how.

[The United Districts of Wanderers]

The Bible tells us that Satan convinced Eve to take the bite out of the forbidden fruit.

No it doesn't. Nowhere in the Bible soes it say that the snake is Satan. That's just a piece of bullshit invented by the Catholic Church.

In the Bible, it says that Satan will use anything, and I will repeat, ANYTHING to turn people away, even if it means using the Bible itself, like when he tempted Jesus.

[Olthar]

The God of the old testament was pretty vengeful. He seemed to lighten up a little in the new testament. I don't know where people get the idea that God is love. They have read the bible, right?

I believe most surveys typically show that 80-90% of Christians have not, in fact, read their own book, a number which does not surprise me.

[Kelinfort]

No it doesn't. Nowhere in the Bible soes it say that the snake is Satan. That's just a piece of bullshit invented by the Catholic Church.

In the Bible, it says that Satan will use anything, and I will repeat, ANYTHING to turn people away, even if it means using the Bible itself, like when he tempted Jesus.

How are we to know if God is good if he invented this literary work to discredit Lucifer?

[The United Districts of Wanderers]

In the Bible, it says that Satan will use anything, and I will repeat, ANYTHING to turn people away, even if it means using the Bible itself, like when he tempted Jesus.

How are we to know if God is good if he invented this literary work to discredit Lucifer?

Well, most things held as evil today (murdering, thieving, lying, etc.) can be traced back to the Ten Commandments. Later nations, such as Babylon, took these to be their rules as well, setting the standard for all civilizations.

[Olthar]

No it doesn't. Nowhere in the Bible soes it say that the snake is Satan. That's just a piece of bullshit invented by the Catholic Church.

In the Bible, it says that Satan will use anything, and I will repeat, ANYTHING to turn people away, even if it means using the Bible itself, like when he tempted Jesus.

In that case, why believe a single thing that book says? If Satan can so easily corrupt the words therein, the entire thing could be a lie as far as you know. Simply believing in God could be following the will of Satan. How can you be sure?

[Berkell]

I hadn't thought of it as evil before.

I think that God would be neutral. Neither good, nor evil. I considered God as an artist, or as an author. He brings people into this world (Judas is a good example) takes away their thoughts/ or basically use them to do evil "And the Lord hardened his heart", just to create his own stories.

Take the example of Judas. Judas is known as the great evil person who would betray Jesus. He is thought of as the worst traitor. But Jesus needed to be crucified and betrayed in order for him to fit the old testament. So God just so happened to harden Judas's heart. What I find upsetting is how Judas (after everything was set in motion, and the death of Jesus could not be changed) suddenly understood what he had done. It sounds like he woke up from a dream. Long story short: I think God purposefully screws people over at random just to appease his sense of art. Basically, to Him this world is a stage. We are the actors. He is the director.

But thinking about it, he does sound more evil than neutral.

[The United Districts of Wanderers]

In the Bible, it says that Satan will use anything, and I will repeat, ANYTHING to turn people away, even if it means using the Bible itself, like when he tempted Jesus.

In that case, why believe a single thing that book says? If Satan can so easily corrupt the words therein, the entire thing could be a lie as far as you know. Simply believing in God could be following the will of Satan. How can you be sure?

God had the Bible created by his true believers to be His Word, so no lies about Him can form. However, much like in real life, things can be taken out of context. Some verses, when this is done, don't make sense at all and seems to contradict itself. You must be careful in reading it in order to assure you are learning the truth.

[Novia Soviet Socialist Republic]

Damn right he is. He gives us the option to either be his bitch or get thrown into a pit of fire to burn for eternity.

[Lordieth]

The God of the old testament was pretty vengeful. He seemed to lighten up a little in the new testament. I don't know where people get the idea that God is love. They have read the bible, right?

I believe most surveys typically show that 80-90% of Christians have not, in fact, read their own book, a number which does not surprise me.

Brings this to mind. (Spoiler, he's talking about The Bible)