Back to theodicy and David's theories (The nature of a \'Creator\')

by David Turell , Wednesday, March 31, 2021, 18:33 (1123 days ago) @ dhw

DAVID: I believe God chose to evolve us. All of my theory follows logically after that decision.

dhw: You believe God chose to evolve – by which you mean design – EVERY species, and you have left out the fact that you believe God’s only purpose in creating life was to “evolve us” (and our food supply), and so it does NOT follow logically that before evolving/designing the only species (plus food supply) that he wanted to design, he designed millions of life forms that had no connection with us. Please stop playing these word games.

dhw: Meanwhile, you still refuse to tell us why a God who wants total control is not “human” whereas a God who wants a free-for-all is “very human”.

DAVID: I've explained before: it depends on one's view of God's personality and his purposes. A free-for-all implies a God who gives up a marked degree of control over His creations.

dhw: I know what a free-for-all implies.

But you don't consider it as I do as it relates to a purposeful God.

DAVID: Humans as an end goal could easily be lost.

dhw: If humans were indeed his “end goal”, he could always dabble if he wanted to, but this is totally irrelevant to the question of why a totalitarian God is not human, whereas a free-for-all God is “very human”.

A free-for-all God lacks purpose and is not the image of God I have. The use of totalitarian is bastardizing this discussion as it is not an applicable term in the context you are using. You do not understand how you humanize God in your imagination of Him.

dhw: You are simply repeating your own preconception. I am asking why a purposeful powerful God who knows that the outcome will be H. sapiens is not human, whereas a purposeful, powerful God who knows that the outcome will be a free-for-all is “very human”.

Free-for-all is lack of control. I repeat, my view of God is a designer in full control

DAVID: My God, from the point of starting this universe fine-tuned-for-life, knew what the endpoint would be.

dhw: Most human designers start out with a purpose and know what the endpoint will be. So how does this come to mean that God the know-all designer is not “human”, whereas a power that designs a mechanism that will produce an endless and unpredictable variety of life forms, developments, events etc. is “very human”?

The word 'unpredictable' makes your God weak. My version of God is as above, a creator who knows exactly where He is headed in creating. Note the precisely designed fine-tuning of the universe to allow life to appear on a very special Earth on which it happened. Seems like precise designing to me. Why would stop that precision during evolving life? Your view of God is inconsistent with the history of His works.