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Christians Beliefs on Good and Evil Essay examples

Christians Beliefs on Good and Evil Christians may believe many different things about the power of good and the power of evil. The Roman Catholic Church teaches that God is all good and perfect. They teach that God perfectly loves; they also teach that God has the power to do anything (omnipotence). But there are all kinds of evil things in the world that cause people to suffer. These include moral evil, natural evil; such as floods, disease, hurricanes, fires and earthquakes. Some Christians believe many causes for this but one main opinion and belief is that there is evil in the world because of the Devil. The devil is believed to be the enemy of God and tries to make humanity turn away from†¦show more content†¦Satan simply corrupts what is good. So, love is corrupted into lust, determination into selfish ambition, leadership into tyranny, discernment into judgement and so on. Philosophical dualism has no place in Christianity. God has no equal. Goodness and evil are not equally powerful. Satan and all the powers of evil are subject to God, not only ultimately but also in the here and now. In addition Evil has already been defeated in the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus, although the effects of it are still seen and experienced. In the book of Revelation, the stage is set for a climactic confrontation between the forces of good and evil. In the event, the war turns out to be a distinctly low-key event for the battle has already been won. Our world, however, is in an in between phase. Evil has been defeated but its ultimate destruction is still to take place. Satans life span is limited, his days are numbered and he knows it. Gods promise is that Satans power, already under his divine control, will be eradicated in the end (Revelation 9-21). Furthermore a persons concept of what is good and what is evil may have a lot to do with their background. The Pharisees believed they were doing the right things, and many people had grown up to believe the Pharisees were doing the right things. Paul, in his earlier life was one example of this. Similarly in theShow MoreRelatedGreek Vrs Christian Views1283 Words   |  6 Pages The Christian view of evil and the Greek view of evil are complete opposites as depicted in Dante Alighieri’s play The Divine Comedy: Inferno compared to Euripides play Medea. The Christian view differs from the Greek account of evil by the belief in God. The Christian view has clear boundaries of good and bad behavior as shown in Inferno while the Greek belief is that nothing is inherently evil as seen in Medea. The Christian and Greek views differ on the punishment directly related or unrelatedRead MorePaganism In Beowulf1182 Words   |  5 Pagespoem depicts the time in religious history where Christian and pagan beliefs were introduced to society. This poem was written in the time of the Anglo-Saxon period where pagan was the preferred religion. In later years as time gradually passed, Christianity became one of the more favored religions. Beowulf contains many elements of both religions. Though paganism was very popular throughout this poem, it showed a mixture of t he two beliefs. These beliefs played a major role in the society of the seventhRead MoreTheme Of Christian And Pagan Elements In Beowulf978 Words   |  4 Pageseowulfs representation of Pagan and Christian elements Beowulf was written during the time that society was in the process of converting from Paganism to Christianity. Early Christianity developed in the Roman Empire, where many religions were practiced and formed into paganism. Paganism is commonly used to refer to various, largely unconnected religions and beliefs from that time period. Beowulf was written in England between the 8th and 11th century. The name of the author is unknown, but referredRead More One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich - Solzhenitsyns Faith592 Words   |  3 Pagesis a professed Christian. However, according to some critics, this does not necessarily make his writings quot;Christianquot; (Schmemann 39). Biblical principles can clearly be identified in One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. They can be seen through Solzhenitsyns views on the world as a divine creation, the nature of evil, and faith in the future. The Christian faith is rooted in the belief that God created everything, and that it is good. According to Christian belief, God has a planRead MoreNietzsche And Nietzsche On The Rationality Of Religious Belief1308 Words   |  6 PagesFreud and Nietzsche, on the rationality of religious belief. Freud believes that religion belongs to a childish stage of human evolution with no purpose and that these religious beliefs lack a rational and strong foundation. He thought mature people approach a rational reasoning on religion Freud believes that there is no place for religion in our modern world today since it is already corrupted with evil. His view of our psychological role of beliefs and religion brings attention to a guilt feelingRead MoreEssay on Zoroastrianisms Role in Christianitys Development767 Words   |  4 Pagesclosely modeled after the Zoroastrains beliefs in the afterlife, redemption, judgment, duality of deities, apocalypse and messiahs. Whether Christianity adopted or coincidentally shared the beliefs of the Zoroastrians is up for debate. Regardless, the similarities are staggering. Both Christians and Zoroastrians believe that there will be an apocalypse. When this apocalypse occurs it is believed that the world will be cleansed of non-believers and evil. This apocalypse will occur after a MessiahRead MoreFaith and Doubt at Ground Zero by 823 Words   |  4 Pageswere able to carry out the massacre of nearly 3500 people. Despite the plethora of religious and nonreligious beliefs represented by the friends and family of those who died, one universal belief binds them all: the belief that an unspeakable act of cruelty has changed our nation and our people for all time. The name ascribed to this act of terrorism is debated widely. Some call it evil. Others call it nothing more than supreme cruelty. Award-winning writer, Helen Whitney, and author and notedRead MoreGenesis vs. Iroquois Creation Myth Essay645 Words   |  3 Pageshuman man. The Christian belief in the Genesis story has these key elements , as does the Iroquois creation myth, The World on the Turtles Back. Although these two creation stories share similarities, they also have some stark contrasts. These contrasts include, how the two cultures of the Native American Iroquois tribe and then Christians view life and aspects of good and evil, the way each culture views nature and the impact that has on their culture, and finally the way the Christian God and theRead MoreThere Are Acts Of Evil1720 Words   |  7 PagesThere are acts of evil in our world constantly. More so than in years past, we hear about school shootings, terrorist attacks, murders, and natural disasters such as earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricanes. Everyday there is a new headline in the news that proves that evil is happening all around us. Thi s news is seen differently from person to person based on their religious beliefs. Those who believe in God think of him as having unconditional and infinite love for us. This being said, it is veryRead MoreBeowulf: the Pagan Christian Epic Hero1569 Words   |  7 PagesBeowulf has both pagan and Christian influences. Throughout the story there are many elements of Christian teachings: that man survives only through the protection of God, that all earthly gifts flow from God, and that the proper bearing of man is to be humble and unselfish (csis.edu, 2011). While many pagan influences appear in the poem, Christian overtones are more prevalent, exhibiting many elements of Christian heroism in the poem. An example is when Beowulf says â€Å"God must decide who will be

Maus by Art Spiegelman Essay Example For Students

Maus by Art Spiegelman Essay Maus by Art Spiegelman, is a retelling of the Nazis reign of power from the eyes of the authors father, who suffered through the horrid times as a Jewish man. This chilling tale shines light onto some of the more heartbreaking parts of the era. A key area of this was how quick the polish people were willing to turn on their jewish neighbors. Two panels in the story caught my eye in this regard. The first instance appeared on page 137, where an old neighbor of the family recognized Anja and started yelling â€Å"There;s a Jewess in the courtyard! Police!† It was terrifying to know that even with them living there for years, this old witch of a woman, as they described her was willing to rat them out the instant she saw them. It chilled me to my very core to know these people could not trust a single soul even in the town they lived in for years.The second instance that this fact struck me was on page 140 of the book, where the father recounts, â€Å"I traveled often with the streetcar into town. It was two cars. One was only for germans and officials. The second, it was only for poles. Always I went for the official car. The germans paid no attention of me†¦ in the polish car they could smell if a polish jew came in.† Before I was aware that polish and jewish relationships had been tense, even before the rise of the nazi party, but never did I think a jewish man in hiding at these times would feel safer around the germans then the polish. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum states on their website that the jewish population in Poland dropped from three million to just over forty-five thousand. That was almost 99% of the whole population wiped out. The article explains that Poland had the largest population of jewish families before the war began and in the end also had the most jewish deaths tied to it at the end of the war. The fear and distrust that filled the jewish people and other victims of the holocaust must have been so high in these times, it’s not hard to believe that women were willing to kill themselves and children for an easier death.