In the book Is God a Moral Monster author and apologist Paul Copan sets out to offer a response to the argument New Atheists make that God lacks humility and was a moral monster in terms of New Testament ethics. Copan shows the reader throughout the book how God is not a prideful God, and how instead he is a humble, self-giving, and an other-centered Being. If you do not answer this question first you will not be able to fully answer the rest of the questions raised in the book.
Paul Copan takes on the views of some of the most prominent New Atheists, in particular Richard Dawkins. Dawkins claims that God is obsessed with his own superiority over rival Gods. He claims that the God of the Bible craves praise, seeks attention and worship, and
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Paul Copan reminds us to first define the words pride and humility before we offer a rebuttal. Prides generally accepted definition in today’s culture is having an overinflated view of oneself. To be proud is an attempt to deny ones’ true self and prop ourselves up upon a fake identity. This is the negative side of pride. People who struggle with the pride deal with this because they don’t believe they will be accepted if they present their true selves. Pride is widely seen as negative in today’s culture, that is because it has been heavily tainted by the negative aspects of pride. Paul Copan shows us examples of righteous pride in the bible. Paul took pride and was gratified in his work as an apostle in 2nd Corinthians 2:10-17. Paul also took pride in the early Christians’ usage of God-given abilities and progress in their faith. The key distinction between these two types of pride is when Paul professed pride in others and himself, he realized and recognized God as the great enabler of the abilities. Righteous pride acknowledges our proper place before …show more content…
People often wonder what kind of God would require absolute obedience. Copan begins by providing context for the passage at hand. First, we are reminded of God’s previous promises to Abraham that he would make his descendants as numerous as the stars. Also, God’s choice of words when he commands him to go up one of the mountains has a very similar construction to God’s earlier calling of Abraham to go from his hometown of Ur. Copan believes this similarity is not lost on Abraham as he is reminded of God’s faithfulness in the past. He also reminds us of God’s deliverance of Ishmael and the miracle child given to Sarah. Given this backdrop that shows Abraham’s trust in God, we read that Abraham told his servants that “we” would return from the mountain, confident that God would either spare his son or even raise Isaac from the dead. Next, Copan switches to a philosophical argument surrounding whether God committed an immoral act of killing an innocent human life. He argues that there are some exceptions to the rule that we commonly accept: One is the case of an ectopic pregnancy, which is deadly for the mother if the pregnancy continues. However, Copan’s strongest point is the philosophical argument that this moral law applies in a world in which dead people don’t come back to life after being killed. He concludes that God’s
Pride is something that is essential in human life. Due to pride, we are able to see the joys
The passages given from the Edwards' 'Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God'; and the opening sentence of the Declaration both include many points such as the tone, diction, and syntax. The points shown throughout each sentence aims for the intent of obtaining the attention of the audience. The way each sentence is arranged with its own syntax can very well appeal to listeners, depending on its structure and imagery.
The telling of this story provokes many questions. Why didn’t God, being all-good and benevolent, "immediately restore His fallen creatures to their original union with...
Pride frequently has terrible results. For example, as a result of Brothers pride, he left Doodle in the storm. Brother did this because he is angry that Doodle failed, and that his dream of having an “ordinary brother” is over. Doodle realizes that he failed his brother, and feels useless. In addition, after being left in the downpour, Doodle dies. At the point when Brother discovers Doodle dead, he thinks it’s his fault that Doodle dies because he pushed him too hard. After this happens, their family feels like they should’ve been more protective and love Doodle more. In conclusion, while pride can have devastating effects, it can also result in fulfillment.
Some examples of the sin pride are portrayed through Reverend John Hale. Hale shows pride by stating that his books are heavy because “they are weighted with authority,” boasting about his good education (153, l. 712-713). He also tells Parris and Putnam to believe in his judgement because he is more knowledgeable in this topic (154, l. 751-758). He believes himself intellectually superior
In most cases pride always results from great accomplishments. Pride can lead to deception where people especially the ones in power, base their decisions on their ability to have dominion over everyone else. It is the major cause of broken relationships within family members. Pride has and will always be root of evil unless people change and humble themselves. Pride is most evidently seen in Antigone by Sophocles where Creon, the leader, refuses to listen to reasons as seen through Teiresias and Haemon. Teiresias gives him an advice that states; “And your house will be full of men and women weeping, And curses will be hurled at you from far Cities grieving for sons unburied, left to rot Before the walls of Thebes.” (Ant. 214). Instead of listening to the advice and taking actions, Creon mocks Teiresias and tells him that his prophecy is for sale. Creon's human flaws and emotions such as pride and arrogance lead to his ultimate downfall as well as his family’s, which ties into him being the tragic ...
In the first chapter of God Behaving Badly, David Lamb argues that God is unfairly given a bad reputation. He claims these negative perceptions are fueled by pop culture and lead many to believe the lie that the God of the Old Testament is angry, sexist, racist, violent, legalistic, rigid, and distant. These negative perceptions, in turn, affect our faith. Ultimately, Lamb seeks to demonstrate that historical context disproves the presumptuous aforementioned. In addition, he defends his position by citing patterns of descriptions that characterize God throughout the Old Testament. “Our image of God will directly affect how we either pursue or avoid God. If we believe that the God of the Old Testament is really harsh, unfair and cruel, we won’t want anything to do with him” (Lamb 22). Clearly, they way Christians choose to see God will shape their relationship with Him.
The dictionary defines it as “quality or state of being proud; an unreasonable opinion of one’s own superiority over others; and as the reflection of this quality in disdainful or arrogant behavior.” Many people experience different kinds of pride. Some show off, others reflect on their family’s history with powerful pride. Pride can also affect a man in many different ways. It could show a person to be shallow, concerned or important, for example.
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.
Being prideful can be very easy. It's natural to think that you are superior, and that you can do everything. However, this is not always correct, and sometimes pride can lead to negative effects. These instances are shown vividly through the short stories, “To Build a Fire,” and “The Scarlet Ibis.” In the end of these stories, the main character’s pride caused regret, or even death. In”To Build a Fire,” by Jack London and “The Scarlet Ibis,” by James Hurst, the authors both conveyed the common theme that pride can have negative consequences.
Rodney Stark starts of his novel by talking about how theology is being discredited in Western civilization, to which he thinks is an utter disgrace. Modern day scholars are claiming that religious thinking is irrational and dogmatic. Theology, which can be described as the science of faith, creates a longing for the understanding of God’s being, nature, demands, and intentions. Stark claims that only monotheistic religions such as Christianity, Judaism, and Islam can “sustain” theology because polytheistic religions, such as Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism, are too inconsequential. He uses the example by explaining that there are no theologians in the East. Subsequently, it was only in the West, as opposed to the Middle East or in Asia,
Many have the misconception that humility is the “acceptable synonym” to self-degradation. This is far from the truth, and instead of benefiting those who retain this theory, it only hurts them. The devaluing of talents or God-given not only introduces self-deception, but also diminishes the awesomeness of God. Instead, Lewis implies in The Screwtape Letters that God’s view of humility is quite different when Screwtape tells his nephew, “You must therefore conceal from the patient the true end of humility. Let him think of it not as self-forgetfulness, but as a certain kind of opinion, namely a low opinion) of his own talents and character.” (63) One quote from Rick Warren that is commonly attributed to C.S. Lewis sums true humility up quite well, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less. Humility is thinking more of others.” (Day 19) Pride, on the other hand, is more universally understood as being an inflated view of oneself or one’s talents. Pride is considered to be the first of the “deadly sins,” and is commonly considered to be the root of all sin. Pride is idolizing oneself, which violates the first and foremost commandment of having no idols. Every other sin is a result of the prideful assumption that the person knows better than God does. While it is relatively easy to define these terms and to understand them, it is much
What is the effect of having too much pride? Can different forms of pride such as familial and social have different consequences? Pride is usually considered to be a positive aspect in one’s life, but too much of it can have adverse results. By observing today’s society, as well as Shakespearean society, it is clear that too much pride in any form can inhibit the ability to accept differences in people and oneself.
The Book of Job: An Attempt to Justify the Actions of a Omnipotent, Childlike God
In 1297AD, pride was described as “A consciousness or feeling of what is befitting or due to oneself or one's position, which prevents a person from doing what he considers to be beneath him or unworthy of him; esp. as a good quality, legitimate, ‘honest’, or ‘proper pride’, self-respect; also as a mistaken or misapplied feeling, ‘false pride’” (OED 4). This type of pride is personal pride and the image a person must maintain to keep it. A person cannot allow them self to act in such a way that would be demeaning. An example of this would be a drill sergeant getting down with his recruits and performing the same demeaning drills as they are. The sergeant’s years of hard work and service would not be taken seriously if he were to lower himself to the level of their recruits therefore lowering his sense of pride.