Is God Perfect?

[ThisYouWillDo]

[QUOTE=TomOfSweden;562764]

Aren't you now starting to read in human qualities in God.

QUOTE]

Very probably I am. But I used the term "jealous" to mean "protective": God wanted to protect his divinity from becoming commonplace by preventing Adam from eating from the Tree of Life. I was not suggesting competition between God and Adam.

I am begining to think of God as a rather insecure divinity who needed to be oppressive to demonstrate his power.

[TomOfSweden]

[QUOTE=ThisYouWillDo;562765]

Aren't you now starting to read in human qualities in God.

QUOTE]

Very probably I am. But I used the term "jealous" to mean "protective": God wanted to protect his divinity from becoming commonplace by preventing Adam from eating from the Tree of Life. I was not suggesting competition between God and Adam.

I am begining to think of God as a rather insecure divinity who needed to be oppressive to demonstrate his power.

Couldn't that simply be down to human interpretation? If we interpret Gods activities and messages as humans we're bound to insert all kinds of unwarranted judgements on why God did what and his motivations. If God lies beyond our scope of good and evil it is very hard for us to make any judgements as to what Gods character is.

[Thorne]

[QUOTE=TomOfSweden;562770]

If God lies beyond our scope of good and evil it is very hard for us to make any judgements as to what Gods character is.

Our concept of good and evil comes from God, does it not? At least in the Western world, those areas once dominated by the Catholic Church, our laws and morals are derived from the Bible. And the Bible is God's word, is it not? So we must conclude that God's character is similar to our own.

Of course, it could be that God is more like American lawmakers, passing down his commandments as they pass down laws, but absolving himself from adhering to those commandments, as our lawmakers will absolve themselves.

More likely, though, is that God evolves over time just as humanity does. As humanity became more "civilized" so did God, or our perception of God. As the Church fragmented and developed into multiple religions, so did God. Now each religion has their own concept of what God is and what he wants us to do. The only thing they are even remotely united in is their fear and hatred of nonbelievers.

[ThisYouWillDo]

[QUOTE=TomOfSweden;562770]

If God lies beyond our scope of good and evil it is very hard for us to make any judgements as to what Gods character is.

But I don't believe he does lie beyond our scope of good and evil: and the passage I quoted form Genesis supports this view because it says that, after they ate the Forbidden Fruit, they knew good and evil.