Yes, God has the power to stop pedophilia and all the other things people do that displeases Him and goes against His wishes.
What else should he stop then? Murder, theft, and rape are big on the human list of evils, but what does God declare to also be evil? Adultery, lying, and disobedience would be next. Could you imagine not being able to lie? How about not even having the option of being disobedient so someone? A person could not even physically be able to have sex outside of marriage.
Not believing in God and worshiping idols is actually number one on God's not-to-do list. God could stop you from not believing, and if He wanted to take control of our lives, then He would probably start there.
But God did not want automatons. He wanted people to choose Him. He wanted us to experience and understand what the alternative to Him is and turn away from it ourselves.
I have struggled a lot with the idea of God creating a person with the knowledge that the person will never come to Him and be lost forever. I don't completely understand, because my knowledge and intellect is like that of an ant when compared to God. But I do wonder if people would come to God so readily if they did not see the alternative on display in the lives of others. It is similar to the wonder I have about the Old Testament; would people have accepted and followed Jesus if the Old Testament had never happened?
The book of Job is all about people trying to understand the workings of God.
Occham's razor. You are doing mental gymnastics to maintain your belief in your god. The answer is simpler than you think. There is no god, or if there is, he doesn't care about us anymore.
But God did not want automatons. He wanted people to choose Him. He wanted us to experience and understand what the alternative to Him is and turn away from it ourselves.
But I can't choose to believe in him. Could you choose to believe in unicorns if I told you your eternal soul depended on it? Wouldn't you demand some evidence first? Or would a billion people who believe in them be enough to convince you?
It isn't enough for me. I could say that I believe in unicorns, but deep down I know that they probably don't exist. Does God just want me to proclaim that I believe in him while doubting his existence internally? Because I cannot believe in him until there is sufficient reason to. It is impossible to force a true belief on yourself.
If there is no God or higher power beyond us, then how did we come into existence?
I don't know. "I don't know" is a much better answer than one that creates more questions that also never get answered. If God created the universe, who or what created God? Who or what created the thing that created God? And so on. Why isn't it okay to just admit that we don't know? I'm fine with that.
Should I believe instead in the astronomical impossibility that is chance and evolution? I call Occam's Razor on those mental gymnastics.
Evolution is just simply a fact, but I don't know what started life. Maybe the beginning of life is an inevitability given enough time. I'm not sure and that's okay with me.
God created pedophilia and child rape and has the power to stop it, but won't. So, yeah, that would be one explanation.
Yes, God has the power to stop pedophilia and all the other things people do that displeases Him and goes against His wishes.
What else should he stop then? Murder, theft, and rape are big on the human list of evils, but what does God declare to also be evil? Adultery, lying, and disobedience would be next. Could you imagine not being able to lie? How about not even having the option of being disobedient so someone? A person could not even physically be able to have sex outside of marriage.
Not believing in God and worshiping idols is actually number one on God's not-to-do list. God could stop you from not believing, and if He wanted to take control of our lives, then He would probably start there.
But God did not want automatons. He wanted people to choose Him. He wanted us to experience and understand what the alternative to Him is and turn away from it ourselves.
I have struggled a lot with the idea of God creating a person with the knowledge that the person will never come to Him and be lost forever. I don't completely understand, because my knowledge and intellect is like that of an ant when compared to God. But I do wonder if people would come to God so readily if they did not see the alternative on display in the lives of others. It is similar to the wonder I have about the Old Testament; would people have accepted and followed Jesus if the Old Testament had never happened?
The book of Job is all about people trying to understand the workings of God.
Occham's razor. You are doing mental gymnastics to maintain your belief in your god. The answer is simpler than you think. There is no god, or if there is, he doesn't care about us anymore.
But I can't choose to believe in him. Could you choose to believe in unicorns if I told you your eternal soul depended on it? Wouldn't you demand some evidence first? Or would a billion people who believe in them be enough to convince you?
It isn't enough for me. I could say that I believe in unicorns, but deep down I know that they probably don't exist. Does God just want me to proclaim that I believe in him while doubting his existence internally? Because I cannot believe in him until there is sufficient reason to. It is impossible to force a true belief on yourself.
If there is no God or higher power beyond us, then how did we come into existence?
Should I believe instead in the astronomical impossibility that is chance and evolution? I call Occam's Razor on those mental gymnastics.
I don't know. "I don't know" is a much better answer than one that creates more questions that also never get answered. If God created the universe, who or what created God? Who or what created the thing that created God? And so on. Why isn't it okay to just admit that we don't know? I'm fine with that.
Evolution is just simply a fact, but I don't know what started life. Maybe the beginning of life is an inevitability given enough time. I'm not sure and that's okay with me.