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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ก.ย. 2024
- What is process theology? What is God in process theology? What does process theology say about the problem of evil? In this recorded lecture, Professor Galindo introduces students to process theology by reviewing the process philosophy of Alfred Whitehead, describing how this relates to quantum mechanics, and discusses how a process view of God relates to the problem of evil. This is from Professor Galindo's Introduction to Philosophy of Religion college course.
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Wish i had you as a teacher!
Thankyou for highlighting some points of Whitehead's ideas on Process-Philosophy that for most people are "not-so-easy" to understand : that (i) The Universe is (probably) not made of THINGS but made of EVENTS, and that (ii) REALITY is not 'full-of-nouns' but 'full-of-events' ...
Regarding evil - IMHO evil is defined by the society in which one lives according to what is most likely to continue the existence of that specific society. Sad-yet-natural events are not evil, they are just events that cause us loss or grief. I think the closest thing to evil would be when one derives pleasure from knowing another is suffering. And that is part of the human's "choice" to cause suffering on purpose to fulfill their own pleasure from it. Humans seem to be the only beings that have the capability to enjoy inflicting suffering (with the possible exception of cats, lol, but in reality cats enjoy the playing of the game, not the suffering it causes). Anything becoming another thing will cause the suffering of SOME thing. Time is a measure of change. And change means one thing stops or ends. And the stopping or ending of something one enjoyed/liked/loved will cause one to feel sadness (suffering). That suffering in itself is not evil - evil would be the human's choice to enjoy beholding or causing that suffering in others.
The answer is that the question "Is it still possible to believe in an omnipotent, omniscient, and omnibenevolent god?" Misses one of the central ideas of proccess theology: God in process theology is not omnipotent. Dr. John Cobb discusses this very well in his introductory speech on Process Theology, which can be found in an MP3 format online still.
The typical atheist argument follows this line of logic "You cannot have an omnipotent and omnibenevolent god which has grand plan and a world in which great amounts of evil and destruction take place. Those two concepts together are contradicted by the presence of evil and suffering in the world." This is very logical and makes a lot of sense, however in Process Theology the "Almighty" interpretation of God's name is not used, so God is not described as Omnipotent, but rather one that makes nudges here and there. The reason this answers the contradiction of omnipotence, benevolence, and evil existing together is because that logic is only based on the presupposition of an omnipotent god.
Thus asking "How can evil and suffering exist in a benevolent God's world who nudges and calls to people to act?" Thus the answer would be "Just because God calls to you, does not mean that you cannot ignore that call." And thus people chose to ignore the opportunities and guidance provided to them, and the world becomes worse every time someone decides to ignore those calls and nudges.
This is how it side steps the problem of evil, because the original translations did not emphasize an omnipotent god in the same sense as the new wording.
As someone who has experienced and is experiencing and struggling with a lot of tragedy and suffering,this means nothing.
What are you struggling with?
very good! thanks
Thank you. Fascinating. If God is in the process, what do we make of galactic collisions, destruction of planets, and disease and death… cancer, and the disordering of molecules in a decaying corpse … is God then also in this decay?
Waves are an action. Things are a static observation.
I see the logic of your argument and I really don't have an issue with the idea of events versus things because it takes the matter of time into context. However, if God as the Creator of the Universe set these events in motion and creation is a THING that God created and as the creator, He is above it therefor he is master of it. Process Theology cheapens that relationship. When God created and set into motion, for him it is the totality of that creation - beginning to the end - and as such he is not subject to that creation. This is where your theology falls apart in my opinion. Personally I fall under the Arminian theology, though I do see the merit of the Molinist point of view as well. I do not agree with the Calvinist view because God gives us free will and Calvinism strips that from us while Process Theology falls far to the other side of the spectrum where our free will influences God's actions and reaction to our choices which I believe is a fallacy as well. My understanding is that God is perfect and Process Theology strips that perfection from Him.
The problem is we as humans are mortal and fallible so our reason and understanding is very limited compared to God and we try to understand something (and someone) that is really beyond our comprehension in terms that pull Him down to our level which I think is a mistake. This is the reason I believe God provides us the Bible to give us a foothold to try and understand the unknowable and that we matter to Him. But make no mistake, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are my ways your ways...For as the heavens are higher than t he earth, so are my ways and my thoughts higher than your ways and thoughts" Isaiah 55:8-9
I suppose it's worth saying that there are different forms of Process Theology. I don't think the problem of evil, particularly natural evil, is solved here. I think this presentation only moves the problem one stage back. Namely, yes I agree that 'process' is a better description than 'things'. And I agree that God is participative in the overall process and only knows what could happen (we need freedom to be fully human). But none of this removes a creator-God's responsibility for creating 'this' process. I think that the answer is around God not being the creator or omnipotent at all, but instead something more like an archetypal loving process in reality, that we interact deeply with. More like a maximally loving Buddha type becoming.
Is this a science lesson?
This is a talk without meaning
The cosmic process is also a 'Monster of energy"... are earthquakes, a sign of God's love? How about Covid...process theology is just another way to rationalize God's cruelty....antidote to Whitehead: Nietzsche.
And the antidote to Nietzsche is Gnosticism.
1. Covid was not created by God, but rather by a leaky lab engaged in illegal Lethality Hardening funded by Fauci.
2. Process Theology does not rationalize God's Cruelty, but instead suggests that God is not omnipotent, and as such is not controlling all outcomes, but rather only nudges things and people behind the scenes. Your statement "rationalize God's cruelty" is still based on the very presupposition that God is omnipotent and responsible for each and every occurrence in the universe, which is fine, but it completely misses (or purposefully ignores) one of the most important concepts of Process Theology.
3. Nietzsche is not the antidote to Whitehead, as his ideas implied that in some way we would need to overcome nihilism. Nihilism is a stage to be overcame, not a desired end.
"Nietzsche asserts that with the decline of Christianity and the rise of physiological decadence, nihilism is in fact characteristic of the modern age, though he implies that the rise of nihilism is still incomplete and that it has yet to be overcome."
4. Earthquakes are signs of geothermal activity and the movement of tectonic plates, though the process theology god could "nudge" those to rub together and quake earlier, or later, but for the most part most of those plate movements are just plate movements.