We have the big bang in a trap about 10 feet to the left of me, or so they tell me.

What, now?

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It's a Bose-Einstein condensate. Just a bunch of really cold atoms huddled together in a ball.

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And Jesus agrees with me, too!

And supports you, in email.

But see, next to rainbows and lollypops, I see mass murders and child molesters. It's a nasty, two-sided coin which makes me doubt the existence of a benevolent diety. *shrugs*

I wasn't thinking so much about rainbows and lollipops, as about the wonders of nature, and babies, and love, and self-sacrifice. Still, I completely understand your point. I think I see it differently. A perfect system was created, but to make it truly perfect, there had to be free will, which on its own, only makes the system vulnerable, not imperfect. Once free will was used to break it, to introduce evil, it wrought all sorts of havoc on the system and its inhabitants.

From a philosophical perspective, the problem of evil is a classic that has been used both to argue against and argue for the existence of a God with what I shorthand as all the "omni" attributes: omniscience, ominpotence, omnibenevolence.

Theists argue an omnibenevolent God has to give humans free will. The theological argument is that creation springs from love, and that love seeks love, not robot-like obedience. Since people have free will, they can use it to in effect, shut God out. In that sort of framework, evil is not a substance on its own, but is defined as the privation of good. Like a moth hole in a woolen sweater, it does not exist in itself, but only in another (this doesn't mean it is an absence, but to explain that, I'd have to break out philosophy books and I don't want to).

They also argue that the very way we are able to realize evil exists (that is, that something is terribly, terribly wrong here, like with murders, child molestation, or even more mundane evils like illness) is because we are able to recognize good.

There are all different arguments against the existence of God based on the problem of evil, and likewise, there are as many counters to them, and then additional arguments for the existence of God, based on the same things (and counters to those, as well). After a while, philosophy makes my brain fall out. I lose track of the threads.

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And on a completely other topic, does anyone have a good recipe for peppercorn salad dressing? One that I probably already have everything for in my kitchen?

Go to store.

Pick out dressing.

Approach cashier, slowly.

Gradually take out money.

This recipe may take you out of your kitchen, however.

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In totally other news, I had a minor freak out in the grocery store tonight when my debit card was rejected. WTFF?? Oh. Right. "expires 04/05."

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It's a Bose-Einstein condensate. Just a bunch of really cold atoms huddled together in a ball.

OK, well, just don't jostle it or anything.

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Cindy, that's some deep stuff there. And I get *most* of it. It's just that I think religion in general must fill a need within an individual. If that individual hasn't the need or doesn't perceive the need--the religion becomes more of a chore and less of a path to enlightenment or salvation or whatever.

But mostly, I like to keep my Sundays free.

You people MAKE your own salad dressing???

WTFF?? Oh. Right. "expires 04/05."

Doesn't your bank send you a new one before the old one expires?

Just a bunch of really cold atoms huddled together in a ball.

Poor, cold atoms. We should knit them a little sweater or something.

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I have no take on god(s). I am all Occam's Razor about that sort of thing.

I do remember, in the 9th grade, being required to read a couple of books from the Bible (Genesis, Exodus, one or two others). I got to the end of Exodus, where Moses (the author) dies before the end of his book, and was like, Ripoff! Soooo ghost-written. Somehow my teacher did not find this a respectful approach, but then, I continue to labor under the impression that a respectful approach, in English class, can be a hindrance sometimes.

Still, it was useful to have read at least some of the Bible (although, it was sad how little of it I recalled; in college, someone had to remind me that Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem, not in Rome), because it's a cultural competence for reading so many other works. Dante's line "I am not Aeneas; I am not Paul," makes no sense unless you know who Aeneas and Paul are.

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Doesn't your bank send you a new one before the old one expires?

It sure does. Which new card was sitting safely here at home. Der.

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Poor, cold atoms. We should knit them a little sweater or something.

OK, now I feel selfish. I didn't even stop to consider how the atoms were feeling.

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