bahman wrote: ↑Thu Jan 26, 2023 12:04 pm
Immanuel Can wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 11:42 pm
bahman wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 10:38 pm
Now you are mixing things. There are two sides/persons when it comes to Good and Evil. One is the receptor of the action and another is the actor. For example, rape is pleasurable for the raper but painful for the one who is raped.
That's not how either works, actually. Rape is an act of aggression, rather than pleasure, and theft makes the victim a victim, and the perp a thief.
But either way, you're assuming your own arbitrary definition, one that is clearly not correct. Pain and pleasure come mixed, in life. And it's not at all obvious that you can identify one with "evil" and the other with "good."
So you'd need to prove that definition of yours.
No, I don't need to prove my definition.
Well, you do if you want anybody else to agree with you. If you don't, then they can simply ignore it, because it lacks warrant. But that's up to you, of course.
The definition is a phrase that explains a situation/word.
It has to do so accurately. If your alleged "definition" is contentious and not generally conceded, then yes, you need to show you've defined the word in a way that everybody knows is correct.
Or you can just expect that people will respond, with good reason, "He doesn't seem to know what he's talking about."
Again, it's up to you.
Immanuel Can wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 8:19 pm
You're still going to need a set of criteria.
No, I don't need a set of criteria. My definition is simple and it explains the reality of things well.
Not for your definition: you need criteria for your value judgment.
A
value judgment is a claim that something is "good" or "bad," or "righteous" or "evil," or "functional" or "disfunctional," or any other sort of value-implying terms like that.
You want to ask, "Why can we not claim God is evil?" "Evil" is a value-judgment. It implies criteria. That is, you must think you know what makes a thing "good" or "evil," so as to apply the term to God.
But I don't think you do. Because if I believe your definition, you think that "evil" is automatically "anything to do with pain." And I don't think you believe in God, and I don't think pain is always associated with evil. Sometimes it's associated with things like overcoming, triumph, exercise, achievement, victory, growth, and all sorts of other things most people see as quite positive.
So you've got to show your case...if you want anybody to believe you.
Immanuel Can wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 8:19 pm
I already defined what I meant by evil.
It's not important what you meant. It's important that whatever you meant corresponds to a justifiable definition of "evil," because that's the term you're hoping to apply to God.
Do you want me to prove that God is evil?
No. I want you to show that you know what "evil" means. I want you to show your criteria for that value judgment, no matter what entity you apply it to.
I'll let you pick the referent...anything you like. Just show that you have the right criteria in mind to detect when X is "evil."