tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post8635629990644823731..comments2023-07-23T08:44:04.807-07:00Comments on Life, the Universe and Everything: A Pair of Ducks? No, a Paradox!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270726693980247861noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-66036813994937769222007-06-20T10:52:00.000-07:002007-06-20T10:52:00.000-07:00My belief system is different but I believe we ult...My belief system is different but I believe we ultimately end up at the same place. <BR/><BR/>On some level, I believe we choose our circumstances because we have lessons we need to learn ---> enlightenment. <BR/><BR/>We are born with a veil and do not remember choosing these things. <BR/><BR/>And in <I>no way</I> does it negate the community from any responsibility for the human condition. No way. At all. <BR/><BR/>You asked me once about how it is those of us with more eastern philosophies would reply to someone who'd lost a child. <BR/><BR/>My response would be that while we do accept the cycle of life itself, in all its vicissitudes, that doesn't remove our responsibility to each other, comforting each other, helping each other. <BR/><BR/>There are personal lessons.. and there are global lessons.. They are intertwined. <BR/><BR/>What might appear to be random chance is often something entirely different. <BR/><BR/><BR/>Peace, <BR/><BR/>~Chanithailandchanihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10171731740204067889noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-9327232479096837372007-06-20T09:54:00.000-07:002007-06-20T09:54:00.000-07:00This is really worth thinking about--I'll have to ...This is really worth thinking about--I'll have to mull this over but I am initially inclined to believe in the accident of birth (I'm not one to believe in divine design). I do see what you're saying, though.Aliki2006https://www.blogger.com/profile/15763865834765963343noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-75533578933260732592007-06-20T09:39:00.000-07:002007-06-20T09:39:00.000-07:00Hey Mary-Lue: This is my first time to your site....Hey Mary-Lue: This is my first time to your site. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this topic. I agree with you that there are no real accidents, that God is in control, but I too struggle with the justice aspect of it all. I know, I know- we trust that God knows the ending and has a greater plan that we can conceive of, but in the meantime, the inequities stink. Hat's off to you for trying to make sense of this topic in an articulate way!Allyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15264625893829690986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-32904737570503564382007-06-20T07:18:00.000-07:002007-06-20T07:18:00.000-07:00SB - I'm glad you like the pot analogy. I often s...SB - I'm glad you like the pot analogy. I often stress over trying to explain myself and as I was writing, that picture came to me.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10270726693980247861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-89536343659220203552007-06-20T07:08:00.000-07:002007-06-20T07:08:00.000-07:00B&P, the linkage provided definitely favors the no...B&P, the linkage provided definitely favors the non-free will thing. I thought about that as I was finishing up the post. I don't think the Biblical evidence for free will is really that thin. The verses I used just popped into my head and I used them, perhaps because they often get used as "proof" verses. The point you make about pasting OT verses willy-nilly into our lives is exactly what I think but isn't as easy to provide easy linkage for. And, at midnight, I was fading fast and worried that I was really going to muddle things up if I tried to explain that side of things more.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10270726693980247861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-34927921414171927402007-06-20T07:06:00.000-07:002007-06-20T07:06:00.000-07:00When I finally finish reading all the submissions ...When I finally finish reading all the submissions and get my host post up, you'll see that I tackle the concept in a similar way.<BR/><BR/>I'm not confused by what you wrote, actually. I get it,a nd I'm not sure it is such a paradox.<BR/><BR/>Design doesn't mean a solid plan with no room for choices.<BR/><BR/>The angle I took was that what I have at base---what I was born into---was simply an accident of birth in that regardless of intent or not, it doesn't make me any better or worse than another person in a different position.Julie Pipperthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03169574697104642479noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-42619309492541444492007-06-20T05:21:00.000-07:002007-06-20T05:21:00.000-07:00Exactly. It always irks me when Christians assume...Exactly. It always irks me when Christians assume that you can take promises made in the OT to specific individuals and cut-and-paste them willy nilly onto our own lives. The fact that God called Abraham to move to a specific region does not mean that we have to wait for a miraculous sign before we decide which city to move to.<BR/><BR/>Also, I don't really think it's paradoxical to occupy a position between the two extremes of "There's no such thing as accidents" and "Everything's an accident." God can be active in the world, realizing certain possibilities and foreclosing others, while still allowing room for human actions and sheer accidents. <BR/><BR/>I noticed, though, that all the Bible-verse linky-bits were for the "AoB: No" side of things. Is the Biblical evidence for free will really as thin as all that?Beahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15957626443087438904noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-62704634161469497742007-06-20T04:37:00.000-07:002007-06-20T04:37:00.000-07:00Wowza.I don't believe completely in the "accident ...Wowza.<BR/>I don't believe completely in the "accident of birth" theory, either - for one thing, my ancestors made the deliberate choice to be here, my parents made the deliberate choice to have me and so while my SELF, my will, is of my own making, most of the stuff about me isn't very accidental, really.Beckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13953517447164263617noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25343848.post-12938113911992351722007-06-20T04:15:00.000-07:002007-06-20T04:15:00.000-07:00Before a cup of coffee.Before I've written mine, i...Before a cup of coffee.<BR/><BR/>Before I've written mine, if I even will.<BR/><BR/>Hmmm.<BR/><BR/>Mary, you've actually expressed yourself very well because I feel confused, yes and no.<BR/><BR/>Love your pot analogy. Time for breakfast.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com