evil?

[geordiegeorgie]

:trigger because this deals with potential dangerous issues

I have been wondering whether to post something on this topic for some time. But I am going to ask the question anyway

what concept, if any, do :fishy have of evil?

do :fishy believe and if so how, that evil has any influence in or behind EDs and other problems?

What has got me thinking most recently was a book I read by a psychiatrist who began to research the issue of evil ... and became a Christian because the evil he discovered was so similar to the Christian concept of Satan.

Three things struck me about what he said.

Satan is the father of lies The Bible says it and the book said it. Lies as in distortions of truth that are self-perpetuating and destructive. I cannot seem to stop believing that my life is utterly without hope and I am destined to basketcasedom for ever. And of course, I am fat. I think most of us :fishy, especially those of us really starving, believe that we are fat. Most of us have probably tried and failed to convince each other otherwise.

An overemphasis upon evil is counterproductive and dangerous Evil makes very boring, everyday intrusions into the lives of many. The case studies in the book were not full of oija boards and seances and dramatic exorcisms, they were about everyday struggling humans.

Evil can be defeated by love We cannot allow ourselves to be isolated, need to reach out to those who care, need to allow others to care. Not easy, though ...

Those are my thoughts, anyway. What do others think?

I hope this thread has not been inappropriate.

[purple_tao]

:love GG :love

Wow!! Great topic. And I don't think it's inapproriate; heck, this IS the spirituality board...

My concept of evil is that it definitely DOES exist. I mean, look at mass murderers, child molesters, thieves, wars........the list goes on. So, yes, there is as much evil around us as there is good. Satan? I don't believe there is such an "entity" i.e., a tangible "thing"; to me Satan is a collective name given to evil.

Evil = lies. TRUE!!! I think I'm fat. I know that's a lie because I KNOW I'm not fat, it's more of a feeling. And what a stupid feeling! How the hell does one FEEL fat??? But, this is the great ED lie we've all come to believe. Is there evil behind it? I think so. Evil's purpose is to drive us away from happiness. As long as we succomb to the lies, we are as far away from happiness as we can be. The LIE is working!!

Anyone ever read C.S. Lewis' "The Screwtape Letters"??? There's an eye-opener !!

Right, we shouldn't dwell on evil things. It doesn't get us anywhere. That's like focusing on the negative; not the positive. We need to stay up-beat and optimistic. Always have hope. Good stomps out bad. Love conquers all. Nice sayings...but like you said, it's hard.

Evil is the arch enemy of peace and happiness. We need to :kick evil in the crotch :surprise !! Evil is that damn ED voice that whispers lies in our ever-attentive ears. ALL LIES he feeds us.

Thanks GG (and Moses :kitty)
:peace

[dreadbunny]

Very :cool , thought-provoking post! I like being forced to kick my little brain in gear and think! :grin

I'm still debating with myself as to whether I believe in evil as an entity (ie Satan- I almost typed Stalin which would be a whole different political argument :sarcasm ). Currently I see it more as a distance from God.

For me personally, I think if I really were in tune with God and how much I'm loved I wouldn't believe for a second the self-destructive lies which lead me to SI/starve/purge/abuse pills. When I take a second to calm my spirit (hey, I could be on Oprah! :winky ) and realize that everything really will be okay then the anxiety/pain might not go away but how I deal with it totally changes.

Thanks for such a great topic!

:love & faith
:bunny

[Ickleclaire]

:hugon :bowl :hugoff

honestly, i can't say i believe in an absolute evil; nobody and nothing out there is a hundred% bad. i mean, it says it right there in my GCSE history textbook i'm plowing thru for tomorrow: hitler wanted to go to art school. now, don't get me wrong, he was *extremely* evil, but it does make u think, that maybe there was a little spark of good in him, and that if it had been nurtured....

anyways, i'm guess what i'm trying to say is even the worst of us out there have a good side. however, it depends which side wins out :sad nobody's perfect; and likewise, nobody's a completely dark soul.

i reaaaaalllly hope i haven't offended neone with my example :ugh

eudaimonia!
maia xxx

[geordiegeorgie]

Ooooooh ... lots of replies :cool

Yes Kieran I have read The Screwtape Letters ... totally eyeopening and revealing ... and extremely funny!

And :bunny ... totally agree with what you say about the need for perspective. That is one of the main points of the humour of The Screwtape Letters. As for questions on how personal and specific evil is as a force ... hmmmm. Difficult one. I have some to believe that it is one of those situations where it is best to believe whatever seems the most helpful. For some people being able to characterise evil as those little red men with tridents gives a focus of something to overcome, for others a vaguer view offers more hope. I don't know precisely what I think. Like you, I want to get closer to God. And that, ultimately, is what matters.

Maia ... I agree with you that nobody is completey evil. I was not trying to say otherwise and I think it needs to be emphasized that there is hope for us all. Have you heard of the Ommeramagau Passion Play? A Christian example I know ... but the performance has a scene not actually found in the Bible. Judas, the one who got Jesus executed, is visited by an angel and offered a new chance from life ...

Anyone else have anything to contribute?

[*Lissa*]

GG,
An interesting topic, and one which I'll be most interested to read more replies to.

I am not a Christian, although I was raised as one, but pagan. Nevertheless, I did go to confirmation studies, and I know quite a lot about the more common world religions. Living in the western world, it is basically unavoidable to have some sort of relation to the concepts of evil and Satan.

I do not believe in Satan, nor in any other physical manifestation of evil, even though I do believe there are beings that are essentially evil (ie more evil than good). Evil, for me, is as natural as good, and a prerequisite for us to be able to perceive goodness. It's like yin and yang - you cannot have one without the other; they are interdependent. We have free will, and can thus choose between good and evil, and those values are not absolute, but relative and depending on context.

[doggie]

:hugon GG :hugoff What a question :cheesy....I believe in evil, but I must admit with my eclectic grab bag of religious beliefs I'm not settled on just what I think it is. I feel we all have the potential for evil and saintly behaviour within us, a dark side and light side. I believe in Satan as an entity because I believe in angels and he is a fallan angel, so I have no trouble with that concept. It may be that he took many minions with him when he left God's side and I think perhaps if we are not strong enough in our spiritual side that they can invade us and cause varying degrees of illness and uncertainty. He is said to be the master of deception and we sure have issues with self deception and our body images........we will just have to rely on prayer and love to drive evil out of our lives :love :dog