Mutations cannot create new information...

Let us begin -

God is now here

God is nowhere

Accidentally transpose two letters

Dog is now here

Dog is nowhere

Accidentally transpose the word order of any of the above

Is god now here

Is god nowhere

Is Dog now here

Is Dog nowhere

Now god is here

Now is god here

Now Dog is here

Now is Dog here

Here now is god

Here is god now

Here now is Dog

Here is Dog now

Nowhere is god

Nowhere is Dog

Let me accidentally duplicate one letter....

Where is god now

Where now is god

Where is Dog now

Where now is Dog

Now where is god

Now where is Dog

Let me accidentally combine parts of the two

God is now Dog

Dog is now god

etc, etc...

Let me accidentally change a letter

There is god now

There is now god

There now is god

Is there god now

Is there now god

There is Dog now

There is now Dog

There now is Dog

Is there Dog now

Is there now Dog

Let me accidentally delete a letter

Is there no Dog

There is no Dog

Is there no god

There is no god


I think you get the picture.

How existential!

I've been contemplating the essential existential futility of life in a universe created by an omniscient, omnipotent, being.

Seriously, what could possibly make life more pointless than the existence of an omniscient omnipotent creator?

He knows how every story that has ever been written, or is yet to be, from the beginning to the ending of time, begins and ends.

After all, He wrote them!

(I would presume he wrote them after he created time, since, without time, there can be neither beginnings, nor endings.)

He knows, and has always known, for his eternal existence, what each and every one of us is going to do, every minute of every day, for our entire lives.

He is, therefore, absolutely as responsible for any evil, as he is for any good. (see: Job, The Book of.  Satan has gods permission to treat Job like shit.) He's omnipotent and omniscient, he, by the very definition of those words, has to be - not just is - but has to be, ultimately responsible for everything that happens. It's inescapable.

I mean, he's god!

If he's omniscient, god knew perfectly well what adam and eve were going to do before he even started creating the heavens and the earth. That's what omniscience means. It means god knows everything it is logically possible for god to know.

God keeps his eye on the fall of the sparrow.

And is therefore responsible for Barretta.

This is a problem for theists, so many Theologians are now trying to get around this by conceptualizing a creator god who is neither omnipotent, nor omniscient; a god who does not, himself, know what he, or we, his creation, are going to do in all situations.

God has become contingent - more like the big brother who's sort of a screw up, but who means well -  instead of the all powerful author of all existence.

Which isn't really a hell of a lot different from being no god at all.

And though this line of thought has been going on in higher level, non-evangelical, theological circles for quite some time, it certainly isn't something you're going to hear from the pulpit any time soon.

At least not from any preacher who wants to retain his post and fill the collection plate.

To those in the church.

 1st Cor 5:¹² What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? ¹³ God will judge those outside.

This is promptly followed by a command to "drive out the wicked from among you".

The critical distinction here being between those who have chosen to be of the church versus the rest of us unwashed Heathens. There is nothing here, in Paul's own words, to indicate that all the world is bound by his pronouncements. Only those who believe as he has taught them are under geas to follow Paul's commands.

The same is true of the old testament. Only the sons of Israel are bound by the 613 Mitzvot. In fact, for anyone outside the community to observe the mitzvot is wrongful, and, in the days of the Sicarii, a gentile could find himself suddenly dead at their hands should he, as an uncircumcised pagan, even discuss torah.

(If the gentile was lucky, he would only suffer immediate circumcision w/o benefit of anesthesia.)

To whit, the rules only apply to those WITHIN the organization.

It is clear that Paul would love everyone to join, in fact we would lie, cheat, and steal, if necessary towards that end, (How positively Machiavellian of him!) ;D 

^{1st Cor 9:19} Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. ²⁰ To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. ²¹ To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law)*, so as to win those not having the law. ²² To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. ²³ I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. (NIV)

As I am, of my own free will, (unless you're a reformed xtian. But today is not about election, or ultimate depravity), am not a member of the body of christ, I am not bound by your laws, and have no desire to be so bound. And I resent, to put it mildly, your insistence that I, as a member of a country whose government is solidly based on purely secular principles, be bound by your religious laws.

*So Paul is NOT under the law (god's), Yet a sentence later he is NOT free of god's law, but is under christ's law. Parse that if you please.... Hmm... This is an interesting distinction which might have repercussions regarding trinitarian thought and the unity of the godhead.