Can the Devil Do Good?

Originally posted by eatmybishop
good can come from evil, but evil cant come from good.... either way the devil cant win

sure it can. if you save hitler do you not allow WWII to happen? ignoring the possibility that had WWII not happen, something even more horrible.

from any actions can come more than one kind of consequences, some good some bad

Originally posted by DoctorScribbles
I see. Does that mean he is necessarily gay?

Gold!

Originally posted by DoctorScribbles
I see. Does that mean he is necessarily gay?

Although I am sure you realise it, there are a number of flaws in your logic:
1. The devil only chooses the most evil course of action available to him. Since he is not human, he cannot be gay.
2. If angels can be gay - it might not in fact be evil for them - but only for humans. The story of Adam and Eve sort of implies that the concept of male and female was invented at that point.
3. There might in fact be something far worse than being gay. In fact, I would think that a straight person committing gay acts is more sinful than a gay person committing gay acts as it is clearly dishonest as well. I would in fact rate adultery as a worse sin than gay acts as it is more likely to cause harm.
4. Following from the first part of 1. God might actually be able to prevent the Devil from committing certain acts - one would assume so, or we would expect to all be already dead and in hell.

Originally posted by twhitehead
Although I am sure you realise it, there are a number of flaws in your logic:
1. The devil only chooses the most evil course of action available to him. Since he is not human, he cannot be gay.
2. If angels can be gay - it might not in fact be evil for them - but only for humans. The story of Adam and Eve sort of implies that the concept of male ...[text shortened]... tting certain acts - one would assume so, or we would expect to all be already dead and in hell.

it was a joke

good can come from evil, but evil cant come from good.... either way the devil cant win

If evil can't come from good, and God is the infinitely perfect creator and sustainer of the Universe, then where does evil come from?

Originally posted by Pawnokeyhole
[b]good can come from evil, but evil cant come from good.... either way the devil cant win

If evil can't come from good, and God is the infinitely perfect creator and sustainer of the Universe, then where does evil come from?[/b]

from sin

Originally posted by PinkFloyd
from sin

Where did sin come from?

Originally posted by AThousandYoung
Where did sin come from?

Allow me to answer for the theist:

God created human beings with free will. They sin freely, without this being causally necessitated to do so by any prior conditions.

But now:

But who created this possibility? Answer: God did. He acted so to create a situation in which the possibility arose of evil occuring through the free actions of human beings.

Now, doesn't he bear some responsibility for creating this situation? He could have refrained from doing so. He chose not to. His creative action is at the root of all evil.

Originally posted by AThousandYoung
Where did sin come from?

Man was given free will, yes. he chose sin when offered it by Satan. Satan was allowed into the mix for reasons only God knows, in his omniscient wisdom.

Originally posted by DoctorScribbles
Does the Devil ever do good, or does he always choose the most evil course of action?

No and yes, respectively.

Originally posted by josephw
No and yes, respectively.

Does this mean that the devil is gay, since being gay is a sin?

Originally posted by DoctorScribbles
Does this mean that the devil is gay, since being gay is a sin?

I don't see the connection.

Originally posted by josephw
I don't see the connection.

Well, is being gay a sin? If so, how can the devil be maximally sinful if he is not gay?

Originally posted by DoctorScribbles
Well, is being gay a sin? If so, how can the devil be maximally sinful if he is not gay?

I don't know. Who do you think he would be gay with if he was?

Originally posted by josephw
I don't know. Who do you think he would be gay with if he was?

Saddam Hussein?