American Theodicy: An Essay

by Edward E. Rochon

Overview

A theodicy that can justly be called that is proffered in the essay. The preface notes the definition and common opinions about theodicy. I claim to win a victory over God by my standard of theodicy. The first chapter discusses how freewill complicates the matter, and discusses my arguments that freewill cannot justify evil actions. The second chapter lays out my theodicy that allows evil thoughts and desires but not evil actions. Punishment consists of the perpetual frustration of evil intent without any hope of fulfilling the intent. This is consistent with the freedom innate to sentience and with the duty of God to thwart injustice. Do not complain about Abel's murder, prevent it.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940046139532
Publisher:	Edward E. Rochon
Publication date:	08/28/2014
Sold by:	Smashwords
Format:	eBook
File size:	136 KB

About the Author

I write for my health and the health of the world. Often the cure rivals the disease in grief and aches. My writing career started at twelve when I attempted to write a sequel to Huckleberry Finn but never finished it. My writings have included poetry, plays, a novel, non-fiction and writing newsletters for here and there. Recently, I am dabbling into short stories. Apart from newsletters, nothing has been published in print. I bought an audio recording of one of my poems but threw it away in disgust due to an inappropriate reading by the narrator. 'Contra Pantheism...' was my first eBook. About a hundred eBooks have been published since including some books of verse, and my essays collected into five volumes, and one volume of collected poems. A few other types of literature are on my list of published works. My essays deal with fundamental questions of philosophy as well as natural philosophy (science.) On the whole, my works are as far above the writings of Plato and Aristotle as the material power of the United States is over that of Ancient Greece. I once asked myself if I had ever written anything memorable, but couldn't remember exactly what I had written. I started to check my manuscripts but stopped as it seemed the answer to the question was obvious. Gore Vidal mentioned in one of his memoirs that writers tend to forget what they write and are a bad source to ask about their works. Gore knew a lot of writers. I have not and may have been a bit hard on myself. Apart from self-improvement and maybe making a few bucks, my main goal is to bring about a golden age for mankind. Being a man, this sounds appealing. It is pointless to desist and all small measures are worth the effort. Albert Camus thought suicide the only serious philosophical question. He was a fool and died young. Suicide is a waste of time. The most important functional question is: How do I get what I want? The one question that trumps this is the ultimate question of intent: What should I want? As Goethe pointed out: Be careful what you wish for in your youth, you might get it in middle age.