Evil

I found this in an e-mail list. He hits the nail on the head!

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I would think that evil is a corruption of the good and that evil or in modernist language; human corruption can be seen as being expressed in the fanaticized consciousness. The term fanaticized consciousness, as it is used by Gabriel Marcel is the modern term for what has been referred to as idolatry in religious history. The fanaticized consciousness is brought into existence and maintained by some object or idea. Some one can speak against the fanaticized consciousness and be accused falsely of being against sex, peace, liberty etc. because the fanaticized consciousness can be seen as being at the very heart of things and ideas that are basically good or neutral, but are used as mechanisms of self-aggrandizement by power obsessing people. Those who are severely narcissistic cannot see the destructive consequences of their activities. So the intention of these types of people may not be altogether evil, but the consequences are.

I believe that the appropriate response to what could be referred to as evil forces working through the power of idolatry is through C.S. Lewis’s natural law from his book: “mere Christianity.” 1. Prudence 2. Temperance 3. Justice as Fairness 4. Fortitude. But, of course, it only produces personal and social harmony when everyone in your life space is in accordance with it. When others who are after manipulative and exploitative power make you their target, then you must respond in some way: submission to corruption, over-responding and becoming malignant yourself or in some way perfectly responding what ever that means.

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1 Response to Evil

  1. ed pacht's avatar ed pacht says:

    It’s been (I think rightly) said that heresy stems from the overemphasis of truth at the expense of other truth. For example, to overemphasize the truth that God is one leads to Unitariansm, while to overemphasis that Father, Son, and Holy Ghost cannot be confounded together, an equally strong truth, leads to some form of polytheism. Likewise the rightful insistence on orthodox teaching can militate against love for the erring — and, as surely, an overemphasis on this very love can lead to a disdain for orthodoxy. It’s not really Christian at all to respond to error by submitting to it, nor is it God-pleasing to respond to it with malignancy. Somewhere between these extremes is where that “perfect response” may be found. Though inevitably we do not quite find it, with the help of God we can approach more or less closely to the Way that Christ has marked out for us.

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