Satan did it!!!Honest!

[Don Penguinoini]

I dont see how, as humans, intelligent humans, we can blame temptations on satan, by saying, he made me think like that. Did god not give us free will? I think its childish to blame our problems on Satan, some chanting and jumping around wont make us good and destroy our inner demons (real lil demons in our liver)

Thoughts?

 

[tomspug]

Well, who is to blame for Desdemona's death? Othello or Iago?

(For those that haven't read Othello, Othello murdered his wife for suspicions of infidelity that was entirely untrue. Iago, through pure hatred for Othello, convinced him of these falsities that led Othello to murder his newlywed bride.)

 

[Don Penguinoini]

And tthey are?

 

[rojse]

And tthey are?

They are characters from a Shakespeare play, Othello.

 

[tomspug]

Yeah, I edited my post to explain. Check it.

Technically, it was completely Othello's fault for killing his wife, but the general response of people who see the play is to have a seething hatred for the character of Iago, who manipulates him and leads him to believe that Othello's wife was unfaithful. However, Othello also had a nasty temper, suffering from brain-induced seizures.

 

[Aasimar]

Well, who is to blame for Desdemona's death? Othello or Iago?

(For those that haven't read Othello, Othello murdered his wife for suspicions of infidelity that was entirely untrue. Iago, through pure hatred for Othello, convinced him of these falsities that led Othello to murder his newlywed bride.)

Othello. Iago didn't kill her. Iago is to blame for lying, Othello is guilty of the murder.

 

[rojse]

Well, who is to blame for Desdemona's death? Othello or Iago?

(For those that haven't read Othello, Othello murdered his wife for suspicions of infidelity that was entirely untrue. Iago, through pure hatred for Othello, convinced him of these falsities that led Othello to murder his newlywed bride.)

Although Iago inspired Othello to kill his wife, there were other ways Othello could have dealt with the problem, such as divorce. Othello chose to kill his wife, and the same reaction would have occured should Othello have thought his wife was an adulteress without Iago's intervention.

 

[tomspug]

Exactly. I don't think it's necessarily childish for wanting to blame things on Satan (Iago), because he definitely had a hand in it, but ultimately it's the sinner that pays the price for his/her sin. Satan will be punished for his own.

 

[kadzbiz]

I dont see how, as humans, intelligent humans, we can blame temptations on satan, by saying, he made me think like that. Did god not give us free will? I think its childish to blame our problems on Satan, some chanting and jumping around wont make us good and destroy our inner demons (real lil demons in our liver) Thoughts?

I don't believe in Satan as I don't believe in God. Perhaps those people who believe in God feel that their only excuse for doing bad things is to blame their wickedness on Satan and simply ask for forgiveness from God for allowing themselves to be persuaded by Satan.

 

[Smoke]

I said, "I ain't gonna buy no dress, devil!"
And he pulled a gun!
​

 

[tomspug]

I don't believe in Satan as I don't believe in God. Perhaps those people who believe in God feel that their only excuse for doing bad things is to blame their wickedness on Satan and simply ask for forgiveness from God for allowing themselves to be persuaded by Satan.

Perhaps since you are an atheist you aren't in a position to make judgments about beliefs you don't understand.

 

[tomspug]

I said, "I ain't gonna buy no dress, devil!"
And he pulled a gun!​

Hilarious!

 

[Azakel]

Perhaps since you are an atheist you aren't in a position to make judgments about beliefs you don't understand.

I'm a Theist and I don't believe in Satan, the idea of a being that can make you or at lest tempt you in to something is just ridiculous. It would be know different then blaming someone else in the same way. Scapegoat are nothing more then something made up so people don't have to truly take responsibility for there own actions.

 

[fullyveiled muslimah]

In an islamic POV shaitan is only a whisperer of ill deeds, or even deeds that do not seem ill at all but have devestating consequences. The person is all to blame for actual act because shaitan can't compel a person to do anything they truly refuse to do. We call that act of whispering waswas ( not was was but was as in say wasp drop the 'p' sound). This is shaitan only weapon against mankind weak in it's essence but is powerful because it speaks to the desires already present in people. It is not a shift in responsibility since the person bears the full weight of an ill-deed they have done. Since shaitan cannot compel a person to wrongdoing, he may only suggest it, then he is ultimately not responsible for the deed if you do it. He is only responsible for his strong suggestions in that regard.

 

[Gentoo]

Exactly. I don't think it's necessarily childish for wanting to blame things on Satan (Iago), because he definitely had a hand in it, but ultimately it's the sinner that pays the price for his/her sin. Satan will be punished for his own.

But Satan and Iago are two completely different beings in different circumstances. For one, Iago was a living, breathing person that openly interacted with multiple people. Satan, however, cannot be proven to even exist outside of the constraints of Christianity. Therefore, it is much MUCH more difficult to prove that Satan "definitely had a hand in" anything at all.

 

[rojse]

But Satan and Iago are two completely different beings in different circumstances. For one, Iago was a living, breathing person that openly interacted with multiple people. Satan, however, cannot be proven to even exist outside of the constraints of Christianity. Therefore, it is much MUCH more difficult to prove that Satan "definitely had a hand in" anything at all.

If you assumed for a moment that Satan was a reality, would this change your response at all?

 

[Sunstone]

Perhaps since you are an atheist you aren't in a position to make judgments about beliefs you don't understand.

I don't have to be a Democrat to understand the Democratic platform. I don't have to be a communist to understand communism. I don't have to be a Nietzchean to understand Nietzsche. Now you tell me I must be a theist to understand theist beliefs. Well, Aristotle once said the mark of an educated man was his ability to understand something without believing in it. Are you suggesting atheists are "uneducated"?

 

[Somkid]

I think if anyone really believed "the devil made me do it" the judicial system would not work at all, how could you sentence someone for the devils deeds? If I ever committed a crime I would be the first one to swear on the Bible as I could find justification in it for my acts and when the court would tell me that's too bad I would point out they had me swear on the Bible thus it must be their law.

 

[doppelganger]

I think if anyone really believed "the devil made me do it" the judicial system would not work at all, how could you sentence someone for the devils deeds? If I ever committed a crime I would be the first one to swear on the Bible as I could find justification in it for my acts and when the court would tell me that's too bad I would point out they had me swear on the Bible thus it must be their law.

There's some element of that in our criminal justice system in the U.S. It helps to be "in Christ" while attending one's parole hearings.

 

[kadzbiz]

Perhaps since you are an atheist you aren't in a position to make judgments about beliefs you don't understand.

I don't have to be a Democrat to understand the Democratic platform. I don't have to be a communist to understand communism. I don't have to be a Nietzchean to understand Nietzsche. Now you tell me I must be a theist to understand theist beliefs. Well, Aristotle once said the mark of an educated man was his ability to understand something without believing in it. Are you suggesting atheists are "uneducated"?

Well, looks like I don't have to say anything now...