“THE DEATH OF GOD” IN THE MODERN SOCIETY
INTRODUCTION:
Throughout the history of mankind, there have always been certain things that separate men from animals. The opposable thumb, the superior intelligence, and the capacity to make tools are just a few of the things that separate man from beast. Yet one of the longest established and most controversial of these human characteristics is religion. Archaeologists have found that religious beliefs are as old as man himself. In the modern world though, it seems as if less and less people are buying into the religious doctrines and dogmas, and creating their own beliefs through a mix of science and philosophy. Why are people turning from organized religion? Has modern society “killed” God, replacing him with a more logical, scientific explanation, or is God just as prevalent today as he was thousands of years before?
This paper is based on “The Story of The Madman by Nietzsche”, In this story, a man, The Madman, lights a lantern when the sun has already risen and runs through the town yelling “I seek God, I seek God!” The people around him, many not believing in God, were amused by him and wandered if he was lost or had gone astray from his home. The Madman continued to proclaim in the streets “Where has God gone? I mean to tell you! We have killed him, you and I! We are all murderers!” The Madman goes on yelling trying to figure out for himself and the people around him how we had done such a thing, and what was going to happen now that “God is Dead.” He continues “God remains dead! And we have killed him! How shall we console ourselves, the most murderous of all murderers? The holiest, and the mightiest that the world has hitherto possessed, has bled to death under our knife – who will wipe the blood from us? With what water could we cleanse ourselves? What lustrums, what sacred games shall we have to devise? Is not the magnitude of this deed too great for us? Shall we not ourselves have to become Gods, merely to seem worthy of it?
The Term Paper on Concept Of God One Life Man
Zarathustra by Me Published 1895 translation by Gerardo Published 1999 PREFACE This book belongs to the most rare of men. Perhaps not one of them is yet alive. It is possible that they may be among those who understand my "Zarathustra": how could I confound myself with those who are now sprouting ears? -- First the day after tomorrow must come for me. Some men are born posthumously.The conditions ...
This is a concept created by Nietzsche based on the idea that traditional values represented by Christianity are useless. Most people in the 19th Century Europe had stopped following the Christian values-religion. This made Nietzsche to observe that people no longer relied on God, and thus summed it all up in his statement: “God is dead”. In this paper therefore, I will try to outline the circumstances in the modern world that will prove that what Nietzsche perceived then was just but a “prophesy” which has come to pass in the 21st century and beyond.
Frederick Nietzsche states clearly his reasoning for “God is dead, God remains dead, and we have killed him”. Western Civilization and its culture are to blame according to Nietzsche. The “Advent of Nihilism” is also to blame for the death of God. Nietzsche believes there is no objective order or structure in the world except what we give it.
Nietzsche’s argument is that with the “advent of nihilism”, man began to change his beliefs and faith in an all knowing, all powerful creator and instead, needs no master. The definition of nihilism could be taken as there is no free will due to every action being caused by an event or action before it. This lack of free will would then take God out of the picture and make man his own master. In my own opinion this is what is happening in our modern society. Most people attribute this to the lack of explanation as to why evil is thriving in the world if there is a God!
The Essay on Good God World Evil One
... faith. But if God was all powerful, then there wouldn't be no evil. God would simply destroy, or cast out evil within the world. And if God ... walk on. It's sad that evil exist among the world, but evil still exist. Some people perceive evil as symbol of "wrong ... action? The solution to this query is, cause 'this world is a will to power -- -- and nothing besides' (Nietzsche 550)! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ...
HOW GOOD CAN GOD BE DESCRIBED AMIDST WORLD EVILS
The presence of evil in this world is a harsh truth which cannot be denied either by a theist or by an atheist. Human beings have to face events like earthquake, bursting of volcanoes, flood, cyclone, epidemic, famine, starvation-deaths, killings, rape, war, Corrupt governments, indulgences, persecution, crime, materialistic greed, self-centeredness, Jealousy, Violence, Disease, Dishonesty, Stinginess, Irresponsibleness, Rudeness, Hatred, Torture, Genocide, Murdering… to name but a few from time to time.
This cruel reality is incompatible with the god of the theists. The idea of an omniscient, omnipotent and benevolent god is rendered inconsistent by the presence of evil in this world. Every year so many innocent persons are killed because of natural disasters, the most resent being the tsunami in Japan. Is god not aware of this? If he is not, then he cannot be regarded as omniscient. Now, if god knows about these evils, why he is not removing them? If god wants to eliminate these evils but is not able to do so, he cannot be omnipotent. If he can remove these evils but still does not do so, then he is not benevolent, and he is also not fit for being worshipped by us. And if god is capable of removing these evils, and he also wants to do so, then why these evils exist at all? The theists are incapable of giving any satisfactory reply to this question.”
These and many more questions have sent many people who before used to believe in a God, especially the youth and “the so called modern men and women” into a state of limbo! Whether to have a faith or not is an individual’s personal decision.
TECHNOLOGY AGAINST FAITH
Modern society is relentlessly struggling to define and understand the world, therefore eliminating all need for faith. “God is dead” does not necessarily mean that the being no longer exists, but that society’s faith in Him has died. God exists, but is powerless to assist those who have no faith. It’s as if there is a thick cloud of doubt and disbelief that is generated by today’s society which separates God and the people, and the cloud gets thicker each day. Unlike during the times of Nietzsche, anything expressing religion publically in Europe is termed offensive; the “Holy Cross” is no longer referenced and should not be hanged in classrooms or anywhere. Did Nietzsche foresee these things?
The Essay on Kingdom Of God Faith People Care
This excerpt from the passage of "Do Not Worry," from the Gospel of Matthew deals with issues such as faith, single-mindedness and worrying. Faith is an important part of this passage. To the people of biblical times, this passage spoke out a certain message - whoever has faith, will be taken care of by God. He will know who has been faithful and believes in him and He will take care of them. God ...
Technology is a major factor for diminishing faith. As the quality of technology increases, the need for faith decreases. Meteorologists strive to predict the future in nature. The Internet makes the world smaller by developing better communication between long distances. As we conquer the physical world with knowledge, there is no need for reliance on religion. Also, as technology helps people overcome natural disasters such as hurricanes, disease, drought etc. the reliance on God is diminished. It is easier to depend on the our governments and people close to us than something that cannot be seen.
Today is a hands-on society. When anything can be duplicated on the television or computer or in virtual reality, the average person becomes skeptical. God is not something tangible and therefore is subject to suspicion. The word of religion is doubted and faith dies, and with it, God. Society also has to try everything. Limitations are looked shunned and rules are expected to be broken. Any person, religion or belief that keeps people from acting upon their impulses, whims and desires are abandoned. The separation of people and God grows when His rules are not followed. Just like a disobedient teenager running away from their parents, society has divorced itself from the belief in God. As long as society focuses on knowledge, technology, and material, tangible things, society will continue to run away from God. Until the focus can be turned away from proof and turn towards faith, Nietzsche’s statement will continue to ring truth. Perhaps God is dead, but only through faith can He live again!
THE PROBLEM OF MORALITY
As far as morality is concerned, people have opted to develop and practice a secular and human morality based on logical and scientific thinking. The idea of god in our society is a stumbling block in developing morality in the true sense. “In the name of morality people cling to fossilized traditions, which often have no logical foundations. It is possible that in various religious scriptures some such actions have been called “right”, which could be regarded as right even from a logical point of view. But, on the other hand, in almost all scriptures many such things have been called “right”, which are totally wrong from a logical and human point of view. For example, the Hindu scripture Manu-Smriti justifies varna-vyavastha and untouchability, which are based on inequality. Similarly, Islam does not grant equal rights to man and woman. In the name of god and scriptures, the religious fundamentalists oppose social reforms including social changes in the direction of equality. In this way blind faith in “divine” scriptures is a big hurdle in the path of social reforms and in the growth of true morality.” Besides, faith seekers and religious people believe god is omniscient and omnipotent.
The Term Paper on God and Morality
... to believing in God, faith is a virtue. God and Morality pg. 5. Morality is an autonomous human virtue that is independent of God. Otherwise, it would ... based on God and Morality pg. 9the things that I believe to be the best choice for the people I love, people I do ... in which society is going in suggests that people have lost their “way”. Too many bad things happen due to human badness. God is ...
Nothing happens in this world without god’s will. The idea of free will in such people comes only when they are faced with the problem of evil. This kind of divine determinism leaves no scope for freedom of will. What a person will do at a particular time is already pre-determined. But if human beings are not free, then they cannot be held morally responsible for their actions. Human beings can be held responsible for their actions only if they are free to choose among various alternative options. The idea of god knocks the bottom out of morality. Thus, there is no room for freedom of will and morality if people attribute everything to a supper power. Such individuals discourage logical and scientific thinking itself. In order to preserve the belief in god, they start glorifying “faith” and “devotion”, on one hand, and they try to devalue the importance of reason, on the other. Instead of encouraging free thinking, they encourage superstitious mentality by saying that we ought to believe in the existence of god even though we do not have any evidence for doing so. Once we accept the superstition of god, the door is thrown open for all kinds of superstitions.
THE MODERN WORLD’S MEANING OF GOD
“God is a crutch for weak persons, who are unable to face the reality and who always want to remain a child. An adult human being should not need this false support…If we want to live our lives in a proper manner, and if we want to solve our individual and social problems in a sincere manner, the first essential precondition is that we must see our problems as they are, and we must take full responsibility for our future…We have to realize that social evils are human-made, they have nothing to do with the so-called god… We also have to realize that “divine justice” does not exist, and that god is not going to come as an avatar (incarnation) to solve our problems, we have to solve them ourselves.” Indeed this statement is not only a confirmation of Nietzsche’s prophesy “God is dead” but also a total movement from believe and faith.
The Essay on Personal Philosophy of Man , God and the World
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First of all, I am grateful to the Almighty God for establishing me to complete this project. I wish to express my sincere thanks to SOTERO H. LAUREL Librarians, for providing me with all the necessary facilities and books that I need to be able to carefully analyze all the topics that have been discuss in philosophy of human existence. I also thank Professor Josefina C. Perez, one ...
Conclusion
As a matter of fact, this paper could not come to a conclusion without asking one or two question among many in my mind as a student of philosophy. What is God? This is rather a big question and therefore I have to state here that a nonbeliever’s answer to this question would be to look at the believers and try to analyze “Why do people believe in God?” Secondly, Do people need proves for the existence of God? Who are concerned about God’s existence? Is it the believers or the nonbelievers? Nietzsche himself born of a Christian family, his father Ludwig was a Lutheran minister and his mother Franziska also a daughter of a Lutheran minister; was not able to withstand the forces against faith during his time. He gave up his theological studies in October 1864 and just a year later gave up his religion, thus as a student of philosophy in my questioning I also seek to understand. If God is ignored he has to be replaced with something, is it science or Education? No matter what it is, even no believing itself is something. From a Christian point of view, I want to assert here that, the idea of god cannot be ignored as a harmless superstition or just a concept of human mind! It is not possible for rationalists and humanists or for rational humanists, working in a god-dominated cultural atmosphere, to ignore this idea. If in a particular society a majority of individuals have ceased to believe in god, then the humanists of that particular society may give comparatively less importance to promoting atheism. But in a country like India promoting atheism should form an important part of the humanist agenda and hence Christians have to be alert. But for all the nonbelievers, I have to assert that the idea of god is a big hurdle obstructing the growth of human knowledge, development and morality or, in other words, the growth of human society. Therefore, you must get rid of the god idea. It is, in fact, a very positive thing to do.
The Term Paper on Is Grendel Evil Existence When Society Human
... develops a sort of wisdom and philosophy of life and existence. When society (humans) reject his desire to co-exist ... And if humoring those who would answer the previous question with the response that there can be no ... walk on, or to take form as a God himself and seek punishment for those who wronged ... a faith dedicated to itself and especially for the fact that no such being exists in the society of ...
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
http://www unreasonable faith -question-of-morals/faith in a modern society/.com (accessed on 27th August 2011)
objective morality exist without god.com (accessed on 27th August 2011)
Neitzsche Fredrich.Thus spoke Zarathustra, ed. Graham Parkes.Oxford: Oxford University Press 2005.
Nietzsche Fredrich. Human All Too Human. Ed. R.J Hollingdale. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
Nietzsche Fredrich. The Birth of Tragedy And The Case of Wagner. Walter Kaufmann. New York: Vintage Books, 1967.
Nietzsche Fredrick. On The Geneology of Morals. Ed. Walter Kaufmann. New York: Vintage Books, 1989.
Price A. Joan. Philosophy Through the Ages. Canada: Wadsworth Thompson Learning, 2000.
Young Julian. Nietzche’s Philosophy of Religion: New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006.
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[ 2 ]. The word “God” is used here mainly in the sense of “the creator of this world.” who is regarded as “the omniscient, omnipotent, benevolent creator, maintainer and destroyer of this world.”
[ 3 ]. Joan A. Price: Philosophy Through the Ages. (Canada: Wadsworth Thompson Learning, 2000), 326.
[ 4 ]. Nihilism, simply stated is the belief in nothing. No faith or greater power, no creator of the world. Man is his own God, his own judge and jury.
[ 5 ]. Fredrich Neitzsche. Thus spoke Zarathustra, ed. Graham Parkes. (Oxford: Oxford University Press 2005) , 179.
[ 6 ]. Belief in the existence of a god or gods, especially belief in a personal God as creator and ruler of the world.
[ 7 ]. http://www unreasonable faith -question-of-morals/faith in a modern society/.com (Accessed 27th August 2011.)
[ 8 ]. objective morality exist without god.com (accessed 27th August 2011)
