Beyond Good and Evil - The nature of Morality

We did talk about the nature of morality in the bit on Chistianiy of mine, but I feel this deserve to be looked at again in greater depth. So in this bit I want to adress the following issues:
a) What is needed for objective morality
2. How can we unify the existence of evil with a wholly good God. 

This is going to be more a philosphical than a theological work, but I do believe that this is a logical approach to arrive at the christian principles of morality.

And with this we are going to start
a) What is needed for objective morality
This has 3 requirements.
-A source from beyond this world from which everything else came
-Creation was initiated by this source with a purpose in mind. 
-This source must be caring to at least some degree about this world
Without these being given no objective morality can be dereived. So to demonstrate why I give a few exmples.
If creation isnt dereived from a single source then we have the following options:

Polytheism/Paganism:
In this every one of the gods has his role of creation, and you can choose which one you follow and ultimately justify any kind of deed as a kind of worship. Every deities claim would be as legitimate as that of any other deity and thus the only thing matters which you personally like and choose to follow.

Atheism:
This is facing the same kind of problem and only skips the middlemen. Instead of choosing the deities through the things you like you just choose the things directly based on your personal taste. There is nothing that makes your idea of good being "running into a burning orphanage to save the children inside" better than that of the guy who considers its good to set the orphanage on fire.
This is generally tried by using some appearent bias in nature and base your morality on this, but the means of what you dereive it from again are in on itself entirely up to yourself. But here again we can look at some common examples to see the relativistic natuer of them.
 -The"do not harm" philosophy:
which while sounding good is entirely open to interpretation. What is "harming" someone? We first need to define what is even bad for someone. Is what we feel an accurate meassurement? Then Heroin must be the best thing ever, I heard. Ask someone who is about to jump from a bridge what he thinks wether death is something good or bad, or ask a serial killer even, so maybe killing isnt too bad after all
- Appealing to natur
"The animals do this so it must be natural for us too". Yet various animals show different behavior, how close must the example be to us to be viable? Why would apes be close enough?
I heard it being argued that behavior is based on the DNA and thus the DNA is the source of morality which evolved together as a survival mechanism with us and any ill behavior would be mutation. But who is to say the mutation isnt progress? We have some animals that kill of the offspring of a previous alpha male or kill their own in general, having evolutionary adventages because of that, so again you can just pick and choose which behavior is meant to be in the DNA and which not.

Gnosticism:
This is a bit difficult to make a certain statement as there are various sects with various scriptual and theological choices, and here is one of the problems already. All these sources they use are just subjective choices as there is no canon, no library which everyone can agree on, the sources and believes can be handpicked based on your personal taste and im sure there is a gnostic sect around already.
But we can make some statements on faiths they old hold, one would be that God created good and evil, thus he must contain both (as everything is God), and thus doing evil is embracing him just as much as doing good. The left hand path (service to yourself) VS. the right hand path (service to others).
There is the luciferian approach. Luciferianism is one branch of satanism, most commonly found in the form of Gnosticism. Its found in the lie of the serpent

5“For God knows that in the day you eat of it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

"You will be like God". Up til then we were ruled over by God through his morality, the fruit was basically allowing us to make up our own morality and thus no longer be ruled over anymore.
Large part of luciferian/satanic philosophy is argumentation about how there is no objective good and evil, that its whatever you want, and thus you are free to do whatever you want. They perceive laws and morals, instead of advices and guidelines for a prosper life and society, as chains and limitations that keep them from doing what they really want, masking their evil merely as freedom and liberation. This is what the fruit represents.
Casting off Gods morality, making our own, thus "liberating" us from Gods law and making up our own and thus rule over others, "being like God".
By doing this you end up being able to rationalize and justify any deed, since you define which is good yourself. Subsequently hurting others in order to advance is not an issue and that gives them an edge over the rest, the good ones who wouldnt harm others for their personal gain. Subsequently the top is full of the worst scum, and the good guys are brought down, the last will be the first.

In the imagery you find this represented by the checkered floor, the dualistic world where people are ruled by good and evil. They use the staircase/ladder to transcend the morality, turning from pawns into gods/players and are no longer controlled

This branch often actually perceives the objective morals of God as existent, declare them however as unjust, tyrannical and oppressive, and as a result rebellion against this system is the just cause.

In there also fits the classical Satanism
Here again are a bunch of different sects around, even atheistic ones, but the general premise is "I am God", "I decide what is good and what is bad", "I decide what I do and not do" and if this contradicts with God then God is wrong (If they even believe he exists and not use his non-existence as an argument for why they are the ones to decide). I dont think I have to explain how this becomes relativistic.

Now that we see the first requirement is necessary, lets look at the second one.
"Creation was initiated by this source with a purpose in mind"
If creation "just happened" as part of a natural cycle then everything that happens within is just part of it too. Its only when this happened with an intent, with a purpose in mind we are meant to achive, a meaning for this existence is given and with it things we are meant to do and not do. Good and evil.

 The 3rd one kind of belongs to the second.
"This source must be caring to at least some degree about this world"
If the source didnt care for this world he wouldnt have created it. Or to say it the other way around, since he did created it he did so because he wants something to happen here and thus has some care.
Also since we have established the morals can come from a source outside creation this source must be involved in our actions. Otherwise, if the source doesnt care about us upholding the morality then there is no reason we should either. There is nothing.



Since we established that for a metaphysical framework with objective morality a single source is required, that wants us to do good and reject evil it leaves the question "Why did this good and creator create evil too?"
Now there are a couple example from "He isnt actually good", "he is good and evil", to "he did so by error". But I want to focus on the Christian version of God, meaning a single creator from which all comes that his perfect, allmighty and wholly good.
So the second part is exactly about this:

2. How can we unify the existence of evil with a wholly good God.

This is a question that can be explained in various ways, and they all pretty much come down to the same, but still I feel we should look at the angles individualy.
The simplest one is "What God tells us to do is good, and what he tells us to not do is evil". This is the simple version about God giving us a purpose.

The other angle is look at how sin is defined. Here God is wholly good on the premise of being perfect alone as evil is imperfection. To sin, and thus do evil, is to miss our purpose.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sin 

Sin has many classifications and degrees, but the principal classification is that of "missing the mark" (cheit in Hebrew).

The mark we should aim for being perfection that is lawfulness in completion.
Even the greek word translated as sin plays into this
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamartia 

The term hamartia derives from the Greek ἁμαρτία, from ἁμαρτάνειν hamartánein, which means "to miss the mark" or "to err"

Our pupose being perfection, to be like God/Jesus. So doing evil is doing something wrong, being imperfect meaning a perfect being, like God inadvertedly is, is wholly good. As such sin creates a "distance" to God. The more sin you have, the more imperfection, the less you are like God, perfect, and thus evil can be within God.

Now the question is why God lets evil happen when he doesnt want it.
 Its simple, it boils down to free will. And free will requires the ability to choose, and if you cant choose wrong you dont choose at all. As such for free will to exist so does the possibility of evil needs to exist (not evil itself mind you).
Or to say it differently, to do good free will is required, as without the choice to do evil, and resisting it for the sake of good, doing the good thing would just be following a programming, and thus can hardly be called good when you didnt have another chance.
So to give us a chance at true goodness he gave us free will, and this free will requires the chance to do evil, and now we are in the time where evil is tolerated for us to realize it leads to ruin and be rebuked by us. Making us learn that Gods law is just and good by showing us where lawlesness leads to.
Also if he were to interfere at every sin then the free will would effectively not exist and we also would never learn our lesson and CHOOSE to be with God. And every day, every moment he waits is just more time he gives us to make the right choice

9The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.- 2 Peter 3

To end this I want to adress some points which may be misunderstood.
a) I dont think this is proof that the christian morality is correct or works. Im just saying that it uses the only logical consistent framework to provide objective morality as a concept, no matter how they look. Its my personal believe coming through basic observations and experiences that I believe the christian morals to be correct like the rise of Europe as a force conquering the world while following the basic law and western civillization collapsing as soon as we forsake the most basic laws.
2. I dont think that people without this framework are automatically amoral. People can derive the correct moral system through various means. Buddhism for example as a similar moral system derived seemingly through observation and thinking and derived fairly close to that of Christianity. And that many arive at the same point through various means I see that as evidence of this bit being true.

13For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but it is the doers of the law who will be declared righteous. 14Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15So they show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts either accusing or defending them - Romans 2

The children of God will recognize the truth in teachings, the voice of our shepherd which is the truth

7So He said to them again, “Truly, truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who came before Me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness. 
11I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12The hired hand is not the shepherd, and the sheep are not his own. When he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf pounces on them and scatters the flock. 13The man runs away because he is a hired servant and is unconcerned for the sheep. 
14I am the good shepherd. I know My sheep and My sheep know Me, 15just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father. And I lay down My life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them in as well, and they will listen to My voice. Then there will be one flock and one shepherd.