Dystheism is the belief that God does exist but is not wholly good, or that he might even be evil. The opposite concept is eutheism, the belief that God exists and is good. This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... In religion and ethics, evil refers to the morally or ethically objectionable behaviour or thought; behavior or thought which is hateful, cruel, excessively sexual, or violent, devoid of conscience. ... ... This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ...

The notion of dystheism is closely related to theodicy (the problem of evil, the Euthyphro dilemma). This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... The Euthyphro dilemma is found in Platos dialogue Euthyphro, in which Socrates asks Euthyphro: Is the pious (τὸ ὅσιον) loved by the gods because it is pious, or is it pious because it is loved by the gods? (10a) In monotheistic terms, this is usually transformed into: Is what is moral...

Terminology

Eutheism and dystheism are straightforward Greek formations paralleling atheism; δύσθεος in the sense of "godless, ungodly" appearing e.g. in Aeschylus (Agamemnon 1590). The terms were (first?) used by University of Texas at Austin philosophy professor Robert C. Koons in a 1998 lecture. According to Koons, "eutheism is the thesis that God exists and is wholly good, [... while] dystheism is the thesis that God exists but is not wholly good." “Atheist” redirects here. ... This article is about the ancient Greek playwright. ... The Oresteia is a trilogy of tragedies about the end of the curse on the House of Atreus, written by Aeschylus. ... The University of Texas at Austin, often called UT or Texas, is a doctoral/research university located in Austin, Texas. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ...

Before this, there was no established term for the belief that God existed and was not good, although the word "misotheism" (meaning "hatred of God") had been included in the dictionary since 1907^[1] and the word "maltheistic" had been used online, as well as among designers and players of role-playing games^[2], to describe a world with a malevolent deity. Misotheism-greek (μίσος miso-hate, theism- of God, from Greek Θεός theos)-literally hatred of God or Gods. ... The Generic Universal Role-Playing System, commonly known as GURPS is a form of a role-playing game (RPG) designed to adapt to any imaginary gaming environment. ...

Historically speaking, no one term has been consistently applied to the dystheistic viewpoint. Usage of dystheism seems to be limited to Koons' lecture, but it appears to be the only example at all of a word used in an academic context to describe this phenomenon. (Whether or not Koons coined this term himself is difficult to prove or disprove, but we have found no prior attestation.) Related terms include:

• Misotheism is defined as "hatred of God". It is comparable to the original meaning of Greek atheos of "rejecting the gods, rejected by the gods, godforsaken." Strictly speaking, the term connotes an attitude towards God (one of hatred) rather than making a statement about God's nature. Evil people, for example, might hate a good God for thwarting them in their evil pursuits. Conversely, good people might hate an evil God.
• Antitheism is direct opposition to theism. As such, it is generally manifested more as an opposition to belief in a God (to theism per se) than as opposition to God himself, making it more associated with antireligion. But antitheism by this definition does not necessarily imply belief in any sort of God at all, it simply stands in opposition to the idea of theistic religion. Under this definition, antitheism is a rejection of theism that does not necessarily imply belief in God on the part of the antitheist. Some (particularly religious extremists) might equate any form of antitheism (or even atheism) to an overt opposition to God, since these beliefs run contrary to the idea of making devotion to God the highest priority in life.

  Some eutheists erroneously conflate this kind of antitheism (and even atheism) with dystheism, under the assumption that any belief which does not promote devotion to God as the highest priority in life is deemed to be against God. Many of these eutheists further assert that anyone failing to love God as they do is therefore evil, applying this condemnation to antitheist, atheist, and dystheist alike.

• Maltheism is the name given to the overt belief that God exists and is evil. While some people think the word connotes a belief that we should be evil (since God is), the opposite is true: maltheists go against the assumption that God is a "supreme being" and thus a role model for people. They deny the presumed goodness of God, citing examples in believers' own religious texts as ample reason for doing so, and suggest that we should either ignore or fight against God's efforts to make us fulfill his agenda and rather than fulfilling our own.

Misotheism-greek (μίσος miso-hate, theism- of God, from Greek Θεός theos)-literally hatred of God or Gods. ... Although the term atheism originated in the 16th century, based on Ancient Greek ἄθεος godless, denying the gods, ungodly[1] and open admission to positive atheism in modern times was not made earlier than in the late 18th century, atheistic ideas and beliefs, as well as their political influence, have a... Antitheism (sometimes anti-theism) is active opposition to theism. ... Theism is the belief in the existence of one or more gods or deities. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... “Atheist” redirects here. ... Eutheism and dystheism are dialectic opposites within the spectrum of theistic religious beliefs. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Origins

Dystheistic speculation arises from consideration of the problem of evil—the question of why an omnipotent, omniscient, and supposedly omnibenevolent God would allow evil to exist in the world. Koons notes that this is only a theological problem for a eutheist, since a dystheist would not find the existence of evil (or God's authorship of it) to be an obstacle to theistic belief. In fact, the dystheistic option would be a consistent non-contradictory response to the problem of evil. Thus Koons concludes that the problem of theodicy—explaining how God can be good despite the apparent contradiction presented in the problem of evil—does not pose a challenge to all possible forms of theism (i.e., that the problem of evil does not present a contradiction to someone who would believe that God exists but that he is not necessarily good). This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

This conclusion implicitly takes the first horn of the Euthyphro dilemma, asserting the independence of good and evil morality from the God defined in monotheism. Historically, the notion of "good" as an absolute concept has emerged in parallel with the notion of a single God identified with it. In this sense, dystheism amounts to the abandonment of a central feature of historical monotheism: the de facto association of God with the summum bonum. The Euthyphro dilemma is found in Platos dialogue Euthyphro, in which Socrates asks Euthyphro: Is the pious (τὸ ὅσιον) loved by the gods because it is pious, or is it pious because it is loved by the gods? (10a) In monotheistic terms, this is usually transformed into: Is what is moral... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section cites very few or no references or sources. ... In theology, monotheism (Greek μόνος(monos) = single and θεός(theos) = God) is the belief in the existence of one deity or God, or in the oneness of God. ... Summum bonum (greatest or supreme good) was first introduced to humanity as Ahura-Mazda, `The Ultimate Good` who is God, by the Persian prophet Zoroaster, whose ideas would later heavily influence Judeo-Christian beliefs. ...

Where Are the Dystheists?

Koons viewed dystheism as largely a hypothetical position which has not found historical defenders. Even those who bring up the position from a scholarly theological perspective do not overtly advocate it. (Koons himself identifies as a Lutheran.) While a number of people have voiced dystheistic opinions, few if any have applied that label (or any label) to those opinions. The Lutheran movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity by the original definition. ...

The majority of people in the modern world who do believe in the existence of an evil supernatural being tend not to identify it as "God", but rather as "demon", "devil" or similar. Such people are not dystheists; only those who believe that the entity identified as God is not wholly good can be considered dystheists. This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... St. ... Satan frozen at the center of Cocytus, the ninth circle of Hell in Dantes Inferno. ...

Likewise, the numerous examples of people spontaneously expressing "hatred of God," not as a theological principle but as a statement of anger or unhappiness over misfortunes attributed to Acts of God, are not necessarily dystheists. The majority of such people return to eutheistic belief after such "tests of faith" (often through the encouragement of clergy, community, and family), but many do not. Act of God is a common legal term for events outside of human control, such as sudden floods or other natural disasters, for which no one can be held responsible. ...

One possible reason for the apparent rarity of real world dystheists is that theists who define God as both omnipotent and omniscient usually view God as the sole authoritative arbiter of moral law, claiming that his actions and prescriptions are good because God is good by definition. This view stems from the divine command theory, an approach to morality arising from accepting the second horn of the Euthyphro Dilemma. According to this view, there is no logical possibility that the terms "God" and "good" can be in opposition. The circularity of this notion has caused divine command theory to fall into disfavor from a theological perspective, surviving only in radically modified forms that many modern theologians find unsatisfying. (This attitude towards divine command theory among theologians has not diminished its popularity amongst believers in general.) The divine command theory is the metaethical theory that morality (e. ... The Euthyphro dilemma is found in Platos dialogue Euthyphro, in which Socrates asks Euthyphro: Is the pious (τὸ ὅσιον) loved by the gods because it is pious, or is it pious because it is loved by the gods? (10a) In monotheistic terms, this is usually transformed into: Is what is moral... Process theology (also known as neoclassical theology) is a school of thought influenced by the metaphysical process philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead (1861–1947). ...

Another possible reason for the apparent rarity of real world dystheists is that no word until now has been adequately catalogued or registered within academic circles to denote this belief or its adherents, even though there have been numerous examples of the sentiment throughout history. As Bernard Schweitzer wrote, "Strange enough, though, that the English vocabulary seems to lack a suitable word for outright hatred of God... [even though] history records a number of outspoken misotheists."^[3] Misotheism-greek (μίσος miso-hate, theism- of God, from Greek Θεός theos)-literally hatred of God or Gods. ...

Biblical evidence

Main article: Ethics_in_the_Bible#God's_benevolence

There are various examples of arguable dystheism in the Bible, sometimes cited as arguments for atheism (e.g. Bertrand Russell 1957). Most of these are from the Pentateuch, the theological nature of which is still close to henotheism. A notable exception is the Book of Job, a classical case study of theodicy, which can be argued to consciously discuss the possibility of dystheism (e.g. Carl Jung, Answer to Job). To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This Gutenberg Bible is displayed by the United States Library of Congress. ... “Atheist” redirects here. ... Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell OM FRS (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970), was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician and advocate for social reform. ... Look up Pentateuch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Henotheism (Greek heis theos one god) is a term coined by Max Müller, to mean devotion to a single God while accepting the existence of other gods. ... The Book of Job (איוב) is one of the books of the Hebrew Bible. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Carl Jungs partially autobiographical work Memories , Dreams, Reflections, Fontana edition “Karl Jung” redirects here. ... Antwort auf Hiob (Answer to Job) is a 1952 book by Carl Gustav Jung addressing the moral, mythological and psychological implications of the Book of Job. ...

• The story of Adam and Eve, Genesis 2:16: God setting up a trap for Adam and Eve.
• Tower of Babel, Genesis 11:1: God jealously chastising humanity for attempting to succeed using their own talent.
• The Hardening of Pharaoh's Heart in the story of Moses in Exodus: God is explicitly shown to inspire impious behaviour on the Pharaoh's part (interfering with free will) so he can punish him for it.
• Deuteronomy 7:1-6, 20:16-17, God calling for cruelty and even genocide against the Canaanites (mitzvot 596-598)
• In the Book of Job God is shown to play idle games with Satan over the suffering of a pious man.
• Deuteronomy 5:8-10 - God expressly admitting jealousy and in turn, punishing children - innocent of "iniquity of their fathers" - for generations after.
• Noted contradiction between a "god of love" and the destructive and intolerant god that visited plagues, destroyed cities and toyed with Abraham by asking for the sacrifice of his beloved son as "proof" of his conviction.

Michelangelos Creation of Adam, from the Sistine Chapel. ... Genesis (Hebrew: , Greek: Γένεσις, meaning birth, creation, cause, beginning, source or origin) is the first book of the Torah, the Tanakh, and the Old Testament. ... Engraving The Confusion of Tongues by Gustave Doré (1865), who based his conception on the Minaret of Samarra According to the narrative in Genesis Chapter 11 of the Bible, the Tower of Babel was a tower built to reach the heavens by a united humanity. ... Genesis (Hebrew: , Greek: Γένεσις, meaning birth, creation, cause, beginning, source or origin) is the first book of the Torah, the Tanakh, and the Old Testament. ... Moses with the Tablets, 1659, by Rembrandt This article is about the Biblical figure. ... It has been suggested that Pharaoh of the Exodus be merged into this article or section. ... Free-Will is a Japanese independent record label founded in 1986. ... Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible. ... Genocide is the mass killing of a group of people as defined by Article 2 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (CPPCG) as any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or... This article is about the land called Canaan. ... Main article: Mitzvah 613 Mitzvot or 613 Commandments (Hebrew: ‎ transliterated as Taryag mitzvot; TaRYaG is the acronym for the numeric value of 613) are a list of commandments from God in the Torah. ... The Book of Job (איוב) is one of the books of the Hebrew Bible. ... For other uses, see Satan (disambiguation). ... Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible. ...

Historical and Literary Examples of Dystheistic Thought

While eutheism describes the orthodox belief of all or nearly all monotheistic religions, beliefs that might be termed "dystheistic" have nevertheless frequently been expressed in various cultures, often manifesting themselves in art and literature. While labels like "dystheistic", "misotheistic", or "maltheistic" may not have been used explicitly to describe moral criticism directed against God, these terms could be applied to many historical and literary examples:

• The trickster gods that play a part in many polytheistic belief systems often have a dystheistic nature. One example is Eshu, a trickster God from Yoruba mythology who deliberately fostered violence between groups of people for his own amusement, saying that "causing strife is my greatest joy." But polytheism in general involves multiple deities that have good and evil aspects (some having both).
• The early Gnostics believed that the God worshipped by Jews and Christians was really a demiurge that stood between us and some greater, more truly benevolent real God. The Gnostic Gospels were suppressed for many years by the established church. (Strictly speaking, the Gnostics believed that a good God existed beyond the demiurge, and that the demiurge was not God, therefore it's stretching the truth to call them dystheists.) Similarly, Marcionites held beliefs deemed maltheistic in nature, depicting the Old Testament God as a wrathful, genocidal, malicious demiurge.
• John Milton's Paradise Lost is often cited as an apology of Satan's rebellion against a despotic God, suggesting that if God's supremacy is only justified by brute force, then Satan was justified in rebelling against God's tyranny.
• Critics of Calvin's doctrines of predestination frequently argued that Calvin's doctrines did not successfully avoid describing God as "the author of evil."
• Thomas Paine wrote in "The Age of Reason" that "whenever we read the obscene stories, the voluptuous debaucheries, the cruel and torturous executions, the unrelenting vindictiveness, with which more than half the Bible is filled, it would be more consistent that we called it the word of a demon than the word of God." But Paine's perspective was a deistic one, critical more of common beliefs about God than of God himself.
• Emily Dickinson's poem "Apparently With No Surprise" depicts God as approving of suffering in the world, relating the tale of a flower "beheaded" by a late frost as the sun "measure[s] off another day for an approving God."
• Algernon Swinburne, a controversial poet in Victorian era England, wrote in his epic poem Atalanta in Calydon:

• Ivan Karamazov in Fyodor Dostoyevsky's 1879 The Brothers Karamazov articulates what might be termed a dystheistic rejection of God. (Koons covered this in the lecture immediately following the one referenced above.)
• Author Rebecca West wrote in an early essay called "The New God" (written in 1917):

• The characters in several of Tennessee Williams' plays express dystheistic attitudes, including the Rev. T. Lawrence Shannon in The Night of the Iguana:

• Paul Erdős, the eccentric and extremely prolific Hungarian-born mathematician, referred to God as "the Supreme Fascist" (SF) who deliberately hid things from people, ranging from socks and passports to the most elegant of mathematical proofs.
• In Jewish author Elie Wiesel's play, The Trial of God (1979) the survivors of a pogrom, in which most of the inhabitants of a 17th-century Jewish village were massacred, put God on trial for his cruelty and indifference to their misery. The play is based on an actual trial Wiesel participated in that was conducted by inmates of the Auschwitz concentration camp during the Nazi holocaust, but it also references a number of other incidents in Jewish history including a similar trial conducted by the Hasidic Rabbi Levi Yosef Yitzhak of Berdichev.

• Much of post-Holocaust theology, especially in Judaic theological circles, is devoted to a rethinking of God's goodness. Examples include the work of David R. Blumenthal, author of Facing the Abusing God (1993) and John K. Roth (whose essay "A Theology of Protest" is included in Robert Sutherland's 2006 book Putting God on Trial). This idea is echoed in writings from other religions, including Phillips (2005) as well as the modern fiction of Salman Rushdie and Anne Provoost:

• Dystheistic sentiment has also made its way into popular music, evincing itself in controversial songs like "Dear God" by the band XTC (later covered by Sarah McLachlan) and "Blasphemous Rumours" by Depeche Mode, which tells the story of a teenage girl who attempted suicide, survived, and turned her life over to God, only to be hit by a car, wind up on life support, and eventually die:

The output of songwriter/composer Randy Newman also includes several songs expressing dystheistic sentiment, including the ironic "He Gives Us All His Love" and the more overtly maltheistic "God's Song (That's Why I Love Mankind)", both from his acclaimed 1972 album Sail Away. In the latter song, Newman bemoans the futility of dealing with a God whose attitude towards humanity is one of contempt and cruelty.

• A number of science fiction stories present a dystheistic perspective. Most prominent is Lester del Rey's Evensong (included as the first story in Harlan Ellison's famous Dangerous Visions anthology), in which a fugitive God is hunted down across the universe by a vengeful humanity seeking to "put him in his place." Olaf Stapledon's influential novel Star Maker is another prime example. The original series of Star Trek had numerous episodes with dystheistic themes, in which the crew of the Enterprise sought to thwart powerful deities from exercising authoritarian control over people, including The Squire of Gothos, Who Mourns for Adonais?, Day of the Dove, and Return of the Archons.
• In 2006, Australian artist Archie Moore created a paper sculpture called "Maltheism", which was considered for a Telstra Art award in Australia during 2006. The piece was intended as a representation of a church made from pages of the Bible, specifically the Book of Deuteronomy:

• Scientology believes that the thetan (analogous to the soul in common religious parlance) is a spirit imprisoned in a living human body and taught by force to constrain its natural impulses and abilities (cf. "total freedom") towards a set of goals imposed on the host body by malicious external forces. These external forces are what most humans call God; God is the one who constrains humanity by pushing down our natural spirit. Scientologists believe this and seek to liberate people from enslavement to the imposed engrams in their reactive minds through a dense mythology that subliminally gives narrative form to the supposedly sick insanity in which God engages, allowing believers to visualize and personify it, and eventually destroy it.

There is some room for ambiguous interpretation here, especially with respect to many of the artistic/literary expressions presented above, in that many of these examples can be (and have) been labeled examples of atheism rather than of dystheism or maltheism. If the sentiment arises from an atheistic perspective (as in "God does not exist, but if he did then he would be a monster based on…"), this is different from the perspective of one who believes God does exist and concludes that malevolence is a fundamental part of his nature. Many proponents of this sentiment in art and literature (e.g., Woody Allen, Salman Rushdie, George Carlin) are "lapsed" or secularized former believers who abandoned the eutheistic religions in which they had been brought up. It is unclear whether their abandonment of those religions represents an embracing of atheism, or a continuation of belief in God's existence coupled with a change of heart about his nature. The trickster figure Reynard the Fox as depicted in an 1869 childrens book by Michel Rodange. ... Polytheism is belief in or worship of multiple gods or deities. ... Eshu represented in concrete with his features made with cowrie shells. ... The mythology of the Yorùbá is sometimes claimed by its supporters to be one of the worlds oldest widely practised religions. ... Gnosticism is a blanket term for various religions and sects most prominent in the first few centuries A.D. General characteristics The word gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis (γνῶσις), referring to the idea that there is special, hidden mysticism (esoteric knowledge... The Demiurge, The Craftsman or Creator, in some belief systems, is the deity responsible for the creation of the physical universe. ... The Gnostic Gospels are a class of writings about the life of Jesus which are associated with the early mystical trend of Gnostic Christianity. ... In Early Christianity Marcionism is the dualist belief system that originates in the teachings of Marcion of Sinope at Rome around the year 144 (115 years and 6 months from the Crucifixion, according to Tertullians reckoning in Adversus Marcionem, xv). ... Note: Judaism commonly uses the term Tanakh. ... For other persons named John Milton, see John Milton (disambiguation). ... Title page of the first edition (1667) Paradise Lost is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton. ... Calvin is a first and last name. ... Predestination and foreordination are religious concepts, under which the relationship between the beginning of things and the destiny of things is discussed. ... Thomas Paine (Thetford, England, 29 January 1737 – 8 June 1809, New York City, USA) was a pamphleteer, revolutionary, radical intellectual, and deist. ... Wikisource has original text related to this article: The Age of Reason For the 18th Century intellectual and scientific movement, see The Age of Enlightenment. ... For other uses, see Ceremonial deism. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Algernon Swinburne, Portrait by Rossetti Algernon Charles Swinburne (April 5, 1837 – April 10, 1909) was a Victorian era English poet. ... The poor poet A poet is a person who writes poetry. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her Ascension to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem God Save the King (Queen) England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified  -  by Athelstan 967 AD  Area  -  Total 130,395 km²  50,346 sq mi  Population  -  2007 estimate... Fyodor Dostoevsky. ... The Brothers Karamazov (Братья Карамазовы in Russian, ) is the last novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky, generally considered the culmination of his lifes work. ... Dame Rebecca West, DBE (December 21, 1892–March 15, 1983), whose real name was Cicely (she later changed it to Cicily) Isabel Fairfield, was a British-Irish feminist and writer famous for her novels and for her relationship with H. G. Wells. ... Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), better known by the pseudonym Tennessee Williams, was a major American playwright and one of the prominent playwrights of the twentieth century. ... The Casa Iguana hotel in Mismaloya The Night of the Iguana is a play by Tennessee Williams about American tourists in Mexico. ... Paul ErdÅ‘s, also Pál ErdÅ‘s, in English Paul Erdos or Paul Erdös (March 26, 1913 – September 20, 1996), was an immensely prolific (and famously eccentric) Hungarian mathematician who, with hundreds of collaborators, worked on problems in combinatorics, graph theory, number theory, classical analysis, approximation theory, set... Leonhard Euler, one of the greatest mathematicians of all time A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study and research is the field of mathematics. ... Eliezer Wiesel (commonly known as Elie, born September 30, 1928)[1] is an American-Jewish novelist, political activist, and Holocaust survivor. ... Pogrom (from Russian: ; from громить IPA: - to wreak havoc, to demolish violently) is a form of riot directed against a particular group, whether ethnic, religious or other, and characterized by destruction of their homes, businesses and religious centers. ... Auschwitz, in English, commonly refers to the Auschwitz concentration camp complex built near the town of Oświęcim, by Nazi Germany during World War II. Rarely, it may refer to the Polish town of Oświęcim (called by the Germans Auschwitz) itself. ... It has been suggested that Internment be merged into this article or section. ... National Socialism redirects here. ... ... Hasidic Judaism (Hebrew: Chasidut חסידות) is a Haredi Jewish religious movement. ... Rabbi, in Judaism, means ‘teacher’, or more literally ‘great one’. The word Rabbi is derived from the Hebrew root word , rav, which in biblical Hebrew means ‘great’ or ‘distinguished (in knowledge)’. Sephardic and Yemenite Jews pronounce this word ribbÄ«; the modern Israeli pronunciation rabbÄ« is derived from a recent (18th... The front page of a copy of Kedushas Levi printed in 1861 Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev (1740-1810) was a rabbi and Hasidic leader, and one of the most beloved figures of Eastern European Jewry. ... Holocaust theology refers to a body of theological and philosophical debate, soul-searching, and analysis, with the subsequent related literature, that attempts to come to grips with various conflicting views about the role of God in this human world and the dark events of the European Holocaust that occurred during... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Salman Rushdie (Hindi: Urdu: سلمان رشدی,) (born Ahmed Salman Rushdie, on June 19, 1947, in Bombay, India) is a British-Indian essayist and fiction author. ... Anne Provoost (born 1964 in Poperinge, Belgium) is a Flemish author who lives in Antwerp, Belgium, with her husband and three children. ... XTC are an influential new wave band from Swindon, England. ... Sarah Ann McLachlan, OC, OBC (born January 28, 1968) is a Canadian musician, singer and songwriter. ... Blasphemous Rumours / Somebody is Depeche Modes twelfth UK single (released on October 29, 1984), from the album Some Great Reward. ... Depeche Mode are an electronic band formed in 1980 in Essex, England. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... Sail Away is a 1972 album by Randy Newman. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... Lester del Rey (Ramon Felipe Alvarez-del Rey) (June 2, 1915 - May 10, 1993) was an American science fiction author and editor. ... Evensong is a short story by Lester del Rey from Harlan Ellisons science fiction anthology Dangerous Visions. ... Harlan Jay Ellison (born May 27, 1934) is a prolific American writer of short stories, novellas, essays, and criticism. ... Dangerous Visions (ISBN 0-425-06176-0) was a path-breaking science fiction short story anthology edited by Harlan Ellison and published in 1967. ... William Olaf Stapledon (May 10, 1886 – September 6, 1950) was a British philosopher and author of several influential works of science fiction. ... Star Maker (1937) is a cornerstone work of science fiction by Olaf Stapledon, in which he undertakes the immense task of describing the entire history of life in the universe. ... The starship Enterprise as it appeared on Star Trek Star Trek is a culturally significant science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry in the 1960s. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Squire of Gothos is an episode of Star Trek: The Original Series. ... Who Mourns for Adonais? is a second season episode of Star Trek: The Original Series. ... Day of the Dove is a third season episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, first broadcast November 1, 1968 and repeated June 17, 1969. ... The Return of the Archons is a first season episode of Star Trek: The Original Series. ... Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible. ... Scientology is a system of beliefs and practices created by American pulp fiction[1][2] and science fiction [3] author L. Ron Hubbard in 1952 as a self-help philosophy. ... Doctrine Practices Concepts People Public groups Organization Controversy In Scientology, the concept of thetan (pronounced THAY-tan) is similar to the concept of spirit or soul found in other belief systems. ... An Engram is a term for the (hypothesized) means by which memory traces are biologically stored as physical or biochemical change in the brain (and other neural tissue) in response to external stimuli. ... In Dianetics and Scientology, the reactive mind is a concept created by L. Ron Hubbard, referring to a hypothetical portion of the human mind which Hubbard blamed for most mental and physical ailments. ... In Dianetics and Scientology, Clear is defined as a state in which a person is free of unwanted influences of past memories, unwanted emotions, and mental and physical pain not existing in present time. ... Fnord is the typographic representation of disinformation or irrelevant information intending to misdirect, with the implication of a conspiracy. ... “Atheist” redirects here. ... This article concerns secularity, that is, being secular, in various senses. ...

References

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a comprehensive multi-volume dictionary published by the Oxford University Press. ... Thomas de Quincey from the frontispiece of Revolt of the Tartars, Thomas de Quincey (August 15, 1785 – December 8, 1859) was an English author and intellectual. ... 1785 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Year 1859 (MDCCCLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Bill Moyers Bill D. Moyers (born June 5, 1934 as Billy Don Moyers) is an American journalist and socialist public commentator. ...

Literature

• Blumenthal, David R. (1993). Facing the Abusing God: A Theology of Protest. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993, 348. ISBN 0-664-25464-0. 
• Mark Mirabello, The Crimes of Jehovah (1997), ISBN 1884365132.
• Naylor, Janet; Caroline Julian, Susan Pinsonneault (1994). GURPS Religion. Austin, TX: Steve Jackson Games, 1994, 176. ISBN 1-55634-202-0. 
• Phillips, D. Z. (2005). The Problem of Evil and The Problem of God. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress, 2005, 280. ISBN 0-8006-3775-5. 
• Provoost, Anne (2004). In the Shadow of the Ark. Minneapolis, MN: Arthur A. Levine, 2004, 384. ISBN 0-439-44234-6. 
• Russell, Bertrand (1957). Why I Am Not A Christian. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 1957, 266. ASIN B000JX1TIK. 
• Sutherland, Robert (2006). Putting God on Trial: The Biblical Book of Job. Victoria, BC: Trafford Publishing, 2006, 226. ISBN 1-4120-1847-1. 
• Schweitzer, Bernard (2002). Rebecca West: Heroism, Rebellion, and the Female Epic. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2002, 184. ISBN 0-313-32360-7. 
• Wiesel, Elie (1979). The Trial of God. New York, NY: Random House, 1979, 208. ISBN 0-8052-1053-9. 

See also

• Antitheism
• Misotheism
• Satanism
• Gnosticism
• Euthyphro dilemma
• problem of evil
• theodicy
• summum bonum
• Ethics in the Bible
• free will
• meta-ethics

Antitheism (sometimes anti-theism) is active opposition to theism. ... Misotheism-greek (μίσος miso-hate, theism- of God, from Greek Θεός theos)-literally hatred of God or Gods. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... The Euthyphro dilemma is found in Platos dialogue Euthyphro, in which Socrates asks Euthyphro: Is the pious (τὸ ὅσιον) loved by the gods because it is pious, or is it pious because it is loved by the gods? (10a) In monotheistic terms, this is usually transformed into: Is what is moral... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Summum bonum (greatest or supreme good) was first introduced to humanity as Ahura-Mazda, `The Ultimate Good` who is God, by the Persian prophet Zoroaster, whose ideas would later heavily influence Judeo-Christian beliefs. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Free-Will is a Japanese independent record label founded in 1986. ... In philosophy, meta-ethics or analytic ethics [1] is the branch of ethics that seeks to understand the nature of ethical properties, and ethical statements, attitudes, and judgments. ...

External links

Academic

• Lecture by Robert Koons (University of Texas at Austin) developing concepts of dystheism and eutheism (see also)
• Articles and essays from web site of David R. Blumenthal (Professor of Judaic Studies at Emory University and author of Facing the Abusing God: A Theology of Protest)

The University of Texas at Austin, often called UT or Texas, is a doctoral/research university located in Austin, Texas. ... Emory University is a private university located in suburban Atlanta, Georgia. ...

Literary

• Account from the life of Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berditchev that was part of the inspiration for Wiesel's "The Trial of God"
• Transcript of interview with Elie Wiesel
• Anne Provoost's novel In the Shadow of the Ark (interview)

Popular Culture

• George Carlin on God
• Lyrics to Randy Newman's "God's Song (That's Why I Love Mankind)"
• Mr. Deity, a series of short videos by Brian Keith Dalton depicting a bumbling and callously malicious God

This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Online/Blogosphere

• Atrocities committed or commanded by God
• Atrocities of God and his servants
• The moral imperative to rebel against God
• God on Trial: A Critical Analysis of the Book of Job
• Even If I Did Believe
• Online introduction to Maltheism
• Maltheism Blog