Do you believe that there are parts of the Creator in His creations?

Question

Fellows, this is a bit of a wordy question, so bear with me. :D

In general, everything created bears the mark of its creator simply by being formed by his unique vision. For example, some famous paintings can be characterized by style, layout, medium usage, etc- these paintings all bear the creator's vision and their brand. Therefore, do you believe that God is in everything that He creates? Does He sign His name on his creations and leave a lasting mark by which His works are evident?

The point of this question being- If this does in fact happen and God created Hell, is a part of Him imbued in the creation of this place? If so, why do people argue that in Hell, God is not felt?

JTM, I hope you are not a Christian, because you are a very poor one to try to insult me. By the way, my friend- if you decide to insult someone's intelligence, you should figure out how to write a proper sentence and make a coherent point. Thank you for your ignorant views.

Answer 1

This is an interesting question. When an artist creates a painting, she leaves evidence of herself but not a part of herself. The same could be said with God. Although creation is full of (in fact is nothing but) God's effects and God's "signature," it does not contain "parts" of God. That being said, Christians in the past have not hesitated to say that God was omnipresent by virtue of his power (eg., Thomas Aquinas). What this means is that we can say that God is "present" everywhere in the sense that his power is at work behind anything we could possibly encounter. Including Hell. Psalm 139 says that you couldn't flee from God's Spirit even if you descended into the depths of the earth, and if God is omnipresent by his power, it would be hard to see how God would be absent from Hell.

But just because something is present doesn't mean it's felt. My parents loved me all throughout my unhappy middle school years, but that didn't stop me from thinking that no one liked me at all. I take it that the separation from God in which Hell consists is a separation more on the person's part than on God's.

Answer 2

As a Hindu I believe that there is no distinction between the Creator and Creation. The entire universe is manifested from and yet maintained within God. Example: just as a wave is no different than the ocean it is formed from, thus is our soul no different than the ocean it is formed from. As a Hindu I strive to see God in everyone and everything and to treat/respect it accordingly the same way I treat/respect God.

As a Hindu I do not believe in Hell or any place that God is not (God is omnipotent/all-powerful, omniscient/all-knowing, and omnipresent/all-places). However, you do make a valid point that if God did create Hell that it would not be a place void of God completely....since it was created by the Creator. I think this is a good point that you bring up even though as a Hindu I do not believe such a place exists. Your thought concurs with Hindu teachings that there is no place that is without God because everything manifests from God. Your point changes the dynamics of Hell from what I've usually heard of it. Instead of being a place devoid of God, it is instead just a place of suffering. Hindus often say that if a person dies unconsciously (unaware...mind unfocused on God) that their karma takes over. If they have a lot of bad karma then their afterlife experience may be rough and full of suffering. Of course HIndus believe that these are just temporary states of consciousness and that we will incarnate into another body (thus even heaven...which is produced by own consciousness...is temporary). The ultimate goal of every Hindu is moksha (liberation) or mukti (freedom) from samsara (cycle of birth/death/birth/death/etc) that leads to complete union with God. The example most often used is like a river returning to the ocean so we (the droplets of water) return to the ocean (God).

Excellent question!!!

Peace be with you.

Answer 3

I'm a true believer, and I have no problem with evolution and the big bang. I believe the universe is an expression of God, but God is more than the universe. I also do not believe in the Old Testament literally, it has Jewish history and has folklore. Eve was not creted from Adam's rib. If God had explained to the people (who wrote the Old Testament) about how DNA initially evolved in microbes and how millions of years of evolution humans got to be here on earth -- how would these people have understood what was told to them? We became human when we understood right from wrong and wanted to know God, knowing that he must exist. Animals have no such concept, or if they do then they are blessed also. Most cultures have their own primitive explanations on how the world and who they were born as stories passed from one generation to the next, Jesus came to revolutionize the old Jewish religion. I do not believe any of the organized Christian religions have it right - Jesus did not build nor ask anyone to build glorious churches, they did not dress in glitter and top hats to preach, and they certainly did not collect vast amounts of wealth from the true believers.

Answer 4

It really depends on which gods you assume created the World. Different Myths from around the World attribute it to several different gods.

In Monotheism (Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Zoroastrism) believe God is a greater reality, Heaven, that isn't of our universe, and that He (it's always a "he" with monotheists) is not a part of his creation. The Bible declares that the universe does have God's "signature" on it, especially in the Book of Job ."The heavens declare the glory of God..."

Many non-christians believe in pantheism (all is god), and that god is creation, and is present is everything. "All that Groks is God"!

I'm not sure what Hell is, because it's defined as a separation from God, so in that case, we're in Hell already. Alledgedly, Hell was created, much like Tartarus, for angels and other entities that rebelled against YHVH, and have rejected and shut Him out from their existance. Sometimes it's confused with Revelation's "Lake of Fire", which seems to spring into existance at the Final Judgement.

Answer 5

The answer to this question depends almost entirely upon whether or not the person asked believes that God created everything out of nothing, "creatio-ex-nihilo". The alternative is that God organized the universe from pre-existing matter. For an enlightening article on this subject of "creation out of nothing" check out this website: http://en.fairmormon.org/index.php/Creatio_ex_nihilo

Take a look at the implications of the claim that God created Satan out of nothing. If God did, as claimed, create Satan ex nihilo, then God could have created Satan differently. Satan (and all mankind) could have been created with a nature that would not predispose him to commit sin.

If God could have created Satan (or a mortal) in a different way, then in some sense God is responsible for their evil natures. The sins and evils committed by fallen beings become God's fault, because He could have made things differently, but did not. How is it then just to judge or punish a sinner for sin if the sinful nature was created by God out of nothing?

This is a major philosophical problem for those who embrace creatio ex nihilo. The LDS view, in which God creates by organizing eternal matter and intelligence, does not have these problems. Satan sinned because of his eternal nature: he made free choices based on who he has always been. Likewise, mortals cannot blame God for their sins, because their core nature was not created by God.

A Latter-day Saint Christian would argue that it does not lessen God for Him to allow other beings to make free choices and receive the consequences. Rather, they believe that there is a "vast gulf" between the loving God of the Bible and a belief that God wilfully creates degenerate, fallen, and sinful beings and then punishes them for natures which He gave them.

These are just some of my thoughts. God bless you.

Sincerely

Arthur :)

Answer 6

If you are referring to the substance that permates everything, the atmosphere, water, plants, objects, ideas-basically energy, then yes. Of course.

Man, its so interesting to see people twist a thing as simple as energy. Thought-cause, effect. Basic, simple things. Why in the world would you think that there was a hell? You create hell. Not God. You create heaven. Not a God or any other outside deity. You. These are not "physical" places you go but what you create.

Answer 7

"Hell" is simply our turning away from God when we became afraid, and thought our Creator was no longer our loving Father. The world we see is the result of that.

But it is not a true result, as we can never truly leave God. Yes, God creates through an inner act upon Itself...God is in and through and as, all creation. The world is but a projection of mind, our mind, the mind of God as interpreted through our freedom to discover ourselves. We are one beloved child, one Son, dreaming he is a multitude. But in truth, we remain as created, in and of perfect Love.

Answer 8

Dissmissable assertion in context:
"everything created bears the mark of its creator..."

"Therefore, do you believe that God is in..."
- No. There are no "Gods."
"Does He sign His name..."
- Non-sentience cannot "sign."
"If this does in fact happen and God created Hell..."
- It did not happen and Hell's only in Norway and Michigan.
"God is not felt..."
- True... FableGods cannot be felt.

Answer 9

Yes God created everything that is - except hell. The Christians created that all on their own.

Answer 10

You don't see a physical part of the artists in his paintings, like a hand or an eye, but you may see reflections of the artist in the paintings.