If God does not create Evil, where does mental illness come from?

Question

This is an extension of the old riddle "whence cometh evil?" Many Christians reply evil is a result of human's imperfections and God-given free will.

For arguments sake and based on answers to my previous questions, let's assume the following parameters about a severe mental illness; a mental illness that leads a person to commit a heinous act that s/he would not commit if healthy:

a.) This severe mental illness superscedes or negates free will
b.) Mental illness is not of humans; it is not human made
c.) Looking at the evil acts that soemtimes arise from this severe mental illness, it clear that it is not God-made.

Whence cometh mental illness? Is it Satan? Am I wrong in assuming it is not created by God?

Answer 1

Evil usually refers to something both willed and conscious. That's what whole "tree of knowledge of good and evil" stuff of both Genesis and Milton's "Paradise Lost" is about.

A mental illness is usually a tragic, but entirely natural phenomenon. There can be no denying it means suffering for the individual and family, but "evil" doesn't really come into it.

If the mental illness is self-inflicted, then there may once have been evil in that.

But think about this - the secular justice system considers mental illness when evaluating criminal culpability. Why should it be any different as a religious question?

Answer 2

Mental illness has nothing to do with evil. It is generally caused by either genetic traits leading to a chemical imbalance in the brain...or a chemical imbalance in the brain caused by some outside influence...such as crack coccaine for example. Mentally ill people should be pitied just as we have pity on those that have an obvious physical disability.

However, many irrational acts or crimes are claimed to be the result of mental illness when they are not. People who claim that they just "lost it" because of stresses or whatever should still be held responsible for their actions. True mental illness removes the persons ability to know what is right and what is wrong...or what is real and what is imagined.

Answer 3

Well firstly the idea of God is mankinds way of making sense of where we came from because its hard for us to understand that life can just exist.

So for sake of arguement lets assume there is no God.

Mental illness can come from several different places.
Genetics, brain damage, environmental factors.

Genetics. A persons genes may become damaged from exposure to radiation and they may pass on those damaged genes to their offspring.

Brain damage: Head trauma, excessive drug or alcohol use, poisoning, etc can all cause different types of mental disorders.

Environmental: Living under constant stress of war or mortal danger, living with constant pain or sickness, or just not being taught right and wrong. These can also contribute to many mental disorders.

Answer 4

1 In the beginning Man created God; and in the image of Man created he him. 2 And Man gave unto God a multitude of names, that he might be Lord over all of the earth when it was suited to Man. 3 And on the seven millionth day Man rested and did lean heavily on his God and saw that it was good. 4 And Man formed Aqualung of the dust of the ground and a host of others likened unto his kind. 5 And these lesser men Man did cast into the void. And some were burned and some were put apart from their kind. 6 And Man became the God that he had created and with his miracles did rule over all the earth. 7 But as all these things did come to pass, the Spirit that did cause man to create his God lived on within all men: even within Aqualung. 8 And man saw it not. 9 But for Christ's sake he'd better start looking.

Answer 5

Why do you assume that mental illness is 'not of humans' - that's a pretty big assumption. Do you have a source to verify your assumption?

Different mental illnesses may have different origins - chemical imbalances in the brain, physical injury to the neural connections, psychological trauma caused by bad experiences, induced chemical imbalances through drugs, etc.

There's no need to invoke supernatural origins for mental illnesses, and certainly no reason to dub them 'evil'.

Answer 6

God guard you and us against the trickeries of the oppressors, the tyranny of the envious, and the violence of the despots.O believers, do not be misled by the tyrannical rulers and their fellows who are desiring only for the pleasures of this world, tending to it, deceive by its attractions, approaching it as well as its destruction and smashes which will certainly terminate and be ruined in the morrow.

Beware of matters against which God has warned you. Abstain from matters from which God has ordered you to abstain. Do not copy the inclination of those who regarded this world as a permanent abode.

All that which is in this world is evidence on its lowliness. Its ornamentation, changeability of manners, variableness of conditions, lessons, playing with people-all these are proofs on its lowliness.

EDIT:

In general, ill manners (evilness) and natural disasters (evils) - earthquakes, floods, etc... - are voids; and from this aspect they do not have fundamental existence (inasmuch as they are evil) to be counted among that which is good. In other words, sickness is void of health, blindness is void of site, opression is void of justice, and ugliness is void of beauty.

It surely exalts the mean and demeans the noble. It will drive some people into Hell. This is an efficient lesson, trial, and warning for the heedful.

Answer 7

Mental illness is a result of
a) genetics b)disease and c) lifestyle.

Don't blame God. You are wrong to assume anything about god. God is not good or evil. God IS. We are the choosers, we(Humans/Religions) are the creaters of good and evil.

Answer 8

Mental illness is caused by an imbalance in the chemicals in the human brain.

Answer 9

Issiah 45:7: I the lord create peace and evil

Answer 10

It comes from the continual decline of man's DNA since the Garden of Eden, and/or it is the resultant side effect of sin.

Either way, it is the by-product of Satan's influence in the world.