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    Carmelics

    A reasoning platform. Break down any belief into clear reasons, explore both sides, and weigh the evidence honestly.

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    LoyalLoyalJusticeJustice
    Made withinDC&Austin
    Statements
    321,452
    Perspectives
    108,905
    Topics
    42
    Home/Original/inverse
    See Original
    Inverse View

    It is not the case that Divine forgiveness consists in God rejoicing in our repentance — that is, God ceases to suffer on our account when we repent.

    ?Set your confidence on the premises below to see your aggregate.

    Reasons For

    2 perspectives
    Reason for 1 of 2
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    • 1.Forgiveness, as analyzed by philosophers like Charles Griswold, is a normative act directed at a wrongdoer, not merely an internal emotional state of the forgiver.
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      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.A purely emotional account — God rejoicing at repentance — conflates causal psychological relief with the morally significant act of forgiving, collapsing the distinction between feeling better and actually forgiving.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 3.On this view, God's rejoicing would occur even if the repentant person had wronged a third party, meaning God's emotional state tracks repentance rather than the moral relationship between wrongdoer and victim.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Reason for 2 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Classical theism (Aquinas, Augustine) holds that God is impassible — incapable of suffering or emotional change — making divine suffering conceptually incoherent.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.If God cannot suffer, then forgiveness cannot consist in the cessation of divine suffering, and a different account of divine forgiveness is required.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Reasons Against

    1 perspective
    Reason against
    ?
    • 1.God, like any loving parent, suffers on our account when we do evil.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.When we repent, God feels our joy and ceases to suffer.
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      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 3.This emotional change — from suffering to rejoicing — is a good candidate for divine forgiveness.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

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