Journey into Insight Chapter 4

‘Do not be afraid, only believe.’ (Mark 5:36)

‘Therefore do not be anxious for tomorrow; .....

Evil In Perspective

Those who have tasted extremes of experience, can have no doubt as to the existence of heaven and hell; rather than places, they are states of being. To associate evil with painful experiences or unwelcome conditions is a useful guide as to the kinds of things we should avoid inflicting on others and, in general, on ourselves. However, the subject of evil is not so simple, for we are also taught that accepting temporary, and sometimes life-long, suffering may lead us to even greater happiness later or in eternity. So although evil and the unwelcome are closely related, it is clear that not everything that is undesirable or painful in the short term is necessarily evil. Evil must be seen with a long term view. By way of a simple analogy, parting with a valued possession or having to undertake medical treatment might never be pleasant at the time, but it can be regarded as regrettable only if it leaves the person worse off in the long term; otherwise it could be described as a worthwhile investment.

Perhaps the most accurate definition of evil might be ‘anything which is a hindrance to greater happiness, particularly of the permanent or eternal kind’. This, however, forces us to recognise our severely inadequate understanding of evil and our need for some farsighted source of guidance. It is likely that our perception of evil differs significantly from God's view because of our limited ability to extend our perspective beyond the foreseeable future. Traditionally, the existence of evil has been attributed to ‘Satan’, however the subject of angels, saints and demons and their influence on humanity is beyond the scope of this book. For the purposes of this chapter, we may conveniently confine our discussion to the relatively short term, human perception of evil that is more tangible to us.

The Existence of Evil

How can God, who is revealed as goodness and love, permit evil to exist at all? A detailed discussion of this problem which has puzzled philosophers for centuries would be too extensive. Ultimately, we do not know enough about God to offer a satisfactory explanation, however, it is possible to make some interesting observations:

Good and evil, as we know them, are not like pure black and white; there are degrees of good and evil. Sometimes it is very difficult to draw a clear dividing line to separate them. Often they appear to be mixed in an interdependent way, and practical decision-making frequently involves ambivalence and compromise.

Pain is unwelcome because people are sensitive. It may not be good to experience pain, but the ability to feel it appears to be essential to survival.

We cannot learn to ‘do good’ freely if no possibilities but good ones exist; nor can we learn to control ourselves and our environments, which is necessary for freedom, without problem situations to master.

Good and evil, like order and disorder, are personal perceptions influenced by our values, aims and sensitivities, rather than objective characteristics of the material circumstances. Situations tend to be interpreted according to individual preferences, and what is order for one person is often seen as disorder by another.

No personal state, event or circumstances can be defined as good or evil without regard to the fitness and adaptation of the individual - one may suffer and another may thrive. The most well founded generalisations about what is bad for people, are likely to have their exceptions, and what appears to be a tragic condition to an onlooker, is not always seen that way by the victim. Even more significant is that some people have accomplished great things precisely because of their ‘handicaps’. In those instances, they often regarded their own conditions as assets, not liabilities.
Much confusion arises when we try to make absolutes out of concepts that are, by their nature, relative. So it is with good and evil. Even when we label God as the greatest good, what we really mean is that a close and harmonious relationship with Him is the ultimate good experience for us. Were it not so, the term ‘good’ would be meaningless.

Nevertheless, whatever reasoning we use to explain the existence of things we regard as evil, the possibility of becoming a victim still remains very real and all we can do is to seek ways to handle that possibility.

Fear and Avoidance

Fear has its roots in each individual's own perception of evil, which is linked to his values, sensitivities, experience and imagination, and his wariness of the unknown. It expresses itself in a variety of forms, ranging from a prudent respect for things that are able to do harm, to severe anxiety which can cripple the ability to think rationally. It is a powerful force that can improve our safety or destroy our well-being depending on what we let it do to us. In general, fear makes us naturally inclined to act so as to avoid unpleasant experiences.

When unwelcome experiences are destructive, the strategy of disciplined avoidance is sound, and forms part of the key to survival and personal growth. For example, a fear of getting burnt will make us cautious in the use of fire. Sometimes, however, the action taken to avoid what is expected to be unpleasant also forms a barrier to other good experiences and a higher level of development. A crippling fear of motion sickness may prevent our experiencing the joys of travel. Nearly all the great scriptures and many other sources abound with useful advice in these areas.

An alternative approach to handling fear is to seek ways of reducing our sensitivity. This area cannot be covered adequately here, but a few warnings may be appropriate. Firstly, self induced numbness is a two-edged sword for it cuts off good and bad experiences without distinction. Secondly, insensitivity is just as conducive to alienation as over-sensitivity, and psychological barriers, like physical ones, offer protection only at the cost of relative isolation. Thirdly, while desensitisation may protect us from the pain of certain feelings, it can leave us open to destructive forces which we might otherwise have been motivated to avoid. Consider what could happen if we lost the ability to feel pain. Unless there is convincing evidence to the contrary, it is reasonable to assume that all sensitivities, whether physical or emotional, play a part in preserving our well being. Fears can be confronted and sensitivities may decline or disappear as we adapt and learn to handle situations, but it is unwise to tamper with sensitivities directly without understanding their origin and role.

The avoidance of evil, motivated by fear, is of natural importance to all sensitive beings. We were given the ability to fear for very good reasons. Severe difficulties begin to arise, however, when fear becomes a habitual response to every threat. No matter how many things we try to control, run away from or desensitise ourselves to, there will always be another threat to confront us and we find ourselves living in perpetual anxiety.

In the context of happiness, life must be about more than escaping. It must be based on the positive pursuit of good, which is the essence of love. The most powerful inhibitor of love is fear. When it is allowed to dominate us, it cripples both love and life at the same time. Fear is a vital servant but a lethal master. The key to overcoming and controlling it is faith, which takes the form of belief, trust and confidence, even in the face of evil. Thus the habit of fear must be replaced by the habit of faith. This confidence enables us to find the courage to act with love despite the risks, and in so doing, make a meaningful contribution to happiness. On what can we base this faith? Let us digress a little to the subject of adversities.

Adversities

People who suffer unexpectedly, often ask themselves, ‘What have I done to deserve this?' and, ‘Why me?' Wherever we might seek the answers, it is important to avoid unproductively blaming anyone, harbouring anger at the ‘unfairness of life', or worst of all, adopting yet another crippling fear to inhibit our freedom.

If we look to the past for explanations, we can usually find some plausible, and possibly accurate, combination of causality and coincidence that may have led to the situation. This line of reasoning has merits in terms of trying to understand natural connections, and thereby expand our knowledge and wisdom. However, the accidental components are often harder to reconcile, particularly for a person who expects natural justice. To make sense of adversities, we need to consider that the real reasons why anything is allowed to happen to us, may lie more in the future than in the past. Christ assured us that, ‘Not one sparrow falls to the ground without your heavenly Father first having given His consent. As for you, even the hairs on your head have been counted. So fear not, for you are worth more than many sparrows' (Matt. 10:29-31). This strongly suggests that nothing ever happens to a person without it being sanctioned by the Almighty, and then only if it is potentially conducive to their long term good. Were it not so, His love for us would be inconsistent and unreliable.

The Path of Faith and Courage

If we believe in God’s extensive support and protection, we can approach adversities and threats with courage. We can choose to treat them as opportunities rather than disasters. When facing important decisions, we can more readily accept unwelcome experiences as an investment, and will not allow fear and sensitivity to cripple our decisiveness. It is with persistence in this way of thinking that the habit of faith becomes established and comes to our aid when it is needed.

It is in our darkest hours when we are frightened, uncertain and alone, that we depend most on our confidence in God’s love.

As we emerge, we often find that much of our anxiety was needless. In the end we may feel proud of having overcome our fear, and draw deep satisfaction from achievements that otherwise might not have been possible. Always, the person who acts with faith and courage, tempered with wisdom, gains or learns something, and in the extreme situation he finds that he has taken a crucial step in his development that changes his life completely.

Concern for the Future

Much of our discussion is equally applicable to the inclination to worry about the future. In advising us not to be anxious about tomorrow (Matt. 6:34), Christ does not imply that we should never make plans, take precautions or insure ourselves against unaffordable mishaps that have a reasonable chance of occurring. Some interest in the future is both beneficial and responsible. The message is to avoid premature anxiety about imagined possibilities that almost never occur the way we anticipate, if they happen to us at all. The best way to minimise the likelihood of future problems is always to take proper care of today.

Death

What is life and the meaning of death? We observe that people are born and people die, so human life becomes defined as what there is in between. People who believe only in the common denominator of shared human experience represented by observable evidence, may be drawn to the conclusion that death is the end, after which the body decays and the person ceases to exist.

The scientific approach to investigation has played an unbelievably important role in the material progress of humanity. It has had a strongly unifying effect on learning as a socially cooperative phenomenon, largely due to its rigour and emphasis on verifiable observation. Nevertheless, its ability to reveal reality is limited by the human senses aided by existing technology and reasoning. Is it valid to conclude that there is nothing in the universe except what these tools can discover? If we were all blind, would it mean that there is no such thing as light? What if a few people could see but the majority could not? Would it be reasonable to dismiss the anecdotal evidence because it is not verifiable by everyone? Just one sense more or less could make a very big difference to our perception of reality, and it is clearly imperative that we remain open minded regarding the possibilities. In a similar way, we must avoid letting our concept of ‘being alive’ become locked into the tangible evidence of our limited senses. Even from the most scientific viewpoint, the observable death of the body does not imply that the real person we knew has ceased to exist.

Except in our faith, hope and imagination, we are prisoners of the present. Often we cannot verify a future possibility simply because of what and where we are at the time. Has an embryo ever seen a chick to confirm that there is life beyond the shell? Would seeing it prove its own destiny? This is not an argument for the continuity of life but for the open mind.

On Easter Sunday each year, Christians celebrate the resurrection of Christ. That event and the miracles he performed in raising others from the dead were his evidence to us of the existence of ongoing eternal life. On this hinges the faith of all Christians (1 Cor 15:14). This is also supported by the increasing number of recorded ‘near death experiences’ where all known body and brain functions ceased and the people were later revived. The accounts of their experiences during the intervening period, provide further evidence that life does not end when all visible signs of it have disappeared. The majority of those who have had these experiences completely lost their fear of death as a result. Naturally, there are always alternative explanations for the same experiences and our earlier discussion on the problem of proof applies equally here. However, for those who are willing to accept the evidence and follow Christ to the best of their abilities, the death of their physical bodies need not be anticipated with fear and finality, but welcomed as a transition to something much better. The length of this present life ceases to be a crucial issue and is replaced by the paramount importance of how well we live and the kind of person we are becoming.