Who Was Abel's Wife? - Q&A

Who was Abel's wife?

At the beginning there was only Adam and Eve. They had two sons and Cain killed Abel. How did Cain find another woman to marry, if there were only Adam and Eve at the beginning? How is this possible? Where did the second woman come from? (Question from Marian Koroschetz)

Thanks to Marian for her challenging question. There are a couple of options that come to mind, when we think about the beginnings of Genesis. So here we go: Who was Abel's wife?

The first idea is that God did not just place Adam and Eve on the earth, that in fact God created numerous humans when the origin of man began. With this view, then Cain had plenty of women to choose from, in order to procreate and to be fruitful and increase (Gen 1:28).

The second theological idea, is that Adam and Eve were perfect (no sickness, disease, etc), and thus Cain and Abel in fact had wives who were technically their own sisters. Now, from our perspective today, we struggle to comprehend that idea, but what if the first humans were God's pristine creation? We know today, that if, for instance two cousins have a child together, there is a chance the offspring will be disabled to some degree. Though, if Adam and Eve were God's first created humans, and sin had not taken root in the world in those early days, then I could imagine that this second theological presupposition could hold true.

Who was Abel's wife, while a complex question, could very well be summed up with the above premise.


Read more: The Tower of Babel and the Quest for Achievement

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10 Reasons Why People Don't Believe In God

10 Reasons Why People Don't Believe in God

A previously similar post was 10 Reasons Why People Don't Go to Church, which sparked much readership on petebrookshaw.com. This post takes a different angle. Why do people not believe in God? Let's take this post to mean, 'Why do people not believe in a deity (in whatever form or character that deity has)?' What I am clumsily attempting to say, is that, this post is not about distinguising between the God the Christians follow, from Allah and the Hindu deities for example. That's another complex, interesting, debatable subject for another day. This post is about why some would prefer to believe in no God, than to believe in the existence of a God. 

I must admit the following. I am a follower of Jesus, with a paticular upbringing and viewpoint. This is not a scientific list, but more a discussion starter on why some may choose to not believe in God while others do. The ideas suggested, you may agree with and some may well disagree. That's ok! So here goes, 10 Reasons Why People Don't Believe in God: 

10 Reasons Why People Don't Believe in God

Reason 1 - Why people don't believe in God - Evolution provides a better explanation of 'Creation'.

I am not seeking to ignite the 'Creation' Vs 'Evolution' debate; there is no doubt plenty of material surrounding that discussion. While there are people who are Evolutionary Theists (that is a God created evolution as the process in which humanity evolved), many hold to the view that evolution in itself provides the explanation of life on earth. You could ask, since when does evolution actually describe how bacteria even came to exist? When you take evolution back right to its beginnings, you are still left with the question of whether that process was created, and if so, how and by whom?

Evolution does not provide a better explanation than creation because evolution is in a sense post-creation. To not believe in God because you believe in evolution is then nonsensical. It would make more sense to say you do not believe in God because you believe in the Big Bang (or atleast adhere to one of the many versions of the Big Bang).

Reason 2 - Why people don't believe in God - Agnosticism makes more sense.

Many choose to be agnostic, as they really cannot say, which way or the other, whether there is a God. Agnosticism according to dictionary.com is, 'an intellectual doctrine or attitude affirming the uncertainty of all claims to ultimate knowledge'. Agnostics are not naive to the complexity of the earth in which we live, but they cannot nail down the reasons for that complexity as concretly as religious people. In a sense, agnostics prefer to live with the tension of not knowing, than claiming to know something that they cannot prove.

Reason 3 - Why people don't believe in God - There is no proof of such a God.

Christian apologists would disagree strongly with such an assertion. William Lane Craig would bang on about in the inner witness of the Holy Spirit in the lives of God-followers. William Paley has written extensively on the complexity of nature and how it all points to a Creator (The teleological argument for the existence of God). Thomas Aquinas wrote about the cosmological argument for the existence of God.

Anyway, this is not a post to convince unbelievers to believe in the proof of God, as there is much that has been written to say that God does not exist. The question is, who is right? Either there is a God, or there is not. You cannot have half a creator. The onus lies on you to decide, based on the evidence, whether there is proof or not.

I believe there is.

Reason 4 - Why people don't believe in God - Just because.

You must admit, there are scores of people who don't believe in God; just because. There is no intellectual reason why they don't. Just because.

Reason 5 - Why people don't believe in God - The way it is represented

People have mis-represented God badly over the years. No doubt about that. The Christian God (Yahweh), through Jesus Christ, challenges followers to be on about loving their neighbours, forgiveness and living a holy life. Many Christians have misrepresented that message. Though lets get something clear. Many have represented Christianity, or the Christian faith rather, well. I have loads of friends today, who are trying their darnest to follow Jesus authentically, passionately and with integrity.

Here's the thing for me. If a teacher has a sexual relationship with a student, that teacher is appropriately punished. We do not then give up on the education system. Education is valuable and that teacher has misrepresented education. Why are we so quick to give up on 'believing in God' when someone misrepresents the faith they are meant to be following?

Can I say, it is just easy to knock religion and belief in God if you can find (which is not hard to do), someone who has lived contrary to its beliefs. Though, hear me out for a minute - If someone is absolutely dodgy, does that really change whether there is a God or not? No. The issue of personal or coporate integrity is still separate from nutting out whether there is a God or not.

Reason 6 - Why people don't believe in God - Their belief is merely an extension of their family upbringing

Quite often our religious viewpoints are merely a product of our upbringing. This is of course the same as our economic situation, our view on sexuality, our opinion on politics and the like. What I am challenging in this post, is to not simply let your belief or otherwise in the existence of God simply exist because 'that was the belief of my family.' Consider the topic yourself. Does creation point to a creator? Is evolution a reliable and valid explanation of creation?

Reason 7 - Why people don't believe in God - God does not Exist.

This is the atheist viewpoint (as opposed to agnosticism noted above). Accoring to an extensive 2010 survey from Brittanica, about 2-3% of the population hold to this view. The athiest may well say the onus of proof is on the deist to prove the existence of God. The converse argument is of course, the atheist cannot prove there is not a God. This is naturally a circular argument, that goes no where.

Even with all the philosophical and intellectual arguments for the existence of God, there is still an element of faith involved. This is not to say there are not great arguments for the existence of God, but that is to say that quite often arguments/premises are weighed up against each other, and one must have faith (to lean either way) towards an argument. I believe the 'universe seemed to know we where coming' argument (teleological argument) is one of the best arguments that leans towards believing in the existence of God, though you still must step out in faith to believe that premise (the converse is obviously true for the arguments for atheism).

Atheist - Faith is not a weakness.

Reason 8 - Why people don't believe in God - They can handle life without God

Dictionary.com defines believe as, 'to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so'. If someone does not have confidence in the God they believe in, then they may well be of the belief that they can handle life without God. For some, it is not that they don't believe in the existence of God, but that they do not believe in the omnipotence of God. Some would purport that they lack 'revelation' of the character of God. The Christian God for instance has many Scriptures scattered within its Bible of references to the idea that God would never leave or forsake them. The idea, is that God is not only 'up there in heaven' as some say(transcedent), but that God is close and immanent.

Handling life without God, fails to understand and believe the promises of God.

Reason 9 - Why people don't believe in God - World religions are inconsistent.

One may well mention the inconsistency within the belief systems of major world religions. That point is noted. World religions differ. Contrary to what some might say, Allah (Islam) differs from Yahweh (Christianity). Monotheistic religions differ greatly from Poly-theistic religions like Hinduism. Though to choose to not believe in the existence of God because of the relative inconsistency of beliefs seems nonsensical to me.

You cannot 'not believe' in the Big Bang theory for instance, simply because there are so many different scientific views on how the universe came in to existence. That is nonsensical. You must look at every viewpoint, and make an assertion based on the evidence. The same is with God. Whether a deity exists is the first question. Then the second question is, who is that deity? We are looking at the former question, while the argument listed here is looking at the latter. While the latter question is absolutely important to answer, you should not be disbelieving in God because of that question in and of itself. The nature and character of God is a whole other discussion.

Reason 10 - Why people don't believe in God - ???

Why not comment below and add your reason/s on why people do not believe in God. Maybe you are an atheist and have some fired up viewpoints on the topic. I think I have made my viewpoint clear, and you can find out more scattered within many of the posts on petebrookshaw.com.


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Are we made in the Image of God?

THE IMAGE OF GOD - IMAGO DEI

Are We Made in the image of God (Genesis 5:1-3), remembering this was after the fall of man? A response to Mark Wagland.

Thanks Mark for the question.

You highlight Genesis 5:1-3 and this says:
1 This is the written account of Adam's line. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. 2 He created them male and female and blessed them. And when they were created, he called them "man." 3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image; and he named him Seth. (NIV)

Genesis 1:26-27 says similar words:
26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, [a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground." 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.(NIV)

In one word, I believe the answer is 'Yes', though lets delve a little deeper.

Origen wrote these words, 'And God said, "Let us make man in our image and likeness" (Gen 1:26). He then adds, "In the image of God he made him" (Gen 1:27), and is silent about the likeness. This indicates that in his first creation man received the dignity of the image of God, but the fulfillment of the likeness is reserved for the final consummation... The possibility of perfection given to him at the beginning by the dignity of the image, and then in the end, through the fulfillment of his works, should bring to perfect consummation the likeness of God.' So Origen was saying that the 'image of God' related to humanity following the Fall, and the term 'likeness of God' referred to humanity after its perfection when Jesus comes back a second time.

We see God destroying much of the human race from Genesis 6, with the story of Noah. God is pleased with Noah because he was a righteous man, but others were wicked and that grieved God (Gen 6:6). Why would God create human beings in God's amazing image only to destroy them afterwards? The answer really comes down to the idea of human free will, and the great privelege we have to choose the Creator, and to follow this God who loves us and wants to bless our lives. When we follow God and exhibit elements of the character of God (like Noah did), we witness the image of God being expressed in our lives.

This is a short answer. Feel free to comment (anyone), and continue the discussion.

God bless,

Pete.

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The cosmological argument for the existence of God

Thomas Aquinas (c. 1225-1274) wrote these words about the existence of God. Philosophers of religion call it the cosmological argument for the existence of God. You may want to read it a few times to grasp some of its content.

"The existence of God can be proved in five ways. The first and most obvious proof is the argument from change. It is clearly the case that some things in this world are in the process of changing. Now everything that is in the process of being changed is changed by something else, since nothing is changed unless it is potentially that towards which it being changed, whereas that which changes is actual. To change something is nothing else than to bring it from potentiality to actuality, and a thing can be brought from potentiality to actuality only by something which is actual.

Thus a fire, which is actually hot, makes wood, which is potentially hot, to be actually hot, thus changing and altering it. Now it is impossible for the same things to be both actual and potential in the same respect, although it may be so in different respects. What is actually hot cannot at the same time be potentially hot, although it is potentially cold. It is therefore impossible that, in the same manner and in the same way, anything should be both the one which effects change and the one that is changed, so that it should change itself.

Whatever is changed must therefore be changed by something else. If, then, whatever is changing it is itself changed, this also must be changed by something else, and this in turn by something else again. But this cannot go on forever, since there would then be no first cause to this process of change, and consequently no other agent of change, because secondary things which change cannot change unless they are changed by a first cause, in the same way as a stick cannot move unless it is moved by the hand. We are therefore bound to arrive at a first cause of change which is not changed by anything, and everyone understands that this is God. " (cited in McGrath, 2001: 247-248)

Ok, breathe!

William Paley (1743-1805) argued about the existence of God, using what is referred to as the teleological argument for the existence of God. He writes about the biological nature of the human heart, saying, "It is evident that it must require the interposition of valves-that the success indeed of its action must depend upon these; for when any one of its cavities contracts, the necessary tendency of the force will be to drive the enclosed blood not only into the mouth of the artery where it ought to go, but also back again into the mouth of the vein from which it flowed" (cited in McGrath, 2001: 252).

Using these kind of biological examples, Paley argues strongly about the existence of a God. This kind of natural theology definitely flies in the face of the evolution argument.

God exists. He created you. He loves you. He wants you to trust in Jesus as your Saviour.