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Originally Posted by alatar
Skeptics consider that, at the end of all things, there will exist a heaven in which followers will have both free will and live in Paradise.
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The scriptures indicate that the paradise will be on Earth, as was originally intended. After all, why should an issue brought up by rebellious creations change God's purpose for Man? Why put them on Earth to begin with, if their real place is in Heaven? He wouldn't; Man was created expressly to live on Earth, and this is reinforced by the knowledge that there are already spirit creatures who were created to live in Heaven (angels). I recognize that this is a controverted point, but I believe this analysis makes more sense than a Heavenly reward for righteous life on Earth, as if Earth was always intended to be merely a testing ground.
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Originally Posted by alatar
If this is possible at the end, why could not God have created Eden with choice yet Perfection, where all was truly and forever good?
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I believe he did. That is, all was good
except direct challenge to his sovereignty, which is what Satan's lie amounted to, and also Adam and Eve's acceptance of it. Eating the fruit was just a gesture to consummate the rebellion; it's not as if that was God's favorite fruit and he simply didn't want to share it. I know this sounds like the opposite of what you said, but
in order for peace to be maintained, that one principle must always be unchallenged: once Man declares that he is not subject to God, men begin to fill that vacuum of leadership and lawmaking, which (long story short) necessarily leads to strife.
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Originally Posted by Raynor
That Iluvatar didn't remove the corruption of Melkor is due to the laws inherent in this universe
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Cf. Osanwe-kenta, we also have the existence of the axani, 'law, rule, commandment; as primarily proceeding from Eru'. According to this text, Melkor repudiated all such rules coming down from Eru. In the Later Quenta Silmarillion, there is a definition of the root of evil
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I recognize that Melkor/Morgoth was the Enemy. I also recognize that he committed evil. What I am saying is that
before the physical manifestation of the Music, Melkor's rights were absolute and his "corruption" of the theme was
within his rights as primary created being. All it amounts to is Melkor dabbling in everyone else's sauce, making it all more to his taste. He had no knowledge of how the Music would unfold when brought into being by Iluvatar. The manifestation of his discord turned out to be immoral
within the physical world, but prior to that, when he originally wove his "element" into all things, there was no such inherently physical* designation. Certainly later, when Melkor was running amok
within the material world, his actions were evil. The wicked things he did during the Ages had already been woven into the tapestry, so to speak, but relatively innocently; in that when his voice overpowered others in the Music, he exhibited only grandiose selfishness, not specifically murder, torture, corruption, etc.
Additionally, to reiterate what I expressed a few posts ago, Arda's healing may be possible solely because of Melkor's vast vitality, which he poured into creation more than any other sub-creator.
*in Tolkien's world, by virtue of the fact that guidelines were not laid out for the sub-creators' Music, and persistent disharmony was chastized but not "repaired". Only after the theme was brought into material being did actions take on the aspect of either good or evil within that physical cosmos. Whether morality applies solely to physical creation in
our universe (and whether there is such thing as immaterial creation) is certainly debatable elsewhere.