The secular problem of evil is a distinctly human problem and is rooted in our self-awareness.
We discover (and value) ourselves but find ourselves in a world that does not seem to agree, or at least, it lacks the same level of commitment to our personal value that we have.
One of the key moral questions of our time (or any time) has to do with the inherent intrinsic value of each human being as well as the grounds for that value. It is because we value ourselves that we see “survival” (or continuance of the “self”) as so important.
Our survival “instinct” is rooted in a basic, physical, organic need for resources to keep our organism (our body) alive. It seems to be basic to our natural, physical makeup (just like any other animal), but our self-awareness makes that survival into a “value” based on a fundamental desire to exist and even to flourish.
Desire is value which undergirds belief. We believe that we have a fundamental right to live. That may not always be a social value but it is, most certainly, a personal one (unless corrupted by society or circumstances).
Survival is, therefore, more than an “instinct.” It is perceived as a right, an innate expectation and an outward expression of the self. It is the way things “ought” to be and the other “wills” we encounter in the world around us “ought” to agree and act accordingly.
Therefore, death is unwelcome, suffering and pain are to be avoided and the blind, amoral forces of nature must be kept at bay.
Protection will be necessary.
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Tears of the Desert Warrior by Bert A. Amsing
Copyright 2012 by vanKregten Publishers. All rights reserved.
www.desertwarrior.net http://desertwarriornet.wordpress.com/
Footnotes and references included in the original manuscript.
