St. Augustine claimed that there was no such thing as evil, simply an absence of good which must be taught and experienced. The Parenting Training teaches you how to teach and experience good, to yourself and your children.
Timestamps:
00:42 No such thing as evil, only an absence of good, which must be taught.
01:35 In the absence of love, people are always in pain and act in ways that inconvenience us. 02:23 Parents have the responsibility of exposing their children to love.
Transcript:
St. Augustine Said There is No Evil
We are quite fond of calling people and things evil, usually because they have inconvenienced us or behaved in ways inconsistent with our own preferences.
St. Augustine was a theologian, philosopher, and the bishop of the Hippo Region in Roman North Africa. His writings have been influential among theologians and philosophers for nearly 2000 years.
He claimed there was no such thing as evil. He said there was simply an absence of good, which must be taught and experienced.
He believed there was no evil just as science teaches that there is no such thing as darkness, only the absence of light.
He may be right. That has certainly been my experience with people. Without loving and teaching, people have no experience with good. In the absence of love and goodness, they are always in pain. Always.
They are empty and afraid, and their survival behaviors tend to affect those around them in negative ways. For all the world they appear to be evil as they pursue their own safety, power, approval, praise, pleasures, and more.
Why Children Appear Bad or Evil
Children are born with an intense need for connection. If they don’t get it, they will NOT feel loved. They will NOT feel worthwhile. And their reactions to those feelings will not be loving. They will appear to be BAD, or evil.
As parents we have the responsibility of exposing children to love. We engrave—deeply—our own natures on the blank slate of their souls. We teach them what love feels like.
We teach them how to become loving to others and to be responsible, and in the process we teach them to be happy. Or we don’t, and either we teach them pain, or the world will.
We have great power as we love and teach them correct principles. We also have great power—though a destructive power—if we FAIL to love and teach our children. If we fail, we simply don’t know how to love and teach them.
But we can learn. That’s why we’re here studying the Ridiculously Effective Parenting Training, with all the support materials accompanying it. Nice to have you here.
