The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence

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- Ishina
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The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence
OP - February 06, 2014, 11:46 PM

1) Intelligence is an emergent function of an adaptive system, measured by effectiveness in overcoming obstacles.
2) An all-powerful thing would have no obstacles.
3) Therefore, an all-powerful intelligent thing is a nonsensical concept.

Discuss.

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- ibn Bilal
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The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence
Reply #1 - February 07, 2014, 12:04 AM

I agree, of course. Particularly as it relates to Allah--our deity of choice to pick on--all of his supposed skills and powers are in relation to the problems that he himself allegedly created.
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The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence
Reply #2 - February 07, 2014, 12:06 AM

It almost seems as though believers don't actually think God is all powerful. It almost comes across as though they believe he championed reality by overpowering it as opposed to creating it.
- Ishina
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The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence
Reply #3 - February 07, 2014, 12:21 AM

That would mean forfeiting the claim that their God is the First Cause/Prime Mover, which is a crucial component of their model.

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The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence
Reply #4 - February 07, 2014, 12:36 AM

Yes. But or else, what's the point? What's the point of saying your God always wins a game where he created all the rules. Where is the greatness in that? Where is the victory? Why be angered, why be pleased, when you made it all and supposedly knew exactly what it would all be like? It becomes entirely pointless.
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The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence
Reply #5 - February 07, 2014, 01:42 AM

Predestination is a great tool in arguing against progressives. They just skip around it, I have never heard it addressed satisfactorily. It must be, as you say, one of those things, that, even though claimed by the Quran, actually undermines everything. Making it all pointless, as you say.

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- bogart
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The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence
Reply #6 - February 07, 2014, 04:19 AM

All powerful, combined with all benevolent, suggests god is capable of creating a world without evil or sin. Considering both are repeatedly show in the world in reality and religion this suggest either all powerful or all benevolent is not true. This is the problem of evil which religion can not answer when combined with the 3 Os of god.

Also consider that god may seem all power to us but not be. Just as humans could be seen as all powerful to lesser life forms. We can create or destroy their habitat, modify creatures to suit our needs and create objects which are completely beyond a lesser lifeforms understand. God could be to humans to what humans are to ants. This makes god more powerful than us but do not prove god is all powerful. More so there is the issue of morality. Is something moral because god commands it? Take slavery for example, the only positive remarks about it are freeing slaves for brownie points with god. Nothing about how the core concept of slavery is immoral. So god's morals are subjective and authoritative but he is not the source as god supported immoral concepts. This put morality above god and he becomes subject to it so god is not all powerful.
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The Problem of All-Powerful Intelligence
Reply #7 - February 09, 2014, 12:19 PM

Can an all-powerful God create something more powerful than itself?
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