Parker Zurbuch

  The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers   Original Question:  Are you ashamed to admit that you are Catholic over the scandals of covering up cases of pedophilia by the hierarchy of the Catholic Church? Especially homosexual pedophilia when, on the one hand, they condemn normal gays, but tolerate molesters? This is a great question! On the one hand, yes, I am extremely ashamed that those in my Church (The Catholic Church) have made such despicable choices that have caused so much scandal to the world. I wish it would have never happened, especially for the sake of the victims of these perpetrators. There is no defending these horrific crimes and sins, so often caused by leaders in the Church. But, notice that I described my shame as being towards  those in my Church.  I did not describe my shame as...

  The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers  Original Question: What are some questions that should be asked more often? Originally Answered:  What is something that should be questioned or questioned more? What is the nature of reality? What is being? Why do things exist? How do things exist? Does being itself exist? Does truth exist? Can the truth be found? For that matter, does any concept exist? How do we know that we know anything at all? If existing things are made up of other existing things, can anything not exist? Does existence have a beginning or end, or is it simply eternal? If it does have a beginning or end, what was before everything existed, and what will be afterwards? Being itself? Can being itself exist? Would it be that nothing exists before and after what currently exists? If it was nothing, how ...

  The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers  Original Question: Does everyone experience the glory of God eventually? In Catholic theology, everyone does eventually experience the glory of God. It would either be in Heaven (where the glory of God is experienced in an accepting nature, and is thus pleasing to the individual rationally, spiritually—and after the Second Coming—physically. In Hell, however, the glory of God would still be experienced, but it will not be pleasant because the individual vehemently hates the glory of God and does not wish to accept it. This is similar to how when one invites the embrace of another person, the embrace is accepted with pleasure, but when one does not wish to be embraced—even though the embrace is good—it is experienced as pain. In Catholic theology, man does not get “sent” to Hea...

  The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers  Original Question: How do you explain the idea that the reality we experience is the reality we create? What, then, is "real"? Reality is, by definition that which is real. That which is real, exists. And that which exists, does not, not exist. So what then does not, not exist? Well, everything that is. Everything that is has being. Something cannot exist unless it is, and therefore that which is not, does not exist. How then can reality, what is real, be that which we create? What is real—what exists, exists whether we think it exists or not. It thus can be concluded that our perception does not create reality. What we consider perception is either true or not true. Some may have true perceptions and others may have false ones. One person can have both true and fals...

  The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers  Original Question: Why does a good God have the ability to think of evil? If God is pure and utter Goodness, how can He think of evil? How can evil even exist, if God is pure and utter goodness? These are amazing questions! If evil is simply the absence of goodness, then God most certainly can “think” about evil. I will explain: God, as I am assuming you define Him, is pure and utter Goodness. Your problem may be in defining evil. If you wish to have a logically coherent answer to this question, then evil cannot be anything in and of itself. Evil must then, be simply the absence of goodness. If God is pure Goodness, and God created everything, how can anything exist that is the complete opposite of Goodness?: Evil? Well, one great answer to this question is that evil is just t...

The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers    Original Question: What can I do to change my life? Originally Answered:  How can someone change the direction their life is going? Remove Banner By making different, and “Virtuous” choices. (I will explain) Now, the above request can be hard to fulfill, especially if one is stuck in habitual or addictive routines. In order to break out of those undesired routines, one must then build up enough self-control (by resisting the urge of those bad habits/routines) to actually make a determined choice. A big problem that we have as humans is that, the more we  solely  follow our desires, the less free we become. Self-restraint is a necessary condition for choice, because if one cannot restrain their desires, they will be a slave to them—and slaves are not free to make ...

The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers    Original Question: I converted from [being a] Catholic to [being a] Born Again Christian. Is it still okay to wear the cross necklace I was given at confirmation? Yes, of course. According to the Catholic Church, you are still a Catholic unless you formally renounce the faith to your local bishop (which you could do via email). But even then, I would encourage you to still wear the cross given to you in your confirmation. Also, I would encourage you to make a deep study of both Catholicism and Born-Again theology. Be sure you are making the right choice in leaving the Catholic Church. Do not leave for emotional reasons. Only leave if you are absolutely convinced that it is not the true Church started by Jesus Christ, and carrying his message unbroken down to today. Ask yoursel...

 The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers  Original Question: How do you know you won't eventually be somebody else after death? You don’t know with 100% certainty. You cannot know anything with 100% certainty; BUT, you can gather up the most rational evidence, and make a “most logical conclusion” from said evidence. As for becoming someone else after death, the only rational way I think you could deduce such a claim as being “most logical” would be to look at evidence of those who have claimed positively for the reality of reincarnation. This is similar to the question “Do angels exist?.” You cannot know 100% either way, but you can look at all the evidence — however, with the question of angels (as with reincarnation), the evidence for these things depend on other premises. You cannot have angels unless there is a...

The below post is an answer I gave to a question asked of me on the site "Quora." I have republished it here. You can find the original answer at: https://www.quora.com/profile/Parker-Zurbuch/answers  Original Question: How do you know if you are a good person? Originally Answered:  How do you determine if you are a good person? You cannot determine whether you are a good person solely on your own. There are too many variables in life to consider such a claim for oneself. “What is goodness?”; “Who/what determines goodness in someone?”; “Do you determine your own goodness, or is it determined by others perception of you?”; “Is goodness a moral claim, an ontological claim, both of these, or more than these?” There are probably infinitely more questions you could ask, and never reach an answer. It is impossible to determine your own goodness, or the goodness of another for that matter (the same questions above apply to us seeing goodness in another). You cannot do it on your...