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Is man by nature good or evil?

Man is what he chooses to be.

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This question is politically incorrect, or don't you want to know about women? Perhaps you think women are all good. Or, better, all bad. Or perhaps, as with many Christian fundamentalists, not to be considered.

So let's rephrase it. Are people by nature good or evil?

We're all born with innocent minds which, as Torngren pointed out so aptly, are malleable. Whether any individual proves to be good or evil will depend on their upbringing and environment. Nurture rather than nature. It's my experience that most people are good. If we draw a l-o-o-ong line and write good at one end and evil at the other, virtually everybody will land somewhere in between, not at the extremities.

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Thanks for correcting my answer...
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Oh the political correctness and Oh the humanity!
Oh, and one more...Oh, the "fundamentalist" Christian!!
Good answer, I like the l-o-o-ng spectrum part the best! That's a mark of sagacity in my book ;)

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Dunno about sagacity, DK. I learned it from Billy Joel. (Shades of Grey.)
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Well artists have a keen way of making things clear. I do see it as sage since it avoids the blunder of over generalization. Take care now.
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You betcher.
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Hey Dozy you're pretty light on your feet in that dancing video on your YouTube channel, I really enjoyed it, I almost felt like doing a little Jig myself.
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Hey Dozy I really enjoyed your dancing video I didn't know that you were light on your feet it made me feel like doing a jig
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Hey Bobby, Yosey did that one and emailed it to me for Christmas. I put it up so I could share it with a few people. I don't intend to get into the YouTube game though. I have no talent in that area, unlike your excellent work.
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Man I had a blast watching you cut the ole rug lol
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Good but some chose to become evil.

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man is good by nature but the devil the one make them evil

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By nature, man is good - As a baby, we have trust. Whichever wolf we feed as we grow gets stronger.

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Hmm... And that 1 yr old turns and does the very thing his mom said not to. And he/she doesn't want anyone touching his/her toys. They are "mine!" of course. :) one of his/her first words. And.. Oh.. Stealing that cookie our of the cookie jar. This is not learned. We all the same seed for both..:)
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Oh, and seeing someone cry and a child goes to them and comforts them, or a child offering their toys to another kid. It goes both ways
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We have to learn how to be good!
We are all botn with a sinful nature passed down from Adam!
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Sure
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@Lillypad5: And I wonder who passed it down to him? hmm...
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We are born with original sin, just as lillypad said. We could go into a HUGE discussion on differences here, but although we are born with original sin, we are by human nature good. Not all that is sin is "bad nature". There are many who do "good natured deeds" that still do it in a sinful way.
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Man is malleable.

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Perfect.
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Thanks, Dodgy. How are you?
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Grrreat, as always. Life's good. How about you?
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I'm as good as I get, lol. Waiting for spring. My whole body aches from having such a damp winter.
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Sorry to hear you've got that problem. I don't respond very well to the damp weather, either. Comes with being a geezer, I guess.
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A fine and reasonable point!
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good

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Man by nature...is an omnivorous mammal capable of complex thought processes and conveniently has opposable thumbs. But like you say, what he chooses to do with it...well now you're delving into the ever popular nature vs. nurture debate.

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People are born to be good by nature not just man but also woman. That is what I think.

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This is the question of nature vs nurture, as children, we are just moldable clay.

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Man is by nature good and with the time goes by, he will affected by many factors and develop a special character.

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By nature we are selfish, and greedy this is why parents have to change that in us . You know share that with your sister. Preschoolers see something they want they say mine and have to be convinced to share it

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Agreed!
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I believe that Man is by nature good.

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good

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mankind is born with an essentially good nature and can be forgiven needy self centedness of early childhood. adults however can be angels and devils in the same instant. most adults would fall generally on one side other of the center point of line that has all good or all evil on opposite ends.

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What about that little toddler who deliberately does the very thing his mom told him not to? And stealing that cookie from the cookie jar. I think the sinful nature starts at birth.
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well,each to their own. but in defense of naughty toddlers,i don't see that as evil or sinful, toddlers are learning about their world and one way of doing this is by testing limits. if they're lead properly ,especially as small children, they "should" mature as compassionate,good people. sadly that's not always the case. example: germany ,'33through '45 . all the 'good' germans who had no idea. still, i believe we're born good and more retain it than lose it.
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You answered your own question. Everyone had the same seed of both and everyone gets to "choose."

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Yes! ;)

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Everyone is born innocent ,
We become evil or mean,
Due to the environment in which
We dwell .

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Man is inherently good. There is nothing purer than a newborn babe. Man need not be "born again" or be "baptized" to be good. Neither man needs to "sell his soul" to be evil as suggested by religion. Man becomes good or evil by consequence of the choices (not the religious "freewill") that he has made. Good and evil in man is not the gift or providence of some supernatural god or devil.

The infamous doctrine taught by a religion that every child is born into sin and is totally depraved is utter monstrosity.

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Great answer.
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Sad
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If you only knew!
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Yes, Lilly. Very sad that you believe newborn babies are born with a predisposition to be evil. Always accurate, Pious.
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We are all born and live using both good and evil instincts. Our emotions play a huge role. I think most are good but can change evil in a heartbeat

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Man is by nature , sinful above all things!
The heart of Mankind is sinful- who can know it!

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Mankind as to his inherent nature is sinful. No one has to teach a child to be selfish or how to lie their naughty by nature. =============The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies. (Psalms 58:3 KJV)================================Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. (Psalms 51:5 KJV)================================= I'm pretty sure that I will get called a bible thumper but after all this is the spiritual section of the Ask.com site and beside most of the people who know me know exactly were I stand, it's no secret.==================For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God?s glorious standard. (Romans 3:23 NLT)===============================As the Scriptures say, ?No one is righteous? not even one. (Romans 3:10 NLT)==============================?The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? (Jeremiah 17:9 NLT) The only cure for man's wicked nature is at the cross of the crucified and resurrected savior The Lord Jesus Christ=============Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:3, 5-7, 15, 16 KJV)

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JamesKaeberle
Amen!
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Again thanks
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Amen, bobby. Its ok to be called a bible thumper. ( I suppose, there are worse names we all could be called..lol). All of us who love God and consider the bible the " inspired word of God" are bible thumpers..:)
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Thanks Lolo so very comforting
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I am away amazed by your knowledge. Keep up his work.
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Thanks BIG GUY
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JamesKaeberle

Man was born into sin therefore man was born evil. There is none righteous no not one for all have sinned and fall short of the Glory Of God. As long as we are in this fleshly body we can never be considered good accourding to God. It's only though the righteousness of Christ are we made good though Jesus and not of our selves.

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Man by nature is both good and evil. There is no one who is purely one or the other. Everyone has their virtues and vices. We have the capacity to choose either.

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Man by nature is neither good nor evil.He is just like water in a pipe.A pipe that leads to 'good or evil'.

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We were born sinners, however, we all make our own choices, be good or evil. Galatians 6:5 "For each one will carry his own load."

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We're all evil, most of us striving against our character to be something called good.

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"Ephesians. 2:3 "We started out bad,being born with evil."( Living Bible)
From birth on, the inclination of our heart is toward badness. If we do not curb those wrong tendencies, we may in time become accustomed to such a way of life. It may even seem "normal"
because others are doing similar things. But the Bible identifies what is right and what is wrong from God's viewpoint, in view of how he made man and his purpose for mankind.
If we listen to our God and lovingly obey him, life will take on a richness of meaning that we never knew before, and we will have an eternal future. Warmly our Creator invites us to taste and see how good it is. "Oh, put God to the test and see how kind he is! See for yourself the way his mercies shower down on all who trust in him." Psalms 34:8 (Living Bible)

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Hi Godisone! God commands us not to lie, but when do little children start to lie? Almost as soon as they learn to talk! Their mothers and fathers did not teach them to lie, so how do they know how to lie? Because they are born with a sin nature. I always like your questions, bye!

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I thank God for the good people here on earth.
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Hi Beth! How are you today? Petey is asleep in my lap. It's a good thing I'm typing on an iPhone and not a laptop.
Petey says he is my laptop.
Love, Claire
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As imperfect humans we are more inclined to do the wrong thing. Even the a
Apostle Paul said, "For the good that I wish I do not do,+ but the bad that I do not wish is what I practice." (Romans 7:19) however, as stated, we all must make our own decisions.

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By nature, us humans act just like animals. This is because we ARE animals. BUT, by inhibiting our natural, animal drives, we become human. We become more civilized and we become what we know of as human. So yes, by nature we are all bad and selfish and you know bad things. We don't care about anyone else. You can see this in children; that's why they have to LEARN to share. We are indeed animals at birth, but we become animals as we grow up and inhibit our natural drives.

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Uh... Good I guess. Is this some bible thing or just a normal old question? (I'm just curious, not trying I start an argument)...........

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just a normal old question...
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its up to you my friend if you want to be good then you can be..and if you want to be bad that's also up to you.

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Genesis 8:21 - basically state that the "inclination of man is to do bad." So, we are born in sin and it takes determination and effort to live a life that reflects the qualities of our Loving Heavenly Father. (1 John 4:8) Also the fruitages of the spirit (Galatians 5:22,23) - states additional qualities we need to strive to pursue in our walk with God.

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Good answer...
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chazt

Neither, man is an animal like your dog.

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Do you really believe what you say...
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chazt
There are two kinds of reality, one is a fiction and the other is a fact. The fact is life its self, and the fiction is in your head. Man is a animal that has the capacity to think in the abstract, and that fact,,,,,,,,,,may well be, our undoing.
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Bible is very clear on what it has to say. Human is human and animal is animal and if an human being behaves like an animal, then he is animal like, not animal.
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chazt
We have two arms, two legs, evidence of a tail, a neck with head all attached to a torso, just like all the other creatures, short of some insects, on God's green Earth. The bible, a collect of books is reference material on how live, and is not to be taken literally. Take the blinders off and look beyond your holy book..
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chazt: you sure know how to convince yourself...It is your free will...
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chazt
You are right, it is free will. Had nearly the same argument with an Imam, he couldn't take the blinders off either.
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By man's standard, man is basically good. However, by God's perfect standard, we're wicked. Every person who's ever lived has lied, stolen, blasphemed God's name, and committed adultery in the heart. God sees us as a bunch of lying, thieving, blaspheming, adulterers at heart. He sees everything from our social life to our thought life - He even knows our deepest desires. In God's eyes, man, by nature, is wicked. But, because God loves us, He offers forgiveness through Jesus Christ to anyone who will come.

For the Kingdom! - TheSoldierforGod

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Good answer...
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