Ah, that's the eternal question, gillymor. I don't believe in a God that writes some sort of script for us - reality follows the laws of nature, the logical consequences of decisions and choices, and the laws of chance. And in that, every moment is capable of infinite creativity by the interaction of all those elements. So there's no script - it's all improv. And I see the presence of God in that infinite creativity of interaction, and I view it with awe and see it as essentially good. But it's not that some god is "allowing" or "creating" good or evil - things happen by the interaction of causes.

But that's what I see from my perspective. Other people see the same thing and don't see God. That's good, too.

Others see us as following a script written by the Almighty (predestination??). Can't say I buy that perspective, but I suppose you could label that script "logical consequences" - that I do buy, but I think there's an awful lot of randomness thrown in the mix.

-Joe-