Original Goodness

Although the concept of human goodness is not a new idea, the ancient philosophers did not give credit where credit was due. They did not have a concept of God as we do today and because of that missed an important origin for the concept. God created us in his image and the proof mark of that creation is the goodness we see in the people around us. Plato and Aristotle both talk about goodness, virtue and vice as found in the human condition and came very close to expressing the concept of God without actually doing so. The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of goodness as explained by the ancients and to show how the desire for goodness is one impetus toward "Spiritual Formation".

To begin with, we need to clarify some assumptions. The Christian tradition of creation by a benevolent God is the bias this paper will assume. This paper will use the biblical method of referring to God in masculine terms for the duration. It will assume that "God" is good, virtuous, and has humanity's interest in mind. Moreover, that God reveals what we can know about him in the sixty-six books of the Christian bible, the created order, and the final revelation of God in the flesh Jesus Christ. It will also assume that the original goodness or image of God in human beings was marred by the fall. For the purpose of this paper goodness will mean that quality of being that seeks and acts for the best outcome, whether it would be the finest or best love, kindness, thought, action or quality of a thing. Before we consider that God created us in his image or likeness we must dwell on just what that image is. God is a nebulous term to describe deity or a metaphysical presence. For the Christian, God Jehovah is primary. By observing the goodness of the created order we see the goodness of the creator. The beauty of the earth and the order that it exhibits refers back to its origins, God. The goodness of God is one of his defining qualities. Jesus said to the one who called him good teacher, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone."¹ This is to mean that the only one that is perfect in goodness is God. Those who are human can only have an imperfect quality of goodness, an imperfect representation of the goodness of God. However, humankind strives to restore this marred goodness in themselves and others.

Stevenson writes, "For Plato, the Form of Goodness is preeminent in the world of Forms: it plays an almost God-like role in his system, being described as the source of all reality, truth and goodness".² Plato's idea of the form of goodness being preeminent is very close to the Christian concept of God being preeminent. Plato's description of goodness for the one looking through a Christian bias is describing God. Plato however, was not describing God but was trying to formulate what is primary when one thinks of goodness. Stevenson also asserts, "It is crucial to Plato's whole philosophy that we can, by the proper use of our faculty of reason, both come to know what is good and actually become good"³. Plato believed that by the use of our mind to do the work of reasoning we could "know what is good" and come to the point in our lives where others would describe us as being good. Those who examine our lives would validate our actions.

The goodness that we strive for is the original goodness or image of God that was marred in the fall of humanity as described in Genesis. Humankind has a desire to recapture or aspire to that perfect image. It is that desire in the process of fulfillment that produces virtue and that same desire frustrated that produces vice. There are people who by discipline and good fortune aspire to, and achieve goodness and there is fulfillment to some measure because they have done so. Those who through laziness or bad circumstances choose the bad or base life still aspire to goodness only in a lesser form. While their counterparts seek goodness and pursue virtuous ends, those who have chosen badly will still find some measure of good. It may be that they roll the "perfect" joint, or they never steal from their friends. They find some fulfillment in the thought of the small good in their lives. They, as all people, are striving for good.

We all have choices to make. The method we use to strive for good, either by virtue or vice, is our choice and we are responsible for it. We can seek for excellence in character or we can settle for excellence in minor achievements. The former will lead to goodness experienced as fulfillment; the latter will lead to goodness experienced as pride, which will ultimately fade. This kind of fulfillment requires more and continued action or activity to sustain. "Aristotle holds that virtue and vice are formed by "habituation"; that one's character is a result of ones past actions, so it seems that we can be held responsible for what we have made of ourselves, at least to some extent"⁴. We are responsible to choose the best good, to achieve the best, and become the perfect representation of a created individual. Having then the desire for good, we must challenge others and ourselves to the greater good, the perfecting of our character.

"Spiritual Formation" is one way a person can engage their energies in seeking the best good for themselves and others. The process of "spiritual formation" as described by Mulholland is, "A process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others"⁵. The deliberate choice to seek to be conformed to the one who formed us (reference to John 1:1-3) is seeking renewal in original goodness. In Christ, the possibility of restoration is not only a possibility but it is a reality. Christ restores goodness in the heart and life of the individual and each day their actions demonstrate that goodness through the lives they live. They are not only good themselves and so hoard the fulfillment that accompanies it, but they strive to encourage others toward the goal of goodness as well.

We have demonstrated that goodness comes from the personality or image of God. We then examined Plato's concept of the greater good that has no reference to god, and Aristotle's concept of personal responsibility. It has been determined that we do have a responsibility to seek the method that will begin the restoration process in restoring the image of God in our lives. Submitting to the God who created us and allowing him to restore goodness within us, is reasonable. It is reasonable to believe that the one who came up with and exemplifies the concept of goodness would be the one to restore the concept in marred humanity. Spiritual formation and the methods used in the process is a way of submitting to the authority God over our lives. When we submit to the examination of another, we are submitting to God in the process. When we discipline ourselves to study and reflect we are using our faculties to reason the higher good. When we act on what we know to be good, we continue to be renewed in original goodness.

¹ Holy Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Mark 10:18, Nashville: Thompson Nelson, 1996, c1998
² Lesley Stevenson, David L. Haberman, Ten Theories Of Human Nature, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004, p.74.
³ Ibid p.74.
⁴ Ibid p.100.
⁵ Robert M. Mulholland, Invitation To A Journey, Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1993, p.12.

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Bibliography
Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. Nashville: Thompson Nelson, 1996, ©1998
Mulholland, Robert M. Invitation To A Journey, Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1993.
Stevenson, Lesley. Haberman, David L. Ten Theories Of Human Nature, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.

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