...PHL 101 11 March 2012 A Summary of the problem of evil and a critical evaluation of how it is said to undermine the traditional characteristics of God. This paper will attempt to review the philosophical quandary of the existence of evil and if evil exists can God exist and if so can this God still be declared perfect? The epistemological issue that arises is One’s knowledge of God and the validity of God’s existence. What is good and what is evil? The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines evil as: 1. a : morally reprehensible : sinful, wicked <an evil impulse> b : arising from actual or imputed bad character or conduct <a person of evil reputation> 2 a: archaic : inferior b : causing discomfort or repulsion : offensive <an evil odor> c : disagreeable <woke late and in an evil temper> 3 a : causing harm : pernicious <the evil institution of slavery> b : marked by misfortune : unlucky For the purpose of this paper, we will use the first definition. Evil is a trait that we as human beings possess. Whether we choose to use it is up to the individual. But what is evil? Do we as humans consciously choose to be good or evil? What plays a role in bringing out that evil? We next need to look at what is God and does he exist? God as defined by Merriam-Webster is: 1. capitalized : the supreme or ultimate reality: as a : the Being perfect in power, wisdom, and goodness who is worshipped as creator...
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...problem of evil and analytically assess how it is that evil weakens the traditional characteristics of God. I will attempt to explain how the existence of evil challenges the traditional characteristics of God such as omniscience, omnipresence and omnipotence and Omni benevolence using Hume’s famous quote, “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then is he impotent. Is he able but not willing? Then is he malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Whence then is evil?” (Hume) The theological and metaphysical problem of evil was formulated in 1779 by David Hume in his work “Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion” where he asked the question, if God is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent and omnibenevolent then why does evil exist (Sherry)? The problem of evil causes us to look at the traditional characteristics of God and to analytically assess our suppositions about evil itself. If our God is a good, all powerful and just God as many people believe, then why would such a God allow evil to exist? This problem also brings to light questions about what is considered to be evil, whether it is moral evil committed by man or natural evil such as earthquakes, hurricanes and famine (Sherry). There are several arguments that have developed in reaction to the problem of evil that was suggested by David Hume. One such argument which is known as the free will defense claims that evil is solely caused by human beings, who must have the opportunity to choose to do evil if they are...
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...God and the Problem of Evil Liberty University Bob Cox The debate of whether God exists has been going on for centuries. Atheists and theists have opposing views on how the universe as we know it came in to being. According to atheism, evolution can explain all we see in the universe. The process of evolution which began with the big bang started the universe and all that is within it. Theists see the world full of design and order and believe it came about through an intelligent creator. Atheists do not believe in God because they have not seen clear proof that he exists (McCloskey, 1968). In his article “On Being an Atheist”, H. J. Mccloskey explains why he believes that God does not exist. The theist believes that an intelligent creator is the best explanation for all that we experience in the universe. Personal experience leads many to begin to think about God. Some wonder about the purpose of their life; while others might be struggling reasons for pain and suffering. It helps to believe that our pain and suffering are for some ultimate purpose and that eventually some good can come from it. Faith in God can be arrived at intelligently through reason. We may not be able to prove that God exists but there is convincing evidence to believe he does. We shouldn’t be afraid to ask questions about what we believe and why we believe it. Our answers will help to strengthen our own faith and give others something to think about. If something is worth believing, it is worth...
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...There were many gods for causing destruction and the harm of humans on Earth, all with the intent of putting them through the worst. Even though there were many evil gods, there was one who wanted to be different. This god’s name was Garusius and he was the god of prosperity. Garusius was the descendant of Apollo, the god of light, music, and prophecy. He was born at a mysterious time, no one really knew who Garusius’s mother was because right after he was bore, his mother ascended to the heavens immediately. It has been a mystery for years of who the mother of Garusius was but no one has any proof. The belief of why she went to heaven is because Garusius came out so pure and so good at heart that he sent her to heaven so that his mom would...
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...Natural evil being in the world has been explain to be a result of the original sin or the fall of Angels according to Irenaeus or Augustine. Natural evil is evil that is not caused by a direct action of humans. An example of natural evil would be a tornado which could cause mass destruction and suffering. Many people would argue that there is no God. This is because many people believe that if God did exist then God should be able to stop the suffering that natural evil causes. Another reason why many people believe that the existence of natural evil proves there is no God because the amount of suffering that natural evil causes seems to be wrong for a God to allow that to happen. Also by stating that evil exists and there is a God proves the inconsistent triad as they contradict each other. This is why people would agree that God does not exist. Also many people have argued against the existence of God for example Dawkins. Richard Dawkins argued that evolution can explain all and there was no need for a God. Dawkins believed that natural selection would explain our origins. Bertrand Russell also did not believe there was a God and in a famous radio debate against Copleston he stated that the every human had a mother which meant that the human race had a mother which he believed was not true. Russell rejects the idea of causality as he states it cannot just stop at God. However people would argue against those arguments and state that natural evil has nothing to do with...
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...God does not create everything to be perfect. If we would be perfect without sins, flaws, and problems then there would be no God, then we would be totally equal as God, and there would be no one higher and lower than us. There would be sinners, atheist, offenders in His own creation because simply He gave us free will. God allows evil to exist because of the free will. Humans is given their God-given freedom which is the free will, it is the power to make a decision of one individual instead of taking or having God to decide what to do. The Bible describes God as holy, righteous, just, and sovereign tell us that these attributes about God meant that God is capable of preventing evil, and God desires to rid the universe of evil. So, why does God allow evil? If God has the power to prevent evil and desires to prevent evil, why does He still allow evil? God could change everyone’s personality so that they cannot...
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...Is the existence of God logically consistent with the existence of evil? The existence of evil is a seemingly irrefutable fact of life, one which Davies considers to be “the most discussed topic in the philosophy of religion.”1 This presents the theist with a dilemma, forcing them to make attempts at reconciling the existence of an omniscient, omnipotent and wholly good God with that of evil. Kreefy stresses the extent that this ‘problem of evil’ challenges theism, going so far as to claim that “more people have abandoned their faith because of this problem than for any other reason.”2 In the course of this essay, I intend to show that the existence of evil gives one sufficient cause to doubt traditional theism; and that one is rationally justified in doing so. In order to achieve this end, I shall identify the problem of evil, evaluating some of the major defences and theodicies proposed by theists and ultimately demonstrating that such attempts at accounting for the existence of evil are neither adequate nor convincing. The problem of evil is presented in two distinct modes; these being the logical argument from evil and its evidential counterpart. The logical problem of evil stems from the “contradiction involved in the fact of evil, on the one hand, and the belief in the omnipotence and perfection of God on the other.”3 At first glance, this contradiction is merely implicit, being made explicit through the presupposition that if God were a wholly good being, then He would...
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...rightly after one sees what evil comes from judging wrongly.” -Elizabeth Gaskell. (____) This quote from Elizabeth Gaskell relates to the Greek god, Hades, of the underworld and king of the dead. From ancient Greek to modern times Hades is viewed as the god of evil. He is viewed as evil in society because he drew the small end of the stick. Receiving the power to the ruler of the underworld and king of the dead. In modern-day Hades can be compared to the devil, the queen ant, and a kidnapper. The ones who study Greek mythology must remember, Hades is neither evil nor dark like how society portrays him, but “he is altruistic and passive, bringing balance to the world” (“Top… Hades.”). Humans who are quick to judge without knowing the story behind someone's purpose is where the trait of evil develops. Hades is the third brother among the twelve great Olympians. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades defeated their father and the Titans to help their cousins reclaim their rulership over the cosmos. The three brothers agreed to split their rule and Hades drew his power of the ruling the underworld and becoming the king over the dead. Most people think Hades is the ruler of death, but he is not the ruler of the death just the dead. “He presided over funeral rites and defended the rights...
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...contradictory. Indeed, one has questioned the necessity of evil and whether God is truly a loving god. This can be answered and/or argued on different levels depending on a certain set of perspective. Those who conform to a religion may even state various stories to prove why evil continues to persist in mankind. The people who have experienced a tragic event in the past have the tendency to stay away from any religious system.Some would even affirm that religion and the existence of God is a form of colonization and exploitation to some extent. The moral standards set by religion can affect the social...
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...explanation for the existence of evil in a world created by God To a certain extent the concept of free will is indeed a satisfactory explanation for the existence of evil in a world created by God. John Hick, in his book, Evil and The God of Love - states that God gave us free will to develop and become perfect. Hick argues that we are born as immature and imperfect, therefore we develop virtues in order to become more in God’s likeness; we develop these virtues by suffering. This suffering therefore is caused by pain, so arguably evil is the cause of our developing characteristics that enable us to reach heaven and to become one with God. Furthermore, Augustine puts forward the argument that evil is the result of human free will, and not God’s own doing. Augustine sheds light on The Fall,where it is stated that God gave Adam and Eve free will. However, they chose to abuse this, as they supposedly ate the forbidden fruit. Thus, resulting in the ‘lapse’ of mankind. However, if God had not permitted the possibility of evil, as humans we would be restricted to have free will. Catastrophic events such as the Holocaust show clear indications of evil on large scales, caused by arguably human misuse of free will decision making. If God were to stop such events, he would arguably be having to choose and draw lines between different occurrences of evil, such as larger scale events as opposed to an individual murder. God cannot be said to be responsible for evil in some respects, as it can...
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...The main big issue which occurs in problem of evil is that how God and evil can exists together, for instance if God exists, then there should be the prevention of evil, and if evil exists in the world that shows that God does not exist. This problem is logically explained by the Augustine in this paragraph. All powerful, all knowing and perfectly nice God would not allow any evil or suffering in the world. Augustine considers God as “completely innocent of evil”, the almighty all powerful God all good wouldn’t create anything evil or do anything evil. Evil is although a corruption in the good created by the God. It is not anything that God created by itself but it is the beings who did corruption in the good, which leads that to evil. Evil and bad deeds...
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...The Problem Of Evil Free Will Defense In this essay I am presenting the Theodicy for the Free Will Defense as an answer to the problem of evil. I will attempt to present answers to the following questions: Why did a good God allow for the presence of evil in the world? What is “evil” and how can we recognize it in day to day life? What resources do we have for dealing with evil? Furthermore, how our ability and gift of free will applies in all areas both good and evil. We must understand that “evil” is a word with broad applications. Webster’s Dictionary defines it as: “morally bad or wrong; wicked. Harmful; injurious. Unlucky; disastrous. Wickedness; sin. And anything causing harm, pain, etc.” However, even this is truly difficult to use as a true definition. In the Bible, evil is anything that brings sorrow, distress, or calamity, including moral wrong doing, where human beings choose to do what hurts other human beings, or any part of creation. Generally, evil works against the life-giving God and to put anything in God's place. There was a time, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, when optimism in human achievement was so strong that evil's existence was associated with ignorance, and its disappearance with greater knowledge. If humankind only knew more; soon would come the end of all evil in the world. Since then, two world wars, and countless smaller ones, combined with growing problems of over-population, racism, ecological...
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...Towards J. L. Mackie’s Evil and Omnipotence In “Evil and Omnipotence” J. L. Mackie argues that God does not exist because of his idea of the 3-0-God which states that God has to be omniscient, omnipotent and omni-benevolent to fulfill the properties of a true God. Perhaps the strongest argument that Mackie gives is that God can only be two out of the three properties in order for evil to exist thus stating that god cannot exist because he does not fulfill all three properties. In this paper, I will argue that this argument fails because Mackie is basing his points on his own thoughts about God. Mackie starts out his argument by stating that the problem of evil proves that either no god exists or at least the god of Christianity, Judaism and Islamic does not exist since the problem of evil provokes the three properties of God. Mackie supports this claim by saying, “These additional principles are that good is opposed to evil, in such a way that a good thing always eliminates evil as far as it can, and that there are no limits to what an omnipotent thing can do.” (Abel p.91) and concludes this claim with, “…propositions that a good omnipotent thing exists, and that evil exists, are incompatible.” (Abel p.91) Adequate solutions are also what backs up his major point about the problem of evil and states that God cannot be all knowing while being all-powerful and all-good because evil exists and would mean that God is unaware of evil in the world. God can be all-knowing and...
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...single question they would ask God if they were guaranteed to receive a response. The leading question asked by those surveyed was, without surprise, “Why is there suffering and pain in our world?” The occurrence of evil – demonstrated through suffering, pain, moral wickedness, and other similar things– signifies a challenging subject for anyone desiring to defend the existence of a true God. For non-believers, suffering and evil present an intimidating blockade to ever recognizing the reality of a God whom is both all-good and all-powerful. This is what William Lane Craig states as being “atheism’s killer argument” . For Christians, the issue of pain and evil has great prospective ability to upset the faith of the most proven saint, particularly when pain lands directly on them or their loved ones. How can a God who declares to be the epitome of love, all-good, and all-powerful allow pain and suffering to, ostensibly, have such power on this earth and affect those who seem innocent or those He calls His children? This issue, for the believer, becomes one of not if a God exists, but what type of God exists. While it is uncertain that an easy answer will ever be found that fulfill the human and emotional response to evil, Christian apologists must be prepared to offer responses to those who use the existence of evil to refute God’s existence. For these non-believers, assertively providing substantial evidence for the concomitance of God and evil on this earth will overcome a...
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...of human-like life. How can God create an entire planet and then destroy it just as quickly? What are the characteristics of this God? Is this God worthy of our worship? How does God allow for such evil? John Hicks: Father Tom, it seems like you have come across the problem of evil. Sarah: What do you mean of the problem of evil? Is evil not a consequence of the devil? A fallen angel who wants all of God’s followers to turn to him instead? The Devil: Yes, Sarah you are correct. I am the source of all evil; the one who causes the pain and suffering in the world today. JH: Sarah, do not listen to him. He is not as powerful as God. His power is not enough to cause all of the evil on the world. S: Then what is the “problem of evil”? JH: God is known as all powerful, all knowing, all good. If God exists, and if he is all powerful then he is able to change and eliminate evil. If God is all knowing then he has full knowledge of all evil that occurs in the world. If he is all good then he wants to create a freedom from evil. But, evil exists. So, if evil exists then God isn’t all powerful, all knowing and/or all good, or God does not exist. FT: Without God, there would be no problem of evil. God created all things, so God created evil; natural and moral. S: What do you mean by natural and moral evil? Are their different types of evil? JH: Moral evil is a wickedness that is one person inflicting evil onto another person or onto one self. FT: God created people so that means...
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