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Problem of Evil Revision Sheet

Problem of Evil Revision Sheet. 1. Summarise the problem of evil in one sentence. The problem of evil is that the presence of evil and suffering in the world is a problem for those Christian’s who want to retain God’s attributes of omnipotence, omniscience and benevolence.

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Problem of Evil Revision Sheet

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  1. Problem of Evil Revision Sheet

  2. 1. Summarise the problem of evil in one sentence The problem of evil is that the presence of evil and suffering in the world is a problem for those Christian’s who want to retain God’s attributes of omnipotence, omniscience and benevolence.

  3. 2. What is Evil? Make reference to at least two types. • Evil is whatever is painful, malicious or disastrous • Natural Evil: Events in the world which bring about suffering due to ‘natural disasters’ • E.g. earthquakes • Moral Evil: Actions which bring about unnecessary suffering in the world as a direct result of human activity. • E.g. murder

  4. 3. What is the Classic Theist God like? All powerful OMNIPOTENT All knowing OMNISCIENT Classic Theist God All loving OMNIBENEVOLENT

  5. 4. Explain fully what the Problem of Evil is. The problem of evil is that the presence of evil and suffering in the world is a problem for those Christian’s who want to retain God’s attributes of omnipotence, omniscience and benevolence. If God is omnipotent (all powerful), he would have been able to create a universe without suffering or he would be able to step in to prevent it. If God is omniscience (all knowing) he would know that we suffer. If God is benevolent (all loving), he would not tolerate the suffering of even a single one of the creatures he created. He would either have not created a world in which such a creature would suffer, or would step in to prevent it. Therefore the problem of evil suggests that either God is not omnipotent or benevolent, or he does not exist.

  6. 5. There are various solutions to the Problem of Evil. Name one term for such a solution and explain what it means. The philosophical attempts to solve the problem of evil are traditionally referred to as Theodicy. The word ‘theodicy’ is derived from the Greek words ‘theos’ (God) and ‘dike’ (justice). Theodicy is therefore a word used in Christian theology to show that God is righteous and just despite the presence of evil in the world.

  7. 6. Which solution is based on the Bible The free will defence And which part of the Bible is it based on? Genesis – The fall of Adam and Eve

  8. 7. What are the main features of this solution? Key features are: • God created a perfect world • Humans were created perfect and in the image of God • Humans were given freewill • God told humans not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden • Humans were tempted by the serpent (Devil/Satan) to disobey God and as result they ate the forbidden fruit • When ‘their eyes were opened’ relationships between God, humanity and the world changed forever • God cursed the serpent, the woman and the ground as a result of their disobedience • Adam and Eve were cast out of the garden symbolising a broken relationship between humans and God which had lasted today, as have the escalating effects of their disobedience Due to its faithfulness to the biblical narrative, the Freewill Defence is often the traditional answer to most Christians to the problem of evil and suffering.

  9. 8. Analyse this argument by explaining at least one strength and weakness. Free will: Strengths Free will: Weakness Faithful to the biblical narrative A literal reading of the Genesis account is unscientific. There was never a time when humanity was in a perfect state. Evolutionary theory disprove this. Evil was not part of God’s original plan How could evil come about in a perfect world. If there was a possibility that evil could occur then the world was not created perfect. God is not responsible for mans evil choices Why did God not create human beings who always chose morally right actions? Allows there to be the Classic Theist God Why did God not prevent the fall of man if he foresaw it?

  10. 9. Which two theodicies are based on this solution? • St. Augustine and Irenaeus theodicies

  11. 10. Which of these is referred to as Soul-Deciding and why? • The Augustian theodicy is referred to as Soul-Deciding as it is concerned with judgement of human souls.

  12. 11. Which of these is referred to as Soul-Making and why? • The Irenaeus theodicy is often referred to as Soul-Making as it is concerned with the development of human souls.

  13. 12. Do you think the Augustian theodicy is plausible and why?

  14. 13. Do you think the Irenaean theodicy is plausible and why?

  15. 13. Which theodicy did Hick reformulate? • Hick’s theodicy is a modern reformulation of the Irenaean theodicy.

  16. 14. Using his term, explain Hick’s idea that humans must be able to make real choices. • Hick’s theodicy is a modern reformulation of the Irenaean theodicy. It is based on the idea that free choice is better than compulsion. • For human beings to love God, they have to be free to choose to do so. Love cannot be forced. The capacity to love God is a quality that has to be developed. • In order to allow for development, humans have been created imperfect. There has to be room for improvement in order for development to be possible. Hick called this distance between God and man an epistemic distance. It is a distance in knowledge and understanding. This distance allows humans the room to develop – if God were too close, humans would find it impossible not to be influenced. They would be unable to make a free choice, and would not benefit from the developmental experience of being morally free.

  17. 15. The process Theodicy argues that God is not responsible for evil in the world. Explain at least two key features of this theodicy. • God is part of the world, is affected by it, but unable to control it. God is therefore the ‘fellow sufferer who understands’ (Whitehead). God’s creative choice was to create a universe with suffering in it, or for there to be no universe at all. • Panentheism – All is in God. God includes the world, so God’s experience is related to the world, altered by changes in the world and involved in the process of the world. The best analogy is that if the mind and the body. • God is not omnipotent in the process theodicy (Griffin). God’s role in creation is limited – He is bound by the laws of nature. However, God is still held responsible for evil, since He begun the process knowing that He would not be able to control it. • The suffering of humanity is justified by the Christian belief that God suffered on the cross (Moltmann). Evil is something to be fought constantly, with the knowledge that God has suffered alongside his creation.

  18. 16. What are the short comings of this theory? • It replaces an omnipotent God with an impotent God: rather than trying to reconcile the classic concept of God with the existence of evil, it simply ‘sacks’ him. • It is not a theodicy due to the fact that it denies the traditional view of God. This is why it is often referred to as the Process theology to defend itself against this attack.

  19. Homework: • Draft an essay plan to answer: • Examine what theists understand as the problem of evil • Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of two theodicies which attempt to provide solutions to this problem

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