Free Will Research Paper

In the course of this essay I will argue that evil is not compatible with the existence of god. This means that evil and God cannot coexist because if god were present, the existence of evil would contradict all that god is believed to be. Abrahamic religions insist that God both created the world and that he preserves and maintains it. Christianity claims that God is all knowing and is boundless in his abilities. Religions claim that God is benevolent, and only wants the best for humanity and the universe, as his creations. If all of the above statements be true, then it is hard to understand why god would allow evil to thrive right from the beginning of time.

If there is a God, horrendous things wouldn’t happen. According to Inwagen, there is sufficient reason behind why God allows evil or even created it in the first place. This argument provides an anchor to the argument of God’s existence. God has outweighed reasons to allow evil and has a very real logical motivation why it might be. God being the omnipresent prefect being he is wouldn’t want evil. The key word is ‘want’ in this context, because want is a strong desire for something, doesn’t mean obtaining it or getting it are two very different things.

J. L. Mackie’s “Evil and Omnipotence” criticizes the argument that God exists by showing that religious beliefs are positively irrational and that parts of the essential theological doctrine are inconsistent with one another. The problem of evil is one of the oldest problems in philosophy. The problem of evil is a logical problem for only the people who believe that there is a God who is both (1) omnipotent and (2) wholly good; yet (3) evil exists in the world. If God is wholly good and omnipotent, then how can there be a presence of evil in the world. Given the presence of evil, we must either conclude that God does not have the power to prevent the suffering that evil causes in which case God is not omnipotent or that God does not wish

Following this line of thought, the next logical step for our human minds to pursue would seem to be that in order for God to experience Himself as the all-consuming good, there had to be something called the all-consuming evil. This is a flawed argument for there is only one deity we recognize as God. God is all there was, all there is, and all there ever will be. The existence of evil cannot be used as a pathetic excuse for God to be able to justify His existence.

As long as evil and suffering exists in this world, God cannot exist. More importantly, it does not only contradict with the idea of God being “all-good”, but also him being “all-knowing” and “all-powerful” as well. Because, if God only desires good, how evil was formed unless God was evil in someway. If not, then if God has all knowledge, he should know evil exists. Even more, if God is “all-power”, he should be able to the evil and suffering in the that he created. So, the existence of evil contradicts

Ernest Nagel identifies that God is all-knowing, all-powerful, and loving. However, if God has all of those traits, then why would He allow evil? This is where the problem of evil comes in. It says that if God exists, he is omnipotent, omniscient, and benevolent. Because God is omniscient, He knows when evil occurs. Since He is omnipotent, He has the power to prevent it and his benevolent nature would permit him to stop evil. Yet, evil occurs anyways. Therefore, a God with such traits does not

Ethical theories that define goodness in term of divine command are considered live options among an array of ethical theories. Debates rage over divine causality, the extent of God’s providence, and the reality of human free choice. The problem of evil has also been taken up anew for fresh discussions both by those who see it as arguing against the existence of God and by those who wish to defend theism against the reality of evil.

Now that I have discussed where evil originated, I want to provide a brief definition of evil. Most people will agree that evil is any cruel act, serious harm to another person mentally or physically. It can also be identified in a level of evil meaning people tend to feel that the more harm done to a person the greater the level of evil. Some examples of evil are acts of murder or abuse that harms another human being or animals. While I do agree with this definition of evil, I also think there is another crucial part of the definition. It is that evil itself is an act against the law of God. The Bible uses the word evil to define anything that is in violation of God’ law. In the connection between good and bad, evil is also seen as the absence of goodness. A simple way to understand the connection is that evil is a “fundamental and troubling departure from goodness” (Alcorn, 2009, p. 25). Alcorn’s view of evil is a complete absence and rejection of God’s goodness. I completely agree with this definition of evil, but I also understand that not all people believe in my God or any God for that matter. Atheists also identify evil in the world and they would agree with me on some acts that I think are evil. However, their definition does not include God. For example, Humanists believe there is good without God. They see the evil in the world and believe they must

How can God and Evil both exist in the World? I have asked myself this question probably a million times in my 27 years of life and I know I will continue to ask myself this question for the rest of it. If one believes in a higher power how can this higher power allow for such bad things to take place? Many people have this certain image of God as an all-wise, all powerful parent figure who would treat us as our earthy parents do or even better. But when something bad happens to us we somehow may forget all that and want to put the blame on him. But if you think about it who is the one to say that you, yourself are a good person? You may think you are a good person but in the end I truly believe that the Lord our Savior is the only person that can ultimately make that decision. As stated by the author, Dave Earley

According to this solution some of God’s creations may be evil, but the choice to act on the evil is under human control. (This is not to say that God created the world as an evil place, but rather while the world itself was created by God as good it does contain some accidental features of evil.) According to the J source the proof for this solution lies in Genesis chapters two and 3, with the nachash in the Garden of Eden. The nachash was an evil and deceptive creature that promoted something that God had made forbidden as good, yet it was the humans who made the decision to act on this

The Problem of Evil Amongst all the uncertainties within our world today, one thing is clear, and that is the fact that there is evil in our world. Upon this fact lies multiple questions that people have yet to fully answer. “What is evil? Why is it here?

That is complete insanity. How dare we lay all the evil of the world at the feet of God! It just doesn't make sense! He so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life.

The problem of evil questions the nature of God and threatens his status as a figure worthy of worship. Surely human beings would not wish to worship a God that is neither all good nor all-powerful? The figure we call God is seen to be entirely perfect and flawless in every way. The problem of evil also questions God’s omniscience, in respects that he is all knowing. If God is omniscient then he must know the harm that evil does and the suffering it will cause. The attributes in question are the essence of the nature of God and without them he becomes more like a human than a God. If any of God’s characteristics are omitted, he

From shooting to bombings to rape or just simply stealing someones lunch money, it is evident that evil does in fact exist. But where does it come from? In The Bible Ezekiel 28:11-19 states that evil derived from the fall of Lucifer as a result of pride. The Bible acknowledges the existence of evil. This leads to one of the biggest road blocks in christianity, how can a God who is omnibenevolent, omniscient, and omnipotent allow evil to exists? It is a common misconception that the existence of evil limits God from being all three things at once. A God who is all loving, all knowing, and all powerful can exist in a world full of evil because evil can be used for a greater good, God has the right to inflict harm, and we are given free will.

The problem of evil is as ancient as humanity itself. Since the dawn of man, thinkers, philosophers, religionists and practically every human being who have suffered at the hands of evil have pondered this enigma, either as a logical-intellectual-philosophical or emotional-religious-existential problem. The preponderance of evil as a reality in human existence, and