`` Logical Problem Of Evil `` By Lee Strobel

Per The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy, Theodicy is “a defense of the justice or goodness of God in the face of doubts or objections arising from the phenomena of evil in the world (‘evil’ refers here to bad states of affairs of any sort).” With this said many of us have some been at a place in our lives where we question the purpose of evil and God’s inability to rid of us such thing. Many arguments can be made as to the purpose of evil, which also tends to be the problem of evil.

The problem for Christians who try to deal with the presence of evil is that many people believe that God is powerful and knowing and good and should prevent evil and suffering before it happens. As a Christian, I also believe that God is the creator of the world. However, after 9/11, most people were asking where was God? Many of the people interviewed during the making of the video wanted answers from God they felt that they could no longer count on God. Also, since the 9/11 event was so barbaric, was God also barbaric for letting it happen. Additionally, since the suicide terrorists had committed such an atrocity in the name of God had our majestic God been killed as well?

For atheists, apologetics, and non-believers, a big topic of contention is the existence of evil in a world with God. This is known as the problem with evil. How does a God that is all knowing, all powerful, and perfectly good allow such atrocities to occur under his watch? It is this question that so many people have discussed. The argument centers on God being omnipotent, omniscient, and perfectly good (Mackie, 1955 p. 200). Omnipotent is to be all powerful. Omniscient is to be all knowing and to be perfectly good means that God would prevent a morally bad event from ever happening (Swinburne, 1998 p. 13). In the problem of evil, God’s powers are taken at face value, and applied to God’s inaction to evil on earth. People who argue against the topic of evil typically make generalizations on the attributes that God

Jeremy A. Evans is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Texas A&M University, a M.Div. in Biblical Languages from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. Dr. Evans has published two main works through B&H publishing company, The Problem of Evil: The Challenge to Essential Christian Beliefs, and The Legitimacy of Christian Moral Thought in the Marketplace of Ideas. Dr. Evans strives to accomplish two things in his teaching and writings; “one, to edify students by challenging them to engage their mind for Christ, and two, provide the necessary tools for independent research

Throughout history, humans have displayed beliefs in the existence of some sort of higher being. The existence of God gives an explanation of why the world is the way it is and is a reassurance for life after death. However, even believers of a deity find themselves questioning their own god, asking themselves, “If there is so much suffering in the world, how can God exist?” and this is understandable. Suffering is defined as the state of undergoing pain, distress, or hardship. Theorists have attempted to answer this question, some arguing for the existence of God and some arguing against it, but there’s no real way to answer this question. After all, there’s no definite proof of God’s existence in the world. Two dominant arguments for the existence of

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

The "Problem of Evil" is a philosophical stumbling block for many people. There are various explanations for the evil and suffering in the world. Theodicy, which is the vindication of divine goodness and providence in view of the existence of evil explains this. Ultimate Questions by Nils Ch. Rauhut mentions eight different types of theodicy: Big-Plan, Punishment, Suffering-Builds-Character, Limits-of-Human-Knowledge, Contrast, Devil, Test, and Free Will. Many of these explanations have several similarities, although I believe that Limits-of-Human Knowledge Theodicy best fits my understanding of the world. This type has the basic idea that God is the perfect being, and therefore he has infinite knowledge as an infinite being. We simply are

William Rowe defines gratuitous evil as an instance of intense suffering which an omnipotent, omniscient being could have prevented without thereby losing some greater good or permitting some evil equally bad or worse.(Rowe 335) In a world with so much evil it raises the questions If God is all powerful, all knowing and all good, how can he allow bad things to happen to good people? Can God even exist in a world with so such gratuitous evil? These are questions that has afflicted humanity for a very long time and has been the question to engross theologians for centuries. The existence of evil has been the most influential and powerful reason to disprove the existence of God. It is believed among many theist that God is the creator and caretaker

I have seen patients die in peace while others have held on by a thread for days breathing like a fish out of water; while their families are tortured by the sight. Why? Is God a malice God? Does he wish to inflict pain? On good days I stand rooted in my faith and on others I trust in God while I simultaneously ask those three letters, WHY? Going back to those parents and family members, I have seen the strongest people not instinctively question God, but trust in his promises and blindly, without understanding, lean on his purpose. This then goes into God using evil for his purposes (Allen). I believe sometimes God has to allow suffering and pain for his purpose. I say this with a heavy heart and without clear understanding. An example in the bible is when Joseph’s brothers plot to kill him but then sell him into slavery. Joseph was enslaved and suffered for many years. He was a good son and loved the Lord but evil fell upon him. “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” (Genesis 50:20) I believe sometimes God has to allow such evil to show his power. In a sermon I heard awhile back the pastor stated “sometimes we have to go through the trials to know the only thing that delivered us from it was God”. At a recent church conference I was asked to close my eyes and think about the one situation in my life

The problem of evil is the argument that if God is omniscient (all-knowing), omnipotent (all-powerful), and benevolent. This implies that if God exists then he knows how to, wants to, and can prevent all suffering. If such a God existed, though, then he would prevent all types of evil. Although evil in all forms is an everyday part of the world around us; it has not been prevented. Therefore, God does not exist. More precisely if God exists then he is all-knowing, almighty, and perfectly good, if God were these then the world would not contain evil. There is evil in the world both moral and natural, so God does not exist. If God does exist, then there would be no evil. The existence of evil makes Gods existence rationally impossible.

The existence of evil cannot be based on whether there is an all-powerful, all-knowing, all-caring god. There are several reasons for why evil exists, but none of these reasons are because God does not exist. In fact, the main reason evil exists is due to humanity’s greed. This causes corruption and death amongst our own. While unfortunate, it is not the determinant of God’s existence. God prevents the evil he/she thinks is not acceptable for the future of humanity. The evil that he does not prevent from happening either is part of God’s plan or is caused by humanity itself.

I argued that their arguments fell short due to merely assuming the wills and thoughts of God. I then presented a possible counterclaim arguing that even without understanding the wills of God, humans have defined suffering and God should have eliminated it. However, I concluded that despite this strong rebuttal it was not sufficient in withstanding my critique because it still assumes the intentions of God. Ultimately the problems of evil assume the thoughts of God and as such do not discredit God’s

When pain and suffering attach people lives, again, because of their brokenness, they hunger for God’s solutions. When God does not give them what they want, their emotions take over. People start to ask why He allows it. More than that, they question: is He there? This question has caused incalculable individuals to judge their religion, question their beliefs, and, in some cases, abandon the concept that there's a God. Several reach a conclusion just like this: If there is a caring, almighty God, he would rid of the planet of evil currently. Since he does not, there should not be a God—and if there is, he is either not caring or not almighty, either of that makes Him unworthy to our worship. To answer this question, Zacharias points out: “the explanation must meet both the intellectual and emotional demands” (89). Christianity as a worldview is the only one that accepts the reality of evil and suffering, explains both the cause and the purpose, and offers God-given strength to survive it. Evil is real and the source of it is: humanity rebelled against the holy Creator. Because they both suffer and cause suffering, evil seems mysterious to them and they put the blame on God. The only solution is they have to allow God to transform their hearts to bring an end to evil because He already has a plan for

How we view the presence of God and evil depends on why we believe the world was created. If man is a fully created creature then the world was created for him to live in, a comfortable, pleasant place. Our world is obviously filled with suffering, danger, hardship of all kinds, so an all-powerful God could not have created it. To Christians the world is not a paradise where one can experience the maximum of pleasure and a minimum of pain. The world is a place of “soul making” or person making. As we try and understand the challenges of our lives, and our environment we may become “Children Of God”.

Evil was never part of the original creation of God. However, this came into existence when the first humans disobeyed God. The suffering of humans today is due to the original sin. The punishment theodicy claims that suffering is the punishment for the original sin. This means that every human is born with the sin of our first parents in them, therefore making suffering an inevitable condition. This could explain why new born babies, innocent children and even animals who do not know anything suffer. Punishment is not only due to the original