Throughout this paper I am going to write about the nature of the problem we like to call evil. I want to define the moral and natural problems with evil and explain them. I am going to also explain the roles that God play when referring to the consistency and perception of God and the issue of evil. On top of that, I am also going to look at why we sometimes have bad things happen to those that we find to be genuinely good people. Evil in the simplest of ways is that which causes harm or misfortune. Evil is an immediate result of sin and is something that we all struggle with. If we want to grasp a better understanding of evil and its nature, we must first understand everything we can on sin’s orgin.
In this paper, I am going to look at
…show more content…
They inflict pain on others, making them suffer. Those, on the other hand who the evil is committed always undergo suffering and pain. One good example we are going to use is slavery. Slavery has always been associated with sin by the early Christian authors. Slavery, according to Basil, slavery is not natural. It is the result of war, poverty, and fathers who choose to expose their children, resulting in them becoming slaves [2] . According to Amrose, nature does not make a person a slave, foolishness does. However, according to Athanasius people automatically call God "Lord" since humans are by nature slaves. This means that human beings are by nature slaves. Augustine of Hippo viewed the nature of sin as resulting from wars and poverty, just like Basil did. He even states that the word slavery is not found in the bible until Noah branded the sin of his son with his name. Therefore, slavery is in introduced by sin and not by …show more content…
Kelsey states that sin is a distorted practice of human love. He further explains categorizes processes in which a person's id can change and reflect inaccurately by misunderstanding the reasons or agenda that make their life worth living. He classifies these into 3 main ways through which people can distort their personal identity. In the first category, a person distorts their identity by not accepting that they need redemption or forgiveness which in turn culminates into the subject seeking self-justification, for example, through having the need to exercise authority or superiority over others [4] . Another type of distorted self-identity is demonstrated when we humans exhibit the need for forgiveness or some form of redemption. However, we view this reconciliation as an endeavor purely futuristic and reliant on our socio-political and traditional practices in our history, instead of, an endeavor that is already achieved through God's actions.
Finally, the other form of distorted self-identity is when human beings accept the need to exercise forgiveness and compassion, albeit they do so lacking the knowledge that structural reconciliation is already guaranteed by God (Heb 8:10, Isa 43:28). Instead, such people strive to
In this paper, I would like to explore several responses to this argument, the nature of evil, and to explain why some evils might be a necessity.
In other words, some people refer to evil as sin and suffering; others think of it as a separation from God while still more people personify it in the form of satan. My purpose here is not to discuss what form evil may take in an individual's life even though it may come up periodically. The central fact remains that evil, in one form or another, does exist and anyone not willing to believe in this reality quite frankly lives in a different dimension. Either that, or they simply live in a total state of denial! Keeping all this in mind, what I want to accomplish in this paper is to first explore the idea that evil is a relative term that exists within the context of each situation. Ah, yes! Even as I wrote that last sentence, I could see the wheels turning in your head. But not to worry. I will clarify soon. From this point, I will seek the wisdom of people who have tried to answer these tough questions proposed on the first page, come to some more conclusions through personal interviews and then end on a more personal note, using the help of my life experience as a Christian. This topic hits me hard at times. I often find myself in reflection, trying to formulate an answer to the evil that I see, and yes, the evil that I do. This evil will sometimes leave me feeling totally powerless and at its mercy. Yet I never give up hope for I know that just through the process of writing this paper, some new insights will be
There are many types of religions in the United States, such as Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. Religion helps individuals find their inner self and practice certain beliefs. However, regardless of the type of religion, every individual seeks to have their sins forgiven. In Johnathan Edwards’s sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Edwards is able to create a vivid imagery of what happens to individuals who commit sins. Edwards uses strong diction and imagery to make any individual repent for their sins.
In Chapter Seven, The Problem of Evil from “The Sacred Quest: An Invitation to the Study of Religion” by Lawrence Cunningham and John Kelsay the authors examine various possible reasons for why evil exists. I will be examining further the information provided in this Chapter in order to attempt to answer the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” First, I will provide my point of view on what I consider to be evil and good. Next, I will explain why I believe in the appeal to sovereignty view and how it applies to the ultimate question. Finally, I will provide counterarguments to my explanation.
Problem of Evil Throughout our lives, we experience and observe occurrences that seem to be good and others that seem to be evil. Some of us grew up in church and believed that God has a purpose or plan for all the circumstances that we experience, good or bad. Others don’t believe in a creator or God and instead live with the assumption that life is great at times and at other times is terrible, without rhyme or reason. The problem of evil seems to ultimately criticise God and christian beliefs.
An argument against the existence of God is based on the presence of evil in the world. This deductively valid argument is divided into two categories; human action and natural evil (Sober, 2005, p. 120). Human action discusses how experiences makes us better people, while natural evil are tragic events that are not under the control of humans. Each category is used as evidence to refute God as an all-powerful omniscient, omnibenevolent, or omnipotent being. In order to understand the strengths of this argument, it is important for an overall assessment of how the presence of evil questions if a Supreme Being actually exists, by arguing why a being of all-good would allow evil, importance of evil in a good world, and questioning God’s intervention in evil.
This paper examines St. Augustine’s view on evil. St. Augustine believed that God made a perfect world, but that God's creatures turned away from God of their own free will and that is how evil originated in the world. Augustine assumes that evil cannot be properly said to exist at all, he argues that the evil, together with that suffering which is created as punishment for sin, originates in the free nature of the will of all creatures. According to Augustine, God has allowed evil to exist in the world because it does not conflict with his righteousness. He did not create evil but is also not a victim of it. He simply allows it to exist.
The problem of evil as suffering is a problem of what to do with the obstacle for the believer but also an obstacle to unbeliever to converge because they do not think it harmonising. In contradiction to compatibility, an atheist often suggested that the present of evil entails the absence of God. Atheist argued, if God exists, then as an omnipotent, he is able to prevent the evil occurrence. For omniscient, it implies under any circumstances evil will occur if he does not act. Then, being perfectly good, he will prevent its occurrence and so evil will not exist. Based on this above proclamation, the existence of God does not compatible with the evil of whatever kind. However, theists response to this logical problem of evil by an atheist is that necessarily perfectly good being, foreseeing the occurrence of evil and able to prevent it, will prevent evil. The essay will first, define what evil is according to Swinburne as one of the philosopher of religion, Second, Swinburne four categories of evil will be discussed (Physical evil, mental evil, state evil, moral evil). Third, Phillip logical and existential problem evil will be discussed through. How will all these above assertions be a problem to those that and does not believe in God.
One of the oldest dilemmas in philosophy is also one of the greatest threats to Christian theology. The problem of evil simultaneously perplexes the world’s greatest minds and yet remains palpably close to the hearts of the most common people. If God is good, then why is there evil? The following essay describes the problem of evil in relation to God, examines Christian responses to the problem, and concludes the existence of God and the existence of evil are fully compatible.
Before we can dive into the problem of evil, we must define a term. Whenever the word “God” is used in this paper, it is referring to the classical theistic conception of God. In this view of God, God is that, “than which nothing greater can be conceived” in your mind. Any attributes or qualities that make a being great, God has to the maximum. This means that, among many other qualities, God is benevolent(all good), omnipotent(all powerful), and omniscient(all knowing). Furthermore, God is the creator of the universe and is personally connected to the human race.
This is a significant problem to the revealed religions because they believe in a wholly good and omnipotent God. Why then, would this God allow evil? In this paper, I will provide, explain, and evaluate St. Augustine of Hippo’s
What is considered evil depends upon each individual’s view of morality, which constantly changes through the course of that person’s life. Roy Perrett’s “Evil and Human Nature” explains this by elaborating on the customary interpretation of moral evil. This evil, caused by an intentional bad action or harm, opposes another type of evil, natural evil, which occurs without
One of the major topics that entranced St. Augustine was the topic of sin, the sinner, and evil. Those themes possessed some of his more detailed thoughts, themes that were present throughout his life. The question revolving around the problem of evil are hard to answer, and this essay will attempt to give a clear account of Augustine’s thoughts on this topic. Hopefully, while his thoughts
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
It is also vital to look at Wilson’s view on the practice of forgiveness and how if an individual decides to ignore it, it can place a road block in their process of change. She believes that God speaks about forgiveness for the following reasons:” (1) we are all sinners with whom to relate so we’ll need to become skillful forgivers (2) God makes forgiveness a centerpiece of our healing process because living in un-forgiveness is so much worse (Wilson, 2001).