3.2 Problems of evil and suffering: Theodicies and solutions Flashcards
What is a theodicy?
Arguments that try to make existence of evil compatible with the existence of an omnipotent, benevolent God
- A theodicy must not deny the existence of evil or suggest you should give up faith, but must offer convincing reasons as why a better state of affairs prevails by God not removing evil
How did Augustine of Hippo attempt to explain the existence of evil, whilst defending the GOCT?
- God is perfect and created a perfect world without moral or natural evil
- evil is not a thing in itself but the abscence of Good (privation of Good)
- God gave humans free will but then they chose to disobey and created an ‘absence of good’
How does the Augustinian theodicy overcome the problem of evil?
- Evil is a consequence of free will- result of human negligence to God’s commandments
- Evil is a consequence of a just God- God doesn’t intervene and allows us to experience the punishment of our wrong doings
What are the strengths of the Augustinian theodicy?
- For Christians it matches biblical teachings
- Free will justifies the existence of evil
- evil is a privation of good, evil wasn’t originally part of God’s creation
What are the weaknesses of the Augustinian theodicy?
- Many people don’t take the creation story literally
- was the world made perfect? evoultion would disagree
criticisms of the augustinian theodicy
Friedrich Schleiermacher- Logical contradicition either the world wasn’t made perfect to start with or God made it go worng (God at fault)
Peter Cole- a perfect world would have no knowledge of evil, how can God punish humans for exerting choice that he gave to them?, God shouldn’t hold us responsible for making immoral choices as he allowed the choice
Charles Darwin- Theory of evolution, world was not created perfect
Suffering as essential to survival- suffering is necessary for survival; calling it ‘evil’ calls into question God’s natural order; implies he should’ve created it differently
What is epistemic distance?
God mustn’t be so close to humans, as we would have no choice but to obey him, so God created humans at a distance- John Hick
What is eschatological justification?
All suffering will be** justified at judgement day**
What is the Vale of soul making?
This is the best possible world because here humans are able to develop (through dangers and suffering)
What is the Irenaean theodicy?
The world is this way because God has a plan to allow humans to develop qualities to become perfect, God didn’t create us in complete perfection because he wanted us to have free will
How does John Hick interpret the Irenaean theodicy?
If God had made us perfect we would have the ‘goodness of robots’ who would love God unquestioned and therefore it would be meaningless love
‘soul-making’ to achieve this God created humans at an epistemic distance
How does Richard Swinburne interpret the Irenaean theodicy?
Evil is a consequence of a world designed to promote human free will
a world which includes suffering is the best possible world for humans
God gifted us a world where humans could meaningfully contribute their free response to an imperfect world
given an oppurtunity to grow and make a difference
In the Irenaean theodicy what are the 2 stages of creation of humans?
- We were made in the image of God, intelligent but immature beings, w/ capacity for moral and spiritual perfection
- We will grow into the likeness of God by developing through our suffering into perfect moral/ spiritual beings
critics of the Iranean theodicy
Dewi Zephaniah Phillips- suffering can never be an expression of God’s love, if it has been ‘done for a purpose planned from eternity- that is the deepest evil’
The concept of heaven for all appears unjust- Why work so hard to be given the same reward as a less hard worker?
Quantity and gravity of suffering is unacceptable- some suffering appears so random and prolongued that it can’t possibly be for development
suffering appears to be an unreliable and inefficient method of soul making- some suffering only produces pain, why so long?, can it really create moral growth?
Some moral evil appears to be the consequence of mental illness- goes against free will, at the mercy of their mental disorder
Strengths of the Iranean theodicy
- avoids some of the problems associated with the Augustinian theodicy: notion that evil comes from nowhere, allows room for evolution
Weaknesses of the Iranean theodicy
- Do the ends justify the means?
- relies on eschatological verification- we will only have proof for this theodicy once we’re dead
What is process theodicy?
Nature of God- God’s power is limited but possesses powers of persuasion: God is not transcendent he is imanent
God’s role- God didn’t create the universe, he is part of the universe, he started the evolutionary process, God suffers when evil happens
God’s responsibility for evil- God can’t stop evil and doesn’t have the power to change the natural order, but he bears some responsibility as he started the evolutionary process, bears responsibility for good and evil that has occured
God’s experience of evil- God suffers with us when evil occurs
Why is process theodicy not actually a theodicy?
It sacrifices God’s omnipotence meaning it doesn’t argue for the GOCT but a weakened version
How does process theodicy overcome the problem of evil?
A.N Whitehead: Evil is a consequence of God’s inability to prevent it- God is a fellow sufferer as he is part of the universe
John Hick: Evil is a consequence of God’s will being thwarted- God helps people live in the best way ‘persuasion and lure’, but cannot control them
Strengths of Process theodicy
- A God who suffers alongside us can bring comfort
Weaknesses of process theodicy
- Frees God from the responsibility of evil whilst allowing him to be involved with the world
Critics of Process theodicy
John Hick- the majority suffer at the expense of the minority, not all loving. Even if the good outweighs the evil, it provides no comfort to those who have suffered
The nature of God does not justify the existence of evil- seems to permit what is morally unacceptable (death of millions)
God’s worthiness of worship becomes questioned- Does a God who isn’t the GOCT deserve worship?
The promise of Heaven and rewarding of the innocent is absent- there is no certainty that the innocent will be rewarded for their suffering- supported by David Griffin
What are some arguments for the purpose of evil?
Evil is a punishment- God uses suffering to punish us
Evil is a test- test human qualities and give humans oppurtunity to show love, courage and other noble traits
Evil is an inevitability- God is not responsible for evil, it is part of this world
Evil is how God’s love is displayed- God is not a distant God but one who cares for those who suffer and enables people to bring good out of evil
