3.6 Mackie: ‘Evil and Omnipotence’

Question 1

Summarise introductory paragraph (1st part)

Answer 1

1. philosophers have criticised traditional arguments for God - many thinkers have found problems with the usual arguments that try to prove God exists
2. theologians can accept this criticism - religious thinkers (theologians) don’t have to argue back: they can admit that there is no logical proof for God’s existence
3. faith over reason - even without logical proof, theologians can still believe in God by saying they ‘just know’ in a way that isn’t based on reason
4. the problem of evil is a stronger challenge - Mackie believes there’s a bigger issue than just lacking proof; the problem of evil shows that religious beliefs don’t just lack evidence - they actually contradict themselves
5. religious beliefs are irrational - the key ideas