Augustine's theodicy

Question 1

how did God create the world according to Augustine?

Answer 1

God’s perfect and so was the world he created. no suffering, there was peace and harmony

Question 2

how did God make all beings according to Augustine?

Answer 2

different scales of goodness (e.g. good dog different to good human). evil when doesn’t live up to expected goodness

Question 3

why does God not create evil according to Augustine?

Answer 3

evil is a lack of or privation of goodness not a substance. example of blindness is a lack of sight rather than an entity in itself. so god didn’t create evil

Question 4

examples of privation boni

Answer 4

sickness as a privation of health, a hole in a bucket as the hole is not physically anything but deprives the bucket of its function

Question 5

what does genesis 1:26 say about humans?

Answer 5

they are made in the image and likeness of God. physical and spiritual beings capable of rational thought. have the freewill to make choices between good and evil.

Question 6

where in the bible does it say humans are made in the image and likeness of God?

Answer 6

genesis 1:26

Question 7

what is the importance of freewill to Augustine?

Answer 7

it’s part of being human. enables humans to make choices between the good and evil. free choice is essential to being truly good.

Question 8

what was the fall of angels?

Answer 8

disrupted the harmony of natural order resulting in a damaged environment

Question 9

what did the fall of angels lead to?

Answer 9

natural evil
disharmony and imbalance if nature such as earthquakes and pain in childbirth

Question 10

why does natural evil continue?

Answer 10

god is just in allowing it to continue as it also acts a punishment for original sin as the creation has been affected by the Fall or sin too.

Question 11

where was the Fall of humankind in the bible?

Answer 11

Genesis 2:4-3:1

Question 12

what did the Fall lead to?

Answer 12

moral evil
sin and death entered the world, original sin (corrupt human nature), all humans ‘seminally present in Adam’ so all humans present in the first sin and all humans have the tendency to choose evil.

Question 13

why does moral evil continue?

Answer 13

Augustine argues because of original sin and immoral choices everyone deserves to be punished. God is justified because he is mot to blame for the free choices of humans.

Question 14

what was the Fall?

Answer 14

Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden chose to eat fruit of the tree the knowledge of good and evil

Question 15

‘all evil is…

Answer 15

either sin or punishment for sin’. any natural evil punishment from original sin and the ‘seminally present’

Question 16

the role of Jesus Christ

Answer 16

god’s solution- plan to save humans. Jesus self-sacrifice on the cross. took punishment for original sin and the misuse of freewill.

Question 17

how should humans respond to Jesus?

Answer 17

‘soul-deciding’
all humans who repent and accept salvation will escape punishment. at the end of time all will be judged, good rewarded, evil will receive their just punishment. the individual chooses

Question 18

strength of Augustine’s theodicy: Brian Davies

Answer 18

evil not properly a substance but ‘a gap between what there is and what there ought to be’

Question 19

strength of Augustine’s theodicy: Plantinga

Answer 19

genuine freewill requires the possibility that humans can choose evil

Question 20

strength of Augustine’s theodicy: evil can be seen as fault of humans

Answer 20

e.g. terrorist attacks, ‘all evil either sin or punishment for sin’

Question 21

strength of Augustine’s theodicy: H. McCabe

Answer 21

-something is evil/bad if it doesn’t live up to what’s expected e.g. bad grape
-or it is a absence of what we expect to be there e.g. a hole in a sock

Question 22

weakness of Augustine’s theodicy: Schleiermacher- logical error

Answer 22

-how can a perfect world go wrong?
-Adam and Eve must have had some knowledge of evil to be able to choose it. where did this come from?

Question 23

weakness of Augustine’s theodicy: Schleiermacher- scientific error

Answer 23

-contradicts evolution= gradual improvement. graph after Fall got less perfect goes against evolution
-biological error, seminally present= not possible, modern scientific advances suggest errors

Question 24

weakness of Augustine’s theodicy: Schleiermacher- moral error

Answer 24

concept of hell as part of design of the universe; did God anticipate it would go wrong? morally wrong to allow suffering in his creation, challenge the morality if he knew end result of creation would cause suffering and evil

Question 25

weakness of Augustine’s theodicy: God limited omnipotence

Answer 25

if god limited omnipotence to allow free will, there’s no guarantee that good will eventually defeat evil