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AQA AS (A-level) Religious Studies > Evil and Suffering > Flashcards

Evil and Suffering Flashcards

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1
Q

Natural evil

A

Evil not caused by humans, caused by God

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2
Q

Moral evil

A

Evil caused by humans

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3
Q

Examples of natural evil

A
  • The great dying
  • Moses and the plagues
  • The flood in genesis 6:6
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4
Q

Examples of moral evil

A

Case of Sue (1996)

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5
Q

The problem of evil and suffering

A

How can an omnipotent, omnibenevolent and omniscient God exist in the presence of evil

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6
Q

The logical problem of evil

A

God and evil cannot co exist

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7
Q

Name the scholar who founded the logical problem of evil

A

Epicurus

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8
Q

Name the scholar who developed the logical problem of evil into the inconsistent triad

A

J.L. Mackie

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9
Q

Name the scholar who developed the logical problem of evil into the inconsistent triad

A

J.L. Mackie

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10
Q

The inconsistent triad

A
  1. God is omnipotent
  2. God is omnibenevolent
  3. Evil exists
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11
Q

List the three potential solutions to the inconsistent triad

A
  1. God is not omnipotent - he cannot control evil
  2. God is omnibenevolent- an all loving God wouldn’t allow his creation to suffer
  3. Denying the existence of evil - posed by Augustine in privation boni - a privation of good, evil doesn’t exist in it’s own right, it is the absence of good,
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12
Q

The evidential problem of evil

A
  1. Evil is overwhelming in quantity and quality
  2. Evil is pointless
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13
Q

The greater good

A

Justifies certain evil, where evil has a higher purpose and benefits a large number of people

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14
Q

The 3 points Rowe makes in relation to evil

A
  1. Intense suffering is allowed for the greater good
  2. An omniscient wholly good God prevents suffering, but if it provides the greater good, then it is allowed
  3. A wholly good God who is omniscient wouldn’t allow pointless or avoidable suffering
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15
Q

Who developed the evidential problem of evil

A

William Rowe

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16
Q

How does omniscience link to the evidential problem of evil

A

An omniscient being would know before the creation of the universe that overwhelming an pointless evil would occur

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17
Q

Examples of overwhelming evil

A
  • The great dying, where 90% of marine species died
  • Mount Vesuvius where there were 2000 deaths
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18
Q

A theistic response to overwhelming evil

A

Necessary for universe to develop through evolution, God has a greater plan

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19
Q

Examples of pointless evil

A
  • The fawn who was trapped in a forest fire caused by lightning and had a long, painful death
  • Case of Sue (1986) - the boyfriend attacked the girlfriend and abused the 5 year old child who died, she was beaten and raped
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20
Q

Theistic response to pointless evil

A

Part of God’s plan, we need to suffer in order to see the good

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21
Q

Which scholar developed the Irenaeun theodicy and formed the soul making theodicy?

A

John Hick

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22
Q

The basis of the soul making theodicy

A

Both natural and moral evil are essential to ‘soul making’ so have a logical purpose

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23
Q

Epistemically distance

A

Knowledge gap between God and humans

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24
Q

Theodicy

A

Justification of God

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25
Q

Counterfactual hypothesis

A

A world without pain and suffering would be useless

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26
Q

Vale of soul making

A

Suffering and evil must exist in order to give humans the chance to do good

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27
Q

Hick criticised Augustine’s….

A

Soul deciding theodicy

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28
Q

Outline the key ideas presented in the soul deciding theodicy

A
  • God created the world and humans perfect
  • Evil is a result of free will (original sin)
  • The world is a result of soul deciding theodicy, the existence of good and bad determines whether our souls should go to heaven or hell
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29
Q

Hick responded to Augustine by saying his ideas were ‘……………………’

A

Utterly unacceptable

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30
Q

Outline the key ideas of how Hick criticised the soul deciding theodicy

A
  • Wholly good humans in a wholly good world committing sin is a contradiction
  • Punishing the entire human race because of Adam and Eve is unfair
  • No loving God subjects his creation to hell
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31
Q

Hick argued the world is a ‘……………. ……. …………………….’

A

Vale of soul making

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32
Q

The soul making theodicy is a result of…..

A

Human sin/free will

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33
Q

According to Hick, God created humans to develop and freely achieve…

A

Likeness in Christ

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34
Q

When is soul making completed

A

When we achieve likeness of Christ and become children of God allowing us to inherit eternal life

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35
Q

State the 3 objections to Hick’s soul making theodicy

A
  1. Doesn’t address animal suffering
  2. Epistemic distance doesn’t resolve pointless evil
  3. Doesn’t justify the worst forms of evil
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36
Q

Explain the defence to Hick’s soul making theodicy from the objection of animal suffering

A

Animals need pain, they don’t have afterlife, they do’t fear nor understand death, they exist to help us realise our special nature and suffer to an extent beyond our understanding

37
Q

Explain the defence to Hick’s soul making theodicy from the objection of epistemically distance not resolving pointless evil

A

God’s plan must remain a mystery otherwise we wouldn’t freely chose a relationship with him

38
Q

Explain the defence to Hick’s soul making theodicy from the objection of not justifying the worst evil

A

If the worst evil was removed, something else would become the worst, also the more evil removed, the less free we are, we need to experience the full extent of suffering

39
Q

List the strengths of the soul making theodicy

A
  1. Epistemically distance justifies all evil including animal suffering
  2. Evil is justified as it helps in soul making
  3. He proves hell doesn’t exist, if it did, God would be just but no omnibenevolent
  4. Incorporates idea of human growth - as we grow, we develop into the likeness of God
40
Q

Criticism to the strength of the soul making theodicy related to epistemic distance justifies all forms of pointless and animal suffering’

A

Animas cannot go to heaven or develop souls

41
Q

Criticism to the strength of the soul making theodicy related to evil being justified for soul making

A

Overwhelming evil cannot be justified e.g., the case of Sue

42
Q

Criticism to the strength of the soul making theodicy related to human growth and how we develop into God’s likeness, supported by scientific theories

A

Hick believed in reincarnation and heaven, this is incompatible with science

43
Q

List the weaknesses of the soul making theodicy

A
  1. Overwhelming evil, disregards counter factual hypothesis, e.g., why did so many Jews have to die in the Holocaust
  2. Suffering is unequal among people
  3. DZ Phillips argues that it is never justifiable to inflict evil, love should never be associated with suffering. Within the book of ‘The brothers of Karamazov, innocent children suffer, this cannot be justified regardless of eternal salvation in heaven
  4. The Bible sums that only the unrighteousness will suffer evil, so why does everyone?
44
Q

Criticism to the weakness of the soul making theodicy related to not justifying the most overwhelming evil

A

No suffering is pointless, all links to development

45
Q

Criticism to the weakness of the soul making theodicy related to unequal suffering among people

A

All down to natural forces, this suffering allows for soul making

46
Q

Criticism to the weakness of the soul making theodicy related to DZ Phillips

A

DZ Phillips’ argument is teleological, focusing on the end or purpose, however, suffering is needed to develop humans into the likeness of Christ

47
Q

Criticism to the weakness of the soul making theodicy related to how the Bible says only the unrighteousness will be punished

A

Some people are unrighteousness without realisation e.g., not connecting with God regularly

48
Q

Main argument presented by the FWD

A

We cannot have FW without evil and suffering, evil is as a result of FW

49
Q

What does the FWD mean by ‘moral agents’

A

Humans have the moral capacity to choose how we live our lives and the actions we choose

50
Q

Which type of evil does the FWD not explain, provide an example?

A

Natural evil e.g., Exodus and Noah’s ark

51
Q

Pain is a _____________ for development

A

Stimulus

52
Q

Explain where evil originated from

A

Genesis 1, where Adam ate from the tree of knowledge good and evil, this is known as original sin
- Tells us the origin of free will - God gave up control of humans

53
Q

Key quote from St Augustine

A

‘A runaway horse is better than a stone’

54
Q

Key quote supporting the FWD from CS Lewis

A

‘Free will, whilst it makes evil possible, also makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having’

55
Q

Explain St Augustine’s theodicy which supports FWD

A

Used Genesis 1

  1. God is perfect, he made the world free from flaws, ‘God made the world and it was good’ - not responsible for evil
  2. Possibility of evil in a created world is unnecessary - world constantly changing, it isn’t perfect like God, an imperfect, changeable world must have possibility of evil
  3. Everyone is guilty because we were all seminally present within the loins of Adam
56
Q

Explain why Mackie presented the FWD, then, criticised it?

A

Needed to explain it and understand it before knocking it down

57
Q

Explain Mackie’s presentation of the FWD

A
  1. Fourth order good - God
  2. Third order good - gives us our free will
  3. First order good/evils - events of good or evil happen, these are out of our control
  4. Second order good/evils - we can choose how to respond using our free will to these events, either respond with good or evil
58
Q

Explain Mackie’s criticism of the FWD

A

‘Always freely choose the good’
There can be no logical impossibility of choosing the good in ever occasion
God could’ve created us to ‘always freely choose the good’
The reason God didn’t was because
- He was not poweful enough to do so
- He was not loving enough to do so
- Either way the FWD fails

59
Q

Which scholar criticised Mackie

A

Alvin Plantinga

60
Q

Explain how Plantinga criticised Mackie

A

It is illogical and impossible for God to create humans that always freely chose the good, if he did, we wouldn’t have free will.

Pw1 - God creates FW, we choose our actions, there is evil and suffering
Pw2 - God doesn’t create people with FW, he determines their actions, there is no evil and suffering
Pw3 - God creates FW, he determines our actions in every situation, there is no evil and suffering

  • He could create Pw2 although there would be no opportunity for development or value in it.
  • He cannot create Pw3, it is a contradiction, you cannot have free will without any evil.
61
Q

Explain how the stone paradox supports Plantinga’s criticism to Mackie

A
  • It would be a contradiction for God to create a stone more powerful than him
  • Same logic can be applied to idea that it is logically impossible for God to create free will and remove all evil, without the option to do evil, we wouldn’t have free will, so it would be a contradiction
62
Q

Plantinga’s view on natural evil

A

Occurs as a result of humans exercising free will, God also uses it as a punishment for evil

63
Q

Strengths of the FWD

A

• Swinburne ‘He would be like an overprotective parent who will not let his child out of sight for a moment’ - we need free will in order to choose good or bad options, he can’t intervene, otherwise we won’t have free will, and it would stop us from having the ability to have responsibility and need to develop or learn from evil
• Free will is something that we need because otherwise God would contradict himself, as shown in world
• Pain is a stimulus for development
• Stone paradox, God has to allow evil otherwise it would be a contradiction, logically impossible, if we have free will, we have to have evil
• Plantinga - although humans sometimes do good, if God designed them to always do good, they would not be free
• Christianity - free will brings Christians the greatest reward of all: unity with God in heaven - Jesus makes it possible to receive forgiveness of God, this forgiveness can only be seeked through doing evil, so we have to have free choice
• Both moral and natural evil are caused by FWD

64
Q

Weaknesses of the FWD

A

• God is omniscient, so God knew about evil, yet he allowed us to commit evil
• Vardy: FWD fails to describe natural evil in the world
• Rowe showed that natural suffering do not provide any greater good
• Mackie suggests God could’ve created free will where there was the only option to choose good, he didn’t do this, so isn’t omnibenevolent
• If God knew everything that would happen such as the holocaust, then he is not omniscient, because an omnibenevolent God would never allow pointless suffering to occur.
• Evil Is caused by God because of determinisim, this means everything is controlled by God, our lives are like trams, just fixed on lines - ‘I’m not even a bus, I’m a tram’ - Hare. A bus can steer freely, so God has made evil exist in our lives

65
Q

Which scholar introduced process theodicy?

A

Alfred North Whitehead

66
Q

What inspired Whitehead to present process theodicy?

A

He was fascinated by quantum mechanics which argues the universe is in a constant dynamic flux of change, this led him to believe God is within a universe that’s always changing, so he is changing also.

67
Q

Which scholar developed process theodicy?

A

Griffin

68
Q

Explain why many scholars reject process theodicy as a theodicy

A

Because it rejects the idea that God is omnibenevolent, omniscient and omnipotent
- Many refer to it as ‘process thought’

69
Q

How does process theodicy argue that God is not omnipotent

A

All the matter was already present, he simply ‘persuaded’ and convinced it to be in a state of greater order and characteristics

70
Q

Meaning of ‘creatio ex nihilism’

A

Creation out of nothing - links to Genesis 1

71
Q

Hebrew translation of Genesis 1:1-3

A

‘The earth was without form and void’ - God’s first creative act was creating the universe, he started with nothing

72
Q

Griffin’s interpretation of Genesis 1:1-3

A

‘The earth being without form and void’ - assumes the universe already exists, God isn’t creating, he orders out of ‘formless void and chaos’

73
Q

What did Griffin say about the universe?

A
  • Uncreated
  • Eternal
  • God is bound to it
  • God’s creative role was to persuade it into a state of greater order e.g., a jigsaw
74
Q

How does Griffin’s ideas about God challenge traditional theistic ideas?

A

Theists would argue that…
- God is omnipotent
- He is a separate entity to the universe, he is not bound to it

75
Q

Transcendent

A

Exceeding normal limits, being above the physical world

76
Q

Pantheism

A

God is everything and everything is God, the universe is wholly divine

77
Q

Immutable

A

God is unchangeable

78
Q

Impassable

A

God does not experience pain or suffering

79
Q

Explain the events in Genesis 6:6 and how this challenges God’s characteristics

A

‘The lord regretted that he had made human being, and his heart was deeply troubled’

Challenges impassable characteristic as feeling regret is a form of suffering, also challenges omniscience, because he knew he would regret creating us, so why did he?

After Noah’s ark, God said he would never send another flood and puts a rainbow in the sky

God changes which goes against being immutable

80
Q

Griffin believes that ________ and the _________ necessarily exist

A
  • God
  • World
81
Q

God is the ‘_______’ of the universe

A

Soul

82
Q

True or false

Griffin argued that God feels all the pain and emotions that humans experience

A

True

83
Q

Which 2 arguments in process theodicy were presented to the question that ‘If God is not all powerful, where did evil come from?’

A
  1. Roman God Janus - complexity has 2 faces, to have good, you must have ‘genuine pain and suffering’ (Swinburne)
  2. The more complex the being, the harder for God to control, humans are complex, so he cannot control us. He feels just as much pain and suffering as us
84
Q

In process theodicy, what response was given to the question ‘If God feels pain and suffering, why did he allow evolution and tragedy’s like the holocaust?’

A
  • He wanted to bring about good
  • Evil must exist, as Hick said, to develop out should

(This did partially lead Griffin to believe that evil was God’s fault)

85
Q

Key quote from Griffin

A

‘Should God for the sake of avoiding possibilities of persons like Hitler…have precluded possibility of Jesus’
- If we want caring and compassionate people like Jesus, we also need evil like Hitler to hold value in people like Jesus

86
Q

Key quote from Whitehead

A

‘God is the fellow sufferer who understands’
- God is soul of the universe

87
Q

Explain Griffin’s approach to natural evil

A

God can persuade natural evil to leave, but can’t completely eradicate it

88
Q

Strengths of process theodicy

A

• More realistic - abandons idea that God is transcendent
• God suffering alongside humans makes evil seem justifiable and makes him more personal
• Encourages people to fight against evil as it shows God is committed to fighting evil

89
Q

Weaknesses of process theodicy

A

• Non omnipotent God not worthy of worship
• God is not justified starting a process he cannot control
• Not a theodicy - denies God’s OP - as Roth said ‘Good though he may be, Griffin’s God is too small’
• Ward and Dubos: ‘At the end, for everyone, strands unknown death’

AQA AS (A-level) Religious Studies (6 decks)

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