Good and Evil Flashcards
‘God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.’ Genesis
Christians believe that God is perfectly Good and that all good things come from God- so when the World was created ‘all was good’
Because God is good- Christians believe that they should be good, by following is commandments. Many say that it’s impossible to love God if you are not following his law- that is doing good and loving each other
The Fall and Original Sin
This story shows how Adam and Eve disobeyed God and caused humans to be ‘kicked out’ of the Garden of Eden. Because they were tempted by the servant, ‘the fall’ happened which refers to humanity’s fall from grace and introduced Original Sin.
‘For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.’ Romans
This shows the act of redemption- Jesus dying in order to save humanity from their sins (the act of paying the price of something in order to get something back)
Christians believe that everyone who asks for forgiveness will be able to be saved from sin and get a place with God in heaven because of Jesus’ sacrifice
Augustine Theodicy
Augustine defined evil as the ‘lack of goodness’ and that because of this, evil is not an entity in itself- meaning that God could not have created it. Evil is caused by the free will of humanity in the fall- thus causing a ‘lack of goodness’ by disobeying God, created by Eve.
Irenaean Theodicy
This theory argues that God created evil as a way for humanity to develop as it is something necessary for human development- how can good be good if there isn’t bad?
‘Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the World gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.’ John
Christians often use passages such as this to tackle the problem of evil and in order to comfort themselves.
