Irenaean type theodicy 2C Flashcards
Intro
-theodicy- ‘answer to the question of why god permits evil’ (Plantinga)
-Coined by Leibniz- combining greek words ‘theos’ (God) & ‘dike’ (judgement) . Theodicy- justifying god
-Hick is this book ‘evil and the god of love’ develpoped the ireanaean theodicy
Irenaeus - human beings made imperfect
-centered around human beings were created imperfect originally
-Genesis 1:26 ‘let us make mankind in our image, according to our likeness’
-The ‘image’ of God, that we are created in, means that we possess the potential qualities of God’s spiritual perfection
-The ‘likeness’ refers to our actualising these potential qualities – the development of our soul through the free choices we make in a world of suffering
-Free will here is key – the “likeness” of God must be achieved with the “willing co-operation” of humans. Irenaeus says “there is no coercion with God”-
Irenaeus- evil & suffering are the deliberate act of an omnibenevolent god
-presence of evil and suffering are necessary in the created order.
-“how, if we have no knowledge of the contrary, could we have instruction in that which is good?”, things existing being ‘not-good’, highlights what IS goodness
-wrote of second-order goods – qualities that are only possible in a world of evil and suffering, e.g. courage, forgiveness, perseverance, compassion etc.
-analogy of God as the craftsman and humans as the material He is working with – the experience of the material world, both good and bad, are God’s way of developing our souls towards His “likeness” i.e. developing divine qualities
Hick- vale of soul making
-For Hick, God’s plan for humanity is that we develop, through our own free choices, into “children of God” who are “fellow heirs with Christ”
- utilised the phrase of John Keats, referring to the world as a “vale of soul making” i.e. this material world is a place for us to develop our souls
-Free will again is central to the theodicy – the only valuable development of our souls would be that which we freely choose.
-virtues developed through overcoming temptations and challenges are “intrinsically more valuable than virtues created within him ready made
-to retain this freedom, Hick coins the term epistemic distance – the notion that there is a knowledge gap between God and humanity.
- humans do not have an innate knowledge of God’s existence, meaning humans can “come freely to known and love their Maker”
-the value of soul development would be less if we were forced into it by the overbearing judgement of a divine parent (i.e. if there were no epistemic distance). God creates us with an epistemic distance to provide true freedom for development.
Hick- universalism & eschatological justification
-argued that the process towards the “likeness” of God is rarely completed in the life and that this process can continue after death.
- a universalist position – that eventually everyone will reach the “likeness” of God and enter the Kingdom of Heaven
- coined the phrase ‘eschatological justification’ to express the idea that all the suffering endured by humanity will be justified in the afterlife.
-showing the omnibenevolent nature of God – despite all our trials and tribulation, all humans will eventually reach heaven, justifying the evil and suffering present in the created order.
-Revelation 21:4 reflects this with the promise: “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”
