problem of evil Flashcards
What is natural evil?
Suffering caused to humans by the workings of the natural world, such as natural disasters and disease.
What is moral evil?
Suffering caused to humans by human action, exemplified by events like wars and the holocaust.
Why is natural evil a problem for belief in God?
It suggests that an omnipotent God could intervene to prevent natural evil but does not.
What is the logical problem of evil?
A deductive argument showing that the existence of evil is logically inconsistent with the existence of an omnipotent, omnibenevolent, and omniscient God.
What is Mackie’s inconsistent triad?
P1. An omnipotent God has the power to eliminate evil.
P2. An omnibenevolent God has the motivation to eliminate evil.
C1. God and evil cannot possibly co-exist.
What does the logical problem of evil conclude?
If evil exists, then it is impossible that God exists.
What type of argument is the logical problem of evil?
An a priori argument, as it does not reference experience.
What is Hume’s evidential problem of evil?
An argument suggesting that one cannot empirically infer a perfect God from evidence of imperfection.
What are the premises of Hume’s evidential problem of evil?
P1. We are only justified in believing what the evidence suggests.
P2. We only have evidence of imperfection.
What is the conclusion of Hume’s evidential problem of evil?
C1. We are only justified in believing that imperfection exists.
C2. Belief in a perfectly powerful and good being is not justified.
What type of argument is the evidential problem of evil?
An a posteriori argument, based on our experience of evil in the world.
How does the evidential problem of evil differ from the logical problem of evil?
The evidential problem is inductive and claims belief in God is unjustified based on evidence of imperfection.
Fill in the blank: Natural evil is often argued to be a problem for belief in _______.
[God]
True or False: The logical problem of evil is an inductive argument.
False
Fill in the blank: The conclusion of the logical problem of evil states that if _______ exists, then it is impossible that God exists.
[evil]
What examples illustrate moral evil?
Wars, the holocaust
What does Hume suggest about a perfect God and an imperfect world?
It is logically possible for a perfect God to create an imperfect world for reasons for allowing evil.
