process theodicy Flashcards
who are the 2 main people in process theodicy?
Whitehead and Griffin
who does process theodicy accept the views of?
what views are they?
Hume
that evil is incompatible with God being omnopotent, omnibenevolent and omniscient
what is the usual translation of Genesis 1:1?
‘in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth’
what is the other translation of genesis 1:1?
‘when God began to create the heavens and the earth, the earth was without form or void’
what does Griffin believe is meant by the second translation of genesis 1:1?
proves the universe was uncreated and eternal so God is not responsible for the universe
God persuades things into existence but didn’t create it
what happens when humans enter the equation for process theodicy?
possibilities of good and evil increase
due to humans free will
why does process theodicy link to the justification of evil?
by admitting limits to God’s power it justifies evil because God is simply unable to intervene
however God is responsible for starting the process off when he knew he was unable to control it
why did God create the universe if he knew he couldn’t control it (process theodicy)?
there is a lot of good in terms of quality and quantity that outweigh the evils so God was right to allow humans to exist
Griffin quote about the good outweighing evil in process theodicy:
‘should God for the sake of avoiding the possibilities of persons such as Hitler…have precluded the possibility of Jesus?’
how does God suffer as well as humans in process theodicy?
God is immanent in the world so also suffers when evil is committed
God suffers every time we suffer and no human knows more than God whether the world existing is worth it or not as only God has true experience
Whitehead quote about God suffering:
‘God is a fellow sufferer who understands’
what does Whitehead argue about why we need evil?
in order to have a definition of good
we need to understand how moments of happiness are superior to moments of misery
what does Griffin say the only way to stop evil is?
to stop reproduction as humans cause suffering so this is the only way to end all evil
how do process theologians define evil?
not just doing a bad action but failing to do a good act when you could
how does Griffin explain the reason for natural evil?
since the world was not created perfectly then natural evil can happen because God was not working with perfect materials when creating the world
strengths of process theodicy:
(2 points)
simply answers why evil exists and that is because God is unable to prevent it and this allows them to maintain faith in God despite evil
God also suffers from evil yet continues to suffer with our creation so shows God is committed to us
weaknesses of process theodicy:
(3 points)
criticised by those who believe in the God of classical theism as it shows God as impotent
if God is impotent, he should not be worthy of worship
says evil happens as well as goodness but what about people who only experience evil and just because God creates good people this doesn’t justify millions dying
