The Irenaean Theodicy

Question 1

What is a theodicy?

Answer 1

a justification of God

Question 2

What is natural evil?

Answer 2

suffering caused through natural mean e.g volcanos

Question 3

What is moral evil?

Answer 3

suffering cause through human decisions

Question 4

What is the Epicurean paradox?

Answer 4

Either God want to abolish evil and cant, or doesn’t want to. If he can and wants to why does evil exist?

Question 5

What is the inconsistent triad?

Answer 5

Mackie states that God is omnipotent, omnibenevolent and evil exists cannot all be logically true

Question 6

What is Genesis 1:26?

Answer 6

Let us make mankind in our image, after our likeness

Question 7

What are second order goods?

Answer 7

virtues like courage which cannot exist without evil

Question 8

What is a hedonistic paradise?

Answer 8

a perfect toy world without evil

Question 9

What is epistemic distance?

Answer 9

God not intervening in our lives for us to have free will and not be forced to worship him

Question 10

How does Irenaeus believe we were created?

Answer 10

imperfect, and are developing to become perfect in God’s image

Question 11

How does Irenaeus justify the prescence of evil?

Answer 11

a deliberate choice of a benevolent God to allow humans to spiritually develop to be perfect through second order goods

Question 12

What was the Fall of Adam and Eve to Irenaeus

Answer 12

an understandable mistake of immature creatures, divine punishment isnt for adam’s sin but an intrinsic part of a divine plan

Question 13

Where is the ultimate responsibility of suffering placed?

Answer 13

On God, however God created this world so we could become complete moral beings

Question 14

What does Irenaeus state happens after death?

Answer 14

we continue into the next life where individuals who rejected God have the oppurtunity to earn forgiveness and become perfect

Question 15

What is a soul making theocidy?

Answer 15

John Hick states God didn’t make a hedonistic paradise, but a soul making world where we morally develop.

Question 16

What does Hick state about evolution?

Answer 16

we evolved from primitive life forms into psychologically complex beings and our moral development should be viewed the same way

Question 17

Why does Hick state this world is more effective than a toy world?

Answer 17

Because if we were already made perfect then we would not have done it through our own choice and it is a fake perfection. If every evil act was immediately punished then morality would be out of fear not reward.

Question 18

Why does God maintain epistemic distance?

Answer 18

He wishes us to enter a relationship with him through choice not force, if we knew he existed we would have no choice but to obey him

Question 19

What does Swinburne add to the IT

Answer 19

God chose to create a world where humans have free will, this responsibility is better than a toy world because the chance to grow in power and knowledge is worth the cost