Theodicy Flashcards
Outline Augustinian theodicy.
(soul-deciding)
Moral evil results from the fall of man and the angels. God created the world ex nihilo and corruption will see the universe return to its original state of nothingness. Augustine was heavily influenced by Plato who believed in perfect concepts of each thing in existence (shown through the analogy of Plato’s cave). Augustine believed in the word of the Bible as literal truth and that when God created the world it was good. “God saw all that He had made and it was good”. (Genesis).
Outline the fall of man and its effects in Augustinian theodicy.
As Adam turned away from God, he created original sin. All subsequent humans were seminally present in his loins, meaning we are all predisposed to committing sin (concupiscence).
Outline the fall of the angels with relevance to Augustinian theodicy.
The fall of the angels was repeated in the fall of Adam and Eve. Although humans contained no evil, they were created with the capacity to be corrupted as they were not perfectly good.
“For when the will abandons what is above itself and turns to what is lower, not because that is evil to which it turns but because the turning itself is wicked.”
Define Felix Culpa in connection with Augustinian theodicy.
Felix Culpa means to derive good from evil and was outlined by Augustine as a permission of evil in defence of free will. It is better to bring good out of evil than never to permit any evil to exist. Original sin provides the presence of moral evil, which is the cause of God’s sending Jesus. Life is a chance to seek redemption through Christ, meaning original sin is necessary for redemption.
Describe the way evil works as a privatio boni.
Evil defined as a privatio boni or privation of good, means evil is a mere falling away from goodness. Part of goodness is the variety of things that exist in a kind of hierarchy. Difference entails that some things will be more limited than others. The universe was created with the ability to be corrupted, but this is not an evil in of itself, meaning god did not create evil ex nihilo, and evil’s existence is only a result of man’s own creation.
Why does God allow us free will according to Augustinian theodicy?
God is like a parent. He loves us and wants the best for us, so allows us free will. We make bad decisions, but we learn from them; free will is the most loving gift.
Julian of Norwich: “As truly as God is our Father, so truly God is our Mother.”
What does free will allow for humanity?
The inability to do bad deeds makes good deeds redundant. Free will allows humans to choose good deeds. We are moral agents, given fee will by God and therefore possessing the ability to choose a relationship with Him culminating in eternal life.
How does Plantinga develop Augustinian theodicy?
“God’s creation of agents with morally significant free will is something of tremendous value. God could not eliminate much of the evil and suffering in this world without thereby eliminating the greater good of having created persons with free will…”
The evils that exist are smaller in value than a greater good to which they are intimately connected.
How does Eleonore Stump support Augustinian theodicy?
(Supports the view that original sin generates evil)
Natural evil takes away a person’s self-satisfaction. Evil cannot guarantee faith in God, but the humility induced by natural evil aims to bring men into such a state.
Subsequent to Adam and Eve’s creation of original sin, God providentially uses both kinds of evil to bring about the greatest good that a fallen human can experience: a repaired will and eternal union with God.
Outline Irenaean theodicy.
Relies on eschatological verification. The world was deliberately created with a mixture of good and evil. Good is a qualitative judgement, meaning there have to be other, less good things for goodness to exist at all. There must be evil in the world for us to appreciate good.
Evil in the world allows us to develop as individuals, entering a mature and free relationship with God.
We grow as individuals through tackling problems, making mistakes, persevering and being patient. Evil is soul-making and exists necessarily.
Irenaeas believd in the exact word of the Bible, using the quote “…in His own image and likeness…” as a foundation of his theodicy.
Compare and contrast the qualities of God’s image and likeness according to Irenaean theodicy.
God’s image means we have freedom of choice, enabling us to be moral agents; we have moral autonomy.
God’s likeness means we have to develop and mature to reach our full potential.
We can only reach God’s likeness if we learn to overcome difficulties, cope with our own imperfections/ limitations and resist real temptation to do wrong.
Humanity can only achieve God’s likeness after death. Everyone should eventually complete their spiritual development and maturity to achieve the likeness of God.
Outline the Analogy of the Mother Feeding with relevance to Irenaean theodicy.
(Aims to actualise the analogy of God’s image and likeness)
“For as it certainly is in the power of a mother to give strong food to her infant (but she does not do so), as the child is not yet able to receive more substantial nourishment.”
It is possible for God Himself to have made man perfect from the first, but man could not receive this perfection being “as yet and infant”.
Outline the relevance of Jonah and the Whale to Irenaean theodicy.
(Aims to resolve the problem of evil and suffering)
“For as He patiently suffered Jonah to be swallowed by the whale… having been cast out again, he might be more subject to God…”
Even if we cannot see the reason for it, we must understand that evil is logically necessary for good.
How can humans achieve goodness according to Irenaean theodicy?
Humans should allow to mould them into perfection by working in faith towards God. Part of being good is an effort of will; agape in action (charity) is reliant on suffering.
How does Hick support Irenaeas?
(Evil and the God of Love)
Describes Irenaen theodicy as soul-making, referencing Keat’s idea that the world is a proving ground for human beings to earn salvation.
In order to be truly free, humans were created at an epistemic distance from God. This means that humans were placed in a situation where God’s existence and non-existence are equally likely, allowing humans the true freedom to exist.
Hick’s Irenaen soul-making theodicy argued that God allows evil and suffering in order to develop humans into virtuous creatures capable of following His will.
