Evil and suffering.
- Created by: louisa abercrombie
- Created on: 11-05-13 20:29
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- Evil and suffering.
- Types of evil.
- Natural evil: suffering caused by natural disasters.
- moral evil: result of human actions that are morally wrong i.e murder.
- Logical problems of evil.
- God by definition is Omnipotent, omniscient and omnibenevolent.
- such a being does not make misstaked
- therefore can only create a perfect world
- the world is not perfect due to the existence of evil
- Therefore God cannot exist.
- the world is not perfect due to the existence of evil
- therefore can only create a perfect world
- such a being does not make misstaked
- J.L.Mackie Evil and omnipotence (Mind 1955).
- Inconsistent triad.
- David Hume concluded that because the qualities of God cannot all co-exist with Evil, but Evil does exist then God of classical Theism does not.
- Inconsistent triad.
- God by definition is Omnipotent, omniscient and omnibenevolent.
- Augustine (354-430 CE)
- Confessions,City of God, Free Choice of the Will.
- Creation began harmoniously, The fall disrupted our harmonious world, Adam and Eve created free will and allowed evil into the world.
- Adam seminally present in all of use therefore we are guilty too. Share the consequences of A&E's actions.
- God does not intervene as the punishment is justice for human sin.
- God would not punish people for Adam ad Eves sin
- 'Every man shall die for his own sin; each man who eats sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge' Jeremiah 31
- God would not punish people for Adam ad Eves sin
- Biological error- seminally present, biology reflects sin cant be inherited this way,
- God does not intervene as the punishment is justice for human sin.
- Adam seminally present in all of use therefore we are guilty too. Share the consequences of A&E's actions.
- Natural evil consequence of disharmony of nature brought by the fall
- God is perfect, the world he created reflects that
- Evil not a substance but privation of good.
- Privation of good rather than positive substance- supported by modern thinkers.
- Schliermacher- Logical contradiction that a perfect world could go wrong.
- So either God didnt create a perfect world OR created it and then enabled it to go wrong.
- Evil not a substance but privation of good.
- God is perfect, the world he created reflects that
- The Fall Genesis 3
- Biblical support- 'God saw all that he made and it was very good' Genesis 1
- If God just= everyone would go to hell
- But in Love and Grace he sent Jesus to repent our sins.
- Soul Deciding
- Irenaeus 130-202 CE
- Against Herisis
- God made the world as it is to provide humans with opportunity to develop in the LIKELINESS OF GOD.
- Made in the IMAGE OF GOD. Intellectual and immature
- Gives an explanation for the existence of evil.
- Made in the IMAGE OF GOD. Intellectual and immature
- Didnt make perfect humans- needed willing cooperation
- Evil has valuable part to play in Gods plans for humans.
- Freedom requires choice to do good or evil so evil and suffering had to occur.
- Not all suffering brings good; not justified as developing the soul.
- Evil has valuable part to play in Gods plans for humans.
- God created natural order to include the possibility of good as well as suffering
- He then stood back to allow humans to use their freewill
- Cannot intervene or freedom will be lost.
- Can be recognised by the evolution theory
- He then stood back to allow humans to use their freewill
- Concluded that evil and suffering will be overcome
- Humanity will develop into Gods perfect likeliness
- will all go to Heaven where evil end
- Pointless growing into likeliness if all going to Heaven anyway.
- will all go to Heaven where evil end
- Humanity will develop into Gods perfect likeliness
- soul developing.
- John Hick Evil and the Love of God 1966
- If humanity made perfectly 'goodness of robots'= valueless
- Value of this worlds was 'to be judged, not primarily by the quantity of pleasure and pain occurring in it at any particular time but by its fitness for its primary purpose, the purpose of SOUL MAKING.'
- To achieve this God had to create humans at an epistemic distance
- Philosophy of Religion 'God's purpose was not to construct a paradise.. instead as a place of SOUL MAKING'
- Become CHILDREN OF GOD or HEIRS OF ETERNAL LIFE.
- Must either demand a world with no E&S
- or except what we have now.
- Vale of soul making
- Richard Swinburne The Existence of God.
- Free will defence.
- humans only develop fully if free to choose how to act
- world logically necessary environment for humans to develop
- humans only develop fully if free to choose how to act
- A world that includes suffering is the best possible world for humans
- Opportunity to grow in power, freedom and knowledge
- Death is necessary
- If immortal would have infinite chance to get it right and wouldnt develop
- Life has to be limited to take responsibilities seriously.
- If immortal would have infinite chance to get it right and wouldnt develop
- Natural evil necessary to have knowledge of evil and how to avoid it i.e living near a volcano
- 'If men are to have knowledge of the evil which will result from their actions.. laws of nature must operate regularly; and that means there will be victims of the system' (Is there a God)
- Free will defence.
- D.Z Phillips The Concept of Prayer
- Love can never be expressed through suffering being allowed
- 'What are we to say to the child dying of cancer? If this has been done to anyone bad enough, but for a purpose planned from eternity- this is the deepest kind of evil, If God is this kind of agent, he cannot justify his actions and his evil nature is revealed'
- Love can never be expressed through suffering being allowed
- Process Theodicy
- A.N.Whitehead David Griffin
- God, Power and Evil; A Process Theodicy
- God not Omnipotent; part of the univers- an uncreated process
- therefore God is boung by natural laws
- new things happen all the time as part of universal process
- everything is momentary and creates new happenings
- when process produce harmony=good
- produce dischord= evil.
- everything is momentary and creates new happenings
- Evil is inevitable. reality of God is not fixedand still developing
- Dipolar= two poles. menatl and physical
- the later is the world; he feels our suffering
- ''Fellow suferer who understands" Whitehead
- the later is the world; he feels our suffering
- Dipolar= two poles. menatl and physical
- John Mortimer Two Cheers for Secularism.
- Warned the danger of seeing free will as a choice that everyone has between right or wrong
- 'The standard explanation is that we are given free will which enables us to choose between good or evil..'
- 'This may be very satisfactory for the concentration camp guards and the assassins who can choose whether or not to commit their crimes..'
- 'but the innocent men, women and children whom they march into gas ovens, or throats they slit have no free will to exercise the matter.'
- 'This may be very satisfactory for the concentration camp guards and the assassins who can choose whether or not to commit their crimes..'
- 'The standard explanation is that we are given free will which enables us to choose between good or evil..'
- Warned the danger of seeing free will as a choice that everyone has between right or wrong
- Anthony Flew
- 'Dies the death of a thousand qualifications'
- Peter Cole.
- Irenaean theodicy 'has an element of greater goods'
- Some moral goods are results of evil
- I.e courage, compassion, forgiveness
- "second order goods"
- I.e courage, compassion, forgiveness
- The moral goods are those that result from overcoming evil and intelligent responses to evil
- Could be seen as a necessary part of soul making process
- Types of evil.
- WEAKNESS
- STRENGTH
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