AS Philosophy: Evil and Suffering

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  • Created by: sade
  • Created on: 01-11-12 19:42

How Evil Came Into The World

FREE WILL

  • Due to freewill  evil enters the world when those with free will turned their backs on God
  • Humans misused their freewill
  • The supreme Good settled for lesser goods
  • So because of free will the fall of Adam and Eve had taken place
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How Evil came into the world

The Fall:

  • Adam and Eve disobey God and evil enters the world
  • The consequence of this is that creation stops being what it was created to be. 
  • Perfection is ruined by human rebelliousness and sin
  • The delicate balance of the world destroyed.
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Evil and Suffering Notes

  •  Some see evil as a punishment from God, for those who do not do as he asks.
  • Bible seems to support the idea of  evil being a punishment:"The Lord will send on you curses, confusion and rebuke... because of  what you have done in forsaking him" Deuteromony 28:20
  • In Islam can be seen as a test but also as a punishment.
  • Some believe Evil is inevitable
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Evil and Suffering Notes

  • Many Christians believe that suffering is apart of life because the bible says: " He causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good"  matthew 4:45
  • Job in the bible seem to have suffered
  • God uses evil to test us and give humans more traits e.g  genorousity,love and courage
  • In Peter 1:6-7 " You may have had to suffer grief in all kind of kind of trials... may result in praise,glory and honour" 
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Evil and Suffering Notes

  • Many feel closer to God after suffering has taken place.
  • God not responsible for suffering the world with imperfections is the best world to create
  • In the Bible it states that suffering will not last forever "He will wipe every tear from their eyes ... the old order of things will pass anyway" Revelations 21:4
  • If there was no evil there would be no good, as good is defined by overcoming difficulties
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Evil and Suffering Notes

  • Everything is perfected in God's love.
  • Evil allows God's love to be displayed.
  • God who cares and wants to bring good out of evil.
  • In christianity faith God becomes incarnate (human) and makes himself vulnerable to evil and suffering, through Jesus Christ.
  • For a God who is supposedly ominpotent, ominscient and omnibenevolent how is it that evil is still prensent
  • Moral evil - man made evil (Murder,**** and theft)
  • Natural Disaster - evil made by nature (Hurricanes)
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Richard Swinburne On Evil And Suffering

  • He believes that a world that includes suffering is the  best possible world for humans
  •  He believes humans can contribute through their free responses to this imperect world e.g give to charities
  • Humans have been given the opportunity to  grow in power,freedom and knowledge  and to make a difference  to their own lives and others live as well.
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