St Augustine & Irenaeus

Augustine...

• Evil came about as a result of the misuse of freewill
• Humans destroyed the natural order and chose to allow moral evil to flourish. As a result of this decision natural evil was introduced as a punishment, "all evil is either sin or a punishment for sin"
• When the world was created it was created by God as faultless and perfect. However this was corrupted due to humans and angels turning away from God and choosing their own path.
• Because evil didn't come from God, he is justified in allowing it to stay
• In augustine's eyes all men are tainted with the stain of the original sin of Adam, (the exercise of freewill in the garden of eden - forbidden fruit)
• However a redemption was made when Jesus Christ self-sacrificed himself on the cross. This gave humans the opportunity to make amends through the rejection of evil and turning good through the grace of God and believing in Christianity
• At the end of time, we will be judged…