The Problem of Evil

what is moral evil?

evil that stems directly from human free will and malicious or negligent choices

e.g Murder, theft, assault, and rape.

what is natural evil?

suffering, pain, or destruction caused by the physical laws of the universe and natural events rather than by human choices

e.g earthquakes, diseases, droughts

how would you describe the problem of evil?

an issue that occurrs if you believe God is all-powerful, all-loving and all-knowing

who is ‘The God of Classical Theism’?

the God believed in by Christians, Jews and Muslims

who created the logical problem of evil?

J.L Mackie

what is the main question of the logical problem of evil?

Can an omnipotent, omnibenevolent God logically coexist with evil?

• Mackie says no

who created the idea of the inconsistent triad

J.L Mackie

what 3 aspects make up the inconsistent triad

1. evil exists

2. god is omnipotent

3. god is omnibenevolent

what does Mackie say in particular about God’s omnipotence?

it includes the power to do anything (that is logically possible)

what does Mackie say in particular about God’s omnibenevolence?

his love is universal and unconditional

what does Mackie conclude?

It is logical to expect a God with these qualities to prevent evil occurring to those he loved. Evil still occurs, therefore God does not exist.

how does Mackie try to solve the problem of evil?

the inconsistent triad can be resolved by removing one of the three pointd

what would happen if we removed the characteristic of omnipotence from god?

this resolves the inconsistency, evil exists because God is unable to prevent it

what are the negative impacts of removing the omnipotence characteristic from God?

• it would go completely against the Christian view of God

• God created the world and perfoms miracles in the Bible so Christians would not accept this solution

• it works philosophically not theologically

what would happen if we removed the characteristic of omnibenevolence from god?

it solves the inconsistency: evil exists because God lacks the motivation to prevent it

what are the negative impacts of removing the omnibenevolence characteristic from God?

the central belief of Christianity is that God loves us so much that he sacrificed Jesus on the cross to save us from sin

• thus: Christians could not accept this solution

what would Mackie argue if we denied the fact that evil exists?

Mackie would argue that it is not defensible to hold this position as the evidence for evil occurring is overwhelming e.g the Holocaust or the Slave Trade

what does it mean to say that Mackie concentrated on the logical problem of evil in its purest sense?

He argued that these three statements cannot all be true at the same time, because:

• An omnibenevolent God would want to eliminate evil.

• An omnipotent God would be able to eliminate evil.

• Yet evil still exists.

Therefore, according to Mackie, there is a logical contradiction.

what is Mackie not interested in?

how much evil there is

who created the the evidential problem of evil?

William Rowe

what is the main question of the evidential problem of evil?

Does the amount and nature of evil make God's existence unlikely?

• Rowe says yes

What does Rowe accept that God might allow, and why?

he accepts that limited suffering for a purpose e.g hardship that helps us grow and develop

• example: failing mocks… helps us prepare better for the real exams

What did Rowe not accept that God could allow?

God would not allow intense, purposeless suffering

what example of purposless siffering did Rowe use to prove his point?

A young deer is trapped in a forest fire caused by lightning.

The deer suffers for several days before dying.

• Nobody benefits from this suffering.

Give the full five stages of Rowe’s argument to demonstrate that God does not exist

1. God would know when intense and purposeless suffering was about to happen, omniscience

2. He could prevent this suffering from occurring

3. An all-loving being would prevent purposeless and intense suffering

4. Purposeless and intense suffering does occur

5. Therefore, God does not exist

How is Rowe’s evidential problem of evil different to the logical problem of evil?

• questions whether the extent of evil in the world makes God unlikely

• there is no logical contradiction, like in Mackie’s logical problem of evil

Does Mackie believe it is impossible or improbable?

Mackie = Impossible (logical contradiction)

Does Rowe believe it is impossible or improbable?

Rowe = Improbable (evidence from suffering)

Who created ‘The problem of premature deaths?’

Gregory S. Paul

How many children does Gregory S. Paul estimate have died before reaching the age of ‘mature consent’?

over 50 billion children

What does Paul mean by ‘mature consent’?

the children died before being able to have a relationship with children

What four stages of argument does ‘The problem of premature births’ outline?

1. Millions of children suffer and die every year

2. They are too young to know God or make choices about God: they have no free will

3. No loving God would permit this purposeless suffering

4. Thus: God does not exist

What does Paul call all the deaths of children prior to the age of ‘mature consent’?

The ‘Holocaust of the children’