The problem of evil and suffering

The problem of evil and suffering

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  Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp 2014
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  The problem ofevil and suffering
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  A problem thatwon’t go away ‘Meanwhile, where is God? This is one of the most disquieting symptoms. When you are happy, so happy that you have no sense of needing Him, if you turn to Him then with praise, you will be welcomed with open arms. But go to Him when your need is desperate, when all other help is vain and what do you find? A door slammed in your face, and a sound of bolting and double bolting on the inside. After that, silence. You may as well turn away’. C. S Lewis, A Grief Observed.
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  Philip Yancey Chapter 1from ‘Where is God when it hurts?’.
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  Implications of God’sexistence The term evil requires discussion. There are roughly two forms of evil; moral and natural. Man’s inhumanity to man in the case of rape, murder and genocide constitutes moral evil. The experience of famine, flood and disease may be cited as instances of unmerited physical suffering or natural evil.
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  Both these categoriespoint to a marked incompatibility with an able and compassionate deity. Even those proponents of the teleological argument are forced to admit that the design of the universe is flawed.
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  General explanations suchas, ‘pain andsuffering and loss are inevitable aspects of an evolving world’, lead to the question of ‘why didn’t God Do better?’
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  The argument forthe problem of evil 1. We conceive of God as an omniscient, omnipotent and omibenevolent being 2. The existence of God is incompatible with the existence of an omniscient, omnipotent and omnibenevolent God. 3. Evil occurs. 4. Therefore there is no omniscient, omnipotent and omnibenevolent God.
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  Theodicies Theistic replies tothe problem of evil are called theodicies and generally involve a reinterpretation of premises 1 and 2. Traditional theodicies defend God’s part in allowing suffering, where as post Holocaust theodicies attempt to redefine the divine attributes as described in the first premise.
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  St. Irenaeus The Irenaeustheodicy Refers to Genesis 1:26, which states that God made humans in his image and likeness. From this he argues, there are 2 distinct phases of evolution in the human race.
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  Phase 1 We werecreated as intelligent though imperfect creatures, possessing an enormous capacity for moral and spiritual development. We were immature, but had promising potential.
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  Phase 2 During thesecond phase of our evolution, through which we are currently living, human beings are transformed from what we might call ‘human animals’ into what Irenaeus calls ‘children of God’. Irenaeus likens this progress to a journey- our own freely chosen movement towards God. God has always wanted and intended to create human beings in this way, so that they would grow towards him naturally and freely as they learnt The true nature of themselves.
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  The notion ofdistance The distance which exists between humans and God has been a strategy which encouraged human beings to seek knowledge and understanding and to move towards God and become more fully human. According to Irenaeus, suffering exists as a necessary condition for the creation of humanity in the likeness of God.
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  Important questions • Ishe correct in asserting that all the richest human virtues would have never developed in a world devoid of danger, risk or difficulty? • Since it is clear that we are not morally perfect being when we die, does the process of soul-making continue beyond the grave? • Does any ideal, spiritual state ‘closer to God’ justify the suffering of innocent people?
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  St. Augustine The Augustiniantheodicy Augustine’s defence consists of three strands of argument: 1. Malfunction 2. Moral balance 3. Appreciation
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  The main point Assertsthat creation is as God intended it to be and is inherently good, only becoming corrupt or ‘evil’ when part of it malfunctions. Example of the human eye. Discuss. Augustine faces the problem of applying this argument to the universe as a whole in order to solve the theological problem of evil . Therefore Augustine stated that ‘all evil is either sin or the punishment for sin’.
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  The argument frommoral balance Augustine’s argument has come to be known as the argument from moral balance: sin is punished as justice dictates it should be. The institution of justice is a greater good than the suffering experience, and a moral balance cannot be achieved any other way. Another aspect to this argument is that evil exists as a contrast to, and even a complement to goodness.Pain is needed to appreciate pleasure. The suffering we experience in this life, is for our own private good.
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  3 major criticismsto these arguments 1. A universe created by a God who possesses absolute power cannot be conceived of going wrong as the idea of a perfect creation that can malfunction is self contradictory. 2. Irenaeus and Augustine cannot build a philosophical defence on a religious document such as the Eden story. 3. Finally, the responsibility for the presence of evil in the world must lie with God. Why is free will so precious in the face of suffering?
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  Questions 1. Explain onereason for God to allow evil to occur. 2. Does the existence of evil in the world mean that God does not exist? 3. How do Irenaeus and Augustine reconcile evil and suffering in the world with the existence of God? 4. Do you think these arguments are philosophically sound? Why or why not?