Understanding Evil: Theological Debate on Suffering and the Divine Plan

If God, Why Evil?

The Plan • Most common atheist challenge: It is unlikely that the existence of the Christian God is compatible with the suffering and evil that we observe in the world • Key Questions: • What is evil? Did God create evil? • What is the “Logical Problem of Evil”? • What is the “Evidential Problem of Evil”? • What is the “Emotional Problem of Evil”? • Will God ever destroy evil?

Intro to Problem of Evil

Atheism and Theism Must Address Evil • Atheism’s problem of evil: justifying that there is evil • Theism’s problem of evil: reconciling God and evil • Our focus: How is God consistent with suffering and evil?

Nature of Evil What is evil?

Nature of Evil Definition of evil = the corruption of how things should be (good) or a privation of the way things should be (good)

Evil is like darkness in a room that is supposed to be full of light

Evil is like a missing limb

Evil is like rotten fruit

Nature of Evil If God created all things and evil is a thing that exists, then didn’t God create evil?

Nature of Evil • Genesis 1:31 says: “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” • Evil is not an original thing; it’s a parasite on the good that God created. God did not create evil. • God allows evil. What is it about the way God made things that allows for the possibility of evil? • The free will of God’s creatures

Nature of Evil • Q: If evil is a corruption or privation of the good, then is evil not real? • Answer: It is a real lack in a good thing. Being blind or deaf is real—a real lack of sight or lack of hearing. Is evil real?

Types of Evil • Two types of evil: • Moral evil = evil that is a direct result of the free choices of moral agents (e.g., humans or angels) • Natural evil = suffering that results from natural disasters (e.g., earthquake, tsunami, hurricane, tornado, fire)

Logical Problem of Evil • Reflect on some of the horrible moral and natural evils: 9/11, rapes, murders, the holocaust, child molestation, people dying slowly of cancer, burning in a fire, children experiencing the loss of a parent, parents experiencing the loss of a child, war, disease, starvation, etc. …

Logical Problem of Evil • Has the horrible pain and suffering in the world ever caused you to have serious doubts about whether a perfectly good and powerful God exists?

Logical Problem of Evil Logical Problem of Evil: • If God were all-powerful and all-knowing, then He would be able to prevent evil/suffering. • If God were all-loving, then He would want to prevent evil/suffering. • Evil and suffering exist • Therefore there is no God. Epicurus (341-270 BC)

Logical Problem of Evil • The logical problem of evil claims that the reality of evil proves that God definitely does not exist. • The claim: God is logically incompatible with evil.

Logical Problem of Evil • The following statements are logically incompatible: • “Person X is in Chicago, IL at 9am CST on 1/1/2019” • “Person X is not in Chicago, IL at 9am CST on 1/1/2019” • Both can’t be true!

Logical Problem of Evil • But is there an explicit logical contradiction between: A) An all-powerful, all-loving God exists. B) Evil exists. • No! One does not directly contradict the other (unlike the example in the previous slide). • To show an implicit contradiction between A and B, atheists must make unwarranted and unprovable assumptions…

Logical Problem of Evil • To try to show a contradiction between A and B, atheists have made these two unwarranted assumptions: 1. If God is all-powerful, then He can create any world that He wants. 2. If God is all-loving, then He prefers a world in which evil does not exist. • Let’s see why both assumptions are problematic…

Logical Problem of Evil • Is this true?... “If God is all-powerful, then He can create any world that He wants.” • Can God create a world in which there are square circles or married bachelors? • Can God create a world of free creatures and guarantee that they won’t do evil? • Not necessarily. It is logically impossible to make someone freely do something, AND… • Maybe no world of free and sinless creatures is feasible. • This alone undermines the logical problem of evil.

Logical Problem of Evil • Do you think this is true?... “If God is all-loving, then He prefers a world in which evil does not exist.” • All things being equal, this may be true. BUT: • What if the only worlds of free and sinless people that God could create are worlds that have unacceptable problems?

Logical Problem of Evil • What if the only way to eliminate evil is by eliminating freedom? • Why would free will be important to God? • Without free will, we: (1) are not moral agents; (2) can’t love others or love God

Logical Problem of Evil • It is now widely accepted by nearly all philosophers (even atheist philosophers) that the logical problem of evil fails.

Evidential Problem of Evil • BUT there’s still an evidential problem of evil: Some say suffering & evil at least make God’s existence improbable (esp. given the amount and type of evil) • WL Craig gives three reasons why suffering & evil do not even make God’s existence unlikely... God Evil

Evidential Problem of Evil Reason #1 that evil doesn’t make God’s existence unlikely: Our limited perspective makes it impossible to know that God probably lacks a good reason for permitting suffering. We can’t be sure there is too much evil relative to good or that certain instances of suffering are pointless. God Evil

Evidential Problem: Amount of Evil Claim: There is too much evil. If God existed, He could have achieved a much better balance of evil relative to good. • BUT what if God thinks the amount of good relative to evil and suffering in this life is not nearly as important as the eternal destiny of humans? • What if there has to be this much suffering/evil for the maximum number of people to repent & be saved? • What if God is aiming for the best overall balance of good vs. evil over the course of eternity?

Evidential Problem: Amount of Evil • The overall good of God’s creation has more to do with eternal outcomes than the temporary outcomes of this life: • Temporary suffering is swamped by the eternal blessedness of being in God’s presence: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Rom 8:18) • Temporary pleasures of this world are also swamped by the tragedy of eternal separation from God: “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Mt 16:26)

Evidential Problem: Amount of Evil • Fewer people might be saved if God merely aimed to minimize moral evils and natural suffering in this life. • Have you found that you are closer to God when you are suffering or in need? • Many people have turned to God only after hitting rock bottom or suffering greatly…

Pain is God’s Megaphone “Godwhispersto us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world” (C. S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain, 81).

Pain  Glory “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison” (Apostle Paul, 2 Cor 4:17).

Evidential Problem: Evil Claim: Some evil/suffering appears to be pointless. It is unlikely that God would allow this. • But if God aims for saving as many as possible rather than maximum happiness in this life, it is difficult to know whether an instance of suffering is truly pointless. • Some evils may be pointless with respect to achieving a greater good in this life, but what if they are crucial to achieving the best balance of saved and lost?

Evidential Problem: Evil • Also, what if some sufferings that appear to us to be undeserved and pointless are needed so that we engage in compassion and sacrificial aid for the suffering? • If suffering always appeared to be deserved or have a clear purpose, there would be no point in relieving it. There must be a good reason…

Evidential Problem: Evil • So the world may need suffering that seems undeserved or pointless if God is to develop us morally and bring as many people as possible to salvation. ALSO… • Also, divine hiddenness may be undermined if God always stepped in to prevent undeserved or pointless suffering.

Evidential Problem of Evil Reason #2 that evil doesn’t make God’s existence unlikely: Probabilities are relative to background information, and any weight that suffering has in terms of lowering the probability that God exists may be outweighed by other evidences for God’s existence… God Evil

Evidential Problem of Evil Consider some of the evidences for God’s existence: • The origin of the universe from nothing. • The amazing design of the universe for life to exist • The reality of objective moral truth God Evil

Evidential Problem of Evil Consider some of the evidences for God’s existence: • The origin of the universe from nothing. • The amazing design of the universe for life to exist • The reality of objective moral truth • The resurrection of Jesus Evil God

Evidential Problem of Evil Reason #3 that evil doesn’t make God’s existence unlikely: Certain Christian teachings show why God would permit suffering: (1) God’s purpose for us is not happiness in this life but the knowledge of God and His salvation; (2) humans are sinners who freely rebel against God; (3) God offers eternal life that is free of suffering and full of the knowledge of Him God Evil

Evidential Problem of Evil • Another Christian teaching that makes it likely that there would be suffering: God intelligently designed this world so that it is understandable and predictable. It is a world of consistent natural laws so we can make moral choices. • E.g., Swinging a bat at something must have consistent consequences. A fire can warm or burn you.

Evidential Problem of Evil Conclusion: the evidential problem of evil is weak… • We can’t be sure that there is too much evil relative to good or that certain instances of suffering are pointless. • Even if suffering by itself lowers the probability that God exists, that is outweighed by theistic evidences. • Certain Christian teachings show why God would permit suffering. God Evil

Emotional Problem of Evil • If you have good intellectual reasons to think that evil does not even make God’s existence unlikely, does that mean that suffering and evil in your life will never make it difficult to believe in God? • No. There is still an emotional problem that many of us deal with when we experience evil.

Emotional Problem of Evil • When we lose a loved one or experience tragedy, it is tempting to become angry at God and doubt that He is good or that He really cares for us. How many of you have experienced anger or distrust of God at some point? • In those times, it may be comforting if one already knows that evil provides no intellectual objection to God.

Emotional Problem of Evil • God loves us more than we can possibly understand (even if we don’t know why He allows a particular tragedy). What Jesus did for us proves the love of God! • When tragedy strikes, we must trust in God’s good character because of what we know about Him even if we don’t have an answer for why God would allow it:

The End of Evil • Will evil never end? • It will end. Jesus has overcome death and suffering by His death. When Jesus returns, He will perfect our fallen world and make all things new…

The End of Evil • Revelation 21:1-5 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.’ And He who sits on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’”

Final Thoughts or Questions?

Understanding Evil: Theological Debate on Suffering and the Divine Plan