The Problem of Evil-Part I

I am teaching my Evil and Suffering course again this semester. When people ask what kinds of things I teach at the college and I tell them that one of the courses I teach is a course on evil and suffering, invariably they will say, “That’s sounds so interesting.” Or fascinating. Or weird.

 

I have been studying religious responses to evil and suffering for about 20 years and my family has accepted it, strange though it may be. I have been known to lose sleep thinking about it. I have received books about it as Christmas presents. One summer when I was in graduate school and I received my catalog of fall courses, I scanned it quickly for a course on evil or suffering and when one was offered I actually said, “Oh Goody. There’s a course called ’Suffering, Understanding and the Politics of Pain.’” My children rolled their eyes and said, “Oh Gee, yeah. That’s good Mom.” 

 

My interest began 20 years ago when two tragedies struck the parish in which I was working as Director of Religious Education. These events happened to families I knew well. I listened to the responses and explanations around me and found them to be so inadequate, so trite and so weak that I set about studying the history of theodicy in Christianity. I also found them to be scandalous and libelous towards the God in whom I believed. To say that the tragic death of a six year old child was “God’s will,” expressed a sentiment that didn’t quite fit my belief in a God whose principle characteristic was Love.

 

The Evidential Argument from Evil or, The Problem of Evil is really the atheist argument against the existence of the God of the Bible. It sets itself up in a Theist tradition when God is said to possess the following attributes:

 

Omnipotence (All-Powerful)

Omniscience (All-Knowing)

Omnibenevolence (All-Loving)

Omnipresence (All-Present and Eternal)

Creator

 

The evidence of the existence of evil in the world sets up a contradiction, an illogical and seemingly impossible co-existence with God. Presumably, if God were omnibenevolent God would want to eliminate evil and suffering; if God were omnipotent, God could. But, since evil exists, either God does not want to eliminate evil, in which case God would not be All-Loving. Or, God cannot eliminate suffering in which case God would not be All-Powerful. Since God is either NOT All-Powerful or NOT All-Loving, the God of the Bible as described does not exist.

 

When I present the Problem of Evil in class this way, I know that many of my students rush to their traditional explanations without even pausing to consider just what a problem this is (and has been) for the Biblical traditions. They do not take the time to see it and why it is such a good argument against the existence of God. So, make sure you take time to see it and to understand why the Biblical traditions must answer the charge.

 

On the first day of class, I ask my students what kinds of things they hear in response to tragedy, or death, or natural disaster and I can ask that question without doubt that they will respond in ways that reflect the classical theodicies. They never fail me. They have been raised as Augustinians and Thomists (if they are Christian) and so they know the traditional justifications for God in the face of evil. And yes, it is God that requires justification, not evil and yet, many of the responses do just that. They justify evil.

 

To be continued……