Evil + Suffering
AQA Requirements:
1. The concepts of natural and moral evil
2. The logical and evidential problem of evil
3. Hick’s soul making theodicy
4. The Free Will Defence
5. Process theodicy as presented by Griffin
6. The strengths and weaknesses of each response
1. The concepts of natural and moral evil
Moral evil - Intentional human action (or inaction) that results in suffering. For example, murder,
rape, stealing, the holocaust.
• Swinburne: “all humans doing what they ought not to do allowed to occur by humans negligently
failing to do what they ought to do”
• Humans - moral agents - capable of acting in accordance with right and wrong.
• Moral evil - the moral agent uses their free will to bring about morally bad consequences.
• On an individual basis, there have always been people whose behaviour classifies them as
morally evil.
• On a collective level genocide has brought about moral evil in its most extreme forms, e.g. Rwan-
dan genocide - Hutu population who made up 85% of population wanted to exterminate Tutsi
population who made up 14%, between 500,000-1mill Tutsi were slaughtered.
• Perhaps the worst part of moral evil = inaction - people don’t intervene.
Natural Evil - Arises from vents which cause suffering but over which human beings have little con-
trol. For example, earthquakes, tsunamis, disease.
• Hick: “natural evil is the evil that exists independently of human action”
• That which the world does to us.
• Humans are exposed to a vast catalogue of evils bought about by the physical forces of nature.
• 2008 Sichuan earthquake killed 70,000, left 5mill homeless.
• Natural disasters are often most difficult for religious people to accept - moral evil can be blamed
on free will, however, natural evil is not - except where natural evil is made worse by humans,
e.g. global warming.
• It is obvious to blame God - since most theists believe that God created the laws of nature in the
first place.
• In the bible God uses natural disasters to punish people - the flood, the plagues to free Jews
from slavery.
• However, in NT Jesus performs miracles over the world of nature - heals people - resurrection. If
God controlled nature 2000 years ago, why does he not now?
2. The logical and evidential problem of evil
The Logical Problem of Evil - The existence of evil is incompatible with the existence of God.
• The ‘problem of evil’ was first formulated by Epicurus.
• Augustine: “either God cannot abolish evil; or he will not; if he cannot then he is not all-powerful;
if he will not then he is not all good.”
• Omnipotent - all powerful - he could eliminate evil. The Logical Problem.
• Omnibenevolent - all kind - he would eliminate evil.
• But evil exists.
• J L Mackie - The Miracle of Theism - “A wholly good omnipotent being would eliminate evil com-
pletely… if there really are evils, then there cannot be such a being.”
• Solutions to the Logical Problem:
- Deny God’s Omnipotence - if God is not omnipotent then he is not able to
control evil and cannot be blamed for its existence - process theologians. -
process theodicy.
- Deny God’s Omnibenevolence - for most Christians this is unthinkable, the
belief that God is omnibenevolent supports those who experience evil and is
the basis for future hope. - protest theodicy.
AQA Requirements:
1. The concepts of natural and moral evil
2. The logical and evidential problem of evil
3. Hick’s soul making theodicy
4. The Free Will Defence
5. Process theodicy as presented by Griffin
6. The strengths and weaknesses of each response
1. The concepts of natural and moral evil
Moral evil - Intentional human action (or inaction) that results in suffering. For example, murder,
rape, stealing, the holocaust.
• Swinburne: “all humans doing what they ought not to do allowed to occur by humans negligently
failing to do what they ought to do”
• Humans - moral agents - capable of acting in accordance with right and wrong.
• Moral evil - the moral agent uses their free will to bring about morally bad consequences.
• On an individual basis, there have always been people whose behaviour classifies them as
morally evil.
• On a collective level genocide has brought about moral evil in its most extreme forms, e.g. Rwan-
dan genocide - Hutu population who made up 85% of population wanted to exterminate Tutsi
population who made up 14%, between 500,000-1mill Tutsi were slaughtered.
• Perhaps the worst part of moral evil = inaction - people don’t intervene.
Natural Evil - Arises from vents which cause suffering but over which human beings have little con-
trol. For example, earthquakes, tsunamis, disease.
• Hick: “natural evil is the evil that exists independently of human action”
• That which the world does to us.
• Humans are exposed to a vast catalogue of evils bought about by the physical forces of nature.
• 2008 Sichuan earthquake killed 70,000, left 5mill homeless.
• Natural disasters are often most difficult for religious people to accept - moral evil can be blamed
on free will, however, natural evil is not - except where natural evil is made worse by humans,
e.g. global warming.
• It is obvious to blame God - since most theists believe that God created the laws of nature in the
first place.
• In the bible God uses natural disasters to punish people - the flood, the plagues to free Jews
from slavery.
• However, in NT Jesus performs miracles over the world of nature - heals people - resurrection. If
God controlled nature 2000 years ago, why does he not now?
2. The logical and evidential problem of evil
The Logical Problem of Evil - The existence of evil is incompatible with the existence of God.
• The ‘problem of evil’ was first formulated by Epicurus.
• Augustine: “either God cannot abolish evil; or he will not; if he cannot then he is not all-powerful;
if he will not then he is not all good.”
• Omnipotent - all powerful - he could eliminate evil. The Logical Problem.
• Omnibenevolent - all kind - he would eliminate evil.
• But evil exists.
• J L Mackie - The Miracle of Theism - “A wholly good omnipotent being would eliminate evil com-
pletely… if there really are evils, then there cannot be such a being.”
• Solutions to the Logical Problem:
- Deny God’s Omnipotence - if God is not omnipotent then he is not able to
control evil and cannot be blamed for its existence - process theologians. -
process theodicy.
- Deny God’s Omnibenevolence - for most Christians this is unthinkable, the
belief that God is omnibenevolent supports those who experience evil and is
the basis for future hope. - protest theodicy.
