PHIL1003 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Theodicy, Omnibenevolence, Theism
7/06/18
The Problem of Evil
• Constitutes a serious argument against the existence of a God who is:
o Omniscient
o Omnipotent
o Omnibenevolent
• The problem of evil would not arise unless God was defined in this way
• Arguments from the problem of evil aim to show that these three properties of
God cannot exist if evil exists in the world
• Does the word evil presuppose it is something God will not allow?
o Broad use of the word
o More accurate terminology: the problem of suffering
o Two kinds of evil
▪ Natural evil: suffering that comes about from natural disasters,
disease, mental impairment…
▪ Moral evil: suffering rooted in human volition associated with the
vices, e.g. cruelty, greed, hatred, selfishness…
• Two versions of the problem
o Logical problem of evil: the existence of an all-PKL God is logically
inconsistent with the existence of evil in our world
▪ Aims to give us a conclusion we can accept with 100% confidence,
deductive validity
o Evidential problem of evil: the existence of evil, while perhaps logically
consistent with an all-PKL God, provides a support for atheism.
▪ Gives a weaker conclusion – that it is unlikely God exists
• A variant of the logical problem
o P1 – if God exists then God is omnipotent, omniscient and omnibenevolent
o P2 – an omnibenevolent, omniscient, omnipotent (PKL) being will prevent
the occurrence of any evil whatsoever
o C1 – If God exists, there will be no evil
o P3 – Evil exists
o C2 – God does not exist
• How do we arrive at P2?
o P1 – an omnibenevolent being will not wish for his creations to suffer
▪ Arent there situations where evil must prevail in order to serve
the greater good?
▪ Wouldnt an omniscient being be able to always find a way to
achieve the greater good with no suffering?
▪ Does God work in mysterious ways?
o P2 – and omniscient being will know if his creations suffer
o P3 – An omnipotent being will be able to prevent the suffering of his
creations
o C – a PKL being will prevent the occurrence of any evil/suffering for his
creations
• Perhaps evil is needed for good to exist?
o Evil that exists may be an unavoidable but necessary part of creation
• Since we havent figured out with certainty whether evil is or is not logically
consistent with Gods existence, the logical problem remains unsolved
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