The Problem Of Evil

Joseph O’Meara Paper #1 For millennia, philosophers have debated whether or not the existence of an omnipotent, omnibenevolent being is compatible with the existence of evil and suffering. Some claim that an all-good, allpowerful being would never allow evil or suffering to exist, and since both evil and suffering obviously exist, by modus tollens, God must not exist. Opponents argue against this position using several theodicies, or attempted solutions to the problem of evil, including, but not limited to, the arguments that man cannot judge God and that without evil, good could not exist. From a logical standpoint, one has to conclude that the existence of evil is incompatible with an omnibenevolent, omnipotent being. If there exists an all-good, all-powerful God who cares about humankind, it would be impossible for evil or suffering to exist in the world. Since evil and suffering exist in copious amounts, one can conclude that such a being does not, and cannot, exist. This argument fits in the logical argument for modus tollens. The scenario that an allgood, all-powerful God exists in the same world as evil and suffering does not seem logically possible. The problem of evil is similar to the unstoppable force paradox, which states that if an immovable object

exists, it is impossible for an unstoppable force to also exist1. The two coexisting in the same universe is logically impossible. One defense a theist might use is the argument that good cannot exist without evil. They argue that evil is relative to good, and without evil, there would be no such thing as good or moral acts. In order for good to exist, evil must also exist, and vice versa. Arguments used to counter argue this point include the problem of the quantity of suffering present in the world. How much suffering is necessary? This theodicy does not explain natural catastrophes that end up killing or injuring many innocent people and forcing even more in to poverty, nor does it explain horrific moral atrocities, such as the Holocaust. For those affected by the Holocaust, it was as close to hell on earth as imaginable. Surely, such extreme amounts of pain, suffering, and evil are not necessary just to make it possible for good to exist. Things like this should never happen in a world governed by an omnipotent, omnibenevolent being, but it happens in our world. This can also be countered by the fact that, assuming God is omnibenevolent, or all good, it cannot exist without evil. This implies that there is something God did not create:evil. Since God (who is allgood) cannot exist without the presence of evil, one can logically assume that if such a God did exist, evil would have to exist regardless

“When an Irresistible Force Meets an Immovable Object”, Jim Loy, 1997, http://www.jimloy.com/logic/force.htm 1

of God’s will. Does this mean God has an equally powerful, but completely evil, counterpart? If so, it would be difficult to call God the Supreme Being, as it seems the counterpart is winning. This means there is something God cannot do; abolish evil. Following from that logic, one must conclude that God is not omnipotent. If God cannot exist on its own and is not omnipotent, then why should it be called God? A theist might also insist that evil and suffering exist because God granted us free will, and a world with free will is better than a world without it. In “Why God Allows Evil”, Richard Swinburne argues that a generous God would give its creation, among other things, free will. Therefore, God is not responsible when humans commit horrible acts. Of course, it is highly debated whether or not we even have free will, but for the sake of he argument, we will assume free will exists. An immediately noticeable problem with this argument is that God is the creator of all humans, and implants us with al ofour instincts, motives, and personality. Assuming this being did exist, it would absolutely be to blame when humans chose to do evil and bring harm to others. God, being all-powerful, must know what humans are going to do before they do it, so why does it never stop the most horrific things from happening? Why was the Holocaust allowed to happen. Some might say that God doesn’t want to interfere with our free will, but assuming we are dealing with the Judeo-Christian God, the Bible is

essentially an account of how God told people what to do and actively prevented certain atrocities from continuing. Why can this not happen in current times? Whose fault is it when a psychopath with no sense of right or wrong kills several civilians? It would be difficult to blame the person who does not know the difference between right and wrong. One would have to blame the being who knowingly created such a person, but since God cannot create evil, this is impossible. So where does this evil come from and what purpose does it serve? Another flaw with this argument is that it does not explain natural evil, or, in other words, evil not committed by humans. When a child dies from a chronic illness he or she has had since birth,one would have to be crazy to blame free will. Things like this happen quite often and are completely out of our control. Some may argue that this suffering provides others with moral traits, but is it fair to force a child to live its entire life knowing nothing but pain and suffering, to teach everyone else a lesson? What happened to this child’s free will? When questions like these are asked, holes quickly become clearly visible in theistic logic. The problem of evil by itself makes a solid case against the existence of God. While there are many people who still conclude that God exits even after being introduced to the problem of evil, the logical conclusion to make is that an omnipotent and omnibenevolent does not and cannot exist in our world when the amount of suffering and

evil present in the world is taken in to consideration. From millions of innocent people starving in Africa to the citizens of New Orleans losing their homes and loved ones, people across the world are forced to endure extreme amounts of suffering. In a world created by such a being s God, these things should just not happen. But, unfortunately, it is all too common in our world today that is not watched over by an all-supreme being.