Hamartiology: the problem of evil (theodicy) essay example

Religious studies

What is the problem of evil?
Theodicy (the problem of evil) continues to raise jitters among individuals. This is because it tries to proof and support the presence, love and the reality that lies in evil without ant contradiction. The irony is that for one to believe in the problem of evil, he must sacrifice either the presence or the love of God. This leads to a dilemma that cannot be solved. If an individual sacrifices God’s omnipotence or love, this will mean that the Supreme Being will not prevent or overcome evil by any deeds. Theodicy will try to clearly show that God is powerful and full of love despite the dilemma that exists.

Define moral evil and natural evil, and illustrate them with examples.

Moral evil is defined as a type of evil that is practiced by moral agents. Moral evil includes crime, discrimination, cruelty, genocide, class struggles, slavery and other types of injustices that exists in the society that we lives in. moral evil happens due act of man.
Natural evil is defined as evil that just happens without an individual power over it. The moral agents that are responsible for moral evil cannot cause natural evil. Natural evil may include tornadoes, tsunamis, volcanoes, hurricanes, volcanoes, earthquakes, and other forms of natural destructive events. Diseases may also fall into this category. Natural evil happens even without an act of man.
Why there is sin among mankind (the philosophical problem of moral evil) and why bad things happen in nature (the philosophical problem of natural evil)
It is good to note that God is not responsible for causing bad things or evil in the society. God only allow bad things to occur so that human beings can learn different ways to grow, help others, trust him and manage difficult situations. Natural evil may happen as a result of punishment from God due to the sins that are committed by the human race. The book of romans, 6: 23 states that,” For the wages of sin (moral) is death (natural); but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”
Leibniz’s theodicy- it claims that God might lack the power, goodness and knowledge since it cannot be said that he chose the best when he was creating the world.
Augustinian theodicy- it states that a perfect world free from evil was created by God but the free will that was given to humans and angels led to evil.

Irenaean theodicy- it argues that God must be part and parcel of instances where evil or suffering happens.

Free will theodicy- it suggests that God does not cause evil but the free will of man is responsible for evil.

Why a theodicy must be internally consistent

Theodicy must be internally consistent to remain relevant and avoid any attempts to get contractive. Theodicy must be perceived as one that is not created by God but created by man since he was given the will of choice by God. In genesis, it is evident that man decided to conflict with God and ate the forbidden fruit which led to evil afterwards. The free will theodicy explains why evil was caused by man because God had allowed man the freedom to choose between good and bad.

Consider how personal experience of evil may affect one’s relationship with God

Personal experience of evil may affect one’s relationship with God because one may find it difficult to understand why evil happens and at the same time there is a God. There is need for people to believe in God and always have trust in him despite the bad occurrences that occurs. Human beings have fickle hearts and most of the time they complains that its unfair for some evil deeds to happen to them. Individual must remain firm and trust in the Supreme Being without attacking him in anyway.

Bibliography

Laato, Antti, and Johannes C. de Moor. Theodicy in the World of the Bible. Leiden: Brill, 2003. .
Leibniz, Gottfried Wilhelm. Theodicy. Teddington, England: Echo Library, 2008.
Mathewes, Charles T. Why Evil Exists. Chantilly, VA: Teaching Co, 2011.
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