The Problem of Evil.

    I will first describe the horrendous suffering of Job, his plead for answers, and the lecture god responds with about divine power. 

    Job, a man with great obedience to God. He feared God and detested Evil; in this way, no one could compare to Job. God granted divine protection over the life of Job and provided a life of abundance. Satan understood that all the beautiful attributes in Job's life came directly from God. Job had no reason to turn away from God because the luxurious life he was enjoying came from a covenant with God. Satan wanted to prove that breaking that covenant would completely abandon Job's obedience to God. God granted Satan the authority of Job's entire existence; Satan agreed and annihilated everything Job held dear, including his body. Job denounces not only God but everything that was, is, and is to come.

    I will now explain how the story of Job presents the Problem of Evil, existing in the form of a narration, which outdates the Book of Genesis. 

    I want to identify Evil by two definitions. 1) Moral Evil- evil committed, on purpose, by humans. 2) Natural Evil- Evil we're not responsible for. Let us start with the words of Job, “I cry out to you, God, but you do not answer; I stand up, but you merely look at me.” (Job. 30. 20) From these words, we see the repercussions of evil happening despite an existence dedicated to the obedience of God. Job's only purpose is to please God, to show his loyalty through any means, including ritualistic ceremonies of burnt offerings. Job asks, "Does he not see my ways and count my every step?" (Job. 31. 4) And yet Jobs' entire life is laid to waste; everything he has ever done has been in vain. Evil displaced all good with an audience of God. 

    I will now discuss the response of God to Job. 

    From a storm, God calls out, "Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge?" (New International Version, Job. 38. 2.) With that statement from God, every word spoken from Job during his affliction was an obstruction to God's plan. And the phrase Job had said, in total agony, were without knowledge. God speaks of several wonders and their complexities from all over the earth. All of which were created and maintained by God. The sufferings Job endured were entirely forgotten by Job in the presence of God. Job admits to God that he could never understand the vastness, the creation, or operation of all life on earth. Job repents in shame in the presence of God and regrets all the curses he made. God restores everything that he lost. 

    I will now discuss how God did not answer the Problem of Evil. 

    First, I would like to point out that the age of the book of Job is unknown. But evidence exists showing it was written sometime in the 2nd millennium BCE. God was able to describe great wonders that nothing else could achieve but God. “Do you have an arm like God’s, and can your voice thunder like his?” (New International Version, Job. 40. 9.) If Job were to have an arm like God, he would be able to “crush the wicked where they stand.” (New International Version, Job. 40. 12.) But Job is not God, so Job cannot crush the wicked. The wicked still exist, Evil still exists. The Problem of Evil still exists. 

 

    Before I explain the arguments of J. L. Mackie, it would be essential to define an Omni-God, that is 

1) Omniscient- all-knowing. 

2) Omnipotent- all-powerful. 

3) Omnibenevolent- infinite goodness.

4) Omnitemporal- existing in all places.

5) Omnipresent- existing at all times.  

    Mackie's argument uses logic to expose “the Paradox of Omnipotence” using the premises as follows:

a) God exists and is wholly good. (Omnipotent and Omniscient)

b) Evil exists.

c) An Omnipotent, Omniscient being is bound by nothing.

d) A wholly good being permanently eliminates or prevents Evil as far as it can.

(If a and c) then e) God can eliminate or prevent all Evil.

(If a and d) then f) God will eliminate or prevent all the Evil he can.

(If e and f) then g) God eliminates or prevents all Evil.

(If g then h) Evil does not exist.

(If b and h) then i) Evil exists, and Evil does not exist. 

    So, viewing each premise leads to a logical impossibility (Paradox). One of the premises is wrong. Evil still exists. 

    At last, I will briefly discuss the argument from Marilyn Adams. I will use her quote to begin. "The worst evils demand to be defeated by the best goods. Horrendous evils can be overcome only by the goodness of God." (McCord 309) From this statement, the goodness of God can overcome Evil, not prevent it or eliminate it. So, this cannot be a counterargument to Mackie but instead ignores the paradox and presents a view that it would be "hopeless" (McCord 306) to seek out the answers to why Evil exists. Instead, she argues that all the Evil plaguing our existence will be engulfed (be overcome) by an intimate relationship with God. Adams offers a Christian response to the Problem of Evil, but not a solution. If anything, it leads to several more questions. For example, out of the 45,000 denominations of Christianity, which one provides the goodness of God that can overcome Evil? 

    I will conclude my discussion with this. 

    God does not exist- Evil exists. God does exist- Evil exists. 

 

 

Work Cited.

Holy Bible. New International Version, Zondervan Publishing House, 1984.

From Marilyn McCord Adams and Stewart Sutherland, “Horrendous Evils and the Goodness of God,” Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society, Supplementary Volumes 63 (1989): 297–310.