Writing an essay, Opinions Please, Existence of all good and al powerful God with the Problem of Evil?

Question

Hi, I'm taking a philosophy class and have an in class essay tonight (he released the questions early and I'm thinking of including a paragraph on public perspective) on the existence of an all good and all powerful God with the problem of evil. To explain the three main arguments we are to work with are (speaking for to against) the free will/agency argument - to allow free will you have to leave people the ability to do bad things. The debunks are first, we don't have complete free will (there are many limitations to our free will) and evil actions end the free will of others. Second, the rule of opposites. You cannot know good without evil, you cannot know pleasure without pain. Debunk is simply that the rule is not necessarily true. Finally, the "soul building" argument. "We cannot grow without dealing with hardships." Debunked with the "baby in a burning building" argument. Isn't there a degree of responsibility on God for allowing a helpless baby die in a burning building.

I know it's not much to go on, but I ran out of detail space. Remember it is in relation to an All Good All Powerful God. For instance, a rabbi wrote a book after his son died coming to the conclusion that God was all good, but not all powerful as disease took his son who was a good person and didn't deserve to die.

This is really great stuff everybody! Thank you very much. I hope there are more answers as good as these. I really love getting all of this perspective. It helps a lot.

I do realize that the arguments seem incredibly thin. In some cases they are, but it also has a lot to do with the amount of space that is alloted for the question. I do agree about the rule of opposites in particular. It's just plain not true.

Answer 1

I would begin the essay by pointing out that many of these premises regarding free will and the nature of good and evil are VERY flawed and seriously open to questioning, in and of themselves, without being "debunked".

It's a given that we don't have complete free will, since we are also governed by other things such as biology, instinct, reflexes, cultural conditioning, outside elements and so on. I do NOT get the idea that "evil actions end the free will of others". Where's the proof for that? It might sometimes be true, for instance, if you shot someone, turning them into a vegetable, then yes, they'd have no free will. But evil by itself does not, a priori, end free will.

I also do not believe that good cannot exist without evil, only the PERCEPTION of good. And the idea that you can't know pleasure without pain is just absurd...ask any medical doctor!
Regardless of the fact that the two coexist in most of us, does not make them dependent on one another. Hypothetically, someone COULD know pleasure, without experiencing pain (though people who can't feel pain, which is a medical condition, ARE at great risk for injury, since they don't know how to avoid danger, in many cases).

And the "building a soul" argument is foolish as well. That is like saying that those who have never known hardship have no soul. Absurd!

I can't answer the "burning baby" argument against God, since I don't believe in one. But that, too, seems ridiculous to me.

For some polls on public opinion on Belief in a God -

Some useful sources: Harris Poll shows majority of Americans (between 69-80%!) believe in a god/deity. Many interesting tables, about other beliefs, such as ghosts, witches, reincarnation, etc.

http://www.harrisinteractive.com/harris_poll/index.asp?PID=618

More statistics on god belief (about 69%) and other beliefs at : http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_poll3.htm

(this is an EXCELLENT web site and resource) Check out "Visitor Essays" on this same site, for varying opinions.

Article on "Science and Religion in an Impersonal Universe": Might be helpful
http://www.mines.edu/fs_home/users/mmyoung/public_html/SIarticle.htm

Good luck with this...your philosophy teacher sounds like a sadist (making you argue all these things) AND a nutcase!

Answer 2

Look, this whole argument around absolute evil and absolute good is preposterous.

Why?

Because there is no such thing save a few small examples in the history of mankind. Like Hitler murdering scores of people on a whim.

A baby, dying in a fire, is not an evil act per se. It is a calamity, that has befallen the family of the baby. So you cant use it to debunk anything.

If you really wanted to understand, youd look at nature, and as far as evil and goodness goes, we can only truly understand the actions that WE humans do. And classify them as good or bad.

To blame God on a building burning down, is like getting angry at the sky for raining too much. Its complete BS.

Overall, those who believe in God, know that this life and everything in it, is a test. Thats not a conclusive explanation ofcourse, but its a generalized one that would apply to all those incidents that seem to hurt us, or ignite raw emotion in us.

Also, without the belief in a conclusive judgement day, and an afterlife where every wrong done to you will be corrected by God, and every time you have sat patiently and hoped be granted a blessing, a faith in God is not complete.

because the afterlife is where we all receive fairness, and a God who is not fair, is never an existence.

Answer 3

This question has always been predicated on a false premise, that is, that God is the ruler of the earth. He is not, the devil is in charge. So if God is all-powerful, why doesn't He do anything to stop the evil? That is also an assumption that God has no choice in the matter. He chooses to back off and let the world go its way via its free will to choose, and take unto Himself those that choose Him despite the evil around them. It's not like this is the end of the story, there remains a day when God will cast all evil into a dimensional plane that is called "outer darkness".

Jesus told a parable regarding the sowing of tares (fruitless weeds) amongst wheat. When they first germinate, tares look just like wheat, so it is incredibly difficult to weed them out. Fortunately, once tares mature (near harvest) they turn black. In the last days, there will be a chasm between those with fruit and those that do not. One group will be harvested and winnowed, the other will be cast into the fire for consumption.
Consider, however, that the wheat still requires winnowing to remove chaff from the grain. That too is happening.
http://www.schneblin.com/studies/pdfs/winnowing_wheat_chaff.pdf

Evil is necessary for free choice to be a reality. You can choose which side you wish to be on. And in reality, that is what you are seeing today. People choosing their sides. Again I will say that this world does not belong to God. Satan is the god of this world. So, give credit where credit is due.

Luke 4:5
Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.”

1 John 5:19
We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.

But one day soon, that will all change when Satan is cast out as the usurper he is.
Revelation 11:15
There were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”

...and the healing will begin.
Revelation 22:2
The leaves of the tree [of life] were for the healing of the nations.

Answer 4

If you have not read Alvin Plantinga's Free Will defense in response to J.L. Mackie's version of the problem of Evil, it is worth your time.

Answer 5

Evil is the absence of good.

Adam & Eve sinned in the garden...therefore ushering in evil into our world. God is not the creator of evil........man messed up. True, He gifted us with free will......but His sovereignty and our free will walk hand in hand......no one can rationally explain how.....they just do.

It's all about faith and an element of mystery as well. If we were able to explain all the things of God....then we would be God (blasphemy)

Answer 6

Remember it has to be a tri-omni god - i.e. also all-knowing as well as all-powerful and all-good. The tri-omni gods of classical monotheism cannot exist because of the problem of evil.

Answer 7

There is no good or evil, just insanity.