The Problem of Evil

This week as I continued to study theology, I was assigned to write a paper on the problem of evil answering four popular questions that are raised against God. Here it is for your "enjoyment"!

Every day humanity is presented with the concept of evil and the sufferings that follow it, whether we realize it or not. Although days, maybe years, can go by without wondering why we feel pain or why we have to go through great trials, at some vital point in life we are pummeled with questions regarding this issue. For many, the very roots of their faith depend upon the answers to these pressing questions. Consequently, these questions must be given answers.

Although I am assigned to think through these questions regarding evil, I realize that I have always had the questions, but I was to scared to consider them, wondering if there would be a sufficient answer that would support my beliefs in God. I was scared of having my faith taken away from me due to unanswered questions. Having heard the argument, “If there is a God, why is there so much evil in the world?”, my response has always been to blame the problems on sin. Since this explanation became familiar to me from the Christians around me, I never considered finding a deeper answer to this probing and important question. My simple answer touches on the explanation for evil, but a much greater and more reasonable answer exists, as I have found recently.

Before I move on, defining evil is necessary. Evil has been defined by the philosopher, Augustine, as the lack of good in something and is characterized by suffering. Going straight to where suffering exists abundantly, within the human race, this question can be answered. In every human being is a force called the law of human nature, sometimes called the moral law. This law must have been given to us by a designer, such as God, for it could not have proceeded into existence on its own with its complexity and its existence in every human being. This law guides a being into choosing to do either good or evil. Now, many will argue that no such law exists, but it proves itself by the choices we make. For example, all humans have the urge to commit the selfish act, say, running from a burning building, but all know that the unselfish act, rescuing others from the burning building, is the better choice to make. Whether we make that choice or not is determined by this moral law. If we logically ponder the many choices made by the influence of this law, a reasonable human being cannot deny these two “instincts” of right and wrong, as C.S. Lewis calls them in his essay, On Free Will. Although we have this moral code within us, all disobey it. Regarding moral choices, very rarely do we turn from our selfish desires to do the good deed. Following from the definition, if evil is the absence of good, when we turn from the good deed and commit the selfish act, evil presents itself. Suffering then emerges, whether it be for yourself, another person, community, or society. Understanding this reasonable explanation of evil, a logical person must then arrive at the conclusion that evil exists in this world, not because of God, but because of the selfishness and pride of human nature. We cannot blame God for evil, because God is an all good God who desires good, while we ultimately desire evil over good.

Since God desires good and not evil, many people wonder if God can be the author of evil, and if he isn’t, who is? An argument that supports God as the author of evil says “God is the author of everything in the world. Evil is in the world. Therefore, God is the author of evil.” However, how can it be that an all good God could create evil? That idea seems quite impossible. It is impossible because the argument previously stated has a flaw. God is not the author of everything in the world; God is only the author of everything in the created world. Evil was not present when God created the world. On the contrary, good was present at creation due to the fact that God called his creation good again and again in Genesis one. In the midst of his good creation, God created Adam and Eve with free will. “He created the possibility of evil and people actualized that probability” says Peter Kreeft in The Case for Faith. After the fall of Adam and Eve, evil then existed because there was a lack of good in the world due to their sinful actions. According to Augustine, evil is actually defined as the lack of good in something. Evil is an idea or non being, and only becomes reality because good or being exists. In conclusion, this logical consistency explains that God could not have been the author of evil since evil is not a created thing, but came about after creation.

Since God is all good and created good, but not evil, the question “Can God and evil co-exist logically?” is asked. In my opinion, it seems as though this is possible because God is a logical, all knowing God. I do not believe that a logical God would create logical human beings with free will without a logical plan in mind. Because I have a finite mind, I cannot comprehend the meaning of God’s plan. But he must have one, and it must follow his nature of being logical or it would contradict his nature. Moving away from my opinion, facts prove that evil and God can co-exist logically. For example, when human beings are aware of the suffering they undergo, they are pointing out that there is an evil in the world, which then points to an objective standard which differentiates between good and evil. Even atheists or agnostics claim to believe in evil when they accuse God of not existing because of the suffering that exists. Knowing of this objective standard, or the moral law I presented earlier, it draws evidence for a Creator of the objective standard. In addition to this fact, in Lee Strobel’s book, The Case for Faith, it states that “our freedom includes the possibility of sin within its own meaning. It’s a self contradiction- meaningless nothing- to have a world where there’s real choice while at the same time no possibility of choosing evil.” Therefore, logically, evil proves that a Creator, such as God, exists. In conclusion, instead of the co- existence of God and evil being illogical, it’s actually illogical to believe in God, free will, and no evil.

Since God and evil can exist in the same realm, and God is a good God with a purpose for his plans, many have asked what the purpose of evil and suffering are in this life. To find the purpose of suffering, we must look at the greatest example of suffering, and that is Jesus Christ. Christ was spit upon, beaten, whipped, crowned with thorns, made to carry a cross, nailed to that cross, and left to suffocate hanging on the cross. But I imagine that the physical pain did not compare to the mental and emotional pain of the burden of our sins. Every sin ever committed, every pain ever felt, every suffering ever undergone of every person that has ever breathed was cast upon Jesus on the cross. The burden and the ugliness of that sin was so great that Jesus’ Father could not bear to look at him. Comparing this to our suffering is important, but even more important is remembering that there was a purpose existed in Christ’s death, which is the resurrection, which in turn gives everyone the choice of eternal life. Just as Christ’s suffering had a purpose, so is there purpose in the sufferings of mankind, if we surrender to God. Paul says it best in Romans 5:1-4, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also boast in our sufferings, because we know that sufferings produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” In addition to character traits, suffering enables believers to comfort others with their pain(2 Corinthians 1:3-5) and suffering causes us to trust God more(Lamentations 3:19-24). Most importantly suffering leads to repentance and salvation(Acts 9:1-6), and this is extended to all humanity. When people question the source of the pain they experience and try to make sense of their sufferings, if their hearts are laid open to him, God will reveal himself to them. They then have the opportunity to repent of their own evil and to receive the gift of salvation. C.S. Lewis said this: “God whispers to us in our pleasure, speaks in our consciences, shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

Although it is incredibly difficult to find purpose in the midst of suffering, if you examine past sufferings closely, the growth in character, the ability to comfort others, and the salvation accepted are evidences of the many purposes that suffering has.

Knowing of the all good Creator who instilled the moral law in every being, knowing of free will, and knowing that we repeatedly choose to disobey this law, an answer to the question of evil has been given: evil comes from our decisions; evil does not come from God. Knowing that God only authors created things answers the question of authorship of evil: evil was brought into existence by Adam and Eve when they chose to reject the created good. Knowing then that God, evil, and free will exist, the answer to the question of God and evil co-existing logically has been given: without evil, free will cannot exist, and without God, free will cannot exist.. Knowing that evil expounds in the world and that everything has a purpose, an answer to whether or not evil has meaning has been given: suffering that comes from evil produces strengthened characters and points us ultimately towards God’s saving grace. These answers with which I honestly suffered mentally and emotionally to figure out, also brought about in me a purpose, a trust in the all loving, infinite God and Creator of my very existence. To conclude then, the problem of evil presented in these four difficult questions, if thought about reasonably and logically, can be sufficiently answered.