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Life, the Universe and Everything
Quick questions on The Problem of Evil - TCE Philosophy (Tasmania)
2short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is stating the problem?Show answer
The problem arises from a set of claims a traditional theist accepts: God is omnipotent, so able to prevent evil; omniscient, so aware of it; and wholly good, so wanting to prevent it. Yet evil and suffering clearly exist. Epicurus is credited with an early form of the dilemma, and David Hume gave it sharp expression: if God is willing to prevent evil but unable, God is not omnipotent; if able but not willing, not good. The challenge is to show how all the divine attributes can hold together with the reality of suffering.
What is the free will defence?Show answer
The most influential response is the free will defence, developed rigorously by Alvin Plantinga. Genuine moral goodness requires free creatures who can choose between good and evil; a world with free agents is more valuable than one of programmed puppets. But if creatures are truly free, even God cannot guarantee they always choose well without removing their freedom. Moral evil is therefore the price of a greater good, free will.
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