What is "The Problem of Evil?"

Every once in a while in the comments we see phrases like, "The problem of evil isn't . . . it's . . . " I may have been guilty of this myself, but we need to be more careful about this. There isn't one "problem of evil," there are several.

I'll list the ones that come to my mind. You may be able to add others.

1. The "logical problem of evil," as Plantinga called it, which I wrote about recently. It's about an alleged deductive proof that, given that there is evil in the world, God cannot exist as perfectly good and powerful. This one has been solved, according to a strong consensus of both theistic and non-theistic philosophers.

2. The "probabilistic problem of evil" (Plantinga's term again), which I also referred to in that post. It says that even if the logical problem is solved, God only squeaked through by a technicality, and in light of the evil in the world, it's just really unlikely that he exists as perfectly good and powerful. (I said I was going to write about that in a day or two, but my schedule--and the pace of discussion in the comments--has not allowed me to do that yet.)

3. The emotional problem of evil. When we experience evil, we experience it at the core of our selves--where it hurts. This is about comfort and aid, solving the pain of evil.

4. The problem of how to prevent or reduce evil in the world. That's a multi-faceted issue that we've rarely touched on here.

5. The definitional problem of evil: what does "evil" mean, by definition, and can there be such a definition without a transcendent source of morality? This leads to a theistic argument, called the axiological argument (briefly summarized here), that suggests if there is no God, we cannot explain why we experience and know the obvious categories of good and evil. That is, if there is no God, there is no real good and evil (thus this can also be considered an ontological problem of evil).

So if someone brings up "the problem of evil," an appropriate response would be, "Which one?"

Second in a series:
1. Solved: The Logical Problem of Evil
2. What is "The Problem of Evil?"
3. Is God Likely, In View of Evil?
4. Can Evil Be Made Good?
5. Fences Around Evil
6. Reflections on the Mess We Live In

Posted: Thu - May 25, 2006 at 03:19 PM |

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What is "The Problem of Evil?"

Thinking Christian by Tom Gilson