Aquinas at the time of the Dark Ages believed that Christians needed to question their basic beliefs in their faith. One of the most controversial questions of the times was, “Why is there so much evil in the world?” The simple answer at the time for most Christians was, “Satan”. The Lord created a world of goodness and Satan entered it in the Garden of Eden, to stir up Evil into the world of goodness and to Aquinas, this was the most logical answer.
God is omnipotent (all-powerful) and could surely eliminate Satan from the world. God is also omniscient (all-knowing) and can predict every action that Satan will do presently and in the future. God is all omnibenevolence (all-good) and should desire that all evil and injustice be eliminated for this world to include Satan. According to Renick (2002), “Why would an all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good God make evil in the first place” (p.32)?
…show more content…
Aquinas, states that evil is a privation of good, which is a declining removal of good from a good object because the Lord only creates good things. Aquinas, use an example of a daisy that was once alive with color and strength and day by day it begins to whittle away by first losing its pedals and then eventually turning brown with decay. There is was no evil or badness added in this goodness, it was simply a process of dissipation of goodness that caused its decline. Aquinas, reaffirms that evil is not at thing but a privation of the good from an original good