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John Hicks's Argument On The Problem Of Evil

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In John Hicks argument on the problem of evil openly claims that the Irenaean Tradition is the most logical and most accurate in terms why God allows “evil” on earth. For a very long time the Irenaean tradition was unpopular compared to the Augustinian tradition until recently. People who believe in the Irenaean tradition believe that mans sinful nature is not because they are trying to intentionally displease God, but because man is going through an imperfect world in which evil exists as a process to become more like what God envisioned them to be. Hick states that when God made humans he made them like himself but they are an unfinished product. In which the rigors of life would help mold man into God’s ideal “child”. What he means by this …show more content…

Through this constant buildup of good deeds and righteousness, he makes himself a worthy candidate for heaven. Or he can choose the latter, simply indulge in the world’s sinful nature and slowly descend into sinfulness himself and be sent to hell. Therefore Hick does not believe that man was originally perfect and that the world was made perfect. The environment in which man would grow in is not for their pleasure but to bring out the necessary qualities God is looking for. Hick claims that if God made the earth solely on the purpose for pleasure then it would derail mans path towards righteous qualities therefore being unable to become worthy in God’s eyes. Hick makes the connection with parents who spoil their children, having undesirable qualities like selfishness and egotism which is more prevalent in a perfect world. Therefore without things considered evil like selfishness, lustfulness, poverty and crime being present in the world, one cannot learn to be good and honorable by knowing that these things are wrong. This is necessary for bringing man from a state of immature and unknowing to a state of righteousness like what God had planned for them to

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He describes the objection as, “all men desire the apparent good, but have no control over the appearance, but the end appears to each man in a form answering to his character” (1114b).   This view argues that all people pursue that which seems good, but some people cannot see the true good, which is out of their control.   The immediate implication of this objection, if it is indeed true, suggests that “no one is responsible for his own evildoing” (1114b).

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In this reading reflection I will be discussing Richard Swinburne’s argument on “Why God Allows Evil” which starts on page 254 in “Exploring Philosophy: An Anthology” by Steven M. Cahn. This was also discussed in class on 9/15/16. In his argument Swinburne states that “An omnipotent God could have prevented this evil, and surely a perfectly good and omnipotent God would have done so. So why is there evil?”(Swinburne, 254).

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Hence a perfect person cannot truly be all good because we do not know what constitutes as

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The problem of evil takes into account three defining features of God: all-good, all-knowing, and all-powerful and questions whether such a God would permit evil and not interfere. Sinnott-Armstrong discusses his stance by countering responses he coins as the Glorious Response, the Modest Response, and the Overriding Response. Whereas, Craig counters the arguments made by Sinnott-Armstrong. The Glorious Response Thus response suggests evil is

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Finally, I argue Swinburne’s solution to the Problem of Evil is persuasive. First, I begin with Swinburne’s views on the kinds of evils. According to him, there are two kinds of evil: moral evil and natural evil. Moral evil refers to all evil caused deliberately by humans doing what they ought not to do and also the evil constituted by such deliberate actions or negligent failure

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On the other hand, theists like Swinburne, believe that evil is necessary for important reasons such as that it helps us grow and improve. In this paper I will argue that the theist is right, because the good of the evil in this specific case on problems beyond one’s control, outweighs the bad that comes from it. I will begin by stating the objection the anti-theodicist gives for why it is wrong that there is a problem of evil. (<--fix) Regarding passive evil not caused by human action, the anti-theodicist claims that there is an issue with a creator, God, allowing a world to exist where evil things happen, which are not caused by human beings (180-181).

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A lot of arguments have been known to prove or disprove the existence of God, and the Problem of Evil is one of them. The Problem of Evil argues that it is impossible to have God and evil existing in the same world. Due to ideal characteristics of God, evil should not have a chance to exist and make human suffer. In this essay, I will examine the argument for the Problem of Evil, a possible theodicy against the argument, and reply to the theodicy. First of all, to be clear, the Problem of Evil is an argument that shows that God cannot be either all- powerful, all-knowing, and/or all good.

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