1. Do you have a response to Stephen Fry?
Do you have a response to Stephen Fry?

2. The problem of Evil
Epicurus, an Ancient Greek philosopher ( BCE), wrote the following about God and the idea of evil and suffering.
‘Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whenver cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God.
Epicurus lived at a time when the Greeks believed in many gods but the question about the relationship of God and suffering is very well expressed in this quotation.
Task: in your own words and symbols – create a diagram and annotations presenting the problem of evil / inconsistent triad.

3. Task: recap the problem

4. Be aware of two types of evil
Moral evil – define
Natural evil - define

5. Why is there suffering in the world? How would a Christian respond?
Suffering Is seen as an essential part of life. There are arguments called theodices which attempt to explain the existence of evil in the world.
We shall look at two in detail – the Augustinian theodicy and Irenaean theodicy

6. Augustinian theodicy
Developed by St Augustine of Hippo in his ‘Confessions’ - known as a ‘soul-deciding’ theodicy.
Augustine argues that the world created good as reflected in the Bible (“and god saw that his creation was good”)
Man created in a state of perfection as part of the hierarchy of being (explain)
However he was also created free – this leads to ‘the Fall’, ‘Original Sin’, and man turning away from God (explain Adam+Eve)
Evil not a substance or physical entity but a privation of good, a privatio bonni, as a result of one of God’s creation turning away from the hierarchy of being – nothing, however is entirely evil
Those that turn back to God will proceed to heaven; those that do not will suffer eternal torment (soul-deciding)
Natural evil is a result of ‘satan and his cohorts’ turning away from their role in creation and placing their pride over good
“since there is happiness for those that do not sin, the world is perfect”
The universe like a canvas – overall the canvas is good – however, from our perspective close up, it might seem evil.

7. Irenaean theodicy
Irenaeus, 2nd century Christian apologist, developed a ‘soul-making’
theodicy in ‘Against Heresies’
The world and mankind created with free will but not perfect (though God could have created him such being omnipotent)
Mankind created in the image of God, but not the likeness of God – he is immature and imperfect.
Life therefore a testing ground, within which man can grow into the likeness of God. Adam and Eve’s sin was not a catastrophe as with Augustine, but the childish mistake of an immature being growing in moral knowledge
For man to do this, God must give humanity free will, so that he can genuinely choose right from wrong
John Hick’s development: life allows for moral and spiritual growth in the “vale of soul-making” (explain).
Man created at an “epistemic distance” – the purpose of which was to allow man to freely come into knowledge of God by acting morally – as we mature, the distance weakens
The product of this is a free, genuine and valuable relationship with God: man becomes, as Hick argues “children of God” and heirs of “eternal life”

8. Other Christian responses Task – copy these
There is a force for evil in the world, sometimes characterised as the devil / Satan. Traditionally believed to be a fallen angel, thrown out of heaven for disobeying God,
God shares in our suffering.
Suffering is a test.
Suffering is the result of sin
How we deal with suffering gives us the opportunity to become better people – it is soul shaping.

9. Let us consider Job
Video library: RE: Nooma Complete collection: 024 Whirlwind
Tasks:
1) Pick out the different sections in the story of Job
2) What is Jobs response to the suffering in the end?
3) What is Rob Bell’s response to suffering?
4) What do you think about this reponse?

10. Task
- Read about Job and his suffering in more detail on p 170 and complete the tasks