The Problem of Evil is an argument that God does not exist.
The Problem of Evil is an argument that God does not exist. The argument begins with the observation that there is evil in the world. Your task is to develop and respond to one of the objections to this argument that is discussed in B.C. Johnson’s “God and the Problem of Evil.”
should do four things:
1. Explain the problem of evil as clearly and persuasively as you can, based on Johnson’s remarks in the article. Your explanation of the argument should be in prose, rather than in the form of numbered premises and a conclusion. However, you should clearly identify what the different premises of the argument are and explain how those premises are supposed to work together to support the conclusion that God does not exist.
2. Develop one of the objections briefly mentioned in the Johnson article in more detail, again as clearly and persuasively as you can. You are encouraged to choose an objection that you think can be made at least initially persuasive, as developing a plausible version of the objection is one of your main goals in the paper.
Sample Solution
The problem of evil is an argument that God does not exist. The argument begins with the observation that there is evil in the world. This evil can take many forms, such as natural disasters, disease, and human suffering. The argument then states that if God exists, then God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-good. However, if God is all-powerful, then God could prevent evil from happening. If God is all-knowing, then God knows about evil. And if God is all-good, then God wants to prevent evil from happening.
The problem of evil can be summarized in the following syllogism:
- If God exists, then God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-good.
- There is evil in the world.
- If God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-good, then God would prevent evil from happening.
- Therefore, God does not exist.