J. L. Mackie's Arguments For The Problem Of Evil

J. L. Mackie’s “Evil and Omnipotence” criticizes the argument that God exists by showing that religious beliefs are positively irrational and that parts of the essential theological doctrine are inconsistent with one another. The problem of evil is one of the oldest problems in philosophy. The problem of evil is a logical problem for only the people who believe that there is a God who is both (1) omnipotent and (2) wholly good; yet (3) evil exists in the world. If God is wholly good and omnipotent, then how can there be a presence of evil in the world. Given the presence of evil, we must either conclude that God does not have the power to prevent the suffering that evil causes in which case God is not omnipotent or that God does not wish

Having examined the omnipotence and omnibenevolence of the God of the Bible, as they relate to the atheist’s argument against God’s existence, it is also important to note other

In this essay, I will briefly explain J.L. Mackie’s premises on ‘the problem of evil’ in relation to the non-existence of God. I will defend some of Mackie’s objections in his first and fourth possible solutions regarding human free-will. In conclusion, I will discuss as to why I agree with Mackie’s arguments and why that correlates to God as not being omnipotent or wholly good. Consequently, I will also explain why free-will produces social constructed standards of evil and good, and why God does not exist.

The problem of evil is a deductive a priori argument who’s goal is to prove the non-existence of God. In addition to Mackie’s three main premises he also introduces some “quasi-logical” rules that give further evidence to his argument. First he presumes that a good thing will eliminate evil to the extent that it can and second, that omnipotence has no limits. From these two “additional

The existence of God has been a major topic in the history of philosophy. For long, philosophers debated and each tried to seek out for an answer to rationally prove that God is an existing being and not merely a fragment of human imagination as an attempt to explain the world and its origin. One of the approaches that philosophers took to prove God’s existence is through the problem of evil. Philosopher, J.L. Mackie, used a deductive analysis on the problem to challenge his predecessors in what they claim to be rational proof. Mackie believed that the problem of evil exist within men solely due to the fact that many theists are not willing to accept God as a being that is any less than what they presuppose God is and his defining qualities.

That being said, God’s gift of free will to humanity is often used as the prime example as to why evil exist. Free will, theologian's would argue, is among the greatest goods, but for humans to truly have free will they must also have the choice to do evil. This argument is flawed however. The theologian would argue that free will and not being able to do evil is incompatible and therefore not possible, but God himself is a testament to the opposite. God being wholly good, would not freely choose to do evil, and assuming no theologian would argue that God has no free will, it must follow that it is possible to have free will and not do any evil.

The final portion of the old questions asks “is he both able and willing? Whence then is evil?” (Hume 198). It would seem logical that if God is omnipotent and omnimalevolent as Christians believe then he would be able and willing to stop all evil. Since there is clearly evil in this world, wouldn’t that mean that God is just evil and relishes in the suffering of humans? Of the three questions, this is the least logical. God could not be omnimalevolent and evil because, by definition, these two characteristics contrast. Someone could not be all good and evil at the same time.

He establishes that the illogicality is a rational difficult and develops a realism solitary on behalf of theists who have faith in God to be present as omnipotent and also merely good.

If God is both omnipotent and wholly good, then He would make men freely choose good on every occasion.

This essay features the discussion of the problem of evil in relation to the existence of god. Specifically outlining two sections where the problem of evil is discussed from atheist and theistic viewpoint.

But what, exactly, is an inconsistency or contradiction” (350). Plantinga points out Mackie argument against theism is flawed because his logic against theism is inconsistent because Mackie would state one thing and then continue to reinforce that statement over and over. A point that Plantinga points out against Mackie is how Mackie states, “(1) good omnipotent (2) God is wholly good and (3) Evil exist” (351). Plantinga counters Mackie argument by stating, “Call this set A; The claim is that A is an inconsistent set. But what is it for a set to be inconsistent or contradiction, we might say that set of propositions is explicitly contradictory if one of the members is the denial or negation of another member” (351).

Stephen Law conducted a thought experiment with a purpose of establishing the existence of an evil God, whereby he challenged those who believed in the presence of a kind and good God, doing nothing evil, and argued that the existent God is wicked indeed. The hypothesis developed into the challenge based on the argument that, if an omnibenevolent God is said to exist, yet there is so much evil in the world, then there is as well a possibility that an evil God exists, yet there is so much good. Law aimed to doubt not the fact of the existence of God, but the generally accepted assumption that the existing God is benevolent. Another researcher, Rowe, refutes this approach, arguing that the existence of a Supreme Being, who created people and hence cares for them, cannot be associated with evil. In fact, the presence of evil is a clear sign of the absence of a God. This paper seeks to take a position opposing to Law’s theory and prove that, despite the presence of evil, an omnibenevolent God still exists.

“The problem of evil is often divided between the logical and evidential problems.” At the heart of each problem is the belief that the existence of God and the existence evil are incompatible. They present an “either/or” dilemma: either God

The theological problem of evil is a problem that many philosophers have tried to solve. The problem is stated as, "if one believes that god is omnipotent and wholly good, why does evil still exist?" In this writing I will discuss the solutions/propositions of John L. Mackie in his work, "Evil and Omnipotence." I will do this in order to illustrate the concept of free will for understanding or resolving the problem, and to reveal how and why Mackie arrives at his conclusions.

all-good means that he only wants good to exist. But, look at all the bad and