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Problem Of Evil Argument

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Problem of Evil

The argument for the existence of God has been a debate for many centuries. God, in terms of philosophy, must be a supernatural being that: is all-knowing, is all-powerful, and is all-good. Theists believe God exists based on these terms; atheists on the other hand don’t believe in God. Atheists believe that if there is evil present in the universe, then there is no possible way God can exist if he is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnibenevolent. Evil is defined in three different categories: human evil (evil we humans cause), natural evil (not in our control, of the Earth), and sufferings of the heart (not necessarily human/natural evil). The argument for the problem of evil is that God doesn’t exist because evil exists. In …show more content…

But since evil exists, no such being exists. Therefore, God doesn’t exist. Atheists believe this to be a problem because they say that the first and second premises contradict each other, therefore proving the existence of God false. God, as we know it, is a perfectly good God. Since this God is perfectly good and all-powerful, then we assume he would eliminate evil whenever/wherever it is present. While this does hold a strong standpoint against theists, they can come back with an argument that basically states that evil can be allowed if it gives way to the opportunity of a greater good coming from that …show more content…

Determinism says that past events and laws of nature determine every fact of the future, meaning if evil exists, then God there’s the possibility God does not have the power to control evil. If this is true, then God can still exist as an all knowing, all powerful, all good being because he can do nothing to change the determined path of the universe, meaning evil can be viewed as a separate power that can’t control its own path, it just exists. I believe that free will and determinism can exist in the universe simultaneously (compatibilism), so the evils that humans create are of voluntary choice because that was what determinism planned for that person. The reasoning behind my belief that determinism and free will can exist in the same realm is I side with the voluntary choice option of free will. Voluntary choice states that you act freely if and only if you act voluntarily, without coercion or constraint. This allows determinism to coincide with voluntary choice; if the laws of nature fully determine every fact of the future, then the choices we make are choices we freely made. God knew that humans would be able to create evil because he gave us free will, but he can’t do anything about it because of determinism and the laws of nature, suggesting that humankind wouldn’t “exist” if evil didn’t exist,

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