This argument for the nonexistence of god is sometimes called the argument from evil evil being just another way of saying terrible things. We are familiar with the various versions of the theoretical problem. There exist instances of intense suffering which an omnipotent, omniscient being could. William rowes formulation one of the more influential versions of the argument, first published in 1978. Alston 1996 claims that it is now acknowledged on almost all sides that the logical argument is bankrupt, but the inductive argument is still very much. Evidential problem of evil, the internet encyclopedia of philosophy. The evidential version of the problem of evil also referred to as the probabilistic or inductive version, seeks to show that the existence of evil, although logically consistent with the existence of god, counts against or lowers the probability of the truth of theism. It defends an ontological formulation of the problem of evil that differs significantly from both the logical and the evidential formulations. This essay surveys and evaluates the two key formulations of the problem expressed as an argument. This alternative argument of yours is really saying that this particular evil is incompatible with the traditional god. In his 1996 paper, the evidential argument from evil. The problem of evil stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. The year 1996 was a watershed year in the study of the problem of evil with the publication of the evidential problem of evil. As an example, a critic of plantingas idea of a mighty nonhuman spirit causing natural evils may concede that the.
The theistic concept of god as supremely powerful, intelligent, and good makes the problem very difficult because such a being, it would seem, would make a. Two arguments for the nonexistence of god new york. Editor daniel howardsnyder wrote in the preface of this 1996 book, philosophical study of the problem of evil has shifted from issues having to do with the compatibility of theism and evil to what is often called the evidential problem of evil. Now the classic logical problem of evil on the other hand, has been considered more or less refuted by plantinga. Evidential argument from evil project gutenberg self. From what ive read, its often stated that the evidential problem of evil elucidated by william rowe and other newer formulations has remained strong enough despite theodicies. The theistic concept of god as supremely powerful, intelligent, and good makes the problem very difficult because such a being, it would seem, would make a much better world than this one. However, the contemporary problem of evil has been divided into two categories the logical and evidential problems. The logical problem of evil this is an argument which claims evil and god are logically impossible. Petersons expanded and updated second edition retains the key features of. For example, someone who raises the problem of evil may be referring to the religiousemotional problem of evil, the logical problem of evil, the evidential problem of evil, moral evil, or natural evil, just to name a few. The problem of evil is often formulated in two forms.
The logical hole here is the grounding of the concept of evil without god. The choice between incompatibility formulations and evidential formulations. Christian faith and the problem of evil, 2004 online. Chapter 2 is then concerned with the question of how an incompatibility argument. Rowe does a fine job of bringing together a variety of perspectives on the problem of evil. Evidential problem of evil, the internet encyclopedia of. The problem of evil the philosophical problem of evil is the challenge of reconciling belief in god with evil in the world. The experiential problem of evil and theodicy new apps. July 26, 1931 august 22, 2015 was a professor emeritus of philosophy at purdue university who specialized in the philosophy of religion. I have made some small changes to weisbergers formulation of the argument from evil. Jul 16, 2009 the logical and evidential problem of evil key terms defined. His work played a leading role in the remarkable revival of analytic philosophy of religion since the 1970s. The last five years has seen the publication of a number of very good books on the. Problem of evil responses introduction to philosophy.
Critics claim that the existence of evil is proof that the omnipotent, omnibenevolent god of the bible cannot exist. The evidential problem of evil is the problem of determining whether and, if so, to what. A video such as this should quickly present the simple logical problem, show why its inadequate and move to either more sophisticated logical arguments or evidential formulations and their respective responses. Evidential problem of evil this argument attempts to decrease the probability of the existence of the god of classical theism, unlike the logical problem of evil which attempts to refute it. Outline and explain the logical and evidential problems of. Probably the best collection of essays in english on the evidential argument from evil.
The logical and evidential problem of evil key terms defined. Most skeptics, therefore, have taken the reality of evil as evidence that gods. Gellman writes the problem of evil is first and foremost grounded on a type of experience that provides defeasible grounds for believing in the nonexistence of god. A second look, rowe set aside the problem of attempting to find a satisfactory account of the inductive step involved in direct, inductive formulations of the argument from evil in favor of a very different, bayesian formulation of the argument from evil. The logical form of the argument tries to show a logical impossibility in the coexistence of god and evil, 1 4 while the evidential form tries to show that given the evil in the world, it is improbable that there is an. The question of gratuitous evil and the evidential problem of. Problem of evil 2 natural evils, including earthquakes, tidal waves, and virulent diseases. We will call an evil a horror h if we cannot find such a justifying reason. Michael tooley chapter 1 addresses some preliminary issues that it is important to think about in formulating arguments from evil. Overall, the text provides a solid introduction to the problem of evil, its various formulations, key thinkers and major themes. The debate in the recent literature about the problem of evil has shifted from preoccupation with the logical argument to an increased focus on the evidential argument. However there is another argument against god on the basis of the existence of evil. Does the evidential problem of evil have the same effect as.
The logical formulation utilises the logic of defeat, specifically analysing how beliefs about the nature and existence of god can be made logically compatible with beliefs or facts about the existence and nature of evil. A third problem of evil makes several significant contributions to scholarship on the problem of evil. The inductive or evidential discussion of the problem by tooley is extensive. Section 1 offers a historical framework for the discussion. Broadly stated, the problem of evil is the seeming contradiction between an allpowerful, allloving god and the human experience of suffering and evil in the world. What did john stuart mill argue about the evidential problem. The problem of evil may be divided into theoretical and existential dimensions.
Some theodicies also address the evidential problem of evil by attempting to make the existence of an allknowing, allpowerful and allgood or omnibenevolent god consistent with the existence of evil or. The problem of evil is one of the most discussed topics in the philosophy of religion. Evans treats the history of the problem with fairness, looking at it through contemporary philosophical literature and offering responses to the most substantive arguments from evil. This is a list of ten of the worst books of this type books that have done more harm than good.
Jul 19, 2012 the evidential problem of evil points to the improbability that the amount of evil we see in the world particularly gratuitous evil would exist if an omnipotent, omnibenevolent god exists. That the extent of evil and suffering in the world doesnt suggest a good god, but instead suggests that if there is a creator behind the world it must be a malevolent creator. He was noted for his formulation of the evidential argument from evil. The evidential argument from evil presents five classic statements on this issue by eminent philosophers and theologians and places them in dialogue with eleven original essays reflecting new thinking by these and other scholars. William rowe on the evidential problem of evil see william rowe, the problem of evil and some varieties of atheism in m. The problem of evil elements in the philosophy of religion. Selected readings has been the most widely recognized and used anthology on the subject. The problem of evil popular writings reasonable faith. What is the biblical solution to the problem of evil. The evidential problem states that the scale of evil within the world culmulatively amounts to a very strong inductive argument against the existence of god. The evidential problem of evil simply states that evil exists and that evidence alone is incompatible with a perfect being god and thus negates the possibility of gods existence.
Many philosophers accept that plantinga successfully solves the logical problem of evil,11, as he appears to have shown that god and evil are logically compatible, though others demur12. Jan 11, 2016 evidential problem of evil the evidential version of the problem of evil seeks to show that the existence of evil, although logically consistent with the existence of god ie the existence of evil and god can be explained counts against or lowers the probability of the truth of theism. Chapter 10 christian theism and the evidential argument from evil. It can always be found in the work of 18th century scholar david hume and the 20th century scholar j.
Problem of evil project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. As with the logical problem, evidential formulations may be based on the sheer existence of evil, or certain. Even the book of proverbs, despite its occasional flashes of cynicism, essentially. Even so, there are various ways in which it seems unsatisfactory. The problem of evil offers a comprehensive examination of the problem of evil from both technical and ministerial perspectives. As an example, a critic of plantingas idea of a mighty nonhuman. St augustine of hippo 354430 ce in his augustinian theodicy, as presented in john hicks book evil and the god of love.
Finally discusses evidential arguments from evil, and four different kinds of. Its frustratingly bad because the problem of evil is interesting once we get beyond the simple logical formulation. Responses to the problem of evil have occasionally been classified as defences or. Browse the amazon editors picks for the best books of 2019, featuring our. Of all the issues in the philosophy of religion, the problem of reconciling belief in god with evil in the world arguably commands more attention than any other. The problem of evil oxford readings in philosophy 1st.
Previously, i examined the logical problem of evil and gods existence and showed that it doesnt undercut the existence of god. Problem of evil wikimili, the best wikipedia reader. The problem of evil is considered to be the most formidable objection to theism and a central element in the case for atheism. Sep 12, 2009 it seems like this sort of reasoning really reduces to evidential formulations of the problem of evil, which are still logical, but are so in usually a more inductive sense. The argument from evil or problem of evil is the argument that an allpowerful, allknowing, and perfectly good god would not allow anyor certain kinds ofevil or suffering to occur.
The earliest formulation of the logical problem of evil was put forward by the greek philosopher epicurus. The main conclusion reached by trakakis is that rowes evidential argument from evil, or a version thereof, succeeds in showing that the existence of certain kinds of evil provides strong evidence against the existence of god. It provides a detailed examination of the bestofallpossibleworlds hypothesis and. Features all original essays that explore the various forms of the problems of evil, offering theistic responses that attempt to explain evil as. A g evil is the kind of evil that would be incompatible with the existence of god, and the evidential argument for evil is essentially a move from h to g, and from g to the nonexistence of. The phrase problem of evil can be used to refer to a host of different dilemmas arising over the issue of god and evil. There remains, however, what we may call the evidential formas opposed to the logical formof the problem of evil. The theist must show the point of each instance of evil, including the fawns suffering and death. Rowe calls this the evidential argument from evil, because, rather than the mere presence of evil making it impossible that god exists i. The evidential problem of evil also referred to as the probabilistic or inductive version of the problem seeks to show that the existence of evil, although logically consistent with the existence of god, counts against or lowers the probability of the truth of theism. Evidential problem of evil the evidential version of the problem of evil seeks to show that the existence of evil, although logically consistent with the existence of god ie the existence of evil and god can be explained counts against or lowers the probability of the truth of theism. The traditional concept of god is of a being who is allpowerful and allgood. Author and acclaimed philosophy professor jeremy a.
The problem of evil is the question of how to reconcile the existence of evil and suffering with. Recent work on the problem of evil analysis oxford. This approach may strike a responsive chord with readers in a way that a purely philosophical discussion would not. The evidential problem of evil request pdf researchgate. In some cases this has lead to widescale death and destruction and evil governmental regimes. While the logical version seeks to show that gods existence is logically impossible given the existence of evil, the evidential. There is then a lengthy discussion of the differences between logical and evidential formulations of the problem of evil, and a briefer discussion of the issue of burden of proof.
These versions have included philosophical and theological formulations. The problem of evil has been said to be the only really good argument against the existence of god, as broadly construed by the major theistic religions. It is widely accepted that the problem of or argument from evil comes in two main flavors, labeled logical and evidential, with a logical argument from evil claiming that some fact about. Evidential arguments from evil attempt to show that, once we.
This volume fills that need, offering the most uptodate collection of recent scholarship on the problem of evil. A particular strength is the use of classic literary excerpts to introduce the problem of evil. Mar 01, 1996 an important edition of top notch articles about the evidential argument from evil written by leading philosophers of religion like plantinga, rowe, swinburne, van inwagen, and alston. Even if god and evil are compatible, it remains hotly contested whether evil renders belief in god unreasonable. Mar 12, 2011 books are one of our greatest resources, but many times in history books have been written which are misleading or untrue. In june and july of 1999, i directed a sixweek seminar devoted to the argument from evil. His work on the evidential problem of evil has been stimulating and fair. The existential problem of evil god and evil taylor. This other dimension of the problem of evil is more difficult to characterize. The blackwell companion to the problem of evil presents a collection of original essays providing both overview and insight, clarifying and evaluating the philosophical and theological problem of evil in its various contexts and manifestations. The problem of evil is certainly the greatest obstacle to belief in the existence of god. An important edition of top notch articles about the evidential argument from evil written by leading philosophers of religion like plantinga, rowe, swinburne, van inwagen, and alston. The evidential problem of evil is the problem of determining whether and, if so, to what extent the existence of evil or certain instances, kinds, quantities, or distributions of evil constitutes evidence against the existence of god, that is to say, a being perfect in power, knowledge and goodness.
Reprinted in the evidential argument from evil, ed. Rowes and drapers original formulations are there, with replies and counter replies. The problem of evil is one of the oldest arguments against the existence of the traditional concept of god. The problem of evil elements in the philosophy of religion michael tooley on. The evidential problem of evil has proven to be extremely knotty and difficult to resolve mainly because of the inability of many theodicies to explain or justify the existence of an all powerful, allknowing, and allloving god in the face of ubiquitous horrific moral evils. It is to answer the question of why a good god permits the manifestation of evil, thus resolving the issue of the problem of evil. Evil may not be logically incompatible with the existence of god, and it may be possible to make the qualities of the god of classical theism logically compatible with the existence of evil. The problem of evil a student revision booklet is available.
Rowes version of the problem of evil proceeds as follows. The evidential argument from evil by daniel howardsnyder. Moreover, there may be logical limits to what an omnipotent being can or cannot do. Recent work on the problem of evil analysis oxford academic.
When i ponder both the extent and depth of suffering in the world, whether due to mans inhumanity to man or to natural disasters, then i must confess that i find it hard to believe that god exists. As an example, a critic of plantingas idea of a mighty nonhuman spirit. Evidential formulation of the problem of evil considering the cases of senseless evil in the world, it is more likely the case that a god who is allpowerful, allgood, and allknowing does not exist. In this short paper, im going to be examining an exchange between philosophers, dr. This book is a nice general introduction to the problem of evil. It argues that gods qualities are inconsistent with the existence of evil in the world. For some time, however, there has been a need for a collection of readings that adequately represents recent and ongoing writing on the topic.
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