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Position:Home>Philosophy> The Riddle of Epicurus?Question: The Riddle of Epicurus!? 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 whence cometh evil!? Is he neither able nor willing!? Then why call him God!?Www@QuestionHome@Com Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: The hole in the reasoning is in the second step!. The cost of preventing ALL evil is plainly the complete absence of freedom!. One might observe that, if no natural evils occurred (which means a perfectly equable climate, geological stability, and consistently ample food supplies) it's quite likely that humanity would never have evolved!. But would predation count as "evil" even if no creatures capable of individual awareness had appeared!? If so, then human predation on animals (and maybe even on plants) constitutes "evil" anyway, and a God who prevented ALL evil would have to (a) prevent our existence in the first place, or (b) design us to obtain our nutrition by direct photosynthesis!. I suggest that the definition of "evil" is far too mushy to play this game effectively!.Www@QuestionHome@Com I happen to be an atheist, but there are proposed solutions ot the problem of evil!. One is that there is only as much evil as is necessary to acheive a greater good!. One such greater good is supposed to be the existence of free will, which is said to be worth the evil things that people are free to do!. This solution attacks the second premise by providing a way in which God could be unwilling to prevent evil without being malevolent, because the alternative would be worse!.Www@QuestionHome@Com I wish to address two things!. 1!. There is nothing like bad!. Just think, something which is considered good in one society may be completely sin in another!. As long as you dont harm the environment and people (as total system get distrubed) everything is good!. 2!. The creator may not have work of looking into our everyday problems!. As we say creator made all of us, expecting the creator to protect us may not be the choice given to us!. But for sure, the creator have made us embedding little bit of himself!. So we could do things on our own!.Www@QuestionHome@Com I recommend that you read "When Bad Things Happen to Good People" by Harold Kushner!. He had a son with that premature aging disease!. He answered your question!.Www@QuestionHome@Com The good and bad are only the degrees of distance we make from Him!.He neither supports Good nor evil!.The choice is oursWww@QuestionHome@Com I agree with the riddle!.!.!.!.!.there is no god else this world would be a much better place for all creatures of the earth!.Www@QuestionHome@Com |