Is free will the source of evil?

Is free will the source of evil?

God, being wholly good, has created humans with free will and we are responsible for evil by the exercise of our free will. If God were to stop us doing evil we would not be free, and therefore would be unable to do good. It is better that God allows us to be free, even though our freedom has resulted in evil.

What is the free will defense of evil?

The free will defense solves the problem of evil by claiming that creatures have power to exert freely some control over their circumstances. Creatures can use freedom for good or evil; evil results from improper creaturely use of freedom.

Why does the free will defense not work?

L. Mackie has presented the objection that God, being omnipotent and omnibenevolent, would easily be able to create the best of all possible worlds. He reasons that such a world would be one in which all humans use their free will only for good – something they do not do. Hence, the free-will defense fails.

Does Kierkegaard believe in freedom?

The concept of freedom is very important in Kierkegaard philosophy, and it is the light of his existentialist orientation. According to Kierkegaard, freedom is an expression for self activation and self activation is an essential feature of the self, it is a potential for self-disclosing.

What does Augustine say about the concept of free will?

Augustine says,” . . . we assert both that God knows all things before they come to pass, and that we do by our free will whatsoever we know and feel to be done by us only because we will it.” (in Solomon and Martin, 165 ).

How does free will solve the problem of evil?

One argument, known as the free will defense, claims that evil is caused not by God but by human beings, who must be allowed to choose evil if they are to have free will. Natural evils, in other words, can help cultivate virtues such as courage and generosity by forcing humans to confront danger, hardship, and need.

Who created the free will theodicy?

Character Formation Free Will Theodicies for Theological Determinists. Of the three authors considered in this paper, the one whose commitment to a libertarian conception of free action is least obvious is John Hick.

Who created evil in Bible?

God planted the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and EVIL in the midst of the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:9). Here’s the Biblical Hebrew for evil.

What is the libertarian argument for free will?

Libertarians believe that free will is incompatible with causal determinism, and agents have free will. They therefore deny that causal determinism is true.

Who did Soren Kierkegaard influence?

Kierkegaard has also had a considerable influence on 20th-century literature. Figures deeply influenced by his work include Walker Percy, W. H. Auden, Franz Kafka, David Lodge, and John Updike.

Does the free will defense solve the logical problem of evil?

It is widely recognized by professional philosophers that the Free Will Defense has “solved” the logical problem. To read more about this fascinating discussion check out God, Freedom, and Evil by Alvin Plantinga. If you found this post helpful, then you would enjoy this short video I shot discussing the problem of evil.

Is there such a thing as a possible reason for evil?

Merely a possible one. In response to the logical problem of evil, notable philosopher Alvin Plantinga describes such a possible reason in his famous Free Will Defense:

Does God know about all the evil and suffering in our world?

The existence of evil and suffering in our world seems to pose a serious challenge to belief in the existence of a perfect God. If God were all-knowing, it seems that God would know about all of the horrible things that happen in our world. If God were all-powerful, God would be able to do something about all of the evil and suffering.

Is the problem of Evil a logical one?

The challenged posed by this apparent conflict has come to be known as the problem of evil. This article addresses one form of that problem that is prominent in recent philosophical discussions–that the conflict that exists between the claims of orthodox theism and the facts about evil and suffering in our world is a logical one.