Christian Solutions to the Problem of Evil

Problem: How can God be all-loving and all-powerful and there still be
evil the world?
What might Christians believe about evil and suffering?
Solution 1: The Devil

Some Christians believe the Devil is the source of all evil. They believe he
is the enemy of God and tries to make people disobey God.
They think the snake in the story of Adam and Eve was the Devil.
According to early Christian teaching the Devil was an angel who got
thrown out of heaven for rebelling against God.
Some Christians believe the Holy Spirit helps people fight against the Devil
and at the end of time Jesus will defeat Him.
Some Christians dont believe in the Devil. They think he is a symbol for
the sinfulness of human beings.
Solution 2: God is moulding us

We are created in the image of God, but we need to grow into the
likeness of God.
God uses suffering to help shape us. We must be like the clay and allow
ourselves to be shaped.
Evil has to exist, because to grow and be good we need to be able to make
genuine choices between good and evil.
This was the theory of an early Christian thinker called Irenaeus.
Solution 3: Vale of Soul-Making

John Hick agreed with Irenaeus that God left us incomplete and put evil in
the world to help us grow.
The point of this world is to help our souls develop and learn, that is why
there is suffering.

Solution 4: The Fall

Augustine argued that evil came into the world as the result of sin.
Sin is disobeying God. Adam and Eve disobeyed God when they ate the fruit
and thats why there is evil in the world.
God didnt create evil. Evil is the absence of good, it doesnt exist like the
rest of creation.
It is like a hole. If there is a hole in a bucket, the hole itself doesnt actually
exist as a substance, it is just an absence of wood.
Solution 5: Its a test
In the Bible the Book of Job tells of a faithful man who God makes suffer.
At the beginning of the book, Satan says to God that the only reason Job
worships him is because he has had a happy life.
Gradually God takes away everything from Job.
Job remains faithful to God and in the end all of his fortunes are restored.

What might Christians do in response to suffering?

Christians might say special

prayers for those suffering.
These are called prayers of
intercession.

Christians might support a

charity or campaign that is
fighting to get rid of the cause of
suffering OR giving aid to those
that are suffering.

Christians might volunteer their

time to help those who are
suffering e.g. working in a kitchen
that feeds the homeless.