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Introduction
Christians face a major challenge: if God is perfectly loving and powerful, why does he allow innocent people to suffer? This is known as the problem of evil. Philosopher John Hick describes evil as “physical pain, mental suffering and moral wickedness.”
Philosophers divide evil into two types:
Moral evil – suffering caused by human actions (e.g., the Holocaust).
Natural evil – suffering caused by natural events (e.g., earthquakes, tsunamis).
Agree: evil and suffering suggest God does not exist
A. J.L. Mackie’s inconsistent triad
Mackie argued that the following three statements cannot all be true:
God is loving
God is omnipotent
Evil and suffering exist
If God is loving, he would want to stop suffering; if he is all-powerful, he would be able to stop it. Since evil exists, Mackie concludes that the Christian God cannot exist as both loving and omnipotent.
B. William Rowe’s evidence-based argument
Rowe pointed to cases of apparently pointless suffering, such as a fawn dying painfully in a forest fire with no benefit to anyone. A loving, powerful God would prevent this. Therefore, Rowe argues, it is reasonable to doubt God’s existence.
C. Gregory Paul’s argument from child suffering
Paul focused on the huge amount of child suffering throughout history. Children are innocent, so their suffering cannot be explained as punishment. Because this suffering is vast and seemingly unjustifiable, Paul argues it is difficult to believe in the Christian God.
Disagree: evil and suffering do not prove God does not exist
Theories defending God in the face of evil are called theodicies. Two major Christian theodicies come from St Augustine and St Irenaeus.
A. St Augustine’s theodicy
Augustine argued that evil is the result of human misuse of free will, not God’s design. God made a perfect world, but humans—starting with Adam and Eve—chose to disobey him (the Fall). We inherit original sin, and because we continue to sin, suffering is a just consequence. God could stop moral evil only by removing free will.
B. St Irenaeus’ theodicy
Irenaeus taught that God allows evil and suffering so humans can grow morally and spiritually. Without suffering, there would be no opportunities to show love, compassion, or charity. This world is a place for “soul-making.”
C. The Book of Job
The story of Job shows that suffering can occur for reasons humans cannot understand. Job endures severe suffering but stays faithful. When he questions God, God reminds him that humans cannot grasp his full plan. In the end, Job’s fortunes are restored. The message: suffering does not mean God is absent—it may have a purpose beyond human understanding.
Introduction
One challenge for Christians is the question of why God, who is perfectly loving, would allow innocent people to suffer. This is called the problem of evil, as we often identify suffering with evil, as this quotation from philosopher John Hick suggests:
Evil is “physical pain, mental suffering and moral wickedness”.
Philosophers categorise evil as:
Moral evil - suffering that is caused by the choices and actions of humans. E.g., the Holocaust.
Natural evil - suffering that is caused by natural events (other than humans). E.g., a tsunami or earthquake.
Agree: the existence of evil and suffering is evidence that God does not exist
A. J.L. Mackie’s inconsistent triad
Australian philosopher J.L. Mackie argued that the following three statements cannot all be true. This is called the inconsistent triad:
God is loving
God omnipotent
Evil and suffering exist
He argued that if God is loving, then he would not want his people to suffer, and if he was omnipotent he would be able to prevent suffering. Therefore the existence of evil and suffering proves that God is not both loving and omnipotent.
Mackie’s conclusion is that since we cannot deny the existence of evil and suffering, the Christian God cannot exist.
B. William Rowe’s evidence-based argument
William Rowe argued that there are examples of suffering that a loving God would want to prevent, and is able to prevent, therefore there is good reason not to believe in God. His example was of a fan dying in a forest fire with no-one around to save it. Rowe believed that there is no good reason for why God would not prevent this, in which case it makes belief in God more difficult to accept.
C. Gregory Paul’s example of the suffering of children
Gregory Paul argued that it is possible to believe that God would allow adults who sin to suffer as a punishment - but there is no justification for the suffering of children, who are innocent. He pointed out that over the history of humanity, the total number of suffering children is so large that it becomes difficult to believe in the Christian God.
Disagree: the existence of evil and suffering is not evidence that God does not exist
Theories that attempt to justify God’s existence in the face of evil are called theodicies. Two major Christian theodicies come from St Augustine and St Irenaeus.
A. St Augustine’s theodicy
St Augustine argued that evil is not God’s fault, and is instead the result of humans misusing their free will. God doesn’t want us to cause suffering, but he could only prevent it if he interfered with our free will, which he cannot do without removing a core aspect of what it is to be human. He argued that God made a perfect world (as described in Genesis 1), but that humans - specifically Adam and Eve - spoiled it by choosing to go against his wishes (the Fall).
St Augustine believed that humans inherit original sin from Adam and Eve, and this is why we use continue to use our free will to sin, and since we sin, it is just/fair that we suffer as a result of that sin.
B. St Irenaeus’ theodicy.
St Irenaeus argued that God created a world with evil and suffering because it is only through the experience of suffering that we can grow and develop morally and spiritually - become better people. If there was no suffering in the world, then there would be no opportunities for us to develop our love towards others (which is commanded by Jesus) - if there was no suffering, then there would be no opportunities for being caring or charitable.
C. The Book of Job
The story of Job (Old Testament) can also be understood as a response to the problem of evil. Job, who is a faithful follower of God endures immense suffering, which is inflicted upon him when God agrees with Satan to investigate whether or not Job would stay faithful even after his world crumbles around him (his farm is destroyed, his children die, he suffers a horrible disease). But Job never loses faith. At the end of the ordeal, Job asks God what the suffering was for. God replies that Job (and humans) will never understand his plan given that he is so much more than us. The story ends with God restoring Job’s possessions.
Christians understand this to show that God's reason for allowing evil and suffering may not be known to us.