The Logical Problem of Evil

[1] Epicurus (341–270 BC) posed the classic formulation:

• If God wants to prevent evil but can’t, He’s not all-powerful.
• If He can prevent it but doesn’t want to, He’s not good.
• If He is both able and willing, why does evil exist?
• If He is neither able nor willing, why call Him God?

[2] David Hume (1711–1776) echoed the same problem:

• If God wants to eliminate evil but cannot, He is weak.
• If God can but will not, He is malevolent.
• If God is both willing and able, why is there evil?

The Evidential Problem of Evil

• Even if we admit God might exist, the amount and intensity of suffering in the world seems to argue against it.
• Why do so many innocent people suffer so terribly if God is good and in control?
• Atheists say: If God is real and good, He would stop suffering. But since suffering exists, God must not exist.

The Existential (Emotional) Problem of Evil

• This is not just an intellectual question — it's a deeply personal and painful one. When someone experiences tragedy, they don’t just ask “Why evil?” they ask:

Why me?

Why now?

Why does God allow the wicked to succeed?

Can I trust God in the dark?

Will this pain have any purpose?

Why does God bless others and not me?

Will I be alone forever?

Does God still love me?

• These are heart cries, not just philosophical puzzles. Every soul in suffering asks them in some form.

[3] Does God Create Evil?

• Short answer: No.
• Augustine defined evil as the absence of good, like darkness is the absence of light or cold is the absence of heat.
• Evil cannot exist on its own. It is a corruption of something good.
• God created all things good. But by giving us freedom, He made it possible for evil to exist. Man made it real.
• When we say something is “evil”, we are saying it should be different; it violates what is good or right.

God allows evil, but:

• He does not delight in it.
• He uses it to bring about greater good.
• He judges evil and will one day eliminate it entirely.
• God cannot do what is contrary to His nature, like lie, sin, or create a “square circle.”

Summary and Christian Response

• Everyone asks: Why do bad things happen to good people?
• Some question: Why is there so much evil at all?
• Some sceptics argue that the distribution of suffering disproves God.
• The world is filled with pain, disease, disaster and injustice, and people wonder where God is in the midst of it.
• But Christianity does not avoid this question. It faces it head-on:
• Evil is real. Suffering is real. And God stepped into it through Jesus Christ.
• The Christian message is not that God explains all suffering now, but that:

He entered into suffering.

He redeems our pain.

He will end evil forever.

And He is with us in the fire, even when we do not understand.

[1] https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/8199-is-god-willing-to-prevent-evil-but-not-able-then

[2] https://iep.utm.edu/hume/

[3] Why Does God Allow Evil?" by Clay Jones