Download or read book God and Inscrutable Evil written by David O'Connor and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 1998 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this important new book, David O'Connor discusses both logical and empirical forms of the problem of inscrutable evil, perennially the most difficult philosophical problem confronting theism. Arguing that both a version of theism ("friendly theism") and a version of atheism ("friendly atheism") are justified on the evidence in the debate over God and evil, O'Connor concludes that a warranted outcome is a philosophical detente between those two positions. On the way to that conclusion he develops two arguments from evil, a reformed version of the logical argument and an indirect version of the empirical argument, and deploys both against a central formulation of theism that he describes as orthodox theism. God and Inscrutable Evil makes a valuable contribution to contemporary debates in the philosophy of religion.
Download or read book The God Beyond Belief written by Nick Trakakis and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2006-11-03 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study of Professor William Rowe’s defense of atheism on the basis of evil assesses the literature that has developed in response to Rowe’s work, closely examining two strategies: mystery – the idea that God may have reasons beyond our comprehension for permitting evil; and theodicy - explanations as to why God allows evil to flourish. The book unearths difficulties in both, concluding that the God of theism must be "beyond belief."
Download or read book Inscrutable Evil and the Silence of God written by Daniel Howard-Snyder and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book God And Evil written by Michael L Peterson and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-02-12 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This concise, well-structured survey examines the problem of evil in the context of the philosophy of religion. The main problem of evil consists in reconciling belief in a just and loving God with the evil and suffering in the world. Michael Peterson frames this issue by working through questions such as the following: What is the relation of rational belief to religious faith? What different conceptual moves are possible on either side of the issue? What responses have important thinkers advanced and which seem most promising? Is it possible to maintain religious commitment in light of evil? The author relies on the helpful distinction between moral and natural evil to clarify our understanding of the different aspects of the problem as well as avenues for response. Thus, the reader of this book gains not only an intellectual grasp of the debate over God and evil in professional philosophy but also the personal benefit of thinking through one of the most important issues in human life. }This concise, well-structured survey examines the problem of evil in the context of the philosophy of religion. One of the core topics in that field, the problem of evil is an enduring challenge that Western philosophers have pondered for almost two thousand years. The main problem of evil consists in reconciling belief in a just and loving God with the evil and suffering in the world. Michael Peterson frames this issue by working through questions such as the following: What is the relation of rational belief to religious faith? What different conceptual moves are possible on either side of the issue? What responses have important thinkers advanced and which seem most promising? Is it possible to maintain religious commitment in light of evil? Peterson relies on the helpful distinction between moral and natural evil to clarify our understanding of the different aspects of the problem as well as avenues for response. The overall format of the text rests on classifying various types of argument from evil: the logical, the probabilistic, the evidential, and the existential arguments. Each type of argument has its own strategy which both theists and nontheists must recognize and develop. Giving both theistic and nontheistic perspectives fair representation, the text works through the issues of whether evil shows theistic belief to be inconsistent, improbable, discredited by the evidence, or threatened by personal crisis.Peterson explains how defensive strategies are particularly geared for responding to the logical and probabilistic arguments from evil while theodicy is an appropriate response to the evidential argument. Theodicy has traditionally been understood as the attempt to justify belief in a God who is all-powerful and all-good in light of evil. The text discusses the theodicies of Augustine, Leibniz, Hick, and Whitehead as enlightening examples of theodicy. This discussion allows Peterson to identify and evaluate a rather dominant theme in most theodicies: that evil can be justified by designating a greater good. In the end, Peterson even explores how certain types of theodicy, based on specifically Christian renditions of theism, might provide a basis for addressing the existential problem of evil. The reader of this book gains not only an intellectual grasp of the debate over God and evil in professional philosophy but also the personal benefit of thinking through one of the most important issues in human life. }
Download or read book The Evidential Argument from Evil written by William L. Rowe and published by Indiana University Press. This book was released on 2008-10-17 with total page 380 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Is evil evidence against the existence of God? A collection of essays by philosophers, theologians, and other scholars. Even if God and evil are compatible, it remains hotly contested whether evil renders belief in God unreasonable. The Evidential Argument from Evil presents five classic statements on this issue by eminent philosophers and theologians, and places them in dialogue with eleven original essays reflecting new thinking by these and other scholars. The volume focuses on two versions of the argument. The first affirms that there is no reason for God to permit either certain specific horrors or the variety and profusion of undeserved suffering. The second asserts that pleasure and pain, given their biological role, are better explained by hypotheses other than theism. Contributors include William P. Alston, Paul Draper, Richard M. Gale, Daniel Howard-Snyder, Alvin Plantinga, William L. Rowe, Bruce Russell, Eleonore Stump, Richard G. Swinburne, Peter van Inwagen, and Stephen John Wykstra.
Download or read book God Evil and Design written by David O'Connor and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2009-01-26 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although vast and complex, the universe is orderly in many ways,and conditions at its beginning were right for the eventualevolution of life on this planet. But with life there is death, andwith sentient life there is great pain and suffering, often with noapparent justification or purpose. Taking these things together, isit reasonable to conclude that the universe was brought about byGod? Moreover, does the magnitude of seemingly pointless sufferingsquare with the idea that God exists, or is it good reason to thinkthere is no God? These questions come up for many people, not justreligious believers, and are examined in this engaging andthought-provoking book. Starting out with no pre-disposition to theism, atheism, oragnosticism, God, Evil, and Design takes up these questions inorder to see where an impartial investigation leads. To achieveimpartiality, the reader is invited to simulate ignorance insofaras his or her own religious preference is concerned. With thisapproach, God, Evil, and Design provides both a fresh look atimportant and controversial issues in philosophy and an excellentintroduction to the contemporary debates surrounding them. Livelyand non-technical, this book will be accessible to anyone with aninterest in these topics.
Download or read book Nature Red in Tooth and Claw written by Michael Murray and published by Oxford University Press on Demand. This book was released on 2008-06-19 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Those who believe in God often puzzle over how God could permit evil and suffering in the world. Nature Red in Tooth and Claw focuses specifically on non-human animal suffering, and whether or not it raises problems for belief in the existence of a perfectly good creator.
Download or read book The Reality of God and the Problem of Evil written by Brian Davies and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2006-10-11 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An important new book on how we can still believe in a God of love and confront the problem of evil in the world. Probably the most important book on the subject since John Hick's book `Evil and the God of Love`. &; Evil is a strong word that people now employ fairly rarely. Many people believe these days that God is omnipotent,omniscient and good and that what we deem to be bad or evil in the world is no reason for abandoning belief in God. It is an intellectual or theoretical problem not one where the focus is on how one might bring about some desirable goal ( a practical matter). &; Professor Davies says we should tackle this problem by attending to the basics, by asking whether there is a God and then What is God? he starts by summarizing the arguments so far (from Seneca to the present day). He then moves to what he describes as the basics (see above) and demonstrates that much of what has been written about on the topic of evil is in fact irrelevant or just plain wrong. &; Finally, though many theologians argue that evil is a mystery, Davies argues that this too is wrong and a cop out. We should rather be concerned with the problem (or mystery) of good. The real issue is ` Why is there not more good than there is`. From the discussion Aquinas emerges as a hero (as filtered through analytical philosophy) but many moderns thinkers do not emerge so well. Davies effectively picks holes int e arguments of Peter Geach, Paul Helm, Richard Swinburne and even Mary Baker Eddy. &; This is a lively book on a tricky subject, written at all times with humour and much practical example.
Download or read book God and the Problem of Evil written by William L. Rowe and published by Wiley-Blackwell. This book was released on 2001-07-16 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: God and the Problem of Evil brings together influential essays on the question of whether the amount of seemingly pointless malice and suffering in our world counts against the rationality of belief in God, a being who is said to be all-powerful, all-knowing, and perfectly good.
Download or read book Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion written by David Hume and published by . This book was released on 1779 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion is a philosophical work written by the Scottish philosopher David Hume. Through dialogue, three fictional characters named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes debate the nature of God's existence. While all three agree that a god exists, they differ sharply in opinion on God's nature or attributes and how, or if, humankind can come to knowledge of a deity. In the Dialogues, Hume's characters debate a number of arguments for the existence of God, and arguments whose proponents believe through which we may come to know the nature of God. Such topics debated include the argument from design - for which Hume uses a house - and whether there is more suffering or good in the world (Argument from evil)
Download or read book Horrendous Evils and the Goodness of God written by Marilyn McCord Adams and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2000 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When confronted by horrendous evil, even the most pious believer may question not only life's worth but also God's power and goodness. A distinguished philosopher and a practicing minister, Marilyn McCord Adams has written a highly original work on a fundamental dilemma of Christian thought--how to reconcile faith in God with the evils that afflict human beings. Adams argues that much of the discussion in analytic philosophy of religion over the last forty years has offered too narrow an understanding of the problem. The ground rules accepted for the discussion have usually led philosophers to avert their gaze from the worst--horrendous--evils and their devastating impact on human lives. They have agreed to debate the issue on the basis of religion-neutral values, and have focused on morals, an approach that--Adams claims--is inadequate for formulating and solving the problem of horrendous evils. She emphasizes instead the fruitfulness of other evaluative categories such as purity and defilement, honor and shame, and aesthetics. If redirected, philosophical reflection on evil can, Adams's book demonstrates, provide a valuable approach not only to theories of God and evil but also to pastoral care.
Download or read book Explaining Evil written by W. Paul Franks and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2019-01-10 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Explaining Evil four prominent philosophers, two theists and two non-theists, present their arguments for why evil exists. Taking a "position and response" format, in which one philosopher offers an account of evil and three others respond, this book guides readers through the advantages and limitations of various philosophical positions on evil, making it ideal for classroom use as well as individual study. Divided into four chapters, Explaining Evil covers Theistic Libertarianism, Theistic Compatibilism, Atheistic Moral Realism and Atheistic Moral Non-realism. It features topics including free will, theism, atheism, goodness, Calvinism, evolutionary ethics, and pain, and demonstrates some of the dominant models of thinking within contemporary philosophy of religion and ethics. Written in accessible prose and with an approachable structure, this book provides a clear and useful overview of the central issues of the philosophy of evil.
Download or read book God and the Problem of Evil written by Chad Meister and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2017-05-16 with total page 183 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The problem of evil has produced many responses and elicited vigorous debate. In this multiview book, five philosophical theologians discuss and defend different solutions to this ancient problem: Phillip Cary on the classic view, William Lane Craig on Molinism, William Hasker on open theism, Thomas J. Oord on essential kenosis, and Stephen Wykstra on skeptical theism.
Download or read book Problems of Evil and the Power of God written by James A. Keller and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-04-15 with total page 186 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why do bad things happen, even to good people? If there is a God, why aren't God's existence and God's will for humans more apparent? And if God really does miracles for some people, why not for others? This book examines these three problems of evil - suffering, divine hiddenness, and unfairness if miracles happen as believers claim - to explore how different ideas of God's power relate to the problem of evil. Keller argues that as long as God is believed to be all-powerful, there are no adequate answers to these problems, nor is it enough for theists simply to claim that human ignorance makes these problems insoluble. Arguing that there are no good grounds for the belief that God is all-powerful, Keller instead defends the understanding of God and God's power found in process theism and shows how it makes possible an adequate solution to the problems of evil while providing a concept of God that is religiously adequate.
Download or read book Evil and the God of Love written by J. Hick and published by Springer. This book was released on 2010-04-09 with total page 405 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When first published, Evil and the God of Love instantly became recognized as a modern theological classic, widely viewed as the most important work on the problem of evil to appear in English for more than a generation. Including a foreword by Marilyn McCord Adams, this reissue also contains a new preface by the author.
Download or read book The Triumph of God Over Evil written by William Hasker and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2008-03-24 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Noted philosopher William Hasker explores a full range of questions concerning the problem of evil. Hasker forges constructive answers in some depth showing why the evil in the world does not provide evidence of a moral fault in God, the world's creator and governor.
Download or read book God Why This Evil written by Bruce A. Little and published by University Press of America. This book was released on 2012-07-10 with total page 161 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: God: Why This Evil? examines the more traditional Christian explanation for why God permits evil in this world and offers an alternative explanation. After reviewing several greater-good explanations, that is God allows evil in order to bring about some greater good, Professor Little concludes that such explanations are neither theologically necessary nor practically helpful. In response, theological and philosophical issues related to this great question are clarified, concluding with an alternative explanation for the existence of evil in this world. The major point being that some evil may very well be gratuitous (i.e., has a reason, but no purpose), but does not count against the moral perfections of God, limit His power, or restrict His sovereignty. In conclusion, key Bible passages are examined with an application of the alternative position to the great question of why God allows so much evil in this world.
