|
Many people, including myself, just cannot understand why there is so much evil in this world. I mean, if everything is controlled by God, which I believe is true; and if God is such a great and powerful force, which I believe is also true, why would He allow all of these terrible, evil things to happen in our world? ... Why is there so much evil in our world and what should we do if we ever have to face it?
First of all, what is evil? According to a book, The Many Faces of Evil: Reflections of the Sinful, the Tragic, the Demonic and the Ambiguous, by a Christian pastor and professor named Kenneth Cauthen, evil is the disruption or destruction of a potential for enjoyment in sentient beings, especially humans and animals. So in other words, anything that takes away one’s happiness is evil. Furthermore, it states, that given the nature of finitude and the complexity of organization that enjoyment in organisms requires, evil can and will most probably occur. ... Cauthen, and I agree, evil must occur because we are all beings that are vulnerable to destruction because of internal failure and external conflict. We are all good people, and although most of us are strong, internally or externally, we all have this soft spot; this weak part of ourselves that cannot help but to allow evil into our lives.
Still, what specifically constitutes evil? According to this book, there are four faces of evil. ... The second face of evil is tragic. ... The third face would be the demonic or destructive power of the past embodied presently in personality formation and social structures. ... Finally, the last face of evil is the ambiguous. This indicates the mixture of good and evil in all events and choices. ... This way, we try to stay away from bad consequences or the evil. ... Theodicy deals with the problem of evil. Usually, it is the attempt to show that it is possible to affirm the love and the power of God, and the reality of evil without contradiction.
Approximate Word count = 1655
Approximate Pages = 6.6
(250 words per page double spaced)
|
|
