The Problem of Evil and a Plausible Defence
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20310437 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Frank J Murphy (East Carolina University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1995 |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 243-250 |
| Publication date | 1995-06-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religious Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0034-4125 • E-ISSN: 1469-901X |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0034412500023532 |
| OpenAlex | W2046082248 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 2 |
This paper argues that God may create and exist in any possible world, no matter how much suffering of any sort that world includes. It combines the traditional free will defence with the notion of an ‘occasion’ for good or evil action and limits God's responsibility to the creation of these occasions. Since no possible world contains occasions for more evil than good action, God is morally permitted to create any possible world. With regard to suffering that is not due to free will, namely the suffering of beings who are not moral agents, the paper questions the idea that the relief of such suffering is a moral perfection
Action (physics) · Environmental ethics · Epistemology · Free will · Good and evil · Moral evil · Moral responsibility · Perfection · Political ponerology · Problem of Evil · Philosophy · Philosophy, Ethics, and Existentialism · Political Theology and Sovereignty · Theology and Philosophy of Evil
| Citations per year | 0.12 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2009 - 2009 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |