Theodicy

Theodicy
Author: Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
Publisher: DigiCat
Total Pages: 409
Release: 2022-11-13
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN:

"Theodicy" is a book of philosophy by the German polymath Gottfried Leibniz published in 1710, whose optimistic approach to the problem of evil is thought to have inspired Voltaire's "Candide". Much of the work consists of a response to the ideas of the French philosopher Pierre Bayle, with whom Leibniz carried on a debate for many years. The "Theodicy" tries to justify the apparent imperfections of the world by claiming that it is optimal among all possible worlds. It must be the best possible and most balanced world, because it was created by an all powerful and all knowing God, who would not choose to create an imperfect world if a better world could be known to him or possible to exist. In effect, apparent flaws that can be identified in this world must exist in every possible world, because otherwise God would have chosen to create the world that excluded those flaws. Leibniz distinguishes three forms of evil: moral, physical, and metaphysical. Moral evil is sin, physical evil is pain, and metaphysical evil is limitation. God permits moral and physical evil for the sake of greater goods, and metaphysical evil is unavoidable since any created universe must necessarily fall short of God's absolute perfection.

Pathways in Theodicy

Pathways in Theodicy
Author: Mark S. M. Scott
Publisher: Fortress Press
Total Pages: 248
Release: 2015-05-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1451469802

Why does God permit evil and suffering? This question, known as the problem of evil in theological and philosophical circles, has perennially vexed Christian theology. Academic studies on the problem of evil, however, have failed to move the conversation forward in recent years. In this volume, designed for students and scholars alike, Mark S. M. Scott traces the major models and motifs in Christian explanations for evil (called theodicies) and argues for a thorough rethinking of the problem of evil and theodicy based on distinctly Christian theological criteria and resources.

Early Modern Women and the Problem of Evil

Early Modern Women and the Problem of Evil
Author: Jill Graper Hernandez
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 158
Release: 2016-05-05
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 131730733X

Early Modern Women and the Problem of Evil examines the concept of theodicy—the attempt to reconcile divine perfection with the existence of evil—through the lens of early modern female scholars. This timely volume knits together the perennial problem of defining evil with current scholarly interest in women’s roles in the evolution of religious philosophy. Accessible for those without a background in philosophy or theology, Jill Graper Hernandez’s text will be of interest to upper-level undergraduates as well as graduate students and researchers.

The Book of Theodicy

The Book of Theodicy
Author: Ben Joseph Al-Fayyumi Saadiah
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 518
Release: 1988-01-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780300037432

Born in Egypt in 882, Saadiah Gaon was the first systematic philosopher of Judaism, the father of both scientific biblical exegesis and Jewish philosophic philosophy. In this book, L.E. Goodman presents the first English translation of Saadiah's important Book of Theodicy, a commentary on the Book of Job. Goodman's translation preserves Saadiah's penetrating naturalism, tenacity of theme and argument, and sensitivity to the nuances of poetic language.

Satan and the Problem of Evil

Satan and the Problem of Evil
Author: Gregory A. Boyd
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Total Pages: 460
Release: 2001-10-08
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780830815500

Gregory Boyd seeks to defend his scripturally grounded trinitarian warfare theod-icy with rigorous philosophical reflection and insights from human experience and scientific discovery.

Theological Theodicy

Theological Theodicy
Author: Daniel Castelo
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Total Pages: 77
Release: 2012-06-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1621893138

The question of God's relationship to evil is a long-running one in the history of Christianity, and the term often deployed for this task has been theodicy. The way theodicy has historically been pursued, however, has been problematic on a number of counts. Most significantly, these efforts have generally been insufficiently theological. This work hopes to subvert and reconfigure the theodical task in a way that can be accessible to nonspecialists. Overall, the book hopes to cast the "god" of theodicy as the triune God of Christian confession, a move that shapes and alters distinctly all that follows in what has traditionally been considered a philosophical matter.

Theodicy in the World of the Bible

Theodicy in the World of the Bible
Author: Antii Laato
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 884
Release: 2021-11-08
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9047402626

Is it justice when deities allow righteous human beings to suffer? This question has occupied the minds of theologians and philosophers for many centuries and is still hotly disputed. All kinds of argument have been developed to exonerate the 'good God' of any guilt in this respect. Since Leibniz it has become customary to describe such attempts as 'theodicy', the justification of God. In modern philosophical debate this use of 'theodicy' has been questioned. However, this volume shows that it is still a workable term for a concept that originated much earlier than is commonly realised. Experts from many disciplines follow the emergence of the theodicy problem from ancient Near Eastern texts of the second millennium BCE through biblical literature, from both Old and New Testament, intertestamental writings including Qumran, Philo Judaeus and rabbinic Judaism.

Learning Theodicy

Learning Theodicy
Author: Paul Vermeer
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 216
Release: 1999
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9789004116504

This publication contains a practical-theological study on the problem of theodicy as a subject-matter for religious education. It offers new insights on how the problem of evil may be dealt with in the classroom.

Theodicy and Eschatology

Theodicy and Eschatology
Author: Bruce Barber
Publisher: ATF Press
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2005
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9781920691226

This collection of essays examine two pressing issues in theology - . One is theodicy, that is a blief that in a just God in the face of evil and suffering in our world. The other is the issue of Eschatology, a belief in the fulfilment of Jesus'; saving mission, experienced as God's healing of humanity afflicted by suffering and evil.