Religious Studies AS

- Philosophy of Religion

Aim and Objective

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• To reinforce your understanding of how Irenaeus responds to the problem of evil and suffering
• To understand how to answer an evaluation question on this subject by looking at some of the strengths and weaknesses

Response to the problem of Evil and Suffering

-Theodicy of Irenaeus

Irenaean Theodicy

God’s “Image” God’s “Likeness”

‘God said “Let us make man in my image and after in my likeness”’ Genesis 1:26

- “Valley of Soul Making”

- Epistemic Distance

- Eschatological justification (God will save every person from suffering (even after death))

What is the meaning of “Theodicy”? Theodicy is an argument that tries to defend God in the face of evil and suffering in the world

Theodicy of Irenaeus 130-202 AD (Archbishop of Lyon)

• Unlike Augustine, Irenaeus believed that evil exists intentionally in the world, the order of creation is because an all-loving God intentionally placed it there for a reason
• This reason is to develop qualities in human beings that would make us spiritually perfect.
• SO, God HAS created evil and suffering, and that is here for a reason
• God didn't create people to be perfect from the beginning, each person has a task to perfect themselves while they are on earth

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• Irenaeus' ideas are based on his interpretation of Genesis 1:26

‘God said “Let us make man in my image and after in my likeness”’ Genesis 1:26

‘God said “Let us make man in my image and after in my likeness”’ Genesis 1:26

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God’s “Image” God’s “Likeness”

‘God said “Let us make man in my image and after in my likeness”’ Genesis 1:26��

On image and likeness

Irenaeus saw this life as a place for human beings to develop their potential and to grow and develop from being in the "image" of God to be more like the perfection of God which is the "image" of God

Irenaeus sees a development in the words "image" and "image". People come into the world in the "image" of God and to use life as a way of improving and perfecting themselves to come in the "image" of God (i.e. to be closer to God and more like him!)

When people come into the world, they are far from God. They are meant to use life's experiences as a way of becoming more like God and to unite with him by the time they leave the world. We are to mature spiritually while we are here on earth. Just as a parent gives freedom to a child allowing them to suffer sometimes in order to teach and perfect them, God does the same with His children (people).

How?

They would do this when facing the various problems and the decisions they make when facing these challenges. For every moral decision that is faced where a good decision is made completely freely, then that individual develops spiritual maturity. Our decisions in life using free will to make good decisions develop and perfect our morality

Obviously, some people would not make good decisions, and so this is why there is moral evil in the world (as Adam and Eve experienced)

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The Development of Moral Evil�

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Evil is a necessary aspect in life which gives human beings the opportunity to develop and perfect (moving from the "image" to the “likeness" of God)

Without evil, there would be no value to the decisions that are made. For example, a person would not appreciate being healthy unless they have been ill. Qualities such as courage, patience and perseverance cannot be developed if there is no challenge in life in order to develop them. For Irenaeus the ability of human beings to choose completely freely to do good was key to fulfilling God's purpose for his creation. Irenaeus calls this secondary goodness, which is the moral goodness that comes from resisting and overcoming evil and perfecting ourselves by making good choices.

God cannot stop people from making bad decisions because we have free will - this is where moral evil comes from

Analogy

Irenaeus used the analogy of God as a sculptor working with human beings.

God should be left to shape us to be perfect by making right decisions during our lives

Hope

Irenaeus ends his theodicy on a hopeful note

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Because God is a just and all-loving god, he will show mercy to everyone.

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Those who lived well on earth (becoming in the "image" of God) will go to heaven.

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Those who made bad decisions will be punished in hell, but not eternally. They would be purified and eventually perfected to come in the "image" of God

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Eschatological Justification - ALL will eventually be saved by God on perfecting to be in the "image" of God, maybe not in this life, but in the next life.

• John Hick developed further on Irenaeus' theodicy in his book

“Evil and the God of Love” (1966).

• He described Irenaeus' theodicy as a theodicy which develops the soul.

The world is seen as a valley where the soul can be developed and perfected

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• Epistemic Distance – because of free will, there were some for God to keep a distance from humanity in order for them to make the right decisions. This gave human beings the freedom to respond to God in their own way. God cannot have created perfect spiritual human beings because goodness that is developed through free choice is much more valuable than goodness that has already been created. People must be given the opportunity to understand and know God and get close to him (become in the "image" of God)
• Hick agreed that God's mercy and love allows human beings to complete the process of developing spiritual perfection - if not in this life in the next.
• Eschatological Justification – Heaven is the goal for all.

God uses this life to mould people to be better people. Those who reject God will be punished after death. But God is willing to save people from suffering in the next life. These people can have the opportunity to be forgiven even after death. Some people don't get a chance to perfect the soul during their life on earth. Therefore, God is good and just by allowing them to be perfected in the next life.

• Natural evil - God could not have created a perfect world without natural evil - life would be too easy and people would not be able to have a chance to perfect the soul.

John Hick - Soul Making Valley

  Are Irenaean type theodicies credible in the 21st century.

Problem - Depends if you believe that Genesis 1:26 is history or not

  Are Irenaean type theodicies credible in the 21st century.

Problem - Depends if you believe that Genesis 1:26 is history or not

  Are Irenaean type theodicies credible in the 21st century.

Problem - Depends if you believe that Genesis 1:26 is history or not

What characteristics of a classical theistic god is Irenaeus trying to defend?

Almighty?

Omniscient?

Merciful?

All loving?

Creator?

Fair?

Righteous?

To what extent does Irenaeus' theodicy succeed in defending the God of Classical Theism.

Problem - Depends if you believe that Genesis 1:26 is history or not. His argument is based on this sentence. If it is not historically true, then it does not protect God

God of Classical Theism = Almighty, Omniscient, All-loving, Forgiving, Just, Creator, Merciful

(b) ‘Irenaean type theodicies are still credible in the 21st Century.’ [AO2 30] Evaluate this view. • -

• Credibility depends on tradition, factors, including who the theodicies may be credible for. If the answer is for religious believers from the Christian tradition, then the credibility is likely to be far higher than were it to be for anyone else outside of that tradition.
• The credibility of the verse in the Bible as a historical fact could also pose an issue regarding credibility. If it is accepted that human beings were indeed made ‘imago Dei’ then this progression from image to likeness would seem to promote credibility, as each religion teaches that human beings need to develop their spiritual maturity – often through personal trials and tribulations – particularly those of a moral kind.
• Linking this development to the biological principle of evolution – the idea that human beings need to ‘develop’ can also lend to support to the idea of credibility, as it links to the idea of natural selection where an individual becomes ‘stronger’ by surviving the challenges of the natural environment – this could be said to link as a response as to why human beings need to endure natural evil, for instance.
• The age of the theodicy may, for some, be a reason for it to be rejected. The idea may be considered to have been superseded – particularly in the sense that evil and suffering can be said to be little more than a device to improve the spiritual and moral dimensions of a human being. Such an idea may not only lack credibility it may be actively considered to be abhorrent to the 21st Century mind.
• Those who follow Liberation Theology may consider this theodicy to be both credible and relevant for their experiences in the 21st century. The idea that their present suffering will one day be rewarded by a unified existence with God for eternity may present a powerful hope for the future that allows them to survive the challenges of the present. It would also help them to make sense of the idea of God as a God of justice – because eventually their sufferings will have been for a purpose.
• However, the concept of universal salvation may be considered to be the least appealing feature of the theodicy for many and therefore be a significant factor in undermining its credibility. The belief that all will be united with God eventually, no matter what their deeds on earth had originally been may appear to be a powerful disincentive for positive moral and spiritual behaviours; as well as suggesting an apparently unjust system.

• 3. (a) Explain how Irenaean type theodicies provide a response to the problem of evil. [AO1 30]

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• Irenaean type theodicies are based on Genesis 1:26’ Let us make man in our image after our likeness.’ And focuses on the concept of moral and spiritual development of humans through free will moral choices as they move from being in God’s image (potential) to his likeness (fulfilment).
• Irenaeus believed that the presence of evil in creation was the deliberate action of an all-loving God, who wanted His creation to develop the qualities that would make them morally and spiritually perfect.
• According to Irenaeus, certain moral qualities naturally occurred within human beings but his theodicy shows how other moral qualities such as courage, forgiveness and compassion could only develop as a response to suffering – both the suffering of the individual and the suffering of those around them.
• Irenaeus believed that without the necessary presence of evil in the world, the decisions made by human beings, as free-will agents, would have no real value and therefore not be worth making, in terms of their moral and spiritual development. Thus, suffering not only enabled humans to become stronger it also allowed them to appreciate goodness more. This was how God achieved his purpose for his creation.
• Irenaeus uses an analogy of God as a craftsman working with human beings as his raw material and suggested that humans should allow God to mould them into perfection by acting in faith towards him and allowing the experiences of life, both positive and negative, to make us into perfectly crafted beings. • Irenaeus’s ideas were developed by John Hick in his 1966 work: Evil and the God of Love. In this work, Hick states that Irenaeus’ theodicy is a ‘soul making’ theodicy – in that it helps individuals' souls to develop into perfection through suffering.
• Hick also states that, in order for humans to truly have free will then they had be created at an epistemic distance from God – so that their knowledge of him was not obvious but could be discovered – thus allowing for truly free choices to be made.
• © WJEC CBAC Ltd. 5�

Do I understand?

Genesis 1:26

Strengths

Weaknesses

Soul Making Valley

John Hick

Evaluate

Irenaean Theodicy

Eschatological Justification

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