We know need to concentrate on the problem of pain and suffering in the world. The normal assumption is that God has supposedly created a perfect world and that if there is suffering in it which must mean that God is either a nasty or weak character or God does not exist. For Irenaeus this problem is overcome by the idea that the world is not finished, we are moving towards perfect but we are not there yet. God’s purpose was not to construct a paradise where the world was free of pain and suffering, but as a place where soul-development can take place, where mankind may become ‘children of God’.
St Augustine said it is logically impossible for God to have created evil. It is logical that there is evil in the world as it is created. God is not created, so is therefore perfect. He went onto say that everyone is seminally present in Adam. We are all descendants of Adam and Eve so we are all suffering because we are part of Adam. Suffering is a product of our actions, so God does no intervene, however God does have mercy. An example of God’s mercy would be Jesus. Augustine believed that evil comes from angels and humans who choose deliberately to turn away from God. The problem of evil in a created world is necessary. Only the uncreated God himself can be perfect; perfect things are susceptible to change. God cannot be blamed for created evil, since evil is not a substance but a deprivation, and it makes no sense to say that God created deprivation.
John Hick would be an example of a soft materialist. He said that the soul and body are one. If the body dies then the soul dies. He accepts that there is a possibility for a life after death to exist. He says that somehow after death there will be a physical representation that will make us, who we are. A materialist would say our sense of personality is nothing but chemical reactions in the brain. However John Hick says we are more than chemical. He does not believe in a separate soul. Have to have both the body and the personality to be me. He does suggest a way in which we can survive death The ‘Replica’ theory. When we die a replica body will be created and our personality would be transferred to that body. The replica would have memories of dying. The only difference would be that the replica would have new experiences of what will happen. We will have memory and psychological continuation, not physical continuation. For this to happen there must be a minimum of two worlds. The universal conscious God sees both. I only see one, the one I am in. There could be more than two worlds. John Hick also goes onto say that we are all recreated in heaven and hell. If we are good we will go to heaven and if we are bad then we will go to hell.
John Hick shares a similar view to the Christian View. Christians believe that there is a heaven and hell. When we die Christians believe that there will be a judgment. In this, everyone's life will be evaluated. We will either go to heaven or hell. Hell, in Christian beliefs is a place in which the soul suffers the consequences of sin. Hell is defined as the place or state of punishment. Christianity views hell as a place of eternal torment. Hell is for those who have been bad in this life. Heaven is the opposite of hell. It is the place where all to people who have not sinned and have been good in this life go to. They are rewarded and not punished.
Richard Dawkins had quite the opposite opinion to John Hick and Christianity. The question for Richard Dawkins is why you think any God, good or evil or indifferent, exists at all. He said there is no God and therefore no problem of evil to solve.
Life after death comes in many different ways. Reanimation is where at the end of time the dead will be resurrected from their graves by a special divine act. Otherworldly embodiment is when the soul leaves the body after death and goes onto a spiritual body in another world. Disembodied survival is where the soul survives death without the earthly body or a new body. These forms of life after death do solve the problem of evil because people will know that to move on to better things after this life they will have to be good in this life in order to receive the rewards of the after life. If they have been bad in this life they will not be rewarded as well as they can be.
Reincarnation is when the soul moves to another body after death. People who believe in reincarnation don’t fear death as they know they will move from body to body. The soul crosses over from one body to another body. The soul can never die. Death is not the end but a momentary separation. There is proof that there is reincarnation because people have past life experiences. Evidence that points towards past life experiences would be in child prodigies. This constitutes as evidence of reincarnation because the abilities that are learned in former lives. E.g. a salve boy has not been taught any geometry and knows the right answer, learned the truth in a previous life. Individuals also claim to remember their past lives. Such claims are divided into two categories; hypnotic regression and spontaneous recalls. However people can argue against past life experiences because the slave boy does not need to know the right answer. All that is required is that he had the intelligence and the ability to apply his intelligence. Some abilities many even be hereditary. Modern psychologists also do not believe that humans have innate abilities, but skills that have been learnt in this life.
A belief in the life after death can solve the problem of evil in some ways because people who believe in a life after death will know that they will have been good in this life in order to be rewarded in the next life. The better they are in this life the better the reward. This therefore means that the person will have to commit little evil in order to get the rewards. This will consequently mean that evil will be reduced. Reincarnation can solve the problem of evil because if people a means where by the problem of evil is solved. They know they have to be good in order to move to another good body. If they have been good in life they will move on to other better bodies and if they have been punished they will be reborn into evil. You will learn from you mistakes and will try achieving goodness in the next life. For Irenaeus, us, ourselves will eventual solve the problem of evil, therefore a life after death will not solve the problem of evil. We just live in an imperfect world that we will have to work towards making a perfect world. A belief in the life after death can solve the problem of evil in some ways because people who believe in a life after death will know that they will have been good in this life in order to be rewarded in the next life. The better they are in this life the better the reward. This therefore means that the person will have to commit little evil in order to get the rewards. This will consequently mean that evil will be reduced. Also Christianity will solve the problem of evil because Christians believe in heaven and hell. If you are good in this life you will have a good after life. If you are bad in this life you will be punished and sent to hell in the after life. The idea of heaven and hell also solves the problem of evil for John Hick as he also believes that you are recreated in heaven and hell. Richard Dawkins said that there is no God and therefore there is no problem. This is the world. We should help the world and create a stronger world.
References
Ann Jordan – Philosophy of Religion for A Level Page 154 -155