The Study of Theodicy - Essay Example

Theodicy Theodicy is a branch of theology that justifies the goodness of God. It is a philosophical term that was defined and made popular by German philosopher Gottfried Leibniz. He theorized that evil exists in the world but there wasn’t any conflict or contradictions with the goodness of God. In his essay entitled “Essais de Théodicée sur la bonte de Dieu, la liberté de lhomme et lorigine du mal” (Theodicy Essay on the Goodness of God, the Freedom of Man and the Origin of Evil), he wrote that this is the best possible world although evil was a normal part of our existence. Leibniz essay was in response to an earlier publication of Pierre Bayle who argued that the presence of evil in the world proved that God was not all good. The study of Theodicy involves studying and understanding the concept that God allows humans to suffer even though He is good and omnipotent. This has baffled many philosophers for ages and many students of theology have given several explanations and understanding. The four main theodicy are enestological, protological, eschatological and Christological. Enestological theodicy focuses on the present time. It states that in spite of the existence of evil in the world God conquers evil with His goodness at all times. Eschatolological theodicy is the belief that suffering is temporary and God will bring an end to suffering sometime in the future. This reasoning predicts that good will be compensated ultimately. The righteous will be vindicated in the end. Protological theodicy looks at Gods plan for humanity. The Garden of Eden serves as an example of this type of theodicy. God had everything planned for humanity. Everything was provided including food and companionship but man had a choice other than what God’s plan for him. Christological theodicy concentrates on the goodness of God rather than on righteousness. It looks at God’s grace and how His love surrounds us. If one examines the life of Christ it is filled with images of His love and grace rather than of Him being judgmental. The prophets in the Old Testament share similar views about suffering. One common theme is that suffering comes from man’s disobedience to God’s will. Moses continually told the people about the consequences of obedience as well as disobedience. “If you continue to heed the voice of the Lord, your God and are careful to observe all His commands which I enjoin on you today, the Lord, your God will raise you high above all the nations of the earth” (Deuteronomy 28:1). On the other hand he also warned, “But if you do not hearken to the voice of the Lord, your God, and are careful to observe all His commandments which I enjoin on you today, all these curses shall come upon you and overwhelm you” (Deuteronomy 28:15). They also have the view that suffering is evil and originates from Satan. Rabbi Kushner authored the book, ‘When Bad Things Happen to Good People’ after suffering a personal tragedy. He theorized that God establishes the world but He remains powerless as to what happens to His creation. Kushner believes that He sympathizes with human but there is nothing that He can to do to assist them. He admits that there are no answer to some of the questions that man is constantly asking such as ‘Why would God allow suffering and evil in the world?’ He believes that good things happens to people all the time but according to his work Kushner finds it difficult to accept that God really has the power to control events and casualties. The most popular reason for suffering in the Christian world comes from studying the life of the main proponent of Christianity, Jesus Christ. He suffered died and was buried although he is the only person to be born without sin. His suffering, nevertheless, was transformed into glory and happiness at His resurrection. The Christian reason for suffering lies in the tenet that just like Christ’s suffering those who follow Him will traverse the same path as their Lord and Savior did. They believe that suffering leads the way to the cross and there will be vindication at the end. There is the view that suffering will only be in this life but there is a promise of life to come where there will be no more suffering and worry. The life of the Christian is parallel to the life of Christ. The resurrection will be the climax. As a result of these views many Christians and believers in the western world accept persecution and suffering as a symbol of righteous living. They feel that the way to goodness is not an easy road but one that is filled with temptation, unfortunate situations and injustice. They however, believe that perseverance will overcome all the ills. One way in which this argument fails is on the premise of Christ’s suffering. Some may ask why should the followers and believers suffer again if He gave his life for them. They shouldn’t have to undergo any significant suffering since He chose to save people from their sins. Another way in which the argument failed is the concept that life will be better in the end. This concept is based on biblical stories since there is no concrete evidence that those who are righteous will have a more comfortable destination than those who are not. Rational religion – The American Enlightenment Rational religion began to emerge during the period of the Italian Renaissance. Many philosophers started to view religion from a scientific as well as from a philosophical view point. Religious authority was rejected and this led in the proliferation of a number of denominations. Deism became the new belief for many persons. Scientists like Isaac Newton helped to popularize this theory and belief. As a scientist he believes that a balanced natural world would help to create stability in a social world. He believed that was the overall Creator but the physical aspects of the world was left solely in the hands of humans. German philosopher Immanuel Kant wrote about religion based on natural reason. He dismissed all the ceremonial rituals that accompanied religion, focusing instead on a community of persons based on moral beliefs rather than one based on theology. Unitarianism started in the aftermath of the Protestant reformation in the sixteenth century. In 1961 the Universalist Church of America and the American Unitarian Association came together to form the Unitarian Universalist Association. This movement embraces people of other faiths and religions. Their membership consists of Buddhists, Jews, Christians and other persons with liberal views. The doctrine is based on the ideas of William Ellery Channing, a famous Unitarian minister in the early nineteenth century. The movement also has contributions from the Transcendentalist doctrine. This doctrine holds that the source of knowledge is from intuition. They also believe in a form of pantheism where God is present in everyone and also in nature. The main tenets of the Unitarian Universalist Association are:- Rejection of original sin Rejection of the Trinity Understanding the Bible through reason The unity of God and His loving nature Discovering religious truths One doctrine that separates them from mainstream Christianity is their abandonment of the Trinity. Christianity generally has the belief that the Trinity consists of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They believe that the work together in unison and their names are invoked interchangeably according to the nature of worship. Another difference in idea is the view of the sinful nature of human. Christians believe that humanity is conceived in sin and all through life are reminded about their sinful nature. The view of the Unitarian is entrenched in the belief that humans are not descendants of sinfulness but are intrinsically good and there is hope in all of creation. While both main stream Christianity and the Unitarian Universalist Movement share the Bible as the common source of truth there is a difference as to how the different followers approach the book. The Unitarians’ belief lacks spirituality and guidance. Since they hold that the Bible should be understood through reason it does not attach that mystery and spiritual awakening that is found in Christianity. The belief in the Trinity endorses the Christian’s view of understanding the Bible through the assistance and intervention of the Holy Spirit. The views about the loving nature of God are shared by both groups but for Christianity there is another side to God. While God is the epitome of love He can get angry at times and deliver punishment to those who do not follow his laws. Unitarianism views negative consequences from a moral viewpoint. According to noted Unitarian member Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The intuition of the moral sentiment is an insight of the perfection of the laws of the soul. He who does a good deed is instantly ennobled. He who does a mean deed, is by the action itself contracted. He who puts off impurity, therefore puts on purity. If a man is at heart just, then so far is he God; the safety of God, the immortality of God, the majesty of God do enter into that man with justice.” The Universalists has a fundamental doctrine that a person can obtain salvation even if he has never heard the gospel and has never been introduced to Jesus Christ. Christians believe that salvation is obtained though the acceptance of the gospel. There is a direct path to salvation while for the Universalist salvation is open to everyone. Unitarianism n.d. British Broadcasting Corporation. Web. 7 December 2010 Theodicy n. d. Catholic Encyclopedia. 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