Why Would a Good God Allow Natural Evil?
As a police officer and homicide detective, I’ve seen my fair share
of injustice and hardship. Every time I’m asked to defend the existence
of God in light of the evil we observe in our world, I take a deep
breath and try to separate the emotional nature of this issue from the
rational explanations I might offer. I recognize the impotence of my
rational response when trying to address to the emotional pain people
experience when they suffer evil. At the same time, I think it’s
important for us explore reasonable explanations. Natural evil is
perhaps the most difficult category of evil we, as Christians, can
address. It’s one thing to explain the presence of moral evil in our
world (the evil actions of humans); it’s another to explain the
existence of natural evil (earthquakes, tsunamis and other natural
disasters). If an all-powerful and all-loving God exists, why does He
permit natural evil? If God exists, it is certainly within His power to
prevent such things. Why wouldn’t He?
The problem of natural evil
is irreconcilable unless there are necessary or good reasons for God to
permit such evil. If God exists, it is reasonable to believe that He would design a world in which free agency is possible
(this is a necessity for true love to be achievable). In order to
understand why God might allow natural evil, we have to do our best to
examine the nature of the world around us, the nature of humans and the desires of God:
Some “Natural Evil” May Be the Result of Necessity
God may tolerate some natural evil because it is the necessary
consequence of a free natural process that makes it possible for
freewill creatures to thrive. Scientist-theologian John Polkinghorne
suggests that God has created a universe with particular natural laws
that make life on earth possible so that humans with free will can exist
in the first place. As an example, the same weather systems that create
tornadoes that kill humans also create thunderstorms that provide our
environment with the water needed for human existence. The same plate
tectonics that kill humans (in earthquakes) are necessary for regulation
of soils and surface temperatures needed for human existence.
Some “Natural Evil” May Be the Result of the Nature of Free Agency
God may also tolerate some natural evil because it is the necessary
consequence of human free agency. Humans often rebuild along earthquake
fault lines and known hurricane pathways, and they frequently cut
corners on building guidelines in order to save money. Much of this
activity results in the catastrophic loss that we see in times of
‘natural’ disaster. There are times when ‘natural’ evil is either caused
or aggravated by free human choices.
Some “Natural Evil” May Be the Result of God’s Nudging
God may permit some natural evil because it challenges people to think
about God for the first time. For many people, the first prayers or
thoughts of God came as the result of some tragedy. When our present lives are in jeopardy or in question, we find ourselves thinking about the possibility of a future
life. If an eternal future life is a reality, God may use the temporary
suffering of this life to focus our thoughts and desires on eternity.
Some “Natural Evil” May Be the Result of God’s Nurturing
God may permit some natural evil because it provides humans with the
motivation and opportunity to develop Godly character. A world such as
this requires human beings to cooperate and peacefully co-exist in order
to successfully respond to its challenges. The best in humanity often
emerges as people respond in love and compassion to natural disaster.
It’s in the context of disaster that moral character has the opportunity
to form and develop. Good character (acts of love, compassion and
cooperation) must be freely chosen. God has provided us with a world
that provokes us to improve our situation, care for those who are in
need, and become better human beings in the process.
There are a
number of ‘necessary’ or ‘sufficient’ reasons why God might create a
world in which natural evil is occasionally permissible, particularly if
God chooses to provide, protect and preserve the freewill of His
children.
[By the way, J. Warner’s book is on sale for less than $4.00 (Kindle and eBook) for a very limited time.]
