The Open Theist Response to The Problem of Evil

The Problem of Evil is this: How could God exist if evil exists? This objection assumes God would know how to stop evil since God is all-knowing—but what if God were all-knowing and still couldn’t know how to stop evil? Does such a possibility even make sense? Open Theism proposes just such a solution.

NOTES

Logical Problem of Evil

1. If God exists, God could prevent evil

S1: omniscient & omnipotent

2. If God exists, God would prevent evil

S1: omnibenevolent

3. So, if God exists, evil doesn’t exist

4. Evil exists

5. So, God doesn’t exist

Supporting Argument for (1)

assume: 6. God exists

7. God is all-knowing

8. Evil is something to know how to prevent

∴9. God knows how to prevent evil

10. God is all-powerful

11. Evil is something to have the power to prevent

∴12. God has the power to prevent evil

13. An agent can prevent something if she knows how to do so and has the power to do so

∴14. If God exists, God could prevent evil

The Main Ideas

i. Future free will decisions do not currently exist and are not determined right now

ii. So, God does not know what will happen in those cases

ii. This doesn’t count against omniscience because these are not things that exist, so they are not things to know

iv. Since God doesn’t know what we are going to do, He can’t know the evils we will bring about

v. So, even though God is omniscient, He doesn’t know how to stop evil

So, (8) is false

Major Assumptions of Open Theism

(OT1) God’s knowledge works like ours, only on a much bigger scale

(OT2) The future does not exist

(OT3) Libertarian free will is possible

(OT4) Libertarian free will is necessary for culpability

(OT5) Divine foreknowledge prevents libertarian free will