The Problem of Evil

We see evil around us all the time. Today, it’s terrorism. Before that, some called it communism (Reagan even called the Soviet Union the “Evil Empire”). The holocaust, imperialism, the Inquisitions, slavery…the list of what we call evil seems endless as we go back in time.

Religions don’t pretend evil doesn’t exist. And they inevitably face the question: Why does evil exist if God is good and all-powerful? Their usual response is that good shall be rewarded and evil punished…eventually. In ways that can be described but never proved.

But for many, “just believing” is not enough. I found this solution by a philosopher named Spinoza very interesting. He felt that what we humans call good and evil is just based on our criteria, preferences and ends. In other words, the descriptions are neither absolute nor accurate. And that is why we run into the "problem of evil". In his words:

“…we have but a partial knowledge of things, and are in the main ignorant of the order and coherence of nature as a whole, and because we want everything to be arranged according to the dictates of our own reason; although in fact, what our reason pronounces bad is not bad as regards the order and laws of universal nature, but only as regards the laws of our own nature taken separately.”


Is Spinoza right? Is evil only our interpretation of words, actions and events? Of course, given that all religions claim to have been told the will of God, I can see why religions would not agree with Spinoza’s explanation.

At times, when we feel frustrated, angry and cynical about the evil that exists, I guess we’d more inclined to agree with Nicolas Cage’s character in the movie, Lord of War, who said:
“They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."”

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