Some atheists say the God of the Bible is responsible for all the evil in the world and they quote Epicurus as proof of their claim.
Alvin Plantinga has a very good answer to those atheists and to Epicurus:
Sayeth Epicurus:
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?”__Epicurus
Now Alvin . .
As Plantinga summarized his defense:[14]
"A world containing creatures who are significantly free (and freely perform more good than evil actions) is more valuable, all else being equal, than a world containing no free creatures at all. Now God can create free creatures, but He can't cause or determine them to do only what is right. For if He does so, then they aren't significantly free after all; they do not do what is right freely. To create creatures capable of moral good, therefore, He must create creatures capable of moral evil; and He can't give these creatures the freedom to perform evil and at the same time prevent them from doing so. As it turned out, sadly enough, some of the free creatures God created went wrong in the exercise of their freedom; this is the source of moral evil. The fact that free creatures sometimes go wrong, however, counts neither against God's omnipotence nor against His goodness; for He could have forestalled the occurrence of moral evil only by removing the possibility of moral good."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Plantinga's_free-will_defense#Further_details
Epicurus did not correctly understand the Christian doctrine of God's Omnipotence. God's Omnipotence does not mean that He can do anything. God cannot create square circles. God cannot make 2 + 2 = 7. God cannot give humans the freedom to do evil and at the same time prevent humans from doing evil.
You have to "deep read" what Plantinga explained up there and spend some time thinking seriously about what he wrote. You have to be willing to read it charitably. I hope you are not already locked-down on atheism and have already decided to keep Epicurus as your friend. The fatal flaw in Epicurus is he misunderstood the Christian doctrine of the Omnipotence of the God of the Bible.
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Note to any Christians reading this thread: The article on Wikipedia titled "Alvin Plantinga's Free Will Defense" is packed with further detailed explanations and other helpful truths on this issue, here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Plantinga's_free-will_defense#Further_details
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Alvin Plantinga has a very good answer to those atheists and to Epicurus:
Sayeth Epicurus:
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?”__Epicurus
Now Alvin . .
As Plantinga summarized his defense:[14]
"A world containing creatures who are significantly free (and freely perform more good than evil actions) is more valuable, all else being equal, than a world containing no free creatures at all. Now God can create free creatures, but He can't cause or determine them to do only what is right. For if He does so, then they aren't significantly free after all; they do not do what is right freely. To create creatures capable of moral good, therefore, He must create creatures capable of moral evil; and He can't give these creatures the freedom to perform evil and at the same time prevent them from doing so. As it turned out, sadly enough, some of the free creatures God created went wrong in the exercise of their freedom; this is the source of moral evil. The fact that free creatures sometimes go wrong, however, counts neither against God's omnipotence nor against His goodness; for He could have forestalled the occurrence of moral evil only by removing the possibility of moral good."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Plantinga's_free-will_defense#Further_details
Epicurus did not correctly understand the Christian doctrine of God's Omnipotence. God's Omnipotence does not mean that He can do anything. God cannot create square circles. God cannot make 2 + 2 = 7. God cannot give humans the freedom to do evil and at the same time prevent humans from doing evil.
You have to "deep read" what Plantinga explained up there and spend some time thinking seriously about what he wrote. You have to be willing to read it charitably. I hope you are not already locked-down on atheism and have already decided to keep Epicurus as your friend. The fatal flaw in Epicurus is he misunderstood the Christian doctrine of the Omnipotence of the God of the Bible.
___________
Note to any Christians reading this thread: The article on Wikipedia titled "Alvin Plantinga's Free Will Defense" is packed with further detailed explanations and other helpful truths on this issue, here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Plantinga's_free-will_defense#Further_details
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