The problem of evil
40 marks
OCR A-level religious studies
The problem of evil presents a huge challenge to the monotheistic belief in an all-powerful
and all-loving god. This problem is one of logic and of evidence; the existence of evil is
incompatible with the existence of a Judeo-Christian god, or a god worthy of worship.
The world is full of evil, evident through natural disasters and the suffering of innocent
people, however this is inconsistent with the belief in an omnibenevolent omniscient and
omnipotent God; this God would not want humans to suffer, would know of all the evil that
exists, and would be powerful enough to stop it. Atheists believe there is a fault in the logic
behind the belief in a Judeo-Christian God - this is called the logical problem of evil. The
40 marks
OCR A-level religious studies
The problem of evil presents a huge challenge to the monotheistic belief in an all-powerful
and all-loving god. This problem is one of logic and of evidence; the existence of evil is
incompatible with the existence of a Judeo-Christian god, or a god worthy of worship.
The world is full of evil, evident through natural disasters and the suffering of innocent
people, however this is inconsistent with the belief in an omnibenevolent omniscient and
omnipotent God; this God would not want humans to suffer, would know of all the evil that
exists, and would be powerful enough to stop it. Atheists believe there is a fault in the logic
behind the belief in a Judeo-Christian God - this is called the logical problem of evil. The
