Someone recently wrote to me asking the question, “If we believe God created everything, does this mean that God created evil? If He did create evil then it seems that God is not all good. If He did not create evil then it seems that our original belief (God created everything) is wrong. And if He did not create everything then don’t we have two Creators?â€
The simple Christian answer to the question is . . . that God did not create evil. The reason we say this is because of the definition of evil. While evil is very real, it is not a “thing†which can be “created.â€Â We might say it like this: one cannot construct a deconstruction. The historical Christian definition of evil is a lack or twisting of a good thing. Let me give you a non-moral illustration. Have you ever seen rot? Where did you see it? Maybe on an apple? But have you ever seen just rot without it being on something? No! Or think of a hole. You can’t see just a hole. Instead, you see a hole in something like a piece of wood. We could go on and on giving these sorts of examples (e.g., rust on metal). The point is this. The only way to have rot, or rust, or a hole is to first have something which has a good nature to it (an apple, metal, or wood). In a similar manner, Christians affirm that evil is like this (but in a moral sense). It is a lack or twisting of a good thing. The ancients called evil a “privation†of the good. We might call it a perversion of the good.
Given this definition of evil, the only things that can be created are things with a nature. And evil is not a “thing†which has its own nature. Rather, evil comes about only when preexisting good things get perverted or deconstructed. If someone asked you to “create†deconstruction can you do it? No. All you can create is something good. Evil is only possible once you have a good thing to twist or destroy.
Take a look at how an ancient Christian named Augustine put it (354-430 A.D.), trying to communicate this idea that evil cannot exist on its own, and therefore, can’t be something “createdâ€:
“Good can exist without [evils]. . . .Evils, on the other hand, cannot exist without goods, because the natures in which evils exist are good insofar as they are natures. Moreover, evil is removed not by removing any nature or part of a nature that evil brings to a thing, but by healing and correcting what evil has damaged and deformed.â€
Or
“So, any evil we can think of is the corruption of a thing which once existed in a good state. This is why the greatest evil results from the greatest good being twisted or a part of it removed.â€
Therefore, Christians understand moral evil to be primarily a perversion of the will (human, angelic or otherwise) as it turns away from its intended orientation (God).
But who is responsible for evil’s existence?Â
To read more about that question check out the following link to a short response I wrote earlier in the post, “Why didn’t God create a world without evil” http://www.brentcunningham.org/?p=180).Â
REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
1. What other questions remain in your mind regarding the existence of evil?
2. How do you think our world understands evil?
3. Are there ways that you can use the Christian explination of evil to share the Christian worldview and message of Jesus with others?
12 Comments on “Did God create evil?”
If evil can’t be created, then love can’t be created also. Do you agree?
Jud,
No, I wouldn’t agree with that. How would you come to that conclusion?
The point of my initial post is to demonstrate that evil’s existence is dependant upon the good (that evil is parasitical). This is to say that it is impossible to imagine a state of affairs in which only evil exists, without presupposing some good thing(s) that had previously been corrupted. However, it is entirely possible to imagine a state of affairs in which good exists without evil or corruption. Therefore, evil is dependant upon good, but not vice versa.
Hmmm. Not sure I can wrap my head around that one Brent. I am stuck as to determining whether God created evil. Without going back to the beginning, I can say that God gives us all free will. Free will do as we please. This is, of course, not without consequences. To do evil is mans’ decision and God has control to stop it if He so desires.
Brian, Now that’s an interesting comment at the end…God has control to stop it if He so desires. I’m not sure what you mean here. Are you saying that because we have evil, God has chosen to ignore it, or that He must desire it since He isn’t stopping it? The presence of evil was not a God created thing. Just because He did not create it doesn’t mean He must approve because He doesn’t stop it. It reminds me a bit of the nature of gravity. If we drop a human being from the top of a building, that person will fall to their death, most likely. God may not approve or like it, but we put those wheels in motion…with our free will. We can either have the free will and all the responsibility that entails, or God could have controlled everything. I prefer the former. As He chose to give me life, I make the choice to follow Him. A much sweeter relationship.
What I meant was this. As I understand it, God has the ability to make things/events happen. Such as the story in Daniel. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were caught in an evil act of trying to be burnt to death. God saved them by not allowing them to burn in a fiery funace. Therefore, God desired to stop the evil outcome. In contrast, the Columbine HS shooting, the girl who stood up to say she was a beleiver was shot to death. I beleive God “could” have stopped it. It does not mean he wanted to, but means he has a plan and for her to die was part of a bigger picture that I nor anyone else could imagine. Does that make sense?
I do understand what you are saying Brent, but I don’t think it answered the question of who created evil. I believe God created man who has free will. Since man has free will God did not chose or if you prefer “create” which action they would take, so God created man and man “created” evil by their very actions. I think this completes the picture
<p><p><p>After having done some more reading, here is how I can define good and evil. Evil is simply the absence of good. Just as cold is the absence of heat and darkness is the absence of light. Therefore, evil, cold, and darkness are not things which can occur independently. More interesting is that these example are all descriptions of thing related to evil. “Darkness” and “cold” are characteristics of evil in both common day and in the Bible. My examples have been taken from Einstein. http://www.vexen.co.uk/religion/theodicy_absence.html
I must retract some of what I said above. After further reading this particular site, it concluded Einstein DID NOT say that. But I do like and stand by the absence concept. I also can’t quite figure out the stance of Christian beliefs on this site. The site seems a bit creepy.
Erik,
I would agree with you. What I meant to do in this post was explain why it is inappropriate to speak of God “creating” evil (or anyone “creating” evil). So, you’re right, I didn’t address here who is responsible for the existence of evil. However, I did address that question briefly in an earlier post I wrote entitled, “Why didn’t God create a world without evil” (www.brentcunningham.org/?p=180). I gave the link to this previous post at the bottom of the current one. I should have been clearer about that (I’ll make a note above next to the link).
I’d encourage readers to check that link out and read it. Nevertheless, I would agree with you Erik, and to summarize, I argue that while God created a world in which evil was possible, it was humanity who actualized that possibility. And therefore, humanity is morally responsible for the existence of evil in this world.
Michelle and Brent,
I understand what you are saying about evil that is caused by humans, but what I don’t understand is why God would let a lot of terrible things happen that are not results of any person’s free will, like natural disasters and diseases. It seems He could prevent things events like the Tsunami that killed 300,000 people without depriving us of our free will and its consequences.
Gavin,
You bring up an important distinction—between moral evil and natural/physical evil. If you don’t mind me not directly addressing it here, I was actually just going to write a blog on this topic. May I give an answer this way?
Brent, that would be a good idea to distinguish between the moral and natural/physical evil. I also think there is confusion about free will, it seems. For example, stopping the bad things from happening to us…does that really mean He gave us free will? I guess I look at some of the “bad” things as an opportunity for Christians to experience the grace of God, and in some cases, His extreme mercy. It is often during some of those times our own free will can offer us lots of avenues we can take. We would hope people would always turn toward God during those times, but sometimes they don’t. Even taking that choice can lead a person to a greater understanding of the grace and mercy of God.