THE PROBLEM OF EVIL

   As we enter now in Week 8 of the COVID-19 Hysteria, I doubt that many Americans haven't noticed a major display of Evil. On the Social Macro-level, an unknown number of fatalities have occurred related to the Influenza Outbreak; followed by the heartlessness of petty local dictatorships banning funerals. We're seeing a coup against the Constitution being waged by these same despots---the outcome of which is still to be determined. The scum in the Media and their masters in Corporate Media have been raking in the profits as fast as the political elite can grab power. 

   On the Social Micro-Level, we've seen about the worst in humanity brought out. Homicides and looting on a wide scale; people eagerly informing on their own neighbors and relatives; unbridled selfishness as small businesses crash, and so forth. 

  In the midst of all of this chaos, there have been some unmanufactured tragedies too, although nobody profits off reporting them. There's been a bad storm season in the American Southeast and many have been killed, injured, and seen property destroyed. I read of one recently at Adrienne's blog. A blogger she knows named LindaG, lost her family's home during a tornado touchdown in Louisiana.

   Now, America's wonderful Insurance Cartels---which have been raking in billions off the recent 'Stimulus Package'---won't pay for damages to the house. Adrienne set up a crowfunding page for Linda and her family; which as of this writing has reached about 2/5 of its initial goal. I don't know Linda other than through some comments I've seen at Adrienne's blog: but as you can see, this is a family in great distress. 

   Linda said of the incident: "Want to know how I know God is real; how wonderful He is and how He watched over us Wednesday night? Our son was in his room at his computer. He got up to get a drink. Just moments before he had been sitting where all those chimney bricks are now. And the ceiling and roof. We were blessed that night.God answers prayer. We were blessed that night."

  What Linda said reminded me of something I'd heard on the radio and meant to write about after the Tennessee storms earlier this year, but the COVID panic came up. Some angry Atheist was quoting some people expressing their Thanksgiving in a similar way, when he suddenly blew a fuse and shouted, "Well, what about all those people who died? Don't you think they prayed to Gawwwwwd too?!?" Let it never be said that Atheists aren't without compassion and empathy, right? 

  To answer his question, "Probably the deceased did pray too, but all true Christians understand that the answers to our prayers are contingent upon God's Will; and since we have the Hope of Heaven, no Christian need fear death. This part of a concept called Providence, though many churches and most of society has long forgotten what it means.

   Providence is, simply stated, a belief that life is a part of a Divine Plan. Though we live in a fallen world, God is in ultimate control of human destiny and what evils that the Good experience here is temporal. The Problem of Evil, as modern thinkers call it, was never much of an issue discussed anywhere in the West (including among the Jews and Moslems) until the 18th Century Enlightenment. The so-called higher critics then---and now too since Academia hasn't changed its arguments on the subject in 300 years--- posit:"How could a God who is infinitely Good and infinitely Just allow Evil to exist?" The very question is, of course, premised on the idea that God---if He exists at all---is neither Good nor Just. 

   

   Actually, only indirectly in most Evil circumstances. There are categories of Evil which exist in this world. 

   1. Accidents. We are created as Spiritual beings, but since we live in a Natural World, we are still subject to physical laws. The tornadoes are an example of the Evils which simply arise because our planet is subject to storms; and storms are sometimes fatal. 

   2.Human Wickedness: This doesn't need much explanation, but as creatures endowed with Reason and Free Will it happens that some abuse those gifts by preying on others. Much of what we've seen during the COVID crisis is a prime example of this kind of Evil in action. 

  3. Demonic Attack: This involves the direct action of demons, and the instances of possession is much more uncommon than Hollywood makes it out to be. However, humans who are especially steeped in evil---especially on a spiritual plane---are inspired by demons to commit evil acts the same way that Christians are inspired by the Holy Spirit to engage in good works. 

   Yes, it does. For even though Evil is indiscriminate against whom it strikes, God permits us to experience evils for reasons which align with His Will.

   1. To call us to repentance. When those, especially unbelievers, experience Evil they can come to reflect upon Powers and Causes greater than themselves. Recognizing God's Providence in a time of Evil can be effected through prayer. An example of this happening are the astounding number of conversions we're seeing in the Middle East since the downfall of the ISIS Caliphate. 

  2. To test our Faith: testing in the sense here of strengthening faith. A good example of that is the recovery efforts from those recent storms; or some of the brave officials here who've stood up to the power-grabs during the COVID-19 panic. 

   While we live in an imperfect world, God (and those who serve Him) bring Good out of Evil circumstances. As one scholar eloquently wrote recently:

   "Creating opposites such as good and evil is from the perfection of God’s Wisdom, and making them observable to us is from His Graciousness. Creating the night and day, the sweet and the sour, the hot and the cold, pain and pleasure, death and life, sickness and health, also reflect His Greatness and Perfection. Though the attributes of God are inherently perfect, not seeing them manifest in our world would render us less capable of recognizing God’s Greatness. Were it not for the creation, recognizing God’s quality of being a Creator would be more difficult. Were it not for God creating people who exhibit evil, recognizing God’s qualities of Forbearance and Pardon, and even His qualities of Justice and Dominance, would be that much harder to recognize. If a king were to limit himself to just one of the many actions he is capable of performing, this king would either be unaware of his own abilities, or unaware of the great benefit these actions would entail for others. As for the One with perfect Knowledge and perfect Ability, He does not restrict Himself to a single action or type of action, for that would be a flaw in His Sovereignty. It is from God’s perfect ability that He both gives and withholds, rewards and punishes, uplifts and debases, honors and humiliates, empowers and vanquishes, accelerates and delays, benefits and harms. At the same time, it is due to His Wisdom that, because humans are not identical, they are not treated identically, for that would be contrary to His perfect Justice."

   In other words, this whole question of the Problem of Evil revolves around a premise that Life has no meaning or purpose. It shouldn't be any surprise, therefore that the ones who hold to that premise are the ones responsible for generating much of the Evil and human suffering that happens in this world. When one rejects God's Providence, it's only a small leap of twisted logic to make plans of their own. That's how we get 'leaders' like George Soros, Hitler, Lenin, Robespierre, Pol Pot, etc. In the grand scheme of things, they represent nothing more than the social equivalent of those tornadoes we mentioned. They sweep through, with darkness and destruction; but one day, the homes are rebuilt, the forests grow again, the lawns are green and they are eventually forgotten.