Apologetics 208: The Problem of Evil

Welcome to our in-depth course on the problem of evil!

If God is all-powerful and perfectly good, how can He allow so much evil and suffering in the world? Does evil show that Christianity isn’t true? The problem of evil is probably the most important objection to Christianity, so we hope you’ll consider studying it further through this course. We also point to other courses and other resources along the way to offer as much assistance as we can, because we cannot possibly cover all of the relevant topics here!

We expect that this course will take about 15-20 hours to complete, and it may take longer if you pursue the additional resources we recommend. We greatly encourage you to consider the material in this course slowly and thoughtfully, and to follow the additional resources as you are interested. It will be helpful if you have completed the Apologetics 101 and 102 introductory courses and the Moral Argument course before you start here, but that is not required.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Upon the completion of this course, you will be equipped to:

• delineate the different versions of the problem of evil and respond appropriately to each
• explain why scholarly philosophical approaches to the problem of evil have become less radical in recent history
• share from Scripture Christian doctrines that make the co-existence of God and suffering more likely
• engage thoughtfully with people in your life who are experiencing suffering
• defend the Bible against accusations that it promotes and causes evil
• explain how hell is compatible with God’s nature