Positive Liberty

Theodicy is the word coined by Gottfried Leibniz to deal with the theological problem of pain, suffering, and death in a world created by God. It’s a big subject and I only want to touch on one aspect of it here in this post.

Critics of belief in God point out that any god who is omnipotent and omniscient, wouldn’t have created a world where people get hurt and die. He could’ve made it some other way.

First, given that they are not God, I wonder how they know such a thing. I certainly don’t.

Also interesting, at least to me… These same critics are, frequently, the people who suggest that we theists create a god in our own image rather than the other way around. God is a figment of our imagination or a desperate hope. We’ve given him the attributes we want him to have. Funny, but it seems these critics are doing the same thing.

Second, maybe there’s a practical method to God’s apparent madness. Maybe the objection that an ultimately-powerful God wouldn’t allow suffering isn’t really a good argument.

In Genesis 3 Eve and Adam eat of the forbidden fruit, discover that they were exposed, and end up banished from Eden. I’ve asked countless believers, “Do you think God was caught off-guard?” Not one has ever told me they thought God was surprised that this was how things turned out.

And yet, God let Eve and Adam eat the forbidden fruit. “Why do you think that is?” I ask. Not one has an answer. But I think I do…

God values our freedom more than he values our obedience.

Now, how libertarian is that?

Returning again to Genesis, we find that God permitted the forbidden tree to be in Eden. For all we know, he might as well have planted it. Either way, then he marked it “off-limits.” Anyone with kids has to know what was going to happen next: You don’t have to be a god to figure it out.

Doing things this way would be consistent with a God who values our freedom more than he values our obedience. It would also be consistent with a God who expects us to learn from our mistakes. But does this approach make sense? …seem plausible?

Yes, and it can be illustrated this way:
The Bible frequently identifies God as a parent. So let’s say my son decides that doing risky stunts on his motorized bike might be a lot of fun. I discover this and I tell him… Continue Reading »