WHY DO EVIL EXIST?

Observing the world scenario, we can see humanity immersed in a process of continuous suffering. There are famines and wars in different regions of the planet afflicting population masses.  Occasionally, natural disasters take the lives of thousands of people. Man himself afflicts his fellow man in interpersonal relationships. These question then comes to us: "Since God is good, and having done all good things, where does evil come from?" 

This question was raised by the Christian thinker Saint Augustine, in his work Confessions, within the context of the analysis of the problem of evil in mankind. It is one of the most complex for theology. In his analyzes and reflections, the Bishop of Hippo wrote: “I sought what evil was and did not find a substance, but a perversion of the will deviated from the supreme substance - from You, O God - and tending towards low things. ." [1]. 

What that great scholar was saying was that God did not create evil, but it came into existence through a deviation from human will.  According to the Genesis narrative, man was created in the image and likeness of God. And one aspect of this similarity between man and the Creator is the freedom to make decisions. Its misuse has brought all kinds of evil and suffering to humanity. The man has become bad. 

The Bible says that, originally, man lived in a vegetable environment and could eat from any tree, except the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil". God had told Adam that the day he ate from that tree he would die (Genesis 2:16, 17). But the tempter, in the shape of a snake, convinced the woman to eat. “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

A thoughtless reading of this passage may lead to the conclusion that the consequence of simple disobedience was exaggerated.  However, behind that act of the first couple was the desire for an autonomous and independent life from the Creator. It wasn't just about eating or not eating the forbidden fruit. The first man wanted to be “like God” and, at this point, it is observed that he loved himself more than God. Created to live in communion with his Creator, that act of rebellion changed his original nature and, thus, he separated himself from God, the source that nourished his life, and plunged into a new existence, marked by pain, suffering and evil [2]. 

This is the reason, according to Augustine, for humanity to be immersed in anguish and suffering. A question then arises: why doesn't God put an end to evil and change this situation? This He already did, upon entering the world, in the person of the Son, opening, through his death and resurrection, the path that leads man to his original condition.  For him everything is already solved, because He is not bound by time like human beings. Man, however, has to wait for the fulfillment of Bible prophecy. But he only returns to communion with God if he makes use of his freedom again and decides to take the path opened by God. The biblical text ends with God saying: “I am making all things new!”, That is, a new world order, where there is no pain, weeping, suffering and death. (Revelation 21: 1-7).

Antônio Maia - M. Div.

Copyright

[1] AGOSTINHO, Santo. Confissões. Ed. Vozes. Petrópoles-RJ, 2011, p. 157.

[2] MAIA, Antônio. O Homem em Busca de Si- Reflexões sobre a Condição Humana na Parábola do Filho Pródigo. amazon.com.br