Tag Archives: the problem of evil

What’s God’s Sufficient Reason for the Evil in the World? And If You Can’t Think of Any, Should You Still Believe in God?

The principle of sufficient reason (PSR). God must have a sufficient reason for withdrawing and withholding his protection from the descendants of Adam for so tortuously long; for allowing them to encounter the full force of a psychopath’s or nature’s … Continue reading

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Blogging a Great Debate: Sam Harris vs. William Lane Craig at Notre Dame (Accompanied by the Ghost of Nietzsche)

Sam Harris recently debated William Lane Craig at Notre Dame, and here it is. The first eight minutes are devoted to the moderator’s introduction, then Craig goes first. The topic is moral reasoning: __________ Here are the highlights that I took … Continue reading

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Leon Wieseltier on Roger Rosenblatt’s Journey into Hell Mouth

Sooner or later, and in one form or another, all human beings make their journey—and on more than one occasion throughout a lifetime—into what James Wood and others have coined “Hell Mouth”—the Job-like inferno in which we encounter unavoidable and extreme anxiety, suffering, … Continue reading

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For Those Who Have Just Arrived: A Little Something for Keeping the Future in Perspective

A quick primer to life’s prospects:

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Quote for the Week

Friedrich Nietzsche (from The Twilight of the Idols ): What is it: is man only a blunder of God, or God only a blunder of man?

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Bearing Witness to the Holocaust: Studio Portrait of Kurt Klein, Age Two

Studio portrait, from 1922, of two-year-old Kurt Klein. In 1937, Kurt Klein’s parents sent him to live with relatives in Buffalo, New York. His parents, unable to immigrate, died at Auschwitz in 1942. According to the U.S. Holocaust Museum archives: Kurt was … Continue reading

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David Plotz, an Agnostic and a Writer for Slate.com, Read the Whole Bible, and Tells Us What He Thought of It

David Plotz is an agnostic, and he gave the Bible a careful reading. His experience is recounted at Slate here. Money quote: I came to the Bible hoping to be inspired and awed. I have been, sometimes. But mostly I’ve ended … Continue reading

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Bearing Witness to the Holocaust: Stacked Corpses

The above photograph, according to the U.S. Holocaust Museum website, was taken at Ohrdruf on April 6, 1945. More “Bearing Witness to the Holocaust” photos here and here and here.

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Stuff Happens: Donald Rumsfeld, the Free Will Defense, and the Problem of Suffering

After the invasion of Iraq in April 2003, George Bush’s Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, provided a free-will defense for the rampant street looting in Iraq. Why was it occurring, and why wasn’t the United States actively engaged in stopping it? Here’s Rumsfeld’s answer: Freedom’s … Continue reading

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The Holocaust and the Problem of Suffering

In response to a previous post of mine, a reader commented: The holocaust raises doubts about God, in what way? Evil people did evil things. The fact that it happened doesn’t cause me to doubt God. As one that believes … Continue reading

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