Issues of Good and Evil

The hardest questions

This theme asks some of the biggest questions people ever face: what makes an action good or evil, why we punish those who do wrong, whether wrongdoing can be forgiven, and why there is so much suffering in the world. ⚠️ There are no agreed answers, and that is the point. Religious believers and non-religious people respond in different ways, and even within a religion people disagree. A strong answer knows more than one view and can weigh them. When a crime is committed, society responds with punishment, and people give five main reasons for it: to deter, to protect the public, to give retribution, to bring reformation, and to make reparation. Later the theme turns to forgiveness, and then to the deepest question of all, why an all-loving God would allow suffering. Throughout, notice WHOSE view you are giving, and be fair to views you do not share.

Words for good and evil

Five terms you need before you use them. Learn what each one means.

Match the aim of punishment to its meaning

Moral evil against natural evil

When people discuss evil and suffering, they usually separate it into two kinds, because the two raise different questions.

The challenge to belief

Some people argue that the amount of suffering in the world is a reason to doubt God. What is the thinking behind this?

• An all-loving and all-powerful God would be expected to prevent such suffering, yet it happens
• Suffering proves that God definitely does not exist
• It shows that no one has ever cared about suffering
• It shows there is no such thing as good

Spot the true good and evil facts

Tap the TWO statements that are true.

• Moral evil is suffering caused by human choices
• Reformation is the aim of punishment that tries to help an offender change
• Natural evil is suffering that a criminal has deliberately caused
• All religious believers agree on exactly why suffering exists

How to weigh the problem of evil

The problem of evil is the classic evaluation question in this theme, and it has a clear shape you can use. State the challenge: many people expect that a God who is all-loving and all-powerful would not allow terrible suffering, so its existence is hard to explain. Give a religious response: many Christians answer with free will, saying God allowed humans real freedom and some choose to do wrong, or that suffering can be a test or a chance to grow, or that justice will come in an afterlife. Give a non-religious response: many Humanists answer that the suffering counts against belief in such a God, and that people should work to reduce suffering themselves. ⚠️ Then WEIGH the responses and reach a conclusion you can justify. The marks are for the weighing, not for picking a side quickly.

Religious responses to suffering

Select the TWO responses that many religious believers give to the problem of suffering.

• God gave humans free will, and some people choose to cause harm
• Suffering can be a test, or a chance to grow and show compassion
• Suffering proves God cannot possibly exist
• Believers should ignore suffering completely

Order an evaluation answer

Put the steps of a strong answer to a question on the problem of evil in order.

• State the challenge that suffering poses to belief in God
• Give a religious response, such as free will
• Give a non-religious response, such as the challenge to belief
• Weigh the strengths and weaknesses of each
• Reach a conclusion you can justify

Two answers, side by side

Here are two responses to the same question, why a loving God would allow suffering, so you can see how each is argued. A common Christian response: God gave people genuine freedom to choose, and real freedom means the freedom to do wrong as well as right, so much suffering flows from human choices rather than from God. Many Christians add that suffering can draw people together in compassion, and that God promises justice beyond this life. A common Humanist response: the sheer scale of suffering, especially the kind nobody caused, counts against the idea of an all-loving and all-powerful God, so Humanists look instead to human effort, kindness and science to reduce suffering here and now. Notice that a top answer does not just list these; it says which it finds stronger, and WHY. That judgement is where the marks are.

Complete the good and evil facts

Suffering caused by human choices is called _____ evil, while suffering caused by nature is called _____ evil. The aim of punishment that tries to help an offender change is _____. The aim that tries to put people off offending in the first place is _____.

Build the response

Choose the words that complete this religious response to the problem of evil.

The good and evil run

Five questions on crime, forgiveness and the problem of evil. Three lives.

Weigh the issue

Read each case and choose the best answer, then think about why.

• A judge wants a sentence that will help a young offender turn their life around. Which aim of punishment is this?
• A student is asked why an all-loving God might allow moral evil. Which is a fair religious response to give?
• A person has been badly wronged and is deciding whether to forgive. How would many religious believers view forgiveness here?

Explain and weigh the issue

A student in the year below finds this theme confusing. Explain the key ideas about good and evil using what this module has covered, giving more than one view.

• Explain the five main aims of punishment
• Explain the difference between moral evil and natural evil
• Explain what the problem of evil is
• Give one religious and one non-religious response to it, attributing each fairly
• Finish by weighing the responses and reaching a conclusion you can justify