Augustine's Theodicy

What is the word for an argument that defends God's existence, as well as his goodness and power, even though evil exists

• Theodicy

• Problem of evil

• Theology

• Philosophy

St Augustine was known as Augustine of ...

Theodicy means 'defence of God' in...

• German

• Latin

• Greek

• Mandarin

On what did Augustine base his explanation for why there is evil in the world?

• On the biblical creation account

• On the devil

• On God

• On the Hindu scriptures

'The fall' means...

• the time after death and before heaven

• The choice Adam & Eve made to disobey God

Augustine believed that all humans are affected by Adam & Eve's choice to disobey God and will therefore all turn away from God, needing his salvation. This is called the doctrine of...

• original evil

• original freedom

• original defiance

• original sin

How does Augustine view evil?

• something created by satan to ruin people's lives

• something created by God to test humans

• an absence of good - not a thing in itself

What example does St Augustine use to help explain what evil is?

• He says it's like blindness - just as blindness is a lack of sight, evil is a lack of good

• He says it's like fruit juice - it seems nice but it rots your teeth

• He says it's like a ghost in a house - best to avoid it

Augustine argues that God has to punish sin. He cannot allow wrongs to go unpunished. This emphasises his...

• Love

• Justice

God has to punish sin because he is fair. However, Augustine argues that he also shows his love and kindness by...

• forgiving people who try hard to follow him

• forgiving people who go to church

• sending Jesus Christ to suffer the full punishment for all human sin

• sending the Bible to help people learn how to follow him better