Abstract
The problem of horrendous evil is the problem of reconciling the existence of horrendous evils with the existence of a God that is nevertheless good to individuals. A solution to the problem along the lines of that proposed by Morilyn McCord Adams resolves the problem by appeal to various sorts of intimacy with God on the part of the participants in horrendous evils. One half of the problem concerns the victims of horrendous evils. A second half of the problem of horrendous evil is the same problem for those perpetrators of horrendous evils who also potentially have their lives defeated. The present paper argues not only that the intimacy such an overall strategy appeals to fails to solve the first half of the problem, but also that it makes no progress at all on the second half.
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References
Adams M.M. (1989) Horrendous evils and the goodness of God. Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society, Supplemental Volume 63: 297–310
Adams M. M. (1999) Horrendous evils and the goodness of God. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY
Chisholm R. (1969) The defeat of good and evil. Proceedings and Addresses of the American Philosophical Association 42: 31–38
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Earl, D. Divine intimacy and the problem of horrendous evil. Int J Philos Relig 69, 17–28 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11153-010-9233-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11153-010-9233-x