The Problem of Evil in the Western Tradition: From the Book of Job to Modern Genetics

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Liturgical Press, 2002 - 245 Seiten

The question of evil presents a profound challenge to humanity--why do we do what we know to be wrong? This is especially a challenge to religious believers. Why doesn't an all-good and omnipotent God step in and put an end to evil? The Problem of Evil in the Western Tradition examines how Western thinkers have dealt with the problem of evil, starting in ancient Israel and tracing the question through post-biblical Judaism, Early Christianity (especially in Africa), the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Enlightenment, and to the twenty-first century when science has raised new and important issues.

Joseph Kelly covers the book of Job, the book of Revelation, Augustine of Hippo, Aquinas, Luther, Marlow, Milton, Voltaire, Hume, Mary Shelley, Darwin, Jung, Flannery O'Connor, Karl Rahner, Teilhard de Chardin, and modern geneticists.

Chapters are "Some Perspectives on Evil," "Israel and Evil," "The New Adam," "Out of Africa," "The Broken Cosmos," "The Middle Ages," "Decline and Reform of Humanism," "The Devil's Last Stand," "Rationalizing Evil," "The Attack on Christianity," "Dissident Voices," "Human Evil in the Nineteenth Century," "Science, Evil, and Original Sin," "Modern Literary Approaches to Evil," "Some Scientific Theories of Evil," and "Modern Religious Approaches to Evil."

Joseph F. Kelly, Ph.D., is professor of religious studies at John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. He is the author of The World of the Early Christians, published by The Liturgical Press.

Im Buch

Ausgewählte Seiten

Inhalt

Some Perspectives on Evil
1
Israel and Evil
8
The New Adam
29
Out of Africa
40
The Broken Cosmos
51
The Middle Ages
62
Decline and Reform and Humanism
87
The Devils Last Stand
102
Human Evil in the Nineteenth Century
154
Science Evil and Original Sin
172
Modern Literary Approaches to Evil
188
Some Scientific Theories of Evil
200
Modern Religious Approaches to Evil
213
Epilogue
230
A Personal Reflection
233
Select Bibliography
235

Rationalizing Evil
119
The Attack on Christianity
133
Dissident Voices
145
Index
242
Urheberrecht

Andere Ausgaben - Alle anzeigen

Häufige Begriffe und Wortgruppen

Beliebte Passagen

Seite 155 - Without Contraries is no progression. Attraction and Repulsion, Reason and Energy, Love and Hate, are necessary to Human existence.
Seite 15 - Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.
Seite 99 - Why, this is hell, nor am I out of it. Think'st thou that I, who saw the face of God, And tasted the eternal joys of heaven, Am not tormented with ten thousand hells, In being depriv'd of everlasting bliss?
Seite 107 - Earth felt the wound, and Nature from her seat Sighing through all her Works gave signs of woe, That all was lost.
Seite 11 - In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth. the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep. while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said. "Let there be light"; and there was light.
Seite 108 - This may be well. But what if God have seen, And death ensue '. then I shall be no more ! And Adam, wedded to another Eve, Shall live with her enjoying, I extinct: A death to think ! Confirm'd then I resolve, Adam shall share with me in bliss or woe.
Seite 13 - And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah, and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God.
Seite 30 - I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.
Seite 108 - Without co-partner ? so to add what wants In female sex, the more to draw his love, And render me more equal, and perhaps, A thing not undesirable, sometime Superior ; for inferior who is free...

Autoren-Profil (2002)

Joseph F. Kelly, PhD, (1945-2023), was the chair of the department of theology and religious studies at John Carroll University and was active in adult religious education in the Greater Cleveland area. The World of the Early Christians (1997), The Problem of Evil in the Western Tradition (2002), and History and Heresy (2012) are among his nine previous books published by Liturgical Press.

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