the nature of god and the problem of evil learning objectives to understand the keywords to...
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The Nature of God and The Nature of God and the Problem of Evilthe Problem of Evil
Learning ObjectivesLearning ObjectivesTo understand the keywordsTo understand the keywordsTo understand how the problem of evil could lead to an To understand how the problem of evil could lead to an disbelief in God.disbelief in God.
KeywordsKeywordsMoral EvilMoral EvilNatural evilNatural evilOmnipotentOmnipotentOmniscientOmniscientBenevolentBenevolent
Moral Evil Or Natural EvilMoral Evil Or Natural Evil
SufferingSuffering
SufferingSuffering
SufferingSuffering
SufferingSuffering
SufferingSuffering
Where does evil come from?
1. The Devil
2. A force
3. A psychological phenomenon
1. Christians
and Muslims believe
that there is a force of
evil that goes
against everything
God represents.
He is called…• Satan• Shaytaan• Devil• Prince of Darkness• The Deceiver• Iblees• Beelzebub• Lucifer• Prince of Hell• The evil one• Old Nick• The enemy• Antichrist
Belial The Dragon Leviathan Ruler of this
world Unclean spirit
Satan is totally opposed to God and everything that God
stands for.
He is jealous of humans and wishes to destroy us using
our own weaknesses and sin.
He convinces us that our own way is better
than God’s.
Satan can take on any form.
Lucifer to Satan (Christianity)
God created angels with free will. Lucifer was his most perfect angel but was
jealous of human and ambitious.
He began a rebellion in heaven and turned many
angels against God.
Lucifer transformed himself into ‘Satan’ (the accuser) and
launched a war in heaven.
By accusation, lies and
deception, he intended to bring
God down and destroy Him
In his anger, God cast Satan out of heaven where he fell like lightning to rule over this
world.
Christians believe that here, Satan tempts people to
sin then overwhelms them
with shame and discouragement.
“Get thee behind me, Satan!”The Bible says that Christ was temptedby the devil in His mission to savethe world – Christians believethis story shows that we can all come under the devil’sspell.
From Harith to Shaytaan (Islam)
Allah created man and jinn to worship Him. Harith was the most pious Jinn. He was so
pious he would stay with the angels. Muslims believe he was not an angel.
Allah ordered Harith to prostrate before Adam. Harith refused and was chased from
the company of the angels.
Allah created Shaytaan to test man. Those who pass the test are promised eternal
paradise.
Summing upSumming up
• Christians and Muslims believe in a powerful, evil being called the devil.
• The devil causes evil in our world and is the constant enemy of God and mankind.
• Muslims believe that the devil was never an angel and Christians believe he was.
Hansie Cronje was the captain of the South African cricket team.
In 2000 he was accused of match fixing.
During his trial, he said he had been tempted by the devil: 'In a moment of stupidity and weakness I allowed
Satan and the world to dictate terms to me. The moment I took my eyes off Jesus my whole world turned dark.'
On the 1st of June 2002 he tragically died in a plane accident.
Blaming the devil
If you were the judge in the case how would you react to the person blaming the devil for a crime he committed? Show you have considered different opinions.
2. Evil is a force
Many people believe that evil is a
spiritual force.
Humans can use their spiritual power for good or for evil.
We can choose which force to
follow.
3. Evil is a psychological phenomenonThis idea is that some people have an imbalance in their mind from birth.
These can be inherited or simply triggered through events in childhood.
When a person is so mentally unbalanced that they perform evil deeds, we must look at the root causes of their problem.
We will nearly always find that they themselves have been the victims of evil or abuse.
The Christian Idea of GodThe Christian Idea of God
OmnipotentOmniscientBenevolent
The Christian ResponseThe Christian Response
1) Practically help people
2) Freewill
3) Test
4) Reasons beyond our understanding
The Problem of Evil PostersThe Problem of Evil PostersUse a double page in your books to design a poster
You must include the following
The Nature of God
What is the problem of evil and suffering
The Christian response to evil and suffering
Since evil is 'done' by human beings, it is up to each of them to eliminate evil. Evil acts are committed by choice. We are free to choose not to do evil.
God gave human beings the 'gift' of free will. Human beings choose to use this gift for good or for evil.