The Augustinian Theodicy

The Augustinian Theodicy consists of a method of religious thinking meant to reconcile the presence of both good and evil in the world. Though all theodicies do this in some manner, Augustinian Theodicy differs from the rest, beginning with the thoughts on God by Saint Augustine.

If God is a loving God, why is there evil?

Saint Augustine, like many people before and after him, did not understand how an all-knowing God could create suffering and evil, as He created all things. He believed that in fact, God had not created suffering and evil. These, along with any other horror imaginable, war, famine and disease, were a result of Adam and Eve's actions in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve ruined God's perfection and harmony, thus all God's children are subject to suffering and sin. The only redemption is through living like Christ, God's only son.

A critical look

Saint Augustine's theodicy neatly explains the suffering of the world and lets the omnipotent God off the hook. An all-knowing God would have foreseen Satan's tempting of Adam and Eve, so was not His allowing the Fall to happen an instance of cruelty? Therefore, it is concluded that suffering has always been part of His plan? Some believe that it is blasphemous to even contemplate God's thoughts or motives, since doing so puts humankind on the same level as God, which is a sin.

Augustinian Theodicy is but one of many theodicies that attempt to explain sin, suffering and evil. Humankind continues to think about the nature of God, and this is likely the same for many generations to come.