[quote=CTD]I posted this on a philosophy forum, where a lot of nonsense is posted about "the problem of evil" - the scoffer claim that God couldn't allow evil.

If you haven't encountered this silliness, this may not mean a lot, but I'll share what I wrote.

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Advocates of the problem of evil have definitions backwards. They define 'good' as simply and exclusively "opposition to evil". Of course we know the truth of the matter: Evil is properly defined as "opposition to good."

Advocates for theism need to stop letting this narrow, self-serving, and utterly worthless definition of 'good' pass. It is an abomination, and failing to point out its failure only serves to build the confidence of the liars who employ it. Here are some things to keep in mind the next time you encounter this "problem of evil" nonsense, okay?

The "problem of evil", in all its formulations, treats good as strictly compulsory, strictly and exclusively a matter of responding to evil. This is a set / subset fallacy. There are some obligations associated with being good, but not everything good is, or even can be compulsory. Compulsory good acts (duties) are only a subset of all possible good acts.

The temporary and transient existence of evil (not permanent, as scoffers happily presuppose) is the very prerequisite for this good act, for an entire class of potential good actions! That's the case under the true definition of 'good'.

What do you expect to result from opposition to good?

The appeal of this trickery is blatantly superficial and strictly emotional, and even there it fails. Which is better: our loving, living, caring, forgiving God, or the "maximally good" god they posit as being "better"? The "better" god they propose isn't better at all! It never forgives, never shows mercy, never demonstrates love. How can anyone prefer such a being, even on an emotional basis?

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Thank you, CTD!
This is a very profound post. If I may add this "Perspective on Pain" in light of this misconception of evil vs good....

'What do people mean whey they say "I am not afraid of God because I know he is good?" Have they never even been to a dentist?'- BY: C. S. Lewis

Susan Lenzkes authors, "No Rain, No Gain"...(Devotions to guide you through the storms of life)--~

~~C. S Lewis had a great mind and a great faith, both of which were shaped on the anvil of living and loving in this broken world. He was a realist. And he was honest. He permitted the questions that pain brings. I suspect he had learned that faith speaks loudest to fears that are faced.

When he and his beloved wife, Joy, were dealing with her terminal illness, he commented to a friend in a letter, "We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be."

Susan goes on to share her own personal situation;---- -

My husband and I are wondering the same thing. Recently Herb was told his cancer is active again--the doctor mentioned it only a few days before his body began to spread the painful news. He has now begun treatment with an experimental drug that we pray God will use to bring him back into remission--a rarity at this stage of his illness. So we don't really know what God has ahead for us. We are living by faith in a hailstorm of uncertainty.

Our visibility is hampered in these weather conditions. It's easy to see misery and need--they are right in front of our eyes. Pain medications are increasing, and Herb is moving with greater difficulty. But to see through this storm to a future and a hope is more difficult. Through tears, we strain to see God's goodness and purpose.

How thankful we are that, long before these dark clouds gathered, the Apostle Paul prayed for our vision problem. His words are recorded in Ephesians 1:18-19: "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe." -

So "hope," and the "riches of Christ," and the "power of God" come as we are huddled in our corner of heartache. And we are comforted, yes, but we also gain perspective. Such perspective keeps us from blaming God for bringing this trouble to us. It keeps us from focusing on our fear of the pain. Instead it allows us to begin to praise Him for using this trouble for our good and His glory, even if we never see it on this earth. It helps us to trust His purpose in the midst.

All of this is true, and it sounds so good in the daylight when I'm writing about the realities of life as a child of God. But at midnight--and it's midnight now--it hurts to believe the truth. 'Can any of this actually be right? It just doesn't seem fair! This dear man who has been my strength shouldn't have to be suffering; he shouldn't be struggling to stand, or jerking in his sleep like this. Can this frightening disease actually be allowed in God's plan? And is God with us now in this room, surrounding and caring for us as I cry while my husband sleeps fitfully?"

Yes, He's here now.
And I find a certainty gripping me--a deep knowledge: God doesn't waste anything. Not doubts or rain; not suffering or pain.

From the suffering of His Son, He produced salvation. He leaves it to us to prove what He will create if we trust Him through our pain.

We go on finding Him in life's dark unlikely days. He still comes to light our darkness. ~

"In our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many...

Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit guaranteeing what is to come." 2 Corinthinas 1:9-11,21-22

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." --Romans 8:18 --