Supposing that the omnipotent and all-loving God exists, why exists there natural evil in the world?
86419
I think other answers missed the boat.  Your question asks about "the existance of natural evil (such as earthquakes, infirmity, death, physical handicaps generated at birth, etc.)"\n\nThis assumes that these things are inherently evil.  You see, they are not.\nIf I am a Christian, I believe my stay on earth is but a waiting period and/or test before continuing to Heaven.  How do you suppose I make the transition?  Death!  Therefore, for me, is death a bad thing?  Is it evil?  It is the method for me to be born into Heaven.  Surely it is not evil.\nEarthquakes simply provide a large means of providing this transition.  Remember, earthquakes were here before humans, and will be here long after.  After all, without earthquakes, there would be no Hawaii.  How can that be evil?\nPhysical handicaps are an adversity to overcome.  They may not be pleasent, but to call them "evil" is just going ~way~ overboard.  Remember in the Gospel the man who was handicapped since birth.  The local scribes asked Jesus who sinned, the man or his parent.  Jesus taught that nobody sinned, but the man was an instrument solely that Jesus might heal him.  Sometimes, your only role is to be a lesson for others.\n\nIn summary, you asked why this "natural evil" exists.  My answer is that it does not.
445345
God is also omnipotent, which means He knows all, so he could not do something that goes against his nature, or create something that is more powerful than Himself. He is Awesome!
473236
Evil is man made. God has given us free will. It is up to us to recognize evil and choose to do what is right. In the end, our good will be rewarded.
318531
According to my understanding, God created both good and evil in order to give man free will to chose between them. In the Jewish tradition, we believe that both good and evil exist not only in the world but within a human being; therefore we are continuously confronted to our own duality and we don't always know what to chose from. Some things appear to be good but they are not, other blessings come disguised as a curse To trade one's soul so that Satan can return to God and therefore erradicate evil from the world would be a great opportunity to save the world and achieve world peace. And by the way, it would not be dangerous for the "traded" soul because when Satan returns to God, all will be one.
610931
When you say "naturally" you need to observe the fact that there was a "fall" into sin. Nature, as originally created by God was holy and upright. So, prior to the fall man was good by nature. After the fall our nature became corrupt and sinful, therefore, now, man is evil by nature.
726895
Which god u referring to? \n\nAnyways, if he created everything without a concept of good or bad, then why would there be laws against rape, murder, etc or charity work, blah blah...\n\nI think your question is flawed, sorry, and no offence.\n\nPerhaps you're trying to say that everything in the world is created by humans, even concepts, am I right or wrong? Atheists like to do that, but what they fail to realise is, if that's the case, then WHY? For what?
606386
Hume’s argument:\nEvil exists (Premise 1) \nGod knows it does (Since he knows all) \nHe could prevent it (He can do anything) \nA good being would prevent evil \nIf he could \nSo God cannot be good \nBut if God exists he is good\n\nIt convinces me utterly, along with other aspects of the world and of logic.  I don't mean that god should necessarily prevent every single instance of evil, but thousands of children getting slaughtered (even by god himself as in the OT), misscarriages, stillbirths, anacephalice births, etc... just don't cut it.  Xians either need to accept that he can't possibly have all 3 qualities:\nomniscient\nomnipotent\nomnibenevolent\nor he can't exist at all.  But the trifecta just makes no sense whatsoever.
216827
If I was God, I would see no reason to just "get it over with" as I believe that we are all here to learn and grow.  I don't believe necessarily in "good" and "evil" because in my beliefs, nothing ever just happens for no reason.  Everyone has a purpose and path, regardless of whether or not they are perceived as good or evil while here.\n\nI don't believe that the things most people perceive as "evil" are truly bad.  From each "evil" society learns a great deal and so even the so called "evil" served a positive purpose.  \n\nWe can look at some of the most heinous events in our history and on that flip side of the coin..pinpoint all the good that came as a result of the event.  The ends do not justify the means and if I were God I would really prefer we all find a better way to learn, but I would not be able to discount the benefits from all the catalysts.\n\nSo no, I would not just get it over with but allow each individual to grow and fulfill their own paths with the knowledge that there is a reason for everything.  And if I were "God", I'm sure I'd already know all the reasons some things have to happen and play out.
1089559
Hi! It's not hon, GOD is the very essence of unconditional LOVE. GOD/LOVE created the whole universe through that unconditional LOVE. Hate cannot create nearly as much. Hate only destroys. It only seems that way to you because of your perception and what is going on around you.\nLOVE creates, hate destroys.
452108
Ignore the other hateful comments. You have EVERY right to ask this question, call it Allah, God, or a greater power, he is there, here, everywhere, he is the power that created existence itself, so it didn't "exist" once. It is there already...\nThis entire universe is governed by billions of rules which the scientists are discovering every day. Take DNA, who has created this organized, complex, and perfect code that when applied, gives the living organism its current shape? You can say: It just happened by chance, but, will you believe yourself? The only way to live right, and die right, is to believe in that creator, who is denied by many, needed by all....
93482
There is evil in the world because Adam deferred to the devil by eating the fruit. But don't worry, God has the hairs of all our heads numbered. He sent His Son to endure every hard thing we have had to endure, physically and emotionally, on the cross. evil will not reign forever. And when it's all over, and you go to live with Him, He will wipe away all your tears.
170977
I don't believe in either of them, but that is a very valid point which I myself thought of. If there was a god, maby it would be an evil being, using our faith, (or gulibility,) to it's advantage, and our stupidity is it's entertainment. This seems ludicrace, but makes more vastly sense than a loving supreme being controling this wretched world.
1094711
It's not the child's direct choice that people are talking about when they talk about free will.\n\nI believe that there was no suffering or death before sin entered the world.  Since the fall, evil has caused suffering, illness, and death.  It is a result of having free choice, but it's not driven by cause and effect in an individual sense.  \n\nIf there were no consequences of sin, we wouldn't leave it.  Would it be loving to leave us in sin?\n\nGod shows His love and mercy in wanting us to avoid sin - the root of suffering - and by drawing us to Himself.  There is comfort and rest with Him.  He suffers with us.  He has defeated death on our behalf.  \n\nHe is loving even in the face of sin, evil, and suffering.
362375
It is not possible to say 'God exists' or 'God does not exist'. There is simply no proof either way.\nThose that say 'God exists' must at some point take a leap of faith.\nThose that say 'God does not exist' must make a similar leap of faith towards scientific / empirical proofs.\n\nI don't know about 'being sure' but I tend to think that almost all the misery caused in this world is due to human choice and free will. Unless I'm mistaken, there is pretty much all the resource, food and know-how on this planet to keep us all well, fed, warm, housed etc. if it weren't for the inherant greed and desire within us all (not being 'holier than thou' here - don't see me selling the laptop to put food in a starving African - just admitting my failings!) Maszlow's heirarchy of human needs is a good starting point for understanding what we need / what we want and why we choose to proceed upwards as we attain our needs.\n\nPerhaps the 'garden of eden' is a very good analogy for what happens when we have free will. Without it all God's graces were given, as soon as human's chose the 'forbidden' path from their own free will, it all started going wrong.\nBit harsh to blame God for what we have chosen as a race to do with the gifts of creation / evolution?
44608
God did not create evil. Satan was one of Gods angels, but he started to envy the things of God. Satan wanted to be God. \nGod did not create anything wicked.\nDeuteronomy 32:4- The Rock, perfect is his activity, for all his ways are justice, a God of faithfulness, with whom there is no injustice, righteous and upright he is.\nPsalms 5:4- For you are not a God taking delight in wickedness; No one bad may reside for any time with you.\nSatan is the ruler of the world.\nJohn 14:30- I shall not speak much with you anymore , for the ruler of the world is coming. And he has no hold on me.\nJob is a great book to read about Satan roving on the earth. \nGod is not to blame for all the wickedness in the world. He gave us a perfect start, but some people chose to ignore Gods requirements.\nEcclesiates 7:29- See! This only I have found, that the true God made mankind upright, but they themselves have sought out many plans.
1060353
Does that primitive fairy tale sound right to you?  For example why wouldn't Satan use his powers to make Hell really nice so that people wanted to go to Hell?  He could gain power by being nice.  The whole good and evil nonsense in the Bible is really very silly if you actually analyze it.
293297
The issue is not that God’s goodness, God’s power, and evil’s reality can’t fit together, but that there are additional pieces to the puzzle that fit between them and hold them together.\n\n1. Free Will is a partial answer. \nFree will gives a partial answer to this question of evil and suffering. It goes like this: \n\nGod made humanity with free will. \nEvil is a result of human choices. Our first parents chose to sin. \nAs a result of sin, this world has been plunged into suffering. \nEvil, therefore, finds its origin not in the Creator, but in the creature. God receives no blame for evil—we do. We get the credit for evil because we’re the ones who chose to abandon God.\n\n2. As a result of free will, history is discontinuous. \nThere was no evil in God's original creation. But Adam had free will—he was able to sin or to not sin. And he chose to sin. And Adam's choice affected more than just himself. He represented all of humanity. Indeed, Adam represented the whole world (he had dominion over it), and when Adam was sinning, the whole world was declaring war on God. Thus even the natural world was plunged into suffering—animate as well as inanimate (the ground being cursed in Genesis 3 and thus awaiting full salvation at Christ’s return — Romans 8:19-22). This discontinuity is what Christians call the Fall. The world is good (Gen. 1), but fallen in rebellion against God. \n\nHow could God create a world full of evil and suffering? He didn’t. He created a world in which people enjoyed communion with God, intimacy with each other, perfect harmony with the creation, and everlasting life—a world with no suffering, no sin and no guilt. History is radically discontinuous. The world changed at the Fall. \n\nAnd the fact that the Bible says the world is good but fallen certainly makes sense of life. Human beings are capable of great beauty and kindness, but also great evil. Children are cute, but selfish. Adults are smart, but manipulative. The Bible accounts for both the glory and the shame of being human. We’re God’s image, but an image marred and distorted by our divorce from our Creator. \n\nThe Christian philosopher Blaise Pascal spoke of the grandeur and misery of humanity. We are capable of great things, but are always capable of pondering an existence better than the life we now have. Thus we find ourselves in misery precisely because we have the ability to contemplate a better existence. Perhaps the fact that we can imagine a life without suffering is itself a reminder deep within our human consciousness of the life we once enjoyed in loins of father Adam — a life we have lost and can only regain through the redemptive intervention of God in human history. This is a redemption that will only be complete when Jesus Christ returns.\n\n3. If you want God to eradicate evil, you’re demanding that He eradicate us. God’s alternative to eradicating evil people is to redeem them. \nRemember the words of Peter: “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). You blame God for evil in the world? I assure you He can take care of the problem right now — but you won’t like the way He does so. Is there evil in your heart? He can destroy your heart at any moment. The amazing thing, though, is that God doesn’t do this. He made your tongue, and you use it to speak against Him — but He is patient with you. For now. \n\nRedemption is God’s striking alternative to eradication. Rather than destroying his fallen creation, He has chosen to restore a people for Himself, a people who one day will live with Him in a restored creation (2 Peter 3:13).\n\n4. Evil is not a thing, but a privation of the good. \nThis was the point that Augustine made in the fourth century when refuting the dualistic Manichean cult out of which he had come when converted to Christ. Mani h