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Human Questions

What Is the Logical Problem of Evil?

The logical problem of evil asks whether the existence of evil is strictly inconsistent with an omnipotent and perfectly good God.

Quick Answer

The logical problem of evil claims that an all-powerful, all-knowing, perfectly good God and evil cannot both exist. Most contemporary philosophers hold that a possible free-will defense blocks a strict contradiction, while leaving the evidential problem of suffering open.

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Key Takeaways

  • ✦It alleges inconsistency, not merely improbability.
  • ✦A defense need show possibility, not identify God's actual reasons.
  • ✦Its partial resolution did not settle the broader problem of evil.

Question

Why was the logical problem of evil so influential?

Quick Answer

It forced theists to explain how divine goodness and power could coexist with evil without contradiction.

The Inconsistency Claim

J. L. Mackie's famous formulation argued that traditional divine attributes and evil create an inconsistent set unless a further proposition reconciles them. The debate was therefore initially about logical possibility, not about how emotionally or morally convincing a reconciliation would be.

The Free Will Defense

Plantinga argued that a world containing significantly free creatures may include moral evil even if God is omnipotent, because it may be impossible to guarantee free creatures always choose good. A defense need only show this is possible to defeat a contradiction claim.

What Remains

The defense does not explain natural evil or show that actual suffering is justified. For that reason, philosophers often distinguish the logical challenge from evidential arguments about the amount and distribution of suffering.

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Reviewed by ZHAIBIAN AI Editorial Review · 2026-08-23

◈Based on 2 scholarly sources◈Last updated 2026-08-23
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