Natural Evil Research Paper

The news in the world today is troubling. Wars, disease, and other catastrophes make everyone wonder if God exists. Assuming He does exist, people wonder why he doesn’t end the suffering in the world. Most refer to this issue as the problem of evil. Natural catastrophes, wars, disease, etc. all bring the non-believer and the believer alike to the problem of evil. The problem of evil arises because of a perceived inconsistency with God. Christians believe that God is all-powerful, sovereign, and all-loving. However, the evil in the world is real. God, who is all-powerful, doesn't abolish evil. Therefore, either God is not omnipotent, or God is not all-good. There are two "types" of evil considered to be in the world, moral evil and natural evil. Moral evil is that evil that comes from an action (or inaction) taken by a human. An example of a moral sin could be shooting a gun that causes death. However, equally a moral evil is preventing access to the weapon and not doing so. As John Gerstner states "Natural Evil, although distinct from moral evil, is not separate from it" (Gerstner, 412). Natural evil, on the other hand, is not caused, it "just happens". Tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, diseases, and so on all fall under this category of evil.
Sin originated in the Garden of Eden with the fall of man. Adam and Eve were the first humans, created "in the image of God" (Genesis 1:27 NIV) to tend to the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were allowed freedom to eat from any tree in the garden, except they were not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Satan tempted Eve to take of the tree and both she and her husband ate of the fruit. Through this failure to obey God, sin entered the world, and it was not just them who received God's judgment. God passed judgment on the whole creation, not just