The problem of evil has troubled theologians and philosophers since antiquity. Multiple solutions to this problem have been proposed over the centuries, but none has fully answered the question of why God allows evil into our lives.
Author James J. Garber offers a systematic explanation of the problem of evil in his book God, Darwin, and the Problem of Evil. Garber’s answer is based on evolution as developed by Charles Darwin in the nineteenth century. Evolution, as explained by Darwin, has come to be accepted by the scientific community as an empirically sound explanation for how humans, flora, and fauna have come to exist on earth. Our environment is constantly changing, and if we are to survive in our world, we must evolve. Thus, what we view as the problem of evil is actually God’s (or some higher power’s) way of helping us survive and become more advanced as a species. We need challenges, or some form of “evil,” to survive. Thus, the evils we face daily are part of the material world in which we live.
God, Darwin, and the Problem of Evil provides a systematic explanation of evil. Whether one is a theist, deist, or an atheist, the problem of evil can be solved by Garber’s Darwinian and evolutionary solution to the problem of evil.