An Analytical Investigation of Swinburne's Theodicy of Divine Justice and its Criticism according to the Perspective of Philosophical Kālām of Imamiyŷah
Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 PhD student of Islamic theology, Tabriz University
2 Faculty Member of Tabriz University associate professor, Department of Philosophy and Kalam
3 Assistant Professor, of University of Tabriz, Department of Islamic Philosophy and Theology
Abstract
The problem of evil is one of the most important and fundamental issues in the history of thought, which has always been a place of discussion and consideration by thinkers with different approaches. The importance of this issue is so great that it is referred to as “the basis of atheism” and many questions of atheists in denying the Existence of God and His Absolute Attributes arise from this issue. Richard Swinburne, one of the inspirational figures of analytical philosophy and Christian theology, has tried to solve the problem of evil and answer questions about it in the theodicy of divine justice. Swinburne's theodicy presents a defense based on free will in rejecting the logical problem of evil through the theodicy of divine justice, which can also be called “teleologically theodicy of divine justice”. From Swinburne's point of view, with a detailed understanding of the problem of evil, not only the Existence of God is not denied, but we understand His Existence more and better. In this research, an attempt is made to investigate and analyze the theodicy of divine justice with a descriptive-analytical method and with a critical approach, and then to criticize it from the perspective of philosophical kālām of Imamiyŷah. Swinburne's theodicy according to the philosophical kālām of Imamiyŷah is faced with criticisms such as false responsibility, incorrect explanation of evil epistemology, and inappropriate justification of natural evil, which challenge the veracity and completeness of this theodicy and reduce its validity.
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