The problem of evil and the existence of God - Sami Ameri

The problem of evil, or the dilemma of evil, is the last weapon of atheistic religion to refute the truth of faith in God. The summary of this problem is the impossibility of reconciling belief in a knowing, capable, and good God on one hand, with belief in the existence of evil on the other. It is a complaint that atheists claim has no answer despite a flood of responses from philosophers and theodicists, both old and new. And although we agree with atheists that many of the proposed answers are flawed and limited, we claim that the Islamic answer is the only one capable of quelling the whispers of doubt and creating in the believer’s mind a harmonious, satisfying perception of the greater universe without a bitter contradiction between a perfect, all-attributes Creator and a harsh, painful evil that disturbs the soul’s times of peace. The book offers its response to the atheistic objection through what the author calls “Theodicy of Integrative Wisdom,” thereby demonstrating the ability of the Islamic approach to answer the doubt without merely invalidating it, as they claim that the evil doubt is in fact an argument for faith in God from multiple angles. Perhaps the most important achievement of the book is its dismantling of internal doubts within the larger doubt, presenting them in a questioning framework. The problem of evil is actually multiple problems: a logical problem, an evidential problem, and a problem related to gratuitous evil. Evil, in truth, is multiple evils: natural evil, moral evil, and metaphysical evil. One of the main aims of the author is to reveal to the Muslim reader the latest form of this doubt as it appears in the writings of the leaders of philosophical atheism: (Jay Mackey) and (William Row), and the conclusions of philosophical debate about it in the West. This paves an easier way for the reader to understand the nature of this debate and the distinctive position of the Islamic approach within it. Also, the reader who is not interested in philosophical detailed analysis will find an answer to what might puzzle him about the existence of complex evils in a universe created by a merciful God. Although the subject is complex and rugged, the author has endeavored to simplify it in a way that allows the non-specialist in theological and philosophical knowledge to grasp its details and benefit from its fruit as easily as possible. So, what is the problem of evil in detail? And what is its place in the Western atheistic approach, where atheism has a vast library fueling the world with every doubt? Does the problem of evil truly invalidate itself from within? Did God create evil? Or…? How does the problem of evil relate fundamentally to understanding the limits of human perception and its horizons? Why did the logical clash between God's goodness and the existence of evil fall in the West? What is the doubt of gratuitous evil? And how does the Muslim view it through his perception of the greater universe? What are the roots of the Islamic solution proposed by the author under the name “Theodicy of Integrative Wisdom”? And where does it differ from other major approaches? And other questions whose comprehensive answers are found in the book, God willing… Second edition | 2018 Cover type: Cardboard Size: 24 × 17