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John Harwood Hick (20 January 1922 – 9 February 2012) was an English-born philosopher of religion and theologian who taught in the United States for the larger part of his career. In philosophical theology , he made contributions in the areas of theodicy , eschatology , and Christology , and in the philosophy of religion he contributed to the ...
Another definition of theodicy is the vindication of divine goodness and providence in view of the existence of evil. The word theodicy derives from the Greek words Θεός, Theos and δίκη, dikē. Theos is translated "God" and dikē can be translated as either "trial" or "judgement". [5] Thus, 'theodicy' literally means "justifying God". [6]
Theodicy is an attempt to reconcile the existence and nature of God with evidence of evil in the world by providing valid explanations for its occurrence. [2] The Augustinian theodicy asserts that God created the world ex nihilo (out of nothing), but maintains that God did not create evil and is not responsible for its occurrence. [4]
The Irenaean (or soul-making) theodicy is named after the 2nd-century Greek theologian Irenaeus, whose ideas were adopted in Eastern Christianity. It has been modified and advocated in the twenty-first century by John Hick. [25] Irenaen theodicy stands in sharp contrast to the Augustinian.
John Hick's Theodicy, with a response by John Hick, Macmillan in the UK and St. Martin's in the US, 1991. The Bible as Story and Struggle , Herald House, 1989. Fire In My Loins: A Study in Faith and Belief , Herald House, 1984
Erik J. Wielenberg draws upon Lewis's broader corpus beyond The Problem of Pain but also, to a lesser extent, on the thought of two other contemporary proponents of the soul-making theodicy, John Hick and Trent Dougherty, in an attempt to make the case that Lewis's version of the soul-making theodicy has depth and resilience. [153]
Theologian Mark Scott has argued that John Hick's theodicy is more closely aligned with Origen's beliefs than Irenaeus' and ought to be called an "Origenian theodicy". Origen used two metaphors for the world: it is a school and a hospital for souls, with God as Teacher and Physician, in which suffering plays both an educative and healing role.
John Hick used the term "soul-making" in his theodicy Evil and the God of Love to describe the kind of spiritual development that he believes justifies the existence of evil. This defense is employed by Michael Murray, [ 31 ] who explains how, in his view, divine hiddenness is essential to soul-making.