A clear and student-friendly analysis of Augustine’s views on the problem of evil and free will, including his four answers to evil, the role of providence and foreknowledge, and his response to Cicero on human freedom.
Table of Contents
Background of the Problem of Evil in Augustine’s Philosophy
Augustine’s Idea of God and Divine Providence
- Augustine explains ultimate reality (God) from a Christian religious perspective, not a secular one.
- His view is different from Greek philosophers like Aristotle and Plato.
- Aristotle’s God (the Unmoved Mover) thinks only about itself, not about the world.
- Plato’s Demiurge brings order and harmony but is not loving or caring.
- Augustine’s God cares for the world and relates to it like a father.
- This continuous care of God for the world is called Providence.
- Providence means God not only creates the world but constantly maintains and plans for it.
Summary
Augustine presents a Christian view of God as loving, caring, and deeply involved in the world. This ongoing divine care is called providence and is central to understanding later philosophical problems.
Personal God and the Emergence of the Problem of Evil
- Augustine’s own life was marked by confusion and inner dissatisfaction.
- He believed God is not only good in itself but good for human beings.
- This belief gives people security, peace, and emotional satisfaction.
- Christian philosophy became popular because it offered a personal and caring God.
- Stoic philosophy speaks of God as Logos, an impersonal rational principle.
- An impersonal God cannot form a personal relationship with humans.
- A loving, all-powerful, and all-knowing God raises a serious question.
- If God cares for the world, why does evil exist?
- This question is called the Problem of Evil and is closely tied to providence.
Summary
The idea of a personal and caring God attracts suffering humans but also creates a philosophical difficulty. The coexistence of divine providence and evil becomes a central problem in Augustine’s thought.
Creation, Dualism, and Types of Evil
- The Bible says God created the world and called it very good.
- Augustine struggles to explain evil in a good creation.
- If God is the highest good, God cannot be the creator of evil.
- This confusion leads Augustine toward Manichean philosophy.
- Manicheans believe in two equal powers: good and evil.
- In this view, evil comes from a separate dark force, not from God.
- Later, Augustine is influenced by Neoplatonic philosophy and rejects dualism.
- He divides evil into two types: moral evil and natural evil.
- Moral evil (sin) arises from the misuse of human free will.
- Natural evil includes suffering we do not choose, such as death, disease, and disasters.
Summary
Augustine rejects the idea of two equal powers of good and evil. By distinguishing between moral and natural evil, he lays the foundation for his later answers to the problem of evil.
The Privation Theory of Evil
- Augustine’s first response to the problem of evil is called the Privation Theory of Evil.
- Privation means the absence or lack of something that should be present.
- According to this view, evil is not a thing or substance on its own.
- Evil is understood as a lack of good, not as an independent reality.
- Just as darkness is the absence of light, evil is the absence of goodness.
- Similarly, disease is not a substance but a lack of health.
- Augustine connects this idea with the Great Chain of Being.
- God is the highest reality and therefore the highest good.
- Created things are real but less real than God, and so less good.
- Where there is less reality, there is less goodness.
- Where goodness is lacking, we describe that lack as evil.
- Evil, therefore, is a negative concept, defined by what is missing.
- For example, when a machine does not work properly, we say there is a defect or lack, not a new thing called “evil” inside it.
Summary
In Augustine’s privation theory, evil has no independent existence. It is simply the absence of goodness, just as darkness is the absence of light. Since all reality comes from God, evil cannot be a created thing but only a lack within created beings.
Epistemic Theory of Evil
Epistemic Evil and an Example from Augustine’s Life
- Epistemic means related to knowledge.
- In this theory, evil appears because of human ignorance, not because it truly exists.
- Events seem evil when we do not understand God’s larger plan.
- Augustine’s journey from Carthage to Rome worried his mother deeply.
- Augustine later felt guilty for causing her pain.
- Over time, he realized this journey was part of God’s hidden plan.
- What seemed wrong earlier later led him toward Christian faith and salvation.
Summary
According to the epistemic view, something appears evil when humans lack knowledge. Augustine’s own life shows how apparent evil can later turn out to be good.
Daily Life Examples of Evil as Ignorance
- A person watching a surgical operation without medical knowledge may think the doctor is cruel.
- In reality, the doctor causes pain to heal the patient.
- Fire seems harmful because it can burn, but with knowledge it is highly useful.
- Poison looks purely bad, but with proper knowledge it can be used as medicine.
Summary
Many things look evil only because we do not understand their purpose or correct use. Knowledge changes our judgment.
Two Kinds of Ignorance Related to Evil
- First kind: Ignorance of God’s plan.
- We call events evil because we do not know God’s reasons.
- Second kind: Ignorance about things themselves.
- Objects seem good or bad depending on how much we understand them.
Summary
Evil appears in two ways: through lack of knowledge about God’s intentions and lack of knowledge about the world.
Difference Between Privation Theory and Epistemic Theory
- Privation Theory is metaphysical.
- Evil is a lack of goodness in things themselves.
- Epistemic Theory is knowledge-based.
- Evil exists because of a lack of understanding in us.
- Privation locates the lack in reality.
- Epistemic theory locates the lack in human knowledge.
Summary
Privation theory explains evil as a lack within things, while epistemic theory explains evil as a result of human ignorance. Both theories address evil differently but are not the same.
The Mutability Theory of Evil
- Augustine’s third answer is metaphysical and is often called the Mutability Theory of Evil.
- God is unchangeable, but the world created by God is changeable (mutable).
- The world is created out of nothing, so it does not share God’s perfect nature.
- Mutability means the world has the possibility and freedom to change.
- Change can occur in any direction—toward God (good) or away from God (evil).
- God created the world good and without evil, but with the capacity to change.
- Evil arises when creation moves away from God, not because God created evil.
- This shows that mutability itself is not evil, but a condition for freedom.
- Augustine also argues that defect presupposes goodness.
- A defect can exist only where something was meant to be good.
- Blindness is a defect of eyes because eyes are meant to see.
- A stone cannot be blind because it was never meant to see.
- Therefore, evil can exist only in things that were originally good.
- Evil itself becomes evidence of prior goodness in creation.
Summary
In the mutability theory, evil arises because the created world is changeable and free. God made the world good but mutable, allowing it to move in different directions. Evil appears when creation turns away from God, and even this defect shows that goodness existed first.
Moral Evil, Sin, and Divine Grace
What Is Moral Evil
- Moral evil arises from the misuse of human free will.
- God created humans with free will, which is itself a good.
- Humans were free to choose either God’s order or their own will.
- Moral evil occurs when humans freely choose the wrong, instead of the right.
- This choice is described as turning away from God.
- Moral evil is not a substance or object; it is a human act.
Summary
Moral evil is caused by human free will being used wrongly. It is an action, not a thing, and it begins when humans choose themselves over God.
Natural Evil as a Consequence of Moral Evil
- Natural evils include death, illness, old age, disasters, and suffering.
- Augustine argues that these are results, not the original cause.
- The real source of natural evil is moral evil.
- The first moral evil was committed by Adam.
- Adam chose lower good over higher good due to pride.
- After this first sin, humanity became enslaved to sin.
- As a result, suffering entered human life as a consequence.
Summary
Natural evil exists because moral evil came first. Human suffering is a result of the original misuse of free will, beginning with Adam.
Sin and God’s Grace: A Free and Unconditional Gift
- Humans are now trapped in sin and cannot save themselves.
- Without God’s grace, the human will cannot return to the right direction.
- Divine grace is a free gift given by God.
- Grace is not based on merit, good deeds, belief, or effort.
- Humans cannot earn or demand grace from God.
- If grace were based on merit, it would create pride, which is itself a sin.
- Augustine explains this with an exam example:
- Good marks based on answers create pride in the student.
- Grace must remain unconditional so that no one can boast.
- God cannot be forced, unlike a teacher who can be challenged.
- Grace is given by God’s will alone.
Summary
According to Augustine, humans cannot escape sin by their own effort. Salvation is possible only through God’s grace, which is freely given and not based on merit.
Grace, Justice, and Augustine’s Reply to the Charge of Injustice
- A question arises: is it unjust if God gives grace to some and not to others?
- This idea can be explained using a debt example.
- If a lender forgives one debtor’s loan, others cannot demand the same.
- Forgiveness is a free gift, not an obligation.
- All humans are sinners and deserve punishment.
- Grace is God’s mercy, not a matter of justice.
- Humans cannot complain if grace is not given to all.
Summary
Grace is not injustice because no one deserves it. When God gives grace, it is mercy, not obligation, and humans have no right to demand it.
Augustine’s Four Answers to the Problem of Evil: An Integrated Overview
- Augustine does not give four unrelated answers to the problem of evil.
- All four answers are interconnected and address different aspects of the same problem.
- Each answer explains evil from a distinct philosophical angle.
- Together, they form a complete and systematic explanation.
- The Privation Theory of Evil explains what evil is.
- Evil is not a substance or reality.
- It is the absence or lack of goodness.
- The Epistemic Theory of Evil explains why evil appears real to us.
- Evil looks real because of human ignorance.
- We lack full knowledge of God’s plan and purposes.
- The Mutability Theory of Evil explains why evil is possible at all.
- The created world is changeable, unlike God.
- This mutability makes deviation from good metaphysically possible.
- The Moral Evil Theory explains the source of evil.
- Evil enters the world through the misuse of free will.
- Moral evil comes first, and natural evil follows as its consequence.
- These answers work together, not separately.
- Each one fills a gap left by the others.
- Augustine’s solution is therefore multi-dimensional, not single-point.
Summary
Augustine’s four answers to the problem of evil address different questions about evil. Privation explains what evil is, epistemic theory explains why it appears real, mutability explains how evil is possible, and moral evil explains its origin. Together, they form a unified and coherent response to the problem of evil.
Augustine’s Timeline of Evil: From Creation to the Need for Divine Grace
- God exists as eternal, perfect, and unchangeable goodness.
- God creates the world out of nothing, not from his own substance.
- The created world is mutable, meaning it can change.
- This mutability includes the metaphysical possibility of losing goodness or perfection.
- God then creates rational beings such as Adam and Eve.
- Rational beings are given free will, because free will is itself a good.
- Free will allows choice between obedience to God and self-centered desire.
- Humans misuse free will and turn away from God.
- Through this act, moral evil enters the world.
- As a result, natural evil such as suffering, death, and disorder follows.
- Humanity becomes enslaved to sin and cannot restore itself.
- Human will is now weakened and misdirected.
- Salvation becomes possible only through God’s grace.
- Divine grace is a free and unearned gift, not based on merit.
Summary
According to Augustine, evil enters history through the misuse of free will by rational beings. A mutable world makes evil possible, moral evil causes natural evil, and humanity becomes trapped in sin. Only God’s grace can restore humans to the right direction.
Free Will as the Background Condition for Evil
- Natural evil follows from moral evil.
- Moral evil results from the misuse of free will.
- God gives humans free will, because freedom is itself a good.
- God has the power to take back free will and remove evil.
- Doing so would turn humans into beings without real choice.
- God instead follows a larger plan.
- He educates humans through freedom, not force.
- God wants humans to freely choose the good.
- This prepares the ground for the next issue: is free will truly possible?
Summary
This note shows why free will stands behind the problem of evil. Evil arises from freedom, and although God could remove freedom to stop evil, He preserves it so that goodness may be chosen freely.
Why Free Will Becomes a Problem: Foreknowledge and Providence
- God wants humans to freely choose the good.
- The difficulty arises because of God’s nature.
- God is eternal and exists outside time.
- God knows past, present, and future together.
- This complete knowledge of the future is called divine foreknowledge.
- God is not only a knower but also a doer.
- God’s active care and planning is called providence.
- If God already knows what will happen, the future cannot be otherwise.
- God’s knowledge cannot be wrong or changed.
- If God also plans events, then outcomes seem fixed in advance.
- This creates the problem of free will:
- Can humans choose differently?
- Is free will really possible?
Summary
The problem of free will arises because God knows the future and also governs the world. If future events are already known and planned by God, it becomes difficult to explain how human choices can be genuinely free.
Augustine and Cicero on Free Will: Foreknowledge, Causation, and Human Freedom
Cicero’s Argument Against Free Will
- Free will is necessary for morality (praise, blame, reward, punishment).
- If God has divine foreknowledge, then future events are already known.
- What is already known cannot be otherwise.
- If events cannot be otherwise, their causes are fixed.
- Fixed events and fixed causes together amount to fate.
- If everything happens by fate, human choice is not free.
- Without free will, morality loses its meaning.
- Therefore, Cicero concludes that we must choose between:
- Divine foreknowledge, or
- Human free will.
- Cicero rejects divine foreknowledge to save free will.
Summary
Cicero argues that foreknowledge leads to fate, fate destroys freedom, and without freedom morality collapses. Hence, divine foreknowledge must be denied.
Augustine’s Core Position
- Augustine rejects Cicero’s conclusion.
- He argues that divine foreknowledge and free will are compatible.
- God’s foreknowledge is knowledge, not compulsion.
- Knowing an action does not cause that action.
- Human actions are caused by human will, not by God’s knowing them.
- Free will itself is a real cause of actions.
- God knows all causes.
- Therefore, God also knows human will as a cause.
- God knows future actions because he knows that humans will freely choose them.
Summary
Augustine’s key claim is that free will is a genuine cause of action, and God’s knowledge includes this cause without destroying its freedom.
The Central Mistake in Cicero’s Reasoning
- Cicero makes a hidden assumption.
- He assumes:
- If something is known beforehand, it must happen by necessity.
- Augustine rejects this assumption.
- He distinguishes clearly between:
- “It will happen” (certainty or knowledge), and
- “It must happen” (necessity or force).
- Certainty does not imply compulsion.
Summary
Cicero confuses certainty with necessity. Augustine shows that knowing an event does not force it to happen.
Examples Explaining Augustine’s Reply
- Future-choice example:
- You know your friend will choose tea, not coffee.
- Your knowledge does not force your friend’s choice.
- Your knowledge follows the choice; it does not create it.
- Past-action example:
- Today you know that you watched a movie yesterday.
- Your present knowledge did not force your past action.
- God and time:
- God exists outside time.
- What is future for humans is already known to God.
- God’s knowledge is like someone who has already seen a movie:
- Knowing the story does not control the characters.
Summary
In both past and future cases, knowledge does not produce actions. It merely reflects them.
Augustine’s Final Reply to Cicero
- Human will is a free cause of human action.
- God knows all causes, including free human will.
- God’s foreknowledge includes knowing how humans will freely act.
- Divine foreknowledge does not turn free action into fate.
- Cicero’s argument fails because it treats knowledge as causation.
Summary
Augustine preserves both divine foreknowledge and human freedom by showing that God knows future actions as freely chosen actions, not as forced events.
Two Further Clarifications by Augustine on Free Will
God’s Knowledge Is Not “Before” Human Action
- Augustine says the word “before” cannot be applied to God.
- God is not temporal; He exists outside time.
- For God, past, present, and future are one single moment.
- Therefore, God does not know events before they happen.
- God simply knows them eternally.
- The idea that foreknowledge comes earlier than human action is a human mistake.
Summary
Augustine removes the confusion created by time-language. Since God is outside time, divine foreknowledge does not occur “before” human choices and therefore does not threaten free will.
Providence Works Through Human Will
- Augustine accepts that God does everything (providence).
- However, God acts through human will, not against it.
- Human will is an instrument within God’s plan.
- God’s plan is fulfilled without destroying human freedom.
- Human free will is part of providence, not opposed to it.
- God’s way of working is mysterious, but not coercive.
Summary
Augustine argues that divine providence does not bypass human freedom. God achieves His purposes by working through human will, making free will an essential part of the divine plan.
Two Core Issues Raised by the Problems of Evil and Free Will
- First issue: the corruption of free will
- God created the human will as good.
- Evil enters the world through bad will.
- This raises a central question:
- Why and how does a good will become corrupt?
- Second issue: human responsibility under divine action
- Augustine says God acts through providence.
- Humans are also described as enslaved to sin.
- Yet humans are still held responsible for wrong actions.
- This creates a second question:
- If God does everything and humans are bound by sin, how are humans morally responsible?
Summary
The discussion ends by raising two unresolved problems. First, the cause of the corruption of free will. Second, the basis of human responsibility if divine providence governs all actions and humans are enslaved to sin.
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