Image credit: Adam Block, Mount Lemmon,
SkyCenter University of Arizona
2010 Theodicy and Practical Theology: PhD thesis, the University of Wales, Trinity Saint David, Lampeter
Feinberg holds to modified rationalism
which was explained in Chapter Two as the idea that God was not obligated to
create anything, including a world, but chose to create purely from his own
desires.[1] Within modified
rationalism, the concept of a best possible world is denied in favour of the
view that God chose to create the present world which was initially perfectly
good.[2] The fact that the problem
of evil exists would be seen within modified rationalism as a result of the
free choice of human beings to rebel against God in both free will and
sovereignty theodicy which both deny the notion of best possible world.[3] Modified rationalism
would oppose the best possible world concepts of Leibniz from the Enlightenment
era, and Mackie from the modern era.[4]
Twitter version
Modified rationalism is the idea that God was not obligated to create anything, including a world, but chose to create purely from his own desires.
(February 25, 2022: I agree with modified rationalism. I also reject the idea of a best possible world, as any created world/reality, fallen or not, has limited goodness)
(February 25, 2022: Would this not be a best possible worl' to Bob Ross?)
FEINBERG, JOHN.S. (1986) Predestination and Free Will, in David Basinger and Randall Basinger (eds.), Downers Grove, Illinois, InterVarsity Press.
FEINBERG,
JOHN.S. (1994) The Many Faces of Evil, Grand Rapids, Zondervan
Publishing House.
FEINBERG, JOHN.S. (2001) No One Like Him, John S. Feinberg
(gen.ed.), Wheaton, Illinois, Crossway Books.
FLEW,
ANTONY, R.M. HARE, AND BASIL MITCHELL (1996) ‘The Debate on the Rationality of
Religious Belief’, in L.P. Pojman (ed.), Philosophy, The Quest for
Truth, New York, Wadsworth Publishing Company.
FLEW,
ANTONY AND A.MACINTRYE (1999) ‘Philosophy of Religion’, in Alan Richardson and
John Bowden (eds.), A New Dictionary of Christian Theology, Kent,
SCM Press Ltd.
LEIBNIZ, G.W.
(1710)(1998) Theodicy, Translated by E.M. Huggard Chicago, Open Court
Classics.
MACKIE,
J.L. (1955)(1996) ‘Evil and Omnipotence’, in Mind, in Michael
Peterson, William Hasker, Bruce Reichenbach, and David Basinger (eds.),
Philosophy of Religion, Oxford, Oxford University Press.
MACKIE,
J.L. (1971)(1977)(2002) ‘Evil and Omnipotence’, in The Philosophy of
Religion, in Alvin C. Plantinga, God, Freedom, and Evil, Grand Rapids. Wm.
B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
PLANTINGA,
ALVIN C. (1977)(2002) God, Freedom, and Evil, Grand Rapids, Wm. B.
Eerdmans Publishing Company.
PLANTINGA,
ALVIN C. (1982) The Nature of Necessity, Oxford, Clarendon Press.
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[1]
Feinberg (1994: 36).
[2]
Plantinga (1982: 167-189). Feinberg
(1994: 36).
[3]
Plantinga (1982: 167-189). Feinberg
(1994: 36).
[4] Leibniz (1710)(1990). Mackie (1971) in Plantinga (1977)(2002: 32-33).
