Good and Evil

"Why does God allow so much evil in the world?"

It's a question that has been raised time and time again. For some Christians it has been a source of bewilderment or even doubt. I recently heard the question come from the mouth of a comedian who has made it very clear that he is opposed to organized religion. He points out that, although God is all-powerful and good, Satan remains free to spread his evil influence. This, the comedian believes, is proof of the inconsistencies of organized religion. If there is an all-powerful, benevolent Judeo-Christian God, he wonders, then why doesn't he just crush Satan and rid the world of evil. The Christian he is interviewing assures him that Satan will eventually be crushed. The comedian asks, "Why doesn't He do it right now? What's He waiting for?"

From an LDS perspective, such a question is easy to answer.

Our mortal life has meaning and purpose. What is the purpose? Our Heavenly Father has said, "For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39) How does He accomplish this great work? In order to partake of eternal life, we must become like our Heavenly Father. What is our Heavenly Father like? He is good and perfect and all-powerful. But can there be good without evil? Of course not. If there was no evil, nothing would be good, it would just be. God is perfect not because he cannot make evil choices but because he does not and will not. If he could not then he wouldn't be all powerful. Men, on the other hand, often make evil choices. We all do. And so we see that we must grow spiritually--we must progress--in order to become like our Father in Heaven. And like any good father, God wants us to be the best that we can be. And so He provided a plan--a plan of salvation.

"We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these will dwell; And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;" (Abraham 3:24-25).

Much as children mature and learn to be responsible adults (some of them) through trial and error, men can progress spiritually until they "put off the natural man" and become like our Heavenly Father. This is accomplished by learning to choose good in the face of opposition. And this is where Satan comes in.

"For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things...and to bring about his eternal purposes in the end of man, after [God] had created our first parents...it must needs be that there was an opposition; even the forbidden fruit in opposition to the tree of life; the one being sweet and the other bitter. Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other." (2 Nephi 2:11-16)

Satan provides much of the opposition that allows men to choose between good and evil and progress spiritually. This is not to say that Satan is "essential." Men would still have the ability to choose whether or not to obey the Lord.

Of course, no one achieves perfection in this life. And, while men attempt to choose good over evil, all of us falter. Because God is just, a price must be paid for our sins. Because God is merciful, He paid that price himself.

"And no, the plan of mercy could not be brought about except an atonement should be made; therefore God himself atoneth for the sins of the world, to bring about the plan of mercy, to appease the demands of justice, that God might be a perfect, just God, and a merciful God also." (Alma 42:15)