Debate: Could a Good God Permit So Much Suffering?

Could a good God permit so much suffering? Is belief in God compatible with the moral evil in our world?

These and other questions are the subject of a debate between Charity Anderson (Baylor University), Mark Johnston (Princeton University), James Sterba (University of Notre Dame), and Richard Swinburne (University of Oxford) to be held on Monday, March 3, from 4:30pm-6:30pm in McCosh 28. The debate is open to the public.

Princeton undergraduates are especially encouraged to attend. The debate is co-sponsored by PRÉCIS, which stands for “Philosophy, Religion, and Existential Commitments in Society.” This is an initiative of the Princeton Project in Philosophy and Religion (3PR), in collaboration with the Department of Philosophy. Primarily focused on undergraduates, the aim of PRÉCIS is to foster philosophical and theological reflection on how we should live. The popular course “PHI 211: Philosophy, Religion, and Existential Commitments” is also an initiative of PRÉCIS.

This debate is also co-sponsored by the University Center for Human Values.

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Charity Anderson is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Baylor University.

Mark Johnston is Henry Putnam University Professor of Philosophy at Princeton University.

James Sterba is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame.

Richard Swinburne is a Fellow of the British Academy and was Professor of the Philosophy of Religion at the University of Oxford from 1985 to 2002.

Please email Sebastian Hayden (sahayden@) for more details.