A Theodicy, or, Vindication of the Divine Glory

Conclusion. A Summary View Of The Principles And Advantages Of The Foregoing System. Chapter I. Summary Of The First Part Of The Foregoing System. Section I. The scheme of necessity denies that man is the responsible author of sin. Section II. The scheme of necessity makes God the author of sin. Section III. The scheme of necessity denies the reality of moral distinctions. Section IV. The moral world not constituted according to the scheme of necessity. Section V. The relation between the human agency and the divine. Section VI. The existence of moral evil consistent with the infinite purity of God. Chapter II. Summary Of The Second Part Of The Foregoing System. Section I. God desires the salvation of all men. Section II. The sufferings of the innocent, and especially of infants, consistent with the goodness of God. Section III. The sufferings of Christ consistent with the divine goodness. Section IV. The eternity of future punishment consistent with the goodness of God. Section V. The true doctrine of election and predestination consistent with the goodness of God. Section VI. The question submitted. Footnotes [pg 011] Introduction. Of The Possibility Of A Theodicy. How, under the government of an infinitely perfect Being, evil could have proceeded from a creature of his own, has ever been regarded as the great difficulty pertaining to the intellectual system of the universe. It has never ceased to puzzle and perplex the human mind. Indeed, so great and so obstinate has it seemed, that it is usually supposed to lie beyond the reach of the human faculties. We shall, however, examine the grounds of this opinion, before we exchange the bright illusions of hope, if such indeed they be, for the gloomy forebodings of despair. Section I. The failure of Plato and other ancient philosophers to construct a Theodicy, not a ground of despair. The supposed want of success attending the labours of the past, is, no doubt, the principal reason which has induced so many to abandon the problem of evil in despair, and even to accuse of presumption every speculation designed to shed light upon so great a mystery. But this reason, however specious and imposing at first view, will lose much of its apparent force upon a closer examination. In every age the same reasoning has been employed to repress the efforts of the human mind to overcome the difficulties by which it…