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GORDON-CONWELL THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

POSITION PAPER
ON THE ORIGIN OF NATURAL EVIL

SUBMITTED TO PROF. PATRICK SMITH

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
TH605 - SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY 2

BY
LARRY HACKMAN
BOX 182-B
4 APRIL 2011
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The occurrence of natural evil has especially been on the forefront of cultural thought lately. The

devastating earthquake and corresponding tsunami in Japan brought about a massive loss of life and a

national crisis that seems to not end. But as stories of lax government oversight, over-confidence in

preparations, and even pride1 come trickling out from Japan, the line seems to blur between natural evil

and moral evil. How much of the loss of life in Japan was due to the effects of sin from the Fall, or is the

power of nature to blame? This paper will argue the former, that natural evil is best understood as the

consequence of mankind’s broken relationship with God and the environment.

In the Genesis account God describes his creation repeatedly as “good,” even “very good.” By

all indications, when God says this he is including such things as mosquitos, bacteria, and even natural

processes such as earthquakes and tornados.2 Many of these things are, after all, a natural part,

sometimes even an essential part, of the created order. Tornados are simply the intersection of two

opposing air currents; is a created order that includes air currents even possible to exist without at least

the possibilities for a tornado to occur? In other words, these things are simply part of the created order

as we understand it. As Erickson puts it, “it seems best to think of [these] conditions as being present

from the beginning, but neutral in character”3 regardless of their potential for human harm. If this is the

case, then how do we explain why they are such great sources of pain and suffering in the world today?

Natural phenomenon is painful because the harmonious relationship between man and nature that

existed pre-Fall no longer exists. The text of Adam’s curse in Genesis speaks of the ground being

“cursed... because of [Adam]” (3:17) and that “thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you” (3:18).

This is in stark contrast to the relative ease of cultivation that Adam experienced previously in the

Garden as “every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food... [sprung] up” (2:9). As God had

1 Some people ran toward the seawall as the tsunami alarm blared in order to catch a glimpse of the rising sea water that they
were sure would not crest the wall. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/02/world/asia/02wall.html?_r=1
2 Some would say that many of these things only occurred after the Fall, but I will address this objection later.
3 Millard Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1998), 452.
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made it Adam’s purpose to “work.. and keep” (2:15) the Garden, it is clear that this work has become

much more difficult, even hostile, after the Fall. In effect, Adam’s relationship to the created order has

changed from that of being able to subdue it and steward it (1:28), to that of essentially fighting for his

life in the midst of it. What was meant to be subdued, now subdues Adam. In other words, the

relationship with the created order that God had intended for humankind, that of dominion and

stewardship, no longer exists in its purest, most able form. Also damaged in the Fall was humankind’s

relationship to the Creator, to the one who best understands Creation. In effect, the Fall caused

humankind to lose touch with the owner’s manual of Creation by losing touch with the Creator.

As man has grown distant from his Creator and the Creation, natural evils have consequently

become prevalent in the world.4 For example, the loss of life from what we term “natural disasters” is

completely avoidable in a world where humankind is in perfect relationship with his environment and

with God. In a world of unbroken relationship with the Creator, humans could have (informed by God or

at least understanding their environment well) prepared for the eventuality of an earthquake or simply

moved out of danger ahead of time, much in the way that Noah did during the Flood catastrophe. 5

Besides this, we are only beginning to understand that the choices and actions of human beings may

affect the environment, either directly bringing or exacerbating many so-called “natural disasters”. 6

On a similar note, genetics is an emerging field, but scientists are learning more and more that

our interaction with the environment and even the choices in mates that we make influence how genes

pass on and how genetic disorders arise.7 Genetic disorders are incredibly complex and far more

4 John S. Feinberg, The Many Faces of Evil (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2004), 192-193. My thanks to Feinberg for his
useful categorization of natural evils in the next few paragraphs.
5 Genesis 6:9-22. I understand that the Flood can hardly be called the result of natural processes insofar as God directly

intervenes in the created order for the purpose of judgement, but the point is that God has, and can, preserve those in proper
relationship with him by instructing them on how to interact with Creation.
6 See “Climate change may trigger earthquakes and volcanoes,” http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20327273.800-

climate-change-may-trigger-earthquakes-and-volcanoes.html?full=true or “Contrails impact climate more than planes’ carbon

emissions,” http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/03/contrails-impact-climate-more-than-planes-carbon-emissions.ars or
any literature on the causes of the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.
7 “What are genetic disorders?” accessed April 2, 2011, http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/disorders/whataregd/.
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influenced by the choices we (and our ancestors) make than we may know or understand. Disease can be

closely linked to genetics, but also to the body’s interaction with the environment, food, and interaction

with each other, all choices to be made by the individual persons. Many diseases are completely

avoidable in a pre-Fall world (for example, cholera or bubonic plague) and some would have no vector

of transmission (AIDS, syphilis).8 Assuming a perfectly created body able to live in perfect harmony

with the created order, an unbroken relationship with God and Creation could have allowed humans to

make right choices that perpetrated life and harmony.

In essence, God created our human bodies to co-exist with much of what we find dangerous

today, but since the Fall human beings have perpetrated and experienced disease, genetic disorders, and

the consequences of natural disasters because of poor or even malicious choices. While many of the

“natural evils” may seem to be random in nature, they may ultimately be caused by the cumulative

effects of broken interaction with a complex system, the created order, or would otherwise be avoidable

in perfect relationship with the Creator. As Feinberg puts it, “Had sin not entered the world, I take it that

biblical teaching implies that natural processes wouldn’t function in ways that contribute to or cause

death.”9

Many young-earth creationists would object to this understanding of natural evil, particularly

that it would be even possible that hurricanes, disease, or even, for that matter, carnivorous appetites

existed before the fall. After all, how could such things be considered “very good” at all? In their view,

animal death of any kind, and even thorns and disease, only exist in the period since the Fall.10 Though

they would not differ with me over the essential cause of natural evil in the world (the Fall), they would

8 Paul seems to suggest that at least some diseases are consequences of sin in Romans 1:27.
9 Feinberg, The Many Faces of Evil, 195.
10 “Why Does God’s Creation Include Death and Suffering?” accessed April 2, 2011, http://www.answersingenesis.org/

articles/nab/why-does-creation-include-suffering.
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differ over the mechanics of how this came about. My view sees a collapse or corruption of the natural

order; their view sees an introduction of an entirely different natural order as the cause of natural evil.

As C.S. Lewis points out, “‘Life’ in the biological sense has nothing to do with good and evil

until sentience appears.”11 In other words, suffering only matters to a being who has a “self”. Animals,

with no imago Dei, do not perpetrate or experience evil simply because they are not moral agents. So a

pre-fall existence of such an environment wherein animal death can occur can certainly be good, simply

because it is what God has made. Again, Lewis says, “A forest in which half the trees are killing the

other half may be a perfectly ‘good‘ forest: for its goodness consists of its utility and beauty and it does

not feel.”12

Moreover, the idea that such things did not yet exist until Adam sinned suggest a re-creation

event. Some even suggest that, “God reprogrammed the genetic material of animals and plants”13 so that

they become prone to carnivorous inclinations. Though proponents of this view might argue from

Romans 8:20 that God subjects creation to futility, one can argue that it is more likely that Adam in his

sin subjected it. Also, the Bible does not mention a specific re-creation event, or a re-write of Creation.

Furthermore, this puts the young-earth creationist in the uncomfortable position of saying that sin was

not bad enough to corrupt the created order, God had to do it!

While the young-earth creationist may be able to answer the question of how there is natural evil,

their position exacerbates the problem of natural evil: does God directly cause evil? In their view God

actually perpetrates it as a curse on mankind and continually upholds the creation in a cursed state.14 In

other words, God directly inflicts suffering as a punishment. In my view, sin is catalyst enough to be the

cause of natural evil, leaving it unnecessary to make God the direct agent of our suffering.

11 C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1996), 133.
12 Lewis, The Problem of Pain, 134.
13 “Herbivores, Carnivores and the Created Order,” accessed April 2, 2011, http://www.creationresearch.org/creation_matters/

96/cm9605.html.
14 “Why Does God’s Creation Include Suffering and Death?”
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Bibliography

Erickson, Millard. Christian Theology. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1998.

Feinberg, John S. The Many Faces of Evil. Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2004.

Lewis, C.S. The Problem of Pain. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1996.