In this volume, Salih Sayilgan explores the problem of evil and suffering in Islamic theology along with the questions that both religious and non-religious people alike perennially ask: Why is there evil and suffering? What is God's role in both natural and moral evil? If God is loving, just, powerful, why is there innocent suffering? Do humans have free will or are they predestined to act in a certain way? Examining both theoretical and practical theodicy in Islam, he provides Muslim perspectives on natural and moral evil in light of Islamic theological concepts. Sayilgan interrogates several specific topics related to evil and suffering, including death, sickness, aging, disability, climate change, and pandemics. These topics are explored through case studies from the lives of Muslims, with particular attention given to the American context. A comparative and dialogical study, Sayilgan's volume also engages with Zoroastrian, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, and Christian approaches, as well as non-religious perspectives. This title is part of the Flip it Open Programme and may also be available Open Access. Check our website Cambridge Core for details.

A rigorous study of the problem of evil in Islamic theology Like their Jewish and Christian co-religionists, Muslims have grappled with how God, who is perfectly good, compassionate, merciful, powerful, and wise permits intense and profuse evil and suffering in the world. At its core, Islamic Theology and the Problem of Evil explores four different problems of evil: human disability, animal suffering, evolutionary natural selection, and Hell. Each study argues in favor of a particular kind of explanation or justification (theodicy) for the respective evil. Safaruk Chowdhury unpacks the notion of evil and its conceptualization within the mainstream Sunni theological tradition, and the various ways in which theologians and philosophers within that tradition have advanced different types of theodicies. He not only builds on previous works on the topic, but also looks at kinds of theodicies previously unexplored within Islamic theology, such as an evolutionary theodicy. Distinguished by its application of an analytic-theology approach to the subject and drawing on insights from works of both medieval Muslim theologians and philosophers and contemporary philosophers of religion, this novel and highly systematic study will appeal to students and scholars, not only of theology but of philosophy as well.

The series Religion and Society (RS) contributes to the exploration of religions as social systems– both in Western and non-Western societies; in particular, it examines religions in their differentiation from, and intersection with, other cultural systems, such as art, economy, law and politics. Due attention is given to paradigmatic case or comparative studies that exhibit a clear theoretical orientation with the empirical and historical data of religion and such aspects of religion as ritual, the religious imagination, constructions of tradition, iconography, or media. In addition, the formation of religious communities, their construction of identity, and their relation to society and the wider public are key issues of this series.

Nine papers from a March 2000 conference in Hanover, Germany explore the views of five major religions on the origin and nature of evil and suffering, and the question of overcoming them. In addition, there are a summary and critique from by a Christian theologian, the concluding discussion, and a summary of conversation between the representatives after the conclusion of the presentation. No subject index is provided. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

In his controversial 1973 book, Is God a White Racist?, William R. Jones sharply criticized black theologians for their agnostic approach to black suffering, noting that the doctrine of an ominibenevolent God poses very significant problems for a perennially oppressed community. He proposed a "humanocentric theism" which denies God's sovereignty over human history and imputes autonomous agency to humans. By rendering humans alone responsible for moral evil, Jones's theology freed blacks to revolt against the evil of oppression without revolting against God. Sherman Jackson now places Jones's argument in conversation with the classical schools of Islamic theology. The problem confronting the black community is not simply proving that God exists, says Jackson. The problem, rather, is establishing that God cares. No religious expression that fails to tackle the problem of black suffering can hope to enjoy a durable tenure in the black community. For the Muslim, therefore, it is essential to find a Quranic/Islamic grounding for the protest-oriented agenda of black religion. That is the task Jackson undertakes in this pathbreaking work. Jackson's previous book, Islam and the Blackamerican (OUP 2006) laid the groundwork for this ambitious project. Its sequel, Islam and the Problem of Black Suffering, solidifies Jackson's reputation as the foremost theologian of the black American Islamic movement.

The first comparative work to explore how humankind seek out the meaning of life amid suffering and struggle.

In this volume, Sahli Sayilgan explores the problem of evil and suffering in Islamic theology along with the questions that both religious and non-religious people alike perennially ask: Why is there evil and suffering? What is God's role in both natural and moral evil? If God is loving, just, powerful, why is there innocent suffering? Do humans have free will or are they predestined to act in a certain way? Examining both theoretical and practical theodicy in Islam, he provides Muslim perspectives on natural and moral evil in light of Islamic theological concepts. Sayilgan interrogates several specifics topics related to evil and suffering, including death, sickness, aging, disability, climate change, and pandemics. These topics are explored through case studies from the lives of Muslims, with particular attention given to the American context. A comparative and dialogical study, Sayilgan's volume also engages with Zoroastrian, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, and Christian approaches, as well as non-religious perspectives. This title is part of the Flip it Open Programme and may also be available Open Access. Check our website Cambridge Core for details.