An Integrative Approach to the Existential Problem of Evil in a Post Pandemic World

Within the past few years, the world has experienced a unique iteration of the problem of evil due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Due to this, Christian theologians, and especially pastors, have been left to provide answers in the wake of the sufferings caused by the pandemic. For instance, studies have shown a correlation between the pandemic and a mass increase in mental illness in the United States. This is one data point among many instances that add to the uniqueness of the recent, heightened, and widespread existential problem produced by the pandemic. How, then, with the many sufferings caused by God’s allowance of the pandemic, can theologians meaningfully articulate hope and combat doubt in God’s existence, character, and the loss of a sense of purpose in those most affected? It is questions like these that inspired some Christian scholars to provide a contextualized theodicy amid the pandemic. While there are helpful insights to be gleaned from such efforts, a fuller and more integrative approach to the problem, with new considerations from psychological data on suffering resulting from the pandemic, is needed. This approach is integrative in its method, being grounded in biblical insights yet not neglecting the strongest theological and philosophical arguments of prevailing theodicies and defenses. Therefore, this paper will argue that the problem of existential evil that arose from the global pandemic is alleviated by an integrative theodicy of the cross.