One of the most perplexing problems facing believers in God is the problem of evil. The words of Epicurus put the point concisely: "Either God wants to abolish evil, and cannot; or he can, but does not want to. If he wants to, but cannot, he is impotent. If he can, but does not want to, he is wicked. If God can abolish evil, and God really wants to do it, why is there evil in the world?" This is a difficult problem to unpick and it remains an issue that continues to concern people and inspire debate.
The problem has taken a variety of forms over the centuries; in fact, there are numerous "problems" of evil-problems for theists but, perhaps surprisingly, problems for non-theists as well. Evil: A Guide for the Perplexed explores, in a rigorous but engaging way, central challenges to religious belief raised by evil and suffering in the world as well as significant responses to them from both theistic and non-theistic perspectives.

Chad V. Meister is Professor of Philosophy at Bethel College, Indiana, USA. His publications include: Introducing Philosophy of Religion (Routledge), Christian Thought: An Introduction (co-authored with James Stump; Routledge), Philosophy of Religion: Classic and Contemporary Issues (co-edited with Paul Copan; Wiley-Blackwell), The Oxford Handbook of Religious Diversity (editor; Oxford University Press), The Routledge Companion to Philosophy of Religion (co-edited with Paul Copan; Routledge), and The Cambridge Companion to Christian Philosophical Theology (co-edited with Charles Taliaferro; Cambridge University Press). He is the editor of forthcoming projects: a six-volume History of Evil (Routledge), with over 125 leading scholars contributing, The Cambridge Companion to the Problem of Evil (Cambridge University Press), and The Problem of Evil: Five Views (InterVarsity Press).

Preface /
1. What is Evil? /
2. Problems of Evil /
3. Theodicy
/ 4. Divine Hiddenness
/ 5. Evil, Atheism, and the Problem of Good /
6. Evil and Suffering in Hinduism and Buddhism
/ 7. Eternal Goods and the Triumph over Evil /
References /
Index