Debating an atheist about evil is one thing, but how could we respond at the bedside of a dying child in the house of a desperate family? Dostoyevsky’s own son died at three years old, and interweaved in his Magnum Opus is a profound reflection on the result of tragedy––and how to keep tragedy from unraveling everything you care about.
The problem of evil is one of the most cited arguments against Christianity and the existence of God in the modern age. Dostoyevsky’s brilliance articulated a potent blistering assault on the existence of God through Ivan Karamazov, a character who is as brilliant as he is passionate. The sentiment, “God does not exist––and I hate him!” could summarize his views, and the views of many atheists. But is atheism really better equipped to deal with the cruel realities life gives us? Is a tragic optimism, or even a deep insurmountable joy despite the tears, an unjustifiable position? It seems that despite the rage against God, atheism is not an intellectually consistent nor emotionally satisfying answer to the problem of evil.