Wrestling with Existence: Pondering Suffering and Grace in "Lila"

How does belief in God withstand the assault of life's sorrows? If God exists, why does existence itself seem to speak against divine benevolence and omnipotence? While these questions animate theological and philosophical discourse on the problem of evil, they also appear in other contexts, pa...

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Publié dans:Toronto journal of theology
Auteur principal: Scott, Mark S. M. (Auteur)
Type de support: Électronique Article
Langue:Anglais
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Publié: School [2018]
Dans: Toronto journal of theology
Année: 2017, Volume: 33, Numéro: 2, Pages: 207-217
RelBib Classification:AB Philosophie de la religion
CD Christianisme et culture
NBC Dieu
Sujets non-standardisés:B Lila
B Theodicy
B Marilynne Robinson
B Philosophy of religion
B problem of evil
Accès en ligne: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
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Résumé:How does belief in God withstand the assault of life's sorrows? If God exists, why does existence itself seem to speak against divine benevolence and omnipotence? While these questions animate theological and philosophical discourse on the problem of evil, they also appear in other contexts, particularly literature. Marilynne Robinson's acclaimed Gilead saga—Gilead, Home, and Lila—functions as a literary meditation on suffering and grace. In Lila, the lead character, Lila, filters the question of theodicy through the prism of her life experiences and begins an extended conversation about it with a minister, Reverend John Ames, whom she eventually marries. Together, they wrestle with the meaning of existence, mutually illuminating their lifelong struggles with the question. In this essay, I will frame the problem of evil from Lila's perspective, explore five facets of it from her experience, and analyze the open spaces it creates for theological and philosophical discourse on theodicy.
ISSN:1918-6371
Contient:Enthalten in: Toronto journal of theology
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.3138/tjt.2017-0147