Introduction
The problem of
evil remains the most potent attack on religion, especially on the
existence of God. In philosophical discourse, this problem is understood
as being a consequence of the contradictions involved in the infinite
characteristics of God such as being all-powerful, all-knowing and
all-loving. The problem of evil, which presupposes that the co-existence
of evil and God is unlikely or impossible, states that given the
reality of evil in the world, it is either the case that God does not
exist or there is an equally powerful force in charge of evil.
There is no doubt that the problem of
evil has gained serious attention in Western philosophical and
theological discourses. However, in the African philosophical context,
the debate on the philosophical problem of evil is just emerging,
despite some uniquely interesting trends and perspectives within the
diverse cultural philosophies in Africa. For example, in Igbo philosophy, as well as in the Akan philosophical context, it is a
given that the problem of evil is a substantive philosophical problem
only within the Western conception of evil and that such a problem does
not hold much weight when situated within the African notion of evil. Thus far in the literature on the African perspectives on the problem
of evil, little is known on the real and possible similarities and
dissimilarities on the notion of evil in African cultures and whether or
not such an understanding allows for a solution of the philosophical
problem of evil either in the popularly known sense or in a new form.
This writing is an attempt at such a comparative understanding of the
problem of evil in African cultural contexts. Such a philosophical
comparison is important for giving directions to cross-cultural
comparison of thoughts in African philosophy, which is yet in the
making. Beyond the immediate imports for the growth of African
philosophy, such comparison would avoid the false suppositions about a
general African viewpoint on a conceptual matter or belief, especially
as it concerns the notion of evil and the philosophical problem of evil
in bringing such philosophical comparison into focus, this text shall
focus its discussion on the Igbo viewpoints.
The Igbo notion of evil
The metaphysical problem of evil, despite
being a perennial problem in Western philosophy, can be meaningfully
discussed within the Igbo cosmological thought. The Igbos have attempted
to discuss how the presence of evil can be reconciled with the
attributes of Chi-Ukwu (the ultimate spirit). Such an attempt has
divided Igbo philosophers into three major camps, namely: the Igbo
cosmological optimistic view; Personal God and destiny view; and middle
course view. The first view states that man is solely accountable for
the evil in the world; the second speaks of personal god and destiny,
while the final camp combines the two views together and includes some
spirits as responsible for the evil in the world. But it still begs the
question how all these can be explained in the face of an almighty and
benevolent God, Chi-Ukwu. We shall explain the three broad views briefly
and the conclusions that could be drawn there from.
(a) Igbo cosmological optimistic view
According to this view, God as ‘Okike’
(creator) is essentially good in himself and that his creation is
intrinsically good: evil is something external to it in the sense that
evil is the consequences of some moral evil committed by man. The
upholders of this view point to the myths of God’s withdrawal, proverbs
and other cultural expressions as traditional grounds for insisting on
this view. Nwala, for example, stated that:
There is a belief in a created universe
which is controlled by creator, Chukwu-Okike. Man is in the centre of
this creation. He is endowed with freedom and its attendant
responsibility. There is belief in the unity among beings, belief in the
original cosmic (universal) harmony and order which unfortunately the
action of the human being upsets (in this case as in the Bible story the
woman starts confusion).
For the likes of Igbo scholars such as
Nwala, evil is the function of man himself, who is at the center of
God’s creation. Man is therefore responsible for every evil that happens
in this world because of his actions and mode of being in the Igbo
world. This view consolidates the African notion of evil that God can
never be the proximate cause of evil in the world. Although man is
responsible for the evil in the world, remotely, God causes it, not as
evil as such but in the sense that out of the good man causes, evil
comes as part of it. However, it has been argued that this view
dissociates God from the problem, clings to the assumptions of the
goodness of God and keeps quiet about the supposed power of God, which
He could have used to stop evil if he truly wanted it.
(b) Personal god and destiny view
According to this view, evil is not
linked directly to man but with the personal god of each man. That
personal god chooses man’s destiny package at the moment the individual
is born into the world. This view states that each person’s personal god
and destiny are responsible and accountable for both avoidable and
unavoidable evils and mistakes in life. The belief here is that the
Supreme being assigns a personal god (Chi) to an individual, whose Chi
in turn brings to man all his good and sometimes bad fortunes as well as
poverty and sickness by choosing the destiny on which one’s lot depends
to such a degree that every good and bad thing are attributed to it and
also blamed for individual’s mistakes in life. To buttress this view,
they even point to names such as Nkechinyere (lot given by personal
god); Chibueze (personal god makes and unmakes one); Chibuoke (personal
makes one famous) etc. Some Igbo proverbs also support his view like
“Ebe onye dalu ka Chi ya kwatulu ya” which means “where a person falls
there his personal god pushed him down”.
Despite the criticism of the ambiguity or
the equivocal nature of the concept of Chi, the traditional Igbo
believe that God does not commit evil against his creation. They also
believe that any misfortune or evil suffered by man is interpreted as
punishment for the misbehavior of man or his kin in his present or
previous life. This holds because the Igbos believe that the actions of
men have consequences whether in this life or the next and also not only
on those who commit them but on those who live after them. The
importance of this view lies in the fact that it “sees evil in the world
in such a way that it does not detract from the goodness and
omnipotence of the Divinity.”
God in this view transcends the moral and the ontological orders and
understands Him as the ultimate source and guarantor without any of His
essential characteristics being compromised.
(c) The middle course view
According to this view, personal god and
destiny of humans together with some other known and unknown spirits,
particularly some spirits who specialize in mischief making, are
originators of evil in the world. Many modern Igbo scholars support this
view and conceive evil in the world as being contingent upon the
actions of man and the spirits, once again absolving God of any
involvement or blame in the problem of evil. For Okafor, “the apparent
evil in the world and imperfection in the world are not intrinsic. They
are rather the negation of the perfect cosmic order usually caused by
the actions of men and of the spirits.”
Edeh, on his own part, asserts that God
cannot be the proximate cause of evil and blamed man and the spirits for
the existence of evil. He said: “…..judging from our treatment of the
causes of evil… the three proximate causes of evil are the evil spirits,
the element gods and human beings.”
This view does not sacrifice or detract
from the goodness and omnipotence of God. God is still considered as the
Supreme Good, all-powerful and the cause of all things which are good
in themselves. The point here is that even if God is spoken of to be the
remote cause of evil in the sense that he created the proximate causes
of evil, but it must not be in the sense that he caused evil as such.
Rather it will be constructed in the sense that because of the good he
created, evil comes as a necessary part of it.
