How May We Justify the History of the Universe?

Abstract

The laws of physics not only allow for, but also in a sense enforce, the origin of structures, even of such complex ones as living organisms. However, they mercilessly maintain a balance: growth must remain in agreement with the second law of thermodynamics – everything has to tend to the thermodynamical equilibrium, that is to say thermal death. Even the most stable structures must finally surrender to statistical chaos. Physical evil, suffering, death, decay, find their raison d’etre in the structure of the Universe and are the price for the very possibility of life. But what about moral evil, for instance when a human being, making use of a physical evil, destroys another human being? Moral evil appeared in the history of the Universe together with the ability to choose between good and evil. Before that there existed physical evil but the Universe was morally innocent. The existence of moral evil does not find its raison d’être in physical laws. It transcends physics. Among the various attempts to answer Leibniz’s question ‘Why is there something rather than nothing?’ there is one which is especially rich in consequences. It claims that something exists because it is good. This is an echo of Plato’s ‘the good and right … hold and bring things together’ (Phaedo). In this perspective, existence and goodness are interchangeable (ens et bonum convertuntur). If goodness justifies existence then it also justifies rationality, since everything that exists is implacably rational. It follows that evil is irrational and as such it cannot be rationally justified. This gap in rationality is tolerated since the Universe with evil and freedom (to make evil) is supposedly better than a Universe without evil and without freedom.