Problem of Evil by Michael Term Paper

From there, it is apparent that evil cannot disappear until we examine our own personal evils and discuss them to gain further insight so that it will vanish from society.

Once we recognize the existence of something that can reasonably be called personal evil, we must then also recognize that it has collective as well as individual dimensions. Organized crime syndicates, militant emerging nations, oppressive social structures, and profit-crazed multinational corporations are, in a real sense, the social extensions of personal evil. On both individual and corporate levels, one of the saddest features of human evil is its strange admixture with good or apparent good. Marriages are wrecked for lack of mutual understanding, educational communities are undermined by disagreement about how to pursue common ideals, political parties are thrown into disarray by excessive ambition, and nations are ripped apart by struggles for power. (Peterson, 1998, p. 4).

Organized crime is becoming indistinguishable from capitalist business while capitalist organizations are behaving more like organized crime groups.

In the midst of the biggest financial rip-off in history of this country, it is clear that within capitalist organizations there are billions of dollars are being misplaced by Savings & Loan criminals who steal and have gotten away with it. This is complete insanity due to the fact how this country defines crimes in society. If a person steals $5, they are considered as a thief, however if they steal $5 million, they are labeled as a financier. Organized Crime has always had a negative label because of the constantly changing environment in America as well as the social state of its homeland. Due to how society defines organized crime, people are convinced that the Mafia consists of criminals, pimps, and murderers. "During the 9th century, the Mafia's main purpose was to strengthen themselves against enemies, which invaded their homeland in Sicily. It was supposed to create a strong feeling of togetherness between all Sicilians.This idea of family was carried through in the structure of the organization, which had a strong hierarchical layout" (Mafia History). People believed that the Mafia had the best system of power, than any other group or government known today. Within capitalist business and organized crime, it is apparent that a leader cannot lead without follow, which creates more evil because no one will recognize that the damage that it does to society. Furthermore, if we cannot talk about the evils of the world, it cannot vanish from our lives.

From there, it needs to be address that evil is in every day life so that it can be recognized for what it is and that is corruption. "Although we are perplexed by humanity's capacity for evil, even the best of us are sometimes hurt and even crushed by the impersonal forces of the universe. These forces know nothing of human agendas or purposes and tend to thwart all that we hold dear. Herman Melville deals with this theme in Moby Dick. Captain Ahab of the Pequod, forty years a whaler in the first half of the last century, sets out from Nantucket on what appears to be a long whaling cruise. Little does anyone know that Ahab's journey is not seaman's business but a quest for the meaning of life. Ahab had lost a leg in an earlier encounter with Moby Dick, a great white whale, then the terror of the seas, and is now bent on destroying it. The captain is obsessed with the meaning of human existence in the face of overwhelming natural forces. Ironically, the (Peterson, 1998, p. 4). Furthermore, the problem of evil is the corruption of our society but we fail to recognize it, which ultimately destroys the human race.

Peterson, M.L. (1998). God and Evil: An Introduction to the Issues. Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Retrieved June 14, 2008, from.....