<description>&lt;p&gt;This episode of the Mama Bear Apologetics podcast explores one of the biggest challenges to the Christian faith: the problem of evil. Amy &amp;amp; Tricia discuss how both children and adults wrestle with suffering, tragedy, and the existence of evil in a world created by a good and all-powerful God. Using scripture, philosophy, practical examples, and personal stories, they explain the difference between natural evil and moral evil, define goodness and evil from a biblical worldview, and demonstrate why evil actually points toward the existence of God rather than disproving Him.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The conversation emphasizes the importance of proactively preparing children to think biblically about suffering before tragedy strikes. The hosts explain that evil is not a created “thing,” but rather a corruption or absence of goodness. They discuss how free will makes love possible but also allows humans to choose evil. The episode also highlights the Christian hope found in Christ’s victory over sin and evil through the cross and resurrection, while awaiting the final restoration of all things.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The hosts provide practical illustrations from parenting, literature, philosophy, and science to help families explain these difficult concepts to children in age-appropriate ways. The episode closes with recommended resources for parents, teens, and children to continue learning about suffering, evil, and God’s goodness.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Main Points Covered&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Why Parents Should Discuss Evil Proactively&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;The Philosophical Problem of Evil&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Defining Good and Evil&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Natural Evil vs. Moral Evil&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;The Origin of Evil&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Teaching Children About Evil&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Resources Mentioned&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/Case-Creator-Kids/dp/0310719925" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Case for Faith for Kids&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt; — Lee Strobel&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/Questions-Every-Should-Answer-Christianity/dp/1433571668" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;10 Questions Every Teen Should Ask and Answer About Christianity&lt;/em&gt; &lt;/a&gt;— Rebecca McLaughlin&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://kingstonecomics.com/products/101-questions-about-the-bible-and-christianity" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;101 Questions About the Bible and Christianity&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt; — Kingstone Comics&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/Living-Loud-Introduction-Apologetics-Students/dp/B0D3GQQTP5" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Living Loud for Teens&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt; — Norman Geisler &amp;amp; Joseph Holden&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/LifeGivers-Apologetics-Designed-Equipped-Reasons/dp/1539182568" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Life-Givers Apologetics&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt; — Tricia Scribner&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/Fox-Hard-Day-Picture-Apologetics/dp/0692794751" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Fox and the Hard Day&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt; — JD Camorlinga&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/Old-Yeller-HarperClassics-Fred-Gipson/dp/0064403823" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Old Yeller&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt; — Fred Gipson&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bridge-Terabithia-Instructional-Guide-Literature/dp/1425889743" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Bridge to Terabithia&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt; — Jessica Case&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/Betsy-Tacy-Treasury-First-Four-Books/dp/0062095870" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Betsy-Tacy&lt;/em&gt; series&lt;/a&gt; — Maud Hart Lovelace&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Scriptures Mentioned&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Jeremiah 12:1&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Romans 2&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Mark 10:18&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Luke 18:19&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Psalm 104&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Romans 5&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Genesis 1–3&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Ezekiel 28&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;h3&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Thanks to Our Sponsors&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;AquaTru Shower&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;AquaTru are offering 20% off today for our listeners with promo code SHMBA! AquaTru Shower comes with a 30-day money back guarantee, Get this exclusive, offer now at AquaTru.com promo code SHMBA.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://cozyearth.com/" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Cozy Earth&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Discover how Cozy Earth turns everyday routines into moments of softness and ease. Head to cozyearth.com and &lt;strong&gt;use code MAMABEAR for an exclusive 30% off&lt;/strong&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;h3&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;h3&gt;More from Mama Bear&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://mamabearapologetics.com/" rel="nofollow"&gt;Check out our website&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0736976159/ref=as_li_tl?camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0736976159&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;linkId=0685406da3f87bb3f930369626c71db2&amp;tag=mamabearapolo-20" rel="nofollow"&gt;Buy the Mama Bear Apologetics book&lt;/a&gt; (affiliate link)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://mamabearapologetics.com/subscribe/" rel="nofollow"&gt;Join Our Email List&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://mamabearapologetics.com/speaking/" rel="nofollow"&gt;Have Us Speak at Your Event&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Follow us on social media &lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.facebook.com/mamabearapologetics" rel="nofollow"&gt;Facebook&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://x.com/MamaBrAplgtics" rel="nofollow"&gt;X&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.instagram.com/mamabearapologetics/" rel="nofollow"&gt;Instagram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;h3&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Want to support our ministry?&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="https://mamabearapologetics.com/donate/" rel="nofollow"&gt;Donate Here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;—&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Editing and Support by &lt;a href="http://thegoodpodcast.co/" rel="nofollow"&gt;The Good Podcast Co.&lt;/a&gt; If you are interested in being a supporting sponsor of the show, please email &lt;a href="mailto:sponsor@thegoodpodcast.co" rel="nofollow"&gt;sponsor@thegoodpodcast.co&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Mama Bear Apologetics

Hillary Morgan Ferrer & Amy Davison

Episode 151. The Problem of Evil

MAY 26, 202655 MIN
Mama Bear Apologetics

Episode 151. The Problem of Evil

MAY 26, 202655 MIN

Description

This episode of the Mama Bear Apologetics podcast explores one of the biggest challenges to the Christian faith: the problem of evil. Amy & Tricia discuss how both children and adults wrestle with suffering, tragedy, and the existence of evil in a world created by a good and all-powerful God. Using scripture, philosophy, practical examples, and personal stories, they explain the difference between natural evil and moral evil, define goodness and evil from a biblical worldview, and demonstrate why evil actually points toward the existence of God rather than disproving Him.The conversation emphasizes the importance of proactively preparing children to think biblically about suffering before tragedy strikes. The hosts explain that evil is not a created “thing,” but rather a corruption or absence of goodness. They discuss how free will makes love possible but also allows humans to choose evil. The episode also highlights the Christian hope found in Christ’s victory over sin and evil through the cross and resurrection, while awaiting the final restoration of all things.The hosts provide practical illustrations from parenting, literature, philosophy, and science to help families explain these difficult concepts to children in age-appropriate ways. The episode closes with recommended resources for parents, teens, and children to continue learning about suffering, evil, and God’s goodness.Main Points CoveredWhy Parents Should Discuss Evil ProactivelyThe Philosophical Problem of EvilDefining Good and EvilNatural Evil vs. Moral EvilThe Origin of EvilTeaching Children About EvilResources MentionedCase for Faith for Kids — Lee Strobel10 Questions Every Teen Should Ask and Answer About Christianity — Rebecca McLaughlin101 Questions About the Bible and Christianity — Kingstone ComicsLiving Loud for Teens — Norman Geisler & Joseph HoldenLife-Givers Apologetics — Tricia ScribnerFox and the Hard Day — JD CamorlingaOld Yeller — Fred GipsonBridge to Terabithia — Jessica CaseBetsy-Tacy series — Maud Hart LovelaceScriptures MentionedJeremiah 12:1Romans 2Mark 10:18Luke 18:19Psalm 104Romans 5Genesis 1–3Ezekiel 28Thanks to Our SponsorsAquaTru ShowerAquaTru are offering 20% off today for our listeners with promo code SHMBA! AquaTru Shower comes with a 30-day money back guarantee, Get this exclusive, offer now at AquaTru.com promo code SHMBA.Cozy EarthDiscover how Cozy Earth turns everyday routines into moments of softness and ease. Head to cozyearth.com and use code MAMABEAR for an exclusive 30% off.More from Mama BearCheck out our websiteBuy the Mama Bear Apologetics book (affiliate link)Join Our Email ListHave Us Speak at Your EventFollow us on social media FacebookXInstagramWant to support our ministry?Donate Here—Editing and Support by The Good Podcast Co. If you are interested in being a supporting sponsor of the show, please email [email protected]