Spinoza On the Knowledge of God and The Existence of Evil in The World: An Epistemic Purview

Abstract

This study examines Spinoza’s position on the knowledge of God and the problem of evil in the world. Drawing from Spinoza’s argument that there is nothing like evil in the world since all finite beings are logically necessary modification of the divine substance, this paper contends that Spinoza did not only fail in solving the problem of evil but also contradicted himself and made it appear more complex. This problem cannot be easily solved either by philosophy or theology because of the complexities in the nature of evil. In both cases, it is impossible to deny the existence of evil as well as to fathom the ontological possibility of evil in the world.