Final answer:
The Problem of Evil questions the existence of an all-good, all-knowing, and all-powerful deity given the presence of evil, which free will and the greater good are often used to explain, yet the debate is complex with no universally accepted answer.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question you've asked touches on a classic philosophical and theological issue known as the Problem of Evil, which challenges the existence of an omnipotent, omniscient, and omnibenevolent deity in the face of evil in the world. The concept of free will is often presented as a defense, suggesting that God prefers a world of free agents rather than a world of robots. This implies that the existence of evil is an unfortunate, yet not unavoidable, consequence of this free will. However, the argument progresses by questioning the goodness and power of a deity who knowingly creates beings capable of evil.
The prosyllogism suggests that if God could create a world without evil, then not doing so implies God has not chosen the best. The counterargument given by some theologians and philosophers is that the presence of evil may actually contribute to a greater good, framing evil as a means to an end, or as a necessary contrast to appreciate the good. Still, the evidential problem of evil challenges this by pointing out the existence of seemingly gratuitous acts of evil with no discernable good resulting from them.
Ultimately, the free will defense contends that interfering with human actions would undermine free will. However, this defense is not universally accepted as it potentially implicates God in the responsibility for the presence of evil due to the allowance of its existence. The debate continues as philosophers and theologians explore different aspects of the Problem of Evil within various religious and philosophical frameworks.