The Groaning of Creation: God, Evolution, and the Problem of Evil

In this helpful book, Christopher Southgate tries to see how God can be both worthy of worship and the creator of a world that includes so much suffering, with a focus on animal suffering.In addressing the question, “Why did God choose to create this universe with these laws and constants, knowing they would then make neo-Darwinian evolution unavoidable,” Southgate opts for the “only way” or the “best way” argument. He accepts the unprovable assumption that an evolving creation was “the only way that God could give rise to the sort of beauty, diversity, sentience, and sophistication of creatures that the biosphere now contains” (p. 16). He develops this argument by discussing God’s co-suffering with creation and the expectation that God will compensate the victims of evolution in the coming new creation.Throughout the book, Southgate helpfully interacts with the views of other authors. His book ends with the pros and cons of, and proposals for, human intervention into the environment in order to save species from extinction.Southgate’s book is accessible to the any reader. Scholarly pieces of discussion have been left to the end notes, resulting in fifty pages of end notes for 133 pages of text. Unfortunately, the text is identified at the top of each odd-numbered page by chapter names, and the endnotes are identified only by chapter numbers, deliberately making the endnotes even more difficult to find. The book also has a twelve-page index.This is obviously not a book for Young Earth Creationists, since an old earth and evolution are presumed. It is accessible even for those without expertise in biological sciences or systematic theology. I recommend this book for Christians who are struggling with how to integrate biological evolution into their Biblical faith

The problem of evil is a very difficult topic, and accepting evolution takes away some of the explanations christian may offer. I can't help feeling that the best way to deal with the problem is to admit it and accept it - it is indeed a difficulty, and on its own is a good reason to disbelieve in a loving God. But of course it isn't the only evidence we have about God, and almost everything else I know (the universe, humanity, Jesus and human experience) all provide stronger evidence of a good God. So I can believe without understanding this problem.But Christopher Southgate attempts a more difficult task, to justify why God has created a world where so much evil occurs. I think he has some very worthwhile thoughts, but in the end I don't think he succeeds in explaining this difficulty, as I think he himself knows. And I found a lot of his discussion was written in theology-speak with words and concepts that were speculative and based on ideas of what God might be like, but without any real foundation. I can't imagine anyone who was inclined to scepticism finding it satisfactory.It was worthwhile reading (though only just) because at least I have now seen what is probably the best attempt to explain this difficulty, and because his discussion in the last couple of chapters of human stewardship of creation, vegetarianism, global warming and species extinction introduced to me some new and very helpful christian approaches to issues I have only read about from a ecological perspective.If you enjoy theological speculation you may get more out of this than I did, but otherwise I think you may find it difficult going.

Don't get me wrong, I wanted to find this book compelling, but I just didn't. Southgate incorporates as a part of his theodicy an "only-way" defense. I'm sorry - I just can't buy that. It seems to so greatly reduce the omnipotence and omniscience of God that I hardly understand why people put it forward. Surely if we're talking about the same God who created the universe and holds in it in existence at every moment, at bare minimum if there's not another naturalistic way to bring on life he could have just sung them into existence like Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia or something? Even if I bought that evolution was the only way God could have brought life into being naturalistically, the question any theodicy needs to address is why wouldn't God just miraculously create all life if he couldn't naturalistically give rise to it in some way other than one that involved great pain and suffering? This is a question I don't feel is really adequately addressed in the book, and without doing so, I think any "only way" theodicy is doomed to fail. Also, his last chapter on animal ethics felt a little ad-hoc and to be completely honest I couldn't fully escape the impression that he was reading his political leanings into the subject. Just my impression though. There were a few useful bits and insights in there - that's why I'm giving it two stars instead of one - but I'm not sure I would recommend reading it, to be honest, unless you can get a really cheap copy and you're having a slow day.

This book is for the academic theologian. It quotes extensively from theology writers across past centuries and the most recent. This strengthens the arguments Southgate then puts forward in reply to the assertions of others. This is for the forward thinker as it takes the reader over the edge of the next horizon. How does God relate to the most modern of scientific ideas? How can we love a Creator who incorporates tragic suffering within his creation? Is this God worthy of worship? Find fascinating speculations by reading this book and thereby enlarging your theological knowledge by a large amount.