AUGUSTIN OF HIPPO, PATRON SAINT OF THEOLOGIANS, Tagaste, Algeria, A.D. 354 - 15th June 430

  GOD IS NOT THE PARENT OF EVILS:

HUMANS ARE RATIONAL BEINGS --> 
IN ORDER TO BE RATIONAL, HUMANS MUST HAVE FREE WILL -->
THIS MEANS THEY MUST BE ABLE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL --> 
HUMANS CAN THEREFORE ACT BADLY OR WELL -->
GOD IS NOT THE PARENT OF EVIL.

God is entirely good and all-powerful - why is there evil in the world? For Christians, as well for adherents of Judaism and Islam, this is a central question. This is because it makes an obvious fact about the world - that it contains evil - into an argument against the existence of God.
Augustine believes that God did not create evil, because evil is not a thing, but a lack or deficiency of something.

Why God should have created the world in such a way as to allow there to be these natural and moral evils, or deficiencies?
 a) - he idea that humans are rational beings. In order for God to create rational creatures, such as human beings, He had to give them freedom of will - being able to choose, including choosing between good and evil. For this reason, God had to leave open the possibility that the first man, Adam, would choose evil rather than good - this is exactly what happened, as Adam broke God's command.
b) -  Augustine's argument holds even without referring to the Bible. Rationality is the ability to evaluate choices through the process of reasoning - only possible where there is freedom of choice.
c) - A third solution to the problem, asking us to see the world as a thing of beauty - evil contributes to an overall good that is greater than it could be without evil - just as discords in music can make a harmony more lovely, or dark patches add to the beauty of a picture (The philosophy book, dk.com.au)

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