William Dennison | Van Til and the Problem of Evil

Reformed Forum

In this episode, we are joined by Rev. Dr. William D. Dennison, pastor of Emmanuel Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Kent, Washington, to reflect on Cornelius Van Til’s student paper “Evil and Theodicy” and the enduring challenges of explaining evil in a world governed by a sovereign, good God. Dennison has edited The Problem of Evil, a new volume that includes an edition of this paper and a helpful introductory essay that brings Van Til’s paper in dialogue with contemporary thinkers.

Dr. Dennison offers a deeply personal and theological meditation on Van Til’s conviction that God himself is the only sufficient theodicy. We explore how the mystery of evil cannot be unraveled by philosophical speculation or evidentialist reasoning, but only understood through the revelation of the triune God in Scripture. The conversation moves from Van Til’s early insights as a seminary student to the contemporary relevance of his critique of autonomy, his rejection of theistic rationalism, and his insistence on beginning all thinking with the self-attesting Christ of Scripture.

Along the way, Dr. Dennison shares biographical reflections on Van Til, his own pedagogical experiences in teaching apologetics, and the pastoral importance of grounding theological inquiry in the redemptive narrative of Scripture rather than speculative philosophy. This episode is a must for those who desire to think confessionally and presuppositionally about one of the most difficult questions in theology.

Chapters

• [0:00:07] Introduction
• [0:05:04] Background to the Project
• [0:16:55] The Historical and Biographical Context of Van Til’s Student Paper
• [0:22:55] Van Til’s Main Point
• [0:28:21] God Is His Own Defense
• [0:35:26] Van Til and Plantinga’s Free Will Defense
• [0:41:59] The Fourfold Estate of Man
• [0:54:42] Van Til’s Critique of Kant
• [0:58:40] Treating Theodicy as a Fundamentally Religious Matter
• [1:08:45] Conclusion