Theodicy is a concept developed by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716) to justify the existence and absolute perfection of God despite the evil that exists in the world. The term appeared in 1710 in the title of Leibniz's work Theodicy—Essays on the Goodness of God, of the Freedom of Man, and the Origin of Evil, and with it he coined an optimistic variant par excellence on theories of evil. Insofar as science and technology are often interpreted as responses to evil, theodicy is related to their modern emergence.

Background and Emergence

Theories of evil have been developed by Plotinus (204–270), Augustine (354–430), and others in which evil is seen as necessary for universal harmony. Within the framework of the complex theological discussions on the origin of evil, Leibniz's theodicy denies both the idea of God as a malevolent creator of the world (a position taken by certain Gnostics) and the refutation of...