ABSTRACT
According to tradition, a group of European rabbis assembled during one of the waves of Jewish persecution and asked: If the Lord is good and all powerful, why has he permitted so much evil in His world? Their answer was that the Almighty allowed both good and evil in order that Man might choose between, following His injunction, “Therefore seek ye the good.” Similar notions are found in other creeds. The belief is widespread that people do have choices—between good and evil, wisdom and foolishness, pleasure and pain. Yet, major systems of psychological theory have trouble incorporating choice and finding places in their logic for terms such as will and responsibility. The contradictions involved were ironically stated in an interview on TV by I.B. Singer years ago: “We must believe in free will; we have no choice.”
