Karma, Rebirth, and the Problem of Evil Multiple-Choice Quiz

. Kaufman's primary goal in this chapter is to

argue that karma solves the problem of evil better than Western religions do.

examine how karma explains different kinds and degrees of suffering.

prove that treating karma as a theodicy requires assuming that the universe has a beginning.

show that karma has serious limitations as a solution to the problem of evil.

. Which of the following is NOT one of the reasons that Kaufman cites for thinking that karma offers a better solution to the problem of evil than Western theodicies do?

The idea of rebirth is more plausible than the idea of purgatory.

Karma can better explain the suffering of innocent children.

More religions accept the idea of karma than the idea of Original Sin.

It is fairer for everyone to have more than one chance at personal salvation.

. Why, according to Kaufman, is a karma-based theodicy committed to saying that most of our misdeeds will be punished in future lives, rather than in this one?

Many people suffer in ways that are disproportionate to the wrongs they have committed in this lifetime.

Karma-based theodicies are committed to the idea that one should be allowed to make up for past misdeeds in this life.

Only by punishing people over multiple lifetimes can karma allow for the kind of moral progress a theodicy requires.

The point of a theodicy is to explain why misdeeds do not seem to be automatically punished in this life.

. According to Kaufman, why isn't it possible to understand karma as delivering an "eye-for-an-eye" kind of justice?

The kinds of suffering that people bear change from one generation to the next.

People often do not remember harming others in ways that they are harmed.

People suffer in ways that they could never have imposed on anyone else.

"Eye-for-an-eye" does not fit with our actual practices of punishment.

. Which of the following is NOT one of the reasons that Kaufman rejects the claim that death is not an evil?

Release from rebirth is less of a reward than eternal life without suffering.

We would only deserve eternal life if we were infinitely good.

Death typically involves physical and emotional suffering.

Karma could reward and punish us without death and rebirth.

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