Disease and the Problem of Evil | Prof. Stephen Meredith

Professor Stephen Meredith explores the problem of evil, particularly in the context of disease, examining philosophical and theological perspectives, including those of Aquinas, Leibniz, and Voltaire, while also considering biological factors like genetics and evolution.

This lecture was given on November 7th, 2024, at Indiana University.

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About the Speaker:

Stephen Meredith is a professor at the University of Chicago’s Departments of Pathology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Neurology. He is also an associate faculty member in the University of Chicago Divinity School. He has published more than 100 journal articles, focusing on the biophysics of protein structure. Much of his work has been the application of solution and solid-state NMR to the study of amyloid proteins associated with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s Disease. He has also published articles on literature and philosophy in diverse aspects of medical humanities and bioethics. His teaching includes courses to graduate students in biochemistry and biophysics, medical students, and undergraduates and graduate students in the humanities, including courses on James Joyce’s Ulysses, St. Thomas Aquinas, Augustine, Dostoevsky (focusing on Brothers Karamazov), Thomas Mann and David Foster Wallace. He is currently working on a book examining disease and the theological problem of evil. Other current writing projects include a study of James Joyce and the problem of evil.

Keywords: Boethius, Disease, Evil, Leibniz, Original Sin, Problem of Evil, Sickle Cell Anemia, Theodicy, Thomas Aquinas, Voltaire