The evil acoording to Eriugena

Abstract

This paper investigates the conception of evil of John Scottus Eriugena. First, the general lines of the Controversy of Predestination are presented, developed in the 9th century from the ideas of Gottschalk of Orbais about the Augustinian conception of the free will of the human will and of divine grace, showing a double predestination. Eriúgena condemns Gottschalk's theory, justifying that in divine nature there is no kind of duality, while he points out the divine true non-existence and ignorance about evil. Afterwards, we will focus on the anthropology of Periphyseon, which makes man a perfect image of his creator, even in what refers to divine omnipotence, being infinitely free and capable of building a good world, where evil is nothing but an intellectual error. Finally, we will present a case closer to our times and to our history, which we believe illustrates the Eriugenian conception of evil, based on an experience narrated by the Argentine writer, Jorge Luis Borges.