Reply:

What about Peter's Denials. Jesus predicted that ahead of time and it appears to be a "future free decision" of a human being.

There are two possibilities here, consistent with the view open theists take about prophecy generally. One possibility is that, given the state of Peter's character, God simply knew that Peter would not be able to stand firm and profess his allegiance to Jesus when challenged. The other possibility is that this was, in fact, a conditional prophecy -- that if Peter had repented, and asked God for help, then he could have had the strength to resist the temptation. (I first heard this suggested by a very devout classical Arminian; it's not unique to the open view.)

Is there an effective response to what I'll call the "Problem of Natural Evil"? Earthquakes, tornados, hurricanes, etc. These cannot be pinned on Man's evils as can most of the problems we face.

This is a huge question, and to pursue it adequately you need to do some serious reading. But in the meanwhile: One possibility, which Greg Boyd finds very helpful, is that natural evil is caused by Satan and his host -- thus, it is really a form of moral evil after all. It seems to me that this is of only limited value, because in many cases natural evil results from "deep" features of our natural world (for example, plate tectonics as the source of volcanoes and earthquakes), and it seems inappropriate to suppose Satan has that much to do with the way the world is made. I prefer two other explanations: First, there is the "Natural Law Defense," which explains that, in order to live our lives, we need a stable, dependable, natural order, and it is this order which, under certain circumstances, results in harm and suffering. (Water, which is essential for life, can drown us or cause terrible destruction.) There is also the "Soul-making theodicy" developed by John Hick, which explains that the difficulties and challenges presented by the natural world are important for enabling us to develop into the kinds of men and women God intends for us to be. (This does *not* mean that *each particular instance* of natural evil is in itself beneficial!) This is just a beginning, but perhaps it may help to get you thinking.

William Hasker