How did St. Thomas Aquinas view evil?

From a metaphysical perspective, Aquinas asserts that the world is better for having evil within it, because evil serves a greater good. Natural evil contributes to the goodness of creation, and God sometimes inflicts evil as punishment in order to maintain the just order of the universe. read more

Aquinas understands evil in Aristotelian terms of potency and act, cause and effect, lack and perfection, in a teleological context wherein every form of existence has a meaning and purpose particular to its own good. read more

Aquinas does see a miraculous world which prevents natural evil, and yet allows that free, moral human agents to be within the power of God to create and sustain. Aquinas considers this state to be more than merely possible; he thought it was, in fact, probable on theological grounds. read more