I have a question that has plagued me for a long time. I have asked Christians, including ministers, preachers, and PhD theology professors, and none of them have given me an answer I can understand. They always end up telling me that we just can't know the answer. Perhaps someone in this forum could help me. Here's my question:
A basic Christian belief is that God exists and that He is omniscient (knows everything), omnipotent (can do anything), and benevolent (is compassionate and wants only good things to happen). Yet, very bad things happen to very good people all the time. For purposes of this discussion, we will call things like the Dec 26, 2004 tidal wave that killed over 200,000 people of all faiths, "Evil". So, why does God allow these things to occur? Why does God allow Evil to exist?
I have been told, "Well, God does not do Evil, the Devil does Evil." But, according to the Bible, God created everything, even the Devil. So why did God create the Devil to do Evil?
I've been told, "Well, it's just all part of God's Great Plan and not for us to question." That response is just saying, "Don't ask questions, just believe what I tell you." If God doesn't want us to understand, then why did He give us a brain to understand with? (I am reminded of a tag line I once read: If God had wanted me to think for myself, He would have given me a brain and a little bit of curiosity.) But, as I asked of one preacher, "So you're telling me that your God is so incompetent, so devoid of imagination, so impotent, that He cannot think of any other way to achieve His Master Plan than to destroy the lives of nearly a quarter of a million people, plus untold suffering of the injured, their families and their friends." He pursed his lips, glared at me, and walked away without answering. I really wasn't trying to be disrespectful or argumentative, and I said it very nicely, but I wanted an answer that made sense.
A popular saying among Christians is, "There are no atheists in foxholes." Well, of course not. When you believe you are about to die at any second, you'll grab for any hope at all, no matter how remote. You will beg whatever powers there may be to save you from a horrible, agonizing death and you'll disparately hope someone will answer. I'll bet there were no atheists in that tidal wave either, yet over 200,000 non-atheists were begging their God(s) to save them from certain death. Not one God responded. Not one God had the compassion, the awareness, or the power to answer their desperate prayers. After years of loyal devotion and sacrifice...nothing. For all their faith, for all their prayers, they might as well have been atheists.
The his book, "Evidence That Demands a Verdict", the Christian writer Josh McDowel wrote, "The heart cannot rejoice in what the mind cannot believe." Personally, I find it very difficult to believe that a God who is capable of creating the entire Universe, the vast distances, the vast matter and energy, and all the Laws of Nature, would really be so inept and callous as to allow such Evil to exist. Nor do I believe He would create a being to do His dirty work for Him. I cannot believe in such a God, so my heart could never rejoice in such a God.
For me, that is the central question mark of Christianity. Personally, I just could never serve such an Evil Being as one that would knowingly, purposely, with no regret, destroy half a million people just to keep His Great Plan on schedule. Perhaps some people have no problem with that, no doubts, no regrets, no wondering in the middle of the night, "Am I really on the right side here?", "Is this really the God I want to serve?" To serve, without question, without regret, without remorse, no matter what heinous deeds are done? That's not for me. Is that really for you?
So, why does God allow such things to occur? Does He have no better Plan than that?
Or, could it be that whatever God or gods there may be are either not omnipotent, or not omniscient, or not benevolent? Could it be that God is not perfect, not in total control? Or, could it be that there is no God. That everything happens according to natural, physical law? That the tidal wave was a tragic convergence of natural forces beyond any control? However you look at it, the description of the Christian God given in the Bible and accepted by all Christians simply doesn't jive with the existence of Evil (whether done directly by God, or by his front-man, the Devil). We can just refuse to try to answer the question. Just accept what we've been told since childhood. Never wonder about it. Refuse to discuss it. That's one thing we can do. Or, we can face the question. Ask ourselves. Ask each other. Ask our preachers and ministers and PhD theologians. And, perhaps, when enough of them have told us not to ask, told us just to accept without question, just pursed their lips, glared, and walked away...maybe, we'll begin to wonder: Is this really right?
So, for those who wonder how anyone could possibly be an atheist...that's one reason right there.
I look forward to your salvos.
Respectfully,
Darrel.
DarrelDesoto,Welcome.
