EcoTrain QOTW 9.2: If there is a God why is there so much suffering in the world?"

avatar

The topic of discussion for the EcoTrain Question of the Week 9.2 - "If there is a God why is there so much suffering in the world?"

image.png

Photo by Bhupi from Istockphoto
This is a question we ask ourselves at different points of our life when we are faced with challenges, sufferings and tribulations that seem to be beyond human control. Everything about God is supposed to be good is the thoughts that will always strike our mind when we see so much pain and suffering in the world. We ask questions such as "Why did God create people to face different natural disasters, diseases outbreaks, war and different forms of crisis?".

Ultimately, God has power to control everything in the world, so why does he allow evil, natural disasters, diseases and so on to thrive in the world. Well, it is not easy to understand how God works and this is because he works in a miraculous way that is above human reasoning.

But, we should understand that God is not evil and evil is caused by the devil. When God created the world, he created everything to be perfect but according to the biblical reference to the Garden of Eden, man began to experience suffering and pain when Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden fruit.

Therfore, it may be safe to conclude that humans are the cause of the evil that is befalling us from generations to generations due to our disobedience to God who created the earth to be devoid of evil but we (through our first parents) allowed the devil to turn us away from the perfect life that God has designed for us.

About two years ago, the whole world was shaken by the effect of the COVID19 pandemic and it gave rise to so many questions. There are people who questioned the existence of God. They believe that if God truly exists, he will not let the whole world turn upside down by a pandemic. Some even concluded that the world is facing the wrath of God due to the sins we have been committing for centuries.

In the beginning, according to the Christian doctrine, God didn't not create the world to be in the way it is now - it was devoid of evil, wickedness, suffering and pain - but evil came as a result of selfish interests of man. God created us and gave us freedom, the freewill to decide what path we want to choose because he loves us.

He couldn't have expressed his love to us by compelling us or forcing us to do what he wants us to do. Simply put, the fact that we have a choice to make solidifies the existence of good or evil, right or wrong. Therefore, Adam and Eve made a wrong choice by disobeying God which has been the genesis of how evil crept into the world.

Prior to the disobedience of the first humans on earth, they have everything at their disposal from food to water to good health and so on. Man had to start tilling the ground to make their food after they disobey God and this is why you see everyone hustling every day to make ends meet. Another important point is that Adam and Eve weren't aware of the fact that they were naked before eating the forbidden fruit. Their eyes open and they started hiding from God and apportioning blames to each other after eating the fruit and this is a clear indication that they are quite aware of the fact that the have done the wrong thing.

It may be right to say that God is aware of all the challenges and sufferings of man because he's omnipresent and can see all things but most of them are caused by man through the choices we make.



0
0
0.000
0 comments