When faced with the reality of suffering, the classical view of God becomes exceptionally difficult to defend. The idea that God is all powerful, all knowing, and all loving is challenged by the existence of evil. It brings up the age old question of theodicy; how do we reconcile our notion of a loving God, a God who has the power to eliminate suffering, with our notion of justice in the face of evil?
The problem of evil becomes one of the largest stumbling blocks when it comes to the question of the existence of God. Because of that, I believe it is also the best place to start when forming an argument in regards to God. If a rational argument can’t be made as to explain how a loving God can allow for the extent of suffering and evil we’ve seen in the world, then I don’t believe that a credible argument can be made for the existence of God.
Providing a rational argument though does not provide evidence for the existence of God, but it allows us to move further into the question.
Now, dealing with the problem of evil gets to be very complicated. Evil can be separated into two main categories; moral evil and natural evil. Moral evil deals with willful acts committed by humans, such as rape or murder, while natural evil refers to natural disasters. Answers that deal with one sort of evil don’t necessarily translate to the other sort of evil, which means that any argument must have both in mind.
The problem has become even more difficult with the 20th century though, with an event that transformed the discussion: the Holocaust. The Holocaust had a massive impact on theology. For many, it killed the classical view of God, because it appeared impossible to find a reason why an all loving God, who was all powerful, wouldn’t have stepped in and prevented millions of Jews, his chosen people, from being led to the slaughter. It also showed that every human has the capacity to do evil. Because of this massive impact, we will return to the Holocaust frequently.
Looking at the Bible, this complicated situation doesn’t become any more clear. There are dozens of Biblical explanations for the existence of evil, such as it being a byproduct of free will, that there is some hidden plan, that it’s a mystery, or even that evil isn’t necessarily bad as it teaches us something.
None of those explanations are inherently false, and in some situations, they do have their advantages and may be justified responses. But in regards to the Holocaust, they don’t measure up. In response to burning children, to tossing babies into fires, such explanations are found wanting. Part of the issue is that those writing the Bible simply couldn’t know how far evil could go. They couldn’t imagine the technological dimensions that allowed the Holocaust to be so efficient.
In such a situation though, where children are being burned alive, the question of why is there evil may be beside the point, and instead, we should be asking what do we do now?
There are certain things that can be said though. The Bible, overall, takes more of a gray view of the subject, instead of seeing things in black or white. Instead of picking a sole perspective, Biblical texts will often provide various angles, which really help show the complexity of the situation. Most importantly though, Biblical writers even dared to connect God with both suffering and evil, forcing readers into a deeper conversation of what that connection truly means.
Instead of over arching statements, the Bible brings us into a middle position. The Bible claims that some suffering is the will of God, while not all suffering is the will of God. Some suffering is due to sin, but not all suffering is due to sin. From the Bible, we get a view of God that isn’t absent in the life of the world, as deism claims, but at the same time, God doesn’t micromanage the life of the world.
At this point, we need to take a step back and look at a core aspect of any possible god. If God exists, we have to realize that God is fundamentally different from us. Our ways, our thoughts, are not the ways and thoughts of God. Because of this, we near a paradox with God, as we have an inability to plumb the depths of God, to really understand God, but at the same time, God wills to be known by us.
This is important to remember as it creates an asymmetrical relationship between God and humans. Such a realization is fundamental to tackling the question of suffering and evil, at least from a Biblical perspective. That God is in a genuine relationship, or desires to be, with all creatures, is intrinsically tied to God’s way of being as well as doing. This in turn becomes key to interpreting God’s relationship to not only humans, but also to evil and suffering.
This relationship is further built upon another aspect, and that is that since God wills to have a relationship with all creation, God must be present everywhere. This aspect of God does raise a number of issues, such as why doesn’t God hear our cries in our most dire situations? It also makes the dynamics of the relationship much more complicated.
It is this relationship that builds the foundation of the argument as to how God can exist alongside evil. We will still have to address all of this in regards to the Holocaust, but it is a point in which we can start.
God’s Relationship
While God freely enters into this relationship with humans, it’s not just a one way street. Both participants have something important to say. The means for this communication comes in a variety of different ways, but the obvious means is prayer. However, we must rethink what prayer really is.
Instead of prayer being a vehicle simply for asking God to fix our problems, we will see that it takes on a different shape. For now, it’s worth noting that often when we pray, we often get answers we don’t care for, it we get any answer at all. In a way, it can seem as if we are Job, who believes that God isn’t there, only to have God appear later on.
Prayer isn’t the only vehicle that’s used in order to foster this relationship. There is a major aspect that goes back to the beginning, to the idea that God created humans in God’s image. Throughout the Bible, humans are given the space and power to be creative. They are entrusted with taking care of creation, and even though they make mistakes, that responsibility is never taken away.
With this relationship, we are led to two different ideas. The first is at the core of Liberation Theology, that God works through humans. God has given us the tools we need in order to fight oppression, and work towards justice. But humans are imperfect, and because of that, the results are mixed. Even with that being so, we as humans must continue doing our portion.
The second idea is that of a God that is limited. This limiting factor is necessary for humans to be humans. It is also necessary in order for God to have a meaningful relationship with us. For God to enter into a relationship with humans, God must surrender a portion of His power, otherwise we are left with a situation of a puppet-master with his puppets.
This self-limiting also goes back to the idea of humans being created in God’s image, which necessitates that humans also have power, and the power to create. In turn, this will lead to two further ideas that will be addressed later on; the idea of kenosis and panentheism.
What this all leads to is a God that is not all powerful; a God who has placed limits upon himself in order to allow humans to be what they were created to be. This allows a relationship to form, but it also comes with serious risks. As humans are imperfect, the possibility for atrocities are there. In the end, it means that God has to have faith in humans, in the same manner that humans have faith in God.
Why do we Suffer?
Putting this all together, we can begin to put forth a few answers as to why we suffer, and why there is evil. But we have to remember that there are many other factors that will come into play, and because of that, we will have to come back to these answers later on.
First, the primary reason what humans suffer is because we are limited. We aren’t perfect and we make mistakes. Not all suffering is bad though. At times, we push ourselves to our limits. When it comes to exercising, that can mean that we suffer the next day as our muscles heal. Or it may mean that we stay up all night finishing a paper or reading a book, and we suffer the next day as we fight to just stay awake.
The world isn’t risk free, and even something good can cause suffering. Gravity is a great example, as it is both a gift and a danger. It means we stay firmly planted where we are. We can use gravity to our benefits, such as when falling a tree. But if we aren’t careful, that same tree can come crashing down on us.
Taking this a step further, we can intensify that risk. If I go out and get intoxicated, I may fall much easier, and thereby hurt myself. I may also wake up with a hangover.
Second, we have to realize that our actions have consequences. We have the ability to commit evil, and that in turn has the potential to cause suffering. At the same time, we also the the ability to do great good, and relieve that suffering. Part of this is taking responsibility for our actions, and realizing that nothing we do is in a vacuum.
This leads two additional points. Often the suffering we experience is not because of something we have done, but because of the actions of others. People who are oppressed generally are in that situation for reasons beyond their control. That is why we are called to rebel against oppression, and to make things right.
At the same time though, much of this sort of oppression isn’t just caused all of a sudden. Evil and suffering can build up over a time, where it is slowly integrated into the fabric of life. It’s more of a systematic evil that future generations have to experience.
While our actions may have immediate consequences, they can also have these long lasting impacts as well. Racism wasn’t created in a day, but over time it becomes systematic where it effects us on a global scale. In the same way, racism and other forms of systematic evil won’t be defeated in a day, but we can continually chip away at it.
What this all points to is that we are interconnected. We don’t exist in a vacuum, and we must remember that. We have the ability to set into motion both evil that effects people on a global scale, or good that uplifts people around the world.
As humans, we are responsible for these actions, and God calls us to work within this system, in order to keep creation good. It definitely would be easier if God would just intervene, but as we saw, such an action would strip us of being human, as well as the relationship that is possible with God.
A Caveat
There are still problems though. The first revolves around natural evil. We live in a dynamic world where we have massive acts of natural destruction. Forces such as hurricanes, tsunamis, or volcanoes can destroy vast amounts of life. And it truly appears to be at random.
This is a topic I will dive more into later, but a quick thought. While these natural forces can cause massive destruction, they can also help shape a beautiful planet. Volcanoes can destroy, but they also form islands that allow for additional creation. Forest fires can destroy lives and homes, but they can also bring forward new life by making room for new growth.
That doesn’t explain away natural evil in its entirety, but it gives us a starting point. It gives us a basic framework to look at such events, and see them for more than what the surface level tells us. A much fuller explanation is needed though in order to explain the why? If there is a God, why create a world that is so dynamic and dangerous? It is a question I will come back too.
The second major problem gets back to the Holocaust. When we see suffering and evil on that scale, the answers as to why we suffer fell a bit empty. In part, we can look at the Holocaust and see that humans put into action a set of events that decimated whole populations. It wasn’t something done in a generation, but was the outcome of centuries of persecution, to the point that antisemitism had systematically taken hold of much of the world.
We must remember that the Holocaust was just the final solution to the age old Jewish question. There were millions of chances to stop it, yet neither God nor humans stood up. Where were we is a question that needs to be answered.
To Sum Up
Taking everything up to this point, we begin to get a partial picture, a beginning to the answer of why is there evil and suffering. There are still very large gaps in the answer that need to be addressed. But an outline is taking shape.
A key point in all of this deals with our relationship with God, and what that fully means. It means that we must see God as being limited, while also seeing that humans have power as well. This doesn’t remove the problem of suffering, but it helps to put it in the correct perspective.
