Why would a god allow so much pain and suffering?

Before I get flamed, this is skunk works and this is where this post belongs.

Now like I said, why would a god allow this to happen to us? Perhaps we are this "god" and know what we are getting into before we come here. Maybe we are warned before we come to this earth, and not really know what were getting ourselves into? Why so much pain and suffering in Africa and other countries? Is there a god? Why would he cause so much suffering?


Time for some answers guys

reply to post by Maddogkull


God doesn't cause the suffering, we humans do.

To be honest, I suspect that there exists such god as you are referring to. But that doesn't affect the truth value of the first line of this post.

-v

Suffering builds character. Anyone that has lived long enough knows that. Hand a man anything he desires and you will create and corrupt and greedy man. Hand a man nothing and take everything he has and he will be a content and thankful man. This is an Irony. This is how God works.

Emotional/mental pain yes humans create. What about disease and natural disasters. Why would a god allow these to happen?

This is because he/he granted us free will,

Maybe the creator has passed on i mean its been a few billion years now

God was only invented to give people a reason to rob, steal from and hurt their fellow person, a the while pointing at the made up invisible person in the sky and come up with whatever tripe happens to come out of their mouths to get the blame off themselves. See also Religion. Pick one. ANY one.

I think it's because there's things even God can't do. God can't solve a paradox, or make a being more powerful than God - likewise, God can't prevent all pain and suffering.

reply to post by Maddogkull


Well, we do create emotional and mental pain, but also physical - wars, famine, violence and so on. But yeah, I get your drift.

I am thinking and hastily I can come up with ten reasons. It is either because of:

1) We are stupid animals, that cannot control - or even understand the forces of nature - so we live in the areas that are dangerous to live in. We are idiotically emotianally attached to our home areas or are otherwise incapable of leaving the area - again our fault.

2) God doesn't care about us, we are irrelevant and only in our hybris we do think that we are something special.

3) God's psychological shadow, i.e Satan creates the suffering. But as explained in Bible, God is perfectly capable of destroying humans wihtout help of Satan.

4) We are paying our collective Karma everytime that natural disaster hits a place.

5) There is no God and we are again paying the consequences of our own stupidity.

6) God is actually evil, but he has succesfully lied to us so that we believe him to be good. It wouldn't be first time he would play safe with treachery.

7) God decides to punish a place and it's inhabitants for their sins, just as he did with Sodoma and Gomorrah.

8) We don't understand God, in other words, his ways are unknown to us.

9) As above poster said, God tests us and strenghten our character through suffering.

10) God thinks that there are too many people and hence needs to be reduced (that one must be the favourite choice of this guy, should he believe in god *smirk*).

I dunno, there may be many other reasons but I lack the wit to invent more of them. Personally, I still stick with the "human responsibility" opinion, and don't contribute the suffering to God.

-v

God?
The collective of everything known and unknown.
God?
Allows All !
Man, with his free will, chooses.

Unless God has an ATS account, I suspect no satisfactory answer will come. And all answers come from various beliefs, and Human minds; none of which could hope to know. But what would this place be if it were without suffering? Would that not be what (insert preference here - eg heaven) is for?
An overriding belief in most of the people I have met is that we are here to learn. What do you learn from a life without hardship? A life where you are forced to watch the suffering of others and be able to do little to help. The same people tend to believe that we choose our path before we come here.
I, like every person here, do not know why God or a universal power, or whatever you believe, does not put an end to it. But how much suffering would there be if Humans were to get past their greed and selfishness and help each other?

Perhaps you can ask him when you die.

[edit on 15-3-2010 by ShadowArcher]

reply to post by Maddogkull


Assuming we have a soul. What is a relatively short period of suffering compared against an eternity?

reply to post by Donnie Darko



Your putting God in a box man - can't do that. Thats the equivalent of saying "Oh, well, can God create a burrito so hot that He couldn't eat it?". He could create one so hot YOU couldn't eat it but as humans we can't even begin to understand his knowledge and understanding.

Paradoxes can't be solved because it is simply a lying statement about itself, i.e. "I always lie" - well you may 99% of the time but in this example you told the truth so that renders what you said inaccurate.

You want to know the thing God can't do? Sin. He could if He truly wanted to, its just He is so repulsed by it He could never bring Himself to do it because it would be against His perfect and holy nature

God could prevent all pain and suffering, and in time He will, but he also respects our free-will so we need to stop blaming the problems WE'RE causing on Him.

reply to post by ShadowArcher

Originally posted by ShadowArcher
Unless God has an ATS account, I suspect no satisfactory answer will come.

What you mean by "unless"? Of course God has an ATS account - everything is God´s creation, even ATS and all the emotional suffering it brings about



Virtually, at least.

-v

Whilst the OP might not self-identify as a Christian, the question "why would a god allow so much pain and suffering" is framed by a Christian and monotheistic world view that's dominated much of Europe and America for over a 1000 years.

Outside of an Abrahamic mindset, the question would seem a little, well, ridiculous and a bit strange. In fact, I think Jews or people who adhere to Old Testament thinking would also think this is strange. The idea that a god might be fair, reasonable or 'nice' is a relatively recent one in terms of belief.

[edit on 15-3-2010 by Merriman Weir]

reply to post by SlapBassist531


So, killing people isn't a sin? I mean, your god drowned pretty many people on the great flood and by raining fire and brimstone upon Sodoma and Gomorrah.

Yet he gave Moses (or who ever that was) ten commandments, where he categorizes killing as a sin.

But I know, his ways are unknown to us, and maybe even his standards for sin are distinct than those he set upon us.

-v

PS. And to add: Well, above can be argued in the way that "God didn't kill people, the flood did (which of course was called upon same God)." and "God didn't kill people of Sodoma and Gomorrah, the falling burning brimstone did (which he called upon)."

Isn't it same as the murderer would throw out his weapon and claim: "I didn't kill him, the gun did!"? Where of course the gun didn't kill that man, but the lethal wounds inflict by the bullets, to be presice.

[edit on 15-3-2010 by v01i0]

"What about disease and natural disasters. Why would a god allow these to happen?"

Great posting/thread OP. I thought about this for years, as I am sure many have.

I came to this. We are calling diseases and natural distasters etc bad things. Maybe to him-they aren't bad things.

They are his creations also. We may not like or understand the the creations, but it all makes the world go around....and that is what he wants and designed it as such.

(Some excelent responses so far).

I flagged as I hope many members give input on this topic. I also hit the star button but I couldn't tell if it gave you one.

[edit on 15-3-2010 by anon72]

"it's used to test our faith, but that is open to interpretation"

and THAT, is the final answer

My answer is; How would man know the true meaning of joy and happiness if he was not subjected to pain and suffering?

We also have free will, so it is not God that creates most of the suffering and pain in the world; we do. If God were to end this suffering and pain, God would would be interfering with our free will.

Because we are here for the experience...whatever that may be.

We are here to learn, to achieve, to grow, to become...

And don't feel alone...ALL things alive, ALL things animate, all things
are included.

It is the only logical explanation that leaves room for me to continue in my
my solitary existence after this hunk of meat and bone I am wearing is rotting
in a grave.

God, if he exists, doesn't intervene

That we were created in God's image, I feel that God was really advanced humanoid astronauts.

They with their advanced technology looked like Gods to ancient Man.

We have all of the suffering etc and it is allowed to persist because this is the only way in which we as a species can learn.

Not by having God solve all of our problems.

It's like doing your kid's homework.
He'll get good marks on the homework assignment but he will not have learned anything.

We have to learn ourselves.