Why does God allow the suffering of little children?

Just wondering.

 

Probably because I didn't forward to ten addresses that chain letter that one time...

Seriously, I can't say- accepting the premise of a God capable of intervening on our behalf. Perhaps it's a collective object lesson as to the value of taking care of and protecting our young instead of expecting an outside benevolence to perpetually be there for rescue purposes?

 

Can you be more specific?

If we look at the book of Job, in his discussion with his 3 friends he becomes convinced he deserved the sufferings given to him (via Satan) and the God rebukes him saying that we cannot know all of the mysteries of God.

What matters as Christians is what we do with our suffering.

This may seem like a cop-out, but just let me say that my Mother in law does have cancer (twice) and my aunt passed away not too long ago from a very agressive cancer (after it came back). I also suffer from a chronic degenerative disease for the better part of a decade. I do understand suffering. I am not immune to it.

I do not blame God for it, nor am I "thankful" for it. I take the suffering, and change it at the metaphysical level.

Suffering has become redemptive not only for the one who suffers but also for the ones for whom he suffers. Vicarious atonement is a mystery, but not an exception: We can share in it. If we are "in Christ" (that primary mystery of solidarity, of incorporation), we, like him, can offer up our sufferings to the Father—and he uses them. They become seeds, or rainwater, and something beautiful springs up that we seldom see in this life.

If you offer up your sufferings today, in faith, to the Master of the universe, then someone else, perhaps a hundred years and a thousand miles away, will have the strength to live and love and hope—and if not, not. There is no power in the universe greater than suffering love. Love without suffering is like water; suffering without love is like potassium; put them together and you get an explosion. That explosion shattered the chains of hell and opened the gates of heaven two thousand years ago. And it continues

 

If it was a human doing it, and he had the capacity to stop their suffering, what would you think of him? I'd think he and any fans he had were the vilest pieces of shit that ever drew breath. If it was in my power I would torture the detestable maggot and his filthy air thief friends to death...very, very slowly.

The only way you could tolerate him was if you were shit frightened of him or you were as evil as him, right??

 

Yes, suffering can be a growth experience, for you and me, but little children? Babies? We can say it looks wrong to us, but what do we know? And in effect turn the decisions over to the humans who claim to be the official interpreters of God's will. Or we can, as some of us do, come to the conclusion that if God is good, as he purports to be, he may not be omnipotent. Job bought the "What could you mortals possibly know about my ways" explanation, but the readers were let in on the secret. God made a bet with the Devil. Your explanation that the suffering of innocents is necessary so that we can experience greater love is, in my opinion, and example of the pathology that is manifest in some forms of religion.

 

I call it "karma".
We never know what this sould did in the past, maybe it's the Divine Justice.
Another thing;
Maybe the soul wanted to experience this way and it's how God make us free.
We are free and responsible for what we live, but not of the point of view of the human, from the point of view of the soul.

 

Specific? Children, children, children! You conveniently ignored this specific. Maybe you deserve your suffering and maybe I deserve mine, but little children do nothing to deserve theirs. So they should just offer up their suffering to become rainwater? Try tears!

It's always the "we cannot know all the mysteries of God" copout, isn't it?

 

God (assuming you believe in one), doesn't allow it to happen..

People do.

 

This view arises from homocentric prejudice, that the biological realities of human creaturehood are somehow different or special from all other creatures and phenomena. There is a rate of infant mortality for every species. Suffering,
anxiety comes from the misapprehension of what is so. Pain or discomfort as well as pleasure and comfort are indelibly part of all biological experience, varying only in intensity or frequency between those two poles of the very same phenomena which is sensational awareness.

 

Not always. People don't cause earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, etc. I'd like to qualify my answer above, though. Most of us think of God as the source of natural law and order in the universe. If that's true, it's obvious that He set up a system (or a system evolved) in which horrible suffering is inevitable for many sentient creatures. Creatures, young and old, have been dying horrible deaths since there were animals. So, too, humans. It's reality. It happens not necessarily because God specifically wants it to, to teach us all the higher value of Love, but because it's the natural outcome of the system He set in motion. The human expectation that God would create a universe something like Heaven, or routinely suspend the laws of nature so that each of us could avoid pain and suffering, is naive. To me, blaming God for this is not productive. It's like blaming Him for letting it rain on our birthday. We may think it's a copout to say God's ways are mysterious to us, but they are. Like it or lump it, suffering is an inherent part of existence, and we can make the best of it or not. Cussing Him may make us feel better, but it's not going to change things.

 

While I will happily agree that the bolded part is true of some, it is by far not most.

But if you want to argue that God does exist, then even according to His words, people were given free will so they could choose their paths. Choices such as deciding to make a home on the side of a volcano, or on a flood plain, are not the responsibility of God, even if you want to argue that he created or allowed the volcano to explode or the flood plain to flood.

Continuing from the point of view that God does exist, I can just imagine an internal conversation he would have about people and their choices, and their constant blaming of God for shit they decide...

"It's time that volcano went off again"
"But there are people there"
"What do you mean there are people there... that volcano went off 100 years ago and killed everyone who decided to live on it."
"Oh they moved back"
"They WHAT?"
"They moved back and built more homes on the volcano"

"What a bunch of fucking morons... I should have gave the planet to the dolphins"

*volcano goes off*

 

No matter your level of stealth, you still get schmucked. That there is some substantive choice you can make to avoid this fact is pure fantasy.

 

By specific I meant: are you talking malnutrition in Africa, being beaten, what, abondoned by parents? Please be more specific.

Lots of suffering comes at the hands of people.

I do agree with you about order in the universe. From a Christian who believes in evolution, I must affirm that suffering and death (physical) were Yes, children may suffer physically through disease, and it may be undeserved, but what do we who can do something do about it. Do we, like Okie said, sit back and cuss out God for not doing sometihng, or do we act, with out own free will, and try and change why they suffer, aleviate their suffering, or what.

I will still default to my copout that suffering truly is a mystery, and in reality God is as well. I will qualify by stating that God does not bet the devil in games of otherworldly chess matches of who will crack first, but that Job is an example of how we should face suffering--with trust in God. Aside from redemptive suffering, it can be a mystery why some do suffer so much.

 

If he is omnipotent, God allows it to happen - some would say causes it to happen.

C'mon, do you really believe people allow childhood leukemia, brain tumors, loss of eyesight, cleft palate, infanticide? I can go on and on, but you get the drift.

 

Interesting that you would mention those things... Would you like to see a ton of links pointing to the link between all of those things and the chemicals that we ingest and breathe on a daily basis?

How about we look at how many kids with those various ailments die around the world when there is no need for them to, except that they don't have access to the medical attention they need?

I can go on and on, but you get the drift...

All that is 100% besides the point though... I don't think there is a god anywhere that decided that these things would happen... and anyone who does, and still worships that god, well, we likely wouldn't get along very well...

 

Yes, all the above, but if you want just one thing to explain, explain conjoined twins.

Yeah, we do all of those things, but why must we?

And why is there a devil? Cannot God in his omnipotence defeat the devil? Pick on him for a while and leave the kids alone.

 

*Looks up at the sky and points at Tom*

Smite him...
SMITE HIM

*waits*

(looks at Tom)

I think business has picked up recently... you may have to wait on this...

 

I have two answers to this...

1) My tinfoil hat will protect me, I have it attached to a grounding rod...

2) That sure would teach me a lesson wouldn't it? lol

 

And those chemicals come from where? And why is medical attention lacking in some parts of the world?

By the way, why does a perfect God demand worship? What kind of character flaw is that?

I guess you can tell I don't worship that God, so does that mean we might get along very well?

 

You certainly learned the importance of being well grounded then -eh? That's one lesson! That is provided that your mantra isn't "ohm" because that can only mean resistance.