Why does god allow suffering?

GBSJG

I always had trouble with answering that question. If there is a god why is there so much suffering?

So I looked up the offical explanation of the WTS in the Bible Teach book Chapter 11 Paragraph 12 says: Let us consider an illustration. Imagine that a teacher is telling his students how to solve a difficult problem. A clever but rebellious student claims that the teacher’s way of solving the problem is wrong. Implying that the teacher is not capable, this rebel insists that he knows a much better way to solve the problem. Some students think that he is right, and they also become rebellious. What should the teacher do? If he throws the rebels out of the class, what will be the effect on the other students? Will they not believe that their fellow student and those who joined him are right? All the other students in the class might lose respect for the teacher, thinking that he is afraid of being proved wrong. But suppose that the teacher allows the rebel to show the class how he would solve the problem.

But I don't think this is a fair illustration. Because if you let the rebel student proof his point there is no harm done or suffering. So how should the illustration look like then? Perhaps the rebel student must have said that to proof that he is right half of the class should cut off a finger and he must shoot the other half of the class death to proof his point. And then you have the almighty teacher which can stop the process at anytime but he just sit there and does nothing. Isn't he bloodguilty then?

The WTS always explains that God is not the cause of evil but that he doesn't intervene and let Satan do what he wants. Another illustration is if you are on the sidewalk and you see a little kid who is about to cross the street but at that moment there is a big truck coming that's going to hit that kid. And you stand there and could easily stop the kid from crossing the street and save his life but instead you do nothing and the kid dies and all you say is "I didn't cause the death it's the truckdriver".

And if armageddon is all over and we are living in paradise etc etc. What if there is another rebellious angel that says he knows better and says he isn't anything like Satan was. God then again must allow this rebel to show if he is right or not.

The reasoning just doesn't make any sense to me. Any toughts about this? Did you also had trouble with this when you still was a JW?

Auchmull

This bothers me, too. The argument my bible study person made, as I understand it, is that by allowing us to go through all this crap, God is proving once and for all to everyone, that he's right and Satan is wrong, ergo, no one will ever rebel in the future. I'm pretty sure there's a flaw in the argument, but I can't put a name on it.

Stan Conroy

God allows suffering because he enjoys it. Read the OT and see how much suffering and death he handed out.

lowden

Listen, i'm not a dog lover but i couldn't even bear to see a dog suffer. I couldn't even begin to think of letting a fellow human suffer if i had the power to stop it!!

There is no explanation for allowing suffering and as far as i can see.....there is no god, there can't be.

We don't need to read a long convoluted tale from the WTS trying to explain away the suffering issue.

It's just common sense, not deep philosophy or religious mysticism.

Would you let a dog suffer if you had it in your power to stop that suffering???? It's not that hard to figure.

Peace

Lowden

daystar

This is primarily a Christian problem. It is a problem in the characterization of God. Many other traditions recognize that God (or gods) are just as responsible for the "bad" as they are for the "good". And it is as it should be.

The Christians and their bible (or perhaps their interpretation) like to characterize God as the source of good only. This is problematic to say the least. How can the massacre by God of millions over thousands of years be good? Well, it can be rationalized on way or another. But if you look at it in the simplest of terms, it just simply is not a "good".

But when you see that God is the source of All, not just the good, but is, in fact, beyond good and evil, such problems simply do not exist.

forsharry

Why does god allow peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?

I think that without suffering, sadness, pain, we wouldn't be able to truly experience, nor appreciate joy, love, happiness. You can't have one without the other...yin and yang. balance.

I think it's intrinsic to our nature really. If you buy into the bible as complete truth, think on this...Adam's son Cain killed Abel. This is first generation removed from perfection! You don't get much purer than that...and he killed. I think we're just fundamentally flawed for this. Crud, Adam and Eve, right? Perfect. And what do they do? Screw it up by eating a fruit...

hubba hubba...lobstah.

Apostate Kate

I would love to see God immediatly punish people who cause suffering.

But then I probably would have already been punushed myself because as good as I try to be I am sure I have caused suffering somewhere. I know I have.

My life would kinda suck if I had to live in constant fear.I can't imagine what life that would be constantly looking over my shoulder waiting for God to smite me and every other screw up.

I am content to know that this life is only a prelininary run and the moment my body dies I will face justice then. I am just a pilgrim passing through. When this life is put in perspective, it all comes together.

Thank goodness Jesus already paid the price for all my screw ups. God has never taken are freedoms away from us. That doesn't mean that there is no justice for those who abuse their freedoms. There is. You can put any spin on the Bible you want to. That doesn't make your spin correct.

People around the world are moved to acts of selfless charity due to the words of the Bible.

bikerchic

Yeah it's not God's fault it's Satan's.

Who made Satan?

GBSJG

Some JW's also explain it that Jehovah only wants people that worship him with their free will he doesn't want robots. So that's why you have a choice between Satan and Jehovah. But that doesn't make sense either what is free will if you have two choices one leads to eternal life and the other to death that's no free choice you will only obey to God out of fear.

Apostate Kate

I know some believe that since God created Satan then that makes God evil.

Personally I am quite the simpleton by admission so..

for me it is like God could have created nothing but unbreakable boring, unstainable plastic plates..

Or a wide variety of preecious highly breakable porceline plates, hand thrown plates of all shapes and colors and sizes with one flaw, they are suseptible to cracks and breaks.

Don't mind me I am just a clumsy broken cracked pot. But at least I am not boring melamine.

Why does god allow suffering?

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