Why Does God Allow Suffering?
God created humans with choice, and animals without.
In the behaviours of a majority of animals, we come to notice their extreme productivity in an often harmonious, systematic and organized manner. We could consider this as the ideal and most favourable state of being; these animals are not choosing to be this way, they were programmed this way. So, if humans were not given choice and they were programmed to be in the ideal and most favourable state of being, we would see an entirely different world. However, since humans were given choice; this ideal and most favourable state of being is a choice. A choice that some, and many do not, opt for. Thus, the lack of harmony, the lack of productivity and inefficiency of this world is a complete consequence of each of our individual choices.
In the behaviours of animals, we also find that their state of being is centered around the preservation of their respective species. In other words, reproducing, protecting and nourishing their herd, colony, pack or whatever other word. Within the respective species, there generally is not much aggression or segregation. There is unity and collective efforts towards the same goals; to reproduce, protect, preserve and nourish. Once again, animals do not choose to be this way, this is how they were programmed. So we can again state that this is the ideal and most favourable state of being. Humans were given choice. Ideally, we would replicate the ideal and most favourable state of being which encourages unity and collective efforts with no discrimination or aggression. However, instead, people choose racism, violence, discrimination, inequality, oppression and the list goes on. Every single societal, humanitarian, economical or political issue we face on this earth is a direct consequence of human’s freedom of choice; our free will.
Poverty is a product of our free will, it was not God’s creation. War is a product of our free will, it was not God’s creation. Racism is a product of our free will, it was not God’s creation. Many ask, “Why does God allow suffering, or pain?” But the suffering and the pain isn’t because of God, it is because of our free will. It is the product, the consequence, of our free will. And do we not want free will? Do we not want the freedom to choose?
The better question to ask is, “Why do I allow suffering or pain? And what am I doing with the free will that God gave me to change it?”
