Why does God allow suffering in this world?

This is one of the most common questions people ask when it comes to talking about the notion of God. And it was no different this last weekend when a lunch table conversation turned to the problems that beset most of religion today - and the problems they in turn give rise to. Personally I think that this question, though a good one, is quite dangerous - for it is easy to get blown away by emotion when it comes to these things, when considering the suffering of innocent people and trying to find rational reasons for consequences that arise out of a myriad complex interactions between people. And I think the question can be extremely debilitating as one sets out on the quest for spiritual truth - and I've seen how the seeming irrationality of such suffering as exists in the world turns people away from the notion of an all-merciful, omnipotent and omniscient God - for, if God were so loving, kind and merciful, why would he let innocent people suffer?

There are various ways of answering this question, but I think it all comes down to the interaction between two fundamental verities of this universe and existence. The first is the law of action and reaction - that every action causes a reaction. There are always consequences to any action. In fact the very definition of an action includes a consequence. The second is a basic fact about human existence - we have free will. We have been given (for better or for worse) the ability to make choices, to choose how to act, and make decisions in any situation (subject, of course, to physical and natural laws).

The above 2 aspects of this world, I believe, reconcile the all-loving, omnipotent and omniscient nature of God with the reality of suffering - once we realize that we are all acting according to our free will, and each of our actions has far-reaching consequences. And not only are we doing this at the present moment, we are still reaping consequences of the actions of people before our time.

Rather than go into a more in-depth explanation, I'll let you figure the rest out for yourself, and just guide your thinking with the following three points. The first 2 are examples which will hopefully illustrate why attributing suffering to the will of God is meaningless. The third is a comment on spiritual reality, and how it enables us to rise above suffering and be hopeful in the face of it. So here goes.

1. You just graduated from one of the best universities in the country with top grades. On this joyful occasion, your father, in all his generosity and benevolence, gifts you a brand new sports car. With a word of caution to drive responsibly, he hands you the keys. You get in, and with a surge of excitement, drive off. You enjoy the acceleration of the car, and push it to its limits. You see a stop light in the distance, which is green when you first look, but then turns red almost as you get to it. You can still stop, but you decide to jump the light, as the road seems clear. As you race through, however, a car comes roaring in from the other side of the intersection and crashes into you. Your car is totaled and you are seriously injured, if not dead.

So, whose fault was it?
a. Was it the other driver's fault for not seeing you jump the light?
b. Was it your father's fault for giving you such a fast car that would induce all the adrenalin that made you jump the light?
c. Was it God's fault for not seeing that you would undergo immense suffering if the accident happened, and so for not magically making the other car miss you?
d. Or was it your fault for driving recklessly, breaking the law, and misusing what was given as a gift and a privilege?

2. Lets raise the stakes even higher. This time round, you're still driving the nice car, but you're being very careful and cautious. You are a very law abiding citizen, have never broken even the most minor of laws, you are a loving and kind person, you serve your community and family, and are, in all ways, a model human being. You stop at a red light, and then when it turns green, drive forward. Suddenly from the side, you are rammed by a drunk driver who had jumped the light. Clearly, this was not your fault, but still you are left with paralyzing injuries that will stay with you for life. And the other guy, the drunk, gets away with minor bruises.

So was this fair? And whose fault is it? Should God have seen this coming, and therefore somehow magically stopped the other driver's hand in mid-air as he reached out for that last glass of wine? Especially since you were such a wonderful person and definitely did not deserve this?

Life is an infinite sequence of actions and consequences - and our actions influence not just us, but others too; and likewise others' actions influence us. A world with only good consequences would be a world with no free will - and I leave you to contemplate why that's far worse than what we have now. God's love for us is apparent in the fact that He has given us the free will to make our own choices - having it any other way would only make Him less loving, kind and merciful.

3. The existence of suffering for some only seems very unfair when one holds a completely materialistic worldview. If this one life were our only chance, if this was all there was to it - we are born, we live, we die - then yes, it would be blatantly unfair that one person is born with a silver spoon in their mouth, while another has to fight for his daily bread all his life. In fact, the infant who dies during childbirth would be the most unfortunate - he didn't even get a chance to live life! And so if God had created such a world, where we all lived a fleeting existence, and if then some people were made to suffer more than others, we could consider Him to be an unfair God.

This, however is not so - for spiritual reality claims to be eternal rather than transitory. Life on this material plane is surely transitory - but the life of the soul is eternal. Viewed from this context, the changes and chances of this one material life have very little significance in the broader scheme of things. Whether one believes in the Hindu view of reincarnation, of being born again into this material world, or the Baha'i view of an eternal progression through the various worlds of God, there is no doubt that we are given many chances - infinitely so. And surely God has the power to recompense us a hundredfold for any misfortunes we face in this life that are not a consequence of our own actions! At first sight it may seem unjust that the innocent should suffer, but Abdu’l-Bahá assures us that the injustice is only apparent and that, in the long run, perfect justice prevails.

"As regards the question of young children and of weak, defenseless souls who are afflicted at the hands of the oppressor, in this a great wisdom is concealed. The question is one of cardinal importance, but briefly it may be stated that in the world to come a mighty recompense awaiteth such souls. Much, indeed, might be said upon this theme, and upon how the afflictions that they bear in life become a cause for them of such an outpouring of Divine mercy and bestowal as is preferable to a hundred thousand earthly comforts and to a world of growth and development in this transitory abode..."

Any suffering in this material world, therefore, like this world itself, is only transitory. Our soul, though, is eternal, and so transcends that suffering. What is important, therefore, is how we deal with suffering. Each of us is given our own share of tests, and our own set of capacities. How we use those capacities to deal with those tests, and how we do the best we can given our own set of circumstances is what counts ultimately. Baha'u'llah writes in the Gleanings,

"The whole duty of man in this Day is to attain that share of the flood of grace which God poureth forth for him. Let none, therefore, consider the largeness or smallness of the receptacle. The portion of some might lie in the palm of a man’s hand, the portion of others might fill a cup, and of others even a gallon-measure."

All this should of course not be used to justify inaction on one's part in the face of another's suffering. We cannot look at a world full of poverty, starvation, disease and war, and choose to do nothing about it as it is transitory, and those people would be recompensed in the long run. It is incumbent on each and every one of us to be of utmost service to our fellow human beings and this earth, for that is how we attain our share of spiritual grace and grow closer to God.

I will end with another quote of Baha'u'llah's, one that always fills me with hope and joy every time I read it.

"Sorrow not if, in these days and on this earthly plane, things contrary to your wishes have been ordained and manifested by God, for days of blissful joy, of heavenly delight, are assuredly in store for you. Worlds, holy and spiritually glorious, will be unveiled to your eyes. You are destined by Him, in this world and hereafter, to partake of their benefits, to share in their joys, and to obtain a portion of their sustaining grace. To each and every one of them you will, no doubt, attain. "