God. Is He truly good?

[In Lou I Trust]

I ask this question because this morning a very good friend of mine lost his year long battle with cancer. He was a 29 year old husband and father of 3 beautiful little girls. He was a God fearing Christian who gave everything he had to the church. He was an amazing example of what a man and a man of God should be. Even through his battle with cancer he never lost faith and used it as a way to spread God's will. He didn't deserve this. His wife didn't deserve this. And his 3 little girls didn't deserve this. So I ask you... how can God be good? How can God take a man so devoted to spreading His word yet allow scum like Jerry Sandusky to live a long life?

 

[Emcee77]

Philosophers and theologians have been trying to answer this question for ages, and there is no answer, other than that God is a mystery to us and we can only have faith in His plan, though it is impossible sometimes to understand it. My condolences to you, friend. Thoughts and prayers with you and the family.

 

[DomeLover3]

Firstly my condolences to you, your friend and his loved ones.

God is good. Don't think of it as your friend being punished with death, but by being rewarded with God's company. It sounds as if your friend has done all he could do on this earth and is now being rewarded. He has been tested, and God has decided it is your friends time to join Him in eternal life.

 

[yankeeND]

I'm sorry for your loss, I believe you when you say that your friend did not deserve this. When tragedy happens it is common for those affected to question God's grace. Do not get off the path as I am sure the legacy your friend left behind through his family was apart of God's plan to make a difference in the world. Have faith my friend it's always darkest before light.

 

[AvesEvo]

Sorry for your loss.

And to your question and IMO... no.

 

[GEORGIA DOMER]

Condolences my fellow Irish fan! Two months ago I lost my stepdad to cancer. He was 49. Best man ever. Hang in there and take relief in knowing that "Tickle monster " will be *** hammered. FOR ETERNITY

 

[Riddickulous]

Firstly my condolences to you, your friend and his loved ones.

This.

And assuming God exists at all (I personally think so), you speak of something infinitely more intelligent and complex than any of us, and thus beyond human understanding. I don't think this is the place to find answers.

 

[FLDomer]

Condolences.

My suggestion is look at your friend and how he turned to God for strength and how sounds like he didn't falter in his faith. I know your pain and understand your question "why". I lost my brother when he was only 21 to cancer and I watched him wither away from his 6'3 195 lbs Collegiate basketball frame to a weak pathetic 137lbs bag of bones.... Through it all (multiple surgeries, stomach and esophagus removed) he never once blamed or curse God but turned to him for strength. The last talk I had with my brother in the hospital before he was sent home for a week to pass away in my parents home, he told me, first asking why I was crying? I responded to "Tod, it's because you are leaving us and I'm scared.". Tod said to me "Stop Bobby! I am fine, just promise me one thing, always do what God would want you to do....do his will!" Believe me, I have thought many a time since my brother left this world, why. If he went through all that **** and stayed strong, and found strength,peace and comfort in God, than I could too. I turn to God often and thank him for all that I have and for the example my brother was to me to live my life closer to what God would want me to do (not always sticking to my brothers advice). As easy as it is to blame God for taking my brother or for taking your friend, it was He that gave them to us in the first place to effect our lives in a special way.
I am a terrible writer and when it comes to something like this to put my feeling into written word...well i suck but if you want to talk more and vent please feel free to reach out to me in PM as I truly understand your frustrations and pain.

 

[Old Man Mike]

Well.... I didn't want to answer this, but here is a very brief attempt at doing so:

A). Moral Theologians actually HAVE answered this question of "why do bad things happen to good people?" Their answer is completely satisfying to me, but the understanding of it doesn't come through casual reading. I, against my better judgement, will try anyway.

B). God has only one thing that He was interested in when He created the Universe, and only one thing now. He is interested in whether we LOVE or not. To determine that, God must design a Universe wherein highly advanced intelligences exist, who therefore can see the consequences of their actions, and that these intelligences have the freedom to choose the Good [a Love Decision] rather than the Bad [a Self decision]. Jesus reinforces the message by giving only two Love Commandments in the Gospels. So what does this have to do with the Moral Theology dilemma?

C). To have the Universe free for freewill choices, the happenings in this Universe can in NO WAY be skewed so that it can be determined that being good somehow is specially rewarded. The Universe must be set in motion with Original Immutable Laws of Creation which then grind forward throughout Time. Those Laws of God will create Life, Mammals, DNA, Mutations, "Accidents", "Bad Luck", etc. BUT THEY MUST CREATE THEM WITHOUT REGARD TO WHETHER THE AFFLICTED PERSON IS "GOOD" OR BAD. If the Bad Guys were afflicted with bad things shortly happening, bad guys would notice that and maybe choose [though not freely] NOT to do bad things. Even moreso, if doing a good thing meant a good reward coming out of nowhere, well, everybody would be doing the good things.

God doesn't like to see people hurt or dying, but creating a Universe wherein such things happen indiscriminately to everyone is THE ONLY WAY to preserve true freedom of our choices to express selflessness or selfishness.

No one is saying that this is "great" for we poor little people, but it's the only Universe we can be living in where we can show God clearly without promise of some candy handout from above that we are indeed the Lovers that He hoped we would be.

 

[Irish YJ]

Philosiphizers be damned. Bad **** happens to good people. There are no answers for us living. The real question is to me at least, will we have the answers when we die? If not, I guess it just doesn't matter. I'm simply a realist. Too many friends and family, a lot of them young, died well before their times. To me, just goes back to personal belief and faith.

1. Do I want to be a happy person that believes there's a God with a grand pla.
2. A happy person that wants to believe life on this earth is it, and when we die there is nothing, so make the best out of it you can.
3. Or a person with a bad attitude that there is no god, or god is bad, and there is no grand plan.

I'm still trying to decide if I'm 1 or 2. I'll never be a 3. Life sucks some times, actually more than some times, but I'm not going to be a malcontent and make myself miserable. I do hope for 1 though.

 

[KPENN]

Simple. He doesn't exist.

 

[Who'saWildManNow]

Condolences buddy.

Free will is the answer to the "Why would God let this happen" question.

Free will allows us to do anything we want, we will be judged in the end.

Your friend's story is deeply saddening but I wouldn't blame it on God. Scientifically/biologically, his body failed him.

 

[RubberSoul]

The rain falls on the just and unjust unfortunately. Literally and figuratively.

So sorry for him and his family.

 

[notredomer23]

If he exists, I think He is good. I look outside and I think to myself this can't be an accident with how beautiful the world is.

And then the **** that happened to me today happened. First time I've really ever doubted his existence was today, it was weird when I saw the thread title.

 

[mgriff]

Sorry for your loss man. I don't want to help turn this thread into anything more than an offering of sympathies. My comments most certainly would.

No one can know for sure. Only in death can we know the truth.

 

[Irish4Life09]

Condolences to you, and your friend's family.
When my grandfather died 5 years ago I contemplated this question for a long,long time. He was about as good of a person as you could know on this Earth, and dealt with a very painful and almost unknown form of cancer. I wondered how such an amazing person could go through such a horrible experience.
Unfortunately none of us will know until we have to go through such things ourselves, but I have to believe there is someone watching over us. I am a realist, and if you look simply at how the universe was created, there really is no question that some higher being, God, created it all.Thinking otherwise is quite futile.

 

[eNDzone]

"You have made us for You,O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rest it rest in You." St. Augustine

You and the loved ones your friend left behind will be restless while trying to understand his death. But take comfort in knowing that your friend is no longer restless.

 

[50milesSE ND]

Well.... I didn't want to answer this, but here is a very brief attempt at doing so:

A). Moral Theologians actually HAVE answered this question of "why do bad things happen to good people?" Their answer is completely satisfying to me, but the understanding of it doesn't come through casual reading. I, against my better judgement, will try anyway.

B). God has only one thing that He was interested in when He created the Universe, and only one thing now. He is interested in whether we LOVE or not. To determine that, God must design a Universe wherein highly advanced intelligences exist, who therefore can see the consequences of their actions, and that these intelligences have the freedom to choose the Good [a Love Decision] rather than the Bad [a Self decision]. Jesus reinforces the message by giving only two Love Commandments in the Gospels. So what does this have to do with the Moral Theology dilemma?

C). To have the Universe free for freewill choices, the happenings in this Universe can in NO WAY be skewed so that it can be determined that being good somehow is specially rewarded. The Universe must be set in motion with Original Immutable Laws of Creation which then grind forward throughout Time. Those Laws of God will create Life, Mammals, DNA, Mutations, "Accidents", "Bad Luck", etc. BUT THEY MUST CREATE THEM WITHOUT REGARD TO WHETHER THE AFFLICTED PERSON IS "GOOD" OR BAD. If the Bad Guys were afflicted with bad things shortly happening, bad guys would notice that and maybe choose [though not freely] NOT to do bad things. Even moreso, if doing a good thing meant a good reward coming out of nowhere, well, everybody would be doing the good things.

God doesn't like to see people hurt or dying, but creating a Universe wherein such things happen indiscriminately to everyone is THE ONLY WAY to preserve true freedom of our choices to express selflessness or selfishness.

No one is saying that this is "great" for we poor little people, but it's the only Universe we can be living in where we can show God clearly without promise of some candy handout from above that we are indeed the Lovers that He hoped we would be.

Wow I don't usually agree with old man, but thanks to a relaxing day on the boat and some cold ones he actually makes sense.

 

[Grahambo]

Never like seeing something like this so I offer my condolences, what little they can do.

I truly believe so because He sacrificed his Son so that we can live free with Him. I believe He is preparing His army for the Final Battle and your friend is a key piece to the puzzle. While we may not think it fair, especially to his wife and daughters, they had a father and husband who was a fighter. He did not cower to the cancer but stood face to face with death everyday telling him not today. His name is something they should be proud of and I wish them nothing but the best and happiness.

Cheers my friend.

 

[arrowryan]

Sorry for your loss.

God has a plan for everyone. Thank God for sharing your friend with the world. Your friend left this world having a lot of influence on other people and hopefully his friends and family follow his actions

 

[arrowryan]

If he exists, I think He is good. I look outside and I think to myself this can't be an accident with how beautiful the world is.

And then the **** that happened to me today happened. First time I've really ever doubted his existence was today, it was weird when I saw the thread title.

Whenever you doubt his existence, just pray and go to church. Look at the human brain, there is no way the human brain just came out of no where. The brain is too powerful, some spirit had to have created it

 

[Whiskeyjack]

OMM stated it beautifully.

Bad things happen to good people because of free will. If being a "good" person made one immune from things like cancer, the morality of human life would be totally skewed. The converse is also true for "bad" people like Sandusky.

 

[SaltyND24]

My prayers go out to you, his friends, and loved ones...It's absolutely normal to second guess whether God is good or not when bad things happen to good people. My sister loss one of her closest friends in elementary school to leukemia. It won't always make sense, but I pray that you keep the faith. OMM, wonderful post btw...

 

[alohagoirish]

If we see God only in a "materialistic " way , then god is clearly NOT GOOD. In fact he would be a "monster"--Death , Disease, Oppression, Genocide, unspeakable suffereing by the entire species ,endless & brutal, sparing neither the children, the priests ,the saints ,the sick, the good or the weak---all suffering at the hands of & the mercy of a crazed & violent god.

God is good--indeed God is the very definition of good , God is what you shared in your spirit with your passed loved one, god is what gives us life and energy , love & expereince, God defienes existence , he informs all things , he is everything everywhere---the energy that drives existence itself.

When we feel empathy , when we feel love , we feel the shared god within us all , within all things.

The pain and injustice of so much of life is not the pervue of God , God is neither sanctioning or preventing the church filled with children doomed to a tsunami death. Those are all materialistic events , they are a random product of existence , but existence itself , the energy we came from and all end up going back to is God and that God cannot be other then good.

 

[ohara831]

So very sorry for your loss. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

Sometimes, the best of people get struck down like this so painfully. One thing I have often noticed is that these brave young people fight to the end, but never lose their faith. Just like your friend. And it causes people to talk about it and discuss how the person can keep their faith through something that seems so unfair. Perhaps that is God's plan when these things happen? That beautiful brave person serves as an inspiration to others, and by their act of faith and courage bring about discussions such as what we are having here. Who knows? Perhaps someone in a similar situation tonight or tomorrow who does not know God reads this, and finds their way to the Light. God does indeed work in mysterious ways.

 

[MrIrishCanadian1]

C). To have the Universe free for freewill choices, the happenings in this Universe can in NO WAY be skewed so that it can be determined that being good somehow is specially rewarded. The Universe must be set in motion with Original Immutable Laws of Creation which then grind forward throughout Time. Those Laws of God will create Life, Mammals, DNA, Mutations, "Accidents", "Bad Luck", etc. BUT THEY MUST CREATE THEM WITHOUT REGARD TO WHETHER THE AFFLICTED PERSON IS "GOOD" OR BAD. If the Bad Guys were afflicted with bad things shortly happening, bad guys would notice that and maybe choose [though not freely] NOT to do bad things. Even moreso, if doing a good thing meant a good reward coming out of nowhere, well, everybody would be doing the good things.

OMM, I like this account that you've presented. It's very interesting and has some biblical support.

I was wondering how the account fits with the fact that Jesus revealed that the good will go to heaven and the bad will go to hell. Doesn't the knowledge of heaven and hell taint our motives and prevent us from true selfless love just as it would if all and only good people experienced nice (earthly) lives? If God needed to prevent us from the "I'll do this good act so that I will live a comfortable life" motive, why doesn't he need to prevent us from the "I'll do this good act so that I will live a comfortable afterlife" motive?

 

[BobD]

My condolences to you and the family Lou.

 

[military_irish]

All I can say is I apologize for you loss.

But to your question no one you ask will ever be able to give a definitive answer. It all lies within faith and that God has a plan that no one will ever be able to understand.

 

[Rizzophil]

Sorry to hear about your loss.

God is truly good but His ways are higher than our ways. He sent His own Son to die for our sins so that we can have eternal life (John 3:16). Unfortunately, we live in a fallen world and we don't understand or agree with everything that happens.

Romans 8:28 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

 

[Black Irish]

OMM, I like this account that you've presented. It's very interesting and has some biblical support.

I was wondering how the account fits with the fact that Jesus revealed that the good will go to heaven and the bad will go to hell. Doesn't the knowledge of heaven and hell taint our motives and prevent us from true selfless love just as it would if all and only good people experienced nice (earthly) lives? If God needed to prevent us from the "I'll do this good act so that I will live a comfortable life" motive, why doesn't he need to prevent us from the "I'll do this good act so that I will live a comfortable afterlife" motive?

I won't presume to speak for OMM, but scripture is full of references that say "Your reward is not on Earth, but in Heaven." That is the true reward. Life on Earth is a series of tests of events that we have to deal with in the best way possible so we will achieve everlasting peace. Some people have it worse or harder than others, but I do believe that those who gracefully bear the more difficult challenges in this life have a quicker path to salvation.

Those of us (like me) who are just plugging along, not really having to bear too much pain or hardship have to be even more vigilant about living a good life so we can be rewarded. Everyone will have to go through some Purgatory to get to Heaven; you can either take it now or after you die. Ultimately, there has to be a reward. The challenge is to live your life towards that reward oftentimes with little evidence that it exists and little support from others who have given up hope.