Problem of Evil [2]: The Justice Defense

[Wesrock]

Wesrock:

At most general answers about why such things may happen disproportionately, and answers as to how there is no contradiction to God’s perfect goodness, but why this individual rather than that one specifically? Perhaps not.

But there is no equivalence between individuals who do well in life and those who suffer. All non-humans end their lives in suffering and pain, often great pain. The numbers experiencing this daily outnumber all the humans who have ever lived, let alone all those who have had a ‘good life’ either in terms of enjoyment or in terms of doing good. You can’t restrict the ‘problem of pain’ to humans. Other creatures experience pain. They have, in Catholic thought, no prospect of eternal life.

This comment doesn’t seem related to what you quoted.

 

[Latin]

Why did God create trillions of non-human creatures nearly all of which die in pain and many of which suffer great agony? They have no prospect of eternal life.

God is able to resurrect and to bring into perfection every creature.
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The whole creation in Christ (Eph.1:10, Col.1:20, Acts 3:21, etc.) will be restored by recreation.
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The Bride of Christ will come down from heaven with Christ at His Second Coming and He will rule over all Nations with His Bride.

CCC 677 The kingdom will be fulfilled, then, not by a historic triumph of the Church through a progressive ascendancy, but only by God’s victory over the final unleashing of evil, which will cause his Bride to come down from heaven.
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Dan.7:13-14;“In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven.

14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him.

His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
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Dan.7:27; Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High.

His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.
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Is.2:4; He will judge between the nations

and will settle disputes for many peoples.

They will beat their swords into plowshares

and their spears into pruning hooks.

Nation will not take up sword against nation,

nor will they train for war anymore.
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Isaiah 11:6-9; “The wolf will live with the lamb,

the leopard will lie down with the goat,

the calf and the lion and the yearling together;

and a little child will lead them.

7 The cow will feed with the bear,

their young will lie down together,

and the lion will eat straw like the ox.

8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den,

and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest.

9 They will neither harm nor destroy

on all my holy mountain,

for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD

as the waters cover the sea.”

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THE NEW EARTH AND THE NEW HEAVEN WILL BECOME ONE IN CHRIST – Eph.1:10 -11, Col.1:20, etc.

Revelation 21:2; “I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.

24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth [Bride of Christ/ (Universal) Catholic Church] will bring their splendor into it. In the brackets added.

26 The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it.”
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God bless

 

[FiveLinden]

God is able to resurrect and to bring into perfection every creature

Thank you. Well, yes. That’s what being omnipotent is I guess. But I think I am right in saying that there is no Catholic teaching to the effect that this will be the experience of the trillions of living things who die in pain? And am I not right in thinking that there is specific Catholic teaching to the effect that while all living things have souls, only humans have immortal souls? So that Catholic teaching is that God will NOT ‘resurrect and bring into perfection’ non-humans who have died?

 

[RepetantCatholic]

Again, I just read the first post but if it is as you portrayed, “we suffer because we deserve it,” that is not religion but rather a Social Darwinist approach. So, in the first thread I described the typical fundamentalist personality type atheist, even without religion they still think like fundamentalist. In this second post we got the second kind of atheist which is the science minded, Social Darwinist. Again, if you suffer it’s because you deserve it with the assumption you are inferior in some way unable to fit into society.

Well, again, the question of suffering to me comes down to man’s oppression of fellow man and our need as religious people to follow the Golden Rule and to emulate Christ’s generosity and own suffering. From my own life experience I have found suffering redemptive so far as you can forgive, know you too are not perfect and may have caused suffering, strive to no longer cause suffering, and through prayer for yourself and your fellow man better connect with Jesus Christ. Again, the New Testament asks us to do these things.

 

[Latin]

So that Catholic teaching is that God will NOT ‘resurrect and bring into perfection’ non-humans who have died?

THIS IS CATHOLIC TEACHINGS ON THE SUBJECT

CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA Divine Providence explains;

God preserves the universe in being; He acts in and with EVERY CREATURE in each and all its activities.

God is the sole ruler of the world. His will governs all things. He loves all men, desires the salvation of all, and His providence extends to all nation.

Again, from the fact that God has created the universe, it shows that He must also govern it; for just as the contrivances of man demand attention and guidance, so God, as a good workman, must care for His work.

That end is that ALL CREATURES should manifest the glory of God, and in particular that man should glorify Him, recognizing in nature the work of His hand, serving Him in obedience and love, and thereby attaining to the full development of his nature and to eternal happiness in God.

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12510a.htm
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CCC 301 God does not abandon HIS CREATURES to themselves.
He not only gives them being and existence, but also, and at every moment, upholds and sustains them in being, utter dependence enables them to act and brings them to their final end .
Recognizing this with respect to the Creator is a source of wisdom and freedom, of joy and confidence.
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Then again, God reveals us things in the need-to-know basis.

Need-to-know basis: If you tell people something on a need-to-know basis, you only tell them the facts they need to know at the time and nothing more.

God not-yet revealed everything for us what He designed/ planned He will do.

We can be sure:
At the end will be, all creatures manifest the glory of God, we know this much.
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God bless

 

[FiveLinden]

Then again, God reveals us things in the need-to-know basis.

Need-to-know basis: If you tell people something on a need-to-know basis, you only tell them the facts they need to know at the time and nothing more.

God not-yet revealed everything for us what He designed/ planned He will do.

We can be sure:
At the end will be, all creatures manifest the glory of God, we know this much

So there is, in the end, no actual Catholic answer other than ‘it’s a mystery’? Or at best ‘It is a mystery and we have reason to hope’?

 

[Latin]

So there is, in the end, no actual Catholic answer other than ‘it’s a mystery’? Or at best ‘It is a mystery and we have reason to hope’?

NOT AT ALL ONLY MYSTERY, what is written in my above post 62 is not a mystery but facts and reality.

CCC 677 The kingdom will be fulfilled, then, not by a historic triumph of the Church through a progressive ascendancy, but only by God’s victory over the final unleashing of evil, which will cause his Bride to come down from heaven.
.
Dan.7:14; “He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”
.
Dan.7:27; “Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. – CCC 677 (Christ will rule over the nations with His Bride).

His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.”
.
Is.2:4; “He will judge between the nations
and will settle disputes for many peoples.

They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.

Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.”
.
Isaiah 11:9; For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
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As 1 Cor.5:19 describes it:
If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most pitiable.
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God bless