Why Do Bad Things Happen?

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Okay folks… here’s my problem… My non-Catholic Grandmother, in her ailing old age, has started to doubt God’s love and mercy – and has even started to doubt that He exists at all. Everytime we go and see her, she just goes on rants about “Why do bad things happen?”. Such as, “If God exists, then why did all those little kids have to die in the tsunami?” or “If God exists, then why are there little kids starving right now in Africa?” and on and on.

As you can probably imagine, it’s rather troublesome to hear your own Grandmother (who’s time here on earth is running short) start to question God.

I know this is an rather elementary question. But no matter what I say, she just keeps on going on her rant. Evidently I’m not saying the right thing. I’d love to hear what you guys would say to her. Any ideas? Comments? Suggestions?? Thanks! 👍
 
So Why Do Bad Things Happen?



by Stacy James

The biggest question with evil is, “Why doesn’t God prevent it from happening?” If God is really an all-good and all-powerful being, why doesn’t he do something?

First of all, God does not create evil; he allows it to occur. When he originally created the world, he created all things good. He created people, however, with the freedom to choose. This includes the freedom to make right and wrong choices. Often those wrong choices bring about consequences that end up hurting ourselves or other people, sometimes innocent victims who didn’t deserve it.

As a college student, I was paralyzed in a diving accident. God did not push me in the water to punish me or necessarily teach me a lesson; I chose to dive off my friend’s shoulders. As horrible as the consequences were, I can blame no one but myself.

Of course, God could intervene and control everything about our lives–the good and the bad–but then we would merely be robots and not truly free. He could even force us to love him if he wanted, but then forced love isn’t true love. He gives us the freedom to choose or not to choose him, the freedom to live and enjoy life, and the freedom to make right and wrong choices. Unfortunately, we are left to deal with the consequences of our own and other people’s actions.

Author C. S. Lewis said that 80 percent of suffering comes from the moral evil of mankind. So what about the other 20 percent? There are some things we will never truly understand here on Earth.

There is good news, however. First of all, the God of love is also a God of justice. For all those who make wrong choices, hurt innocent victims, and get off scot-free, a time is coming when they will face the consequences of their actions. God is the Ultimate Judge, and in due season, God will judge everyone for all their deeds. “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13).

Second, God often uses the trials of life for a greater good, often to develop our character and make us better people. And we are able to help others in similar circumstances. I have been able to reach out to disabled students (after my character was changed from complacency to compassion!). Trials also force us to see what is important in life, and often drive us to God when nothing else will. We see the importance of faith, of love, of caring, and of family and friends.

Third, God has provided a way out. A time is coming when there will be no more suffering. In heaven, people will enjoy a paradise beyond imagination. God has created a place of eternal glory where there will be no more crying, pain, sickness, or death; a place where people will share his joy forever.

Finally, God does care. He never promised life would be problem-free, but he promised to be with people. Jesus himself felt love, compassion, and sorrow, and was drawn like a magnet to those who were hurting. God, in his love, wants a relationship with us. “For God so loved the world, that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). To read Stacy’s story, see her website at www.walkingvictorious.com.
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dhgray:
I hope this helps
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I many times hate it when bad things happen as well, and I occasionally questioned God about them. My friend’s sister died in October, and though it was horribly sad, it pulled me closer to the church. As for bad things happening, I think they just do. God doesn’t will it, rather somebody chooses to be destructive or we are simply victims of circumstance. Now, look at the response to tragedy and I believe you will find God. It’s tough to say that, because I have already been to two funerals for friends under 16. I can’t assign blame for those two people, it just happened. But, God won’t forsake those who are hurt in such situations. Eternal life is waiting, and it sounds like it should be pretty nice.

Eamon
 
It would be difficult to appreciate all the good times in our lives if there weren’t any bad times. Sounds sort of corny but it’s true… without the rain we’d never see the rainbow.
 
Why does God let bad things happen?

What is bad? Every day around noon I become hungry. Is this a bad thing? Why does God allow this? Why does God have my body grow tiered at the end of the day? I still have so much that needs to be done and had God made our bodies to function with no sleep I could get so many more things completed.

Yes, God could have created us that nothing bad ever happened or that our bodies never became hungry or tiered. But in his wisdom these things happen.

When asked about children dying remember we are looking at if from the survivors point of view. When we die and (hopefully) go to heaven we may be asking God, “This place is so great why did you let me live so long I would have loved to come here years ago?”

Why is it that no one ever asks, “Why does God allow so many good things to happen, especially since we sin so often?”

Just some thoughts

John S.
:irish2:
 
step father in law went through same thing in last couple of years before he died, siezed on every wacky thing he saw on Discovery channel to bash the Church he belonged to for 90 years, he had cancer and was in hospice but died of stroke, doc said with his arteries he was not functioning mentally for at least the last 10 years. Please when any old person starts in like this consider the medical explanation first. check them out for depression and signs of arterial damage and stroke risk, dementia, Altsheimers etc. do not hold it against them, often they don’t even know what they are saying, but are ranting the way a young child does against a loving parent
 
I think that bad things happen so that we can rejoin the Church and Our Father. God will never give us any problems that we cannot handle, so the more that He feels we can handle, the more “blessings” He bestows upon us. They are really more of blessings than problems, because they give us way sto show our love and desire to serve God. They are also great ways of obtaining grace and extra heavenly rewards.

God Bless–JMJ
Laura 🙂
 
I recommend you buy for her the following book by Rabbi Harold Kushner, When Bad Things Happen to Good People. It’s not what I believe to be the Catholic answer, but it may help prepare her for the Catholic answer. It helped me. Then I recommend the book by Protestant writer, C.S. Lewis, called The Problem of Pain (C.S. Lewis Classics)

Both books are very short and inexpensive, but very good. Then I recommend this article from *This Rock *magazine: " (This Rock: May 1998)WHY BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO A GOOD GOD" by John Dowling.

I think the answer is that LOVE is so amazing, that PAIN and SORROW are worth enduring, and REJECTION is worth risking. Anyone who has ever been truly in love should be able to understand this.
 
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itsjustdave1988:
I think the answer is that LOVE is so amazing, that PAIN and SORROW are worth enduring, and REJECTION is worth risking. Anyone who has ever been truly in love should be able to understand this.
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Yeah, I agree. I think you really hit the nail on the head with that one.

Eamon
 
God only allows bad if good can come from it. For example, the tsunami, out of the bad we have people focus on that region and find new problems that need to be addressed, or people donate to help and in doing so selflessly help others.

Correct me if I am remembering wrong, but the Catechism states that God only allows bad if good can come of it.
 
One of the best explainations I heard was from a Jewish scholar, who said that God created us within the context and confines of the physical world, and as a result of that we are susceptible to the consequences of living in such a world.
 
Boomer Sooner:
Okay folks… here’s my problem… My non-Catholic Grandmother, in her ailing old age, has started to doubt God’s love and mercy – and has even started to doubt that He exists at all. Everytime we go and see her, she just goes on rants about “Why do bad things happen?”. Such as, “If God exists, then why did all those little kids have to die in the tsunami?” or “If God exists, then why are there little kids starving right now in Africa?” and on and on.

As you can probably imagine, it’s rather troublesome to hear your own Grandmother (who’s time here on earth is running short) start to question God.

I know this is an rather elementary question. But no matter what I say, she just keeps on going on her rant. Evidently I’m not saying the right thing. I’d love to hear what you guys would say to her. Any ideas? Comments? Suggestions?? Thanks! 👍
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Tell her tsunamis are fun. It’s all God knows: freedom, fun and excitement. God sent excitement to indonesia. How fun, if one were to trust him.

I watched a screening one time of a movie called The Straight Story . This was with a group of mostly older people. There was electricity in the air during and after - for all of us (there was a discussion after the movie). *The Straight Story * tells the story of how God receives our tsunamis. It’s a beautiful experience that might move your grandmother.
 
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Pace:
Tell her tsunamis are fun. It’s all God knows: freedom, fun and excitement. God sent excitement to indonesia. How fun, if one were to trust him.

I watched a screening one time of a movie called The Straight Story . This was with a group of mostly older people. There was electricity in the air during and after - for all of us (there was a discussion after the movie). *The Straight Story *tells the story of how God receives our tsunamis. It’s a beautiful experience that might move your grandmother.
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I totally don’t understand what you mean when you say the tsunamis are fun?? What’s fun about thousands of orphaned children, and massive devestation for people who were already terribly poor? I don’t think it was fun or exciting for those poor souls - it was tragic and terribly unfortunate and I don’t believe God was sending some “excitement” to indonesia. :nope"

I believe it’s true that our universe was set in place and natural disasters like the tsunami happen and God takes all the bad - all the sadness and turns it into something good.

May God bless them.
 
Sheesh, yeah that was pretty weird… :ehh:

I’m not sure how much diffference a philosophical answer from a youngun’ is going to make to someone at the end of their life. My mother is 87 and really going through some bad times, never really believed in God and never attended church as an adult, and I think it was mainly over this same issue. Why do bad things happen? Why is she unhappy? Why did her own mother die at 52? She raised me, yet for some reason I understood, thanks in part to a local TV show put on by a Catholic priest (which was “Insight” with Father Elwood Kieser for you boomers in SoCal) that explored these issues through docu-drama.

Still, it’s hard to say how everything will hit you at the end. Someone above mentioned dementia etc. but I think a lot of the thoughts that come out of even a demented person are based on events and frustrations built up over a lifetime. I never blow someone off just because they’re old and sick. Sometimes their observations are quite lucid. But I think this is another good reason to get your spiritual house in order when you’re young, read and study and pray and learn the answers to these questions now, don’t wait until the end to ask them.
 
Boomer Sooner:
…“Why do bad things happen?”. …:
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Don’t mistake tragedy for evil
they are not the same thing

tragedy is random events

evil happens because WE alllow it
 
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caroljm36:
Sheesh, yeah that was pretty weird… :ehh:

I’m not sure how much diffference a philosophical answer from a youngun’ is going to make to someone at the end of their life. My mother is 87 and really going through some bad times, never really believed in God and never attended church as an adult, and I think it was mainly over this same issue. Why do bad things happen? Why is she unhappy? Why did her own mother die at 52? She raised me, yet for some reason I understood, thanks in part to a local TV show put on by a Catholic priest (which was “Insight” with Father Elwood Kieser for you boomers in SoCal) that explored these issues through docu-drama.

Still, it’s hard to say how everything will hit you at the end. Someone above mentioned dementia etc. but I think a lot of the thoughts that come out of even a demented person are based on events and frustrations built up over a lifetime. I never blow someone off just because they’re old and sick. Sometimes their observations are quite lucid. But I think this is another good reason to get your spiritual house in order when you’re young, read and study and pray and learn the answers to these questions now, don’t wait until the end to ask them.
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Peter Kreeft revealed the Christians Biggest Secret: That most of us are grumbling against God most of the time.

Here’s another philosophical answer: Grandma probably wants to punch God in the face for all the suffering she’s going through, like all the rest of us. The only answer left at that point might be to try and turn her world upside down (because if she thinks God is the one doing bad things, her world is presently upside down). And would all the apologetically correct answers in the entire world - repeated for a couple of millenia - help her one bit at this point, anyway? “Sometimes their observations are quite lucid” - perhaps requiring lucid answers. Maybe this person’s grandma made the mistake of calling certain suggestions of other people “weird” when she was “young”? And perhaps she talked about them in the third person?

From The Straight Story : The worst part about getting old is remembering when you were young.
 
The world is a screwed up place because this is not Heaven. God did NOT make this world to be perfect. This is not paradise, Adam and Eve lost that a long time ago. Nature can do random things, earthquakes and floods can happen, some folks may make bad decisions to hurt people. Evil is still allowed to exist here.

In a place where evil can exist, bad things can and do happen.

God balances this off by giving us an opportunity to go to a better place when these things don’t happen, where his goodness rules.

IF we did not know about what could happen when God’s will does not rule, we could not fully appreciate Heaven where unfortunate things never happens.

wc
 
Bad things happen because Satan is the prince of this present world and he is VERY busy!
I do believe that for everyone (with all their mental capacity, of course) that blames God for the evil of the world, Satan smiles.
 
Father Corapi answered this question beautifully. I believe he said he did his thesis on this very question.

Why does God allow evil or bad things to happen?
Answer: To bring about a greater good. Just look at the crucifix and you will have your answer.
 
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