We run our website the way we wished the whole internet worked: we provide high quality original content with no ads. We are funded solely by your direct support. Please consider supporting this project.
The Suffering of God
This seems like a good follow-up post from what Greg posted yesterday. Charisma posted this reflection on the problem of evil and the suffering of God. It’s a great summary of our thinking about what accounts for the kind of world we see where tragedies like Newtown occur.
From the article:
C. S. Lewis sagely observed, “Try to exclude the possibility of suffering which the order of nature and the existence of free-wills involve, and you find that you have excluded life itself … Free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having. A world of automata–of creatures that work like machines–would hardly be worth creating.”
Put another way, love cannot be coerced; it must be freely chosen.
Related Reading
Thou Shalt Not Fear Science-Part II
Yesterday I called your attention to Bev Mitchell’s essay in which he integrated science and theology as he reflected on power and love. This is part II of his essay and it’s on the limiting conditions of creation. It’s a fascinating speculative reflection on why God’s creation is the way it is and what our role is in…
In light of Einstein’s conclusion that time is relative, how can you believe that God is not above time?
Relatively Theory basically stipulates that whether an event is viewed as being in the past, present or future depends on where one is in relation to the event in question as well as how fast one is moving. Some people conclude from this that Relativity Theory lends support to the classical view of God in…
Did God Cause the Polar Vortex?
When is this polar vortex thing going to end? It’s March, and even in Minnesota we expect to see temperatures warmer than this. With all of the sleet and cold in the south, it seems like schools are closing more than they are open. While this is not a catastrophic event like a hurricane, tsunami,…
Podcast: Why Was Satan Allowed Into the Garden to Begin With?
Greg considers why Satan was allowed into the Garden. http://traffic.libsyn.com/askgregboyd/Episode_0372.mp3
Approaching Chronic Illness with Wisdom
CNN posted this article on what to say and what not to say when someone you love is suffering with chronic illness. Sometimes our best intentions cause more harm than good, and we need to approach people in pain with a great deal of wisdom and sensitivity. From the article: When people we care about…
Drum Roll Please: Greg’s Final Critique of Bart Ehrman’s Article
This is the ninth and final of several videos Greg put together to refute Bart Ehrman’s claims published in the article What Do We Really Know About Jesus? Thanks for hanging in there for this last one. I know it was a long wait, but the holidays got inordinately busy for Greg. In this segment, Greg talks…