Jack Pelham

Many have ventured to ask why God allows evil and suffering.  I’m sure the discussion of this question could range through several chapters in a book on the topic, but my concern at the moment is simply the hypocrisy that it represents for most who ask it.  Here’s what I mean:

When bad things happen, many people’s default expectations are revealed: they tend to expect that God should prevent evil from harming anyone.  So when bad things happen, it naturally raises the question of why God is not performing as expected.  While some may dare to shake a fist at God, others hesitate to charge him openly with wrongdoing, yet their question remains unanswered and they can find no reason that God does not meet their expectations in protecting the world from evil.  Thus does this persistent question amount to a soft challenge to his sovereignty.  He could do it, they reason, therefore he should do it.  So why doesn‘t he do it? Continue reading →

In a recent conversation on a religious forum, a participant expressed his opinion that I’m too focused on the mind and on facts, and not enough on other factors.  Here’s my reply.

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In your summation, you wrote (emphasis added):

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul and all your strength. Your writings suggest that you have the mind part down. Your passion suggests that you do understand the heart, soul and strength part at some level. Your words, however, indicate that your experiences with the irrationality of this world have you focused on facts. Continue reading →