Why Do We Suffer?

Theodicy....

"Is God dead?" in the immortal words of Nietzsche (I know a little out of context...but still valid)...Can God exist with an Evil world were innocents suffer? How many times have we heard the story of the righteous man that suffers. OR the great examples: Genocide, Rape, Murder...

Or the religious man who claims suffering is punishment for sin and blessing a reward for righteousness...What about Job? He did nothing wrong, yet he suffers. Job losses his family, wealth, credibility, ending up in the ashes. Why?

If we suffer for soul making, to build better character, then why doesn't it end there? Besides that why can't we be taught bravery, compassion and sensitivity through good rather than pain?
If the Problem of Evil stems from Free will, then why didn't God give man free will with a preference for good, instead of a sinful nature?

If instead the world is ruled by Karma and we suffer because of past misdeeds? Then why strive for good in this life?...you won't remember in the next life anyway....there is no help for the sufferer of Karma. Does the existence of evil and suffering mean there is no God?

Try answering this in a 3 page essay! Its impossible...Paradox exists within God and within our suffering for a purpose. Personally, I believe these issues are meant to be contradictory and paradoxical. This paradoxical nature proves that God’s Nature is beyond human conception. God is always beyond what we make of him...once we create a notion of God, suffering, pain, and injustice shattering this image of God. The problem of Evil has no satisfactory answer.

P.S. Offer any opinion on the subject! I'd love to know any ideas about theodicy, or God!

Have you ever felt...Have you ever...wait

I sometimes feel as though I live in a constant state of deja vu...and not the good kind. Each day I live seems to resemble the one before...until they mesh into an intricate pattern of mediocrity. I use to question why people spent weekend after weekend getting drunk or high even more I wondered why they got tattoos, piercings or dyed their hair wild colors. Yet, not anymore, I find I understand in some remote fashion it might be an attempt to break the endless cycle of mediocre life hood. We are on a journey in life. With the same end death...yet where we can be creative is in life. So we seek out options of creativity changing our bodies, minds and consciousness to find something other than the daily grind. The cheapest ways to elevate the self away from our box lives of ant machinery is to tattoo, dye, pierce, drink, smoke, and shop. Although they tend to be quite expensively materially and eventually there is no more space to tattoo, no more areas to wear jewelry and no more space in the closet. The Hardest and Most Expensive ways are through making friendships, helping others, and discovering the world. I wonder, how far am I willing to go so that I can look back on my life and say each day I learned something new, I did something different and I am an individual because I lived.
Goodnight Cyberspace, Be Kind, Be Gentle, and Be Softhearted!

I Think Therefore I Am

Curious Article: I found in a Daily Daton News. Michelle Incanno a confessed Starbuckian is now boycotting Starbucks coffee due to what she calls an offensive quote printed on her cup of Java. Printed on the cup was: "Why in moments of crisis do we ask God for strength and help? As cognitive beings, why would we ask something that may well be a figment of our imaginations for guidance? Why not search inside ourselves for the power to overcome? After all, we are strong enough to cause most of the catastrophes we need to endure."

She now will not support Starbucks for their offensive practice and anti-religious rhetoric. Curiously I wonder why this is so offensive to her, in the world Religious people should be open to questions that make us doubt our own faith and ways of thinking. Religion in its most pure form lies in the middle of knowing, believing and doubt. It should spur the soul towards truth but never be stuck in the depths of stagnation. Religions teach one to enrich the mind, body and soul, not to isolate the self.Religion isn't conservative, but Creative. For me, Jesus teaches transformation and the urge to move forward affecting the world with compassion and love. I must admit I am a strong opinionated person, but even with God's help I can't overcome and endure a lot. Without him I feel I would loose my compassion and love, and I find It takes a very cognitive person to discover this and search after it. It takes time and work.

I think Starbuck's quotes are a way to open the mind to a whole new way of thinking, even if oppositional to my own. Keep it up Starbucks! God can take care of himself...and Believers don't need to be told to believe...we just do!

(http://www.daytondailynews.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2007/05/06/ddn050607cup.html)