THE PROBLEM OF GOOD

The greatest problem for Christianity has been regarded as the “Problem of Evil (or Suffering).” That is, if an all-loving God exists, why is there so much evil… or why is there evil at all? In fact, one of the leading skeptics today, Bart Ehrman, wrote a book in 2009 titled God’s Problem: How the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question – Why We Suffer. In this book, Ehrman not only suggests that the problem of evil is the greatest obstacle to Christianity, but he also admits in the book’s opening chapter that this very problem was the catalyst that encouraged his own exit from the faith.

Many answers have been offered – both theological and philosophical – but the most intellectual and poignant answers available over the centuries have not been able to sufficiently answer the question with any certainty. Part of the reason for this is that evil and its development of pain and suffering is not an intellectual problem to solve. Of course there is an intellectual component, but by and large, the problem is existential and deeply personal. In other words, pain and suffering is something we see, and even more importantly, it’s something we feel. Therefore, all the brilliant intellectual answers in the world are not going to heal our pain. Even if we discover a theological or philosophical answer that eases our mind, we are nonetheless stuck with the reality of our pain and anguish. We still feel it.

Nevertheless, it has occurred to me: If the presence of evil and suffering is apparently a Christian problem, isn’t the presence of good a problem for the skeptic? That is, isn’t there a “problem of good” as much as there is a “problem of evil?” It seems to me, it is far easier to deliver reasonable answers as to why evil exists than it is to why good exists. I mean, after all, if the God of the Christian type does not exist, and human beings are simply the product of unguided, biological evolution, then where did goodness come from? And furthermore, how did we come to be judges of goodness? Goodness is not a product of biology. It’s not a chemical or tissue that can be tested.

Answers have been provided such as the idea that goodness and morality developed on account of the evolution of community. In other words, human beings, through trial and error as well as the implementation of “common sense,” eventually discovered that adhering to qualities of goodness was far more beneficial to the survival of their community than adhering to its opposite. But when we really consider such a thing, we realize that answers like this don’t suffice at all. Not only are biological and sociological answers given for something that is metaphysical (goodness), but we reach a similar issue as that of the problem of evil. And that is, the problem of goodness is existential and deeply personal – we feel goodness. Just as evil causes us to feel a certain way and has the potential to destroy us from the inside out, good causes us to feel a certain way as well and has the potential to invigorate us from the inside out.

What’s more is that we have developed into “judges” of goodness, on both a personal and a public level. In other words, we declare things to be good for our society and culture, and we also go through the process of discerning goodness within our own hearts and minds – a place where no one else can view the content of such judgment. Where does this come from? And who’s to say that the good decision made was really even “good” at all?

So perhaps the skeptic should be asking a different question. Instead of championing the criticism “how can evil exist in the creation of an all-loving God,” perhaps they should be asking, “how can good exist in the same world as evil?”

From the Christian perspective, we have a pretty clear understanding about where such goodness comes from. And in terms of evil and suffering, all we can confidently say is this. Jesus doesn’t give an explanation for the pain and sorrow of the world. He comes and takes the pain upon Himself. Jesus doesn’t explain why there is suffering, illness, and death in the world. He brings healing and hope. He allows evil to do its worst to Him, He exhausts it, drains its power, and emerges with new life. God, through the person of Jesus Christ, meets us in our suffering. He faced it head on in His life, experienced the weight of it on the cross, and conquered it in His resurrection. This is the God we believe in. Our belief is that, when we embrace Him, we are given the opportunity to experience, in part, the new life that He offers. And our hope is that, upon our mission in this life to bring heaven to earth, to bring God’s goodness and love to our broken world, we will transition into eternity with Him and experience the fullness of this new life. Yes, we as a community of Christian believers have (at times) been failures in our mission. Sometimes we have allowed ourselves to be blinded by other things and unfortunately contributed to some of the pain in this world. But this does not dismiss the realness and truth of the mission itself.

So to the skeptic: Go ahead…continue befuddling yourself with questions about evil. But if you really want to challenge yourself, start asking about the mystery of goodness. As for me and my fellow believers, we have a mission. We hope you join us.

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