What Kind of God?: An Inquiry into the Challenge of Suffering

Abstract

As we have seen in the previous chapters, tragedies, suffering and especially death raise difficult problems. In fact, their occurrence is said to constitute a classic argument against those who uphold a theistic explanation of life.¹ One would therefore expect that atheism would generally be regarded as a more credible option in life. What is surprising, however, is that not only do theists continue to believe in their God — Job, Hopkins, Vaughan, Donne and Herbert do represent a strong theistic viewpoint — but they have also developed arguments to try to resolve the contradictions in their beliefs caused by the dark side of life.² It has even been pointed out recently that we must hope that there is a God for only then can there be meaning to the suffering of the innocent.³ The testimonies of those who have suffered considerably and who continue to uphold their faith or who have even discovered God in their suffering seem to give the lie to atheism.⁴ For them far from being the occasion when they turn their back on God, suffering becomes the vehicle which brought them to know the kind of God they had always relied on. It would appear then that suffering, though a challenge, does not necessarily contradict the theistic interpretation of life—at least, for these people.