From the Pastor's Desk | February 4, 2024

Gospel Reflection

Why do bad things happen to good people? This is really what our readings are asking, particularly the first reading from the book of Job. Job was a righteous man who certainly didn’t deserve anything that befell him. I’m sure we’ve all asked ourselves that very question - why do bad things happen to good people? The way that I typically answer this is by addressing the second part of the question. Are any of us truly good? Are we perfect like our heavenly Father is perfect? No. We all tend toward sin, even those who seem as though they live perfectly righteous lives. We are, as St. Paul says, sons and daughters of wrath. It is through the merits of Jesus Christ that we have been brought back into right relationship with the Father and why, like Jesus, we can cry out, “Abba, Father!” 

There is, however, a deeper question that centers around the problem of evil. We believe in a God who is all knowing, all powerful, and all good. If God is all knowing, He would definitely know that there is evil in the world. If God is all powerful, He would prevent it and stop it altogether. And, if God is all good, He would want to prevent and stop it. So, why do evil things happen to us? Why do we deal with suffering and tragedy? We call this the ‘problem of evil’ because it does pose a difficult intellectual dilemma. The existence of God and the existence of evil are not, however, mutually exclusive. The two can (and do) coexist. We know this from Scripture beginning with the account of the fall and onward. The Bible, particularly the Old Testament, is about how we human beings behave when confronted with sin and evil. More practically, we know this from our everyday lived experience. The New Testament is God’s great rescue mission, certainly foreshadowed through the Old Testament. 
First, God’s omnipotence (all-powerful). Omnipotence does not mean the ability to do what is logically impossible. God can certainly create beings with the freedom to choose between what is good and what is evil, but He cannot force those beings into choosing only what is good. Then it wouldn’t be freedom.  

Second, God’s omniscience (all-knowing). God has infinite knowledge, and we do not. We are, in fact, limited finite beings. Therefore, God knows things we don’t. This can be frustrating for us. God may, in fact, have good reasons for permitting things like evil and suffering. God plays a long game, and we can’t necessarily see ‘the why’ in many circumstances. We leave these mysteries to God alone knowing that, one day, we will have answers. Sometimes, what appears to us to be a tragedy God uses to bring about a greater good. Sometimes, what appears to us to be very good, in the end, proves to be something altogether bad.
Third, God’s omnibenevolence (all-good). We have to be careful here because we tend to project or impose onto God what we think goodness means or should mean. And, by ‘goodness’, we tend to mean lovingness and kindness. Much of the time, we want God to bless whatever project or endeavor we have undertaken. We want a God who is nice. God didn't create us merely for happiness in this life. More importantly he created us for eternal happiness living in relationship with Him in heaven.

We have to keep in mind, due to our limitedness and finitude, sometimes we have to simply bow to the mystery of God when bad things happen - when we are confronted by evil and sin. That’s the whole point of the book of Job. Many things happened to this righteous man that are inexplicable and tragic. At the end of the book, the answer to the problem of evil isn’t really answered. Rather, God takes Job on a tour of the cosmos and asks Job, “Where were you when I created the universe? Where were you when I created the mountains, the beasts, and the creatures that roam the earth? Where were you when I created the seas and all they contain?” In other words, God is making a point. Our lives are but a sentence on a page of a chapter of a huge volume of work. From our perspective, we cannot see the entire volume of work but only our short existence in time. There is so much more to God’s project; so many more questions that have yet to be answered for us. Someday they will be.

On our part, we are called to remain faithful - faithful like Job. 

Know of my prayers for you all! 
Fr. Ryan