The Problem of Death

When a loved one dies, family and friends usually show up in town to honor that person, to pay last respects, and to say goodbye.

I've kind of been mulling over this argument by atheists and agnostics dubbed "the problem of evil," which is supposed to be a logical conclusion about the non-existence of God. I could spend a great deal of time researching and taking up the typical arguments against this "problem of evil," but I don't really feel like it would be a good use of time.

Nevertheless, my mind gets going and I sometimes stumble into something worth saying...or at least I think I do.

Those who subscribe to the argument that since evil exists God doesn't use horrible tragedies to prove that God does not exist. Since atrocities occur and God won't do anything about it, He must not exist. But I think one of the greatest atrocities on the earth is to say that God does not exist and the logical conclusion to that argument. Since God does not exist, what use is there in honoring the dead? They are merely the result of an improbability and a great deal of time. And when they are gone, they are gone. Their lives are worthless vapor, here today and gone tomorrow. To suggest to those who are grieving passed loved ones that the dead are inconsequential, that their lives were mere biological function, trying to survive, to gather food, build shelter, and reproduce, is an unspeakable blasphemy. Where then is morality? Where then is justice, mercy, and truth? Why then is the death of just another animal so painful? After all, I see dead possums every day on the road. If God does not exist, then let us eat, drink, and be merry, for our lives are of no eternal consequence.

I guess what I'm saying is this: the act of love that is portrayed through the grieving process, along with numerous other appearances of love can only suggest that God is real. I maintain that since we see love here on the earth, God must be real, for love cannot be mere biological function. We learn love from Love Himself. After all, we were created in His image. This pain we feel from missing our loved ones must be derived from Him. It must be the pain He felt when He called out to Adam, "Where are you?"

Those who subscribe to atheism because of the "problem of evil," when attempting to prove their point, play on the very love nerve about which I am speaking. Since all these incredibly horrific things happen to "innocent" people, we are moved with compassion, then look heavenward and wonder what is happening up there that these things are still continuing. I claim that if God is not real and we are simply a biological anomaly, there would would be no moving in the heart; there would be no compassion; there would be no, "why, God?" We would be animals, and like animals we would live if there was no God. But there's nothing animalistic about people saying goodbye to a loved one for the last time. Those tears are real. And I would venture to say that no one has a bigger broken heart about these things than God Himself.

When I see grieving people, I think, "None of this was ever God's will. Death, dying, pain, loss, suffering...none of this is God's will." And it isn't. Look at the resurrection of Lazarus. Jesus wept when He got there. I always found that interesting because Jesus had to know He was going to raise him from the dead. I wonder if Jesus wept because these people had to go through the pain of losing Lazarus. I wonder if Jesus still weeps at funerals today. I bet He does.

~

WJS