September 11—An Anniversary of Death and Suffering

“Why is there death and suffering?” is an oft-asked question, but there is little doubt that exactly five years ago, it was on the minds of nearly everyone.

Five years ago, terrorist attacks against the Pentagon and the World Trade Center (and the crash of a fourth hijacked plane in Pennsylvania) killed nearly 3,000 people, sobering American society and saturating the media and our minds with images of towers collapsing, crowds rushing from destruction, firefighters speeding to the scene, and people worldwide expressing horror-or, sadly, even approval-at the attacks. We extend our deepest sympathies to all friends and families of 9/11 victims as they remember their grief, and we pray that the God of all comforts (2 Corinthians 1:3-5) will comfort them, and draw them to Himself through this tragedy.

A major article in Newsweek this week quotes an atheist who repeats a widely asked rhetorical question on the topic of God and suffering:

How can anyone believe in a benevolent and omnipotent God who permits a tsunami to swallow 180,000 innocent people in a few hours?

The article then states:

These are not brand-new arguments, of course, and believers have well-practiced replies to them, although in some cases, such as the persistence of evil and suffering (the “theodicy” problem), the responses are still mostly works in progress.

Responses to the persistence of evil and suffering are “still in progress” because the church, and, as a consequence, society as a whole, has thrown Genesis out of the picture. Understanding Genesis as true history is the key to realizing that death and suffering are the consequences of disobedience in the Garden, and that none of us are “innocent” because we all have inherited Adam’s sin and rebelled against the Creator.

Answers in Genesis encourages you to continue reading at Where was God on 9/11?