Why Does God Let People Starve?
It wasn't too long ago that I was asked this question. "If there is a God, why does He allow people, especially children and babies to starve? This was my answer:
God doesn't allow people to starve. People allow people to starve. This earth provides an abundance of food for everyone but some people horde it. The sin of all of those deaths rests on our shoulders because we do little to prevent hunger. All it would take to alleviate starvation is for all the haves to share with the have nots.....it isn't asking a lot....in fact.....that's asking very little.
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Actually ...
... the whole point of the Book of Job (one of the most profound writings in the entire volume) is that God does permit people to starve, often for reasons that are impenetrable to humanity. Because, says the book, only God knows, and can manage, all the forces and pressures leading to that dead baby in the Sudan ... or Oakland.
Unfortunately, the first part of Job (which, scholars think, was written by a different person than the rest of the book) has God yielding to a caprice of the Satan, which cheapens the story and leads to its frequent misinterpretation IMO.
The key message for me is one of humility. The humility to recognize that, even through our best efforts, we will never get everything right, and we should slog on as best we can. And do our best not to make anything worse. Which may be easy to say, but tough to do. It's easy to talk about world hunger, and then about the spots on the lettuce in that exquisitely manicured supermarket and how dare they charge that price for those. It's easy to complain about the war in Iraq, then step into your SUV and drive home. (If we were serious about world peace, if we truly understood what the wages of peace are, the highways would be empty, our salaries in the US would be less than a tenth of what they are now - closer to the world norm, in fact - and there would be zero tolerance for the Gateses of the world.)
We ALL Need to do Our Part
in this world to make it a better place. It isn't that difficult. A small effort is better than no effort. Sharing something...anything is better than sharing nothing......If there is such a thing as sin...then it is human sin that brings suffering to this planet.
I Think We Should Blame Mankind
People starve because others are greedy. God is not greedy. Some people do starve because they are lazy which isn't God's fault too.
I hold on to the belief that God is love and love does not take pleasure in seeing any suffering - including starvation.
well put
I'm with you on this one!