From Defeat to Victory: On the Question of Evil

From Defeat to Victory: On the Question of Evil | Alice von Hildebrand | Ignatius Insight

In his great novel, Dostoievski puts the following words in the mouth of Ivan: "the earth is soaked from its crust to its centre with the tears of humanity." It is hard to express better the tragic question that every single human being is bound to raise: Why should we suffer? Why should human life--which seems so promising--constantly disappoint us? Why should man long for a happiness that keeps escaping him? Evil and suffering: these are key questions of human existence which clamor for an answer. WHY?

The majority of those who deny God's existence base their reasoning on the following argument: "You, believers, claim that God is both all powerful and all good. Now, look at the world, soaked in evil and suffering. Why does your God allow this? The obvious answer is that either he is not all powerful and is therefore incapable of curbing evil or is not all good, and does not seem to hear the cries of anguish and despair that his so-called children raise toward him.

No serious metaphysician can escape from this dilemma. Can a satisfactory answer be found?

The gamut of human suffering is almost unlimited. There is no particle of the human body that cannot cause excruciating pains. From his birth to his death, man is exposed to diseases and pains. "A vapor, a drop of water suffices to kill him" (Pascal). But physical pain is far from being the worst source of suffering: It is rivaled by psychological pains which--once again--cover an immense range of possibilities. They can start in early youth: how many children are unloved and rejected. Rivalry between siblings leads many to bitterness and resentment. How many children are ill-treated by their peers (children can be shockingly cruel toward other children), or abused by adults who rob them of their innocence. Parents can be crucified in witnessing the sufferings of their children, and often stand helpless and in tears. In our "brave new world" there are millions of little ones who do not know their father, or have step-fathers and step-mothers who do not care for them. Broken families are the fashion of the day, and one of the main curses of our affluent society. A young child can harbor bitterness and resentment, and is likely to develop into a rebellious adult who finds satisfaction in harming a world which has caused him pain. Many are tempted by suicide. Numerous are those who are "failures": they have achieved nothing; they have succeeded in nothing. Resentment oozes out of their pores, because in the secular world achievement is the key to praise and success.

There are also "secret" sufferings, totally unsuspected by others. There are also noble tears: let us recall that St. Francis of Assisi wept bitterly because "love was so little loved."

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Comments

[Manuel G. Daugherty Razetto]

Dr Hildebrand's exuberant dissertation on the obvious confrontation of evil and the supernatural tilts more to human suffering than to the extraordinary gifts one receives from being on the side of our Faith.
Evil is ever present in our world today and saints must be hiding quite well since their presence is rare, very rare.
A blunder is conspicuous where she introduces the first example of a possible solution to her main question. She gives Buddha's answer to man's troubles stating that he preached the removal of desire as ultimate goal. He never said so. Should had Dr. Hildebrand gone further to examine into the 2nd and 3rd of the "Four Truths" in the Pitakas she would have learned the difference between 'chanda' and 'tanha' that deals with the meaninful subtle differences of his Doctrine regarding desire, via dialectically processed teaching. This topic is the cornerstone of Gotama's philosophy therefore Dr Hildebrand manifests a deep incomprehension of accurate Buddhist Philosophy. Mistakes understanding Gotama's Philosophy have happened from the beginning of Buddhism. Also the Pitakas (as well as our O.T. and N.T.) show contradictions due to compilers, scribes and translators, but careful, conscientious study leads often to the Truth.
Bless her heart.