Dialogue 16 – Religion

 “Do you believe in God,” she asked.

“What brought that on,” he replied.  “You’ve always believed in God.  You’ve always had a religious streak?”

“I’m having second thoughts,” she said.  “I can’t believe a god would allow innocent children to be killed by some deranged shooter.   It just doesn’t make sense.”

“And, you want me to re-affirm your belief in god,” he asked.  “You know I don’t believe in a supreme being of any type.  That’s just something you’ll have to work out yourself.  If you have enough faith, you’ll eventually come around.”

“But, why does God allow bad things to happen to good people?” she asked.

“Mankind has been wrestling with that question since he first decided that spirits and gods existed.  Religious scholars will tell you that God gave every human – free will – the ability to do what they want.   Innocent people are often the victims of free will

“Ancient people  used to believe that the spirits, or god, was upset with something they’d done and he was punishing them.  So, they’d sacrifice an animal or even a human being to please god.

“Now, all god asks when bad things happen to good people, is to have a stronger belief and continue to follow his teachings.”

“That doesn’t help,” she said.  “I still don’t understand why people do bad things and other people suffer for it.”

“You could always do what I do,” he said.  ” Believe there’s no such thing as a god or a supreme being, and people will always do what’s in their own best interest.   That way, God won’t disappoint you and test your faith.”

“So, it’s just a test by God?” she asked.

“Maybe so, who am I to make that determination,” he said.  “After all, God gave you free will.  You decide.”