The famous British philosopher and noted atheist, Bertrand Russell, asked the following question of Christianity in his book ‘Why I am Not a Christian’: What is a Christian to say when seated at the bedside of a dying child?
For many atheists and agnostics, this question is a powerful one. They see it as striking at one of the core belief of Christianity – that God all-powerful, all-knowing, and perfectly loving. Would not the fact of a child dying of leukemia, for instance, have to contradict one of those beliefs? Because the child will die, and thousands upon thousands do die all the time, then if there is a God He must be deficient in one or more of those three areas (I will address this precise objection in another post).
However Christian philosopher and apologist William Lane Craig was able to turn the question around and answer it in a brilliant and satisfying way: What is the atheist to say when he’s seated at the bedside of a dying child? (Tough luck?).
His observation is powerful. For the atheist, that child was dealt a terrible draw in life’s lottery. Oh well, that’s just the way things go. For the Christian, we acknowledge that life is full suffering, nothing about our beliefs shy away from that fact, the Bible clearly teaches us to expect that. But it goes so far beyond the transient nature of this life! That child can know that death is not the end of the line, that that child, through the grace of the Father and the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ, can expect to raised to life again and live forever with God and His followers. That at such a time God will address all injustices and all wrongs will be made right. What a powerful message.
For many atheists and agnostics, this question is a powerful one. They see it as striking at one of the core belief of Christianity – that God all-powerful, all-knowing, and perfectly loving. Would not the fact of a child dying of leukemia, for instance, have to contradict one of those beliefs? Because the child will die, and thousands upon thousands do die all the time, then if there is a God He must be deficient in one or more of those three areas (I will address this precise objection in another post).However Christian philosopher and apologist William Lane Craig was able to turn the question around and answer it in a brilliant and satisfying way: What is the atheist to say when he’s seated at the bedside of a dying child? (Tough luck?).
His observation is powerful. For the atheist, that child was dealt a terrible draw in life’s lottery. Oh well, that’s just the way things go. For the Christian, we acknowledge that life is full suffering, nothing about our beliefs shy away from that fact, the Bible clearly teaches us to expect that. But it goes so far beyond the transient nature of this life! That child can know that death is not the end of the line, that that child, through the grace of the Father and the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ, can expect to raised to life again and live forever with God and His followers. That at such a time God will address all injustices and all wrongs will be made right. What a powerful message.
P.S. For another brief post on why the problem of evil and suffering doesn't contradict the concept of a good, loving, and powerful God, see this post.
8 comments:
(Finally found the new blog site!) Good points Nathan. It's hard sometimes to slow down and really think through the tough questions like the one mentioned about the dying child. As a Christian I'm afraid too often I forget that people bringing up a topic like that may have never thought it through themselves yet. Or that they may be going through the pain of a situation like that themselves. A trite answer or missing an opportunity to talk openly is not what's needed! Appreciate the insight!
-Faith
Russell should have asked that question of a devout Christian mother. I recall this very situation being related, in fact the child had died at a young age, and everyone around the mother was saying how unspeakably tragic the loss was (which it was), but the mother said, "I'm grateful to God that He granted me the blessing these past 5 years to have my baby in my life, and full of joy he now beholds the face of our Savior."
BTW, one of the great ironies is that Bertrand Russell's mother-in-law was Hannah Whithall Smith, author of one of the great classics of the Christian life, THE CHRISTIAN'S SECRET OF A HAPPY LIFE.
I've been thinking further about this, and thought I'd add another comment:
I don't mean to be flip about the tragedy of losing a child, or to imply that the mature Christian should be stoically accepting of such a tragedy. I never experienced a loss like this, thank God, but I can imagine how devastating such a loss would be.
One thing Jesus supplies to us in his sufficiency is comfort in the face of crushing tragedy. The greatest challenge of the Christian life is to learn to walk with Christ such that he can be who he is both in us and through us. Jesus was acquainted with grief (so it says in scripture), and his heart must sorrow with the parent who has lost a young child. But by his grace, mercy, love, and Spirit, comfort is a real possibility. Sorrow, yes; but a recognition that God is in the midst of the sorrow, and supplies what's needed to get us through. It's also something which strengthens our faith. This is something the unbelieving world cannot fathom...hence Bertrand Russell's question. Seperate from Christ's direct ministry to our soul's, I don't know how any person gets through it. It isn't the doctrinal affirmations that "God is good; God is love; all things work together for good for those that love God," which gets one through, but the ministry of the Spirit of Christ to the soul of the person in grief -- typically through the tangible love and comfort that comes from other believers, but also a direct spiritual ministry to the spirit of the grieving heart.
It's presumptive of folks like Bertrand Russell to stand in judgment or in question of the efficacy of God, when that efficacy can only be known to those who have entered into a relationship with God through Christ by faith.
Thanks for the comments, Dad. You've hit on an important point, which was driven home to me (again) just yesterday. I am nearly finished reading Dinesh D'Souza's book "What's So Great About Christianity" and was reading the Afterword, where Dinesh recounted his daughter stating "How strange Christianinty must appear to those outside it." This really is the challenge that faces us as Christian in communicating our message to a lost world: How do we present it in a way that's understandable to the non-Christian?
To the non-Christian, so much of Christianity is so different from their experience, that I have often doubted the ability of outsiders to get an accurate understanding of Christianity in even it's simplest forms. Of course, many Christians have made the problem worse by trying to communicate their ideas in "Christian language," full of words and phrases that contain specific meaning to the Christian, but are completely new and unknown to the non-Christian.
How do we present it in a way that's understandable to the non-Christian?
People watch our lives. Our reactions to people and to circumstances speak louder than words, and often in the midst of some mind-numbing challenge or adversity, people may not be able to hear our words; our life-witness is what communicates the truth of what we have in Christ during those times.
Ian Thomas liked to quote St. Francis on this point: "Preach Christ always. When necessary, use words."
Greg, very astute in including in your first comment that it often isn't the kowledge that gets us through a crisis, but, "the tangible love and comfort that comes from other believers." Lots of Christians will tell you the, "God will take care of you" truth, but not many will tell you that it comes from other Christians. It's a basic Christian teaching, really, but you stated it very well. Thank you!
Dad, your last comment is so important. So often we (I) forget that as good as a well reasoned answer is to reach the lost, often a well lived life is the most effective tool of all.
It makes me think of several testimonies I have read in the past about parents loosing children, in one case several children at once, in truly horrific circumstances. In each case people would make the statement, "What a waste. What good can possibly come from this?"
The answer becomes clear over time, without God in the lives of these families, probably nothing good; many spouses divorce after living through such trying times. But because of the supreme sovereignty of God, He began bringing other families who had suffered similar loses and were downing grief and doubt into the lives of the first parents. Their prior loss gave them an authenticity and an ability to comfort, to empathize, and to lovingly guide these families so freshly facing such tragedy through their grief to God in a way I or anyone else would be totally unable to.
Does God desire that such things happen in the world He created? I don't believe so. But when these things do happen to believers He redeems the loss by letting by using to touch and to heal others who don't know Him. And the truly wonderful thing about God in this regard is that He not only accomplishes a redemption of the loss in this world through the salvation of people, but He will redeem the years lost between parents and children, between husbands and wives, and between families and friends. This world is only a transient moment of time and a short separation compared with the perfection of the world remade!
In times of trial, we hold on with a vise-like grip to the promises of God. It is true that "all things work together for good to those...called according to His purpose," but in the midst of a trial, these usually seem like empty words. Where is the "good" in the death of a child? We usually cannot see past the pain of the moment. But for the Christian, faith is what actuates the promises of God, and we find, eventually, that God's words are true, and they become true to us not simply abstractly, but in reality, in where we are living, in our hearts and in our experience. This is the balance of "word" and "experience." God has told us a lot about Himself, and what we have by virtue of our union with Him, and these things are all true...but the truth must be lived, and by faith, God Himself is living out His truth in our lives, even in the midst of tragedy.
I said this in men's study a couple of weeks ago: The most important and vital thing in our Christian lives is to live according to the promises of God in Christ. That's all the Christian life really is.
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