B. H. Carroll Theological Institute

Pain and Suffering

With Dr. George Layne Wallace

Tuesdays 11:30am-2:00pm CDT
6:30pm-9:00pm CEST

A popular piano player sang it in a song: “Only the good die young.” Why is that? Why do the good seem to go through life with pain and suffering while the wicked prosper? Why does a child contract a deadly form of cancer? Why does COVID rob the world of millions and wreck mental health? Why does the church in the Middle East endure persecution? How could a good God allow such pain and suffering? Find the answers this fall in the course Pain and Suffering, which addresses the biblical, theological, and philosophical issues of theodicy.

Competencies

Everyone will have someday to answer the question, “Why?” Why was my husband taken on our fifth wedding anniversary? Why has my mother’s memory faded to the point she no longer knows me? Why are my brothers and sisters in Christ being killed in foreign lands? The great questions of suffering are difficult, but not impossible to answer. Readers in this course will:

  • Discover biblical, theological, and philosophical answers to the problems of evil and suffering.
  • Develop an understanding of how one’s worldview is shaped by the idea of theodicy.
  • Uncover how to act when those around you are suffering and having difficulty understanding the goodness of God in the face of evil.
  • Develop models of ethical behavior for crises, as well as problem-solving skills and sound decision-making techniques rooted in the gospel.

Goals and Objectives

  • Explain how Evil has been posed as a problem for a good and omnipotent God.
  • Discuss major Christian approaches to theodicy.
  • Become familiar with how other religions approach the problem of Evil, and be able to compare and contrast Christian views.
  • Become familiar with biblical approaches to the problem of Evil.

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