Haiti: Why Does God Let it Happen

Its the oldest question in the theological debate:

If there is a God, why does He let bad things happen?

The question has been debated and answered by all the great theologians from St. Augusting to CS Lewis to just about every Christian talking about the current situation in Haiti (not including the embarrassment that Pat Robertson is and his claim that Haiti is cursed because its people made a pact with the devil in the 19th century).

There are the standard answers that include the issue of freedom and the environment to produce greater good.  The second option is the idea that where there is evil and wrong it produces an opportunity for people to act in greater levels of goodness; i.e. brave in the face of danger, generous after a loss, caring for hurt and wounded people, etc.  While greater minds then mine have embraced this option, I have never been a big fan of it.  I could never wrap my mind around the idea that God would allow evil to thrive so that good could thrive.  The trade off never seem justified to me and the reality that is our planet seems to reflect more suffering then good.

That being said, I was always a proponent of the idea that when bad things happen it is the consequence of the gift of freedom that God gave us.  He created us free so that we could choose good or bad, we could help or we could hurt our neighbour.  If God was to take away the choice of me walking over and punching you in the nose He would in effect be talking away my freedom and turning me into a robot.  And no one wants that - I, as a typical human being, love my freedom and God wants humans to freely choose to follow and love Him (He's not interested in slaves, robots, or subjects that follow out of fear; but thats another post).

So the argument of freewill was always the one that I used to rebuff the rather regular quires I get on this topic.  And pushed to the extent the consequences of human choice can account for a lot of suffering in this world - from violence to poverty to starvation to the far reaching impact of the use of chemicals and pollution (acid rain, birth defects, increased desertification, etc. etc.).

And yet when you read the stories and see the pictures and the evening news about Haiti - all these arguments seem to ring a bit empty.  Is this the cost of my freedom?  Is this the reflection of a God who would allow so much innocent suffering?  Does God exist?  How can I defend God's actions in the wake of all this?  This are the questions that run through my mind.  And given the time and emotional clarity needed, I can address all these questions adequately - or at least to myself.

But that is the problem - I'm only answering my own doubts and questions.  My answers rarely ever soothe an opponent or help someone seeking greater spiritual insights.

For those that don't believe in a God - Haiti is yet another reason to not believe.  And try as I might to argue the point, the arguments fall short when measured up against the lost look in the eyes of a child that just lost all her family, all her possessions, and every meager thing that she did have in her life.

To be honest I have no great answer to this question.  Its difficult and probably the biggest stumbling block to people believing in a good God.  Its a thorn in the side of my faith that I cannot remove.  So I move on in trust and hope.