Big Question · Philosophy
Why is there suffering?
If God is good and all-powerful, why do people suffer?
Big Questions · Why is there suffering?
Philosophy Updated November 2026
The oldest question, and the hardest. It is asked inside every faith, not only against them.
Judaism
Job protests to God, honestly, and God answers out of the whirlwind without explaining. Rabbi Yannai taught that it is not in our power to explain why the wicked prosper or the righteous suffer (Pirkei Avot 4:15).
Christianity
Christians point to a God who suffers with us, on the Cross. Thinkers from Augustine to John Hick have argued that a world with real freedom, and room to grow, must allow real pain.
Islam
“We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and loss” ({ref("2:155")}). Life is a test “to see which of you is best in deeds” ({ref("67:2")}). The Prophet (peace be upon him) said even a thorn's prick removes a believer's sins (Bukhari 5641).
The sceptic's case
The philosopher William Rowe argued that some suffering, a fawn burning slowly in a forest fire that no one sees, seems to serve no purpose at all. The actor Stephen Fry asked, on Irish television in 2015, how a loving God could allow bone cancer in children. These are serious arguments, and believers take them seriously.
Where it stands
Open. Believers find answers they can live with; sceptics find them insufficient. Each faith also says: the right first response to suffering is not an argument, but to help.
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