When Bad Things Happen to Good People
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| When Bad Things Happen to Good People | |
 When Bad Things Happen to Good People |
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| Author | Harold Kushner |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Subject(s) | Theism God Religion |
| Genre(s) | Non-fiction |
| Publication date | 1981 |
| Pages | 176 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 1-4000-3472-8 |
When Bad Things Happen to Good People (ISBN 1-4000-3472-8) is a 1981 book by Harold Kushner, a Conservative rabbi. Kushner addresses in the book one of the principal problems of theism, the conundrum of why, if the universe was created and is governed by a God who is of a good and loving nature, there is nonetheless so much suffering and pain in it — essentially, the evidential problem of evil.
Contents |
[edit] Introduction
In Kushner's introduction, he states that his motivation was learning that his son had been diagnosed with progeria, a disease which causes rapid premature aging and early death, usually at about the age that developmentally normal children are going through puberty. Kushner states that he originally had intended to use as the book's epigraph a portion of the Biblical verse 2 Samuel 18:33 "O Absolom, my son, my son Absolom! would God I had died for thee, O Absolom, my son, my son!" but, that upon further review and reflection, he felt that 2 Samuel 12:23 was more appropriate, "But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me."
[edit] Thesis
Kushner rejects suggestions that human suffering is God’s punisment for misdeeds. He also does not believe that suffering is God’s way of teaching people valuable lessons about humility and spiritual strength. Rather, he believes that human suffering is an innate part of God’s creation of the universe and that its objects are selected at random. People do not fall ill or suffer tragedy because God chose to inflict it on them, he argues, but rather because this is the way of world. When the wheel turns one way or another, people are caught up in it—good people or bad people, but not because they are good or bad.
Kushner further argues that God’s greatest creation, human beings, are unique in that they have a choice. Humans can chose to be good or to do evil. In neither case will God intervene. This human choice—to be good or evil—is Kusnher’s explanation of the Holocaust. It is a case where humans chose to do evil and others suffered as a result.
Having removed God from being the Actor of our daily life, Kushner must explain what the point of prayer and faith is. He states that prayer brings us the comfort of a community’s support and togetherness (a belief that rests on the Jewish traditions of communal prayer). He also believes that while God does not impose either good or evil upon our actions, He can grant us the strength to deal with calamities. Thus, God bestows strength on those who pray and comfort on those who believe in Him.
Kushner’s beliefs, which seem to question God’s omnipotence, have been criticized by some conservative scholars, particularly those associated with Orthodox Judaism but also Evangelical Christianity. The book was strongly challenged by the late Rabbi Y. Kirzner in his in-depth book Making Sense of Suffering (ISBN 1-57819-757-0). Kirzner, who himself suffered terribly from cancer, gave lectures, which were compiled to form the book, in order to bring out the weakness of Rabbi Kushner's theory. Rabbi Kirzner asserted that his book is not an Orthodox Jewish view versus a Conservative Jewish view, but rather a strong logical view of God versus an emotive view of God. An excerpt can be seen at http://www.aish.com/spirituality/philosophy/Why_Harold_Kushner_Is_Wrong.asp.
Rabbi Kushner's book was a New York Times bestseller for many months in the "nonfiction" category.
[edit] Recognition
- New York Times bestseller, "nonfiction"
