Sometimes we wonder why bad things happen to good people? Some work hard, but they are not treated as they deserve. Why a new born baby dies even before starting off one's life in the world? Worse thing is that why good things happen to bad people? It seems that the world is mysterious in the full of unfairness, injustice and contradictory. These kinds of why and how questions are nothing new, it has always been in human history. Wanting to know about behind reasons why and to figure hidden causes out how is human nature.
One of differences between Western and Oriental perspective of human suffering is the beginning point of the way of approaching to the matter. Why me? Why this happened to me? That is the first reaction of western thought. While oriental thinks first what did I do wrong? Western people want to know a reason why to the happening, on the other side, Orientals want to figure out a cause, previous action, to the happening. It is interesting to know the differences of the way of thinking between these two cultures. But either way, figuring out reason or cause, is not an interesting way to deal with the matter. Why, because it seems to be more like a philosophical or religious method than a practical or realistic way to deal with it.
Regardless of the bad things happening to good or bad people, and whether or not they are religious, the truth is that it has always been a religious matter. A long time ago, more than three thousand years from today, it had already been a big deal, especially innocent people's suffering. The book of Job, one of the oldest books in the Bible, talks about this matter in details. The important lessons from Job are not how to know the reason why the bad things happening to good people but how to deal with it. To know how to face with it is more important than how to figure out a reason why or a cause to what in our real life.
Job teaches the three basic principles of how to deal with human suffering; 1) everyone has come from naked and naked will go, 2) good things and bad things happening are beyond people's control, and 3) until meeting God, it is impossible to know everything why and how. Human vulnerability, weakness and limitation, these are human destiny. The more knowing of humanity, who we are, the more divinity, God's omnipotence (all doing), omnipresence (all being) and omniscience (all knowing) are near to us. So Christian faith is not the knowledge and wisdom of how to avoid or escape from suffering, rather it is the power and energy of how to deal with and overcome it. That is a Christian way of facing with suffering, even though it is impossible to figure out all kinds of questions of why and how.
