God and the Mystery of Human Suffering: A Theological Conversation across the Ages

If God is omnipotent and good, why is there suffering in the world? This question has occupied religious thinkers for thousands of years. Since the time of the Shoah, Jewish, Protestant, and Catholic theologians have devoted considerable effort to articulating God’s relation to a world in which human suffering is an integral part of human history. Robin Ryan surveys the ways in which the mystery of human suffering has been addressed in the Jewish and Christian traditions, from the Hebrew Scriptures up to such contemporary theologians as Gustavo Gutiérrez and Elizabeth Johnson, and then offers his own conclusions and suggests elements of an understanding of the mystery of human suffering rooted in Christian belief in the God of Jesus Christ. The book is an invaluable resource for women and men engaged in or preparing for pastoral ministry, as well as others who wish to learn more about their faith. After making us aware that we often find ourselves speaking about God’s relation to the mystery of suffering and to suffering people, whether or not we have formal training in theology, Ryan invites us to become more aware of our implicit theologies of suffering and to allow our own perspectives to interact with voices in the tradition and contemporary thinkers who grapple with this topic. †