In Praise of People

Lizzie Freear restores our faith in humanity

Photo: pro.corbis.com

It has never ceased to amaze me how strong people can be when they have to be. A lot of time is spent in the philosophy of religion declaring how much suffering there is in the world — how much pain we experience, how many evil people there are, and how the world isn’t really a nice place to be. A lot of people have decided that this kind of world could never have been created by a perfectly good God.

What they seem to forget is that the people God created in this terrible world are capable of surviving the pain, of withstanding all the things the world throws at us and doing well anyway. If this world is such a terrible place, why are there so many happy people in it? As human beings we often seemingly defy logic by remaining cheerful and optimistic even when facing tremendous pain and hardship. If the creator did such a bad job why is it that people who lose their job, their children, or their health can remain happy, and in many cases, lead very successful and rewarding lives?

Suffering is the main opportunity we have to excel ourselves. If the world were devoid of natural disasters, poverty and oppression where would the heroes and champions be? Who would Mother Theresa, Florence Nightingale and Nelson Mandela be to us? If the world provided no obstacles where would the need be for inventors and explorers? This may not be a great comfort to those who are suffering, but surely to remove suffering is to remove the opportunity for humanity to excel itself and show what it’s made of?

I have never once met a truly evil person, but I have met many truly amazing people, as I’m sure you have too. You are probably one of them. There are people who have been through much more than me, and yet seem at least as happy; there are people who are always willing to give and to help. Sometimes you may have to look for them, but the world is full of wonderful people.

It is easy to have a pessimistic view of the world; you only have to watch a news bulletin to see a lot of suffering. Yet look closer at that murder and you will see that the victim’s parents, friends and relatives are raising money for a charitable memorial fund, putting their loss to one side. Look closer at that bombing and you will see the Red Cross and emergency services working day and night with the victims, and for every political scandal there are plenty of people putting in every hour they can for a worthy campaign.

God has not created a despicable world of pain and suffering and evil, but a world containing people who can cope with whatever is thrown at them — people who can survive terrible natural disasters, oppression and pain; people who can not only save themselves but go back for others too; heroes. Be thankful for yourself and your neighbours, and be amazing.

Lizzie Freear