Speakers to discuss suffering, benefits of goodness
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BY BOB REEVES/Lincoln Journal Star
Speakers dealing with two different sides of the same religious issue will be at First-Plymouth Congregational Church this month.
On Feb. 21, Bart Ehrman, author of “God’s Problem,” will tackle the perplexing question: “Why the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question, Why We Suffer.”
Then on Feb. 28, Dr. Stephen Post, author of “Why Good Things Happen to Good People,” will talk about “the growing new science of love and giving,” according to a news release.
Ehrman, chairman of the religion department at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, is the author of the best seller “Misquoting Jesus,” which deals with the myriad mistakes and alterations in various translations of the Bible.
In his latest book, Ehrman considers the disconnect between the concept of an all-powerful loving God who rules the earth and such horrors as the murder of six million Jews, the loss of nearly three million Africans a year to malaria or the loss of a loved one from accident or illness.
A Jan. 7 article in Newsweek magazine notes that Ehrman has four years of Bible college study and a divinity degree from Princeton seminary but because of questions about suffering, came to reject the God of the Bible.
How a loving God can allow suffering is an age-old problem known as theodicy. In “God’s Problem,” Ehrman describes himself as an agnostic — someone who believes that it’s impossible to know or prove whether God exists.
He said he came to that position through deep personal anguish.
“Some people think they know the answers,” he writes. “Or they aren’t bothered by the questions. I’m not one of those people.”
Erhman has said he has no intention of destroying people’s faith. “I am not about to urge anyone to become an agnostic,” he said. “But I do know that many thinking people think about suffering … I could no longer explain how there can be a good and all-powerful God actively involved with this world, given the state of things. For many people who inhabit this planet, life is a cesspool of misery and suffering.”
In contrast to Ehrman, Post is expected to deliver an upbeat message about the benefits of caring, kindness and compassion.
In “Why Good Things Happen to Good People,” Post details the ways in which living a good life in service to others can help people live longer, be happier, healthier and less depressed.
Post is professor of bioethics and family medicine in the School of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.
His lecture is part of a celebration of local volunteers called, “A Thousand Points of Light in Lincoln.”
It’s also part of the Otis Young Lecture Series on Ethics and Religion, named in honor of former First-Plymouth pastor Otis Young.
Ehrman’s lecture at 7 p.m. Feb. 21 is co-sponsored by Lee Booksellers. A book signing is scheduled at 6 p.m. and a reception at 8 p.m.
Post’s lecture is at 7 p.m. Feb. 28. He also will have a book signing at 6 p.m. and a reception at 8 p.m.
Both events are free, but advance registration is highly recommended. To register call 476-7550 or e-mail addie@firstplymouth.org.
Reach Bob Reeves at 473-7212 or breeves@journalstar.com.
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