Eternal life Quote by Terryl L. Givens
““In the Garden story, good and evil are found on the same tree, not in separate orchards. Good and evil give meaning and definition to each other. If God, like us, is susceptible to immense pain, He is, like us, the greater in His capacity for happiness. The presence of such pain serves the larger purpose of God's master plan, which is to maximize the capacity for joy, or in other words, "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." He can no more foster those ends in the absence of suffering and evil than one could find the traction to run or the breath to sing in the vacuum of space. God does not instigate pain or suffering, but He can weave it into His purposes. "God's power rests not on totalizing omnipotence, but on His ability to alchemize suffering, tragedy, and loss into wisdom, understanding, and joy.””
About This Quote
Source Book: Theology of Suffering, Terryl L. Givens, 2015
Suffering and evil give meaning, allowing God’s capacity for joy to be maximized; pain can be transformed into wisdom.
In simple terms: Pain gives meaning and can become wisdom and joy.
Key Takeaway
Seek growth through hardship.
Themes
theodicy
purpose
spiritual growth
joy
Mood
thoughtful
serious
Type
theological
philosophical
When to use this quote
- personal tragedy
- ethical dilemmas
- faith crises
Key Concepts
alchemical transformation
divine plan
Questions to Reflect On
- Can suffering ever be truly beneficial?
- How does this view affect compassion?
A Different Perspective
May oversimplify complex theological issues.
![“2. The Errors of Philosophical Pessimists and Religious Optimists. Philosophical pessimists[FN#214] maintain that there are on earth many more causes of pain than of pleasure; and that pain exists positively, but pleasure is a mere absence of pain because we are conscious of sickness but not of…” quote by Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/584/kaiten-nukariya-793_hope_2-the-errors-of-philosophical-pessimists_98837.jpg)
![“the biblical scholar Richard Elliott Friedman notes that “probably the most remarkable difference of all” in disparate passages “is their different ways of picturing God.” Some depict “a deity who can regret things that he has done ([Gen.] 6:6, 7), . . . a deity who can be ‘grieved to his heart’…” quote by Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/2ae/terryl-l-givens-20241_bible_the-biblical-scholar-richard-elliott-fri_292417.jpg)
