G. H. Morling on suffering and grace In my previous post, I suggested that G. H. Morling cultivated an almost child-like faith in divine providence, benevolence and mercy; that with human freedom comes the potential for suffering; and that one should accept suffering as discipline or chastisement, use it as an opportunity for growth, and …
What would George do? (part 7)
G. H. Morling on suffering, providence and prayer In my previous post, I discussed some aspects of Morling’s thought on suffering and divine providence. In this post, I want to look at his reflections on human freedom, experience, and prayer for healing and deliverance from suffering – and how these themes relate to the …
What would George do? (Part 5)
G. H. Morling on further purposes of suffering Not all suffering in our world can be assigned a purpose; nor, arguably, should it be. One problem in searching for purposive explanations of suffering, in contrast to causative purposes, is that so much is left to the imagination. For example, we may identify clear evidence-based …
What would George do? (Part 4)
G. H. Morling on the purpose of suffering As we reflect on the Covid-19 pandemic, and the negative impact it is having on individuals and whole populations, some of us will be asking, “Why is this happening? What is it for? What purpose does it serve?” We are not so much interested in causative …
What would George do? (Part 3)
G. H. Morling on further causes of suffering As a child, I lived for six years in regional Papua New Guinea. Some of the parents or grandparents of local people I knew grew up in a stone-age culture and could recall the first time they saw a “white man.” It was an extraordinary time …