The atheist problem of disease: Who's to blame?

A cancer diagnosis is often accompanied by many questions with ‘Why me?' prominent among them. This question is asked by Job in the midst of his suffering, but ultimately he has an answer: God is in some way behind it. Although not a simple explanation, this does offer a degree of comfort and h...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:  
Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal: Collins, Graham P. (Autor)
Tipo de documento: Electrónico Artículo
Lenguaje:Inglés
Verificar disponibilidad: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Gargar...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Publicado: Sage [2018]
En: Theology
Año: 2018, Volumen: 121, Número: 2, Páginas: 92-95
Clasificaciones IxTheo:AB Filosofía de la religión
HB Antiguo Testamento
NBC Dios
NBE Antropología
NCH Ética de la medicina
Otras palabras clave:B Trabajo eventual
B genetic luck
B Compassion
B Empathy
B Blame
B Hope
B Cancer
Acceso en línea: Volltext (Verlag)
Descripción
Sumario:A cancer diagnosis is often accompanied by many questions with ‘Why me?' prominent among them. This question is asked by Job in the midst of his suffering, but ultimately he has an answer: God is in some way behind it. Although not a simple explanation, this does offer a degree of comfort and hope. The atheist or agnostic though cannot appeal to the certainty of a personal God. A superficial scientific explanation ‘blames' genetic mutation on cancer, but while this gives some answers, it fails to offer a comfort or hope similar to that which Job experienced. Indeed, modern medics could be accused of lacking empathy and compassion when reliant on purely scientific explanations for the origin of an illness. The book of Job is a reminder that such superficial explanations of illness are rarely helpful when used alone and outside of a supportive and empathic relationship.
ISSN:2044-2696
Obras secundarias:Enthalten in: Theology
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1177/0040571X17740524