
We’re asking one of the most frequent – and fraught – questions I come across as someone who talks about faith for a living: If God is good, what’s with all the suffering?
Meet our guests

Dr Bethany Sollereder ias a research fellow in science and religion at Campion Hall, University of Oxford. Bethany specialises in the problem of suffering from a theological perspective. Her latest book is Why is there Suffering: Pick your own Theological Adventure, published by Zondervan.

Mary Ellen and Jackson Rogers lost their six year old daughter, Amity, to Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma, a type of brain tumour. They live in Sydney.
Links
You can download a transcript of this episode here
This episode was sponsored by Zondervan’s new book Malestrom: How Jesus Dismantles Patriarchy and Redefines Manhood by Carolyn Custis James.
For a full transcript of this episode, click here.
- You can read more about Amity Rogers in this article from Sydney’s The Daily Telegraph .
- Kenneth Surin is Professor Emeritus of Literature at Duke University. His book Theology and The Problem of Evil was referenced by Bethany Sollereder in this episode.
- Read Herbert McCabe on Aquinas. Herbert McCabe was a Dominican Friar and theologian. He was deeply influential on philosophers such as Anthony Kenny and Alasdair MacIntyre, and poets and writers like Terry Eagleton and Seamus Heaney.
- In episode 57 ‘Jesus Philosopher’, John spoke with Aquinas scholar Angus Brook about his Five Ways to demonstrate God’s existence, amongst other things.
- What is Open Theism – here’s a helpful article by friend of the podcast, and season 5 guest Andrew Wilson.
- Here are some more examples of biblical lament.
- More about DIPG.
- Watch Miroslav Volf’s full talk on vanquishing suffering here.
- Listen to more Wynton Marsalis and read the Atlantic piece about the ‘Magic Ruined’ incident.
If you’d like to contribute to the fight against DIPG, you can donate here:
- In Australia, donate to the Children’s Cancer Institute.
- In the United States, donate to the National Paediatric Cancer Foundation.
- In the United Kingdom, donate to Children’s Cancer Research Fund.
