Twenty-seven years after 1984 Ethiopian famine tragedy, history is repeating itself in Somalia.

Why are the children suffering? Children who have done nothing, they have not yet contributed to the world’s catastrophe or peace. Why do they have to be born into such existence? As someone who believes in the existence of God, I am left with questions that cannot be answered. Amongst some of the questions are, If God is love, and that we are all the children of God, why do some have to suffer and others don’t. Why is God permitting this? Better yet I was asked, “Why do people (worshipers) praise and thank God when something good happens, but when bad things happen they don’t blame God?” Many believers might answer by saying, it is not God’s doing, it’s the action of people that lead to famine. Famine is political. God has given us the mind to think, the power to rule and the ability to act in the act of love, but many have chosen otherwise. 

History has shown that it is people who have caused famine. The 1984-1985 famine that claimed an estimated one million Ethiopians was the outcome of withholding food as a political weapon. In the case of the Soviet Union, “All are punished by official extortion, and worse. That was how Stalin choked off farming in the Soviet Union, where it has still not recovered” (The Economist).Today, it is estimated that 3.7 million Somali’s are affected by the current food scarcity, according to the United Nations tens of thousands of people, most who are children have already died. Once again, organizations, newspapers and televisions are showing the picture of the starving Horn of African child.  History has repeated itself.

To me having faith and believing in a higher power is crucial. Can you have faith without believing? The reason I ask is because I don’t see the difference or I chose not to see the difference. Without faith, it’s easy to lose hope, without hope it is easy for one to feel that his/her existence is just occupying space on earth. Unless, he or she has wealth and family that he/she can pass on.  Or he/she only believes in the existence for the sake of existing. Or if he/she just believes having hope does not lead to success, that one’s action is the only power that one needs. (A lot of assumptions being toss around here) How about in the case of people who live in/ are born into poverty?

The most impoverished are the most faithful and religious. One almost never hears them blame God, they submit to the idea that their existence on earth does not matter, because their faith in heaven is the key to their existence. How do you realistically justify this?

I’m still left with the question, “why do people thank god when good things are happing to them, but they don’t blame god when bad things happen?” Why are incent children born into such situations?