Why do you think that good removes suffering? God is justice also, which includes suffering. So, never sin and you wont suffer:D
But didn’t Jesus say that those who followed him will be persecuted and suffer?
In the general questions forum, where concrete, scientific answers are expected to be the result of a discussion, your comment would have merit.
But the very nature of the great debates lends itself to discussions that are unlikely to have any lasting resolution. It is unrealistic to believe that a topic that has been debated for over a thousand years should suddenly have no more merit for discussion because a straight dope thread has already touched upon it.
Additionally, uber threads of dozens of pages do not help the performance of the board. Be assured that if a moderator should feel that this thread is unnecessary it will be closed. In the meantime, I suggest if you see a thread topic that you have no interest in that you simply not open it.
Problem of Evil:
How could a God who is benevolent, omnipotent and omniscient allow evil to occur? (Yes, this has been discussed at length).
Problem of Good:
How could a God who is malevolent, omnipotent and omniscient allow good to occur? This is the twin of the problem of evil. To the extent that the 3 characteristics of a benevolent-omnipotent-omniscient God are mutually exclusive, so are the characteristics of a malevolent-omnipotent-omniscient God.
Woody Allen once stated that he believed that God wasn’t malevolent, just an underachiever. 
Neorotik:
Darn it! When you roll over on your back like that you make me feel guilty!
Just for the record, I didn’t start this thread, and I don’t think God is Evil. As an agnostic I’m not committed to the existence or the non-existence of God. But, If He exists, I certainly don’t know what He does, or Why, or How, and I acknowledge that what I say is conjecture and guesswork, colored by m human feelings and experience. The thing is, I hink we’re all n that same boat. It’s just that a lot of folks won’t admit it.
It’s not so much that God isn’t good, as it is that good kind of sucks?
Sorry for making you feel guilty. I promise I’ll be more stubborn next time 
I hope I didn’t give the impression that I thought you thought God was evil or had said some such thing. Because I don’t. I was merely responding to the title of the thread.
I’ll agree with you on the same boat thing, though. And also on the guesswork and conjecture. That’s really what most of us do, the danger is when people don’t acknowledge that it’s conjecture, faith, and belief.
My opinion on this particular matter can be summed up in a quote. Yes, I do have a quote for everything, and strangely enough this one comes from Silence of the Lambs. It is in the book, when Lecter is talking to Clarice. He says:
“I collect curch collapses recreationally. Did you
see the recent one in Sicily? Marvelous! The façade
fell on sixty five grandmothers at a special mass:
Was that evil? If so, who did it? Of he’s up there,
He just loves it, Agent Starling. Typhoid and swans-
it all comes from the same place.”
A lot of babies suffer from a variety of ailments and tragedies. Is their suffering result of some sin they committed while in womb?
If god is omnipotent, then why wasn’t man created naturally ‘good,’ and would always choose the ‘right’ path?
Now for those who say that there can be no joy without pain, are you suggesting some more limitations for an omnipotent god?
And if pain is necessary for joy, then how much pain is in store for those of you who are heaven bound? Isn’t heaven supposed to be a place of eternal bliss? Is this another case of where an all-good god seems to have streched the truth again?
Wow. Having been away from the board for one day and all these replies that I really wanted to be a part of… That will be the last time I’ll ever have a social life…
I think iot would be handy if we described ‘benevolent’ for a bit, and have a look if God is really that person. I’m not religious, and read the bible only sparingly, but I’m pretty sure that the word ‘benevolent’ is not in there. The best analogy to use to describe the relationship between God and man is probably as the Father and Son; we are all His children. I also don’t have children, but if I had I think I want the best for them as possible. BUT, I also want them to live their own life. They should be able to do everything that makes them happy, and if they do, I’m happy too. Letting your child do whatever makes them happy is bound to throw up some problems. But, as a father, I would be uncaring if I didn’t let my child let their own mistakes. That is the only way they will learn. I can only give them guidelines on what I think is the best route to take, but if they want to follow their own way, that is fine.
God did just this. He gave us the guidelines (the bible) and let us grow up ourselves. He only did this on a more grander scale. He created the scenery and everything in it. I as a father can’t create the stage for my child, but if I could, I wouldn’t create a stage that is just flowers and brooks. I have to include everything there is so that my son can make an honest, unbiased decision.
I don’t think that benevolent means ‘all good’, but ‘all caring’, and God lets us grow up as we want it. And suffering should definately be a part of that.