Is there a religious party line about why God permits such suffering?

I always figured it had something to do with the damn artists. They need to suffer for their work, and they look pretty much like the rest of us, so in the confusion everyone gets screwed. It doesn’t help to kick the artists either, because they just suffer more and thereby make better art. Bastards!

Minority party line: no he doesn’t. The clockmaker God that setup nature and took a hands off approach wouldn’t be too far from what is evident.

As far as suffering, only the part of us which is worldly suffers. If we work to get rid of that, and become more holy, we can not be made to suffer.

This one, I think, will go better in Great Debates.

Off it goes.