Survey: Most Americans say suffering comes from people -- not God


Forty percent of the respondents said the news triggers their desire to help those who are suffering. Photo by kaboompics/Pixabay

Nov. 23 (UPI) -- Most Americans believe that bad things happen because of random chance, people's own actions and the way society is structured -- rather than blaming God for human suffering, according to a survey released Tuesday.

The Pew Research Center said the survey of 6,485 adults gave respondents multiple opportunities to express their views on why bad things happen -- in their own words in response to an open-ended question, and by reading through a list of possible explanations for suffering.

When asked to explain suffering, 66 percent said that the statement "sometimes bad things just happen" described their own views very well (44 percent) or somewhat well (42 percent). Twenty-two percent said the statement "suffering is mostly a consequence of people's own actions" reflected their views very well, while 49 percent said it represented their views somewhat well.

Another choice of answers was "suffering is mostly a result of the way society is structured." For that, 19 percent said it reflected their views very well, while 50 percent said it echoed their views somewhat well.

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Another question asked what Americans feel when they hear about human suffering and respondents were permitted to answer with multiple choices.

There, 71 percent said they were thankful for the good things in their own life, while 62 percent said they felt sadness for those suffering. Forty percent of the respondents said the news triggers their desire to help those who are suffering, and 24 percent said they just need to tune out the bad news because it's too much to take. Twenty percent said they need to make changes in their own lives to avoid ending up in similar situations.

Pew said the survey, conducted Sept. 20-26, was the first of its kind in assessing "philosophical questions" about things like the meaning of life.

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Those questions, Pew said, "take on added significance amid a global pandemic that has killed 5 million people and recent natural disasters including floods, hurricanes and wildfires."