On the problems of Evil, Prayer, and Miracle
I am an experimental physicist who approaches the world with a practical mindset. I firmly believe in free will, affirming it through daily choices and decisions that clearly demonstrate its existence. I find it difficult to tolerate philosophical arguments that dismiss free will as an illusion, especially when their proponents live as though guided by it.
At the same time, I also embrace God’s sovereignty: His complete and unwavering control over the universe, where nothing happens without His knowledge or permission. Reconciling these two truths—human free will and God’s total sovereignty—may appear paradoxical. Yet, I am deeply compelled to explore how free will operates within God’s all-encompassing control, even in a chaotic and unpredictable world.
Professionally, I work in the field of system control. Using concepts from control theory, I developed a model to describe how God interacts with the physical world, which I detailed in my first book. In my upcoming second book, I have further refined and expanded this model. In a previous blog post, I compared my model to Open Theology and coined the term closed-loop theology to describe it as an alternative.
Open Theology invites us to embrace a world where the future is filled with possibilities and is not entirely predetermined. In His infinite wisdom, God understands all potential outcomes and empowers us with genuine free will to shape the future. This perspective beautifully harmonizes God’s omniscience, omnipotence, and love with the reality of human creativity and an unpredictable journey ahead. It opens up fresh avenues to explore the challenge of evil and enriches our understanding of prayer’s profound purpose.
My approach offers a unique glimpse into the divine interaction at play. I envision God guiding the world through an extraordinary feedback/feedforward control system, one that learns from our shared experiences to illuminate our path forward. By allowing room for human choice, God chooses to step back, giving us the freedom to co-create our future alongside Him. In this harmonious relationship, God’s foresight remains intact as our lives intertwine with His divine plan. I encourage you to revisit my previous blog to discover more about open theology and the beauty of a closed-loop theology.
Recently, my heart felt the weight of a personal trial as two family members faced cancer diagnoses. In my fervent prayers for miraculous healing, I found myself deeply connected to the realities of pain, suffering, prayer, and miracles—they transformed from abstract concepts to heartfelt experiences. In the midst of suffering, the longing for miraculous intervention becomes a powerful drive to overcome adversity. As a scientist, I have wrestled with profound questions about my faith in the power of prayer and the potential for genuine miracles to unfold in our lives.
This article aims to thoughtfully explore these intertwined themes, drawing upon the insights I have gained along this transformative journey.
Problem of Evil
The issues of evil, pain, and suffering are often discussed together because they are deeply intertwined. While evil can undoubtedly cause pain and suffering, it’s important to recognize that suffering can also arise from natural causes or human error. Yet, the overarching question remains: If God is loving, all-knowing, and all-powerful, why do evil and suffering exist in the world? Where was God during the horrors of the Nazi concentration camps? Was God present in the Cambodian killing fields?
Pain itself is a nuanced experience. Most people will agree that they can tolerate pain below a certain threshold; for some, it can even be welcomed. As an endurance biker, I’ve often encountered the saying: “What separates a good biker from a bad biker is their pain threshold.” Pain can serve as a valuable warning signal, alerting us to danger or injury, and it can also be a force for growth, making us stronger and more resilient.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” – Romans 5:3-5
God had warned us many times in the scripture that suffering is inevitable. In material science, there is a technique called thermal annealing. Thermal annealing, a process used in materials science to improve the properties of metals and alloys, is a powerful metaphor for personal and spiritual growth. During annealing, a material is subjected to intense heat, relieving its internal stresses and reorganizing its structure into a more stable and resilient form. Similarly, life’s trials and challenges—often likened to the “fires” of suffering—can refine and strengthen individuals, fostering growth in character, resilience, and wisdom. Just as controlled heating transforms brittle materials into tougher and more ductile ones, enduring hardship with faith, patience, and self-reflection can reshape us into more compassionate and robust versions of ourselves. This process underscores the idea that both physical and personal transformation often requires moments of intense pressure and discomfort to reach their fullest potential. God uses suffering to teach us perseverance, character, and hope.
As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. John 9:1-3
During the time of Jesus, the common belief among the Jews was that physical illness and suffering were direct consequences of someone’s sin. However, Jesus challenged this notion and provided a different perspective. He proclaimed that his pain and suffering were allowed so that the works of God could be displayed through him. Pain and suffering can indeed bring glory to God. Pain and suffering can be a blessing in disguise. For example, after the terrorist attacks on 911, we heard many tragic but uplifting stories: firefighters risking their lives to save people trapped in the World Trade Center; people from all walks of life in New York City came together to help each other. Recently, we had a wildfire in LA close to my home, many homes were turned to the ground, but a lot of churches and organizations came together to help the victims, and we heard a lot of uplifting stories.
Those arguments still don’t address the origin of evil; if God is all good, why did He create evil to refine us? Is there any way to teach us? Even if God didn’t create evil, why didn’t He stop it from happening or make it below the pain threshold? The free-will defense is the classical defense of this line of reasoning. This defense argues that a world with free will and suffering is preferable to a world where humans are like robots with no capacity for love. According to this view, God desires humans to love and obey Him out of their free will. Free will and suffering come as a packaged deal; having one without the other is impossible. When individuals are granted the ability to make choices, some will inevitably choose poorly, leading to suffering for themselves or others. Ultimately, the price of free will is worth the cost of suffering.
Actions have consequences, and moral responsibility is essential to human existence. If God were to intervene and consistently prevent the consequences of people’s actions, there would be no room for moral accountability. God desires creatures who possess freedom and moral responsibility. Without danger or temptation, there can be no opportunity to exhibit courage in decision-making.
Open theology takes this concept further, suggesting that the future is not predetermined; God experiences time alongside us. In this view, God neither wills nor directly causes evil. When Hitler was born, God did not know he would become a dictator who initiated World War II, nor did He foresee the atrocities against millions of Jews. In other words, God did not create Hitler to test humanity; Hitler became who he was through his own choices. God is loving and patient, offering everyone opportunities to repent, including Hitler.
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” – 2 Peter 3:9
The world is a complex system, and complexity science seeks to understand how these intricate systems function. When individual parts of a system interact, new emergent properties can arise—phenomena that cannot be predicted simply by examining the individual components. Nobel laureate Philip Warren Anderson’s phrase, “More is Different,” underscores this idea: a system is more than the sum of its parts; it possesses unique, often unexpected, emergent properties.
Similarly, God transcends human understanding. While theologians articulate certain attributes of God to help us grasp aspects of His nature, these descriptions are limited and fragmentary. Focusing on a few attributes in isolation often leads to apparent contradictions. For instance, how does a God who is wholly just and wholly loving address the reality of human sin?
Through the lens of complexity science, theological truths can be seen as emergent realities. The cross, for example, can be understood as an emergent event that resolves the tension between divine justice and love. Similarly, the concept of kenosis—Christ’s self-emptying—can be viewed as an emergent property that reconciles the paradox of Jesus being fully human and fully divine. These truths go beyond reductionist explanations, reflecting the profound depth of God’s interaction with His creation.
When considering the problem of evil, it too can be understood as an emergent property arising from God’s attributes: His justice, love, omnipotence, omnipresence, and patience. The presence of evil does not imply that God is malevolent or powerless. Rather, evil exists in the tension of a world where human free will, divine sovereignty, and the overarching purpose of redemption intersect.
My model of God’s interaction with the world highlights that God remains in control even in a reality shaped by human free will. He works dynamically within creation, responding to human choices while guiding events toward His ultimate purposes. Often, His intervention is subtle, as Einstein eloquently expressed: “Subtle is the Lord, but malicious He is not.” Moreover, our perception of evil and pain is limited to what we experience, leaving us unaware of the suffering that God may have spared us from. The poem Footprints in the Sand captures this beautifully, reminding us that during our hardest trials, God carries us, even when His presence feels absent.
Above all, it is important to remember that God cares deeply about our suffering and understands it completely. One of His Hebrew names, El Roi—“The God who sees me”—reflects this truth. He sees our pain and enters into it by becoming human. Jesus endured betrayal, the agony of the cross, and separation from God—suffering far greater than anything we face. As our fellow sufferer, He provides comfort and hope, promising that one day, there will be no more tears or suffering in heaven.
The Psalms often depict authors pouring their laments to God, questioning why the righteous suffer while the wicked prosper. Yet, these same authors find solace in turning to God, trusting He will ultimately deliver them from their struggles. Even amid pain, we can cling to the reassurance that God is with us, and His promises are unshakable.
How about nature’s evil? Some natural disasters result from human actions, such as the emission of greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. This, in turn, can lead to more frequent and severe natural disasters such as wildfires and intense storms. Therefore, while natural disasters may not be directly caused by human free will, they can be influenced by human behavior and environmental impact.
However, a better way to address natural evil is to extend the “free will defense” to the “free process defense”. God is faithful to the physical world as well as to humans. God allows the ecosystem to follow its course, including the movements of tectonic plates that cause earthquakes resulting in the loss of thousands of human lives and the evolution of viruses that give rise to diseases like COVID-19, which has claimed the lives of millions and caused the world to come to a standstill for over two years.
Prayer: Can it change anything?
Prayer is a cornerstone of the Christian faith, yet it raises a profound question: If God exists outside of time, with the past, present, and future simultaneously before Him, why pray at all? If the future is predetermined, wouldn’t prayer be unnecessary, unable to change an already written outcome? Yet Jesus encouraged us to pray, saying, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7). What does this tell us about the purpose of prayer?
Open Theology provides a simple answer: the future is not entirely fixed. In this view, God knows all possibilities and responds dynamically to human free will, making prayer a meaningful act that can influence outcomes. My feedback control model aligns with this concept but adds a unique perspective: God co-creates the future with us. In this divine feedback system, prayer is not just a ritual but a way to communicate our desires, allowing God to respond and adjust His interactions with us accordingly.
To explain this, consider a smart thermostat in your home. This thermostat tracks your GPS location, turns on when you’re on your way home, and uses current traffic and weather data to calculate when to begin heating your house. However, imagine stopping at a nearby restaurant before heading home. Unless you inform the thermostat, it will turn on unnecessarily, wasting energy. But if you notify the thermostat through an app, it adjusts its behavior to your plans, saving energy and improving efficiency.
Prayer in a divine feedback system works similarly. Through prayer, we communicate our intentions and desires to God, allowing Him to respond and adjust His actions to align with our requests. The more specific the prayer, the clearer the input into the system. However, this does not mean God is a “genie” who grants every wish. Sometimes, God may say “no” or “wait,” using prayer to align our will with His, helping us accept outcomes we didn’t expect or desire.
Prayer is more than asking for things; it is a two-way conversation that draws us closer to God. Through prayer, we gain insight, guidance, and strength, enabling us to align our will with His. This alignment amplifies the effectiveness of prayer, much like how a feedback system performs best when the input closely matches the desired outcome.
The reality of unanswered prayers—especially those made earnestly in times of great need—can be deeply painful. Many testimonies recount people praying for the healing of loved ones, only for healing not to come. Yet, even in these moments, prayer is transformative. It helps people accept loss, find comfort, and experience God’s presence amid suffering.
God’s responses to our prayers—immediate, delayed, or different from what we asked—are rooted in His perfect understanding and timing. As we trust in His wisdom, we grow in faith, recognizing that while the path may be challenging, the destination is secure. Just as the thermostat ensures the home will eventually reach the desired temperature, God’s feedback system ensures that our lives are guided toward His ultimate purpose.
Prayer is not just about outcomes—it’s about relationships. It is an opportunity to connect with El Roi, the God who sees us, understands our pain, and walks us through it. Through prayer, we are reminded that God is not distant; He is our fellow sufferer and ultimate comforter, promising a future without tears or suffering.
As the Psalms demonstrate, we can bring our laments, struggles, and hopes to God, trusting that He listens and responds. Prayer transforms the world and our hearts, shaping us to trust and align with God’s perfect plan.
Prayer is not just about individual interaction with God. When seeing the church as a complex system, when multiple people are praying together, some emergent property can emergency transform the prayer experience and make the prayer more effective. When a critical mass of people engages in unified prayer, it may trigger a tipping point, leading the church to experience a phase transition, release divine power, or ascend to a higher level of spiritual vitality. As individuals self-organize and openly confess their sins in such gatherings, new emergent properties can arise, fostering healing and renewal within the church.
Miracle: Can I scientist believe in it?
The term “miracle” is often misunderstood. C.S. Lewis described it as “an interference with nature by supernatural power.” Many people see it as a highly improbable event with personal significance. Most miracles are God’s special providence, not violations of physical laws, and often have natural explanations. For instance, a friend survived a car accident because he was thrown out of the vehicle through an open window. Had he worn a seatbelt, he might have been trapped and died. To him, this was a miracle, yet no physical laws were broken. Christians commonly pray for such miracles.
This discussion defines miracles as supernatural events that defy scientific explanations or involve broken physical laws.
I believe in a God faithful to humanity and the physical laws He created. These laws are universal and consistent. I don’t believe God interacts with the world through magical means. However, I do believe in biblical miracles, which continue today. Miracles are vital to the Christian faith; without Jesus’ resurrection, our faith would lack hope. His resurrection is a supernatural miracle with no scientific explanation. Roman soldiers ensured Jesus’ death and guarded His tomb, yet the empty tomb signifies His resurrection.
If God is good, why didn’t He create perfect physical laws, eliminating the need for miracles? God can influence events through quantum mechanics, where outcomes are probabilistic. Why does He sometimes intervene in ways that seem to violate these laws?
Theologically, a miracle is “an extraordinary event, brought about by God, with religious significance.” Miracles aren’t meant to prove God’s existence. In Matthew 12:38-40, Jesus refused to perform miracles to validate His authority to skeptics.
As the universe’s creator, God can temporarily suspend physical laws for spiritual purposes. However, alternative explanations exist. God can influence events through quantum mechanics, making improbable events possible. For God, nothing is impossible.
Consider air: a liter contains about 222 molecules moving randomly. Air pressure is a statistical measure of these interactions. The force would be immense if all molecules moved in the same direction. God could orchestrate quantum interactions to align events, making the impossible possible without breaking physical laws.
In complexity science, emergent properties arise from interactions, creating new patterns. Self-organization suggests small changes can lead to significant outcomes, making improbable events more likely. These principles hint at how divine influence might subtly guide the natural world in extraordinary, scientifically coherent ways.
Many modern miracles involve human experiences, especially in medicine. Improbable recoveries often leave even non-Christian doctors calling them “miracles.” The human body is complex, and God could use quantum events to trigger healing processes. In such cases, no physical laws are broken, making it reasonable for scientists to pray for medical miracles.
Conclusion
This article inspires a profound exploration of the dynamic interplay between human free will and God’s sovereignty, revealing how these seemingly opposing concepts can thrive together within a robust theological framework. By harnessing insights from system control theory, we introduce closed-loop theology, an empowering model that envisions God guiding the world through an active feedback/feedforward control system. This framework affirms genuine human free will while upholding divine sovereignty.
We confront the challenges of evil, pain, and suffering, affirming that even these trials can foster personal and spiritual growth, much like the transformative process of thermal annealing in materials science. The free-will defense and the “free process defense” highlight our moral responsibilities and the intricate balance of the ecosystem, empowering us to embrace these realities.
The significance and potency of prayer are invigorated, emphasizing that prayer is a vital act that can shape outcomes and harmonize our will with God’s purpose. Prayer transcends mere requests; it is a two-way dialogue that deepens our connection with God and transforms our hearts.
Finally, we investigate the concept of miracles, defining them as extraordinary events beyond scientific explanation. While recognizing the importance of miracles in the Christian faith, we suggest that God can orchestrate events through the fascinating realm of quantum mechanics, allowing improbable occurrences to unfold without contravening physical laws.
In conclusion, even in the presence of evil, God remains in control; He witnesses your struggles and cares profoundly for you. God hears our prayers, and it is absolutely empowering to pray for extraordinary miracles.