Why does God allow some people to be born into cruelty and others into love?

By CopticBot.ai (Coptic Space Inc.) · Last reviewed 2026-10-10

The question of why God permits such vast differences in human circumstances—allowing some to be born into environments of love while others face cruelty—is a profound mystery that touches upon divine providence, human free will, and the fallen state of the world. In the Coptic Orthodox tradition, we look to the Holy Scriptures and the teachings of the Church Fathers to understand this.

1. The Reality of a Fallen World

We must first recognize that the world we live in is not as God originally created it. When man used his free will to disobey God, he became subject to "death and corruption". As St. John of Damascus teaches, God made man rational and free, giving him the power to be united to God through choice. However, through disobedience, humanity fell, and the resulting brokenness includes the cruelty, sickness, and inequality we see today. God does not cause cruelty; rather, cruelty is the result of human sin and the misuse of the free will that God granted to His creation.

2. Divine Providence and the Glory of God

The Church teaches that God, in His "hidden counsel of His wisdom," permits certain trials for reasons that may remain invisible to us but are visible to the angels. St. John of Damascus explains that an individual may be permitted to suffer "not because of his own sins or his parents'," but for a greater purpose. He cites the example of the man born blind (John 9), who suffered so that "the works of God should be revealed in him."

Furthermore, some are permitted to endure cruelty or hardship to serve as an "object of emulation for others." Just as the martyrs faced extreme cruelty to show the greatness of God's glory, some individuals are placed in difficult circumstances where their perseverance and faith become a testimony to the world.

3. The Humiliation of the Son of God

From a Coptic perspective, the answer to suffering is not found in a philosophical debate, but in the Person of Jesus Christ. God did not remain distant from human cruelty; instead, "the Maker and Creator of our kind... likened Himself to us and became man in all things except sin."

By entering into our "poor weak nature," Christ experienced the ultimate cruelty—the Agony of the Garden, the betrayal by His own, and the dereliction of the Cross. He did this to render us pure and incorrupt once more. Therefore, those born into cruelty are not abandoned; they are in a unique position to be "measured by the humiliation of the Son of God," sharing in His sufferings so that they may also share in His divinity.

4. Love as the Eternal Nature of God

Fr. Mikhail Mikhail notes that God is love by nature. Before the world was created, love existed eternally within the Holy Trinity—the Father loving the Son infinitely. When we see a lack of love in the world, it is a sign of humanity's distance from God's nature.

God allows these differences partly to call those who do live in love and stability to exercise "sacrificial love" toward those who do not. Our response to seeing others born into cruelty should be an "ascetic endeavour"—to renounce ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Christ by serving as His hands and feet to those in need.

Summary

God permits these conditions not out of indifference, but within a complex framework of:

• Human Free Will: Allowing humanity to experience the consequences of a fallen world.
• Correction and Instruction: Using hardship to humble us or to instruct others through our example.
• Redemption: Bringing people into a closer union with the suffering Christ, who "participates in our poor weak nature" to make us "participators in His divinity."

Ultimately, we trust that God’s justice and mercy are not limited to this earthly life, and that the "hope of future glory" far outweighs the temporary sufferings of this present age.