Insecurity and the problem of evil

What does it mean to have faith, to believe in a God who is present when it seems like power and greed inevitably win? In the face of these kinds of questions it often feels like we need to address questions of theodicy, that fancy theological word for explaining why or how evil exists, especially in a world supposedly ruled by an all-powerful God. We want to believe in a God who is powerful, but so often it feels like God isn’t present. And if we think of power as something that has to be wielded in order to be shown, I guess there is only one way to think about all the evil we see in the world. Either God is in control and lets it happen, or there is no God.

But are those the only two options?

One of the most dangerous things about insecurities is the way they are often overcome by controlling other people. I realize the idea of insecurity is a strange turn to take when thinking about the problem of evil. But I wonder if the evils of our world—whether they be individual acts toward one another or ourselves or the wider, more insidious social structures that we grow within and nurture—tend to be grounded in the insecurities we refuse to acknowledge.