When is it God's plan and when is it free will ? Have you religious people made up your mind about that,yet ?
It seems to me you pick and choose whenever is convenient.
If it is God's plan why to you pray to change the outcome ?
And whenever you can't explain why the all seeing "loving" guy in the sky didn't intervene in saving a kid that was raped,tortured,or killed then you blame it on free will ( as if the helpless kid had any saying in the matter)and forget you say everything is God's plan.
Speaking of which , this wise quote always comes to mind :
Imagine a teenage kid. Say 17, 18 years old. He's sick a tired of living at home with his parents. He wants to see the world. Prove to himself that he can make it on his own. His parents know better, life it's not that easy, it's rather hard... The kid doesn't want to hear any of it. He's sure he can make it on his own. The parents could force him to stay home for his own good, so he won't end up in trouble (because he's immature and he really has no clue how the world works, he cannot tell good people from bad people, doesn't understand sooo many things...) Yet, the parents are wise. They know the kid will only truly understand when he lives the experience. The parents know that the only way is to allow the kid to have this freedom. Very importantly, the parents must NOT intervene, "try to help" in any way, because that would defeat the whole point of having the kid finding out all about life all by himself, as he wants and as he must, to eventually UNDERSTAND what's life is about. The parents must be "hands off", but that doesn't mean they don't love their kid, or that they don't want to help. The kid must go on his journey. The kid will suffer, learn, mature. On his own. Now and again, the kid will curse his parents for [i]letting him go[/i]... "[i]How could they let me go on my own? If they KNEW it would all go horribly wrong? How could they?! This shows my parents actually HATE ME![/i]" He'll eventually know the truth, understand it all... But it will take a long time. In the end, the kid will get back home. Wiser. Learning all that was a painful process, but it was necessary.
"Life" must be understood as "spiritual life". Not just "this life". "This life" is one of many (hundreds? thousands?) in the bigger scope our our spiritual journey. We've sort of "ran away from home", and are trying to find our way back... Like in Luke 15:11-32 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+15%3A11-32&version=NIV
It's much like our politicians offering thoughts and prayer. And who are they praying to? The God that could have prevented it or the God that allowed it to happen?
Great questions. I'm afraid I don't have the answers. I've actually struggled with these questions myself. I do get very tired of hearing people say that everything bad that happens to us is God's will. What kind of God would will so many horrible things to happen?
Surely the very word 'religion' is a metaphor for 'convenience'. If people want to believe in God (of any faith) and it helps them through troubles, can that be a bad thing? It is only when they try and inflict their 'faith and beliefs' onto others that the ugly face of Religion rears it's head.😈 PS: Wasn't Epicurus the Roman or Greek "God of Food and Wine"? He was probably drunk when he uttered the above quote! lol. Fair play to him! Hee!
