I am amazed at how people will go to extreme stretches of logic to explain or justify the supposed actions of their god (lower case g intentional, no upper case deserved). I have seen people with wonderful bullshit detectors in normal life, throw all of that ability away in order to retain their hope of a creator who cares for them. I am agnostic, certainly not atheistic, since I think atheism is not provable. There is no lynch pin (reference to previous post). To me, the Bible is clearly a record of people's attempts to justify their actions and beliefs by transferring those actions and desires to be in line with god's will. Like the Bible characters, people today imagine divine interventions in their lives, they justify god's silence, they justify his callous disregard for human suffering and still call him a good father. (much like an abused wife who won't leave her abuser) These people invent complex choreography and gyrations of logic to avoid taking off the rose colored glasses. They then huddle with people of like belief for the good feeling of confirmation. Some even will lead their group for the power or financial gain. The facts are, as Job said, 'man is short lived and glutted with agitation'......or.... Life is hard and then you die!.