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"But why does God allow children to suffer?"

I can't give you a good answer to this, there is a big catholic doctrine about suffering in this world, rather than the next.

And I would recommend you take a look at post #9 on this thread.

But I think the real point is that we live in a fallen world, and the most we can do to make this world a good place for the innocent children in it is a good thing. A Blessing, a mitzvah.

That is all we can do, for now.

9/11 caused me to undertake a pretty thorough review of my faith. At the end of the day, I can square the existence of God who is personally involved in the world with acts like 9/11 and Beslan, because such acts are the result of an exercise of free will. And when free will exists, some people will choose to act in an evil fashion.

But why do random bad things like a child suffering from cancer occur? This still gives me problems from a faith perspective.

Certainly random bad acts are not a consequence of an exercise of free will by anyone. So why would a loving God, who is active in the world tolerate a human genetic fault that causes cells to grow out of control and eventually kill their host?

The only explanation I can come up with is that random bad things occur for pedagogical reasons. In other words, God created a cruel and indifferent world where children die from cancer and measles and small pox because part of God's design is to force humanity to become educated to solve such problems. In a sense, the hard work and knowledge associated with eliminating small pox and measles is part of God's plan for the improvement of humanity over time. This seems unsatisfying to me because there still is no rhyme or reason as to why any particular child suffers from cancer and another grows up healthy.

Anyone else want to suggest a more logical or more theologically satisfying reason for the occurrence of random bad things? This is a question that has been bothering me for 3 years and any other perspectives on this would be deeply appreciated.