Hello everyone, I think this is a fundamental question and I'm surprised it has not been asked in the context of Islam. If Allah exists, why do bad things happen to good people? There are people who are intelligent and successful but do not believe in Islam while there are hard-working believers who suffer for no discernible reason.

Now I can foresee some of the answers to this question, so I'll try to post what I think some people will say.

Some people might say that bad things are a "test" for people. Bad things happen to good people as a way for Allah to test someone's faith. The test may actually help the person, though he or she may not know it, and the person may be rewarded for their difficulties in the afterlife. However, this argument has been used in MANY religions I have come across. Many religions say that hardships are a test of faith, so what makes Islam different? If Islam has the same answer to the same fundamental question, then there's no reason for someone to be Muslim instead of Christian or Jewish.

Other people might say that bad things happen because a person has been bad. However, I stress that this person in question has been, by all accounts, good, to the best of his or her ability. The person may be kind, compassionate, hard-working, pious, and an all-around good person, so why lay hardship on him or her? There are more corrupt, detestable people in the world who live their lives without ever suffering such hardship.

What about that person's goals and dreams and desires? Let us say that this good person has a good goal. This good person wants to help the poor people who suffer, and wants to do so by obtaining a job to best help the poor. The job may be to be a doctor to help the poor and sick, or an engineer, to build better living conditions for the poor. With such good intentions and goals, why should the person face hardship when another person may want to become a doctor or engineer just for the money?

I hope the good people of this forum can provide a rational, clear, de******ive answer to this question. It will not only help me, but I think it will help many people in embracing Islam.