Why do people always say, "everything happens for a reason"?

Question

It seems like something they say to comfort themselves.

Sure, everything happens for a reason, but it could be the wrong reason, couldn't it?

Whoa!! Surfer Girly...

The whole God's plan thing I don't agree with. I'm not saying God does not exist, but if EVERYTHING were part of God's plan (even the bad, as you say), then God planned every murder, rape, abortion, etc. That is not the characteristic of an all-perfect God.

You should take a look at what everything you believe actually means.

Old Guy, the reason I'm not going to pick your answer isn't because it's not the best answer... wait nevermind, yes it is.

You focused on one word out of the 10 and made 5 paragraphs explaining why I shouldn't use that word. In case you've never heard of the phrase "figure of speech" let me explain it to you.

"A figure of speech, sometimes termed a rhetorical , or elocution, is a word or phrase that departs from straightforward, literal language. Figures of speech are often used and crafted for emphasis, freshness of expression, or clarity. However, clarity may also suffer from their use."

Which other word are you going to ask me about, "people"? Well I guess I can't say "people" for some reason you're going to babble on about.

I'm not going to pick your answer as the best because you didn't answer the question in any of that... whatever that was that you wrote.

Answer 1

it most definatly could be for the wrong reasons. people just dont want the event to be on their Conscious, so they dismiss it as something that had no connection to them, or something that they had no control over.

Answer 2

Yes, absolutely! Everything happens for a 'reason'. If that were not the case, what kind of "motivation" for living do you think people would have if "not everything mattered"? You say, "I keep coming back to how some people - myself included - seem to be on a path with road blocks almost every step of the way. Yet there never seems to be any tangible reward for all of the adversity." The 'roadblocks' are there for you to figure out and get past, and if you expect a 'tangible reward', you have missed the entire point altogether. This life isn't about "getting", it is about "giving". We are put on this earth to give to others, to help others, to do things for others WITHOUT the expectation of any reward. Even if we are a part of God's plan, human beings should be taking care of each other, the world we live in, and figuring out how to get past the "roadblocks", regardless of how difficult or painful they might be. As I'm sure you can see, we as humans are not doing our part well at all. The world is deteriorating; more and more people have a "I don't give a sh*t" attitude. And every one of us is missing out on what could be a life without any 'roadblocks' at all. This answer is being written by a person who has had to 'overcome' many painful and debilitating 'roadblocks' in my life. I have an incurable illness which I wake up with every day, no matter how bad I feel, it still causes me pain. I have questioned "why me" before. However, when I remained in that state of mind, nothing at all changed. Now that I have refined my thinking, my illness has improved. If I had kept the attitude that there is no "reason" for this to happen, it is highly unlikely that I would have survived as long as I have.

Answer 3

Ever since man came to the realization that he could use tools and get more food for his clan he has had to come up with a reason for things to happen. It didn't rain because he angered the raid god. You know things like that. God was part of man's evleoution. For everything he couldn't explain he balmed or honored god. The saying is part of the evloution.
Now you also wanted to know why people saw a good god making bad people. That is an easy one for me to grasp. I see gods in gerneral being made by man to cope with the unknown and because man is capable of doing evil he therefore sees god the same way. Christians go as far as to have god and the devil. So religions blame bad spirits for things that have gone wrong or for people who are what we term evil.

Answer 4

You're completely correct about them saying it to comfort themselves. By saying that everything happens for a reason, people feel that the choices they make do not matter much because "everything happens for a reason" and they won't have to face consequences. Im not sure if im explaining this right, but basically I think people say it to calm themselves down after something bad has happened so they think that something good will come from it...

My personal opinion: things happen based on OUR actions. Period.

Answer 5

I don't believe people ALWAYS say "everything happens for a reason." ALWAYS is a very dangerous word.

Are you always happy, or are you always sad? Are you always right or are you always wrong? Are you always honest, or are you always dishonest? Are you always on the internet, or are you always off the internet?

And finally, are you always breathing or always not breathing? Uh oh. That's a tricky one. If your not breathing, are you dead? Well, not always, you could be just holding your breath for a little while. Many people do it while swiming under water.

Incidentally, I don't always give this kind of response. And you probably wish I hadn't decided to give one this time. Oh well, there goes my chances for a best answer. But I feel pretty sure I won't always be the unappreciated responder.

PS: A little tip from Agent 007. He said "Never say Never." That's good advice. Never is a word you should avoid as much as you should the word always.

Answer 6

People want to believe in something. Reason is as good a concept as any other. Without Reason, there would be no meaning and civilization would fall to the chaos of the strong pulverizing the weak into submission, which is how it is now for many anyway. Aristotle posited Reason, so did the Founding Fathers of America. That's good enough reason for me.

Answer 7

That depends on if you believe in God's world or not. I believe that things do happen for a reason and I'm not the one to figure out why they happen. Sometimes bad things do happen and that is not God's will because people are living their will not God's. Like killing, rape, etc. that is not God's will. If someone is living God's will, it will be his will not mine. I really do mean that. Living life honesty and helpfully will most likely bring peace of mind and happiness. Just my opinion.

Answer 8

Yes, it is comforting to think there is some kind of reason and plan behind the bad things that happen. If it's truly all random, and there's no purpose to life, it would be too depressing and everyone would commit suicide.

Answer 9

everything happens for a reason is a saying almost like cause and effect. Say u hit a homerun, ya but y did it happen. Maybe it was because u needed it for a winning point. Even though u may think it does not happen for a reason it is cause and effect, basicly.

Answer 10

People say that simply because they don't know how How or why somethings happen. First off There is no evil in God, Nor is the actions of man is God's doing. Man commit his own crimes with out God's interference. God told man that you have the right to worship me or not to worship me its your choice and I will not interfere in the action of man. Now as for Satan he is truly the guilty one that encourage mankind to commit action that goes against the words of God. One more thing we know that God is real and God did kick Satan out of heaven, Which means that the evils of Satan and his fallen angels are real also. And now that you know that, you really can no longer blame God for the actions of Satan and man.............. If any thing God did promise all of mankind That if you pray to him in the name of Jesus Christ and believe that your prayers will be answered. Your prayers will be answered. So why not put it to the test.

Answer 11

i believe in fate, and that life brings you good and bad, you just need to learn how to take the bad and make it good. also, fate only takes you so far, once it gives you an oppertunity it is up to you to recognize it and follow it through. if not, the oppertunity will bypas you and could turn into a misfortune, yet it originally happened for a reason. thats my philosophy anyways