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In the wake of horrific tragedies, you often hear this question: Why? RadioWest is hosting an occasional series of conversations that ask scholars, theologians and philosophers how faith traditions understand the role of God in human life. It's an age-old question - but why does God allow bad things to happen?

Why? The Book of Job

Museum Willet-Holthuysen, Image by andrevanb/Creative Commons via flickr

Wednesday, we continue our series on why a loving God would let bad things happen with a look at The Book of Job. It's of course the story of a successful man who loses everything: his wealth, his children and his own health. It's all the result of a contest between God and Satan, where God allows this suffering to test his faithful servant. Doug is joined by the scholar and Conservative Rabbi Harold Kushner for a discussion about the ancient fable and what it teaches us about God.

Harold S. Kushner is rabbi laureate of Temple Israel in the Boston suburb of Natick, Massachusetts. He's the author of more than a dozen books on coping with life's challenges, including the 1981 best-seller When Bad Things Happen to Good People and his newest The Book of Job

Doug Fabrizio has been reporting for KUER News since 1987, and became News Director in 1993. In 2001, he became host and executive producer of KUER's RadioWest, a one hour conversation/call-in show on KUER 90.1 in Salt Lake City. He has gained a reputation for his thoughtful style. He has interviewed everyone from Isabel Allende to the Dalai Lama, and from Madeleine Albright to Desmond Tutu. His interview skills landed him a spot as a guest host of the national NPR program, "Talk of the Nation." He has won numerous awards for his reporting and for his work with RadioWest and KUED's Utah NOW from such organizations as the Society of Professional Journalists, the Utah Broadcasters Association, the Public Radio News Directors Association and the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.