‘There is someone who is running all the affairs of this world, and we must always be thankful to Him’
I stood at the edge of the field, my eyes fixed on the old barn. Its weathered wood creaked in the breeze, and the autumn leaves rustled around it. I felt a sense of unease but also curiosity. With that, I started towards the barn. The closer I got, the more the barn seemed to loom over me. Its once bright red paint was now faded and peeling.
I finally reached the barn door. It was slightly ajar, and through the narrow crack, I could see darkness. The scent of old hay and something else, something unfamiliar, wafted out. Inside, the barn was darker than I had expected. The only light came from the cracks in the walls and roof. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the dimness.
The animals, including horses, cows, sheep, goats, and donkeys, were all present inside. Besides them, a watchdog stood at the front door of the barn.
They ate and slept together. They did all activities jointly, living in a friendly atmosphere with each other. There was complete harmony among them. One thing that made them different from others was their belief in God. Some of the animals believed that there was someone who ran the world, whom they called God, while others in the barn denied this belief.
One of the animals in the barn, a cow, praised God. She firmly believed that someone was running all the affairs of the world. Without Him, no one could sustain and live. He was omnipotent. “He has given me everything for which I am blessed. That is why people treat me well and give me food to eat. I also take care of their wishes and give them milk in return. It is because I believe in the existence of God. He is there to look after my needs and take care of my wishes.” All the animals in the barn listened to her conversation patiently.
The dog, who was listening to the cow’s conversation, briefed the other animals. “Whatever the cow says is an utter lie. There is no God. If there is a God, prove it. How can you tell these lies to us when we are living below the poverty line? We do not have enough food to sustain our lives. We are all dependent on people’s leftover food. There is no one running the affairs of the world. Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able to? Then He is not omnipotent. Is He able, but not willing? Then He is malevolent. Is He both able and willing? Then where does evil come from? Is He neither able nor willing? Then why call Him God?”
Meanwhile, the cow bluntly replied, “We have the holy books as sources of God’s word. There are religions and people’s prayers, which make us believe that there is someone running all the affairs of this world. Only faith in God and trust in Him give us the strength to endure and obtain victory.”
The dog categorically denied this fact and said, “These books were written by people centuries ago. I don’t accept them as evidence of the existence of God. If God can’t help millions of people who starve to death annually, I don’t want to associate myself with Him because clearly, He doesn’t care.”
“There is a large universe, vast mountains, forest cover, and beautiful rivers. Do you think they came into existence all of a sudden? There is someone behind this creation, and we must always be thankful to the Creator,” said the cow. But the dog was not accepting the cow’s arguments. He categorically rejected the acceptance of God. “How do you define God when people are being killed and murdered, buildings are being razed to the ground by bombs, and there is poverty and starvation all around? Why doesn’t your God do something to remove all this? The thing is that He is nowhere in sight.”
“God, being omniscient, has no need to specifically listen to your prayers. He knows everything that you and everyone else do, say, and think. He listens to every prayer that is sincere. We are too busy with worldly affairs to have time for Him to accept that He is present and removes our troubles when we are in dire need,” said the cow.
But the dog categorically denied all this. “Why is your God not giving us good food to eat and a good place to live? The thing is that there is no God in the universe. We must all turn away from His path and become unbelievers.”
“Now tell me, how did your forefathers come into existence? He is the one who makes each flake of snow and each blade of grass different from all others. The fact that day and night never change places and always follow each other is evidence of God. Will you believe in it?” asked the cow, to which the dog had no answer. “My belief in the existence of God has been transformational in my life. I had many big problems with motivation, bad habits, poor behaviour in relationships, and more. Ever since I developed faith, my life has improved along with my relationship with all the other animals in the barn. My faith is a central grounding place for me. I do not seek to impose my faith on others, but I do expect all animals in the barn to respect my choice on religious matters as I do theirs.”
All the animals were astonished by the sound argument presented by the cow and were swayed to believe in God. Even the dog’s rock-solid disbelief was also shattered, and he conceded defeat by affirming, “There is someone who is running all the affairs of this world, and we must always be thankful to Him. Whatever the cow said is based on her experience and her personal point of view, being religiously better educated than me.” The dusk of the events came when all the animals assembled again, including the dog, and prayed for their well-being and the unity that flourished before the heated argument about the existence of God.
By Umar Hayat Hussain