If God is all-powerful and all-good, why does suffering exist at all?

The problem is often traced to Epicurus: either God wants to prevent evil but can't, or can but doesn't want to, or neither wants to nor can, or both wants to and can — in which case, where does evil come from? Centuries of theology have proposed answers, from free will to soul-building through suffering, but the tension between a perfectly good, all-powerful creator and the existence of suffering remains one of philosophy of religion's most durable puzzles.

— Attributed to Epicurus; formalised in later theodicy debates, Epicurean paradox — Argument traced to Epicurus, c. 300 BC; popularised via Lactantius