The suffering of mankind [in this life or the afterlife] is not the fault of God.

I'm going to be assuming the God we're discussing is the God of classical theology - right? If He's not, please say so in your reply. (It helps a debate greatly when we're all talking about the same God, so if your God is not the one described below, please outline what He is in your reply.) The God of classical theology, for those unfamiliar with the term, is a being who is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnibenevolent. Which in English is all-powerful, all-knowing and wholly good. There are some inherent logical flaws here, which I'll outline in my next reply if my opponent does not disagree with this definition, but this is the one most philosophers seem to agree on. Now, if God created the Earth, then God is directly responsible when it goes wrong. So immediately, we can see that all atrocities not directly resulting from Man (I'm thinking earthquakes, tsunami, etc. etc.) are the fault of God. Secondly, God created Man. If God gives a being free will, God is responsible for the consequences of that decision. If I give a loaded handgun to a five-year-old child, I do not get to say that what subsequently occurs is the fault of the child, and not me. Now, I'm not saying that Man is not also to blame for his own actions - civilised society rests on the assumption that he is. But, like the five-year-old with my handgun: God is far more culpable for every misdeed of ours than we are. You said life is an endurance test. This doesn't absolve God of anything: for every person who gets to lead a storybook life, faces challenges that they can just about overcome and grows further towards God with each victory, there are a hundred who are thrown into situations an honest soul cannot possibly compete with, who have to become cruel and cold and brutal to survive; there are a hundred more that are never tested - who are born into luxury and live in indolence. That's two hundred souls that are destined for Hell for every one that's given a fair chance at Heaven. So God spends far more time in His capacity as torturer than he does in paternally testing his subject's devotion. Not to mention life as an endurance test seems somewhat arbitrary: if God made each of our souls, surely He already knows which ones are going to break and which are going to succeed? Where is the need for Him to 'test' us in such a miserable, prolonged and painful way? Circumstances are often far beyond our control. So, when you say, IT IS ALL UP TO YOU!, it patently isn't. Nevertheless, the mindset is a good one: when dire things are happening, you don't assign blame to God or other people, and instead seek to see what you can do about the situation. So it's a kind of thinking I'd wholeheartedly encourage. Doesn't change the facts though: if bad stuff is happening, God is still responsible. Anyway, I shall wait and see what my opponent has to say before continuing. It would be impolite not to address your groundrules: i. Shamefully, I know very little about Islamic religion. I'm assuming that as an Abrahamic religion, it shares many key ideas (God, Heaven, Adam and Eve, etc.) with Judaism and Christianity. I ask my opponent to be patient and to correct any mistakes I make. ii. As a mark of respect for my opponent, I will refrain from making facetious or obnoxious comments about his God. Note that the very nature of the debate requires me to accuse God of crimes such as murder, torture, etc. While doing this I'll try to show respect by not speaking in a light or offhand tone. If anything in my text comes across as offensive, then that was not my intention. Let me know about it and I'll try to avoid it in future. iii. I will of course try to remain cordial and focussed during this debate. So now I await your reply.