It is not possible for any human to understand why God would do anything; but while it is not possible for any us to know why, considering what we do or do not know or believe may help reduce the number of questions related to that "why".

Because people often have very different beliefs about God I will try to be somewhat objective in my remarks. That objectivity should not be interpreted as a reflection of my own beliefs.

First, when it comes to some intelligence and good health God is not necessarily the one who determines which children shall have the most intelligence or best health. While there is certainly a range of potential that exists as a result of variations in genetic make-up, what is considered "normal range" covers a lot of degrees of ability and good health.

Most babies are born with normal-range intellectual potential, and most babies are born with the potential for good health. It is now known that the quality of nurturing in the first three years of life can affect the numbers of brain connections formed, as well as a person's stress response and immune system for the rest of his life.

Nurturing is not just how skilled a mother is at encouraging brain development, though. Nurturing includes things such as healthy diet and a generally healthy environment. Even the most nurturing mother cannot provide her baby everything he needs if she lives where famine and poverty prevent that.

The point is, however, that while the world is full of less than ideal nurturing for babies and children, the vast majority of children are born with similar potential for intelligence and good health. There is at least the possibility that God created the Universe but has left the caring for, improving of, and other "details" the the humans He entrusted with it. Another possibility is that God created the larger picture but, in view of how complicated "all of life" is, He has not been able to guarantee perfection in Nature.

There are, of course, genetic anomalies (such as anencephaly, Spina Bifida, and any number of others), which cause abnormalities in babies. People who believe in God usually feel fairly certain that God sees those with birth anomalies as every bit as "equal" to those without them. Some people believe that God created the Universe but doesn't necessarly control everything that goes within it. If He created a plan by which humans and creatures can reproduce, some believe that He may not involve himself in, say, which reproductive cells actually get together. Some people may even believe that God doesn't involve HImself in which couples marry, so while two perfectly healthy people may give birth to a child with a birth anomaly, one would conclude that those people would not have had the same child if each were in other marriages.

On the other hand, some believe that God matches up couples and decides that they will have a child with a birth anomaly. If that's the case, we can only conclude that "everything happens for a reason", but, at the same time, God doesn't always see difficult things as bad things. Then again, many people, who have had children with birth anomalies or health problems, will tell you that they see/saw their children as gifts and blessings. In any case, if "everything happens for a reason" is the explanation, it is not possible to really know God's reasons.

Some medical conditions or brain damage occurs as a result of an "accident" before or during birth (such as oxygen deprivation). Substances and toxins to which an unborn baby is exposed are another factor. Sometimes the mother intentionally introduces these toxins. Other times the mother cannot control things like the quality of water, air, or foods in her life. A mother's exposure to bacteria and viruses is another factor. One might assume that God is not deciding which women will come in contact with which amount of contaminant at which time during her pregnancy.

Most of us have heard about normal children left in neglectful orphanages and developing mental retardation as a result of being left in a crib. Obviously, not all mental disabilities result from that type of thing, but it is yet one more example of a way that God didn't necessarily cause the problem.

If God created the whole system of life that we have, we can see how such an intricate, biological, plan had to include some lower life forms, such as bacteria. Some of these are helpful to humans. Some are disease-causing. Others are helpful to other parts of life. God could have had humans hatch from eggs and exist on planet of nothing but humans, but those humans on that planet would not have the life that we have on Earth. In other words, the price we pay for having all the life that exists around us on Earth may be the existence of disease-producing, low life, forms that put our health at risk if we're exposed to them.

The point is if God is involved with larger picture but isn't running the world as it everybody and everything in it are on puppet strings, He isn't involved in who moves to the town where the water is contaminated or which reproductive cell gets fertilized. Maybe God doesn't get involved with the fact that an unborn baby is delivered incorrectly or takes too long. If God doesn't run the world as if He's a puppeteer, maybe He has no say in who lives in so much stress his immune system doesn't serve its purpose. Maybe when a baby is born with a congenital anomaly or receives brain damage before birth, it breaks God's heart too. Maybe our link to, and faith in, God is about spirituality - not physical realities that are bound to occur in the kind of life God has created.

If God has some book somewhere, and in that book is written who will be born with congenital anomalies, who will be born with brain damage, and who will be born into severe poverty; then we would have to assume that every little action we take is not the result of free will at all. Most people believe God has given us free will. Even if there is such a "book" somewhere, and if we don't have the free will to deviate from the plans in that book, maybe we need to keep in mind that, just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, "normal life" is usually in the eye of the beholder as well. There used to be a saying that would show up on cute bumper stickers: "God don't make no junk."

If God is a puppeteer who goes by a book like that, then we need to keep in mind that God had some reason for having some people not see, some not learn easily in school, or some not be able to walk; what we need to keep in mind is that God doesn't necessarily message the value of life, quality of life, or equality of people by whether they can see, learn easily, or walk. We are often the ones whose heart breaks when a child cannot walk. We are the ones who mourn when we lose someone who has been sick. Just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, tragedy can be in the heart of those who experience. Some of the things we view as "tragedy" may not be seen as "tragedies" at all by God.

There are, of course, people who don't believe in God (or at least in the kind of God in which the faithful ). If there is no higher power then that would answer the question as to "why".

Some people believe that God isn't a giant being with a white beard, but a force that is part of Nature, or even Nature itself. The person who believes this may find understanding in realizing that things like disease and congenital anomalies are part of Nature too.

Of course, there are those who believe that God is a force greater than Nature; but that goes back to God's not being a man with white beard and, instead, a force - and forces would seem to be less likely in deciding which reproductive cells get together or things that don't go well during childbirth.

If there is a God it is clear that He is the "Father of Diversity" when it comes to the people who populate his Earth. My mother used to say, "Wouldn't it be boring if everybody were all the same." People are the ones who place value on things: High intelligence is often seen a good thing. Low intelligence is often seen as a bad thing. Wealth is seen as a positive in life. Having no money is often seen as negative thing. Because Nature has given us two arms and two eyes, we have decided that unless both of each work we are not as we should be. Another way to look at it is that maybe God gave us two of things (even if that's two different sets of extremities) in case one didn't work.

Most people realize that no matter what anyone's situation is, there is something to be gained or learned from it. In a world where everyone were wealthy nobody would understand what it feels like to go hungry. In a world where nobody had great wealth there would be nobody who understood the problems faced by those who do have great wealth.

There is far less "diversity" in the animal kingdom. One may wonder if when God chose to make people more complex, He decided that diversity would be the only way people would stand a chance of understanding all that needs to be understood about life.

We, the members of mankind, may have different levels of intelligence, different degrees of health, and even congenital anomalies that make life extremely difficult or short for some of us. Still, most people would agree that because of the diversity God has chosen for us our world, life in general, and mankind is so much wiser and more enriched.

Sometimes I think that God wanted to create a complex, beautiful, universe but knew that such complexity would involve the presence of things that made life difficult; and maybe He believed that if He gave minds and spirits to people, those minds would find ways to solve the problems that would inevitably occur in such a complex life.

Maybe God doesn't want any of his children to be born with disabilities or to be born to parents who don't know how to nurture their intellects properly. Whether or not God has a very detailed plan, or a "larger-picture-only" plan for life, maybe His plan is a long-term one under which humans will find a way to eliminate the man-made problems and better understand the causes of those problems that result from Nature.