Did President Lincoln say 'Why did God take little Willie'?

Answer 1

While it is not known if Lincoln said those words exactly or not, the question can be taken as inquiring if Lincoln blamed God for his third son's death.

It is recorded that upon his son's passing, Abraham said, "My poor boy. He was too good for this earth. God has called him home. I know that he is much better off in heaven, but then we loved him so. It is hard, hard to have him die!"

Many people do question why people, particularly children die, and some do blame God for their passing. Whether this is the case for Lincoln is not wholly known, however it is said that Lincoln had a very hard time dealing with his son's death, setting aside every Thursday to mourn his death. It was not until a friend of the family, a recotr of Trinity Chruch, Dr. Francis Vinton, came to visit that things changed for Lincoln. He told him that he was wrong to mourn and lament over his son's death in such a manner, and that Willie was "...alive in paradise with Christ." Lincoln exclaimed, "Alive! Alive! Surely, sir, you mock me."

Dr. Francis Vinton exaplined that the doctrine of the church states clearly that Jesus himself said that "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." At this Lincoln leapt to his feet embracing the pastor and wept, crying "Alive! Alive! My boy is alive!". It was from that day on that a great change came over Lincoln, and his religious views began to change.

From this we can tell that while Lincoln may or may not have blamed God for his son's passing initially, in the end he found solace in the word of God and consolation in the knowledge that his son was in heaven and did not question his passing in the same light.