Oh God

So, God. A touchy subject with society as a whole. Does God exist? If he does, why does he let all of these people die? Why does he let bad things happen? Excetera. In the Plague, Camus does touch upon this philosophical ground. He presents it throughout the book, but in a conversation between Tarrou and Rieux he bluntly brings the exact question out. Rieux, a doctor, says that he does not believe in God, when asked about the whole sermon. He responds that he does not believe in God. Tarrou then asks him why he helps out people if he does not believe in God. Before getting to Rieux's response I would like to comment on the question. Tarrou is implying that in order to help people out, you need to believe in God. It may be just me but I see this question as like a projection on Tarrous part. He probably only does things for others to accumulate good "karma" or "brownie points" to go to heaven. Ok, so Dr.Rieux answers that. He helps others out BECAUSE he does not believe in God, his reason being that since there is no God, no one will save these people and he must then do so. So in a way, the characteristic of "self-less" is highlighted in Dr.Rieux through this conversation. Although to some people it might look as if he was assuming Gods position within that society. Making the difference between someones death and life.