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God intervenes through the faithful
Q: Many have criticized Pat Robertson's suggestion that the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti was the work of the devil or a form of divine punishment. But if one believes God is good and intervenes in the world, why does God allow innocents to suffer? What is the best scriptural text or explanation of that problem you've ever read?
What I love about the Bible is the permission it gives to wrestle with God. Jacob wrestled with an angel. Job debated his righteous tormentors (Pat Robertson would have found his place there among Job's friends) and challenged God yet refused to deny God. Even Jesus cried out "My God why have you forsaken me?" The psalm he quoted on the cross (Psalm 22) ends in hope, but the agony on the cross was real.
As a Christian, I find myself often caught between faith and doubt. I stand between the Haitians proclaiming that God is with them despite their loss, and Michelle Faul's report of one crying out, "there is no God." Which Haitian would I be if left standing in the ashes? Probably both.
Ultimately faith is making the choice to believe and act even when mired in trial and buried in doubt. Even when we reject God, God remains faithful to us, seeking us until we are found. In short, I side theologically with those who have said God is good and never the author of evil, and suffering is the result of a sinful world and fallen creation. I recently ran across a comparison between the 1989 San Francisco earthquake and the recent Haitian one. Both measured 7.0 on the Richter scale, but while the San Francisco death toll resulted in almost 70 deaths, the toll in Haiti is 70,000 and rising. Slavery and poverty, predatory lending and oppressive foreign debt, imperial intervention and failed leadership at home have cumulatively left Haiti vulnerable to the forces of nature. Robertson's callous comments came out of the sin and brokenness that led to the current catastrophe. We choose faith when we resist the sinful worldview that produced his remarks.
Ultimately God intervenes through the faithful. Perhaps the question is not, "where was God," but "where are the faithful?"
(Read more about Christianity, suffering and the problem of evil.)
By
Jennifer Butler
|
January 20, 2010; 11:18 AM ET
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Posted by: Chapel_Hill_Science | January 29, 2010 8:53 PM
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No, actually the question was "where was God?"
Posted by: NorwegianShooter | January 27, 2010 12:18 AM
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I really enjoyed the article and must say I agree. But I would like to make a comment on khote14's post.
If you read the Bible, you will see that God created Lucifer as an angel. Lucifer chose not to follow God. In addition, God created man as perfect. It was man that chose not to follow God. In this way, evil was born.
God, in his infinite love, provided an escape from the consquences of evil. All we must do is accept it.
Posted by: cassie123 | January 26, 2010 7:50 PM
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Don't you think that is a little arrogant of you to claim that God NEEDS you to do his dirty work? Why can't God clean up his own mess? Why did God create or allow the mess in the first place?
-Staks
DangerousTalk.net
Posted by: dangeroustalk | January 21, 2010 1:27 PM
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Your God created your Satan. Satan is evil.
Satan is the "author" of evil, if you want to split words.
If this is your story, then your God is the creator of the author of Evil. You can't get around that, try as you might.
It seems that you Christians are making an almost supernatural effort to forgive your God for this evil. It sounds like one of those women who are victims of constant abuse by their man, yet continue to forgive him from fear of being abandoned.
Really, it's time to abandon this god story of yours. It doesn't work anymore, it's pathetic that you still hold on to it like that.
Posted by: khote14 | January 21, 2010 4:47 AM
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I agree with Christians' & Muslims' basic commandments:
1. One should exploit others suffering to spread one's own religion.
2. Charity should be done with an ulterior motive to gain power.
3. One should identify weakness in another country and culture. Then, instead of letting them correct problems, one should exploit.
4. Divide and conquer.
5. Always pretend to do charity. This provides the perfect cover for the true agenda.
6. Always remember that my god is better than the other's god. Use this belief to justify and rationalize acts of deception & destruction.
7. Religion is about winning and expanding, not about spiritual development.
8. Might is right.
9. If the whole world can be converted to Islam or Christianity, we will win. Then we will destroy the other inferior religion.
10. Peace on Earth and goodwill to mankind - NOT.
Posted by: clearthinking1 | January 21, 2010 12:19 AM
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I prefer to contemplate that it is humans that make a difference, right or wrong, good or evil, by their choices alone. God does not 'intervene', either by benevolent compassion or wrathful vengeance upon the earth or humans. Natural disasters exist on this planet. We choose to help or to hurt. It is us that exercise the free will that is our to use, and what we do in action and thought is what affect we have in life. That affect ripples out from us and our lives, and comes back in kind.
It is just a big playground, full of the hopelessly ignorant as well as the somewhat less so, and how we play and what we bring to the party is the game. 'God' watches and allows us our lives.
Posted by: justillthennow | January 20, 2010 3:56 PM
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The comments to this entry are closed.
As an atheist, I have to say that this is probably the best answer I've seen by any Christian. At its very least, it is constructive, encouraging people to help Haiti, and there's nothing to argue with on that front.
On the other hand, it's hard to know how to respond to claims about Jacob wrestling an angel. I mean, how am I supposed to respond to that?
And I still haven't seen a Christian answer the following question: if God created Satan, then why should we assume that God is good? And why worship a God who created Satan?