"Will you really sweep away the righteous with the wicked ... ?" Genesis, 18:23
These words echoed in my spirit as I watched the images of the tsunami strike in Japan, and as the situation continues to unfold it evokes profound spiritual anxiety in me. How do we make sense of such enormous tragedy within the context of our faith? For we who believe in an active God who cares about what happens in this world, how do we make sense of wide-scale catastrophe? How do we respond when horrible things happen to innocent people?
We hold God accountable.
But before we do that, let's examine other possibilities for a person of faith. One response is to fall into the temptation of presuming to understands God's will. There are some religious folks who take to "explaining" the suffering of hundreds of thousands of human beings by forcing literal readings of ancient narratives onto current events. We've heard these explanations from fundamentalists of all religions: rabbis, imams, monks and priests who have the arrogance to think they are privy to God's will in the world. This hurricane was because of abortion. That earthquake because of homosexuality. That kind of profound spiritual arrogance would be laughable if it wasn't so hurtful and offensive.
"I don't have God's phone number, the way some others seem to have," said Rabbi Aaron Lichtenstein, a leading orthodox rabbi in Israel in response to rabbis who claim to know why God acts the way God acts. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord [Isaiah 55:8].
Another response is acceptance: resigning ourselves to a world that doesn't make sense and praying we are spared too much suffering. This approach has its strengths: it instills gratefulness for what we have, a certain calmness in the face of tragedy perhaps, but also some deep weaknesses. Accepting the suffering of others dulls our sense of responsibility and mission to help. A life of acceptance also doesn't always give us the tools or ambition to confront deep suffering when it happens to us.
What might holding God accountable look like? Let's look at the second half of that verse from Genesis. "Will you really sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Shall the Judge of the earth not do Justice?"
These are Abraham's words of spiritual indignation in the face of God's plan to destroy Sodom and Gommorah. How could a merciful God, a lover of righteousness and justice, allow such indiscriminate destruction and suffering? The Hebrew bible uses the word "vayigash," a verb that means "to draw intimately close", when Abraham offers up this audacious challenge. Challenging God is a way of drawing close to God. In fact the Talmud, in tractate Brachot 26b, states that morning prayers were instituted by Abraham in that very spot of prayerful protest. As demonstrated by Abraham, holding God accountable to confront human suffering is not heretical or anti-religious; challenging God can be an authentic and profound religious act.
Moses provides us with another example of challenging God in the face of the suffering of others. Moses challenges, argues, and convinces God to stop the destruction of the Children of Israel after the error of the Golden Calf. His audacious prayer/challenge is seen by many as the turning point in Moses' spiritual development.
Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev (1740-1810), one of the most beloved chassidic rabbis, was known as the melitz yosher, the righteous advocate. Hassidic tales abound of him advocating, cajoling God, demanding the end of the suffering of others in Levi Yitzchak's community. Rabbi Israel Salanter, the founder of the Jewish mussar, said that "the material needs of another are my spiritual concern."
There is one important ingredient in this kind of spiritually audacious encounter we must remember: humility. Abraham, in the midst of his back forth with God, offers perhaps the most profound statement of human humility: "I am but dust and ashes (Genesis 18:27)." This humility comes from honesty and self-awareness. It requires understanding that our challenge comes from a very human place, and that we ultimately don't call the shots. Moses is called the most humble person to ever walk the earth, and Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev was known for the great lengths he would go for anyone who needed his help. As we see with these heroes though, humility does not mean meekness and passivity in the face of the suffering of others.
As we enter new and difficult times ahead, may we follow the examples of these spiritual heroes. May we refuse to accept the sufferings of others as God's plan, and may we never let ourselves fall into spiritual nihilism. Through protest and prayer, may we humbly but boldly draw close and offer that ancient challenge: Shall the Judge of the earth not do Justice?
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It frightens me to know there are people who believe that a 6,000 year old fairy tale has any relevance to living in the modern world.
When will it become acceptable to publicly criticize people for their irrational beliefs in the supernatural?
This would be an excellent opportunity for a real god - one that IS capable of ending suffering, preventing cruelty, eradicating diseases, etc., to steal the show and our loyalty. Let the marketplace decide which, if any, of the gods are real and worthy.
Yet another response: resigning ourselves to the incontestable fact that in light of the evidence belief in an all-powerful, all-knowing, wholly benevolent God is an irrational hangover from ancient times.
Surely, you can have faith without that useless, indeed, harmful baggage.
Clay Farris Naff
Science and Religion Writer
Just wondering...
Dear God,
There are many instances in the Bible, and in American and World history, where slaves question their masters with revolt and eventually become free. I see way too many instances of injustice and down-right cruelty in our world. Good people die and really bad people are rewarded.
You have the power to make the world a better place, but you chose to murder, threaten, and make life miserable for a vast majority of humans. Why? You continue to do things that you tell us we shouldn't do. You set a very bad example. What can I tell my children? It has gotten out of hand.
I believe that you are in need of therapy. When you do things that are evil instead of good, there is a problem. Humans, on their own, can be very bad. Your influence is not helpful.
Until you are able to get back on the right track, we should reject you and either look for a God that is compassionate, loving, and more humane. Or, just try to go it alone.
"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them, be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.' (Revelation 21:3-4)
Right now, we are still at the point of the "old order of things." Things were not always meant to be this way at this stage. Initially, when God created Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, there was no pain and suffering. But pain and suffering resulted from Adam and Eve's choosing to sin. And none of us can say that it's not fair for us to suffer from their failings because it's not as if we're any better. Who here hasn't at times done things that were wrong when they knew better?
(continued)
But I don't.
After reading the Bible over and over, I just can't believe in it. I hope that you are able to hold on to your belief and love of God. I wish that I could.
It also serves to remind that if we can call upon God for accountability and justice, we can also call upon one another for accountability for actions and situations that may exacerbate the suffering in a natural disaster. We cannot prevent earthquakes and tsunamis, but we can -- we must -- advocate for preparation, for justice in the process of rescue and relief, and for humility by our governments and corporations in the face of nature.
If there is no partiality in God, how can he be responsible for killing some, while letting others live? Can God really be for both impartiality and partiality?
Isaiah 30:18(NIV) - For the Lord is a God of JUSTICE.
If God was responsible, for allowing some to live and others to die, will that be just? Can God really be for both justice and injustice?
1 John 4:8(NIV) - God is LOVE.
If God is about love, what does death and destruction have to do with love? Can God really be for both love and hate?
Psalm 36:9(AMP) - For with you(God), is the fountain of LIFE.
If God is the fountain of life, can he also be the fountain of death? Can God really be the fountain of opposites?
www.deathandlife.org/god.html
my lips quivered at the sound;
decay crept into my bones,
and my legs trembled.
Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity
to come on the nation invading us.
17 Though the fig tree does not bud
and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD,
I will be joyful in God my Savior.
Habakkuk 3: 16 - 18
Then he went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up the road, some youths came from the city and mocked him, and said to him, “Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!” So he turned around and looked at them, and pronounced a curse on them in the name of the LORD. And two female bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the youths.
I think we have passed the point where indiscriminate collateral damage (ie. death of innocents) is considered justice.
Perhaps we should simply accept that natural disasters sweep away the righteous with the wicked and that God has little to do with any of it.