There have been a lot of earthquakes in the news lately. I let Hosea see some pictures from Haiti and Chile, and explained what an earthquake is. Since we live in earthquake country ourselves, I also showed him the extra water and food we store for emergencies. While I was showing him some pictures from Chile, he suddenly asked, “God made the earthquake smash the buildings because the people were bad and didn’t listen?” That caught me off-guard. In the half-second before I opened my mouth and began to say “Well, not necessarily…”, my mind raced through thoughts of “Where did he get that idea?” to “Are people going to think we’re a fanatical fundamentalist family if he says that in public?” I was caught in a strange moment; a moment of trying to balance teaching him the truth, deciding what level of explanation was appropriate for a 3-year-old, and realizing that I am concerned about what others might think.
After the earthquake in Haiti, I had come across the blog of a Mission Aviation Fellowship missionary family serving in Haiti in which the wife gives a detailed, intimate account of their experience of the earthquake and aftermath. Besides the trauma of it all and the impact on her own young child, something she wrote a day or two after the quake really struck me:
“At the end of the street, there is a giant ravine full of small concrete shacks. As night falls, we see candles and hear people singing and praising God. I’ve never met an atheist in Haiti. All though many suffer from all kinds of superstitions, they all believe there is a GOD, who is in control of the entire universe. They aren’t interested in scientific explanations of how earthquakes occur. ‘God moved the earth.’ They don’t question or are angry. They sing and praise Him.” (http://mafkrul.blogspot.com/2010/01/going-through-motions.html; accessed 1/17/10)
I read that in a news story, too – that thousands of people were gathering in the streets singing hymns. Then in the month following the quake I saw several news articles that reported on Haitians’ perceptions of God in relation to the earthquake. I read many quotes where Haitians gave their opinions on these questions: “Did God cause the quake, or not? Why? Or was it the voodoo spirits?” It appears that it is something that is being talked about openly in Haiti. It is a valid topic of conversation.
The American reaction to the earthquake was a bit different. The primary reaction was of course focused on compassion and how to help. But the public discussion was mostly silent in the area of God, except for one brief flare-up of debate.
What started it all was televangelist Pat Robertson stating that Haitians made a “pact with the devil” that has cursed the country. There was an immediate uproar, with the White House Press Secretary calling Robertson’s comments “utterly stupid,” and Al Sharpton calling him “un-Christian”. Other pastors spoke up and emphasized that they did not believe in the kind of God that would do something like that, but in a God of love. The Christian Broadcasting Network issued a statement clarifying that Robertson’s emphasis was on compassion and that he “never stated that the earthquake was God’s wrath.” At issue in the public war of words was the public definition of who God is. The acceptable public definition of God was quickly re-established, and the discussion disappeared again. The verdict: God is love, and has nothing to do with earthquakes.
Hmm. If God has no power over earthquakes, and is standing by as helplessly as we are, why should we bother praying to him to help the Haitians? And doesn’t the Bible talk a lot about disasters? What does it say? Why is nobody discussing these questions – or for that matter, why are we not asking God? Because it is not an acceptable topic of conversation in America, either in public or in most churches.
Now it is true that we should focus on compassion, and not on judging others. But here’s something else Jesus said about disasters: “Those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” (Luke 14:4-5)
As Jesus so often does, He turned the focus back on his audience. Jesus is not saying the victims were not guilty. They are. He says they are not less guilty that we are, and that if we do not repent, we will also perish. We should not be focused on judging others – regardless of guilt – but rather focus on our own need for repentance.
A month after the earthquake, the President of Haiti called for 3 days of fasting and prayer in place of the usual Mardi Gras celebaration. And the nation responded to the call. Streets were deserted and churches were filled.
How has America responded to her own disasters? 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the financial disaster. Certainly these things resulted in prayer. But nobody dared suggest or even imply that God might be involved. And nobody talked about the nation’s need for repentance. Not even pastors. Perhaps Christians are afraid of sounding judgmental, as if they are blaming the people who died rather than the whole nation, themselves included. But when we hush such conversations, we eliminate the possibility of repentance. If we do not repent, what will happen next?
May I not silence Hosea’s questions, but allow him to understand his need for repentance.
Facing Jordan 