Wednesday, January 13, 2010

God and the Haiti Earthquake

Could God have prevented the Haiti earthquake? I conclude that if God could have, God would have. I know all the answers of the orthodox  in trying to justify such acts of God, (having studied them for years and taught a course on the subject) but all are weak and unconvincing (to me). See my article:

Anyway, it is a good test if you take the orthodox view, i. e., of all the places where an earthquake could occur, why would God permit or cause one in the poorest country in the Western hemisphere still suffering from hurricane damage?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mr Kauthen,

I've been reading some of your articles/essays on your other website, and find them to be very insightful.

I don't agree that God stops all evil/mallady that He possibly can, though.

I strongly believe that God created this world as a perfect place for all His creatures, man and animals. He created it without pain, without disappointment, and without sorrow. It was not until man chose to disobey God that all forms of evil entered into the world.

My conclusion about the horrible disaster in Haiti:
It's a natural disaster, they happen all the time in varying degrees. It's extremely unfortunate for the people of Haiti, and the world (especially the Church) should gather 'round them in love.

However, God allowing a natural disaster to happen in the world that He created does not make Him powerless or complicit in the devastation that took place. It simply shows Him to be honest and true: He gave us a perfect world, we disobeyed Him, so now He has let our disobedience take it's toll on the earth.

DISCLAIMER: I am in no way suggesting that the people of Haiti did something to bring this upon themselves like some mainstream "evangelicals" are claiming.

Good discussion, I'll be dropping by your blog more often to check it out. Thanks!

Kenneth Cauthen said...

How can you pass through the sea, but forget that its blue?

English translation of Chinese above.

Anonymous said...

Hello Mr. Cauthen,
I believe that the reason God inflicted such suffering on the Haitians is not because of what they did, but because what we did not do. It was a wake up call for us when we discovered the damages and pain that Haiti underwent because of the previous hurricane and the earthquake now. We can now attest to helping them more and relieving their pain, more than what we did before...