Where is God in the Coronavirus


A former preacher said he grew tired of being required to preach the same message after every disaster. The requirement was for a sermon which let God off the hook. Even though God is supposed to love his people and/or take care of them, he doesn't. This obvious fact had to be dodged the Sunday following something horrific.

I'm reading articles to see if there is any different message from priests and preachers these days. I found the same required message is being preached everyday: Don't blame God for the Coronavirus.

A conservative Protestant preacher/writer wrote the other day this was part of God's big plan and we needed to understand Coronvirum will ultimately be a good thing. A priest with a higher intellect wrote he did not know where God was during all of this or why it is happening. He said both believers and non believers should realize Jesus gave us the model for caring for the sick and the poor.

The priest at least came face to face with what he called the "inconsistent triad." The inconsistent triad is "God is all powerful. Therefore, God can prevent suffering. God does not prevent suffering. Therefore, God is either not all powerful and not all loving."

The Jesuit Priest said, as we all know, this inconsistency has been talked about by skeptics for probably 5,000 years. It has never been resolved by believers, at least to the satisfaction of non believers. The Priest admitted he also cannot resolve it.

Then the Priest resorted to the faith's default defense. According to those who wrote the Bible, Jesus took care of the sick and the poor. What is wrong with this old defense?

If there had been no Jesus would members of the public care for the sick and the poor? So far as we can observe non believers today, they do this without caring one twit about Jesus. It is not a convincing case for the faith.


Comments

  1. Matt NoahMarch 25, 2020 at 6:48 PM

    Jon, you again start with an incorrect premise, i.e. God is going to obliterate pain, suffering and death from His creation's existence.

    In your worldview, which doesn't include a real God, the God of Christians is supposed to fit a profile YOU have defined for HIM, not one which He has defined for himself.

    While there are times when God spares certain people, communities or nations of pain, suffering and death, it is much more frequent that he USES pain, suffering and death to sanctify, to teach and to bring people spiritual redemption.

    Perhaps the plight of another person causes you or me to help that person. Bingo, prayer answered! Look at all the good people scrambling like mad to stop COVID-19 in its tracks. Look at the people visiting the shut-ins. A Chinese grad student in San Diego loses her housing at school but is invited to stay with a local resident for as long as the school's buildings are closed.

    God had a Son whom He could have saved from the cross. Did He? No. Instead, Jesus suffered horribly and died a gruesome death. His disciples preached forgiveness, love of mankind, etc. When they could have saved themselves by renouncing Christ, they did not. They were martyred in similar, gruesome fashion, all except John.

    What Christians do know is that the afterlife will be devoid of pain and suffering.

    Jesus is all-powerful. He could stop all pain and suffering. He does not. He loves His creation.

    I can offer an analogy which will probably not satisfy all. Children first learn of God through their fathers. A crummy father can really wreak havoc with a child's image of God. A good father can help bring his children to God. A young man struggles with his school work. A father could step in and remove the struggle (pain) of learning. He could do the homework. Instead, he shows his son how to study, but does not provide the answers. The young man studies and still does not score an "A". He continues this through high school. Instead of getting into a prestigious school, he lands at an average university. He struggles only continue but he has learned to work hard. In the end, his work ethic, not his academic skills, earns him a chance to climb the ladder at Home Depot, McDonald's, BestBuy, etc. Eventually, he becomes CEO and leads people from Harvard and Stanford who are his VPs.

    Did his father allow his pain to bring him a greater reward? Understand the analogy?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jon LindgrenMarch 26, 2020 at 7:21 AM

      matt -- "Jon, you again start with the wrong premise."

      I have this image of the priests, kicking back with beers, after this weekend's mass. One says, "I used to wonder how long we could get away with this taking God off the hook thing. Today I'm running through it, I look down and there are some furrowed brows. I'm thinking some are skeptical. Then I saw Matt. He was smiling and nodding. It still works with some of the folks."

      Delete
    2. Matt NoahMarch 26, 2020 at 6:41 PM

      Jon, you may have your image of priests but I actually see them in action. They are nothing like you describe. For decades, I had 2 uncles who were priests. They are nothing like you imagine. Frankly, I don't think you "... have this image of priests, kicking back with beers, after this weekend's mass." You make up things which support your anti-theistic views and use your made-up things to drag people away from God. Priests are mostly saying their Masses in private, i.e. alone or with a couple of other people, during the pandemic. Bishop Folda broadcasts his Sunday 9 am Mass with (1) a cantor, (2) 3 deacons or priests and (3) 2-3 cameramen. Although priests drink beer (or not) they certainly don't collaborate with other priests about how they hoodwink their congregations.

      I try to see good in everyone and everything but you are presenting me with a problem.

      Delete
    3. Matt NoahMarch 26, 2020 at 6:47 PM

      If you long for a world without pain, just do a web search of Gabby Gringas from Minnesota. Don't want pain? Gabby gouged one eye out. She broke off all her teeth. She felt no pain.

      Delete
  2. Ardy BMarch 26, 2020 at 5:42 AM

    Matt Noah Mar 25, 2020 at 6:48 PM
    “he USES pain, suffering and death to sanctify, to teach and to bring people spiritual redemption.”

    It’s said a picture is worth a thousand words. For me your protracted homily glorifying suffering and death is summarized in this image:
    https://divineincarnate.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/sacred-heart-of-jesus.jpg

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ardy BMarch 26, 2020 at 7:43 AM

    Jon, “A priest with a higher intellect wrote he did not know where God was during all of this or why it is happening.”

    “God is all powerful, therefore God can prevent suffering. But God does not prevent suffering. Therefore, God is either not all powerful or [the creation of the human mind].” Maybe as the evolution of self-conscience proceeded, which is said to differentiate us from our animal ancestors, a special science developed to explain our experience, namely the ability to create gods. “Men create gods after their own image, not only with regard to their form, but with regard to their mode of life.”, Aristotle. And just maybe, to paraphrase what Einstein said of the moon, our gods do not exist only when we look for them — the origin of faith?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jon LindgrenMarch 26, 2020 at 10:01 AM

      Ardy B "..namely the ability to create gods."

      I like that. A variation of that I like is that when humans roamed around like animals, looking or food and trying not to be food for animals, some went to bed hungry, but believed there was some force out there that would lead the to food the next day, got up and enthusiastically carried on the search. Those that thought their reality was their unsuccessful search yesterday didn't have the belief they would find anything tomorrow and died out.

      Delete
  4. little helperMarch 26, 2020 at 2:24 PM

    That darn old tree of good and evil

    ReplyDelete

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