Posted on 01/15/2010 11:35:04 AM PST by CondoleezzaProtege
The images streaming in from Haiti look like scenes from Dante's Inferno. The scale of the calamity is unprecedented. In many ways, Haiti has almost ceased to exist.
The earthquake that will forever change that nation came as subterranean plates shifted about six miles under the surface of the earth, along a fault line that had threatened trouble for centuries. But no one saw a quake of this magnitude coming. The 7.0 quake came like a nightmare, with the city of Port-au-Prince crumbling, entire villages collapsing, bodies flying in the air and crushed under mountains of debris. Orphanages, churches, markets, homes, and government buildings all collapsed. Civil government has virtually ceased to function. Without power, communication has been cut off and rescue efforts are seriously hampered. Bodies are piling up, hope is running out, and help, though on the way, will not arrive in time for many victims.
Even as boots are finally hitting the ground and relief efforts are reaching the island, estimates of the death toll range as high as 500,000. Given the mountainous terrain and densely populated villages that had been hanging along the fault line, entire villages may have disappeared. The Western Hemisphere's most impoverished nation has experienced a catastrophe that appears almost apocalyptic.
In truth, it is hard not to describe the earthquake as a disaster of biblical proportions. It certainly looks as if the wrath of God has fallen upon the Caribbean nation. Add to this the fact that Haiti is well known for its history of religious syncretism -- mixing elements of various faiths, including occult practices. The nation is known for voodoo, sorcery, and a Catholic tradition that has been greatly influenced by the occult.
Haiti's history is a catalog of political disasters, one after the other. In one account of the nation's fight for independence from the French in the late 18th century, representatives of the nation are said to have made a pact with the Devil to throw off the French. According to this account, the Haitians considered the French as Catholics and wanted to side with whomever would oppose the French. Thus, some would use that tradition to explain all that has marked the tragedy of Haitian history -- including now the earthquake of January 12, 2010.
Does God hate Haiti? That is the conclusion reached by many, who point to the earthquake as a sign of God's direct and observable judgment.
God does judge the nations -- all of them -- and God will judge the nations. His judgment is perfect and his justice is sure. He rules over all the nations and his sovereign will is demonstrated in the rising and falling of nations and empires and peoples. Every molecule of matter obeys his command, and the earthquakes reveal his reign -- as do the tides of relief and assistance flowing into Haiti right now.
A faithful Christian cannot accept the claim that God is a bystander in world events. The Bible clearly claims the sovereign rule of God over all his creation, all of the time. We have no right to claim that God was surprised by the earthquake in Haiti, or to allow that God could not have prevented it from happening.
God's rule over creation involves both direct and indirect acts, but his rule is constant. The universe, even after the consequences of the Fall, still demonstrates the character of God in all its dimensions, objects, and occurrences. And yet, we have no right to claim that we know why a disaster like the earthquake in Haiti happened at just that place and at just that moment.
The arrogance of human presumption is a real and present danger. We can trace the effects of a drunk driver to a car accident, but we cannot trace the effects of voodoo to an earthquake -- at least not so directly. Will God judge Haiti for its spiritual darkness? Of course. Is the judgment of God something we can claim to understand in this sense -- in the present? No, we are not given that knowledge. Jesus himself warned his disciples against this kind of presumption.
Why did no earthquake shake Nazi Germany? Why did no tsunami swallow up the killing fields of Cambodia? Why did Hurricane Katrina destroy far more evangelical churches than casinos? Why do so many murderous dictators live to old age while many missionaries die young?
Does God hate Haiti? God hates sin, and will punish both individual sinners and nations. But that means that every individual and every nation will be found guilty when measured by the standard of God's perfect righteousness. God does hate sin, but if God merely hated Haiti, there would be no missionaries there; there would be no aid streaming to the nation; there would be no rescue efforts -- there would be no hope.
The earthquake in Haiti, like every other earthly disaster, reminds us that creation groans under the weight of sin and the judgment of God. This is true for every cell in our bodies, even as it is for the crust of the earth at every point on the globe. The entire cosmos awaits the revelation of the glory of the coming Lord. Creation cries out for the hope of the New Creation.
In other words, the earthquake reminds us that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only real message of hope. The cross of Christ declares that Jesus loves Haiti -- and the Haitian people are the objects of his love. Christ would have us show the Haitian nation his love, and share his Gospel. In the midst of this unspeakable tragedy, Christ would have us rush to aid the suffering people of Haiti, and rush to tell the Haitian people of his love, his cross, and salvation in his name alone.
Everything about the tragedy in Haiti points to our need for redemption. This tragedy may lead to a new openness to the Gospel among the Haitian people. That will be to the glory of God. In the meantime, Christ's people must do everything we can to alleviate the suffering, bind up the wounded, and comfort the grieving. If Christ's people are called to do this, how can we say that God hates Haiti?
If you have any doubts about this, take your Bible and turn to John 3:16. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. That is God's message to Haiti.
Im waiting for an article reporting that Israelis were advised to leave the country the day before.
Maybe not. But the Dominican Republic thanks God every day for those mountains.
God doesn’t like voodoo.
George Bush planted earthquake triggers six miles under ground. They finally went off.
I think God hates socialism and marxism...
Nothing in this world is lasting or secure. Earthquakes happen...blame tectonic plates shifting. No guarantees for anyone.
I believe it was the first statement that Obama made on the Haiti earthquake when he described it as “cruel”. I thought “that’s an odd way of phrasing a natural disaster” but I think it was Obama’s way of saying that “God is cruel to allow this to happen” or that “higher being is cruel” because cruelty is a human trait, not one that can be ascribed to nature. But of course, nobody in the lamestream would question Obama’s choice of words.
I’m also pretty sure God hates sin.
God doesn’t hate anyone. He hates sin and people will be judged for their sin.
God hates these insufferable articles.
No one knows God’s motives for what happens.
To think one does know God’s motives is the Height of stupidity and hubris.
Also God hasn’t done specific vengeful things against sinners since the old testament times, like when he nuked Sodom and Gomorrah.
This is a broken world. Tragic events like this are not a problem for Christian theology at all. And they do not reflect on God at all, who loves every one of us. Rather, these tragedies reflect on our own sinful nature and the fact that judgment will come to us all one day, whether we are ready or not. Everyone needs to get right with God, because you never know when you will be called to account.
But the Dominican Republic thanks God every day for those mountains... and building codes.
I had never been to the Dominican Republic ‘til a few years a go,, the parts I visited or passed thru seem pretty well built, of course they do get hit by hurricanes so.. building solid is kind of important.
Those who have ruled Haiti never quite got there, it seems.
and does God Hate Haiti?
No. It’s just some chickens coming home to roost is all.. Big chickens.
I didn’t get very many sentences into the article and stopped reading.
No one saw this coming.
Not true.
It was forecast a 7.3 would hit Haiti and that it was due.
The estimates I've seen indicate a larger number of Haitians identify as Christian than Americans do.
Isn’t it taking the name of the Lord in vain to ascribe divine influence hither and yon? This puts God on the same footing as luck.
And in cities around the rim of fire, it makes God appear positively petulant, easily annoyed, but only rarely punitive. And God’s punishment is to a great extent determined by soil type, as well.
Pretty soon, excess Summer heat in southern Arizona, and chilly winters in northern Michigan are God’s fault as well—but here’s the zinger—only if they bug *us*, mere mortals. Do you see the vanity here?
Hammering nails and you hit your thumb with the hammer. Owwww! God is angry with me! Then the boss gives you a Christmas bonus! Oh great!, God is smiling on me!
People who think this way are sometimes called “rewardians”. They are willing to write off the good things that happen to them as heavenly rewards, if they can also avoid the consequences of the bad things that happen to them as heavenly punishments.
But heaven, look at Haiti again, does not seem to smile on those who *shun* personal responsibility, good government, hard work and the effort to raise ambitious and educated children. In fact, heaven seems to deplore those who rely on the charity of others, who are willing to live in squalor and filth, and who align themselves with silver tongued villains, who promise them largesse instead of freedom.
Then again, an earthquake might be just an earthquake. Which tends to happen when you live near a major fault line.
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