How Can God Allow This to Happen?

"Mysterious God, Creator of atoms, earth, fire, water, and air, We do not understand all that surrounds us, We are only a part and a moment. You are the All in All."

“It is a warning,” my friend said, referring to the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

I heard a similar sentiment on NPR as they quoted a Japanese official who suggested divine messages about the selfishness of the Japanese people. Both these responses gave me pause and led to thoughtful consideration of what they were saying.

Events like this challenge our notions of how things should be. We might question how a good God can allow things like this to happen.

Doesn’t that question always come up when we face tragedy?

My own reflection led me to that deep place where I realize how little I understand – and how it really doesn’t matter that I don’t.  Things are as they are, whether I understand them or not.

My immediate response to my friend was that I see these events not as a “warning,” but more as an invitation – an invitation to prayer and gratitude. The more I reflected on it, the more convinced I became of the gift of that insight.

These events can be seen as invitation to

… pray for our brothers and sisters who are suffering

… think about the fragility of our planet

… be aware of our own vulnerability

… be grateful for what we have

… let the people in our lives whom we care about know it

… realize how connected we are – this calamity will have effects on us

… see the courage and generosity of so many people who respond with aid

… notice the simple good things in our everyday lives

… put things in perspective.

So let us join in our prayers for our brothers and sisters in Japan and for those who are rushing to help. And let us join in prayers of gratitude for all that we have, acknowledging that it is all gift.

Our lives can change in an instant – may we all live fully in the now that we have.

PRAYER FOR JAPAN
 
Mysterious God,
Creator of atoms, earth, fire, water, and air,
We do not understand all that surrounds us,
We are only a part and a moment,
You are the All in All.
 
Surround, protect, and give ground
To our sisters and brothers in Japan.
They feel so afraid and so abandoned.
Yet we know You abandon nothing
That you have created,
Nor will you abandon them.
 
Love us all into the Larger Life
That Jesus revealed while being crucified.
 
With him and for them,
We pray in hope.
Amen.
 
From the Center for Action and Contemplation