In My Opinion
By L.N.P.

"Where Was God? "

I've been trying to come up with some way to write this column that won't be off-putting to those who don't believe in God at all, but at the same time explore some questions that challenge even the most faithful among us. I finally realized that I should just sit down and write what was in my heart and see what happened.

It certainly must be clear to all: those with no faith, those with an abundance, and those somewhere in the middle, that God does not intervene in natural disasters or in tragic events caused by mankind. If He did, Hurricane Katrina would have drifted off to sea, the terrorists would have been thwarted before hitting their targets on September 11th, the levees would have held strong. There would be no death camps at Auschwitz, no tsunamis in Indonesia, no AIDS epidemic in Africa.

For those who believe that God created all things, there is also the understanding that He created natural law. The very forces that provide us with drought-quenching rains, cool ocean breezes, the ebb and flow of the tides and the majestic surf crashing against the shoreline also result in hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis.

Along with natural law, God created humans with free will. Every day we can choose between right and wrong, good and evil, and God will do nothing to stop us. We can defy natural law and build on the fault line or in the floodplain. We can defy moral law and poison the air or murder innocent people. It is our choice. So when I hear people ask how God could have allowed such devastation…or even worse, when I hear some speculate that a hurricane is a punishment for living in a sinful city, or a terrorist's bomb God's way of making us see our own wickedness, I know this is not only irrational; it is impossible.

God does not cause bad things to happen. Not to correct our mistakes, to make us strong, not even to build our faith. We live in an imperfect world where bad things happen. And believing in God does not make us immune from the realities of this world. That's why the good often die young and the most faithful are not immune from cancer, terrorists or the floodwaters.

So why, during our vigil in the wake of Katrina, did we hear so many of the victims praising God, so many who had lost their homes saying they were blessed, so many of the performers singing songs of worship? Where WAS God?

For me, God most clearly manifested Himself in three ways: in the response, in the compassion and in the service.

When I talk about response, I specifically mean the response of those who are suffering. Although God never causes bad things to happen, He does give us the opportunity to respond to that suffering in a way that strengthens our trust in Him. The more we put our faith in the power of God to bring forth a good outcome-even in the midst of tragedy-the more we will be transformed. Many of the hurricane victims seemed to know this.

Then there's compassion–one of the most God-like traits we possess. There were thousands of people who felt and demonstrated true compassion for the victims; in those moments we were all seeing the presence of God. For some, whether or not they knew or believed it, the hand that reached out to them, the arms that carried them, the tears that were shed for them and the love that poured over them was the moment they saw God.

And finally, there was service. Jesus came not to be served, but to serve. That is at the heart of what God desires–that each serve his brother and sister as they themselves would want to be served. From the little children emptying their piggy banks to the Red Cross, from the police to the Salvation Army, from the 82nd Battalion, to the firefighters, the performers, the National Guard, the thousands of every day citizens who put their lives on hold in order to serve their brothers and sisters, those people, with the gift of free will, made a choice to serve. THAT was where God was.

For the many who believe that the seventy or eighty years we spend on this earth is all there is, an event like 9/11 or Katrina could be nothing but utter devastation. A large portion of their time allotted for life, for happiness, taken away; the cruelty and unfairness of it unthinkable.

I don't pretend to know for sure how I'd respond to such suffering; I too might crumble under the weight of it. Faith is, after all, the ability to believe in advance what we can only know in the future. But right now I choose to believe that those same seventy or eighty years are just a tiny speck compared to the eternity we will spend in God's presence, and that living hope is astounding. I pray with all my heart that if that moment comes for me I don't lose my faith. I pray that I stay secure in the knowledge of eternal life…and in a world where bad things never happen.

Send me your opinions at LParis@netlistings.com