No! God didn’t do it.

I know, I know. I too have heard the yelps of those who believe that this latest storm was delivered by God, Spirit, or Higher Power because of the sins committed by the people who live there; whether it’s gambling, prostitutions drug use etc. I know that these religious people take note of the story of Sodom and Gomorrah and point out that God smote them from the Earth because of their unrighteousness, their immorality. I find this thinking absolutely absurd.

            
          First, if you read the story carefully you will notice that Lot was willing to send out his daughters to satisfy the sexual desires of the crowd. I cannot see any moral difference between the crowds desires to rape and the father sending out his daughters to prostitute for peace. Furthermore, God made sure that not one righteous person was left in the city(s) when the time of destruction came to pass. God, Spirit or Higher Power does not allow the innocent to suffer for the ills of the guilty. I think that a good argument could be made that God does not directly punish the sinner here on Earth. While I do believe in a kind of karma, a "what goes around, comes around" or “you reap what you sow”, (Gal, 6; 7) philosophy; I believe that there is only one “judgment” and that will happen in the fullest of time.

            
          Sodom and Gomorrah is not a story of sexual misbehavior; it is a story of inhospitality. To not be hospitable in these early days of Judaism was one of their greatest sins. This is what Jesus was so upset about during his ministry, defiling the temple, not taking care of the orphans and widows, ignoring the poor; these are the sins that were being exposed in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah and by Jesus during his ministry.

          
          I do not believe in a God that is harmful to the good. So then why are there disasters all across our earth? Did not God create all things? Yes, God did create all things, but God does not make of himself the controller of all things. God does not micro manage! We have things of the world and things of the Spirit; God created the spirit but does not control how we, his children, interpret, accept or refuse that Spirit. God created the things of the world, but did build the world as we know it. God  The environment that we live in is just part of our lives. We accept moderate weather as fact, but for some reason we need to explain extreme weather as something divine. That something disastrous is created for our good, a lesson to be taught. This brings into question the subject of miracles; I am not going to address that subject here.

gave us the power of thought, the ability to use the things of the world, and the intelligence to create. God gave us nature, however God does not use nature as a weapon.

          
          I seems to me that this type of scripture interpretation comes from a fundamentalist’s point of view. Some of the problems with this type of thinking are that it brings about a boasting of self righteousness. This self righteousness may sound something like; “Oh! Look at me; I must be in Gods’ favor for no harm came to me”. Another problem is the thinking that God paints humanity with a broad brush. That somehow it’s ok to punish the good alongside sinner. God knows us each by name, and our judgment will come in the fullness of time. Until then it is up to each individual to live their lives, hopefully for the good of humanity.

          
          If this wasn't brought about by God then why is it here? It’s not in the storm where you find God, Spirit or Higher Power. No, you will find God before, during and after the storm, people helping people prepare or escape from the ravages to come. It’s during the storm when people rescue people or bring calm to shattered nerves, this is where you find God. It’s after the storm when people work side by side to repair their homes, businesses and the broken lives of family, friends and strangers alike, this is where you find God.

          
          God does not create disaster, God freely offers Grace, to all who are willing to accept it, to give us the wisdom and strength to continue moving onward in peace and love. No one was punished in this latest storm, but many are and will be rewarded by their actions of bravery and kindness.

May peace of mind, strength of Grace and the power of the Spirit be with you during these times of strife and always.

Scripture references are from the NABRE

by David E.Gonzales