Think before You Speak

We all say dumb things.  But most of us aren’t in front of a camera and an open mike.

Pat Robertson, who has done great things for aiding people in times of disaster, tied the earthquake in Haiti to their rebellion against France 200 years ago.  They signed a pact with the devil at that time, according to Robertson.

Rush Limbaugh has gotten himself in trouble over people hearing him tell people not to contribute to aid for Haiti.  He denies it.  But hasn’t been able to dig out of that hole.

Actor Danny Glover tied the earthquake to global warming and the failure to reach an accord at Copenhagen.  Somehow geological faults and plate tectonics responded to the warming of the atmosphere.

Of course, people have been making questionable pronouncements concerning the cause of human events for some time.

CFW Walther, founding father of the Lutheran church Missouri Synod, preached a sermon in which he attributed the 1849/50 cholera plague in St. Louis to the need for people to repent and turn to God.

On all Saints Day, 1755 a powerful earthquake on the Iberian Peninsula virtually destroyed the city of Lisbon, Portugal.  The churches were crowded with worshippers when the quake struck at 9:30 AM. Many were killed or injured by collapsing church roofs.  However, the church, particularly the Jesuits, called everyone to six days of repentance instead of urging the people to participate in the reconstruction. (Earthquakes, de Boer & Sanders, Princeton University Press, 2005)

A look at Jesus ministry shows that he didn’t buy into assigning tragedies to will and wrath of God.  In Luke 13, some people told Jesus of a tragedy in which Pilate had killed some Galileans while offering sacrifices.  He asked, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way?”  His answer was, “No.”  Then he asked the same question concerning the eighteen people killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them.  It wasn’t that these were worse sinners, but he pointed out the need for everyone to repent because we would all perish.  (There are no other historical records of these two events.)

God doesn’t just pick out certain people to punish.  However, tragic events should give us pause to think about the frailty of human life.  Indeed, we are like the grass which is vibrant in the morning and under the scorching heat of day and wind is burned up by evening.

It’s not a matter for us to try to figure out God’s will in tragic events, but what is important is how God is able to use our faith to bring us through tragedies.  It’s also a time for us to show our love for God by demonstrating love toward our fellow human beings.  God’s goal is not our punishment but that He brings us to faith and eternal life in Christ.

A prayer from Lutheran Study Bible,

Lord, increase my faith in what You have given me to know.  Grant me humility before those mysteries that surpass my understanding.

 

        

Comments

[J]

You, like many others jumped to conclusions from some soundbites rather than read the entire quote and look at the context of Limbaugh, Robertson, and Walther. You also don't site your sources with Walther so the reader can get some context. I would expect better from a Lutheran in light of Luther's explanation of the 8th commandment. Your commentary on Limbaugh is flat wrong (listen to his statements on his 1/18 show if you have doubts, so you can listen to how he corrects those many errorists out there who got it wrong like you did).

[Sarah]

Commenter J, I just read this post, and I don't see how the 8th commandment was broken. Also, how can commentary being flat wrong? It is commentary...

[Ron Jansen]

Thank you for responding. I'm glad you are reading the Lutheran Review. J. if you go back and carefully read what I wrote, I did not say that Rush Limbaugh said what he is accused of saying. I did hear what Pat Robertson said. The reason I didn't cite the reference to Walther is because I read it in one of his sermons when I was writing the history of Holy Cross, Collinsville in 1998. As Rush might say, " I recalled it from my voluminous memory."
We seem to be a bit edgy in our conntry and in the church these days.