Considering the tragedy that has taken place in Haiti, the final verse of the Psalm at Mass today stings:“Why do you hide your face,
forgetting our woe and our oppression?
For our souls are bowed down to the dust,
our bodies are pressed to the earth.”
Why?
It’s the question of the day.
Why does God permit the earth to rumble beneath us?
Why did God permit the earth to move under Haiti, the poorest nation in the Americas?
Frankly, the most truthful answer is that we simply do not know.
I believe in an all-powerful God. I do not know his will. I do not know why he permits his creation to suffer.
Lord, why do your pilgrim people face so many obstacles along the journey?
But, this I do know: no purpose is served by claiming that natural disasters are the reaction of a vengeful God. No purpose is served by asserting that our Creator singles out certain peoples for punishment because of the supposed deeds of their ancestors.
Yesterday, in commenting on the earthquake, television personality Pat Robertson made such a claim about a part of Haiti's history. (Note that I do not use the word “evangelist” or "Christian" in front of this man’s name. This is intentional.)
Pat Robertson caused discord on a day of great suffering. In fact, this is the second time he has done so in a time of crisis – casting a shadow on all of us who seek to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
This man should no longer be given deference by civic and religious leaders. He should no longer be consulted on matters of state and faith.
Mr. Robertson, I ask you to retire to a life of prayer, contemplation and repentance. You no longer belong in front of a television camera.
6 comments:
Your post is beautiful in every way Paul - it truly is.
Fran
nice
Your post is so well written and finally I feel calm after the horrible words of.....I can't even say his name. The sad things there are other christians who think he is correct! What is wrong with these people. I have to go to confession for my thoughts on this one. Great post......:-) Hugs
Thanks again for this post Paul - I am linking to you from both of my blogs and I posted this to FB.
God bless you.
A meaningful, worshipful and inspiring post. Thank you,
Stephanie, Fran's cousin
Pat Robertson is a shameless huckster. I met him once while covering the 1988 presidential campaign in South Carolina, and my initial thought was that he was a few sandwiches short of a picnic. Sadly, he keeps proving me right. It's a shame that this man is seen as a leader of the Christian faith. There are tens of millions of good Christians throughout this country who don't deserve to be linked in any way to this buffoon.
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