where is god when there is so much suffering and sadness?

reading Beliefnet this morning, i ran across an article that discusses the omnipotence of god and his/her presence during the recent disasters. the link is http://www.beliefnet.com/story/175/story_17566_1.html should you want to read the article.

the article itself brings once again to the fore the age old question of "where is god when there is a disaster" and why did he let this occurrence happen. well, as usual, there is no easy or pat answer. certainly various organized religious groups may have a standard explanation to satisfy the multitudes, who are certainly seeking one. however, when it comes right down to it, bad things happen, period. we, as individuals, have to deal with them. how we deal with them emotionally and spiritually can follow a party line of an organized religion, or it can involve some spiritual searching.

the only thing i have been able to do in these circumstances is to state to myself that things happen for a reason. why they happen and what the good outcome of these things is to be often times is not apparent early on. as a matter of fact, it can be years before the positive in an awful situation is revealed. even then, the person viewing this incident may not see the positive, or embrace it.

neal donald walshe wrote a fascinating book series, CONVERSATIONS WITH GOD, and in these books he does tackle the question of why would a benevolent god create awful situations. the one specific question asked was concerning the holocaust, and the extermination of 6,000,000 jews. why have a hitler? and what positive thing can come out of this mass genocide?
in his conversation with god, god's answer was pretty unique and certainly hard to swallow. what if hitler comes into this life specifically as a catalyst for change? if you entertain the concept of reincarnation, you understand that each incarnation is designed to create soul growth through challenges. we set up the "play of life" with certain players, and we come into this life knowing we are going to have soul challenges through the experiences and trials of daily life. how we deal with the challenges is how we grow. the supposition is that hitler reincarnated specifically to cause worldwide change. hard to believe that such a human monster could have had a positive effect, considering the human suffering and cruelty. not many people could look at the holocaust and see any positive effect, especially if your family was affected.

but maybe there was.

globally, we seem to be much more aware of genocide and worldwide, we do not allow it to continue unabated. the united nations certainly does attempt to intervene when it appears that this type of behavior goes on. while, sadly, humans still do commit heinous acts against various groups of people, it does not seem to be occurring in the same manner or scope as that of the holocaust. a small plus, but none the less, a plus. it certainly doesn't justify what hitler and the german people did, but it could be looked at as a positive.

the country of israel became a country in 1948 as a result of the disenfranchised jewish refugees immigrating to that country. for many, there was no home left in europe, and so many sought out a small plot of land, the homeland of their religious ancestors. "next year in jerusalem" has been a part of jewish religious ritual for thousands of years, yet no mass attempt had been made to reclaim the area as a jewish homeland. it took the holocaust to do that. granted, this area is certainly a hotbed of controversy and dispute. but it is a country of jews and their descendents. one has to wonder if it would exist in this way had there not been such a horrible motivating factor to leave europe and "return home."

in the same manner and fashion, we as a country are currently experiencing what appears to be a huge human disaster. hurricane rita and hurricane katrina have destroyed life as they knew it for untold thousands of people in the gulf coast region. the destruction is not limited to homes and jobs. the trickle down effect of this destruction will be starting to show in the months to come, and there are many possible things that could happen as a result. how to revitalize this area is what is under dispute, but it is hoped that something positive can be built out of this episode of human suffering.

certainly government ineptitude has been revealed at every level. the accusations that the government didn't react quickly because the people most affected by the disaster were poor may or may not be true. many people have been angered by this, and their accusations of socio-economic and racial prejudice have been heard by many, and scorned by many. a division based on these lines could either widen or shrink, depending on how we as HUMANS react to what we see before us. in a previous blog, i addressed the concept of the haves and have nots, and it is here that i think that god is watching and waiting.

my spin on disasters and misery, and in particular, our recent tragedies, is that god has set the stage for change. to get our attention, he had to create a miserable, ugly, tragic situation with no immediate cure. this is a long term problem that needs to be fixed on every level, but most importantly, it needs to be seen as a staging ground for change. as a nation, we have been drifting further and further apart on racial and socio-economic lines. lack of education and the "'ghetto-ization'" of the poor has help create generation after generation of separate and unequal classes in this country. i read a NY TIMES article sunday that addresses various plans to try and break the cycle of poverty and crime, and one of the ways to do it was to tear down the pockets of misery (ghettos), and disperse the people out into the general population. it was found that when you took people out of the self-perpetuating climates of misery and put those people in a different location that didn't foster the same behavior, those people adapted for the better. however, left isolated in areas where the mentality fostered no further growth, crime and poverty continued on unabated, generation after generation.

many of our poor and uneducated are scattered all over the united states right now. they cannot return to the lower income, impoverished neighborhoods of new orleans and other cities. those who didn't have much, have nothing. they have hit bottom. what is left to them, however, is the human will to survive, and a unique opportunity to start over again fresh. they cannot return to what they had. the government hopefully will provide them with some of the financial needs that would allow them to start over. the hope is that they will be given the opportunity for a truly fresh start, and some will embrace it and be successful. if god is going to work a miracle in the middle of a disaster, this might be it. we truly need some social change, and the numbers of "have nots" have just been growing slowly but steadily over the last few decades. the only thing that has changed is our attitude about helping these people. with an emphasis on materialism and what is best for me and mine as the prevailing attitude, middle and upper class america has more or less separated itself from the "lower level" and has developed a cynical and less than sympathetic view of those left financially and educationally behind.

i want to believe that this disaster was created by god to give us a wakeup call about brotherhood and the golden rule. he has created a huge smack in the face to make us think about how lucky some of us are, and what we can do to help others. he has helped us appreciate what we have in a way that only a disaster could, and many have responded with gifts of money, time, and goods. however, this is not a short term problem. certainly in a few more weeks, we will be seeing less and less on the news or in the papers concerning the disasters. people's interest will wane, and once it is off of the front pages, it will start to have less and less impact. this is where what god intends will be tested. if we as a species can continue to be affected by this, we will help contribute to rebuilding of human character, not just buildings. hillary clinton's title of IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE A CHILD can also be applied to us as a society. our children now are varied in color, religion, education, and culture. those who have must be the benevolent "parents" who provide with love and care. just like a parent, we sometimes connect with some of our "children" better than others, but we say we love them equally. we will have to embrace that thought while helping our "children" of this disaster. we must be careful not to favor one over another, and to learn to appreciate the gifts of each. if we are able, even just a few of us, to do this, we can affect a positive change, and reaffirm that god is indeed present, even in the worst of situations, for the better.