The devastation caused by the earthquake in Haiti this week raises several questions. One is pragmatic – what can we do to help? The other is theological – where is God in this? In Luke 13 Jesus teaches us something about tragedy. He teaches us to see it as a warning shot across the bow rather than an excuse to cast stones. If you’re a religious person, there is a great temptation to wonder what was so bad about Haiti that God would bring such tragedy (if you’re inclined to see God in control of history), or where God was that such a tragedy could occur on his watch. If you’re not a religious person, then perhaps you see this as just one more piece of evidence that God simply isn’t there.

My intent isn’t to give an apologetic for why the atheist should believe in God. I’ll only say this: if God isn’t there, then tragedies like this take us a step closer to despair. Instead I hope to gather some clues from the Bible as to how we should understand God and his involvement in tragedy.

If you want to help through giving, please visit www.fh.org (Food for the Hungry). Ben Homan, president of Food for the Hungry, recently shared their vision with Cornerstone which you can access here.

Understanding Tragedy – Discussion guide