Thursday, January 14, 2010

Pat Robertson & Haiti

In an era in which there is quick condemnation of Islam from the likes of evangelist Pat Robertson, it is ironic that this so-called "man of God" should open his mouth and proclaim the reason for the tragic Haitian earthquake as a result of a pact made many years ago between Haitians and the devil. The notion that God somehow has repaid the Haitians for this pact with a horrendous tragedy such as we are witnessing is preposterous at the very least! What is even more baffling is the fact that there are many Americans who fall in lock-step behind Robertson and believe every word he says.

God does not sit around figuring out how He can manipulate the human race. Nor does He dole out punishment in the forms of natural disasters. If that's the case, the entire world would have passed away a long time ago. Natural disasters are a part of the world He created. They happen. That's all. Nothing more. When they occur, they effect both good and bad people. They are non-discriminatory. God's actions are found in the actions of mankind in response to these disasters.

Robertson's network issued a statement "clarifying" what he said on air on Wednesday. But it clarified nothing. It is time for people of real faith to stand up to such ignorance. God is not a magician. He is not a manipulator. None of us can understand the mind and will of God completely. What we can do is follow the teachings of His Son. We must love one another. Be compassionate, kind and understanding. Where judgements are necessary, we must be loving in rendering these judgements. But to suggest that the reason for a natural disaster of this proportion is a result of some supernatural deal with the devil flies in the face of any rational understanding of God.

We must continue to reach out the the Haitian victims of this natural disaster and continue also to be the hand of God in our response. Pat Robertson and those who follow him and his twisted logic dressed up in the name of religion need our understanding as well. We need to pray for them every bit as much as we must pray for the Haitians. God is a God of love and of justice but He does not deliver His justice in the way that Robertson suggests. His justice is beyond human comprehension and is best left up to Him. We must simply seek to do His will and follow Him!