Okay, I finally saw Avatar. Yes, the 3-D was a bunch of fun and yes, it had some lovely things in it and I loved the dragons (They look like dragons to me), but I think for all the money they spent making the film they could have done a little better with the animals, although the forest was beautiful, the animals were a disappointment, but I guess you can't have everything :-). Am I the only one who thinks this?
A friend asked me the other night, how I can believe in God when something happens like the earthquake in Haiti. I did not have a very good answer. I think of God as an energy source that runs through every living thing and has only well being and love to give. I believe God cares about the people of Haiti, but I don't believe that God had anything to do with the earthquake.
I think that nature, mother earth does what it does and it is not personal. I also believe that everything happens for a reason, and that belief is hard to reconcile with something like the Haiti earthquake. So I end up throwing up my hands and asking why, when I see people suffering.
I do not have an answer. What do you all think? How do you answer those hard questions?
So, that's whats on my mind tonight, one topic trivial and one serious.
Happy Thursday. XOXO ♥
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13 comments:
Being a non-theist, I have no such dilemmas.
Willowtree-There you are :-).
I love your comment :-).
I like to believe that things like Haiti gives us a chance to show our unselfish sides. They are an opportunity to make us think about what is really important in life and re-evaluate how we are living. Do we really need that new dress or would the money be better used giving a quake victim shelter or food.
I think if there were no unfortunate happenings people would become very self absorbed and complacent- inventions wouldn't happen, and people wouldn't be spurred on to do better things and be nicer people.
Melanie-Very thoughtful answer and I agree that could be one reason. There are most likely many reasons.
xoxo
I like your mind.
God has nothing to do with Haiti. Chaos is in the world too and chaos is not god.
The god I love cries tears of blood because of things like that. But he can't fix it because if he could but let these things happen anyway he would be a monster.
God keeps me company and I like him very much.
I don't think things happen for a reason at all. Whatever could be the reasons for such heartbreak.
Things happen because they happen.
Love Renee xoxo
Dear Renee,
My belief comforts me when things happen I don't understand, heartache may be healing, we cannot know the mind of God.
I just read something that goes a bit like this: Take suffering and make medicine. That is something I would like to be able to do.
Love you dear friend.xoxo
I agree that it's not personal. Darwin, who had always considered himself an upstanding, faithful Christian, realized when his little girl died of a fever that such an event could not possibly be because God had found her morally lacking. It wasn't punishment. He realized it was just natural processes doing their thing. I am not a theist, either, meaning I do not believe in a personal God meddling in our everyday affairs. But I do see the universe as basically benevolent as long as I realize that I am a part of it and that natural cycles of birth and death are also a part of it. Suffering comes from expecting it to be different from what it is. I don't "believe in" God, because for me, God is everything that is. It isn't something to believe or not believe. What is just is, and I find it all to be awe-inspiring, even though the ALL sometimes includes terrible events that make us wonder.
The question becomes is God a puppet master, controlling everything on a string? If God were then the answer would be much more difficult. Since i do not believe in a puppet master, then things happen and there is suffering in this world. Our answer is to rise above the suffering and give, then we find God and who God is.
When I see the disaster in Haiti, it makes me appreciate my life more...though it is so sad for them. I believe God exist but these earthquake is man made not directly but indirectly we all have some contribution to it. It's probably mother nature or God's way of warning us..I think. Happy weekend Annie. Love ya!
Good question.
I call myself a woman of faith~
it is something I have worked out for myself, not for someone else, so this answer is for me.
I believe God allows bad things to happen so that I will see beyond my selfish self and put others first, to find out what it means to truly give of myself, to grow in my compassion, to reach beyond what I think I can do.
..." mother earth does what it does and it is not personal" is what I believe. I agreed with everything you said except the part that there is a reason for everything. That is not a part of my belief system. Or the reason the earthquake happened in Haiti was because the plates in the ground merged or seperated or what ever happens to cause earthquakes. I do not remember all the details I learned in geology class many years ago, but one can Google that info now.
No one and nothing MEANT for the Haitian people to suffer so.
It just happened! It's sad, tragic, and needs to be cleaned up, people need to be fed, housed, doctored, and taken care of humanely NOW!!!! And we grieve all those thousands of lost lives. TRAGIC is what it is.
And if we are good, caring humans and have what to give we come to the aid of these people monitarily. We do the best we are able.
Kelly's words resonate with my believe system the closest I think.
The other piece to all this is for me to realize that this kind of tragedy is going to happen where I live, The Big One IS COMING...EARTHQUAKE...in the Bay Area of California...we just don't know when however we are constantly reminded that we need to be prepared. Is the first aid box I put in my car and the bag of canned good really going to be enough? Do I need to refrest the bottled water I bought for that purpose? Do I even know where it is now? OY. It seems a joke in lieu of what I saw happened in Haiti.
Kelly-I believe there is a reason, but I never think it is punishment, NEVER! I also don't believe in a personal God, but I do believe the energy source cares and loves all living beings.
Joey-Yes, we must rise above the suffering.
M.Kate- I kow what you mean, I have nothing to complain about these days.
Anon- Lovely comment.
Lynn-I do believe everything happens for a reason, but I know that belief is a hard one for many and I understand. I don't always know the reason though and that is where my faith comes in :-).
Lynn-P.s. Their is a difference between California and Haiti and it is called building codes. You would fair much better because of them.
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