03/16/2022
Lynn Murphy Mark
A wonderful friend of mine confessed that recently she had been on a rampage with God, specifically about the situation in Ukraine. During her rant she demanded to know why God does not open the way to a solution for the tragedy happening in Europe. No clear answer came to her. I think of all my own rants with no answer to be had at that moment. I have experienced outcomes appearing later when I least expected them. I believe that it is not possible to figure out the mind of God so I no longer try. I just stay open to possibilities.
I have another friend who has since made her transition who was certain that there is no God. The proof for her was the tragedies that occur around the world. Her thinking was, if there is a God, why does tragedy happen to innocent people? What kind of a God lets a child get killed in a senseless war? She could not get beyond these thoughts. She had read Rabbi Kushner’s book, “When Bad Things Happen to Good People” and was still not convinced.
She could not agree with his premise that God is always with us in the midst of tragedy, but that God does not interfere with free will. That is on us as humans to exercise the free will granted to each of us. When it is expressed as acts of evil and destruction it is a demonstration of lack – a lack of empathy, loving kindness and basic human respect for the other. Whether it’s Nature or Nurture that creates the propensity for evil in one person is still being debated.
Father Richard Rohr has written a small book titled, “What Do We Do With Evil?”. As I read through it, several quotations make infinite sense to me. He writes, “Most people who do evil have fully explained it to themselves as good (meaning it is good for them), regardless of whether it is objectively good or good for society as a whole.” And where is God in all this? “God seems to have created a deliberately incomplete and imperfect universe, so we could be in on making it whole and holy.” (My emphasis).
I believe that God is with us at all times – good and bad. My spiritual home, Unity, is rooted in a belief that love is what powers the Universe, that God is the essence of love. That love is available to all. It is felt during times of prayer and meditation. It is there for us regardless of circumstances. Why this gift of loving kindness does not manifest itself in all people is a mystery to me. More unknowing about the mind of God.
There is an old hymn, a favorite of mine. One of the lines is, “We walk by faith and not by sight.” I believe that with all of my being.