Why God Did Not Create A World Without Coronavirus (Evil or Natural Disasters)?

            We live in an unprecedented situation. This worldwide disaster resulting in curfews and lockdowns across the world with an impending [worldwide] economic catastrophe looming large is happening for the very first time in my 50 plus years of existence.

            Tsunamis, earthquakes, and typhoons result in localized disasters. But the Covid-19 disaster resonates worldwide.

            ‘Why did God create a world such as this?’ is a common yet honest question of a person in pain and misery. Agony & despair prompts this question.

            The question 'Could God not have created a better world than this wherein we need not suffer so much?’ need not include the innocence of the questioner of the previous question.

            The question ‘Why did God not create a world without Coronavirus?’ presupposes that God had the power to create a better world but chose not to create one. The question ‘Could God not create a world without Coronavirus?’ presupposes a notion that God may be powerless to create a world without evil i.e. Coronavirus.

            Whatever the case may be, these questions are legitimate because it is the sinking man who always extends his hands out for help. This sinking man has the right to ask such questions.

            Today we seem to be sinking. So we ask!

            What do we even hope to achieve by asking such a question?

            If this is the best world that God could have created then we could take comfort from the fact that God did HIS very best. It reflects upon God’s perfect goodness, knowledge, power, and justice.

            On the other hand, if God could have created a better world, but chose not to create, then it reflects poorly on God’s justice. It also portrays God as a weak or an evil being. Since we are in the midst of suffering, we could feel betrayed by God.

            So is this the best possible world that God could come up with?

            Gottfried Leibniz, the 18^th century German philosopher, argued that the universe (as it is) is the best world God could have created. He argued that God, being omnipotent, omniscient and omnibenevolent, created this world since HE knew that this world was the best of all possible worlds. This is commonly referred to as the Leibnizian Optimism.

            But J.L Mackie, an Australian philosopher, argued that the presence of an all-loving and an all-powerful God is logically incompatible with the existence of evil. In other words, if there is an all-loving and an all-powerful God, then there cannot be evil (because a good and powerful God should either overcome evil or should have created a world without evil). This is the Logical Problem of Evil.

            This is Mackie’s argument:

A. If God exists, God is an omnipotent and wholly good being.

B. A good being always eliminates evil as far as it can.

C. There are no limits on what an omnipotent being can do.

D. Evil exists.

E. Therefore, God does not exist.

            Alvin Plantiga, one of the most acclaimed Christian philosophers in existence, rejected Mackie’s claim and responded with the Free Will Defence.

            The Free Will Defender aims to show that there is a possible world in which God is omnipotent, omniscient, and wholly good, yet there is evil. So a world containing creatures who are sometimes significantly free (and freely perform more good than evil actions) is more valuable, all else being equal, than a world containing no free creatures at all.

            When God creates humans, HE creates them with free will - an ability to perform moral evil and moral good. If God had to eliminate evil, then HE should do that only at the cost of eliminating the possibility of doing moral good. Therefore, it is possible that God could not have created a universe containing moral good (or as much moral good as this one contains) without creating one containing moral evil.

            An objection to the free will defense is that it is logically possible for God to create a world containing significantly free creatures who always do what is right.

            But to cause free creatures to always do the right is to determine that they perform the moral good always. However, this condition can be actualized by eliminating or excising their free will. If so, free creatures are not free in reality.

            Therefore, one can conclude that evil can coexist in God’s presence. Alternatively, God can permit evil despite HIS presence (as an all-loving and an all-powerful God).

            Could there be a best of all possible worlds? Is our world the best of all possible worlds?

            In one of my earlier blogs, I wrote, “Alvin Plantinga differed from Leibniz by positing that there cannot be a best world, for one more palm tree or one more morally righteous person can make any world better. So Plantinga concluded that there is no such thing as the best world. [Even if God does not create anything, HE alone will exist as the greatest good (Summum bonum)]. Therefore, God is merely obligated to create a good world and not a best world.”¹

            Yes, this is the best world or the good world that God could have created.

            But what about the natural evils such as the Coronavirus we are suffering from now?

            St. Augustine attributed natural evil to Satan and his cohorts. Since his rebellion against God, Satan has been wreaking havoc in the world. The result is natural evil. So the natural evil we find is due to the free actions of non-human spirits.

            Even in the instance of natural evils, we observe that the presence of natural evil (e.g. Coronavirus) is logically compatible with the existence of a wholly good, all-powerful and an all-knowing God. The free will of the non-human spirits (i.e. Satan and his cohorts) causes natural evil (e.g. Coronavirus) because God created both the humans and the non-humans with free will.

            A world with free will is any day better than a world without free will. 

            So God has done HIS best.

            Therefore, since we have been blessed with free will, we also need to endure the consequences of free will – which is evil.

            When we reel under the devastation caused by Coronavirus, let us understand that God has not abandoned us.

            God is with us. The Lord Jesus is Immanuel, which means God with us.

            If we seek Jesus, HE will carry us through. Even if we are to die, we will be in a much better situation, for those who believe in Christ will be with God forever and ever.

Endnote:

¹http://rajkumarrichard.blogspot.com/2015/02/why-did-god-create-satan-knowing-that.html, last accessed on 30^th March 2020.

Material for Free Will Defense of Alvin Plantinga has been sourced from: Adams & Adams, The Problem of Evil, Edited by Marilyn McCord Adams & Robert Merrihew Adams, p 83-109. 

Are Earthquakes A Part of The Great Tribulation? How Should Christians Respond To Natural Disasters?

            The Bible foretells a seven year tribulation period prior to Christ’s second coming. This will be a time of unparalleled suffering for mankind.

            Earthquakes are a sure means to inflict this gory suffering, and the Bible includes earthquakes as a part of the tribulation period. Hence some Christians were quick to associate the recent earthquake in Nepal with the tribulation, thus implying the rapid proximity of Christ’s second coming.

            To be fair, one cannot blatantly ignore these voices, for ‘Earthquaketrack.com’¹ reported 109 earthquakes today (4^th April 2015), 680 during the past week, 2987 in the past month and 37, 655 in the past year. These large numbers could easily validate these voices (this report includes earthquakes of magnitude 1.5 or greater).

            Two pertinent questions could be raised in the wake of natural disasters such as the recent earthquake in Nepal:

            1. If these voices are valid, are we living in the tribulation period - are we experiencing unparalleled suffering now? If not, when do we expect the great tribulation?

            2. When earthquakes (read suffering) destroy many lives irreparably, should Christians shout loud to the world about the earthquake being a part of the tribulation period or God’s judgment upon mankind etc.?

            Are we living inside the tribulation period? Matthew 24 outlines consecutive tribulational events:

            1. Deceptive Messiahs: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many” (verses 4-5).

            2. Wars: “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom” (verses 6-7).

            3. Famines & Earthquakes: “There will be famines and earthquakes in various places” (verse 7b).

            4. Persecution & Martyrdom: “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold…” (verses 9-12).

            5. Cosmic Disturbances: “…the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken” (verses 29).

            6. Christ’s Second Coming: “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other” (verses 30-31).

            Various other passages speak about the tribulation period (Daniel 9: 24-27; Jeremiah 30: 3-14; Revelation 6-18; Zechariah 12: 2-3, 8-9, 14: 1-5, 7-9; 2 Thessalonians 2: 1-10). However, the first event of the tribulation period, as elucidated by premillenial scholars, is the arrival of antichrist.

            Until now there is no concrete sighting of the antichrist. Many rumors do circulate, but they are unconvincing. Similarly, there are wars, famines, earthquakes and cosmic disturbances, but is the unparalleled suffering of the tribulation period?

            Let us think this through by considering the factor of peace through the global peace index. In other words, is the world at peace now?

            Institute for Economics and Peace’s (IEP) study² reveals that only 11 countries in the world were not involved in conflict of one kind or another. Another significant revelation of this study is that the world is becoming less peaceful every year since 2008.

            Having said this, the world is not being traumatized by peacelessness. For instance, India ranks 143/162 in the global peace index (#1 ranked country is most peaceful and the 162^nd ranked country is the least peaceful). According to this statistic, India is not considered a peaceful country. However in reality, barring instances of conflicts and violence, life is quite normal in most parts of India.

            If this is the situation in India, 142 other countries do seem to enjoy a relatively greater degree of peace. Hence a conclusion that we are not living in the tribulation period, since suffering is not at its zenith in this world, is reasonable.  

            When do we expect the tribulation period to commence? Tribulation will surely occur in the future, but since the Bible does not provide us with a specific date, it would be unwise to propose a specific time frame.

            When natural disasters augment our suffering, should Christians make damaging statements through social media forums equating natural disasters with God’s judgment or as indicative of tribulation period? What purpose does this serve?

            One blogger had this to say, “Yet we know in the Tribulation, all the mountains will be thrown down…. O, Nepal, your dead idols cannot help you now! Turn from them and repent to the True and Living God!”³

            A Christian preacher tweeted, “Praying 4 the lost souls in Nepal. Praying not a single destroyed pagan temple will b rebuilt & the people will repent/receive Christ.”⁴ As one would expect, there were a number of angry responses. This preacher then responded with greater hostility.

            Is this the need of the hour? I do not think so.

            Did the earthquake in Nepal kill only the non-christians? No, many Christians died and church buildings may have also been destroyed. ⁵

            When this act of God did not spare Christians, why make statements as if this was God’s judgment upon non-christians?

            How could we be certain that God has allowed a natural disaster as a means of his judgment? If we are not sure, then why make those statements? Wouldn’t we be better off without such demeaning statements?  

            Since we do not know the mind of God in the context of natural disasters, it is merely probable that natural disasters could be God’s judgment upon mankind. Natural disasters could include believers and unbelievers of Christ. Since believers of Christ who die during natural disasters would be heaven bound, natural disasters are not a mechanism of God’s judgment upon Christians. However, Christians cannot use natural disasters as a means to pronounce judgment upon non-christians. 

            Pronouncing judgment upon non-christians would not bring them to Christ. It is the love of Christ, made perfect by HIS perfect sacrifice that draws people closer to HIM.

Endnotes:

¹ http://earthquaketrack.com/recent, last accessed on 4^th April 2015, 10:20 AM, IST.   

²http://www.visionofhumanity.org/sites/default/files/2014%20Global%20Peace%20Index%20REPORT.pdf

&

http://www.visionofhumanity.org/#/page/indexes/global-peace-index

³ http://the-end-time.blogspot.in/2015/04/nepals-large-quake-tragedy-and.html

⁴  http://spiritualsoundingboard.com/2015/04/26/open-air-preacher-tony-mianos-insensitive-tweets-after-nepal-earthquake-disaster/

⁵ http://www.charismanews.com/world/49454-a-nepal-pastor-s-spirit-inspired-last-words-before-dying-in-the-rubble