The earthquake and tsunami in Japan bring up the same question as every other natural disaster: Where is God? It’s one thing to explain human suffering when humans cause the suffering (i.e. murder, rape, drug abuse). It’s quite another when humans face natural forces that are out of control. Theologians and philosophers offer answers, but at the end of the day, we can’t understand this type of suffering. We can’t make sense of it. Explanations are hollow shells in the face of devastation and death.
The only consolation I can find is that God is the God who is present in the midst of suffering. God is the God who hung on a cross and suffered with us, suffered for us. God is the God who promises to redeem all suffering. Revelation 21:4 reads, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’[b] or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” The tears will flow. But one day, God will overcome this sorrow.
Similar questions arose in response to the earthquake in Haiti. For more of my thoughts on these questions, take a look at “Haiti in the Rubble: Faith and Doubt” and “Shaken Faith: Where is God When the World is Falling Apart?“
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