BlogsLatest Posts

Finding God in the midst of Corona Virus

Finding God in the midst of Corona Virus

Honestly, natural disasters, suffering, pain, and sickness could make you question the existence of a loving God or even assume that God creates evil in this world. You might ask, “If God is truly loving and all-powerful, how could he allow coronavirus cases (COVID) to increase and cause thousands of people to suffer and die that include vulnerable and the innocents? I understand the confusion, anger, loss, and emotional pain. Both believers and non-believers encountered this turmoil. Struggling to find the reasons behind this horrible pandemic and similarly, asking the question of DJ Nicole Hyala: “What is the meaning of this?”

COVID as evidence for God

Indeed, COVID can be used as evidence against the existence of a loving God. But there’s also a lot of evidence that God exists. How can a limited man assume that tolerating pandemic was a sign that a loving God who is all-wise does not exist. You should not be surprised if you do not have all the answers to all the heartaches in this world. It is normal because you are a human-intelligent but limited. What you can do is to focus on the evidence of the existence of God. There is an argument that there must be a first cause for a thing to exist. I will not exist or you will not exist without the first cause- the creator God. Never assume immediately that suffering, and death means destruction. It could be the start of a new learning and new life or eternal life after death. There are multiple pieces of evidence contradicting the existence of God at the same time supporting the evidence of God. Finding God is not an easy task. This is only for those people who will search and has a bias for God. Bias means people who initially believe in God without proofs then experience God and find the proofs later. It is like defending your “Kapatid”(siblings) after being accused of drugs and killing 5 people because you know them personally. Bias but rational. You were able to find proof of God because you are a rational being and experienced him personally. You won’t find God if you think at the start it’s impossible for him to exist. An atheistic bias. Atheists are people who do not believe in God. Matthew 7:7 stated, “See and you will find.” Blaise Pascal had a challenge for those who question the existence of God[Paraphrased]: “If God exists you go to heaven: your gain is infinite. If God does not exist, you gain and loss nothing.” Looking at those statements, there is abundance in believing God. It is more beneficial to believe on His existence. Suffering and sickness like COVID do not disprove God. In fact, you are using the standard of good health and happiness as a basis for your concept of pain and diseases. No concept of evil without the concept of Good. No concept of disaster without the concept of order. The theistic argument implicitly leads to Supreme Standard. The Supreme Good Health is God.

God is not the source of evil and suffering

 

God created humans with the possibility to do evil because of free will. Humans chose to do evil, as a result, suffering, and death in this world. Without free will, humans won’t exist. Sin is not always the cause of adversities. A natural disaster such as typhoons, climate change, tsunamis, earthquakes, etc was caused by earth movements. COVID was caused by a natural process, transmitting from bats to humans through an intermediate host. Nature does not have the ability to recognize disasters or catastrophes. If a glass falls from the table and got broken, do you get angry? No. You just adjust and accept because of the law of gravity. There’s no sense fighting natural process. The Lord is fully aware of your difficulties. He knows where you are coming from. He responded to suffering through Incarnation—He immersed himself to it until he died. He asked the Father, “Why have you forsaken me?” Despite of pain and sorrow, he submitted to God’s will. He was humble and silent. Real faith, love, and perseverance can only be tested if you are facing a crisis and handling unlovable people around you. Of course, you do not plan for hardship. God is neither sadist nor masochist. The death of Christ was the consequence of the Lord’s choice to live in this sinful world. But God can turn bad things into good. Philosophy expert and author Dr Peter Kreeft of Boston College stated, “The death of God himself on the cross. At the time, nobody saw how anything good could ever result from this tragedy. And yet God foresaw that the result would be the opening of heaven to human beings. So the worst tragedy in history brought about the most glorious event in history. And if it happened there-if the ultimate evil can result in the ultimate good-it can happen elsewhere, even in our own individual lives. Here, God lifts the curtain and lets us see it. Elsewhere he simply says, ‘Trust me.’”

The Purpose of Pain

God can do everything except evil. It is also a self –contradiction to eliminate evil. As long as there is free will, there is a possibility of Evil. There’s even free will in heaven. Satan sinned in Heaven while a beautiful angel named Lucifer. God wants humans and angels to obey him freely. He is not forcing himself on us. God can stop COVID but if ever he did not stop it, he has a good reason for that. God is not always rescuing us in order to teach us discipline and self- reliance. God can instantly make your body beautiful but won’t do it. He wants you to experience the pain of going to the gym and diet in in order to develop good health. Gym goers had a motto: “No pain, no gain” He can take away irritating people in your lives but God can use it to develop love and patience. You can see the need for social life every time you feel the pain of loneliness. Pain does not always mean negative results. There are people who suffered from the Holocaust but still able to manage their well-being by focusing on the blessings of life. Do not live a life as if a negative experience is impossible. Do not avoid people who are at the rock bottom of their lives opposing the advice of the so-called “Expert” to avoid negative people. Help and stay with them whenever you can but do not allow them to ruin your emotional health. Each person has a light or dark side. I was taught in Psychology class to befriend your dark side. Being aware of your weaknesses can help you control it. Life can be loving or frustrating. It can be joyful or sorrowful. It can be holy or sinful. It can be loving or selfish. It can be courageous or fearful. It can be happy or depressing. It can be victorious or defeat. Life is a combination of Yin/Yang. Yin yang is a “concept of dualism describing how seemingly opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world”. St Pauls said in Romans 8:28, “All things work together for those who love God.” There’s a lot of negativity in this world that could weaken your faith but focus on the evidence of God’s existence. The evidence would give you the boldness to say, “Whether God saves me from coronavirus or not, I will still trust and worship Him.” No matter how brilliant you are. You won’t be able to understand and know everything in life. Be humble to accept your human weaknesses. Trust God instead. First the Kingdom of GodIn Filipino culture, you can hear a popular song, “Liwanag sa Dilim.” The song reflects on how resilient Filipinos face challenges and adversities. They have hope in God, a sovereign, powerful, and loving creator that will empower them to overcome hardships in darkness (dilim) and guide them into light (liwanag). In the Filipino context, lack of courage or ‘kawalan ng lakas ng loob’ might be because of “Salot” (Pandemic). But despite of difficulties, they thrive because of ‘liwanag sa dilim’ belief. They put so much hope in God that they say “Bahala na”. “Bahala na” attitude is a total dependence on God that the Filipinos distort by their mediocrity or laziness or ‘Juan Tamad’ attitude. God did not stop creating after the Sixth day. He continues to support everything that exists-visible and invisible. However, sometimes we have distorted ongoing creation with ‘Bahala na’ attitude. We placed so much hope on God’s providence that we have forgotten our responsibility to exert effort or personal responsibility as we fight COVID. God is calling us to do good works in love and to put our faith into action that excels for God’s glory. There is a blessing in prioritizing God and his kingdom by faith and hope that is demonstrated with passion in love for others. Matthew 6:33, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you (NASB).”

References:

1. Hájek, Alan. “Pascal’s Wager.” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Stanford University, September 1, 2017. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pascal-wager/.

2. Evans, Michael. “Natural Disasters.” Natural Disasters | The Earth Times | Encyclopaedia. Accessed April 5, 2020. http://www.earthtimes.org/…/environm…/natural-disasters/.

3. “COVID-19 Coronavirus Epidemic Has a Natural Origin.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, March 17, 2020. https://www.sciencedaily.com/rel…/2020/03/200317175442.htm.

4. Irina, Irina Steenbeek, Irina, Ray Barnes, Irina Steenbeek, and Ray Barnes. “Data Management & Data Governance 101: The Yin and Yang Duality.” Data Crossroads, January 26, 2020. https://datacrossroads.nl/…/data-management-data…/.

5. Strobel, Lee. n.d. The Case for Faith: A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections to Christianity. willow Creek Resources.6. Maria Lucia C. Natividad, Salvation History (Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University, 2006), 17,20.

This article is dedicated to Sis. Bernardita Dianzon, Msgr Manny Gabriel, Sister Niceta Vargas, and Rose Marie Regalia, my professors at the Loyola School of Theology, Ateneo de Manila University, and Bicol's Parish Priest Father Wilfred Almoneda for being generous and excellent priest.

One thought on “Finding God in the midst of Corona Virus

Comments are closed.