From Lisbon to Fukushima Where was God?

With the recent tsunami in Japan, I’m reminded of a moment at work last year when a colleague claimed the devastating earthquake in Haiti was “God’s punishment” because many Haitians practice voodoo.

I cautioned against making such sweeping statements—especially since even a Roman Catholic bishop died in that same disaster. If Christians were truly immune to disease and destruction, or if only voodoo practitioners had been affected, perhaps such a claim would have some basis. But reality tells a different story.

Natural Disasters and the Question of God’s Justice

Six years ago, William Safire wrote an article in The New York Times titled "Where Was God?", reflecting on why an all-loving, omnipotent God allows tragedies like the Southeast Asian tsunami. When disasters strike, every worldview is tested—can it hold up to the weight of suffering?

Safire referenced the biblical story of Job—a righteous man blessed by God with wealth and a large family. But Satan, jealous of Job’s faith, sought to test him. God permitted the testing—not to punish Job, but to reveal his steadfastness and to teach future generations about enduring suffering with faith.

Job lost everything—his livestock, his children, and his health—yet he declared:

“The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” (Job 1:21)

 

In the end, God restored Job’s fortunes, doubling what he had before.

Safire wisely noted that “suffering is not evidence of sin.” When Job’s friends accused him of wrongdoing, the reader already knows they are mistaken. His suffering was a test, not a punishment.

Historical Attempts to Interpret Disasters

Throughout history, people have attempted to interpret natural disasters as divine retribution:

• In 1755, an earthquake and tsunami devastated Lisbon. Voltaire responded with his satirical novel Candide, challenging the idea that such events could coexist with belief in a good God.

• In 1883, the Krakatoa eruption in Indonesia killed over 42,000 people. Local Muslim leaders claimed Allah was punishing the land for harboring Christians. Yet, strangely, Christian Holland was spared.

• In 1906, a preacher in Los Angeles declared that God would destroy San Francisco for its depravity. Two days later, the San Andreas Fault triggered one of the deadliest earthquakes in U.S. history.

• In 1976, the Tangshan earthquake in China claimed over 250,000 lives. It was interpreted as divine disapproval of the Communist Party and its Red Guard movement. But again, the victims were not the leaders—just the everyday people.

These interpretations often raise more questions than answers. If the disaster was punishment, why didn’t it fall directly on those supposedly responsible?

Does God Have the Right to Take Life?

As I wrestle with these questions, I ask:
Is it wrong for God to take human life—especially the life of sinful human beings?

If God is the Author of life, then surely He has the right to take it away. Just as a writer has authority over their creation, so too does the Creator over His creation. God takes lives every day—through illness, age, and other “natural” causes. We accept this when it happens individually, but are shocked when it happens on a large scale.

Why?
Why do we balk at a tsunami or an earthquake as a means of death, but accept old age or cancer?

The truth is, we are not privy to God’s motives. To expect a finite mind to understand the full purpose of an infinite God is, as I see it, like a kindergartner dismissing calculus as foolishness. That’s what the story of Job teaches us: God does not owe us an explanation.

Why Do the Innocent Suffer?

Still, we ask: Why do the innocent suffer?
Often, we assume death is the end—an unjust loss. But the Bible presents a different picture. I imagine it like a loving parent taking a wounded child off the playground to rest and heal. His friends outside may grieve the absence—but only temporarily.

In the same way, when the righteous are taken, their friends grieve—but reunion will come. Death, for the believer, is not final.

Our Response to Calamity

So, what should my response be to disasters?

All suffering in this world is, in some way, a consequence of a fallen, broken creation. But if not for God's mercy, we would be experiencing far more of it, far more often.

The voodoo-practicing Haitians or Zen Buddhist Japanese are no greater sinners than I am. When disaster strikes, my first response should not be judgment but repentance—a reminder of my mortality and my need for grace.

God may choose to call me home by whatever means He deems fit. Until then, I am sustained solely by His will.

A Closing Reflection

I leave you with the words of the psalmist:

“If the Lord had not been on our side…
the flood would have engulfed us,
the torrent would have swept over us,
the raging waters would have swept us away.”
— Psalm 124:2–5