Bob White – are natural disasters acts of God?

Natural disasters often come up in the questions of those searching for God and of atheist campaigners wishing to discredit belief in a loving God. The “apparent deafness of God to suffering” in natural disasters was addressed effectively and entertainingly by Professor Bob White at Catalyst Live in Reading this week.

The Cambridge geophysics professor asserted that what we call natural disasters are simply ordinary processes that only cause great suffering or death with the addition of human decisions. “If it weren’t for volcanoes and earthquakes, this would be a barren infertile world and people couldn’t live here,” he said, explaining their value to geological and agricultural necessities. “Even floods are helpful.”

Highlighting floods, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions of matching magnitudes and locations throughout history, Professor White demonstrated that human agency, more than natural events, leads to the creation of disasters.
A brief theological examination of Jesus, Joseph and Job’s responses to disaster closed an amusing and thought-provoking talk that will be available to view on the Catalyst Live website soon.

28/11/2013