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On December 26, 2004, a massive earthquake ruptured along the coast of Indonesia sending a towering tsunami racing toward the coastlines of multiple continents. When the waters finally receded, the world was shocked to learn that 280,000 men, women, and children had lost their lives in the waves.
One question loomed over the hearts of a grieving world: What should we do with a God who allowed such a tragedy?
Heather MacDonald had the answer, and in early January of the following year, she penned an article for Slate Magazine entitled, “Send God a Message: He Has Gone Too Far This Time.” In the article, she urged people of faith “to take a more proactive role in world events. It’s time to boycott God.”
Yes, “believers” and “the faithful” were encouraged to wean themselves off any notion of a helpful Supreme Being. Why, exactly? Well, MacDonald was happy to explain:
Centuries of uncritical worship have clearly produced a monster. God knows that he can sit passively by while human life is wantonly mowed down, and the next day, churches, synagogues, and mosques will be filled with believers thanking him for allowing the survivors to survive. The faithful will ask him to heal the wounded, while ignoring his failure to prevent the disaster in the first place. Where is God’s incentive to behave? He gets credit for the good things and no blame for the bad.
Maybe Ms. MacDonald never read how God stepped in and saved Israel from extinction when they were in bondage in Egypt. Maybe she’d overlooked the tiny – but crucial – story of Esther, when God did the exact same thing for Israel a thousand years later. Perhaps it’s even possible she missed the cross, the crowning example of God’s interaction with mankind.
In her estimate, God was nothing more than an impotent idea that could not – or would not – intervene for the good in human affairs.
Come to think of it, I would boycott that version of God, too.
Click here for the online report.
