Pray for LA
Why God Permits Suffering Like the LA Wildfires
As I write this post, the horrible fires in Los Angeles continue to rage. The loss of homes and entire neighborhoods is unimaginable. The loss of life horrible. The total acres burned so far is at 40k with both major fires less than 20% contained. And the winds are picking up again.
I lived in Los Angeles most of my life and moved to Orange County 15 years ago (about 60 miles south of Pacific Palisades). I live closer to the gusting Santa Ana winds than LA but was spared any fires. My power was shut down for three days by the electric company as a precaution and I’m thankful for that inconvenience.
Here is a photo my wife took from the freeway in Santa Monica less than 10 miles from the Pacific Palisades fires. She spent almost twenty years in LA and felt compelled to head in that direction.
With the horrible losses so far and more to come, it is tempting for some to question the very existence of God. How could God let such horrible things happen? If God controlled everything and everyone, why would He allow such suffering?
The Problem of Suffering
If God created us and remains close to us, than why does he allow us to suffer? In his Sunday Sermon four years ago, Bishop Barron answers this question by discussing Isaiah 40 - 55.
In the above video, Bishop Barron says that God is infinitely close to us and infinitely transcendent. God is closer to us than you are to yourselves and has carved us in the palm of His hand. God’s thoughts are not our thoughts. God’s ways are not our ways.
In other words, we are not able to understand the reason for the horrific events like the LA wildfires. But there is a greater good, as Bishop Barron further discusses in the below interview with Lex Fridman, that we cannot comprehend from where we sit on this side of the LA fires.
But through it all, God remains high above us and infinitely close to us. When everything is lost, like a child, we must cling to and trust in God, supporting one another including those affected by the wildfires.
And Pray for LA.
Peace.