theological stewing/babbling re the Amish incident

[johncomic]

The Amish school shooting is still filling a lot of the news, and I've run into this quote more than once, talking about the ones who asked to go first in hopes of maybe saving the younger ones:

"It was very courageous of the girls to offer themselves," Rhoads said. "God was really present to give the girls that kind of courage."

Normally I tend to see responses like the following to be petty, but this time I find I can't help myself: if God was "present" giving the girls "courage", I'd rather that He saved all their lives instead, or better yet never let them get into a mess like that in the first place, seeing as He was there anyway.

All my life I've heard the theological arguments about why you can't really blame God for what goes wrong in the world. Well now I'm wondering if we're really obligated to give Him credit for what goes right all the time. I mean, maybe He didn't give those older girls their courage under fire. Maybe they already had it themselves. If we're gonna give credit for courage, why not credit the girls?

This whole business about man being responsible for his own sinful choices for all the sutff he does wrong, but "glory be to God" for all the good sutff man does... strikes me as a mean, bitter game right now. I was raised on that game, so I recognize it all too well. Talk about stacking the deck. Talk about "ya can't win 'n' yer licked before ya start". That sucks.

If we're really gonna hold God selectively responsible for what happens [i.e., only the good sutff], we end up in the pitiable position of being thankful for disaster -- thankful that it wasn't even worse. Like if your dad beats you senseless and you respond by thanking him for not breaking any bones...

My answer [at the moment, as I free-associate over the keyboard] is that God doesn't actually hands-on micromanage reality to the extent many of us were taught. A lotta sutff happens cuz it happens. We do what we do cuz we do it. He gets no blame -- and no credit. Simpler all round. And maybe truer, too.

Comments

[mister-f.livejournal.com]

I can't help but to think about Zappa's take on God: "Dumb all over, a little ugly on the side"

[traypup.livejournal.com]

is this Rhoads person one of the Amish?
I look at it this way --- if this is how s/he has to think to be able to sleep at night, then so be it. We all have to find our own way of dealing with this crap that works for each individual. As long as that method of dealing doesn't mean going out and taking another life or terrorizing someone else, etc., of course.

All each of us can do is try to make our little section of this world even a tiny bit better. If God enters into it, great. If God doesn't enter into it, that's fine too.