Eric Reece
News outlets have reported Hurricane Helene as being a storm of Biblical proportions.
This metaphor recalls the story of Noah and the flood in Genesis 6-8. The rain came down for 40 days and nights, and flooded the earth. The flood was caused by the wickedness of humanity.
Yet, Noah found grace in the eyes of God and was spared. Humanity survived and civilization was rebuilt.
Jesus commented on two disasters in Luke 13. One was a man-made tragedy, where the Romans had murdered some Galileians who were worshiping. The other was where a tower collapsed and 18 workers died.
These worshipers and workers were no worse sinners than anyone else. Did these men get what they deserved? Did they have it coming to them? Jesus’ point is to not point fingers and be less concerned about the sin of others than our own. There is still time to seek forgiveness for our own sin and let God turn our lives around.
It is too easy to explain human suffering is due to divine punishment. In times of disasters or tragedy, I hear it blamed on the sinfulness of people. Job’s friend Eliphaz blamed Job’s suffering on his sin, saying, “Think now, who that was innocent ever perished?”
Job knew he was innocent and his sufferings were not caused by any sin. Job prayed for his friends that wronged him; God heard his prayer and they were forgiven.
I have read a few accounts that Helene was compounded by global warming. Global warming is man-made, as we increase greenhouse emissions from burning fossil fuels. As our planet gets warmer, the weather patterns will change drastically. Storms will continue to increase in terms of hazard – putting us all in peril.
It will be some time before we know the total losses from Helene. The damage is devastating. As of Monday morning, over 100 people have reportedly lost their lives. Many have lost homes and possessions. Important infrastructures, buildings, roads and bridges will take time to rebuild. We grieve the loss of lives and pray for the families affected.
In times of need, we are so grateful for the first responders, lineman and everyone working above and beyond to get everything back to normal as possible. I have witnessed so many people and groups working together to restore services. There are already many organizing collections to help the surrounding areas that were devastated. Bottled water, batteries and cash donations are two things in desperate need and are often sent on day one.
I often share that in times of heartaches, we are in it for the long haul. It will take some years to recover. We pray now, help, and will continue to pray for all and the workers and volunteers helping.
The Jews have a saying: “Chazak, chazak, v’nitchazei,” which means “Be strong, be strong, and we will strengthen one another.”
The words come from Joshua 1:9. They are spoken in community after the reading of each book of the Torah. It is a reminder that together, we will strengthen each other.
Eric Reece is the faith columnist for The Graham Star. He is pastor of Robbinsville United Methodist Church and can be reached via email, ereece@wnccumc.net.