On Saturday, February 1, 2003, 8:00 AM, space shuttle Columbia disintegrated over north Texas during re-entry on its landing approach to Kennedy Space Center. All seven astronauts on board were killed.Later that same morning I met a group of Master's Commission students for a Saturday class. The first question they asked about the Columbia disaster was, "Why did God let this happen?"
I asked, "How many times has the shuttle taken off and landed safely?" Nobody knew the exact number but agreed it was substantial. My second question was, "Has the nation ever thanked God -- even once -- for a safe shuttle mission?"
Their answer was a prolonged silence as my point began to register.
By now you all know of the failed bombing attempt in Times Square last Saturday (May 1, 2010). The would-be bomber, Faisal Shahzad, was quickly apprehended. Well-deserved praise was heaped on the FBI, NYPD, and other law enforcement agencies responsible for the timely arrest.
I am wondering how many people paused to give thanks to God? Not for the arrest, but for a "bomb malfunction" that saved the lives of hundreds, if not thousands of people.
Of course, there's no way to answer that question, and I am sure that many individuals remembered to be grateful. But it is safe to say that Times Square -- and the nation -- quickly returned to business as usual without much thought or mention of God.
I am also wondering about the response had the bomb detonated? It's my guess that amidst the carnage and loss of human life one of the prominent questions would have been, "Why did God let this happen?"
When Jesus healed the ten lepers (Luke 17:11ff), only a Samaritan returned to glorify God "with a loud voice, and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him."
Jesus asked,
Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine -- where are they? Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?According to Paul, one of the characteristics of a decadent society is its failure to acknowledge God.
They know God, but they do not give him the honor that belongs to him, nor do they thank him (Romans 1:21; TEV).I am reminded of my own tendency to take God for granted. Am I as quick to give thanks as to question and complain? Do I recognize His hand in the "coincidences" (when God chooses to remain anonymous)? Do I ask, "Why?" more than I say, "Thank you"?
Perhaps not all the lepers are in Times Square.
