“What do you think God is doing? Why is he allowing this pandemic?” he asked. Then he added, “I know you have thought a lot about this.”
I had not thought about it. I was “settled in” with my wife; we had plenty to do, and I left the details of COVID-19 news to her. But his questions—which are more global than personal—tap into something important. This pandemic is the first time that many of us have reckoned with a particular trouble that affects nearly everyone, and it has caused us to think more about God’s ways. Though the answers across the body of Christ will have different emphases, there are at least three matters on which we can have broad agreement.
As Christ’s church, we should be able to agree that:
1.We tend to overinterpret suffering. There is something about the human mind that prefers answers. When life-changing events befall us, we often interpret them as highly personal messages. We do this with individuals. Every person whose troubles are known to a church community receives specific “biblical” interpretations for the trouble, or is asked, “What is God trying to teach you?” We do the same thing with corporate and
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