God's Wrath or Nature's Way

There is a scene in the first part of director Roberto Rossellini's classic 1945 film Rome, Open City where a priest, Don Pietro, is walking in the street with a woman, Pina, who is making her confession on the day before she is to be married.  The setting is Nazi occupied Rome (an occupation that in reality had only ended a few months before the movie was shot). Pina laments the hardships and sufferings that the people are enduring, as well as her own difficult situation.  She asks if God does not see their sufferings.  The response Don Pietro gives is far from the pious saccharin one might expect.  His words are sobering, even a little harsh:

"So many people ask me that: 'doesn't Christ see us?' But are we sure we haven't deserved this scourge? Are we sure we've always lived according to the Lord's laws? People never think of changing their lives.  But when the piper must be paid they despair and ask, 'Doesn't the Lord see us.  Doesn't he take pity on us?' Yes, he does.  But we have so much to be forgiven of.  For that we must pray and forgive many things."

The priest's words are delivered straight, without an ounce of irony or pomposity, a bit surprising considering Rossellini claimed to believe in "nothing."  Rossellini's relationship with faith is a complicated one, and from the little I know religious theme's are dealt with seriously in a number of his films, despite his claims of atheism. Whatever the director's intention Don Pietro's message is an important one for us, and one that is often forgotten in our age of "therapeutic religion."

Today we stress Jesus the merciful Good Shepherd, but have we forgotten that God is just as well?  We consider anything that touches on the need for repentance and reparation for sins as old fashioned or incompatible with the belief in a merciful God.  But these two aspects, God's mercy and His justice, are not separate but intertwined.  It is not that we are sinners in the hands of an angry God, as the Colonial American theologian and preacher Jonathan Edwards put it.  Rather our actions have consequences, for us and for others.  If we are attached to sin, in a sense God doesn't have to punish us, all He has to do is allow us to fall.

We are entering into murky waters when we try to discern God's will in particular situations.  I would never want to point to this tragedy or that one and say that this was God's wrath at work.  Neither would I want to say that these were random and meaningless events either.  In the case of Don Pietro's words to Pina, Italy had just endured two decades of fascist rule that brought foreign entanglements in Ethiopia and an alliance with Nazi Germany that led to more war, and a brutal occupation by those who were supposed to be allies.  In light of this the question becomes who was responsible for putting Italy in the position it found itself in in 1944; God or those who allowed the fascists to gain power to begin with?  Is there not a "piper to be paid" when a nation partners with a conquering, genocidal power, even if their intentions were not so dark?  Will the ravages of war not be visited eventually upon to war makers?

God sees those who suffer because of their sins.  He is indeed merciful, but we must make the move back to Him by reforming our lives.  If not disaster will indeed strike.  Again, in reference to the characters of Rome, Open City, the question then becomes how much of the situation they found themselves in was a direct chastisement from God and how much of what happened naturally visits a nation when it loses it's way?  In many ways the two things are not all that different.

On the personal level, someone who abuses alcohol over a long period eventually will suffer a myriad of health issues, as will the gluttonous person.  Are diabetes, high blood pressure and sclerosis of the liver God's wrath?  I would certainly want to tread lightly over that ground.  There are people who suffer from these things who watched their diet and exercised before developing these ailments, not to mention childhood diabetes that strikes those who haven't lived long enough to develop vices. I even knew a man diagnosed with sclerosis who rarely drank.  But it doesn't change the fact that habitually overindulging in strong drink and the wrong foods can lead to serious health problems.  Drug and alcohol abuse can also drag a person into financial crisis, difficulty holding down a job and marital and family problems.  All these things are nature's way of telling you somethings wrong, to quote the old song.  People who abuse the gift of their sexuality can also experience health problems in the form of STDs.  Promiscuity can also lead to difficulties forming lasting relationships and can weaken the resolve to be faithful when "the right one comes along."  Are these things God's punishment or nature's way?

The answer is mysterious.  Since God is the author of nature He has already put the warning signs of disaster in place for us.  It's for us to listen to those alarms and turn back before it's too late.  And God will be there, like the father in the parable of the Prodigal Son.  He will be standing at the gates of His home, eagerly awaiting our return, ready to greet us with open arms.  But first we must come to our senses, like the lost son, and follow the road back into His loving embrace.