The arrogance of thinking we understand God's every move

One of the most dangerous aspects of religion is the willingness of some of its adherents to imagine that they can grasp the fullness of God and understand how, where, when and why God acts in human affairs.

Ever since Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt while campaigning last year in Pennsylvania, lots of people have declared that he survived only because God intervened so that he could return to power as president again.

If you watched the recent presidential inauguration, which reeked of Christian Nationalism, you heard that thought expressed explicitly by the Rev. Franklin Graham, one of the clergy members Trump asked to pray at the ceremony. Here are Graham's words:

"Our Father, today as President Donald J. Trump takes the oath of office once again, we come to say thank you, oh Lord our God. Father, when Donald Trump’s enemies thought he was down and out, you and you alone saved his life and raised him up with strength and power by your mighty hand."

In his inaugural address, Trump shared the very same theological conclusion this way:

"Just a few months ago, in a beautiful Pennsylvania field, an assassin's bullet ripped through my ear. But I felt then, and believe even more so now, that my life was saved for a reason. I was saved by God to make America great again."

Such conclusions raise countless questions, beginning with why, if God wanted to keep Trump safe from an assassin, a divine voice didn't warn Trump not to go to the Pennsylvania rally. And why God even allowed Trump to be wounded in one of his ears. And why, to save Trump from assassination, God didn't prevent the gunman from gaining a clear shot from a nearby rooftop. And why God didn't warn police officials about the assassin's presence. And why God didn't. . .well, you get the idea.

I am reminded of some plane crashes in which some people perished and others survived, including some in the latter group who said God saved them for a purpose. It's hard for me to imagine a God who could have saved everyone on that plane but who limited the salvation work to just this or that individual passenger. What kind of inscrutable, picky divine power is that? Yes, a possible god, but not a god who can be trusted in any way.

I do understand why, if one survives an accident or attack, one might want to use the occasion to dedicate his or her life to something productive and generous and wonderful. But for survivors to insist that they know God's hand saved them for this or that purpose goes well beyond what human beings can possibly know.

What our human minds can't fully grasp about the divine constitutes a much longer list than what even the most rigorous and tested theology can attest as being true and worthy of belief. And that makes it arrogant and even dangerous to imagine we know the will of God in detail. Trump and Graham may be convinced that God intervened to save Trump from death-by-bullet, but how would they then explain why God didn't save Abraham Lincoln or John F. Kennedy? Never mind that question. From Trump and Graham I've heard enough quack theology.

In fact, it makes me wish that Trump, Graham and others infected with false theological certitude had read my book, The Value of Doubt: Why Unanswered Questions, Not Unquestioned Answers, Build Faith.

Along those lines, in this story in the current issue of The Christian Century, I like what a seminary student said to his or her professor about what value a seminary education has been: "I've received a lot of things by coming to seminary. But comfort is not among them." Nor should it have been.

The late theologian and author Shirley C. Guthrie wrote in his book Christian Doctrine that followers of Jesus should be "modest theologians." I wish Trump and Graham had read that book and paid attention.

(The artwork today came from here.)

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NEW TRUMP RULE HAMPERS KC AGENCY HELPING REFUGEES

As this CNN story reports, "The Trump administration on Friday abruptly halted services for refugees in the United States. . ." One of the results is that the Jewish Vocational Services organization in Kansas City says it has been hampered in helping refugees that already are in Kansas City and in need of services. In this statement posted on the JVS website, the organization said that "we have been ordered to stop providing critical services to refugees already welcomed to Kansas City through the Reception & Placement program. This includes our comprehensive support for refugees in the first 90 days, including housing, food, healthcare, finding work, and enrolling their children in school. The stop-work order followed a Monday presidential executive order suspending future U.S. refugee resettlement.

"This work doesn’t just support our refugee clients. Our entire community benefits when our newest neighbors fill job openings, pay taxes, start businesses, thrive in school and enrich our cultural economy. Without initial support as they build new lives, refugee families will face extreme hardship as they work to provide for their families and adjust to life in the United States.

"While JVS is seeking more clarity from our governmental partners on precisely what these instructions mean, we are deeply alarmed by the harm that these abrupt mandates will have on vulnerable people who have already endured profound crises."

Agencies like JVS all over the country need help to keep promises to refugees already made. You can help JVS here.

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P.S.: If you missed my latest Flatland column when it posted this past Sunday morning, it's still here -- and still free. It's about a shrinking church that decided to give its building to an organization that works with youth.

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ANOTHER P.S.: My boyhood friend from India, Markandey Katju, recently posted this article in which he pointedly disagrees with me about the need to abolish the death penalty everywhere. I will leave it to you to decide who is right, but if you need help with that, just ask me.