A Study in Contrasts

A study in contrasts:  I enjoyed a cup of coffee Monday morning before a beatific vision.  I looked out through the back window of our family's home, where the morning sun dominated the sky, geese moved about lazily in the open waters behind my neighbor’s house, two of whom had wandered into our back yard where they were plucking the grass surrounding the raised garden beds.  A swan couple peered about majestically from the broader waters of the Pine River.  It was simply an extraordinary, exquisite morning.  I went to bed Monday night after watching a horrific vision of destruction on the television screen.  I watched amateur footage of the tsunami's initial strike in Japan, followed by aerial shots of the aftermath.  I also watched footage of a nuclear power plant and heard the commentator speak in serious tones about what a 'meltdown' would mean for Japan and the world. 

Two visions, one of unspeakable beauty, one of unutterable tragedy, competing for space in my mind.  How to make sense of them?  Beauty and tragedy.  

For what it's worth, I do not believe the destruction of life and beauty in Japan is God's doing.  I beg to differ from any who may be inclined to see the events in Japan as God's judgment. I am persuaded that God loves this creation and wills to renew it, and because God loves this creation and all who are in it, God suffers with and for all who are effected by this tragedy.  I trust that we might somehow live close to the heart of God, to carry within ourselves, at one and the same time, a deep and profound appreciation for beauty and a suffering love for the scars created by tragedy.