The Death of Five Mexican Children

A blog entry asked a question about the death of five mexican children who were killed when lightning struck a metal cross. Now the blogger has since deleted his original question, so I’ll not say who asked it, if he wants to identify it, than by all means. But I’d given this a great deal of thought and despite the blogger’s deletion of his original question, I think it deserves an answer.

First of all, I think the question is an honest one and an honest question deserves an honest answer. No answer to a question like this can be honest without first saying, “I don’t understand everything.” I’m human, you see and humans can give you opinions and ideas but never is our answer complete or perfect.

Understanding tragedy is hard. The further away you are from the tragedy, the harder it is to understand. The more the question of why becomes a question of debate. We can see only from a distance the circumstances that people’s lives are. In my own life, I’ve often been able to look back and see how something I thought was awful really was for my best.

There are three keys to understanding the tragedy:

1) Through the Sin of Man, death came into the world.

God’s will wasn’t that man should die, but because of man’s sin death came into the world.

2) Death is a Fact of Life

Since then, its been appointed once unto man to die and then the judgment. (Hebrews 9:27). Death is going to happen to everyone. The situation of a death happening is not a sign of divine cruelty, but rather of the fallen world in which we live. 145,472 people die every day all around the world, some in tragedies like a Tsnumai, others in drunkeness, others in accidents, yet people die regardless.

3) Death is not an end.

That Death came as a result of our sin and that its a fact of life, still doesn’t leave us feeling very good about God, but that there is something beyond death should. Through His Son, God has made a way that we can have eternal life.

If in a moment, you were transported to a perfect world with no war, hunger, disease, or sorrow would you consider the One who took you there cruel? When we speak of God’s cruelty for deaths, we’re mainly speaking as people who are left behind, wondering how God could allow such a thing to happen to us.

What happened was a tragic accident, a result of carelessness by a church that continued a function at what amounted to a big metal lightning rod. Yet, by faith those parents who lost their children can see them again when they meet again in Glory.

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