The tragedies in humanity, personal or collective, are so huge and so many that since the beginning of time "ordinary people" - common thinkers - and philosophers of far‑reaching standing in the world always questioned each other, without obtaining an answer, as to how is it that the Creator - the Father, God - "for being so loving, just and an omnipotent creator" according to what the religions, especially Christianity, preach, allows so much misery to happen in this world? ...

In the seventeenth century, with unsuspected sincerity, the famous German philosopher and mathematician Leibniz (Gottfried Wilhelm 1646-1716) stated, after reviewing a series of relationships between cause and effect, that "we live in the best of possible universes created by God" – that being an optimistic outlook.

In the eighteenth century, precisely in 1755, an earthquake in Lisbon claimed the life of about sixty thousand people and ten thousand more on the African coast (Morocco). In the tragic trials of such a tragedy, the so-called "Enlightenment" wasted no time: in the heat of the tragedy they imploded divine existence, however divine existence proclaimed itself - here, a negativist vision.

We, thus, have two opposing thoughts about God ...

Unanswered questions in fact always existed: a mother who tragically looses her son questions, shattered with pain: - Where was God at that time?

The unemployed, already exhausted and without moral strength for new attempts: - Why does not God help me?

The betrayed spouse: - How did God, at the altar, bless my marriage and now it has fallen apart?

The defeated warrior: - How could God give victory to my enemy and not hear my prayers? 

If God is Father, why so many tragedies? – Most TV viewers, before daily news of collective disaster: - How did God not prevent so much misery?

About heinous crimes happening and innocent being victimized: - Will it be that God does not see it? How has God allow such a thing?

On watching  whole populations being decimated by ruthless dictators, or famine causing the death of so many people with a miserable life, below, far below the poverty line. Many ask the same questions  even without heresy, but with perplexity: - If God is father, how did he let this happen? How do so many evil people go unpunished? ...

Even Pope Benedict XVI on his trip to Poland in May 2006, on his visit to one of the concentration camps of Auschwitz-Birkenau⁽¹⁾, he proclaimed with deep emotion:
 

- To speak in this place of horror, the accumulation of crimes against God and man without equal in history is almost impossible, and it is particularly difficult and troubling for a Christian, for a Pope from Germany. In a place like this, words fail, at deepest only a dread silence may remain in the background, a silence which is a heartfelt cry to God: Lord, why did you remain silent?  Why did you tolerate all this?
 

In fact, it is appalling to meditate in deep emotion, over the tragedy of the Second World War (1939-1945), which killed nearly 50 million people, and in which 6 million Jews were killed – during the so called Holocaust, referring to 12 years (1933-1945) of Nazi persecution against the Jews, marked by barbaric methods.

In the inevitable tragedies, caused by mother nature, such as volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, typhoons, tornadoes, devastating floods, landslides tragic fall of meteors, all resulting in many helpless victims - under death or total helplessness - for  the survivors, even Christian ones, the question which perhaps reverberates: - Does God really exist? 

From the disbelief in God arose nihilism - In all these painful issues, individual or collective, claiming lives - sometimes thousands and thousands - of just and unjust, and young adults, young children and the elderly, animals of various species, in trials of these deaths; pain, distress, ruin, and, not infrequently, revolt are left for the survivors...

Such doubt and this mood has always been present in humanity, but for a century and a half, the school of thoughtm skeptical of kindness or even about the existence of God founded nihilism.

And Nihilism (from the Latin nihil = nothing), in general, would be a revolutionary tendency of Russian thinkers of the 1860s, characterized by the rejection of the values ​​of the previous generation; denial of intellectual and moral values common to a social group, reduction to nothing, annihilation; utter disbelief⁽²⁾. (my emphasis)

Obviously, such thinkers, shocked by the evils of the world were and are (as not only a few of them still exist...) in opposition to the Faith, while irrational, that faith which tells the pious that "everything in God's mystery, is unfathomable”, and, thus, prevents reasoning for at least breathing and reflecting to seek the origin of these such sad occurrences, like illuminating lights, to understand them.

Before proceeding: I consider all untimely and utterly uncharitable towards the victims, that in early times (days and weeks) from the outbreak of any tragedy, someone make references to "karma" or debts from past lives. In these moments, in which family members experience pungent pains of the soul, it is our duty to comfort them with sincere sympathy, with pure love to the pain of others.

A loving way will assure them of the Father's love for His children, in the certainty that the Master Jesus received the ones who have passed to the other side. Give it time ... For time works as a nurse of souls who suffer, and time will be in charge of alleviating their distress. 

The posture of Spiritism before the issue is not new - Only then, without any connotation which is not to do with support, maybe fit to offer consolation haloed with respect, logic and love of God. It is when the exercise of reason, coupled with faith, will carry resignation before the understanding of Divine Justice, as the Doctrine of the Spirits charitably explains.

And I am not just passing on these reflections as a analyst.

I've gone through hard struggles in my 78 years of age, I am only registering sincere notes, full of sympathy for the families affected by the loss of loved ones in unavoidable situations. I do this by bringing a third path  for readers: assumptions of Spiritism, a philosophy that has God as the supreme wisdom of the universe and the first cause of all things, proclaiming Divine Justice as wise, full of love! Justice, indeed, proclaimed by the prophets of all time, the maxim by for Christ of God!

The posture of Spiritism, in fact, is not unprecedented: various quotes are effortlessly found in the Old Testament and the New, predating much to Spiritism, masterfully synthesizing Divine Justice:

a.“He repays everyone for what they have done;
    he brings on them what their conduct deserves.”  (Job, 34:11)

b.“  and with you, Lord, is unfailing love”;
and, “You reward everyone  according to what they have done.”  (Psalms, 62:12)

c. “Will he not repay everyone according to what they have done?” (Proverbs, 24:12);

d. But I will judge each of you according to your own ways.”  (Ezekiel 33:20);

e. “For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.” (Matthew, 16:27);

f. “And if you give the name of Father to him who, judging every man by his acts, has no respect for a man's position, then go in fear while you are on this earth.” (1 Peter, 1:17);

g. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.”(2 Corinthians, 5:10);

h. “ Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” (Paul, Galatians, 6:7);

i. “And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” (Apocalypse, 22:12). 

Does God place the cross on the wrong shoulders? - Those who have God as the Absolute Perfection and Infinite Love will soon resign in face of pain and cast away from the soul the revolt against the Father. Even with an aching heart there are even those who are able to alleviate so much sadness, proclaiming with the soul a simpleton saying, but full of meaning: "God does not put the cross on the wrong shoulders", with this meaning that deep respect of the Love and Justice of God towards His children and that in effect, there is always a preceding cause, even if unknown. This being the posture of the true Christian. In this case, resignation does not symbolize the absence of pain but a palliation for it.

The Doctrine of the Spirits is a philosophy that, without in any way bragging to be judge or owner of the truth, not condemning or absolving anyone whoever one may be, gives answers to poignant questions - without injury to reasoning - on proclaiming the belief that God is all love and, in creating man, God endowed him with intelligence, free will and consciousness. And that with these three tools, the Spirit is cognizant that the divine law of Justice recommends that in life "the plantation is free, but the harvest is mandatory."

This, in scientific terms, with the help of Physics, means that for every action there is a reaction, but in the opposite direction. Far and further away from "an eye for an eye." If earthly justice mitigates sentences with alternative sentences, what about the Infinite Goodness of the Father?

Thus, as Christians, Spiritists believe that God created us for happiness, however only on individual achievement. So, if this still does not happen, angst does not fit before crises, but deep reflection, as one of them points towards the logic of reincarnation! What other explanation can there be for such huge tragedies and reaching even children? ... What would children be guilty of?

Successive lives (earthly existences): Spiritist answer based on the fundamental premise of Divine Justice, assigning to the one responsible for the action the fair necessary reaction. 

God is Infinite Love: that we do have not doubt – The immortality of the Spirit, whose guardian is another assignment, the wisdom and goodness of the Creator will be patented as the Creator grants time to someone who contracted debts before one’s own conscience, until one is at a level to be able to  make accounts/pay them off. This, in endless reincarnations of resumption of journey towards the Good - as many as are needed - by going from step to step until accounts are settled, until reaching God.

Again, God is Infinite Love and there is no man on earth, or power throughout the universe, in a position to judge, much less rebuke the Creator by natural events, in this case, devastating ones.

To tread the Spirit in the realm of intelligence is the beginning of the journey towards angelitude. Long, very long is this walk, but achievable one day ... Behold, equipped with the cited benefits and bringing atavistically the learning processes of multiple experiences acquired by practical experience in countless earthly existences, one finds oneself properly capable of making decisions. For better or for worse ...

The decisions that the individual can take are endless in any situation.

For the good, all of us should seek to practice love of neighbour and generate credits for peace and happiness, for worse, all decisions point towards an agent of a debt. 

In both cases, Time will be in charge of giving "to each one according to his works", in the ever teaching and valuable words of the Master Jesus.

Christ's words confirm that "God does not put the cross on the wrong shoulders" and when there is someone carrying one of them, this happens because there were conditions for due repayment. This is because the Divine Laws of Justice and Love do not allow tests harder than the forces of those who are being tested.

Thus, before a brother bowed by the burden carried, charitable attitude will act as a blessed Cyrene ⁽³⁾ helping him. 

Spiritist reflections are not contrary to reasoning or logic - In cases of discarnations due to tragedies, individual or collective, as indeed in other cases of physical death, Christian duty imposes that we ask the Master Jesus to receive in His godly arms the brothers who return to the spiritual life, at the same to equally comfort saddened family.

Spiritist reflections are not contrary to reasoning or logic, and even if not accepted, they offer excellent working hypothesis to answer the burning human questions. Many spiritists affected by major problems, aches, pains, anguish and all sorts of difficulties, find in the certainty of Divine Justice the necessary resignation that, in this case, prevents bitterness or heresies, whilst promoting strength to overcome or administrate such problems.

In the human spirit, pain often acts as a catalyst of cooperation, of true solidarity.

In tragedies, individual or collective, before the suffering of so many, compassion emerges strikingly in the heart of spiritists, in the same way as in the majority of Christians, equally among followers of other philosophies. Many, if not all, stripped of any judgments, immediately address prayers to God on behalf of those affected by trauma or even the loss of life. They then promote means of materially assisting traumatized victims and their families, who are hit hard and needy.

The spiritist, in particular, does so by remembering the recommendation of Jesus: Love God above all things and your neighbour as yourself. And has as their motto the sublime key phrase of Allan Kardec, the Codifier of Spiritism: "Without Charity there is no salvation."

Footnotes:

⁽¹⁾ Auschwitz-Birkenau is the name of a group of concentration camps located in southern Poland, symbols of the Holocaust perpetrated by the Nazis. The total number of deaths produced in Auschwitz-Birkenau is still under debate, but it is estimated that between one million and one and a half million people died there. (Notes from Wikipedia, the free Internet encyclopedia.)

⁽²⁾ In “ Great Cultural Larousse Encyclopedia”, Volume 7, page 2328, Edit. Universo Limited, 1990.  

⁽³⁾ Cireneu – name often given to Simon of Cirineia who helped Jesus carry the cross on the way to Calvary (Grand Larousse Cultural Encyclopedia, Vol 3, page 786, Ed Universo, 1990 SP / SP.)