Meditation on February Earthquakes

Meditation on February Earthquakes

Deacon Alex Kwok

On February 6, two powerful earthquakes of more than 7.5 magnitude devastated southeast Turkey and northwest Syria. The death toll is more than 47,000. As the aphorism goes, “It never rains but pours”. On February 20, the day after the Turkey government announced the end of rescue efforts in all but two hardest hit provinces, another 6.3 magnitude aftershock struck Turkey’s southern Hatay province again …

Why do I invite all of you to meditate on these natural disasters? It is simply because we’re genuinely blessed to be living in Hong Kong. We have been enjoying prosperity and security for more than half a century. Yes, there were landslides after torrents of heavy rains, wild fires burning down squatter areas and typhoons sinking ocean liners. And yet, we have managed to rise again stronger after each disaster. As an aphorism goes, “While in safety, meditate on catastrophes 居安思危”. All of us need to stay alert and be prepared because we don’t know when and what the next disaster will strike just as we don’t know in what manners the Lord will come again!

Few disasters are genuinely natural. Human greed and power abuses contribute to an unnecessarily higher death toll because governments turn a blind eye to sub-standard constructions. As of the time of writing, the Turkey authorities have issued more than 100 arrest warrants over collapsed buildings. Let’s pray that justice prevails. On the another hand, we stand in awe before earthquakes, tornadoes and volcano eruptions etc. They remind us of our frailty and insignificance before Mother Nature and her Creator. Of course, there’re still people who prefer scientific explanations to God’s will which is in fact very difficult to defend. We’ll be getting into murky waters trying to explain why God allows so many innocent people to die in these disasters. Passing the buck to natural sciences and human corruption is easier to get off the hook, but our heavenly Father smiles in their faces by keeping alive a few chosen ones after the 72-hour “golden window” for rescue. Two women were pulled out of rubbles alive after more than 210 hours! Science and technology have to shy away from explaining God’s mercy and miracles!

Yes, the cloud of Ukraine war is still hovering over us for more than one year but compassion and solidarity brilliantly shine forth in this Turkey cum Syria disaster. Despite ideological and religious disagreements, international donations, rescue and relief efforts pour in and race against time to help local authorities to save the victims. Our parish too managed to collect more than two hundred and twenty thousand Hong Kong dollars in 8 masses on just one Sunday! Who can say humanity is irredeemable, or that we are unable to love our enemies (Matthew 5:44)?

A paradoxical incident came to light among the international relief efforts. Pakistan sent the very same relief materials which Turkey had sent her during devastating floods in 2022! It would cost Pakistan an international embarrassment but for Turkey, those returned materials are what she is badly in need at the moment. How down to earth the Sermon on the Mount is! Be merciful and generous and “do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow” (5:42) seems to go against the flow. However, the incident mentioned above shows clearly that our almsgivings will be more than a hundredfold valuable when we need them back! Jesus’ teaching rings true when he says, “Store up treasures in heaven” (6:20). But how?

Brethren! Is it too obvious that you don’t see? We are building the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth. So we don’t need to fly to the moon to store up treasures! Moreover, the King says, “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me” (25:40). Like Turkey’s helping Pakistan in 2022, probably Turkey never intended to store up relief she happens to need in 2023. Who knows, perhaps a cup of water you give today may one day come back to quench your burning thirst.

Brethren! It is Lent now. It is a season of purification. Let us stand in awe before the Lord to implore His mercy. Let us be generous in communion with the needy through fasting and almsgiving. Amen.
God bless!

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Picture credit: latimes.com