Who is in Control?

In her book On the Mystery, Catherine Keller’s fourth chapter “After Omnipotence: Power in Process” poses a question that I had never really thought of before. Does everything happen for a reason? Is there an overall plan for everything or is life simply up to chance?

As a Catholic, I have always been taught to believe that our entire life was planned out before we were even born. Until now, that made complete sense to me; most likely because I had never really given the idea much thought. I only felt the need to contemplate this question when life threw some challenges my way; and during those hard times, the answer always seemed to be yes, everything does happen for a reason.

It was actually Keller’s mentioning of Hurricane Katrina that really got me thinking. She concisely presents the opinions of both the absolute and dissolute by stating the types of questions each would ask in the face of such a tragedy. She says: “The sense of shock, of disorientation, of disbelief, leads theists spontaneously to ask: Surely God does not will, does not want, such tragedy? Or-- why? Why all these unfathomable horrors? The God who created and calls all creatures must somehow be within those threatening, crashing waves as well. But how?” (On the Mystery 72).

Before reading any further, I began to contemplate my own beliefs on the matter; and the more I thought about it, the less they made sense. The idea that God nearly destroyed my city and killed thousands of its residents for some unknown good reason was not holding much weight almost six years later. However, at the time it seemed like the only answer; and Keller explained why: “When we think that for some inscrutable reason God is causing our tragedy, does this alleviate suffering? Perhaps for some it does. If they think God is testing or punishing them; at least there is meaning” (On the Mystery 73).

Realizing she is exactly right, and that during those times of hardship the only way to cope is to make yourself believe that there is a reason for your suffering, I began to wonder if that makes me a believer of the absolute side, in the question of God’s omnipotence. The conclusion I have come to is no, I have found my own third way. After reading the rest of the chapter, I believe that no one can be completely absolute or dissolute when it comes to this question. The extreme polar cases may be judged by a persons thoughts on who is in control of their average day to day occurrences. However, I feel that everyone’s beliefs vary depending on the degree of the situations. Even a stern dissolute would be looking to place blame in a higher power if he were stranded on his rooftop because toxic water had engulfed his home. And the most absolute absolute could not blame God if he simply stumbled over a crack in the sidewalk. Could he? Keller’s third way seemed to make a little sense of the vague questions, however, in the end I think that it is just her third way, and each of us has to decide from our own experiences who we truly believe is in control.

Bibliography:

Keller, Catherine. On the Mystery: Discerning Divinity in Process. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2008.