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[This is My Login]

Christian say God created the world with purpose and order. Does this "purpose and order" include the shifting tectonic plates that cause violent earthquakes? Magma buildups that lead to volcanic eruptions that wiped out entire cities in ancient times? Freak weather events that would wipe out crops causing famine, disease, etc?

[jimwalton]

Usually when a natural cataclysm happens (earthquake, volcano, tornado, hurricane, etc.), people are very quick to ask why God is so cruel. But do such natural disasters have any benefits?

According to Dr. David Rogsta , one of the benefits from earthquakes, for instance, is "that Earth maintains the right levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere to compensate for the Sun’s increasing luminosity. This is accomplished by what is called the carbonate-silicate cycle. CO2 is removed from the atmosphere through weathering. The weathered products are eventually drawn into the Earth’s interior via plate tectonics. Processes inside the Earth’s interior release the CO2 back into the atmosphere via volcanoes. While all aspects of this mechanism are not yet fully understood, it has been instrumental in providing a stable environment for life on the Earth for billions of years."

As far as volcanoes, volcanic gases are the source of all the water (and most of the atmosphere) that we have today. The process of adding to the water and atmosphere is pretty slow, but if it hadn’t been going on for the past 4.5 billion years or so we’d be pretty miserable. Volcanoes also cool the earth by removing heat from the interior. They are also a source of geothermal energy and nutrient-rich soil. They suffocate poisonous gasses and release beneficial gases such as hydrogen and CO2.

Maybe, then, we need to understand that our earth is a "living" planet, and without these "tragedies," life as we know it could not exist. We need to approach our experiences with a sense of balanced understanding. These temporarily cataclysmic events also have beneficial long-term effects that make life possible on the planet. So I'll stick by what I said: A God of ultimate power creates a beautiful and functional world characterized by purpose and order.