Where is God?: Earthquake, Terrorism, Barbarity, and Hope
 by Jon Sobrino
Maryknoll, NY; Orbis Books, 2004.
156 pages, US$ 22.00
Reviewed by Vie Thorgren
In
the prologue to the English edition, written in 2004, Jon Sobrino
identifies the purpose of this book. “Its purpose is to contribute—as
much as one can—to slowing down the dehumanization that is overtaking
our world, and to encourage a humanizing hope and praxis” (p. vii). In
the introduction to the original Spanish edition, written in 2001, he
indicated his intent “to help people think, especially those who live
in the affluent world, and to encourage everyone to show compassion and
solidarity” (p. xxvii). Sobrino definitely achieves this latter
purpose. Completing this short, but intensive, volume, requires the
reader to think hard. The call to see and to act in unity with the
larger part of humanity who are poor and suffering is unmistakable.
Whether it makes a contribution to a “humanizing hope and praxis” will
depend upon the willingness of readers to embrace the conversion it
invites.
This book is required reading for all students in the
spiritual formation program I direct. Our U.S. students describe the
book as painful and challenging. Students from countries outside the
U.S. describe it as exciting, on the mark, and challenging. The reason
for this different response surfaces in the first few pages of the
prologue, as Sobrino, a Jesuit theologian at the University of Central
America in El Salvador, lays out the challenge. We have to try, in
solidarity with the poor and oppressed, to reverse history and move it
in the opposite direction.
Sobrino began to write this book in
response to the earthquakes of January and February 2001 in El
Salvador. The suffering, especially for the poor, was devastating. As
the book was readied for publication, however, the September 11, 2001
attack on the World Trade Center in New York, and the October 7 bombing
of Afghanistan erased all awareness of the agony of the poor in El
Salvador. Sobrino expanded the scope of the search for God in our world
to include natural disasters, terrorism, and barbarity. He presents
reality from the perspective of the victims and invites the reader into
this experience.
Sobrino immediately lays out the challenge
between two competing perspectives: the Empire and God. The Empire,
which today is the U.S., imposes its will on others with immense power.
The Empire sees itself as having the right to define for everyone the
best expression of being human (individual success) and the most
important values (the good life enjoyed by those who are successful.)
It assumes for itself the right to identify what in time is important.
For example, 9/11 is now an important benchmark in U.S. history, and it
is expected that the rest of the world will understand that 9/11 is the
day everything changed. Unnoted is the day in 1981 when a thousand
people were murdered in El Mozote, El Salvador, by the U.S. trained Atlacatl Battalian
(12/11), the days of the slaughter in Rwanda, the months two million
people were murdered in Congo, the time of the 2001 floods in
Mozambique, the bombing of Afghanistan (10/7), and the bombing of Iraq
(3/30).
The Empire uses God to justify its actions, seeing
itself as God-appointed to rule, God- blessed for the supreme role in
human history, and also as the source of salvation for others. Within
this context, the Empire rules as beneficiary and dispenser of the
resources accepting Dives and Lazarus as the normal way of life.
The
Reign of God, however, is not an empire. It is, and always has been, in
the Hebrew and in the Christian Scriptures, aligned with the poor and
the oppressed. God lifts up the dignity of persons, and the values of
love, mercy, and compassion are the best reflection of what it means to
be human. Salvation arises from the little and the weak, from barren
women, marginal people, and a suffering servant. Quoting an Asian
theologian, A. Pieris, Sobrino offers the liberation for our day in
“the poor—not because they are poor, but because they are powerless,
rejected—chosen for a mission: ‘they are to be mediators of salvation
to the rich; the weak are called to liberate the strong’” (p. xix).
Sobrino
is uncompromising in his condemnation of the evil done at the World
Trade Tower on September 11, 2001. He does not ignore the immense
suffering of the victims and their families. He does remind the reader,
however, that it was not the most massive, or even the cruelest, event
of our age. It did, however, endanger for the Empire that which is
ours. Is the U.S. response one of compassion to all the innocent
victims of terrorism and brutality? Do citizens seek justice that
ensures a more humane world for all people, but especially the most
vulnerable? He notes in contrast that other countries were forced to
take an anti-terrorist oath, although they were never invited to take
an oath against poverty or injustice, or contempt for the poor.
Sobrino’s
description of the Empire and the Reign of God reminded me of the
challenge confronting a person making the Ignatian spiritual exercises.
There are “Two Kingdoms” and “Two Standards.” Which will the person
choose? For the person unfamiliar with the Ignatian retreat, the clear
choice that Sobrino offers the reader is consistent with the clear
reality that Jesus presents. A person cannot serve two masters—God and
mammon.
Sobrino’s writing style is prophetic, integrative, and
stimulating. He offers challenging re-interpretations for historians,
theologians, scripture scholars, spiritual directors, and anyone
wanting to live with spiritual integrity. Counting prologue and
introduction (which are a feast in themselves), the entire volume is
fewer than two hundred pages. It cannot be digested in large doses but
must be read over many days with time for rumination. I found that I
could not sit still with the book; I needed to get up and walk with
what I had just read, considering it carefully and letting it penetrate
deeply.
Sobrino draws extensively on theological perspectives
from Latin America, Africa, and Asia. For those in the U. S. who have
never made the effort to discover the news beyond CNN, Sobrino opens a
reality that may be previously unknown. I have had students tell me, “I
do not know anything about many of the circumstances he mentions,” and,
“I do not know any of these authors that he quotes.” There is a
seductive quality to Sobrino’s style, however. He draws the reader into
the search for reality, especially as it concerns the experience of the
poor.
As a spiritual director I regularly accompany individuals
who struggle with their relationship to the poor, with the problem of
time, and the complexity of their lives. They struggle with their
responsibilities in relationship to governmental policies, with the
suffering in the world, and with consumerism. They question if God is
in the midst of their uncertainty, suffering, and turmoil. Sobrino
encourages the questioner not to let God off of the hook. He admits
that there is no rational answer, but offers the conviction that God is
crucified in all the crucified ones.
The deeper, unexpected
challenge that he offers the reader is, where are we? What does it mean
to be a human being in this world of inequality and suffering? What is
the human response to suffering? And how do we measure the quality of
being human. Is it the most powerful, the best, the toughest? Is it
found in “the good life?” Or is it measured by compassion and mercy and
ensuring that all live well.
I look forward to the reflection
papers and the book discussion groups from our spiritual direction
interns. As long as this book remains in print, it will continue to be
required reading in our program.
Vie Thorgren, DMin, is founder
and director of the Center for Spirituality at Work in Denver,
Colorado, USA. She developed the Formation Program for Spiritual
Directors, which has been committed to ensuring spiritual direction and
retreat services for those who are poor and marginalized for the past
twenty years. She is personally involved in spiritual direction with
homeless people and with incarcerated women. She is married, a mother
and grandmother.
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