John Martin - The Great Day of His Wrath - Google Art Project

Divine retribution is

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

punishment Punishment, commonly, is the imposition of an undesirable or unpleasant outcome upon a group or individual, meted out by an authority—in contexts ranging from child discipline to criminal law—as a response and deterrent to a particular acti ...

of a person, a group of people, or everyone by a

deity A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...

in response to some action. Many

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...

s have a story about how a deity exacted punishment upon previous inhabitants of their land, causing their doom. An example of divine retribution is the story found in many cultures about a great

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

destroying all of humanity, as described in the

Epic of Gilgamesh The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poetry, epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh ...

, the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Vedas upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...

, or

Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek ; Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its first word, ( "In the beginning") ...

(6:9–8:22), leaving one principal 'chosen' survivor. In the first example, it is

Utnapishtim Ut-napishtim or Uta-na’ishtim (in the ''Epic of Gilgamesh''), Atra-Hasis, Ziusudra ( Sumerian), Xisuthros (''Ξίσουθρος'', in Berossus) ( akk, ) is a character in ancient Mesopotamian mythology. He is tasked by the god Enki (Akkadian: ...

, and in the last example

Noah Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5– ...

. References in the New Testament and the

Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...

to a man named Nuh (Noah) who was commanded by

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

to build an

ark Ark or ARK may refer to: Biblical narratives and religion Hebrew word ''teva'' * Noah's Ark, a massive vessel said to have been built to save the world's animals from a flood * Ark of bulrushes, the boat of the infant Moses Hebrew ''aron'' * ...

also suggest that one man and his followers were saved in a great flood. Other examples in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

religious literature include the dispersion of the builders of the

Tower of Babel The Tower of Babel ( he, , ''Mīgdal Bāḇel'') narrative in Genesis 11:1–9 is an origin myth meant to explain why the world's peoples speak different languages. According to the story, a united human race speaking a single language and mi ...

(Genesis 11:1–9), the destruction of

Sodom and Gomorrah Sodom and Gomorrah () were two legendary biblical cities destroyed by God for their wickedness. Their story parallels the Genesis flood narrative in its theme of God's anger provoked by man's sin (see Genesis 19:1–28). They are mentioned frequ ...

(Genesis 18:20–21, 19:23–28) ( Quran 7:80–84), and the

Ten Plagues The Plagues of Egypt, in the account of the book of Exodus, are ten disasters inflicted on Biblical Egypt by the God of Israel in order to convince the Pharaoh to emancipate the enslaved Israelites, each of them confronting Pharaoh and one of ...

visited upon the ancient Egyptians for persecuting the

children of Israel The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan. The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele o ...

(Exodus, Chapters 7–12). In

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

, the goddess

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she ...

often became enraged when her husband,

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D� ...

, would impregnate mortal women, and would exact divine retribution on the children born of such affairs. In some versions of the myth,

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...

was turned into her monstrous form as divine retribution for her vanity; in others it was a punishment for being raped by

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as a ch ...

. The Bible refers to divine retribution as, in most cases, being delayed or "treasured up" to a future time. Sight of God's supernatural works and retribution would militate against faith in God's Word.

William Lane Craig William Lane Craig (born August 23, 1949) is an American analytic philosopher, Christian apologist, author and Wesleyan theologian who upholds the view of Molinism and neo-Apollinarianism. He is Professor of Philosophy at Houston Baptist ...

says, in Paul’s view, God’s properties, his eternal power and deity, are clearly revealed in creation, so that people who fail to believe in an eternal, powerful creator of the world are without excuse. Indeed, Paul says that they actually do know that God exists, but they suppress this truth because of their unrighteousness. Some religions or philosophical positions have no concept of divine retribution, nor posit a God being capable of or willing to express such human sentiments as jealousy, vengeance, or wrath. For example, in

Deism Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin ''deus'', meaning "god") is the Philosophy, philosophical position and Rationalism, rationalistic theology that generally rejects revelation as a source of divine knowledge, and asserts that Empirical evi ...

and

Pandeism Pandeism (or pan-deism), is a theological doctrine that combines aspects of pantheism with aspects of deism. Unlike classical deism, which holds that God does not interfere with the universe after its creation, pandeism holds that a creator de ...

, the creator does not intervene in our Universe at all, either for good or for ill, and therefore exhibits no such behavior. In

Pantheism Pantheism is the belief that reality, the universe and the cosmos are identical with divinity and a supreme supernatural being or entity, pointing to the universe as being an immanent creator deity still expanding and creating, which has ex ...

(as reflected in Pandeism as well), God ''is'' the Universe and encompasses everything within it, and so has no need for retribution, as all things against which retribution might be taken are simply within God. This view is reflected in some pantheistic or pandeistic forms of Hinduism, as well.

Buddhism

The concept of divine retribution is resolutely denied in

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...

did not endorse belief in a

creator deity A creator deity or creator god (often called the Creator) is a deity responsible for the creation of the Earth, world, and universe in human religion and mythology. In monotheism, the single God is often also the creator. A number of monolatris ...

, refused to express any views on creation and stated that questions on the origin of the world are worthless. The non-adherence to the notion of an

omnipotent Omnipotence is the quality of having unlimited power. Monotheistic religions generally attribute omnipotence only to the deity of their faith. In the monotheistic religious philosophy of Abrahamic religions, omnipotence is often listed as one ...

creator deity or a

prime mover Prime mover may refer to: Philosophy *Unmoved mover, a concept in Aristotle's writings Engineering * Prime mover (engine), motor, a machine that converts various other forms of energy (chemical, electrical, fluid pressure/flow, etc) into energy ...

is seen by many as a key distinction between Buddhism and other religions, though precise beliefs vary widely from sect to sect and "Buddhism" should not be taken as a single, holistic religious concept. Buddhists do accept the existence of beings in higher realms (see

Buddhist cosmology Buddhist cosmology describes the planes and realms in which beings can be reborn. The spatial cosmology consists of a vertical cosmology, the various planes of beings, into which beings are reborn due to their merits and development; and a hori ...

), known as ''devas'', but they, like humans, are said to be suffering in samsara, and are not necessarily wiser than us. The Buddha is often portrayed as a teacher of the gods, and superior to them. Despite this, there are believed to be enlightened devas. But since there may also be unenlightened devas, there also may be godlike beings who engage in retributive acts, but if they do so, then they do so out of their own ignorance of a greater truth. Despite this

nontheism Nontheism or non-theism is a range of both religious and nonreligious attitudes characterized by the absence of espoused belief in the existence of god or gods. Nontheism has generally been used to describe apathy or silence towards the subject o ...

, Buddhism nevertheless fully accepts the theory of

karma Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...

, which posits punishment-like effects, such as rebirths in realms of torment, as an invariable consequence of wrongful actions. Unlike in most Abrahamic monotheistic religions, these effects are not eternal, though they can last for a very long time. Even theistic religions do not necessarily see such effects as "punishment" imposed by a higher authority, rather than natural consequences of wrongful action.

Judaism and Christianity

"The wrath of God", an anthropomorphic expression for the attitude which some believe God has towards sin,Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (Oxford University Press 2005 ), article ''wrath of God, the'' is mentioned many times in the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

Hebrew Bible

Divine retribution is often portrayed in the

Tanak The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

. * Genesis 3:14–24 – Curse upon Adam and Eve and expulsion from the

Garden of Eden In Abrahamic religions, the Garden of Eden ( he, גַּן־עֵדֶן, ) or Garden of God (, and גַן־אֱלֹהִים ''gan-Elohim''), also called the Terrestrial Paradise, is the Bible, biblical paradise described in Book of Genesis, Genes ...

; Disobedience * Genesis 4:9–15 – Curse upon Cain after his slaying of his brother, Abel * Genesis 6–7 – The

Great Flood A flood myth or a deluge myth is a myth in which a great flood, usually sent by a deity or deities, destroys civilization, often in an act of divine retribution. Parallels are often drawn between the flood waters of these myths and the primaeval ...

; Rampant evil and

Nephilim The Nephilim (; ''Nəfīlīm'') are mysterious beings or people in the Hebrew Bible who are large and strong. The word ''Nephilim'' is loosely translated as ''giants'' in some translations of the Hebrew Bible, but left untranslated in others. ...

* Genesis 11:1–9 – The confusion of languages at the

; To scatter them over the Earth * Genesis 19:23–29 – Destruction of

; people of no redeeming value * Genesis 38:6–10 – Destruction of Er and

Onan Onan ''Aunan'' was a figure detailed in the Book of Genesis chapter 38, as the second son of Judah and Shuah, and the brother of Er and Shelah. After being commanded by Judah to procreate with the late Er's wife Tamar, he instead "spilled his s ...

; wickedness in the Lord's sight * Exodus 7–14 –

Plagues of Egypt The Plagues of Egypt, in the account of the book of Exodus, are ten disasters inflicted on Biblical Egypt by the God of Israel in order to convince the Pharaoh to emancipate the enslaved Israelites, each of them confronting Pharaoh and one of hi ...

; to establish his power over that of the gods of Egypt * Exodus 19:10–25 – Divine threatenings at

Mount Sinai Mount Sinai ( he , הר סיני ''Har Sinai''; Aramaic: ܛܘܪܐ ܕܣܝܢܝ ''Ṭūrāʾ Dsyny''), traditionally known as Jabal Musa ( ar, جَبَل مُوسَىٰ, translation: Mount Moses), is a mountain on the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. It is ...

; warn that the mountain is off limits and holy * Exodus 32 –

Plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...

s at the incident of the

golden calf According to the Bible, the golden calf (עֵגֶל הַזָּהָב '' ‘ēgel hazzāhāv'') was an idol (a cult image) made by the Israelites when Moses went up to Mount Sinai. In Hebrew, the incident is known as ''ḥēṭə’ hā‘ēgel'' ...

; disowning the people for breaking his covenant with them * Leviticus 10:1–2 –

Nadab and Abihu In the biblical books Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, Nadab () and Abihu () were the two oldest sons of Aaron. According to Leviticus 10, they offered a sacrifice with "foreign fire" before the , disobeying his instructions, and were immediate ...

are burned; offering unauthorised fire in their censers * Leviticus 26:14–39 – Curses upon the disobedient; divine warning * Numbers 11 – A plague accompanies the giving of manna in the wilderness; rejecting his gracious gift of heavenly food and failing his test of obedience * Numbers 16 – The rebellion of

Korah Korah ( he, ''Qōraḥ''; ar, قارون ''Qārūn''), son of Izhar, is an individual who appears in the Book of Numbers of the Hebrew Bible and four different verses in the Quran, known for leading a rebellion against Moses. Some older Englis ...

Dathan Dathan ( he, דָּתָן ''Dāṯān'') was an Israelite mentioned in the Old Testament as a participant of the Exodus. He was a son of Eliab, the son of Pallu, the son of Reuben. Together with his brother Abiram, the Levite Korah and others, ...

, and

Abiram Abiram, also spelled Abiron ( he, אֲבִירָם "my father is exalted"), is the name of two people in the Old Testament. One was a member of the Tribe of Reuben, the son of Eliab, who, along with his brother Dathan, joined Korah in the conspir ...

– Their supernatural deaths and the plague that followed; insolence and attempting self-promotion to roles they were unworthy of holding * Numbers 20:9–13 – Reprimand of

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

at the water of

Meribah Massah ( he, מַסָּה) and Meribah ( he , מְרִיבָה, also spelled "Mirabah") are place names found in the Hebrew Bible. The Israelites are said to have travelled through Massah and Meribah during the Exodus, although the continuous l ...

; disobeying the Lord's instruction, showing distrust and indifference in God's presence * Numbers 21 – Murmuring of the people and the plague of

fiery flying serpent The fiery flying serpent (Hebrew: ''sārāf mə‘ōfēf'') is a creature mentioned in the Book of Isaiah in the Tanakh. The term translated as "fiery serpent", ', appears elsewhere in the Book of Isaiah to signify the seraphim, the singular fo ...

; spurning God's grace * Numbers 25 – Whoredom with the

Moab Moab ''Mōáb''; Assyrian: 𒈬𒀪𒁀𒀀𒀀 ''Mu'abâ'', 𒈠𒀪𒁀𒀀𒀀 ''Ma'bâ'', 𒈠𒀪𒀊 ''Ma'ab''; Egyptian: 𓈗𓇋𓃀𓅱𓈉 ''Mū'ībū'', name=, group= () is the name of an ancient Levantine kingdom whose territo ...

ites and resulting plague; breaching God's covenant through sexual immorality and worshipping other gods * Deuteronomy 28 – Curses pronounced upon the disobedient; another divine warning * 1 Samuel 6:19 – some/many men of Beth Shemesh killed; Looking into the

Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant,; Ge'ez: also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, is an alleged artifact believed to be the most sacred relic of the Israelites, which is described as a wooden chest, covered in pure gold, with an e ...

* 2 Samuel 6:1–7 –

Uzzah According to the Tanakh, עזה, Uzzah or Uzza, meaning "Her Strength", was an Israelite whose death is associated with touching the Ark of the Covenant. The account of Uzzah appears in two places in scripture: 2 Samuel 6:3-8 and 1 Chronicles 1 ...

struck dead; Touching the Ark of the Covenant * 1 Kings 11 – God promises to tear

King Solomon King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

's kingdom from his son except for a single tribe; Building altars to other gods for his wives * – sending trials to the just man

Job Work or labor (or labour in British English) is intentional activity people perform to support the needs and wants of themselves, others, or a wider community. In the context of economics, work can be viewed as the human activity that contr ...

New Testament

The New Testament associates the wrath of God particularly with imagery of the Last Day, described allegorically in as the "day of wrath", and the

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of R ...

. The wrath of God is mentioned in at least twenty verses of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

. Examples are: * –

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

declares that whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. * – Ananias and his wife Sapphira struck dead, Holding back some of the proceeds after selling a piece of property * – For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. * – Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. * – Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." * – Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. * – For the great day of his wrath has come, and who is able to withstand? * – So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. * – Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous: seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God was finished. * – From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.

Alleged modern examples

The

1953 Waco tornado outbreak A deadly series of at least 33 tornadoes hit at least 10 different U.S. states on May 9–11, 1953. Tornadoes appeared daily from Minnesota in the north to Texas in the south. The strongest and deadliest tornado was a powerful F5 to ...

was regarded by some people in the local African-American community as divine retribution for the

lynching of Jesse Washington Jesse Washington was a seventeen-year-old African American farmhand who was lynched in the county seat of Waco, Texas, on May 15, 1916, in what became a well-known example of racist lynching. Washington was convicted of raping and murdering L ...

over thirty years prior. Various Christian, Jewish and Muslim religious leaders claimed that

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

was God's punishment on America, New Orleans or the world for any of a variety of alleged sins, including

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

, sexual immorality (including the gay pride event

Southern Decadence Southern Decadence is an annual six-day event held in New Orleans, Louisiana, by the gay and lesbian community during Labor Day Weekend, culminating in a parade through the French Quarter on the Sunday before Labor Day. History The event trace ...

), the policies of the

American Empire American imperialism refers to the expansion of American political, economic, cultural, and media influence beyond the boundaries of the United States. Depending on the commentator, it may include imperialism through outright military conquest ...

, failure to support

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, and failure of black people to study the

Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the s ...

.NPR
Pastor John Hagee on Christian Zionism.
September 18, 2006. The 2007 UK floods were claimed by

Graham Dow Geoffrey Graham Dow (born 4 July 1942) is a retired British Anglican bishop. He was the Bishop of Carlisle from 2000 to 2009, the 66th holder of the office. He is a well-known Evangelical. Early life Born in 1942, in Edmonton, London, Dow was ed ...

to be God's punishment against homosexuals. Televangelist

Pat Robertson Marion Gordon "Pat" Robertson (born March 22, 1930) is an American media mogul, religious broadcaster, political commentator, former presidential candidate, and former Southern Baptist minister. Robertson advocates a conservative Christian ...

stirred up controversy after claiming that the

2010 Haiti earthquake A disaster, catastrophic Moment magnitude scale, magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake struck Haiti at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The epicenter was near the town of Léogâne, Ouest (department), Ouest department, a ...

may have been God's belated punishment on Haitians for allegedly having made a "pact with the Devil" to overthrow the French during the

Haitian Revolution The Haitian Revolution (french: révolution haïtienne ; ht, revolisyon ayisyen) was a successful insurrection by slave revolt, self-liberated slaves against French colonial rule in Saint-Domingue, now the sovereign state of Haiti. The revolt ...

Yehuda Levin Lew Y. Levin(February 4, 2013 ''Yeshiva World News''. Retrieved January 26, 2022. or Yehuda Levin (born 1954) is a Brooklyn, New York-based Orthodox rabbi known for his endorsing of hard-right Republican Party political candidates and his vocal ...

, an

Orthodox Jewish Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on M ...

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

, linked the earthquake to gays in the military via an alleged

Talmudic The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...

teaching that homosexuality causes earthquakes. Levin posted a video onto

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

the same day as

2011 Virginia earthquake On August 23, 2011, a magnitude 5.8 earthquake hit the Piedmont region of the U.S. state of Virginia at 1:51:04 p.m. EDT. The epicenter, in Louisa County, was northwest of Richmond and south-southwest of the town of Mineral. It was an ...

in which he said, "The Talmud states, "You have shaken your male member in a place where it doesn’t belong. I too, will shake the Earth." He said that homosexuals shouldn't take it personally: "We don’t hate homosexuals. I feel bad for homosexuals. It’s a revolt against God and literally, there’s hell to pay." Chaplain John McTernan said that Hurricane Isaac, like Hurricane Katrina, was God's punishment on homosexuals. Buster Wilson of the

American Family Association The American Family Association (AFA) is a Christian fundamentalist 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States.

concurred that statement. McTernan also said that

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...

may have been God's punishment against homosexuals. In addition,

WorldNetDaily ''WND'' (formerly ''WorldNetDaily'') is an American far-right fake news website. It is known for promoting falsehoods and conspiracy theories, including the false claim that former President Barack Obama was not born in the United States. Th ...

columnist William Koenig, along with McTernan himself, suggested that American support for a

two-state solution The two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict envisions an independent State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel, west of the Jordan River. The boundary between the two states is still subject to dispute and negotiation ...

to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict led to the hurricane.

Rebuttals

Orthodox rabbi

Shmuley Boteach Jacob Shmuel Boteach ( ; born November 19, 1966) is an American Orthodox Jewish rabbi, author, and television host. Boteach is the author of 31 books, including the best seller ''Kosher Sex: A Recipe for Passion and Intimacy'', and ''Kosher Jesu ...

denounces such claims since they carry the implication of

victim blaming Victim blaming occurs when the victim of a crime or any wrongful act is held entirely or partially at fault for the harm that befell them. There is historical and current prejudice against the victims of domestic violence and sex crimes, such as ...

, writing that "For many of the faithful, the closer they come to God, the more they become enemies of man." He contrasts the Jewish tradition, which affords a special place to "arguing with God", with an approach to religion that "taught people not to challenge, but to submit. Not to question, but to obey. Not how to stand erect, but to be stooped and bent in the broken posture of the meek and pious". Speaking about the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Boteach said "I utterly reject and find it sickening when people believe that this is some kind of punishment from God – that really upsets me." A

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priest, James Martin, wrote on Twitter in response to

that "If any religious leaders say tomorrow that the hurricane is God's punishment against some group they're idiots. God's ways are not our ways."

References

External links

* R. G. V. Tasker
The Biblical Doctrine of the Wrath of God

Gili Kugler, When God Wanted to Destroy the Chosen People: Biblical Traditions and Theology on the Move
* W. L. Crai
True Love: The Doctrine of Divine Retribution
* Herbert W. Byrne
The Wrath of God
(2005 ) {{DEFAULTSORT:Divine Retribution Christian terminology Attributes of God in Christian theology Relationship between Heaven and Mankind