How would you respond to someone who questions why God allows natural disasters to happen when we know God can intervene at any moment.
Few suggested resources to use: put the science of climate change into conversation with the statements of the Ecumenical Patriarch who has repeatedly described ecological disregard as sin. Who, according to our Patriarch, is responsible for the increasing frequency of natural disasters?
B. Research the concept of Theodicy, which is the belief in the absolute goodness of God, despite the presence of evil. How can Orthodox Christians reflections on Theodicy be applied to natural disasters?
C. Consider the substance of evil. Is it a force unto itself? Is it simply the absence of God? How have Orthodox Christians understood the concept of evil historically?
D. You can also read what the Social Ethos Document says about Environment.
E. Read the series of short essays on the environment and environmental sin from an Orthodox perspective.