Hopeful Lament

On March 29, Time magazine published an article by N. T. Wright entitled, “Christianity Offers No Answers about the Coronavirus.  It’s Not Supposed To.” No doubt the title was intended to grab the attention of readers (I do wonder if it’s the title that Wright himself wanted).

In case you’re not familiar with N. T. (Tom) Wright, you should know that he’s a committed Christian, a leader in the Church of England, and a major contributor in New Testament scholarship (with 80-some books to his name, Wright is a prolific author if ever there was one).

My take on his writing is a case of “mixed reviews.”  On the one hand, Wright has been a strong advocate of a view of Paul’s letters and their teaching on the Old Testament law that’s been dubbed the “New Perspective” (even though it’s now about 40 years old).  On that topic I believe Wright aligns with a view of law and justification that has serious weaknesses (for more on these issues, see, e.g., “What Is the New Perspective on Paul? How Should It Be Assessed?”).

On the other hand, Wright has also written extensively on the strong historical evidence for the resurrection of Jesus (see his major work, The Resurrection of the Son of God—and for a short summary and assessment the book, see this review).  Wright contends that no modern historian has come up with a more convincing explanation of the reports of an empty tomb and Jesus’ resurrection appearances than that of the eyewitnesses—that Jesus had indeed been bodily raised from the dead.  On this topic, Wright has made a huge positive contribution not only to biblical scholarship but to the articulation of Christianity in the modern world, for which I am very grateful.

Back to his essay in Time:  Wright vents his frustration with “the usual silly suspects” who claim to know God’s purposes for a pandemic.  Instead, better to follow the biblical laments—such as several of the Psalms in which believers cry out to God, “Why?” and seem to get no answer (or at least not the answer they’d hoped for).  Wright invites us to echo texts like Psalm 22, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”  Or Psalm 88 that starts in misery and ends in darkness.  He adds that God himself laments, and that the Bible does not depict God as knowing everything and being in charge of everything.  So, it seems Wright is saying:  Don’t look to the Lord for answers in the midst of a pandemic; in fact, God himself is grieved by sin and suffering.

To be sure, there’s at least a grain of truth in what Wright is saying.  Yes, it’s fitting to echo all of the Psalms, laments included; go to God and pour out your honest sorrow.  Still, nearly all of the biblical laments end on a note of hope and praise and renewed dedication—something Wright minimizes.

Further, the way God exercises his rule and reign over all creation is intricate and even mysterious, and it intersects with the choices of human agents and processes we call “the laws of nature.”  So it’s true that sometimes there are no easy answers.  But it’s going too far to imply that a grieving God is, apparently, unable to act purposefully in connection with calamity, or to intervene in this world for his own good reasons.

While we acknowledge that we cannot know all the purposes of God in connection with the events of this world, I feel that Wright leaves us in a desolate place not knowing much of what God might be up to at all.  By contrast, the Bible does provide key claims about God’s purposes in the storms of life (e.g., Genesis 45:5; 50:20; Acts 2:23; 4:28), enough for us to know that he’s wise and good and strong and trustworthy.  And so, we can have peace and walk through a pandemic with hope.

Andy Davis wrote a response to Wright’s article and gave it the title, “Surprised by Hopelessness” (a play on the title of a book by Wright, Surprised by Hope).  He challenges several of the claims Wright is making.  Davis notes that God “wrote the complex story of human history before the world began.  And he has revealed everything we need to know about the future.”  Thus, we do have many crucial “answers,” and we have good reason to hope in God’s active reign in this world today and for eternity.  Further, Wright is misguided in pitting rational explanations against the laments when “the Bible harmonizes them perfectly.”  Davis points to John 11 and Jesus’ exercise of both sovereign command over the death (and raising) of Lazarus AND deep empathy and tearful grief as he comforts Martha and Mary.  “So rational explanations and lamentations ultimately yield to Jesus’s resurrection power.”

Well, enough said.  Read Wright’s piece and ask yourself if it conveys the tone of hope you get when you read the Bible.  Read the rebuttal by Davis and see what you think.  But most of all, read the Bible and ask the Lord to help you grasp the answers he gives us to support an informed Christian hope (see 1 Peter 3:15).  And receive his invitation to humble, honest, hopeful lament—a posture that, ultimately, trusts the Lord to be working all things together for the good of his people (Romans 8:28).