Has the COVID-19 Pandemic Anything to Do with God?

Abstract

If God is the creator of heaven and earth, of the visible and invisible world, then we must conclude that everything which occurs has something to do with God. This also holds true for the Covid-19 pandemic. While we live on an earth tarnished by brokenness, death, and suffering, we know as Christians that it is God who upholds the world against the destructive efforts of the anti-godly powers. Martin Luther too was convinced that God upholds the whole world. But he was also certain about a fight waged on earth between the kingdoms of God and that of the devil. According to Luther, the devil is active in misfortune, in diseases and other life crises, and in death. While the devil, or the anti-godly powers, are destructive, God can use them to punish us in a lawful way for our sinful pride and egotism. Yet while the anti-godly powers act truly destructive, God wants us through these trials to flee to him, to the gospel of salvation. Indeed, through this Corona crisis, uncomfortable and life-threatening as it was, positive traits were rediscovered such as community spirit and an appreciation for those on whom our earthly well-being depends. But who was behind the pandemic? God or the anti-godly power, or even both, we cannot say with certainty.