The tragedy in Haiti this week brought us images of unspeakable carnage and suffering. It has brought images of people rallying to bring relief. It has also brought images of many with a public platform making statements, appeals and comments.
One such statement came from Pat Robertson.
Let me preface by saying that I do not know much about Pat Robertson. I do not follow his ministry. I do not read about him and when he ran for President, I supported others. That said, I do not think he is stupid. He may not be right about a lot of things and he may even be struggling with the effects of aging, I have no idea, but I don’t think he is stupid and he is certainly not a bad man.
While asking for prayers and support for the victims, he commented that in 1791, Haitian slaves made a “pact with the devil” to free themselves from the French and that ever since then it has been one tragedy after another. And while he perhaps added some additional dialog with Satan and some sociological observations that are more opinion than fact, there is quite a bit of historical evidence to indicate that “something happened” in 1791. I believe it was this evidence or “true story” as he called it, to which he was referring.
Here are some points to consider:
- The story should never have been about Pat Robertson but rather about the Haitian story he told.
- No one can say with factual certainty to what degree God did or did not have a direct hand in what happened in Haiti and so the topic should not be silenced.
- The prospect that it even COULD be true is horrifying.
- People in media have an agenda in direct conflict with God and conservative Christianity and will compromise all journalistic integrity to pursue it.
- Christians and especially Catholic Christians should be careful not to fall into their traps.
We don’t know what happened in 1791. There is no video. There are no old newspapers. We do know that there are many people who believe, and have believed long before Pat Robertson said anything, that some sort of “pact” was made. In fact, there was talk in 1991 of renewing the pact and I have since read that there are those who believe the pact was renewed. So this has been quietly going on for more than 200 years and really has nothing to do with Pat Robertson.
I admit it. I am not an expert on Haitian history. Nor am I an expert on “pacts with the devil.” So when I first heard that he said this, being completely unfamiliar with any “Haitian pact with the devil,” I looked for information about it online. There were several articles that discussed the history, legends, theories and evidence pro and con and concerns about those who wanted to renew the pact, etc.. I had assumed that Pat Robertson was not delusional and would not create a “true story” out of thin air and wanted to educate myself.
Yet the media, whose job it is to inform, instead made the story about Pat Robertson. No one bothered to try to find out what he was talking about. The sharks smelled blood in the water. They took his comments out of the context of the relief and prayer appeal he was making. Many then even presumed to ascribe additional thoughts and comments to them and presented him as a complete loony. Thus instead of discussing Haitian history and society and maybe even how he got it right or wrong, they simply assassinated his character.
Why? Well, there is a general incompetence and laziness in news these days that is well documented. There is also the need to “build ratings” and everyone knows that a good public humiliation is more entertaining than a history and sociology discussion about a country that were it not for the earthquake, none of them could care less about.
Sadly, the torrent of Pat Robertson bashing now takes up most of the search results where people formerly could have found information on Haitian history. I guess everyone can be an expert now on Pat Robertson bashing since it seems to be more important anyway.
Is there something besides media incompetence in play here? Consider: What if Pat Robertson is, even accidentally, right. What if there is/was a “pact with the devil” or something like it that results in an absence of God and His protection? Or worse, results in His wrath?
It is a horrifying premise. And in the same way that none of us know FOR SURE what happened in 1791, nor do we know FOR SURE how God operates in the world. But we do know the ugly legacy of the past 200+ years in Haiti.
One COULD argue that they did not NEED a pact with the devil to bring about God’s wrath.
The earthquake in Haiti has been called “biblical” by the secular media. How ironic. And there are similar disaster stories throughout the bible presented as God’s wrath. If the Church teaches that it is possible that God may have used what we would call a natural process of evolution in His Creation, could He not also use other “natural events” to achieve His purposes? Is it not possible?
I think that the POSSIBILITY of this is so horrifying to most, that they feel it must be immediately dismissed and those who would hint at such a possibility must be destroyed. After all, the old testament stories are just that – “STORIES” right? And if there IS a God and this IS how He works, might we be next? We’ve not exactly been good boys and girls lately. So kill the messenger and everything will go away. In fact it is so horrifying that even religious writers and bloggers have distanced themselves from the possibility by jumping on the “Bash Pat Robertson Bandwagon.” The fact remains that no one can say FOR SURE that God had nothing to do with it. So why then can we not even discuss it?
Of course, the other issue for the media is that they would first have to acknowledge the existence of God so this was really a no-brainer for them.
Anyone who believes in God and professes anything other than “everyone who dies immediately goes to heaven with his or her pets and iPhones” is subject to immediate ridicule. And all rules are off. Pat Robertson was viciously attacked not just for his ideas but also for his age. They get away with calling him senile because of the topic. People who call Jimmy Carter senile for some of the loony things he says, are derided for being insensitive to seniors. Practicing Catholics are also still an approved target of bigotry. Just ask the Catholic League.
In conclusion our first concerns should obviously be the Haitian people and doing all we can to bring some good out of an unspeakable horror. But let us not lose sight of those who would remove God from our society in every way possible. And while I am not saying that they have “made a pact with the devil,” Satan would be very happy with their efforts. Let us be ever vigilant, ever prayerful and not let ourselves accidentally fall into the trap of their ways of thinking and behavior.
Let us glorify God with humility and charity in all things. And let us be open to seeing God in ALL things…