My plans for your are for peace and not disaster

 In Harold Kushner's book, "When Bad Things Happen to Good People", he explores what happens when disaster seems to strike and how easy it is to blame the victim for something that has befallen them. It is so easy to make the connection between a natural disaster and the moral state of the person. We are a people who seek an explanation for everything and the causal links can be made too easily. We see elements of this in the way some people blamed households affected for the floods that inundated their homes. This does not mean that we do not learn from these difficulties but that our first thoughts should be for those who suffer a disaster.

In the gospel we see Jesus noting how Lent recognizes that while disasters can befall us we are called to notice how easy it is to fall prey to the destroyer within. That critical spirit can spark wars between us and within us. During this season we are called to be people who are on guard against the evil spirit which sink deep into our psyche and cause harm to our world.  This is like a parasite that can draw all the nutrients out of our body and harbor ill will within us. This can too easily be seen in the conflicts between people, especially in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. There needs to be a desire for peace which is not just an absence of hostility but also a deeper sense of God's merciful action in the world.

This I believe is behind Pope Francis's consecration of Russia and Ukraine to our Lady Queen of Peace through her Immaculate Heart which renews the consecration made by Pope John Paul II in 1984. At the heart of this consecration is a spirit of conversion of heart that stands against the madness of war that threatens to destroy us. As Our Lady at Fatima warned it is possible that the seeds of destruction can be born within us and that God does not seek our destruction but a spirit of repentance that turns back to Him. In this, we see God who seeks us to encounter his plans for peace and not disaster. To broaden our vision in seeking the goodness of God in all things. We pray that peace may reign in our hearts and in our world for the good of all.