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By Tuesday, more than 5,000 were confirmed dead and over 9,000 injured, with casualties expected to rise. Prime Minister Sushil Koirala announced three days of national mourning, warning that the death toll could reach 10,000. He said the nation is "on a war footing" with 90 percent of Nepal's troops conducting rescue and relief work.
Rugged terrain and poor weather in the impoverished Asian country are hindering damage assessment and relief efforts, especially in remote villages located more than a day's hike from the nearest road. To make matters worse, many routes between isolated villages are now impassable due to multiple landslides caused by the earthquake. Delivery of emergency supplies is also hindered by the limited capacity of Kathmandu's international airport, which has only one runway and limited parking space for planes.
In some villages, 70-100 percent of the buildings collapsed. Many traumatized residents refuse to enter whatever unstable structures remain, fearful that powerful aftershocks might topple them and claim even more lives. High-quality tents and tarpaulins to shelter survivors sleeping outdoors are desperately needed as the monsoon season begins in a month's time. Many communities lack adequate food, safe drinking water, electricity, communication, access to medical facilities, supplies and treatment.
Many of the ruined buildings were old and of poor quality and construction, though the earthquake also destroyed a new house built by a couple who took out a 200,000 rupee ($2,000) loan for the project. But the pain of the material and financial loss pales in comparison to their grief over the loss of their daughter, Muna Puri, 4, whose body lies buried somewhere beneath the debris. "Now I don't have a house. I don't have a daughter," her father mourned. "This is what the world has become."
The pastor of one TWW team member has a family friend, a woman who is a convert from Hinduism, who has served as a church planter in Nepal. She reported to him that one of the congregations was in worship when the earthquake hit, and the church building collapsed, killing about 100 people.
Others also lost property, yet escaped with their lives. The house of farmer Nar Bahadur Nepali, 37, collapsed, as did most of the other structures in his village, but he and 60 or 70 other residents who were attending a wedding in an open area survived.
At least 18 mountain climbers died and at least 60 were injured when an avalanche triggered by the earthquake thundered into camp at the base of Mount Everest. Nine more climbers might well have been among the dead, were it not for the sherpa guide who absconded with their money, forcing them to abort their planned ascent and return to their native Greece the day before the avalanche. One of the Greeks, Nerit Sophoclis Paitis, said, "In the end we were lucky, but we have friends at the [Everest] camps who are living through very difficult moments."
Dominic Bowen, the global emergency and security advisor for Medical Teams International (MTI), reported from Kathmandu Monday: "People are at the end of their tether. You can only imagine what it's like for the locals who can't get on a plane and leave."
Among the climbers who died at the base camp was Google executive Dan Fredinburg, who was attempting the summit to raise money for two Nepali orphanages. His ex-girlfriend, actress Sophia Bush, posted this message on Instagram: "I was so looking forward to our planned download of 'all the things' when he got home. I am crushed that I will never hear that story. I am crushed knowing that there are over 1,000 people in Nepal suffering this exact feeling, knowing that they too will never hear another tale about an adventure lived from someone that they love. Disasters like this are often unquantifiable, the enormity is too much to understand. Please remember that each person who is now gone was someone's Dan. Please remember that our time on this Earth is not guaranteed. Please tell those you love that you do. Right now. This very minute."
More on this story can be found at these links:
Nepal Earthquake: Death Toll Passes 4,800 as Rescuers Face Challenges. CNN
Nepal Villages Cut Off by Earthquake Wait for Aid as Death Toll Passes 4,000. New York TImes
Nepal Earthquake: Death Toll Could Reach 10,000, Says PM. The Guardian
Robbery Saved 9 Greek Climbers From Nepal Quake. Yahoo! News
The Big Questions
1. Is it a matter of luck, or divine providence, or something else that determines whether someone survives a disaster like this? Defend your answer. Can reasons vary, and if so, how can they be discerned?
2. The climbers who left Nepal the day before the earthquake probably considered the fact that they were robbed a bad thing, but ironically, even that negative event, or sin against them, seems to have turned out for their good. Describe a time when something bad happened to you that ultimately turned out for your greater good. How did that experience change your perspective about adversity?
3. What prompts people to respond with empathy or compassion to others who are suffering greatly? What is the origin of altruistic impulses?
4. How should Christians respond to major disasters like this? What can we do beyond praying and giving money?
5. What do you think Nepal's Prime Minister, Sushil Koirala, meant when he said the nation is "on a war footing" in the aftermath of the earthquake? How might this expression serve as a metaphor for the work of the church?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
Isaiah 64:3
When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. (For context, read 64:1-3.)
Jeremiah 10:10
But the LORD is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King. At his wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure his indignation. (For context, read 10:1-16.)
1 Kings 19:11-12
He said, "Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. (For context, read 19:1-18.)
The quaking of the earth in the Bible is often presented in the context of God's judgment and wrath, particularly over the sin of exalting worthless idols above God our Creator; the mountains "quake" at God's presence. Yet, when the prophet Elijah fled from Jezebel in fear for his life, God appeared to him not in the earthquake, but in great silence.
Questions: Is God communicating to the human race through natural phenomena? If so, what is God trying to tell us? When is an earthquake more than an earthquake, and when is it just that and nothing more?
Psalm 8:3-4
When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? (For context, read 8:1-9.)
Although humankind through the application of sheer intelligence and will has achieved so much, become so powerful, harnessed so much energy and unlocked many secrets of the universe, still, humans are absolutely puny -- mere dust mites -- compared to the power of nature and the God who created it all. Events like the earthquake in Nepal remind us of our mortality.
Question: Why is it good for us to be reminded of our mortality?
Genesis 2:15-17
The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, "You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die." (For context, read 2:4-17.)
One point of the Genesis creation accounts is that we live in a secure, though not a safe, universe. In some ancient creation stories, chaos is more powerful than the gods. Fate or chance (personified in the stars) trumps the will of the gods. The biblical creation story shows that God is in charge of creation; God put the stars there, and God made sense out of chaos.
We're not going to have winter death triumph, forever negating spring (as in the case of the northern mythologies). We're not going to see the stars reach that tipping point and suddenly stop moving in their courses, bringing an end to history (as in Mayan mythology). No human sacrifice is needed to keep the machinery running. But though creation is secure, it is not safe. People can die, and the Nepal earthquake reminds us that something bigger than us is going on here.
Questions: What kind of choice does God place before Adam that has life-or-death consequences? What kind of death resulted from his disobedience of God's command?
Job 42:1-3, 5-6
Then Job answered the LORD: "I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. ... I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. ... I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes." (For context, read 42:1-6.)
Like the big picture that God gives to Job toward the end of the book, we see that creation exists for itself, not necessarily for us. Some scholars believe Job's response is mistranslated: He does not repent in dust and ashes. He's already in dust and ashes. Job repents from dust and ashes -- more literally, on or upon dust and ashes. The actual phrase in Hebrew, "on dust," is also used to mean "in the grave," such as in Job 21:26.
When we see that the universe is larger than we can imagine, that there are tremendous forces at play, such as continental drift with the collision of plates -- when we realize that a meteor could hit where the Yucatan Peninsula is today, possibly the cause of the extinction of dinosaurs -- then we can afford, like Job, to embrace life, to live authentically and to quit expecting the universe to revolve around us.
Questions: When was the last time you questioned God's wisdom? What does Job acknowledge about God and admit about himself in these verses, leading him to repent? When you ponder questions bigger than you, how can following Job's example result in a restoration of peace in your soul?
Matthew 24:6-8, 13-14
And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs. ... But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come. (For context, read 24:1-14.)
When Jesus' disciples asked what would be the signs of his coming and of the end of the age, he replied that many false messiahs and false prophets would lead many astray, and that there would be wars, rumors of wars, famines, earthquakes, persecution, a rise in lawlessness and lovelessness and the proclamation of the good news throughout the world. Yet Jesus' followers were not to become alarmed, since all those things "must take place," before the end comes. As painful as these birth pangs are, they signify that God is bringing forth a new life.
In the next chapter, Jesus describes 10 virgins who await the arrival of the bridegroom. Five had prepared for his coming by making sure they had adequate oil for their oil lamps; five didn't bother about that. Those who were ready were welcomed to the wedding feast while the others, who had run to buy more oil and arrived late, were not admitted (Matthew 25:1-13).
Life surprises us, sometimes in tragic ways. The narrative for the life of thousands of people suddenly changed within seconds as a result of the Nepal earthquake. We never know when Jesus might return or if our life could be taken in an instant through a natural disaster, a car accident, an illness or some other cause. We need to be ready for the end of our days and/or Christ's return.
Questions: Why do you think Jesus said that so many disasters, whether man-made or as part of the natural order, "must take place" before the Lord returns? What is the function or effect of these events? How can believers guard against panic and "alarmism"? What is the nature of the new life God is birthing? How can we "keep our lamps trimmed and burning" (in the words of the old spiritual) so we will be prepared to greet the Bridegroom when he comes?
For Further Discussion
1. One of the ministries on the ground in Nepal, Medical Teams International (MTI), describes its work and motivation this way: "We see human suffering as a call -- not just to open our hearts, but to move our feet. We are compelled by our Christian faith into action -- a team, guided by compassion and magnified by expertise. We are committed to rise, mobilize, and make a difference." How does this description compare with your understanding of the work of the church?
2. Reflect on the statement made by Dan Fredinburg's ex-girlfriend, Sophia Bush: "I am crushed knowing that there are over 1,000 people in Nepal suffering this exact feeling, knowing that they too will never hear another tale about an adventure lived from someone that they love. Disasters like this are often unquantifiable, the enormity is too much to understand. Please remember that each person who is now gone was someone's Dan. Please remember that our time on this Earth is not guaranteed. Please tell those you love that you do. Right now. This very minute." What wisdom did she glean from her grief and loss? What can you take away from her experience that might help you "not to waste your sorrows" (as the book title by Paul E. Billheimer has it) when you face loss in your own life?
Responding to the News
Find out what your denomination is doing to respond to the crisis in Nepal, and consider what you can do as an individual and as a local fellowship to be part of the response.
Closing Prayer
God of grace and God of glory, fill us with your spirit of love and power and self-discipline, that we might have courage in the day of trouble, hope in the night of despair, endurance in the time of testing, and joy when our Lord returns again! Amen.
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