The difference between God’s smite and bad luck

God or luck seems to have forsaken the Yankees this year, much to the pleasure of most folks up here.

The worst part is that they should be good, but keep losing games they shouldn’t lose. Sabermetricians, people who study baseball statistics, have a theory. The theory goes that when a team has scored more runs than it has given up, that team should have more wins than losses. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

The Yankees have had to deal with a lot of injuries this year. Despite this, they have scored several more runs than they have given up. They should, therefore, have several more wins than losses. Oddly, the opposite is true.

So the Yankees are a bad team even though they should be good. I have come up with only two possible explanations for this. Either the Yankees have just been very unlucky, or God is smiting them.

Now, this might seem trivial to you. And, it is, I suppose. It’s just baseball.

But there are those who believe that every little thing happens for a reason. Which would mean the Yankees must be awful for a reason. So perhaps God is punishing the Yankees. But why? Maybe one day George Steinbrenner was looking out the window of his mansion and saw a beautiful young maiden taking a bath. The two began an illicit extramarital affair, culminating in her pregnancy. Mr. Steinbrenner, fearing for his reputation and hers, somehow managed to get her husband killed and took her as his own wife. So to teach Mr. Steinbrenner a lesson, God has sent this dreadful plague of poor play down upon the team.

If this were the case, the Yankees would be losing for a reason, but it would be a reason only applicable to Steinbrenner. For the players and the fans, there would be no rhyme nor reason. It would just be their bad luck that the owner is a philanderer and murderer.

Or perhaps Yankee fans are being punished for being too obnoxious. Of course, if God wanted to punish us for that, one would think He would have done so long ago.

But in this scenario, the reason for the team’s failure would be applicable only to the fans. For the team’s players and management, it would just be their bad luck to have us for fans. And what of those fans that aren’t obnoxious?

This is the problem with saying that everything happens for a reason. While something may happen to Tom for a reason, the same thing might happen to Bob just because it’s his bad luck to have been around Tom.

Granted, it is true that some things happen for a reason. If you don’t eat citrus, you’ll get scurvy. If you smoke five packs a day, you can expect that your lungs are not going to be very healthy later in life. Sometimes, though, things just happen.

But how can luck and an all-powerful God coexist?

The seeming contradiction between luck and omnipotent deities has perplexed people for a long time. Hellenistic peoples personified luck as Fortune (in Greek, Tyche; in Latin, Fortuna), and some even worshiped her. Others sought relief from cruel Fortune by joining mystery cults, in which initiates would follow the path of some deity, such as Isis or Orpheus, and be made privy to the deity’s grand plan. Christianity is a direct outgrowth of these mystery cults.

Today, we find this contradiction in the battle between evolution and creationism. Were we created by mere chance, or were we formed with purpose by the guiding hands of an omnipotent God? The argument is not really so much about what happened way back then, but the underlying philosophical conflict of how it affects us now. Do we live under the domain of luck or of providence?

The answer is both, and it lies in the books of Job and John. Job is a good man. Satan goes to God and says, “Let me at him.” God says, “All right.” So Satan lets Job have it. His house burns down. His family dies. He gets sores all over his body. And so on. In other words, he gets struck by some incredibly miserable luck. He doesn’t deserve it. There is no reason. It just happens.

Throughout all his bad luck, Job does not lose hope. In the end, when he has lost everything, he comes face to face with God, who gives to Job a second life, a life twice as good as he had before. He is initiated into the mystery of God. But to be initiated, he had to weather the misfortunes of the world.

In this story, Satan is the personification of fortune. He does not threaten God’s omnipotence. He has power only because God allows him to, and by following God, Job overcomes him. But why would God let luck exist in the first place?

In John 9, Jesus comes across a blind man. His disciples ask him why the man is blind. Jesus answers, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned.” The blind man’s had some bad luck, that’s all. Jesus continues, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” Jesus then heals the man by spitting in some mud and rubbing it in the fellow’s eyes. It’s kind of gross, but way less expensive than laser surgery.

So luck exists, both good and bad. Not every little thing is dictated by a higher power. There is, however, a reason that God allows that luck to exist, namely because without the bad things, it’s hard to appreciate the good things. Without having been blind, it’s hard to appreciate sight. Without having boils all over your body, it’s hard to appreciate not having them. Without losing once in a while, it’s hard to appreciate winning.

In the end, I doubt God has any hand in whether the Yankees win or lose. That just comes down to luck and talent. And, since the Yankees have the latter, hopefully they’ll get some of the good kind of the former and start winning again. Even if they don’t, it could be worse.

I could be a Royals fan.

Justin Fowler is a student at University College of Bangor. He may be reached via justin.fowler@verizon.net. Voices is a weekly commentary by Maine people who explore issues affecting spirituality and religious life.