> The thing that provokes me is the belief that God "allowed" this to happen "for a reason".

I think we are possibly coming up against a language barrier issue here, because when I read both of your posts, I agree with them, and at first I didn't even realize Travholt was intending to disagree but rather was offering support.

There's a big difference between "allowing something to happen" and "making something happen." God did not do this. Terrorists did. God allowed it because he has given all of us free will, and in the end he will make everything right, and all things come together for good for them that love him. (Romans 8:28) It is a test of faith to see if we can still understand this and put our faith in God in spite of the fact that things like this happen.

Yet God is very active in this crisis. He's not in the business of merely letting the world work its course. Evidence of God's work can be found in the acts of kindness shown by strangers. People fleed for their lives yet stopped to help strangers to their feet on their way. Rescuers risked their lives to plunge into the fray and pull people out. People all across America, notoriously tight with their pocketbooks, have given millions upon millions of dollars to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund in a matter of days, and the offers for blood donations are so plentiful that donors have to be turned away -- this, in a nation that has always had short blood supplies.

No, God didn't make this happen. But God is active in this nonetheless. It is up to us to pray and reflect and, amidst our grief, find out what there is to learn from it all. When we emerge from an experience like this with hope and faith instead of despair, I think we're on the right road.