[megatherium]

I remember reading a book, The End of the World: A History. The author described those eras when people thought the end of the world was at hand, such as the end of the Roman Empire or the Black Death of the 14th century. One of the chapters dealt with the 1755 earthquake in Lisbon. This was a terrible event with catastrophic loss of life. Lisbon was a devout Roman Catholic city, and no one could discern why Lisbon deserved such cruel punishment. As a result, European intellectuals abandoned the notion that God uses natural disasters to punish cities or nations.

[Strategerist]

As a result, European intellectuals abandoned the notion that God uses natural disasters to punish cities or nations.

Though amazingly this is still clung to (selectively) by a lot of people on FR.

[xp38]

Jesus in the sermon on the mount had already addressed this...

Matthew 5:44-45 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.