Yesterday I read as the governor of Tokyo apologized on Tuesday for saying the earthquake and resulting tsunami that left thousands dead were divine punishment for Japanese egoism.

“I will take back (the remark) and offer a deep apology,” Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara said at a Tuesday news conference, according to Japan’s Kyodo News.

On Monday, Ishihara had told reporters, “I think (the disaster) is tembatsu (divine punishment), although I feel sorry for disaster victims.”

After reading that on CNN.com I thought of a passage in the Bible:

There were present at that season some who told Him of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, “Suppose ye that these Galileans were sinners above all the other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, nay; but unless ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen upon whom the tower of Siloam fell and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all other men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, nay; but unless ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish” (Luke 13:1-5).

It is true that we are told that in the latter days many calamities and destructions will visit this planet and its inhabitants, but as the previous scripture reminds us, the people who lost their lives or their possessions were not “sinners above all the others”. Our duty is to help, not to judge.

It is impossible to know, and useless to speculate, whether a specific calamity is a natural consequence of the way our imperfect physical world operates, or whether is the consequence of our sins.

Everything is imperfect in this world,  and those calamities may serve as a reminder to all of us that this world will not last forever, and that we should not spend all of our time and efforts on what has no eternal value, but that we should focus on what really matters.

Follows a video about what the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church) is doing and plans to do to offer relief in Japan

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not only involved in preaching the Gospel according to its doctrine but it also provides relief and development projects for humanitarian purposes in countries all over the world. Projects operate without regard to the nationality or religion of the recipients.

Humanitarian service may include emergency response to natural disasters, such as an earthquake or a tsunami, or man-made disasters, such as the effects of war and famine. It may also be part of a longer-term effort to meet serious and more entrenched human needs, such as the need to alleviate disease.

This is a video about what Mormons do to the world