From a friend:

“Austin Farrer said of the 1755 Lisbon earthquake that God’s will was “that the elements of the earth’s crust should behave in accordance with their nature”. God has given them freedom to be, just as he has given us freedom to be. By maintaining the integrity of the physical laws that govern nature, God enables us to predict the moral consequences of our actions. If he does choose to intervene (or interact), such instances are intended to provide ‘glimpses of transcendence’ and are infused with contextual and theological meaning. They are signposts which point beyond themselves, but do not in themselves guarantee deliverance from all suffering. Such glimpses are dispensed at God’s discretion, and occur with enough frequency to encourage those with an open mind and an open heart, but are sufficiently rare so as to not forcibly compel those who hearts are closed.”

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