In the law, a mitigant - or a mitigating circumstance - is a factor which reduces the severity of a crime or penalty. It becomes not an excuse, nor a justification, for the ill circumstance befallen the injured but serves to explain why a fate might have resulted, or a penalty incurred, especially in light of no known criminal record or blackard sin resulting from the afore sufferers experience of mitigating factors resulting in oppression, injury or death.
The Tower of Siloam (Lk 13.1-11)13.1 There were present at that season some that told Jesus of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.2 And Jesus answering said unto them, "Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they had suffered such things?"3 I tell you, "Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."4 Of those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and had died, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?
5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
6 He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none.
7 Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground?
8 And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it:
9 And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.
10 And Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.
1) Suffering is proportional to sinfulness.2) Tragedy is a sure sign of God’s judgment.3) Bad things happen only to bad people.4) We have the right to make such judgments.
1) Suffering is NOT proportional to sinfulness;2) Tragedy is NOT a sure sign of God's judgment;3) Bad things DO NOT happen only to bad people; and,4) We DO NOT have the right to cast such judgments upon others.
Does God determine the course of every life force on earth? Does God command all futures and calamities, all blessings and fortunes, including our deaths?
- Life and death,
- Fortune and fate,
- Who is saved and who is not.
- It risks making God arbitrary or cruel.
- It undermines human freedom and responsibility.
- It offers little comfort in suffering except “God willed it.”
- No, God does not determine fate or death.
- Yes, God is present in every moment—but not as controller.
- God offers possibilities, not guarantees.
- Every event is shaped by past actualities, human decisions, and divine persuasion.
- Death is real—not part of a secret plan; but must be considered as a living process in which all life-forces participate.
- God suffers with us, and holds every life in loving memory.
- It is not because God chose it.
- But God is there in the grief, the echoes, the transformations that ripple outward.
- And that is why “the bridge is love”—not control.
Instead, God invites, lures, offers the best possible outcomes given all conditions. Why? Because the world is a real space for real living. Living that can be free, relational, and very fragile. Accidents happen. Choices matter. Structures fail. But to say “God chose it” is to rob the world of its agency and God of divine compassion.
God is the cosmic rememberer - holding even death tenderly. But God is more: God becomes the source of transformation. In grief, we may love more deeply. In loss, new connections may arise. In sorrow, beauty may emerge - not as compensation, but as creative consequence. God is not the one who prevents the fall, but the one who walks with those left behind, guiding what comes next.
Love, in process thought, is the coherence of becoming: It’s what binds events together across time. It’s what lingers, deepens, and carries forward. It’s the energy of divine relationality, not divine sovereignty. Control says: This happened because I willed it. Love says: This happened, and I will be with you through it all.