Can We See the Invisible Mind of God?

The Chicago Social Brain Network

Shortly after taking off from LaGuardia Airport in the dead of winter, the engines of US Airways Flight 1549 failed after inhaling several large geese. The pilots glided their plane onto the Hudson River, where all the passengers were rescued—cold, wet, and almost completely unharmed. Explained one passenger, “God was certainly looking out for us.” New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin offered a very different assessment of God’s mind following the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina when he explained, “Surely God is mad at America. Surely he’s not approving of us being in Iraq under false pretense. But surely he’s upset at Black America, too.”

Depending on your own beliefs, such ...