Editor's Note from January 21, 2016

Issue 40: The best worst solar storm, hurricanes’ gifts, and a “spiritual Fitbit.” /

‘Fear is the on the other side of the scale from awareness of God,” sociologist Brad Wright says in this issue.

We talked about that line more than what I ended up including in our published interview. The fear we discussed was the kind that comes from relentless news of shootings and bombings and assaults. It can drive us to prayer, but often it’s the kind of prayer that mixes “Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy” with “God, where are you in this?”

There’s another kind of fear that is on the same side of the scale as awareness of God. It’s the kind of awe-and-fear that we see in this issue’s look at solar storms and hurricanes. It’s a fear that reminds us of our smallness. A fear that drives us to prayer, too—not just for protection, but also, strangely, in a kind of gratitude for the experience.

It’s my hope that this issue will make you a little more grateful for those storms. I’m not interested in Panglossian optimism that ignores sorrow and evil. But this magazine is committed to the idea that there’s more goodness in the world than we know. And that should make us deeply aware of the God who is greater than we know.

Thanks for being part of this.

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Also in this Issue

Issue 40 / January 21, 2016
  1. The Week the Sun Reached Out and Touched Us

    The Carrington Flare happened at the last moment humanity could collectively appreciate it. /

  2. Why I Thank God for Hurricanes

    The natural disasters don’t simply destroy life. They make the world a better place. /

  3. Inside the ‘Spiritual Fitbit’

    Can an app measure how close you feel to God? Can it get you closer? /

  4. Snowflake

    “Timing’s everything.” /

  5. Wonder on the Web

    Issue 40: Links to amazing stuff.

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