Warning: Undefined variable $num in /home/shroutdo/public_html/courses/wp-content/plugins/single-categories/single_categories.php on line 126
Warning: Undefined variable $posts_num in /home/shroutdo/public_html/courses/wp-content/plugins/single-categories/single_categories.php on line 127
It is truly interesting to see how differently people can react to the same event. Some considered the fire as punishment from God as a reminder for the people of Chicago to restore its holiness, as well as serving as a warning for its neighboring cities. The fire was a gift that God was giving them to start over, to be “a spiritually reborn chosen people who had a covenant with God” (135). Not all agreed with this idea, but Smith summarizes by claiming that Chicago after the fire “was a community of valiant citizens who in this worst of times discovered the best in themselves” (136). The people were optimistic about the future that was to come, the city they were given a chance to rebuild to even greater greatness than that of before. However, in the midst of the optimism and cheer that was spreading through Chicago, there was another side of Chicago that was marked with the negativity. As in times of disaster, the good may be really good, but it doesn’t eliminate the bad that is always happening. Smith retells the accounts of household goods being stolen by trusted servants, once-sober men now guzzling “like veteran soakers” (151). These two opposing reactions to the fire are what most likely is refered to in the title of this section, “Faith and Doubt”. One side turned to their faith in God, believing that He would provide for them given that they repent and restore their holiness. The faithful vow to rebuild the city to its great potential to live even better lives than they had before, putting their faith in God. However, those who do not have faith are doubtful, and turn to “unholy” acts such as stealing and drinking, because they are doubtful that their futures will hold anything of worth.
This reminded me of the argument of “natural vs. unnatural”, not about the environment and how humans impact nature, but the how humans respond to these natural or unnatural events. Ramsescastillo03 wrote about one of the historians first encounter with the city, one fearing the unnatural and man-made aspect of the city to loving the city “for what it is and the full potential it has”. Likewise, those with faith are looking forward to the full potential that Chicago has in rebuilding, and those with doubt are stuck in fear.