Lincoln thought that the bloodshed of the Civil War might have been God’s judgment for the sin of slavery. Others have interpreted national catastrophes, financial collapses, and foreign wars as judgments of God.44 It is impossible to know for certain whether they are, but the idea that God might mitigate the effects of sin by curbing evils through violent or catastrophic means certainly accords well with the biblical record. But Christian Right activists are mistaken to think that the passage of