God is not happy?

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

Big tornadoes with big damages on four of the south states, three of them chose Huckabee.

When there was Katrina, some said that it was a "punishment from God" to punish what USA are becoming...

Hmm, do you think this time "God" wanted to punish states who chose Huckabee?

If yes, why?

Because Huckabee is a bad candidate for "God"?

Or the opposite, did "God", to show what could happen if USA don't choose Huckabee, His candidate, punish His own states, the south ones, which He knows will remain faithfull to Him, "God"?

Or, did "God", to show that we should not care so much about Huckabee and so that we shouldn't put faith in policy, wanted to punish these states?

Other reason for a punishment from "God"?

Some will think: What a joke topic!

Personally I am really far from these "God's" ways of thinking but I respect the faith of the others, sorry if I shocked some.

I just think that reactions to such a topic could be interesting.

Enjoy!

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

Interestingly, I have run into a few fundamentalist christians who have told me that God sent the hurricaine to destroy New Orleans to smite the homosexuals and depraved mardi gras partiers.

Of course, I don't believe that had anything to do with it: it's just normal gyrations of the earth's atmosphere made worse by global warming. 

I also don't give these sorts of "God's explanations" to these sorts of phenomena.

And by this post I also want to ensure the victims of these hurricanes of my respect, with the hope that neither them will be shocked by this topic.

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

Is this thread really necessary? I'm offended actually. I have friends that go to Union University. 7 were hospitalized, and one  is still in ICU.  These are the worst twisters to hit the US in 20 years by the way.

Please, understand the spirit of this topic, there is actually not the slightest offense to the victims of the tornadoes and I give my encouragements for the best to all of them.

Here it is just spoken about the interpretation of such events. As some seriously affirm that this sort of phenomenas are "punishment from God", I think it's good to speak about it and interesting to see the reactions, especially to see if some are able to understand the ironical ton of such or such words. I ironically linked it to the campaign and its recent results cause it happened during "Super Tuesday".

Be sure it is important to me to respect the faith and the damages of the others, and until now, personally, I actually didn't see any offensive or disrespectful reactions to this on this thread, just irony...

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

Interestingly, I have run into a few fundamentalist christians who have told me that God sent the hurricaine to destroy New Orleans to smite the homosexuals and depraved mardi gras partiers.

Of course, I don't believe that had anything to do with it: it's just normal gyrations of the earth's atmosphere made worse by global warming. 

Of course, when it happens to these people they are the first ones with their hands out claiming they are victims.  The sad part is, people like that make up about 1/4 of the Republican Party.

The statistics I have and which often come back doesn't give 1/4 of GOP but more 1/4 of the US population with 70 to 80 millions of "born again evangelicals" for 300 millions of US citizens.

I need to ask her if the fundamentalist churches that were destroyed in the recent tornadoes were a punishment from her God.  My guess is she would say it was a Satanic attack -- or that the people in those churches were not "baptised in the Holy Ghost".

I also expect the argument of the "satanic attack" when peoples who think about such event to be a "punishment from God" are touched by it.

Well, in this way, unluckily, it is impossible to discuss, to argue,  there is just to hope that peoples who go in such convictions don't become a majority.

I have here an other statistic which says that the number of megachurches in the US which was 650 in 2000 has became 1210 in 2005 (data from the Hartford Institute for Religion Research). Such a 5 years progression!

To hope doesn't necessarily means to wait. I think it is really necessary to understand why more and more peoples take such "dark illuminated" full irrational ways and I think it is necessary in the way to try to find alighted solutions to create the best future possible. Wow! What a job for the years to come!

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

Interestingly, I have run into a few fundamentalist christians who have told me that God sent the hurricaine to destroy New Orleans to smite the homosexuals and depraved mardi gras partiers.

Of course, I don't believe that had anything to do with it: it's just normal gyrations of the earth's atmosphere made worse by global warming. 

Of course, when it happens to these people they are the first ones with their hands out claiming they are victims.  The sad part is, people like that make up about 1/4 of the Republican Party.

The statistics I have and which often come back doesn't give 1/4 of GOP but more 1/4 of the US population with 70 to 80 millions of "born again evangelicals" for 300 millions of US citizens.

I need to ask her if the fundamentalist churches that were destroyed in the recent tornadoes were a punishment from her God.  My guess is she would say it was a Satanic attack -- or that the people in those churches were not "baptised in the Holy Ghost".

I also expect the argument of the "satanic attack" when peoples who think about such event to be a "punishment from God" are touched by it.

Well, in this way, unluckily, it is impossible to discuss, to argue,  there is just to hope that peoples who go in such convictions don't become a majority.

I have here an other statistic which says that the number of megachurches in the US which was 650 in 2000 has became 1210 in 2005 (data from the Hartford Institute for Religion Research). Such a 5 years progression!

To hope doesn't necessarily means to wait. I think it is really necessary to understand why more and more peoples take such "dark illuminated" full irrational ways and I think it is necessary in the way to try to find alighted solutions to create the best future possible. Wow! What a job for the years to come!

Not all evangelicals are like this, though, in their defense.

Absolutely correct, Soulty. 

So, let's hope they don't all become like this, I mean taking fully irrational illuminated dark ways.

As I see here a danger for the future around the world, which is their hunting ground, I maintain that it would be a must to understand the cause of this and to find the best solutions to create the best future as possible and I think everyone at his own scale should try to think about it...

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

There are lots of honest Evangelical people.  Most are.  Unfortunately, many (most?) are easily led, molded and pretty submissive to the people they deem leaders. 

But I am very encouraged by "rebel" Evangelicals like Tony Campolo, Rich Cizik, Cal DeWitt, Ron Sider, Brian McClaren, William Willimon, Roberta Hestenes, Stanley Grenz and Rebecca Merrill-Groothuis are starting to get their voices out.  There are already a number of green Evangelical groups.  I wouldn't be surprised to soon see an "Evangelicals for Peace" movement get going.

I agree, I also believe in this "new evangelical wave" (I saw on US TV I can get on the Net, when my computer allow me, that they're called "new breed of evangelicals") and I think this move is very important, I think they will make evangelicals more consensual and spread more and more their move like it. Bush's evangelicals are done, that's past.

On the other hand, according to what I can hear or read here or there, I think there is also a new conservative wave of evangelicals.

I think the future will be a mix of both and I think that will strongly work, in and out the US.

The point on the one I think everyone should worry, or at least should think about, it is the fact that no matter they are conservative or not, evangelicals more or less refuge themselves in emotion and irrational, they follow a sort of charismatic way of life which step by step make dying the thought.

Well, currently, it's still ok, this "new breed of evangelicals" is in the spotlights and try to invent something, everyone can still hope about this. But if ever there are some "world shaking" (big war, economical crisis, else) I expect that a lot of peoples who are already evangelicals, and some who are not, will go further and further in this sort of emotional irrational way of life.

To me, evangelicals are not the cause of such things but the consequence.

To me, the cause is the fact that peoples, around the world, rich or poor, drug themselves by emotions, are lost in the mess that become the current "global society", don't know where all of this go, want the back of some clear rules, want to hope in something, want to full their spiritual dimension, want to explore without borders their irrational part which has been a long time mocked by a "modern rational thought", they are fed up with thinking they want to feel, they want to link themselves with eachothers in joy and happiness, they want to sing together, they want to forget all their problems like it, they want... evangelicals!

And as more and more peoples are like it around the world I think more and more will want evangelicals and I see here something about it would be could to think in the way to prepare the best future as possible. Because if effectively a majority of people take such a way, I let you imagine the face of the society and of the human being...

Hey! They think Jesus will come back and rule all the problems! Why do caring about! Let's believe in Jesus! And more strongly we abandon our mind in Him, more surely he will come back and rule what we are no more able to think about!

Well, to let them take this way, we should be sure that he will come back. As I'm far to think he will, I prefer to wonder about other ways for the future...

With the hope that others know what I want to mean.