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God 'Shook' The Nation of Japan because they are Atheists


SilverKnight

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In a different thread, 44Foxtrot, an atheist poster, criticized the LDS Japan Area leadership for expressing gratitude for the safety of the missionaries in the area.

He was roundly criticized in return by many posters, including myself.

Then I come across this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUsO6LgXqE0

As I watched, I not only felt disgusted at this young woman's barbaric religious fundamentalism.

I also felt regret there are children being indoctrinated by their parents to think like this - maybe even in our own church.

I also felt (momentarily) embarrassed to call myself a theist, a christian, and a mormon.

I see why secularist critics are so eager to excoriate us for having beliefs even remotely similar to this young woman's.

Is it ever okay to suggest God causes natural disasters, even though our own scriptures are replete with such examples?

How do we deal with this type of thinking in our own faith?

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In a different thread, 44Foxtrot, an atheist poster, criticized the LDS Japan Area leadership for expressing gratitude for the safety of the missionaries in the area.

He was roundly criticized in return by many posters, including myself.

Then I come across this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUsO6LgXqE0

As I watched, I not only felt disgusted at this young woman's barbaric religious fundamentalism.

I also felt regret there are children being indoctrinated by their parents to think like this - maybe even in our own church.

I also felt (momentarily) embarrassed to call myself a theist, a christian, and a mormon.

I see why secularist critics are so eager to excoriate us for having beliefs even remotely similar to this young woman's.

Is it ever okay to suggest God causes natural disasters, even though our own scriptures are replete with such examples?

How do we as LDS deal with this type of thinking in our own faith?

Holy Cow!?!?!? If sh'e gonna get back to praying, right now, I'm gonna get the hell outa Dodge!!! :P

Incidentally, the Governor of Tokyo apparenlty made some remarks about the destruction being divine retribution for Japanese egoism. He later apologized.

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Is it ever okay to suggest God causes natural disasters, even though our own scriptures are replete with such examples?

Well God has caused disasters both natural and unnatural in the past, look at Exodus and the plagues of Egypt. Also we know from the Gospel that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have power over nature, so while they may not of directly caused the earthquake and tsunami in Japan they did have to allow it to happen since they have the power over the elements.

Now allowing something is not causing something, and assume in this day and age that any modern nation has no righteous people in it is folly. Remember that when God sent the angels to Sodom and Gomorrah he promised he would not destroy the cities as long as there were at least 10 righteous men there. There is plenty of devout Christians in Japan who suffered during this so God wasn't trying to destroy anyone unless he has double standards.

So the only reasonable explanation is God allowed it because it somehow severs his purposes for mankind, and gives us another sign of the times.

How do we deal with this type of thinking in our own faith?

Love them with the purest love of Christ that we can muster, just like the Savior loves them. We are not here to win a popularity contest with the world, but to help each other become united and be sanctified before God to be ready when the savior returns.

IMO, people that hold such feelings of hate towards there fellow man, are not going to do any harm that already isn't done. If you stop seeking Jesus Christ after seeing this view, I personally you were ever sincerely seeking him in the first place.

Just like everyday people around the world see Americans, doing terrible things to each other and otherwise making general fools of themselves, that doesn't stop anyone that sincerely wants to come to America to gain better opportunities, for continuing to do so.

Yeah, so people on the fence might use this video as an excuse to stop looking for Christ, but I don't see how it can really effect those who are sincerely looking for Christ, IMO.

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This is nothing. Just wait until the Westboro Baptist Church arrives in Japan and starts picketing.

I don't think you will see that, Japan is not the US, they will gladly beat the snot out of the Westboro Baptist Church. People do not have civil liberties in Japan like Americans have in the US. In Japan business have more rights than the average citizen, protest are not welcomed and rarely tolerated for very long.

Protest disturb production and Japan doesn't like it when production suffers.

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I don't think you will see that, Japan is not the US, they will gladly beat the snot out of the Westboro Baptist Church. People do not have civil liberties in Japan like Americans have in the US. In Japan business have more rights than the average citizen, protest are not welcomed and rarely tolerated for very long.

Protest disturb production and Japan doesn't like it when production suffers.

Unfortunately, I must agree with you. Although, it would be nice to see the Westboro Baptist Church go to Japan and try to pull their crap over their. They wouldn't last very long. The Japanese are a very peace loving people, but I think you would see a completely different side if faced with those nutjobs.

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I saw it as an overly exuberant young lady, who might be old enough to vote, without much experience of prayer, imagining that God quickly and powerfully answered her prayers. Such zeal doesn't need to be ruined, but channeled properly with charity and wisdom. God loves her and sees if her joy is based on a desire for death and destruction or whether it is from having her faith affirmed. I suggest it is the latter. Many of us were pretty foolish when we were younger too. Thankfully, we didn't have the internet so as to advertise it around the world! I vote we should cut her a break.

Regards,

3DOP

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I saw it as an overly exuberant young lady, who might be old enough to vote, without much experience of prayer, imagining that God quickly and powerfully answered her prayers. Such zeal doesn't need to be ruined, but channeled properly with charity and wisdom. God loves her and sees if her joy is based on a desire for death and destruction or whether it is from having her faith affirmed. I suggest it is the latter. Many of us were pretty foolish when we were younger too. Thankfully, we didn't have the internet so as to advertise it around the world! I vote we should cut her a break.

Regards,

3DOP

Thanks for sucking all the energy out of the room with all your forgiveness and charity crap! You must think we are all a bunch of Christians. Oh, wait............

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I don't think you will see that, Japan is not the US, they will gladly beat the snot out of the Westboro Baptist Church. People do not have civil liberties in Japan like Americans have in the US. In Japan business have more rights than the average citizen, protest are not welcomed and rarely tolerated for very long.

Protest disturb production and Japan doesn't like it when production suffers.

Au contraire, there is protest aplenty in Japan. In my sojourn in Japan I was witness to more than a few sponsored by business in some case. Secondly, the Japanese are very tolerant of differing opinions.

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Au contraire, there is protest aplenty in Japan. In my sojourn in Japan I was witness to more than a few sponsored by business in some case. Secondly, the Japanese are very tolerant of differing opinions.

I didn't say they were intolerant of differing opinions, I said they don't have the same civil liberties, where one has the right to protest no matter how hate filled the message is.

Now I am a full supporter of WBC being allowed to exercise there 1st Amendment right (and an adamant critic of there message) in the US,but they are a bunch of smart lawyers so they know that outside the US they will not find the same protection to present there message peacefully.

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I saw it as an overly exuberant young lady, who might be old enough to vote, without much experience of prayer, imagining that God quickly and powerfully answered her prayers. Such zeal doesn't need to be ruined, but channeled properly with charity and wisdom. God loves her and sees if her joy is based on a desire for death and destruction or whether it is from having her faith affirmed. I suggest it is the latter. Many of us were pretty foolish when we were younger too. Thankfully, we didn't have the internet so as to advertise it around the world! I vote we should cut her a break.

Regards,

3DOP

Hey 3DOP. :P

Did you see that the girl admitted to being a troll? I wasn't sure if you had noticed that.

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Where's Foxtrot44 to comment on this?

My last post regarding the same subject, and citing Glenn Beck's public rant on the situation in Japan, was apparently responsible for getting the thread to which Silver Knight refers closed down. Besides, from where I stand, I see no need for additional comment on this video. I think the posts so far pretty well cover it.

Thanks to Silver Knight for posting the video and understanding that how things look depends to a large extent on where one stands. On this issue, it is apparently relative distance to the (liberal) left of the video maker's position, with me a greater distance than most here.

And thanks to CQUIRK for asking.

__________________

ETA: Troll or no troll, joke or not, it was a pretty tasteless thing to do.

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Please, please....this isn't right. Our planet is subject to earthquakes and tsunamis and other assorted weather phenomena! God is not doing this to Japan. Stuff happens. We all need to be realistic and understand things happen and rely on God no matter what,

I didn't think it was fair my best friend was killed in the earthquake in Kobe, Japan, years ago but stuff happens and we are given what we are given.

God is here for us to depend on.....our faith in Him will carry us. The planet is the planet, and it is made a certain way, and acts a certain way. That is all there is to it. Hang on and keep the faith!

Blessings,

Blossom

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Hey 3DOP. :P

Did you see that the girl admitted to being a troll? I wasn't sure if you had noticed that.

Oh no. How gullible of me! I think I did hear her referring to the "Lentel" times. Nobody says that. The word is "Lenten". Too bad. That would seem to show a heavy crust of hatred towards religion at least and maybe towards God. I guess I am not the only one who was fooled. It seems more despicable now in a different way.

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My last post regarding the same subject, and citing Glenn Beck's public rant on the situation in Japan, was apparently responsible for getting the thread to which Silver Knight refers closed down. Besides, from where I stand, I see no need for additional comment on this video. I think the posts so far pretty well cover it.

Thanks to Silver Knight for posting the video and understanding that how things look depends to a large extent on where one stands. On this issue, it is apparently relative distance to the (liberal) left of the video maker's position, with me a greater distance than most here.

And thanks to CQUIRK for asking.

__________________

ETA: Troll or no troll, joke or not, it was a pretty tasteless thing to do.

The irony of a troll taken in by a troll is exquisite.

I wonder if foxtrot knows he pretty much looks very much like the same parody. I would say to foxtrot, troll or no troll, joke or not, its a pretty tasteless thing you do.

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Is it ever okay to suggest God causes natural disasters, even though our own scriptures are replete with such examples?

How do we deal with this type of thinking in our own faith?

To answer the question from the heading of this thread. We deal with it through education. This person is woefully ignorant on many levels.

Any way to answer your question here. The only time it is ok is if a prophet does it. And I am not conviced that that alone is justifcation for judgments. Just that one would need to speak for the Lord and the Prophet is the only one right now authorized to do so.

In other news, Easter uh???

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This has already been dealt with in the "News" forum on a thread started by DCP The girl is an immature, attention seeking troll without, obviously, much of a life.

If you are trying to sugest that their aren't christians crazy enough to really believe this kind of crap, I would bet money the Westboro Baptist Church members are in full support of claims like this. As noted by the OP, LDS scriptures are replete with examples of God bringing about events of this nature.

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If you are trying to sugest that their aren't christians crazy enough to really believe this kind of crap, I would bet money the Westboro Baptist Church members are in full support of claims like this. As noted by the OP, LDS scriptures are replete with examples of God bringing about events of this nature.

I think most LDS, and most other Christians, recognize the difference between acknowledging God's hand in the events of the world, and being glad or praising God when other people suffer.

Also-to look at the issue from a different perspective-this idea that bad things can bring about good consequences isn't a purely religious way of seeing the world. I have seen parents with adult children that have in a way been thankful, though very sad, when a child hooked on drugs or alcohol, for example, hits rock bottom and ends up arrested because they hope it will be the catalyst the child needs for change.

I know many anti-religious people don't want to see the issue as at all nuanced but there is a difference between believing or hoping that hard times can bring good consequences in the long run (whether one believes God is behind them or not) and doing what the troll on the video did. One does not automatically equal the other.

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