Jesus is coming: Evangelical thinks Japan quake is a sign of the ‘second coming’

WELL NOW.....

Have I made sure to anger EVERYONE YET?

More coming so stay tuned....

I tried to make sure I nabbed everyone at least once for this catastrophe of a discussion


First of all..... THIS FORUM IS NOT FOR RELIGIOUS PROSELYTIZING

You are not going to be allowed to "SAVE" people by foisting your perceptions of spirituality on others... it simply brings out the juvenile nonsense which is NOT part of our community.

Most of you should be well aware that you do not attack any member, any poster, or the OP for what they are...

It may appear cool to have some people agree that your words are on point about something, but if that point is not related to the discussion... it will stop.

Also, what some of you are joyously calling 'censorship' is actually moderating a discussion which you apparently can't grasp beyond your repulsion of religious concepts... call it what you may, but do so amongst yourselves, there are many fantasies of which the world is guilty of embracing... religions are just one... if it infuriates you so much, explain how that pertains to the OP... not your personal biases!

Can we remain on topic? We shall see.

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This thread is temporarily closed until we learn how to post like adults.

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This thread will now be reopened.

However, post wisely. Remember that courtesy is mandatory in order to facilitate discussion. Any further off topic posts or posts that attack your fellow members will result in the post's removal, point fines, and a suspension of your posting privileges.

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Religious people have claimed the "end is near" for thousands of years....their track record for being right is abysmal

And funny enough, it's always to happen "soon (TM)".

Yes, the catastrophe in Japan was bad, but science totally explains it. We KNOW what caused the earthquake, namely plate tectonics. Not sure why some religious people believe it was god, the only explanation I can come up with is a lack of proper education.

When the earthquake in Haiti happened, the very same lunatics said god punished the heretics. And what about the tsunami in the Indian ocean? Or thousands of people dying in Africa every single day?

Those people need to get some proper science education as comments like that make them look kinda silly.

On a sidenote, they also believe Harry Potter is an "enemy of god"...so honestly, I wouldn't give what they say too much respect



Those people need to WAKE UP and realize we're living in the 21st century and not the middle ages anymore...

reply to post by MrXYZ


I absolutely agree. For centuries we have been "living in end times" according to most apocalyptic religions. I suppose the horrors and tragedies seized to be considered 'harbingers' of the end offer a small comfort to those who need some sense of legitimacy to their faiths.

But; if we were to accept that religious mysticism and prophecy are legitimate phenomenon, then at some point we must recognize that just because an even is associated with prophecy doesn't mean it is going to be 'magical' and 'inexplicable' either.'

I suppose this is the sound of one religion calling for renewed faith - or else. It's a very old paradigm.... sadly, it still seem to work for those inclined to be fearful. For others it just raises angst and confrontation.

Isolating Japans tragedy as a sign of religious prophecy will have its measurable effect in those already convinced of the validity of the prophecy... but I fear the "Sinners Repent!" sloganeering has lost its punch in the new millennium.

The Rev. Franklin Graham, is stating his belief and is entitled to do as such. I do not think it is fear mongering if you study the Bible and the signs of the End Times. You may disagree with me/him but in the context and belief of what he was saying then I would agree with his assesment. Jesus will be returning soon. Of course many will disagree and that is the beauty of having free will and opinions.
Peace

Originally posted by RedSongbird777
The Rev. Franklin Graham, is stating his belief and is entitled to do as such. I do not think it is fear mongering if you study the Bible and the signs of the End Times. You may disagree with me/him but in the context and belief of what he was saying then I would agree with his assesment. Jesus will be returning soon. Of course many will disagree and that is the beauty of having free will and opinions.
Peace

Of course he's allowed to say whatever he wants, it's a free country...but that doesn't make it any less silly and obvious that he's lacking a proper science education. Plate tectonics caused the earthquake, and that's common knowledge.

Not surprised he's trying to push his faith on the backs of those victims though. Others have made similar ridiculous statements, like O'Reilly who claimed god is responsible for the tide, and that science can't explain it

After looking at Matthew 24 along with Luke 21 I would have to say it's a good possibility. Referring to the fig tree prophecy I interpret the generation mentioned as the lifetime of the generation being born at the time of the first end time event. And the rebirth of a nation called Israel in 1948 fits the description of a end time event. It was a fig leaf of the tree.

So based on that the "generation" of the fig tree prophecy would be 63 years old in May. And Psalms 90-10 defines a lifespan at 70 to 80 years. Meaning that this apocalypse event has only 17 years left in it max. But it could be less.

So according to Luke 21 events such as what happened in Japan would start occurring about now. Which leaves the question "Is Luke 21-24 fulfilled in the eyes of God?"

24 And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;
26 Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
27 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
28 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.

Is the times of the Gentiles........Over????

reply to post by ntech

Is the times of the Gentiles........Over????

Plate tectonics

I am just wondering why people think jesus is returning soon if at all? surely if he wanted to sort us all out, he would have done so a long time ago. if your way of thinking is that because the world is in a poor state at present with earthquakes and conflict, surely he would have been better coming during the first world war where around 50 million people died. A lot is going on right now, and ok we do have more technology than we used to and are more than capable of wiping out every living thing on the planet should it get that far, do you not think if he was coming at all he would have done so already, as the current world is not as bad as it has been? Yes people are dying on a massive scale, but in all fairness, this is not a new thing. I suppose on the other hand maybe he has left it too late? but if not what possible signs are people seeing, that have not been present for hundreds if not thousands of years, that make you so sure he is coming now? Personally i am not seeing anything new. earthquakes worldwide, but on fault lines. and wars that have been going on for years on some scale or another. I dont see anything different.

I'm coming to this thread fairly late and haven't yet had the honor of having a post removed. Oh well, it gives me something to look forward to.
More so than most threads, this one has me confused. I read the story and watched the 6 1/2 minute video it referred to. I wish I could see what ATSers had written about it, but the responses seem to have had very little to do with the source.

Graham is asked twice if he thinks the earthquake was a sign of the second coming, and both times he said he didn't know (starting at about 2:30 of the video). Who can object to that?
Nowhere in the video does Graham support the OP headline "evangelical-thinks-japan-quake-is-a-sign-of-the-second-coming"

“I believe that there is an evil form, there is a devil, and that day, the devil was trying to use the winds and the waves to kill Jesus Christ,” Graham said.

The video makes it clear that Graham was talking about the day when Jesus was in the boat with His disciples and a storm came up that almost swamped the boat. The quote has nothing to do with either Japan or earthquakes.

“Every time there’s a storm in life, I don’t think it’s always God behind it.”

There is nothing unreasonable about that statement either.

I used to be a believer, but religious fear mongering and hyperbole has driven me from the fold. Rev. Franklin probably is getting on the same bus as Robertson and Falwel; pity because I really used to like and listen to his old man.

Do you believe that Graham was fear mongering or using hyperbole? I see no supprt for that position. Could you explain?

Assuming it is permissible to use the Japan event as a hallmark sentinel indicator of the end times, I find it difficult to overcome my (perhaps incorrect) understanding about something.

According to Christian dogmata; NO ONE WILL KNOW when the Christ will return; the idea being that "He will come as a thief in the night" (presumably meaning undetected and otherwise hidden.)

Yet the scriptures appear to include all sorts of hints and signs, and seems to encourage the blasphemy of presumption that the faithful could somehow deduce the mind of God on the matter.

It seems contradictory to me. But as the least of God's children, I don't anticipate much success in figuring out something that has been for-ordained to be a mystery. Is it wrong to pursue it? To try to void the whole "thief in the night" thing, by assuming that human wisdom can overcome it?

Or can this simply be a social construct to encourage the faithful to remain faithful at all times?....because you never know.....

Originally posted by Benevolent Heretic
Every generations' evangelicals think that the stuff that happens in their lifetime is a sure sign of the 'second coming'. People have professed that he was coming ever since he died... They claimed "the final hour" in the bible!

According to historian Charles Freeman, Early Christians expected Jesus to return within a generation of his death. When the second coming did not occur, the early Christian communities were thrown into turmoil.[11]

Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour.
—1 John 2:18

Source

Interestingly enough this seems to stem from a belief in Universal Justice...

When one understands that Chaos has no preference of time, or people, then it moves from the grandiose of cosmic auspiciousness to a simple "# Happens"

reply to post by MrXYZ


This is an extremely old video... I wonder if these people even exist today.

I see a lot of fear in this thread. Well it smells like fear anyway.
I wonder, if some of you have even noticed, the world did just end, for an untold number of people in Japan.
The ocean practically swallowed the whole country. Witnessing that tsuenami would make you wonder if the
whole land mass was going under? If we havn't yet reached the point, that even non believers are beginning to sit up and take notice. And understand that something is coming upon the earth. Then I think they need to pull their heads out and stay tuned. It's going to get worse. When it does, I imagine they'll tremble behind their facades.
But won't give'em up even tho everyone will be able to see right thru.

Last summe,r any number of people remarked, how the BP oil spill, looked like blood in the waters. Just normal everyday people. Not subscribing to Chritianity or atheism. I noticed it and I'm sure many others did too. But when the question was posed to certain people. It was," oh no I don't think it looks like blood in the water". Seemed awfully funny at the time. I guess my point is, their will be those who won't believe their eyes.
But it won't matter. Gods word will come to pass.

Evangelicals perceive every catastrophe as a sign of end times.