Judgement Day May 21st 2011

literiter said:
There are about 38,000 versions of christianity, holing up in North America alone. Each version will have a different take on the "rapture". There is hardy a consensus on who or what god is let alone what the rapture is or what the rapture means.

There is a 1/38,000 chance of getting the date right.

Then to really mess things up, there is Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Voodoo etc. to break up the rapture possibility pie even farther.

I think I'll take my chances elsewhere.
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As far as I'm aware, the vast majority of Christian sects are about as convinced of the reality of a 'rapture' as most of the people who have responded to this thread. 'Rapture' seems to be a late 19th century invention, with little or no justification in either Scripture or Holy Writ. I don't recall any mention of it in the Koran either, nor yet in any Hindu or Buddhist holy books I've ever encountered. I don't think it's even in the great Holy Book of the 19th and 20th centuries, Das Kapital.

I suppose that in a sense, one should not denigrate any sincerely held belief, but that leaves me with a problem with communism, let alone with anyone who bases their beliefs on a highly selective reading of widely respected works.

Cheers,

R.
 
Hmm... I thought the Rapture already happened. It was right before the '92 election, and had some awesome graphic design.

1992_Rapture.jpg
 
Greg, gravity has proved itself to be something reliable that I can believe in as fights me up hills and has more than once helped to plant my face on the pavement.:D
gb hill said:
None taken Rob. Mr Camping needs to realize that the bible isn't a math book. Perhaps on May the 22nd he will.;) As for faith you got to have some...you ride a bike!:D
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The Meaness said:
Its not that Camping MIGHT be wrong, or that he has one of many possible views on the rapture. It's that he is wrong, and is disproven by scripture, which he supposedly has used to construct this crazy idea.

1 Thessalonians 5:2 - the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.

Matthew 24:36 - But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

So I guess Camping is smarter than Jesus?

I have read Revelation a few times... I can't seem to find the Biblical symbol that represents an advertising campaign aimed at warning people before things get started...

In all seriousness, though. I understand how overwhelming religion and theology are. There are many viewpoints on eternity, and it's literally impossible to have 'all the answers'. I am a strong advocate though, for searching out those answers. Being open minded about all possibilities, while critical of their application/weaknesses is part of walking a pathway to finding the truth.

Personally, I think the most important thing we can do with this life is figure out what happens after it. Have a great weekend, everyone!
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So: you mean that thieves in the night DON'T put up posters saying "I'm gonna rob your house tonite"?

I'm not sure I agree that "the most important thing we can do with this life is figure out what happens after it". I'd suggest that it's far more important to try to live as good a life as possible, because we know we can help or harm people here on Earth, and everything else is just surmise. Is Allah (the Maltese, Christian word for God as well as the usual Islamic form) going to allow a thoroughly unpleasant Moslem or Christian into paradise, and kick out HH Dalai Lama?

As an aside, I have a problem with the idea of a God without a sense of humour. I already believe that blasphemy is impossible -- a Supreme Being is obviously beyond the reach of earthly insult, so it's only nutjob followers who reckon it does any real harm -- and a logical consequence is that a God who can't take a joke is not much of a God.

Cheers,

R.
 
i am a maddog believer in my Savior, but i gotta say, camping has no idea. he even goes against Jesus' own commandment to not worry period about when He's coming back. Jesus wants His believers to live every day like He's coming, not bank on an all or nothing gamble. sheesh. what a maroon camping is ...
 
paulfish4570 said:
i am a maddog believer in my Savior, but i gotta say, camping has no idea. he even goes against Jesus' own commandment to not worry period about when He's coming back. Jesus wants His believers to live every day like He's coming, not bank on an all or nothing gamble. sheesh. what a maroon camping is ...
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Dear Paul,

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, from memory: "Do each deed as if it were thy last..."

Cheers,

R.
 
One ought to do good deeds even if his or her heart and head are bereft of belief in a deity. Non-belief is no excuse, IMHO, for bad behavior. Regardless of one's beliefs about what comes after or where all this came from (IMHO, to those two questions, respectively, I respond, very humbly, nothing and not a clue), people simply should act right. The moral imperatives espoused in some of those weighty books are good and valuable even if the source may be questioned by some of us. I don't believe in supreme beings, but I also have no qualms about prohibitions against murder, stealing, etc.

Anyway, for those of you who are expecting the rapture this weekend, please FedEx all that nice gear and film you won't be needing, as I fully expect to still be a P.I.A. walking this earth afterward.:D
 
Any good recipes? I like to smash strawberries with single cream, a tiny bit of sugar and possibly a tiny bit of eau de vie, then freeze the mash, stirring frequently.

Cheers,

R.
 
Ice cream? Who's got ice cream? I'll have some! Thanks! The mere existence of something as exquisite as a strawberry is proof of something, I'm not sure what. But, they are divine.
 
robklurfield said:
One ought to do good deeds even if his or her heart and head are bereft of belief in a deity. Non-belief is no excuse, IMHO, for bad behavior. Regardless of one's beliefs about what comes after or where all this came from (IMHO, to those two questions, respectively, I respond, very humbly, nothing and not a clue), people simply should act right. The moral imperatives espoused in some of those weighty books are good and valuable even if the source may be questioned by some of us. I don't believe in supreme beings, but I also have no qualms about prohibitions against murder, stealing, etc.

Anyway, for those of you who are expecting the rapture this weekend, please FedEx all that nice gear and film you won't be needing, as I fully expect to still be a P.I.A. walking this earth afterward.:D
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This is back to the argument that even if our worst enemy, or the biggest fool on earth, says the sky is blue, it doesn't stop the sky being blue. As HH Dalai Lama pointed out, religion is the consequence of universal responsibility and the good heart, not its origin.

I had doubts about posting the original question, but it seemed to me that it was so much in the tradition of "I am going to ________, what camera(s) should I take?" that I couldn't resist: I was quite careful how I framed it, so that at worst it would offend only those few who actually believe that there will be a one-off Rapture tomorrow. My favourite post so far was the Circle of Hell reserved for minilab operators, with their green and magenta skins.

Cheers,

R.
 
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