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 A man pauses at a memorial of crosses near the movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, the scene of last week's mass shooting.
July 26th, 2012
02:49 PM ET
My Take: CNN readers' 7 answers to 'Where was God in Aurora?'
By Stephen Prothero, Special to CNN Over the last few days, CNN’s Belief Blog has received more than 10,000 responses to its question, “Where was God in Aurora?” The underlying concern here has vexed theologians for centuries: How can evil happen in a world that is lorded over by a good and all-powerful God? As CNN's readers struggled to make sense of God's presence (or absence) in the Aurora, Colorado, massacre, I counted seven different answers to this question: 1. There is no God. Self-professed atheists may make up only 2% of the U.S. population, but they are extraordinarily active online, and on CNN's Belief Blog. A commenter who identified as Jason spoke for them when he wrote, “Where was God? He was where he has always been. Nowhere because God does not exist.” Bob Dobbs agreed: “God is imaginary. The question is moot.” Many in this camp also quoted the ancient Greek philosopher (and skeptic) Epicurus:
2. Don’t blame God, blame Satan. Many theists on the site described the world as a battleground between God, who is working for good, and Satan, who is working for evil. “As long as Satan is loose to promote evil, bad things will happen to good people,” wrote kat. 3. Don’t blame God, blame us. Probably the most common response from Christian commenters was that evil is a result of free will. Do we really want to be “puppets” or “robots"? Of course not. So God has given us the will to choose either evil or good. Watch: Survivor of massacre says he forgives gunman Believer summed up this position well:
Here Deborah also chimed in: “This act of violence was not God's will. I get so tried of people blaming God for evil acts. Humans of their own free will do evil things.” 4. God was behind the massacre, and it was just. Some believers saw God’s righteous hand in the Aurora massacre, inflicting a just punishment on a wayward nation now run by secular liberals rather than conservative Christians. Lenny wrote:
Read: The man who made Aurora’s iconic crosses Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, took a similar tack in an appearance on the Heritage Foundation's "Istook Live" radio show, laying the blame at the feet of a nation that has turned away from its God:
5. God was present at the massacre but with the victims, not the perpetrator One classic claim in the Abrahamic tradition of Jews, Christians and Muslims is that God is with those who suffer - the poor and the oppressed. Some commenters saw God’s miraculous hand in the midst of this suffering, not causing it to happen but bringing it to an end. “This may sound crazy,” wrote Diana, “but I believe God had a hand in that the gun jammed so that more people weren’t killed.” CNN’s Belief Blog: The faith angles behind the biggest stories The most common claim in this category came from peacemaker, who wrote, “God is and was with the victims and s/he is weeping.” In a more explicitly Christian vein, Lauren wrote: “He was there in the theater, pierced by bullets with the victims. He was scarred by the shrapnel. His eyes were scorched with gas and then burned with tears as He mourned alongside the broken.” 6. Which God? Some commenters interrogated the question itself, arguing that the knots it twists us into are rooted in what commenter Ego_Death called “a false idea of what God is.” After all, the problem of evil in a world ruled by a sovereign and good God only presents itself if you posit one personal God who is both good and all-powerful. Follow the CNN Belief Blog on Twitter Referring to "our idea of a human-like personal God" as "an ancient myth," Northstar56 wrote:
Evoking something more akin to the “watchmaker” God of the deists, who makes the world and its laws and then refuses to intervene in its operation, Norm wrote: “God is not involved in our everyday mundane activities. How arrogant of man to think he’s the center of the universe and has God’s constant attention and every action is ‘God’s will.’” Taking a different tack, "varun" invoked the teachings of the beloved Hindu scripture the Bhagavad Gita:
7. Who knows? It’s a mystery Agnosticism is a rare virtue in the United States nowadays, but there were a few commenters who admitted to something less than the absolute certainty exhibited by atheists and evangelicals alike. "The answer," wrote Terry, "is we don't know where he was." Fluffy the Gerbil of Doom saw this "God works in mysterious ways" move as “ultimate cop-out/rationalization,” but I am not so sure. In September 1862, in the midst of a much greater American tragedy, Abraham Lincoln wrote a private “Meditation on the Divine Will” in which he struggled to make sense of what God was doing in the Civil War. He later reworked those reflections into his second inaugural address, one of the greatest speeches in American history. Surveying the corpse-ridden landscape of North and South, Lincoln observed, “Both read the same Bible, and pray to the same God; and each invokes His aid against the other.” Clearly there was little good in slavery, he reasoned, yet equally clearly God was not giving a swift and sure victory to the Union. So what was God up to? In the end, Lincoln had to admit he did not know. Or, as he put it, “The Almighty has His own purposes.” I suppose this is in a sense a “cop-out,” but it is a humble one, uninfected by the absolute certainties (either pro- or anti-God) that have shed more blood on earth than agnosticism ever will. It is also a classic example of answering a question with a question: What is God doing with this war? Who knows? “Josephpusateri” also answered our question with a question. His comment was in my view the best of the hundreds I read, so I will end with it here:
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Stephen Prothero. soundoff (4,074 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 Next »
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Editor's Note: Stephen Prothero, a Boston University religion scholar and author of 
"Where was God in Aurora?'
I wonder of the response if God asked all movie-goers: "When's the last time you visited my church?" It makes you wonder...
"It makes you wonder."
No, it doesn't, unless you're delusional.
Atheists do not loose a chance to futily attempt to make a point against God's existence, since they cannot answer the fundamental question: HOW DID THE INFINITE COME OUT OF NOTHING AND NOWHERE? GOD IS THE INFINITE AHEISTS, THE INFINITE ENERGY, INTELLIGENCE AND MATTER. EXISTENCES AND OBJECTS FORM FROM THE INFINITE AND DISOLVE BACK TO THE INFINITE. THE INFINITE ENCOMPASSES ALL EXISTENCES AND EVERY CONCEPT AND IS INFINITE FROM EVERY PERSPECTIVE. THAT IS WHY IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN, IS AND WILL BE. All existences, exist to serve a purpose within the Infinite, according to their ability and level of responsibility. Because they are part of the Infinite and because the Infinite is not a limited mechanical existence, all existences have free will.Existences to exist must have self-interest. Because of their self interest and limited existence they want to make the best out of said their existence and sometimes become "selfish." They want to separate themselves from the Infinite. Hence negativity ( negative effect on the existence of other's , "evil" ) is formed ( goo or evil – emerging properties of free will ). Life is a learning experience and a test. According to how well existences do they either achieve a higher or lower level of existence, or disperse within the Infinite ( are being recycled ). "Good" existences ( those which follow the directions of the Infinite and do their duty according to their level of responsibility, and "Evil" existences ( those who rebel, separate themselves from God, contrast each other, through out the Infinite.
Where was the Infinite/God during the Aurora incident? God is within every infinite minute particle of everything. Where were the security guards, after the door opened, and why did not an alarm alerted any guards to arrive at the open door with THEIR guns drown? If the "evil" existences managed to win this round, because the theater enterprise was cutting corners and for whatever other reason, such as that maybe the perpetrator was on psychedelic medication by who knows what age and for what reason, and was playing video games with center theme to shoot, slice and k!!i-ll, WHY IS THAT GOD'S FAULT, AND HOW DOES IT PROVE ANYTHING OTHER THAN THAT THERE IS A CONSTANT BATTLE BETWEEN GOOD, SENSIBLE, LOGICAL, ORDERLY AGAINST EVIL, INSANE, REBELIOUS, DISORDERLY, HOW DOES THE AURORA INCIDENT PROVE THAT GOD DOES NOT EXIST, SINCE OUT OF NOTHING NOTHING HAPPENS, AND NOTHING CAN BE DISTROYED INTO OR FROM NOTHING?
WHY DID NOT GOD INTERVENE THE WAY WE HUMANS WANTED GOD TO INTERVENE? BECAUSE THE INFINITE/GOD IN GOD'S INFINITE WISDOM, DECIDED NOT TO DO SO. HOW COULD WE WITH OUR FINITE MINDS UNDERSTAND ANYTHING OUTSIDE OUR REALM, SPECTRUM OF UNDERSTANDING ANYWAY?
You're an idiot dude!!
I'd rather believe in Santa just incase Santa brings me something for Christmas.
That's your logic?
You have no proof whatsoever that god exist. And your logic to believe in something just incase you can get something out of, shows just how self centered you are. The universe is not "all about you"! Sorry to burst your bubble!!
One more thing... I cant prove that there is a god, and neither can you. just as you or I cant prove that there are no unicorns! However your bible has been proven to be false. Its not "the word of god". But simply another fictional book written by men.
Tom, where is your proof there is not one? Is there not a religion that stands up to these standards?
Considering that you can't even figure out the "reply" function, dear, this will likely go right over your head. One can't prove a negative. I can't prove that leprechauns don't exist.
However, I never claimed they did. You, on the other hand, have claimed that a god exists. The onus is on you to prove your claim. It's not on me to prove mine, since I never made one.
Reasonable, care not for Tom's wild accusations bout things over your head. He can't ven handle the simple double negative construct, for which see his pitiful comments below.
I love it when special ed kids try to pretend they understand concepts.
It's cute.
You believe in the Easter bunny, and I can't proved there isn't one!!
So clearly we should all believe in the Easter bunny, cuz we might get a chocolate egg!! 😛
Whether or not God exists cannot be proven until atheists give me undeniable, unalienable proof that he does not, and people give me unalienable undeniable proof that he does. Bunch of fools here, arguing over a foolish article that was written in wake of a tragedy. For shame
I believe this sums up my views perfectly. “I would rather live my life as if there is a God and die to find out there isn't, than live my life as if there isn't and die to find out there is.” Albert Camus. True Christians don't have pastors/priests raping little children. True Christians don't speak of love in the church then go support the war effort the next second or say "god is on your side" True Christians don't claim every natural disaster or horrific tragedy is "an act from god". True Christians don't act hateful torwards others who are not of their religious or moral standpoint. True Christians don't say god is a loving creator yet next second say you're going to hell for not joining their church. True Christians strive to respect everyone, regardless of racial and national backgrounds. True Christians do not get involved in politics. Now, with this information, who would you say are true Christians? And I'm not forcing my beliefs on anyone, atheists or otherwise. If you don't believe in God, fine. If you wanna call Jehovah/Yaheweh/God a fantasy or adult fairy tale, fine by me. This is a world full of many opinions, and I am accepting to them all :). At the end of the day, as the quote says, you have your beliefs, and I have mine.
There is no such thing as a "true Christian".
Well said – I love the quote.
The word of God found in the King James Bible states that God is always present! God is always there, giving us signs, hints, reminders but the question is do we listen? However, He also gives everyone free will. Humans make the mistake of assuming that we live in a perfect world but we don't. Remember when we listen to that still small voice that's says warns us ahead of time or tells us to wait or even go...its always important that we listen. Remember God will only speak what is right and good not evil or bad so just listen!!!
THE REASON WHY WE AS PEOPLE ARE GOING THRU THESE SITUATIONS GOES ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE BEGIN OF THE WORLD WHEN GOD CREATED ADAM AND EVE (GENESIS 1:27) AND HE PLANTED A GARDEN OF EDEN. HE TOLD THEM THAT THEY COULD EAT EVERYTHING IN THE GARDEN EXCEPT OF THE TREE OF LIFE, THE TREE OF GOOD AND EVIL.(GENESIS CHAPTER 2 AND 3. DID THEY OBEY GOD? NO, BECAUSE SATAN THE DEVIL TEMPTED THEM AND TOLD THEM NOT TO LISTEN TO GOD BECAUSE THEY WOULD BECOME WISES AND WOULD NOT DIE. "WRONG" THAT IS WHY THE WORLD IS IN THE SHAPE THAT ITS IN BECAUSE WE DON'T WONT TO READ OUR BIBLE AND DO WHAT IT TELLS US TO DO. JESUS IS "THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE. JESUS IS GOOD AND SATAN IS EVIL. HE HATES GOD AND HE KNOWS THAT HIS TIME IS COMMING TO A CLOSE. READ THE WORD OF GOD, IT"S IN THE BIBLE. WHO DO YOU THINK CREATED THIS WORLD? DON'T BELIEVE IN THAT "BANG THEORY". HE IS ALPHA AND OMEGA, THE BEGINNING AND THE END. HE KNEW YOU BEFORE HE FORMED YOU IN YOUR MOTHER'S WOMB. DON'T BE STUPID, AND IN UP IN HELL WITH SATAN AND HIS FALLEN ANGELS. JESUS IS ON HIS WAY BACK TO GET HIS BRIDE, WHICH IS THE CHURCH OF GOD. I PRAY FOR YOU WHO NEED TO BE SAVED. SALVATIONS ONLY COMES THRU HIM. THAT IS WHY HE CAME FROM HEAVEN TO EARTH TO DIE ON THE CROSS FOR OUR SINS. REPENT, REPENT, REPENT OF YOUR SINS. BEHOLD NOW IS THE DAY OF SALVATION BECAUSE TOMORROW IS NOT PROMISE TO NO ONE. PRAISE THE LORD, THANK YOU JESUS, BECAUSE WE AS CHRISTIANS ARE GETTING READY TO GO HOME TO BE WITH THE LORD FOR ALL ETERNITY WHERE THERE WILL BE NO MORE EVIL, SICKNESS OR DEATH. WE WILL FOREVER BE WITH THE LORD. THE RAPTURE IS ALMOST HERE. I'M GOING TO BE CAUGHT WITH THE REST OF GOD'S CHILDREN. I HOPE YOU READ THE WORD OF GOD AND DON'T BE A FOOL. FOR A FOOL HAS SAID IN HIS HEART THAT THERE IS NO GOD. DON'T BE LEFT BEHIND. GO AND RENT THE MOVIE CALLED 'LEFT BEHIND", ALL THE ANSWERS THAT YOU NEED IS IN THE WORD OF GOD. GET YOU A BIBLE, IT'S IN THE BIBLE, BASIC INSTRUCTION BEFORE LEAVING EARTH.
@LOLA VERRETT
http://theoatmeal.com/pl/minor_differences/capslock
Don't you mean all the way back when we were monkies. Its been proven.
As for your other comment....that's your OPINION. You have NO proof there is a god.
Where was God in the Aurora Massacre? He was the same place He was when His only begotten Son, Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was brutally crucified and while hanging on the cross cried "My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?" Some questions just don't have an answer.
What is your take on situations like those detailed in the movie "End of the Spear"? It is a true story about five missionaries that were martyred in Ecuador – killed by a violent tribe known as the Wanoni. These men knew the risk and were willing to take it – it's interesting that the tribesmen who murdered them shared years later that as they were watching them die they witnessed a supernatural experience involving what sounds like an angelic host – bright shining light, white clothing and singing. It scared the hooties out of them to say the least – they didn't know how to explain it and it troubled them. They had no contact with the world, knew nothing of the Bible, angels, or Christ/God, so there was no potential for the power of suggestion here – they had never encountered anything like this before in their tribal culture. Two years later when the sister of one of the men killed and the wife of another returned to this tribe and ministered to them during a disease outbreak the tribe was introduced to Christ and the violence stopped. I'm sorry but I can't just write that off as a coincidence – that sounds more like denial.
god is good all the time
Lincoln struggled to make sense of what God was doing in the civil war? It's not that hard to understand. God gives to men choices. Lincoln chose to use deadly force to subjugate the South, with the attendant murders of hundreds of thousands. Lincoln is responsible for those murders. He finally got what he deserved on earth, only four years too late.
Just how stupid are you? Pretty stupid it sounds like.
Smart enough to put substance in my post, rather than merely hurling grade school level insults.
You're not smart enough to figure out how to tie your shoes, SciClops.
I'll bet you still fly the Stars and Bars, you moron.
That's what you define as "substance"......oh dear.
Tom, I'd not be surprised if you don't even know what the Stars and Bars is.
Well, Tom, if I were going to fly the CSA flag, I'd know enough to fly the third one, which was the last one and the most beautiful of the three. I would be proud to fly it since it is the last one to wave in this country that stands for the right of people to freely choose their form of govt, unlike the current rag, that symbolizes authoritarian subjugation.
I'd expect nothing more from a fvckin' redneck like you, you ignorant moron.
Get over it. You lost the war.
And SciClops, see if you can figure out how double negatives work, you friggin' idiot. No wonder the South lost. It was populated by uneducated dolts then and nothing has changed.
Evidently, Tom, you qualify as the moron, for my double negative is correct as it stands. I'm sure you can figure it out if you study it long enough. We' ll wait for your catch up.
Come on Tom, given enough time, I suspect even your pea-brain mind can work out the double negative. Let us know when you finally get it, you dimwitted numbskull.
Funny that you needed a double post to defend your error, Sci Klops.
My gosh, are you this impotent in bed, too?
The error was yours, Tom, as any intelligent reader knows. Weak attempt to turn it around, you pitiful ignorant specimen of a human being.
Methinks thou doth protest too much, little boy.
Hey, if it makes you feel better to pretend, go for it, sweetie!
I'll explain it to you. I am correct. I am at all times at least anatomically correct. More than all you azzhole logicians and common idiots can claim.
SciGuy, you may want to re-visit your post before denouncing someone else. Here it is:
Tom, I'd not be surprised if you don't even know what the Stars and Bars is.
_______
Care to explain how it was mis-interpreted?
Haha, Tom, I have no doubt that you think you think, but as even a semi-literate reader can tell, you think neither well nor deeply. Keep trying though, you may grow.
Grammarian? Really? And I have to spell it out for you? I think even Tom has seen it by now. But for those who struggle with the double negatives, here goes. I'd be surprised if Tom knows what the Stars and Bars is, or, with the double neg, I'd not be surprised if he does not know what it is. Was that slow enough for you, wrongly-named one?
You've just dug yourself a hole, honey. I doubt you can understand how, but that's not necessary. Everyone else with a brain can.
This is beyond funny. It's bordering on tragic. That SciKlops doesn't understand what he's posted is truly sad.
No wonder the Southern states are so far behind in literacy, test scores, and pretty much everything else.
Haha, thank you Tom for doubling down on the obviousness of your cluelessness. Yes, I have no doubt that the reader of even modest intelligence can see who the mentally challenged are in this thread. Why do you make it so easy? At least challenge me!
Challenge you? To do what? Figure out how to tie your shoes?
You're an idiot, SciKlops.
You've proven it repeatedly.
Oh, and Tom, the only part of your anatomy that is of interest here (and the part you've left most in doubt) is the uppermost part!
What is uppermost about my anatomy under your sloping forehead, SciClown?
Do tell. Funny how you're compelled to respond to someone you claim is beneath your notice, SciKlops.
Hahahaha, you've again openly displayed your poor thinking Tom. Your claim is that I'm compelled to respond to you, while 12 of the above posts are your replies to me, while only nine, counting this one, are my replies to you! Keep trying, Tom, you've only one way to go!
Let me know when you've come to your senses, honey.
I can only comment on this based on scriptures: 1) (Ecclesiastes 9:11) "...because time and unforeseen occurrence befall them all." 2) (Revelation 12:7-9) 7 And war broke out in heaven: Mi′cha·el and his angels battled with the dragon, and the dragon and its angels battled 8 but it did not prevail, neither was a place found for them any longer in heaven. 9 So down the great dragon was hurled, the original serpent, the one called Devil and Satan, who is misleading the entire inhabited earth; he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him. . .
(Revelation 12:12) "On this account be glad, YOU heavens and YOU who reside in them! Woe for the earth and for the sea, because the Devil has come down to YOU, having great anger, knowing he has a short period of time.”
For the time being, this is what we have to contend with. We will continue to have mayhem and chaos until armageddon, God's war with the wicked, culminating in the salvation of the righteous. Until then, we will have to listen, watch, and wait, in a world of ungodliness, and try to enlighten all of what Bible prophecy foretells.
So you believe everything you read in a "story"?
Believe in what you can see. If this is the best your god can do....I'll pass. Sure, your god just LET'S all these little children get molested every day. Nice job god. Why do the innocent children need to suffer? What could you be trying to prove. No thanks. Believe what you want.
But wait a second....that's what YOUR bible says. I can show you other bibles that say different. Why is you bible right and everyone elses is wrong and they day theirs is right and yours is wrong.
Nitadf – how would children not suffer in a world that is fallen and broken at the core. How would children not experience anything if they're surrounded by it? And I think that history verifies that the evil isn't just going to "let up" so we can all get along. That's the whole point of Christ – to offer salvation from the storm. We still have to live in the midst of it – but millions of people's lives attest to the fact that the evil doesn't have to win. The book "The Hiding Place" chronicles the experience of the Ten Boom family during WWII. Corrie Ten Boom was the only one who lived to make it out of the atrocities of the concentration camps, and the Lord redeemed all of that pain and brought beauty out of it – not pretty but beauty – they don't mean the same thing.
You worry about where God was when this happened in Aurora, you need to worry more about wether or not there is a devil called (Lucifer) because he is here close by! Read in your bible in the book of Isaiah Chapter 14 verse 12 it says: How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! (keep reading) If you know the greek it tells us...the name Lucifer means: Crescent Moon read it again, How art thou fallen Crescent Moon son of the Morning. Look at Irans symbol for their God Allah The Crescent Moon and the Morning star( Allah) means( Proud one or Master of deception). They have caused this nation to weaken and yet you worry about a few people lost who are now with God when you should worry about us all and where God is going to be when they come over here because we are next. He better be in your heart! God is Love! If Love lives in your heart then God lives in your heart. That is where God is and was! The devil worshippers over seas will try to kill us all next and Aurora will seem like a kindergarden fight with toy guns. If you deny Jesus he will deny you before God! Only believe! Ursula Roberts (Author and writer of Love in a Nutshell)
Lucifer does not mean Crescent Moon, check your facts.
Is it so hard to believe that insane people will do insane things?.... without going any deeper? I don't really care if someone believes in Jesus, or Santa, I've met plenty of both that I wouldn't trust with my daughter. Why do people look to religion to explain and answer the causes of humanity's problems when history proves that it does neither. How many people died under the flag of 'your god' this week?,I've met plenty of good people that don't believe in "God" and plenty of good people that do. What do they have in common? Nothing at all except perhaps they knew from day 1 that hurting each other is bad... Religion does not trump being a good parent / friend / sheep dog, etc...and more often than not they are completely at odds with eachother. If your bible / good book / etc doesn't explain to your satisfactory opinion why humanity is falling apart, maybe that's because it can't. Look in the mirror more than you look to divine intervention, or lack thereof.
if you want to comment on my firs post please do so on my WordPress page remasterphoto.wordpress.com
peteyoo
God has aready thrown us a life line, Jesus Christ. It is up to us whether or not we want to chatch on. it depends on whether or not we want to be saved. who does not want to be saved?? any one in their right mind would want to be saved
I do not want to be saved.
No desire to be saved by an imaginary god type thing/
Saved from what? I have to save myself in this madness we call life. If you think you are going to float away and live forever in the sky, fine ,but stop trying to convince everyone else.
If I honedtly had to live "forever" around you religious lunatics, I would much rather take any other alternatives.
Peteyroo – God doesn't send anyone to hell – they go there willingly.
A good amount of all of us that believe in God think that he is here to help us in the time of need. Granted if we ever needed God to intervene in something, Aurora was where he was needed. I believe that we have taken God for granted. We expect him to take care of all of our problems that we think we have no control over. In taking God for granted we take our own abilities for granted.
If we wanted to minimize the deaths in scenarios like that of Aurora, Columbine, Virginia Tech, and others like them. We have to do something different, something other than depending on our God to handle something we ourselves should be able to handle. What have we done to minimize the death toll and injuries of these events of mass casualties? We have sympathized, we have prayed to God, we have come up with techniques to better detect minds that may be planning travesties like the massacre in Aurora but what have we done to minimize the damage if deranged ideas of this sort get past the planning stage and put into the action phase?
The answer is clear. We have done nothing or at least nothing that has had any type of effect in FUBAR scenarios similar to the events I have mentioned previously.
We should use what we know about these occasional tragedies that have happened in the past to formulate a plan that can foil the action phase if it should come to that. Everything that we need to formulate a plan of action agents such attacks is in the information gathered by investigations and researches done on these events. We should be asking ourselves what all of these scenarios have in common. List them out. They all happened where there were large congregations of people, they happen in places where security has little to no effect on such actions, they happen in places where we least expect it, and usually there is no signs pointing out the initiation of their plans.
I know there are many other factors that are similar to all of the tragic events that I have been hearing about over the past Decade and a half. A list of such information should have the key in bungling these types’ scenarios.
In order for this to happen we have to step up and get the job done. God gave us all the tools to solve problems on our own, he gave us free will, He gave us our own ideas, and he gave us the ability to handle problems on our own. By putting faith in our selves we strengthen our faith in God.
http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html
Religion………………………… Adherents
Christianity ……………………..2.1 billion
Islam…………………………… 1.5 billion
Irreligious/agnostic/atheism…… 1.1 billion (look out world, here we come)
Hinduism 900 million
Chinese traditional religion 394 million
Buddhism 376 million
Animist religions 300 million
African traditional/diasporic religions 100 million
Sikhism 23 million
Juche 19 million
Spiritism 15 million
Judaism…………………………………….. 14 million
Baha'i 7 million
Jainism 4.2 million
Shinto 4 million
Cao Dai 4 million
Zoroastrianism 2.6 million
Tenrikyo 2 million
Neo-Paganism 1 million
Unitarian Universalism 800,000
Rastafari Movement 600,000
Boy, you can't get by the first line without seeing gross error. There are not 2.1 billion Christians in the world. For it is written,
Many are called, but few are chosen.
My guess is there are not even 300 million authentic Christians in the world.
FEW means few.
I'm bettin' ya' think that you are one of the "true" ones, eh, nottol?
@dern tootin'
"I'm bettin' ya' think that you are one of the "true" ones, eh, nottol?"
The answer if you're asking am I born again is yes. For it is written,
2After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.”
3Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again,a you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”
4“What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?”
5Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. 7So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ 8The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
Best estimates are almost a billion men, women, children have died over religious beliefs or lack thereof. And we judge one another by the morality put forth in the Bible, that's as real as it get's! whether God is real or not! and if he is, he's obviously not going to save us from ourselves... from Colorado to Sudan were tens of thousands of children starve to death every year, I believe it's up to us to take control of our collective destiny with the belief that all people are created equal, and securing the future for generations to come.
i wonder
i am not sure of what you are saying, i had over thee hundred trees surrounding my home and most of them were blown down during a tornado and not a shingle was taken off of the house. my mother had cancer when she was forty something and she lived to be ninety-eight. i do not just believe, i know