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September 15th, 2013
02:17 PM ET
Rick Warren returns to the spotlightProgramming note: Rick and Kay Warren sit down exclusively with CNN’s Piers Morgan to talk about the death of their son and their new mission to raise awareness about mental illness. By Eric Marrapodi, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor (CNN) - Megachurch pastor and author Rick Warren is slowly returning to the spotlight, five months after his youngest son committed suicide. He has shared spiritual insights on social media, returned to the pulpit to preach about overcoming obstacles and taken his purpose-driven message to Rwanda, a nation still reeling from a bloody genocide. But Warren, the bestselling author of "The Purpose Driven Life" and one of the most famous pastors in the United States, hasn't yet spoken to the media about his son's death. That changed when Warren and his wife Kay sat for an extended interview with CNN’s Piers Morgan. In a brief clip released on Monday, Morgan and Warren discussed gun violence, including Monday's shooting at the Navy Yard in Washington. MORE ON CNN: "The first thing I did was get down on my knees and pray for those families" Rick and Kay Warren have been outspoken about the plague of gun violence in the United States, especially since their son, Matthew, took his own life in April after what the family call a lifelong struggle with mental illness. “In spite of America’s best doctors, meds, counselors, and prayers for healing, the torture of mental illness never subsided,” Warren wrote to staffers at Saddleback Church, his megachurch in Orange County, California. Then Warren, one of the country's most visible spiritual leaders, disappeared from public view. But not quite. Not even grief could silence Warren, a gregarious man with an apparent thirst for sharing his spiritual insights. Away from his pulpit, the preacher voiced his anguish and his insights in a stream of Twitter messages and Facebook posts. Days after his son’s suicide, for example, Warren tweeted this message: https://twitter.com/RickWarren/status/322434892828917760 On June 16, Father's Day, Warren tweeted this: https://twitter.com/RickWarren/status/346218036728037376 Other days, the pastor wrote about the pain of his loss. https://twitter.com/RickWarren/status/326512142742351872 In September, the purpose-drive pastor hinted at a new mission: Even though Warren has shared his thoughts on Twitter on Facebook, he hasn't answered the questions on many people's minds - questions that may be asked on Monday night: How has Matthew's death changed Warren's faith? Does he hold God responsible? Resuming his pastoral duties at Saddleback in late July, Warren began a sermon series titled “Getting through what you’re going through,” that hinted at his family’s struggles and outlined their new mission. “We intend to spend the rest of our lives comforting others with the same comfort we have been given from God, through your prayers,” Warren told the large crowds who came to see him preach. He also credited his other children, Amy and Joshua, with helping his family through its darkest days. “When all this happened, Amy looked at me and said, ‘Dad, Satan picked the wrong family to pick on. He’s going to lose so badly because of the platform God has given to our family.’ ” The Warren family set up a fund in Matthew's honor to raise awareness about mental illness. Last week Warren wrapped up a trip to Rwanda, a country he has focused on since 2005, when its government invited the pastor to help Rwandans recover from its vicious genocide in 1994, which claimed as many as 1,000,000 lives. This weekend Warren was back at Saddleback, preaching a sermon titled, "Never Waste Your Pain."
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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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So....
there is this story....
and then the mass shooting today.....
And then there is this asshole.........
wow. he prayed for them.
I'm gonna kill a chicken tonight, so there's hope for a better tomorrow.
Bless you.
Christian persons, give me a single shred of evidence for the existence of gods and Jesus please. Thank you. Oh, if you can give me some evidence, I will become a Christian.
Ask God. Seek humility and ask God to reveal Himself to you in a way that you can understand. Be open to the idea that God's ways are different from man's ways.
"God has placed the correct balance of evidence of Himself in the world; enough to draw men freely to himself, but not enough to compel people to believe on Him who would not trust or love Him." Blaise Pascal
That is just stupid. Are you 5 years old?
Needless to say: FAIL
If you honestly want to know God, there are people that can help. I would suggest looking in a place other than a message board of a blog.
Your standard for evidence is much lower than mine. Evidence to me must be objective and external to my own easy to fool mind.
Good, if that works for you, great.
I was trying to honestly answer this man's question.
Evidence in regards to the study of our natural world is different from evidence in regards to the study of our spiritual world. And I believe human beings have a spiritual aspect to life.
Ok with me, many people feel spiritual connections, but that isn't evidence, its a feeling that suffices for you to regard your god as real. That is your choice.
I ask God and He provides me all the evidence I need. He is seeking our hearts, not just our minds.
As I said, your standard for evidence is lower than mine. Feelings are not evidence, they are real, valid, vitally important, but they aren't evidence any more than what you feel when you see the color red.
God has revealed Himself as real to me. And I have evidence from the testimony of other people that have similar experiences. And these people are reliable sources.
I honestly trust them more than the testimony of the CNN Belief Blog atheists that seem to spend a lot of time talking about this God that they insist doesn't exist.
I'm sure they are good people who are reliable. Their feelings like yours are not evidence though. When a magician does a trick that an entire audience can't explain, it's not evidence that magic really happened.
Your feelings are not evidence, either. You have a feeling that my trust and confidence in God is like watching a magician do a good trick.
But that is not an accurate description of believing in a real and present Creator of our world.
I judge the value of an argument on its merits, not the person who presents it to me. AE, if you truly cared about right thinking and logic, you would study the arguments themselves regardless of why or where you find them. The fact that many atheists talk about a concept (god) that they don't personally believe in is no reason for you to reject the logic inherent in the presentation.
My analogy wasn't relating you god and magicians, it was to show that numbers of people being fooled isn't evidence.
AE, your argument has NOTHING different from the arguments used by any person believing in imaginary beings in an insane asylum. There is no validation to separate your rationale for believing in your god from any other believer of a diferent god who believes for the exact same reasons you do.
Cpt. Obvious
Actually, there is a difference between a religious person's beliefs and a patient at an insane asylum's beliefs. I know plenty of reasonable atheists that can admit that. Thank God your argument isn't a fact, just your personal belief. And one that not many subscribe to (except maybe in the message board of a Belief Blog).
bostontola
"My analogy wasn't relating you god and magicians, it was to show that numbers of people being fooled isn't evidence."
If a man like Martin Luther King, JR can talk about God giving him strength to fight on, despite receiving 100 death threats to his baby daughter's life. And I, too, have had an experience like that that helps me understand what MLK is talking about. And I consider that credible evidence I can use to trust his testimony.
Not at all to me like a magician putting on a show to fool a number of people.
AE,
Look, you need to figure out how to stay focused. Try to comprehend what you are reading before jumping to erroneous conclusions.
1. You have no argument nor evidence that a person in an insane asylum doesn't have in his imaginary being. (Of course your beliefs are different. Duh).
2. Why would you point out that your beliefs are different and then not describe how they are different?
I'll say it again. You and a person in an insane asylum have THE EXACT SAME EVIDENCE for belief in your imaginary friend.....whomever you or he might claim that imaginary friend to be. You believe because you have been convinced even though there is no verifiable evidence. The insane person believes for exactly the same REASONS. Both of you are convinced and neither of you can supply one ounce of tangible evidence.
If you were the only person on the earth that believed in Christianity, you'd be locked up as an insane person.
I wonder why AE tries to change the topic in every post. bostontola was clearly talking about the dynamic of large numbers of people being convinced; the magician was just exposition/setting......and AE takes off talking about the magician. I compare the veracity of evidence between a god believer and a unicorn believer in an insane asylum, and he takes off on how the two beliefs are different instead of comparing and contrasting the veracity of evidence.
Weird.
Cpt. Obvious
Thank God I am not the only person who puts my faith and trust in Jesus Christ. Thank God there are plenty of examples and evidence of people who do put there faith and trust in Jesus Christ who do amazing things in a variety of areas.
Thank God not many people believe like you do. Thank God the only place I read about your weird ideas is on the message board of a Belief Blog. Thank God I know how much time you waste debating about a God you insist doesn't exist.
T
You can sit around wishing well to imaginary beings all you want, but who do we blame for you complete inability to grasp a simple point? You've had two fantastic points extremely well made for you, and you fall back on the ad populum fallacy every time. You have nothing that a muslim or hindu doesn't have: numbers.
If you're willing to accept the ad populum fallacy, convert to Islam, why don't you?
Cpt. Obvious
God is real. Not imaginary.
I never stated I believe in Jesus Christ because so many other people do. I said I trusted the testimony of some people. And I said I especially trust their testimony over the opinion of people like CNN Belief Blog resident atheists.
I don't understand why you insist I do. I think we had a misunderstanding at some point.
-If you're willing to accept the ad populum fallacy, convert to Islam, why don't you?-
If I accepted the ad populum fallacy of the CNN Belief Blog, I would become an atheist.
That is great that you think your point is so fantastic. I don't. And I know some very reasonable atheists that reject your theory, too. I'm going to trust them over you.
AE, If you really had evidence that god was real imagine how rich you could be; Rick Warren is mega-rich selling snake-oil. If there were evidence of a god, there could be no non-believers and no doubt about which god.
You sound like Satan trying to tempt Jesus in the wilderness.
AE, I don't want to know a fictitious character. That is called insane.
God is real.
AE,
Dreams seem real too while you're sleeping. The brain is its own reality detector, that is very suspect.
The brain has 2 sides: A logical side, and a creative side. God speaks to both sides of our brains. Perhaps if we stop trying to be logical beings and accept the fact that we are human beings the path to God is clearer.
AE,
I live with logic and feeling, I cherish both. I don't misapply either. Applying feelings as evidence is a mistake. Applying logic in my personal relationships and feelings would also be a mistake.
I cherish both, too. And I think in my life I demonstrate I have a strong understanding of logic. And personally, I have not seen any difference between atheist and religious people in regards to using logic where it is needed.
Life is not logical, to me. Unless God is in the picture. And then it starts to make sense.
And that is what I believe and how I live my life. You are free to take it or leave it. Or insist I am making mistakes with my "feelings".
My life is better with God. Honestly.
AE, What does your logic tell you when you compare Genesis to the science of evolution, Big Bang, etc.?
Atheists treat the Holy Scriptures like mud under their feet. The Lord (Jesus) gave us the gift of the Bible. I use parmesan cheese to cover the odor on the couch. Ask Jesus for forgiveness and walk and play with Him
Amen.
Not true. There is wisdom in your scriptures, as there is in many philosophical works from the past. I respect the god and reject the bad parts. What is wrong with that?
The Bible is 100% accurate in every way. That has been proven. Read the Bible and learn the love of God. I let the kittens sleep in the ashtray. Don't stand on the wrong side of the the tracks.
Amen.
Sorry, I missed that this wasn't a serious comment.
LOL. Romano is even more effective (and please, I don't mean Ray).
If you believe in the Judeo/Christian God or some other ancient religion from the time, you may even now be experiencing bronze or Iron age anxiety. There is a cure. Stop believing in pretend gods and embrace our current century.
You can believe in God without being confined to Apple Bush's understanding of what it means.
Thank God!
AE speaks the truth. But it is bad advice....beware....
I'm not suffering from bronze or Iron age anxiety. Nor does any Christian I know.
You may not want to believe that, but gods were used to explain events that our ancestors did not understand – earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, eclipses, thunder, etc. We understand those events and more now, so we don't need the bronze age superstitions to explain them.
There is more to this world than meets the eye!
I don't follow Jesus just to help me understand the science of our natural world. He helps me understand the spiritual and unknown aspects of living life as a human being.
AE, what you are saying is not logical. Do I really have to explain it???
You say plenty of illogical things, too. There is not one human being that can think completely logically. The ones that believe or insist they do are actually demonstrating arrogance.
It is not reasonable to tell me that all Christians suffer from iron/bronze age anxiety. We (most of us) have a God that is alive and available to us today. We (most of us) worship a God of the present, not the past.
AE
Everything you believe about God was told to you as a child or when you were vulnerable. You are not a child any more. Grow up.
No, my understanding of God has changed since I was a child. I hated Christianity and did not have faith in God from probably age 14 to 38.
I don't believe in God because of what people have told me. I have experienced God to be true and unlike anything you claim Him to be.
Uh oh, regression. Alzheimers is next dude.
so, if Warren never spoke about it, you'd label him a fraud whose faith wasnt real because he couldnt deal with tragedy in his life. he's a pastor. talking about life is what he does. and he's not enriching himself talking about it.
its not like he's Al Gore making billions out off of global warming and keeping it all. It's not like he's Joe Biden he gives nothing away.
why the hate?
JIM, don't ask for facts to support my assertions when you don't provide your own.
JIM, I don't where he man gets his money, but he has it, yes? Regardless his house is built on lies. He is unethical. He is not moral.
Dude, are you part of the guy's rep team or something? You're pretty involved.
I am reminded of the stiff NCAA penalties that can be handed down of AD's tamper with the High School kids.
Clothes on a clothes line whipping in anger to protest the sharp biting wind of the approaching winter. Then she showed up. She was small, cute, Japanese and holding pom- poms. She seemed to stutter something in Japanese and then began her “dance”.
That is when the earthquake hit which did not make sense. The pressure on that fault line was not built up enough to expect activity. The Otter won by the way.
Now I know that believers will be upset by this. They hate pom-poms and cute Japanese girls. Slip Faults never cease to amaze me. I am just glad the judge is all right.
This shaggy dog was prowling the bar and spattin’ out pussy hair like sunflower seeds.
I have taken that walk with him.
He never said much…that you could remember anyway. Not much difference in the pour either.
Apple, you're still here? come on, give it a rest.
And I still don't see any evidence where anyone stating that Warren is going to profit from his son's death. and you do know he gives away the vast majority of money he makes from his books?
I'm just not getting the hate here. I mean, i probably shouldnt expect more from a comments section on the CNN website, but still.
Wow, i used some capitalization. Apple, just tell me about my spelling errors; though I can't stay, just doing a drive by, but not specifically because it annoys you.
What about the Commemorative Coin Set of his son's suicide and sleigh ride to heaven? You KNOW that is going in the pockets.
Jim, what about the Suicide Medallions from the Franklin Mint. Limited Edition!!
Inside our bodies are cannabinoid receptors known as CB-1 and CB-2 and were discovered by Allyn Howlett and William Devane in 1988… Since then researchers have made a scientific pathway toward understanding the body’s uses of its nerve centered cellular cannabinoid receptors… They have found that a body’s cannabinoid receivers allow for many variations of the body’s naturally occurring but in too small quantities of bodily made cannabinoid molecules to latch onto CB-1 and CB-2 receptors…
In turn, additional CBD and THC molecules ingested or consumed into the human body regulates the differential molecular embodied genetic illnesses, sicknesses and diseases thereby lowering the body’s anti-genetic metabolism ratios establishing fortuitously a more healthy body… It is with much hindsight that the body’s Endocannabinoid Systems have become the body’s means to wage a molecular geneticied biological war upon many forms of illnesses, sicknesses and diseases…
Because the human body cannot produce effective amounts of cannabidiolic molecules needed to fend off anti-molecular endocrine systemic degradations, the human body needs to be supplied with an ongoing source of such molecules to stabilize the human condition against all foreseeable sicknesses, illnesses and diseases…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=g79HokJTfPU
When Baby Brianna left the hospital after her birth she moved into a home in Las Cruces, N.M. shared by her parents and Uncle, Steven Lopez.
The abuse started almost immediately. Instead of hugs and kisses Brianna received slaps and pinches. She was tormented on a daily basis, both verbally and physically. Slapped, kicked, punched, pinched, thrown, raped, etc. You name it this infant endured it.
A tragic loss for Rick Warren. Any mere mortal would deal with their pain in private, but no, Rick seems to have found a way to make money out of it. This man is like king midas!
– he finds an old book full of silly stories ... Rick works out a way to get people to send him money for it
– his son commits suicide ... Rick works out a way to get people to send him money for it
now there's a con man with dedication! awesome!
I am having my Commemorative Coin Set of his son's suicide and sleigh ride to heaven sent to my home. I get one true showpiece each month with different angles of the shooting and the ascension. I am so excited! It comes with a beautiful embossed book for you to fit your whole collection in, 25 coins in all! Only $89.99 a month for 8 months.
You morons know that he doesn't take a penny from Saddle Back church, and that, after the success of his books, he paid back every been he was ever paid by the church? Go hate somewhere else.
Science can and will find the origin of life. We just need time and some luck. I for one will not be worshipping mythological beings to kill time while I wait. I am patient.
science will figure it out, as soon as they determine if we are in a period of global warming, or global cooling.
If Jesus comes back, that only leaves the old man and Casper up there to mind the store. Can we function at 66%?
Jesus is only up there for the yard work, so yeah, it's all good.
lol
Godless Vagabond
Well, if rapture takes about a third of us, everything will be jake.
Rick Warren: Well, a terrible thing befell me, but I've processed it for some time and I think I've figured a way to make money on it. So, it's not all bad!
Suicide Medallions from the Franklin Mint. Limited Edition!!
"Never Waste Your Pain," – Rick Warren
The answer is that the mankind in general go to the grave when they die as indicated above and await the resurrection that Jesus Christ spoke of, some time after Armageddon during his thousand year reign over God's Kingdom of the Heavens.
"20 However, now Christ has been raised up from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep [in death]. 21 For since death is through a man, resurrection of the dead is also through a man. 22 For just as in Adam all are dying, so also in the Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each one in his own rank: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who belong to the Christ during his presence. 24 Next, the end, when he hands over the kingdom to his God and Father, when he has brought to nothing all government and all authority and power. 25 For he must rule as king until [God] has put all enemies under his feet. 26 As the last enemy, death is to be brought to nothing. " 1Corinthians 14 20-26
Why do you copy and paste shit like that?
Godless Vagabond
That's probably all he can do.
christians don't have original thoughts, just bronze age regurgitations ...
I think that it is the absolute height of conceit to say that a "deity" or "devil" of any kind would really focus this kind of attention on a single creature like us.
Within certain predictable demographics, almost every single human being has the same failings and fears, and to pretend that a deity would "test" us is patently ridiculous to the point of absurdity.
Nothing happens without a massive amount of serendipitous happenstance that leads up to its conclusion, this is the way the universe has been should to work.
Now, Rick warren has made a fortune on helping people to bury their heads in the sand, and I know his loss is difficult, but it must also be a relief, his son was suffering.
But the point remains, its embarassing to know that there are humans out there who believe in nonsense, please spare the rest of us because you are operating at 1/10th your capacity and holding the entire world back in the process.
Thank you Huxley. Fuck the dumb shit.
Rick Warren has decided that when life hands you lemons. find a way to turn those lemons into grist for the media machine.
Suicide Medallions from the Franklin Mint. Limited Edition!
Your son committed suicide.
"where is God'?
–Where He's always been!
Reaching out to you in your pain, to comfort you, to give you a hope–that one day you will be joined together with your loved one for eternity!
Your reply is illogical. He already knows when you will be born and when you will die and how. He set it all up. Could you attempt logic?
As you say ,He knows it all, then why ask the question- Where is God?
Andy
You think that people will be reunited with their loved ones....must be your idea of heaven, but what if someones heaven is to never run into a certain "sprit" ever again, but the other "spirit's" idea of heaven is to be around that person for all eternity? Both cannot be true, so which one get their heaven?
Um, Andy......I want to be sensitive about this but are you mentally challenged? You are not familiar with sarcasm, is that right?
With that earlier response you made, the one that has trouble grasping is you.
Bless YOUR heart, you can't seem to have understood what you wrote!!!
Thanks Andy, that clears it up. Listen, you keep your chin up and you can accomplish anything ok?
You don't get it! Do you???
Andy, someone told me today, "AB, you don't have any hope." But you know what? They were wrong. I have hope for you Andy. I hope you wake from your intellectual slumber. Bless your heart.
You are at a German “sparkle party”. You are wearing your party pants. You are ready to dancy dance. It is a hard-core German sparkle party and you are wearing your rubber boots. The music is pulsating and it feels good to dance. You notice a familiar face standing at the bar. You dance over to her as fancy as you please in your polished rubber boots. You bend low to smell her perfume and say hello. It is your father.
Hello son.
Maybe I'm dumb but what is a sparkle party?
oooooh livie, you must come to dancy dance in your fancy pants!
Not being German, which is apparently a qualification to attend, I decline. You can borrow my dancy fancy pants if you want. Dick.
Oh honey you are sassy! Your loss!
Sassy is my middle name. Ball's in your court, sailor.
dieter,
did you wear your rubber boots?
Your husband takes you to the company Christmas party. You have long been jealous of his very attractive co-worker Genevieve, and your jealous imagination suspects there is a spark between them. You dress to the nines and look great. The moment comes to say hello to her. She is beautiful, charming and smells intoxicating. You break a heal just as you reach to shake her hand. You spill your drink on both Genevieve and your husband. They look at each other and giggle, holding the gaze a bit too long.
You wake up feeling amazing with Marie next to you. She finally spent the night. You can make out the curve of her buttocks beneath the thin sheet. Your groin reacts and you press against her, fitting neatly in the begging crevice. She smells like flowers and honey. You throb with anticipation and she moans in anticipation. You reach for a condom, but realize to your dismay that your dog is busy chewing and has something stuck in his teeth…
You are a teenager taking swimming lessons with your aunt. You don’t know where the changing rooms are and your aunt points you in the wrong direction. You end up in the birthday party room. It is empty so you change there. You come out for your lesson and discover that the glass you were surrounded by is one way. Everyone on the outside could see everything you were doing on the inside.
It is dark in your South African condo. You come into the living room to switch off the television. You are ready to join your girlfriend in the bedroom. It is Valentine’s Day. As you pad quietly up the stairs, you here a peculiar sound and hear a door shut. You start, then collect yourself and retrieve your gun from the nearby closet. Thinking your beautiful sweetheart is in the bedroom sleeping, your mind reels madly. Terrified you fire without thinking through the bathroom door where you just heard noises. Four times you fire your gun. Your girlfriend is not in bed sleeping.