Help me out here. Watching the tornado residuals, I keep hearing

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

"god was watching out for those" who got hit and didn't die.

What does that mean for those who did?

Peace.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Tom%20Yossarian%20Joad

[Lars39]

1. "It was God's plan for them."

[chelsea0011]

17. Exactly right. We just don't understand everything god does.

It's a great mystery.:rofl: :rofl:

[lildreamer316]

2. I guess their particular brand of god

is very selective.:sarcasm:

[NYC]

3. God didn't like them, I guess.

People are careless and inconsiderate when they say such things. I think most of the time they don't mean any offense to those who died or suffered.

[HopeFor2006]

11. I agree with your statement about carelessness.

I lost a child a few years ago and was always disheartened by those who said, "It was God's will" or "It was in God's plan." Apparently, they must have thought their words were comforting?

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

13. Condolences. I am so sorry.

[HopeFor2006]

18. Thank you

That was a compassionate response.

[NYC]

15. Partly, they don't know what else to say.

And partly, they do think it is a comforting thing to say. Most people mean well.

[MADem]

4. It means God isn't all-powerful, I guess

He can be distracted, like a parent with five hyperactive kids.

So some of these stupid fundies had better get off their asses and start thinking for themselves.

[thefool_wa]

6. Not so

No one can pretend to understand the desires or motivations of God. It is impossible.

And there are more than just "fundies" out here who believe in God and give thanks when blessings are bestowed upon them. If I had just walked away from a development where every house in the court was leveled except mine, you can bet your sweet a$$ I would be on my knees giving thanks.

[July]

8. Then those who say "God was watching out for them" are wrong, too?

How would they know?

[MADem]

19. That's the point, how does ANYONE know? n/t

[aquart]

12. Me, too.

And I have.

I say Thank You when any are saved...because they don't have to be.

But then, I don't believe in a benevolent god, either.

[thefool_wa]

5. I agree with NYC

I don't think that they were implying that God wasn't looking out for others. Most people, when they give thanks to God, are doing so for themselves or someone they care for, with little regard for what the subject of their thanks may have cost another person. I don't think its selfish or rude, mostly its just the relief of having survived something terrible and the need to express that gratitude for themselves.

Ironically, while they thank God for sparing them, they overlook the fact that God sent the tornado in the first place. Maybe God just missed :) j/k

on edit: to clarify, I don't agree with the "didn't like them" comment, but the tone of the rest of the post implied it was sarcastic. At least to me.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

7. It still comes across strongly as a " Dad likes me better" sort of thing.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Tom%20Yossarian%20Joad

[DearAbby]

9. I hear ya

that always got to me, didn't those that were killed pray hard enough? Why were their pleas ignored?

[ClintonTyree]

10. You can't hope to know god's plan....

you see, god has this master plan and when he makes tornadoes he knows who he's going to kill and who we isn't. We can't begin to understand god's master plan. Just accept it and tithe. Don't forget to tithe! ;)

[malaise]

14. Sorry I can't help

I have no gods. Still I know people who would tell the Fundies that their god appears very angry with their support for the evil Bushco regime and I suspect the Iraqi fundies are delighted that their god is punishing those who supported the illegal invasion.
In other words, religion is fugging madness - ban Intelligent Design and take care of the environment.

[Proud_Democratt]

33. We use religion...

to explain our ignorance. Ancient cavemen did the same when they saw lightning, saying the gods must be angry.

[SPKrazy]

16. It Is Just Something People Say Without Thinking

The truth is that none of us know why some people live through tornadoes, and some don't.

Yes I know, science will tell me, right? Well I worked with the Salvation Army after a tornado and people told me that at the last minute they jumped into a closet, or other place. (no sirens went off and it was late at night when it hit) The amazing thing, no one was killed in this particular tornado, which was an F3 and did an incredible amount of damage. Why didn't it kill anyone? Some told me that it was as if something told them at the last moment where to go.

Now does that mean that God loves some people more than others? (If you don't believe in God that's your business) No, I think it means that we as mere mortals, don't know what God's intentions are in any instance. As soon as we start saying we think we do, we are already not humble enough to know.

People who say they were watched out for by God probably were. Those who died were also.

[Kailassa]

20. People always assume life is a reward and death a punishment.

What if there's the coolest ever party going on in the sky, and we just haven't been invited?

I had a "near death experience" once and the place I went to was so wonderful that hardly a day goes past without yearning to go back there. I'm not a christian, I'm not particularly good, but I felt as loved and welcome there as any babe feels in its mother's arms.

Death is no punishment, it's just the beginning of a whole new ball game.

Not that I wouldn't grieve terribly if my own child died. Believing she was happy would never stop me missing her.

[SPKrazy]

21. Wow! Thanks For Sharing Your Experience!

I agree that to assume that life is all there is, is to limit the possibilities.

[Kailassa]

22. Well, some people say it's just the brain tricking itself,

and for all I know they might be right, but it was too real for me not to believe that we all will be free to go there some day. The sensation of being loved, accepted, being home, was so wonderful.

[SPKrazy]

24. If It Is Just The Brain Tricking Itself

then it is a wonderful thing to have evolved

[Kailassa]

26. Yes, and the advantage of believing in it is

If we're right, we can one day say: "haha, told ya so!"

But If we're wong, no-one can ever say that to us. ;-)

O8) :party: O8) :party: O8) :party: O8) :party: O8)

[SPKrazy]

39. Yeah, I Got Ya!

Your post reminded me of something from long ago (for me)

I remember long ago learning the difference between atheists, agnostics, and believers.

I think it was actually a psychology class.

The agnostic is the person who hedges his/her bets (so to speak) they don't say their isn't a God, but they don't say there is.

I'm not saying you are an agnostic, because I have no idea what your beliefs are (other than that you had a wonderful experience in your NDE and didn't want to come back) your post just reminded me of that and all the discussions that ensued after that. (Ah to be 18 again! NOT)

Peace

[uppityperson]

23. I always wonder this also, and then keep my mouth shut.

don't want to piss off a random god or people just traumatized.

[RB TexLa]

25. People have to refrain from making God into Santa

In my opinion it does no good to pray to God as such I want 1)to live through this storm 2) a new car 3) the Cubs to win tonight 4) my uncle's heart surgery to be a success

God isn't there to read a wish list and then choose to or not to grant items. You pray to God for people to have the strength and wisdom to handle things, the EMTs, fire and police who help people in times of storms and such, you pray for families of tragedy to have strength and to be able to handle such events. God gave us the Earth, he does not control every detail of it. It is up to us to prepare and deal with things of the Earth.

[KittyWampus]

27. This belong in the Religion Forum.

[SoCalDem]

28. Religion as a balm.

When you are spared, it was God's will, but if you get hammered it's someone else's fault:
faulty construction, failed warning, bad zoning, etc..

If God is there to bless you, is "he/it/whatever" not ALSO there to condemn you??

In the overall cosmic scheme of things, it's mostly just dumb luck when people survive or in some cases, it's educated pre-planning AND some dumb luck..

God, as deliverer-of-favors, sets up the "special relationship" and allows people to never actually take responsibility for the bad things that happen, and a clever way to explain the good ones.

[JI7]

29. yeah, i saw this also and couldn't listen anymore

we already knew many people had died from this tornado. but they interview this guy and he is going on about how his son's room was hit but his son was with some other family so he was ok. and his daughter and himself were there but their rooms were ok. and how it's all because of God.

[eppur_se_muova]

30. Well, if it's an emergency worker who saves your life, just remember...

S/he's not God. S/he's just an ordinary human being, every bit as mortal as you, who risked everything to save you. And when you say "It's a miracle from God", "God was looking out for me", or some such nonsense, you've just dismissed their heroism and sacrifice.

Just my two cents.

[NMMNG]

31. They didn't pray hard enough/often enough

Or maybe they didn't tithe enough at church, go to church frequently enough or went to the wrong church.

Or perhaps they were gay, had an abortion at some point, or were just "of loose virtues".

Because you know god never lets good people die. :sarcasm:

[TallahasseeGrannie]

32. I think you have to live through a very close call

to understand that. It is a primal attempt to understand fate. Don't hold folks to statements they make at those times. The news folks shouldn't get in their faces with their freaking cameras.

[Proud_Democratt]

34. Pat Robertson would say something very

degrading and condescending like......"this God's punishment to gays or fornicaters".

[Proud_Democratt]

35. Do we ALWAYS have explain natural disasters...

with some kind of theistic intervention??? Is there something wrong with "we don't know why"???Tornadoes are not controlled by anything or anyone.....SH#T HAPPENS!!!

[Proud_Democratt]

36. Using God as a punisher...

or selective "super-being" is nothing short of "fear control" used by religious nuts. If you can't explain it...use the word, "God".

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

37. No, they died because there were no dragons in their garages.

Honk if you know WTH I'm talking about.

[TreasonousBastard]

38. It means that those who say that...

don't understand the nature of God.

Not that anyone really does, but it's a simplistic blathering to try to make some sense of a catastrophe. Just something to say in order to have something to say, and not really worth worrying about. Most of the time it's some attempt to be sympathetic.

[windy252]

40. Statements like that always remind me of a church

bulletin I saw in the Simpsons: "God welcomes His victims."