Doctor X

Suzanne**Atheist:

Because they did not deserve it . . . silly!

Nevertheless, when I drive, I am often taken by the urge to pray: "God, fuck the Israelis and Palestinians, the Serbs and Croatians, all of those starving brats in Africa! I NEED THAT FUCKING PARKING SPACE!!"

On a more serious note, I recall Mr. Klass' anger on Larry "I Am Smarmy" King in reaction to the return of Elizabeth Smart as a "miracle"--it implied that all of the children who never return do not deserve divine regard.

--J.D.

Ojuice5001

How do you know? Maybe he's been working on it.

Only the ones that were invented in medieval times. And at that time, most people were either too poor to get fat, or rich enough not to care.

Please. I love the kind of music that wins a Grammy, but the fact is, that kind of thing is mostly controlled by the non-revealed gods who are supplanting Yahweh's rule. The Grammy winners are monotheists; they know a god helped them win, they just jump to the conclusion that it was Yahweh, since he's the only god they believe in.

Maybe. Or maybe he was too busy influencing the politics of Ecuador in favor of increased human rights. I'd say that's about equally likely.

Ennazus

Yes, this was terrible--as are the other "miracle" stories.

We had one in our area not too long ago. Four of five children perished in a fire and people on the news praised god that the one was spared. Wonderful that she was alive, yes. But it seems like god could have just waved his magic fingers and put out the fire to save them all.

Giving god "credit" for the return of an abducted child is just an extra kick in the stomach for the families of the still-missing children. Must they pray harder? What can they do to get god to return THEIR child? What a horrible, additional burden to place on these families.

Doctor X

Indeed, "blame the victim" is a common "cop-out" for bad things.

You or your child did not get well from the faith healing? Well you did not pray enough!

Then, of course, is the great "cop-out" that "he answers all prayers but sometimes he says, 'no.'"

Oh goody-gumdrops! So the four incinerated kiddies received a "no?" Oh . . . sorry . . . they probably did not pray enough! Yes . . . that is it.

This sort of [Delusional.--Ed.] thinking led me to wonder what extreme suffering means with regards to a deity. Children dying in fire is a good exampe except that someone can try to remove blame by stating that "man did it" or something like that!

Anyways, to believe a deity cared enough to help you shed pounds but no enough to save a burning child indicates something quite malevolent about said deity.

--J.D.

Ojuice5001

Well, a fire is over very quickly, right? It's possible a god wouldn't notice before it's too late. And if he did notice, there are only so many avenues open for him to influence the fire. The weather and traffic patterns have already been set in motion; it's too late to make them favorable to the fire being put out. The layout of flammables in the building can't be changed in a second, etc.

On the other hand, to cause someone to lose weight, a god might not need to do more than just "give her a kick in the pants," and ensure the formation of a few habits that would cause people to lose weight. You're comparing a strategic no-brainer to a tactical crisis.

Ennazus

Malevolent deity, indeed. He takes time out of his busy schedule to help some people hit homers, win awards and shed pounds, but doesn't have the time to put out a fire! Why does god always get the credit, but not the blame?

Ojuice5001

Probably for the same reason as the boss does whenever there's a good chance he's listening.

Besides, how do you know that the same god who was in charge of Christina Aguilera's life, was also in control of the building in question? Or that the god in charge of the building didn't try to prevent the disaster, and fail?

Ennazus

I think a god who created the universe should be able to work around any variable in any tactical crisis.

Ojuice5001

Well, I don't think the gods of any mythology (which category does include Yahweh and Allah) are the creators of the universe...just that they exercise influence on the events of the world.

Ennazus

I don't think any gods were involved in either of these. I'd rather Christina thank her parents/friends/coworkers/teachers for helping her with her career. I'd rather see people on the news praise the neighbor who caught the child as she jumped out of a window, instead of thanking god.