Two stories

There were two wonderful stories in the news this week that I think are worth mentioning.

The first is that the end of the world is supposed to begin tomorrow, May 21.  I believe it is to happen sometime around 6 p.m., but I’m not sure about the time zone – it could be a few hours either way.  Imagine that – the beginning of the end.  It’s a phrase we use so cavalierly in other contexts and here is someone using it literally.

The calculations that have been made for this event are mind-boggling.  Magic numbers from the Bible have been multiplied and then multiplied again … I still don’t understand why those, of all significant numbers found in the Bible, have been used while others weren’t, but I guess that’s a matter of study and understanding.  (And convenience, I suspect.)   I read through an online tract that explained it all and I can tell you that that I know just as little after reading it as I did before. 

I don’t believe for a minute the biblical Rapture is going to happen, but I have some admiration for the people who not only believe it is going to happen but are out there spreading the word.  The ones I have read about or seen on TV are not crackpots or lunatics, but sincere people who have a concern for other people’s souls.  They have given up everything and want to bring as many people as they can into the fold to enjoy eternal rewards.  It’s an act of selflessness rarely seen, and it seems sincere. I’m sure they will feel differently when Sunday rolls around and they and everyone else are still here, but still, it’s a nice gesture.

The second story was one I read just this morning, where a parishioner of a Florida church has asked that Osama Bin Laden be placed on a prayer list.  It seems a ludicrous request and it apparently hasn’t been well-received by some of the other parishioners. This request is a wonderful contrast to the pictures we saw of people dancing in the streets at the news that Bin Laden was dead.

The parishioner is right.  Christians who believe in praying for the souls of the departed should pray for Bin Laden, as the Bible teaches – and the parish priest pointed out - that we are to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us.  It’s going to be a hard sell in this particular case, but isn’t it great that someone has seen what their faith requires and is willing to act on it? 

Why my interest in these two stories?  I think it’s because it’s so easy to knock Christians and point out the hypocrisies and inadequacies that exist in Christian churches that these two stories point out the goodness that exists as well.  Yes, it’s a little odd to predict the Rapture and believe in it, but the reaction among those who believe it is a reaction of love, not fear and fear-mongering.  And yes, it’s hard to have sympathy for a terrorist who plots the downfall of your nation, but it’s an act of love and faith that makes a man pray for that terrorist.