Alpha is coming!

[Marcylene]

With the havoc this hurricane season has already displayed, so many first time records set, and 39 days left of the season...couldn't they have named the next one anything but alpha?
I know that the Bible mentions many things that are signs of the end times. Famines and pestilence could be weather related, but other than that, are there things that point to the weather? I have always questioned the global warming for the Bible says:

While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. Genesis 8:22

Tropical Storm Alpha formed Saturday in the Caribbean, setting the record for the most named storms in an Atlantic hurricane season and marking the first time forecasters had to turn to the Greek alphabet for names.
The previous record of 21 named storms had stood since 1933. Alpha was the 22nd to reach tropical storm strength this year, and the season doesn't end until Nov. 30.At 11 p.m. EDT, Alpha had sustained winds near 50 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. It was moving northwest near 14 mph and centered about 55 miles south-southwest of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic.Tropical storm warnings were in place for Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and the Turks and Caicos islands and the southeastern Bahamas. Alpha was expected to hit the Dominican Republican early Sunday, but forecasters say it wasn't expected to threaten the United States.Since 1995, the Atlantic has been in a period of higher hurricane activity, a cycle expected to last at least another 10 years.
Wilma was the last on the list of 21 storm names for 2005; the letters q, u, x, y and z are skipped. The Greek alphabet provides a continuation of that list but had never been used in six decades of regularly naming Atlantic storms.At 11 p.m. EDT, Wilma had maximum sustained winds near 100 mph. It was located about 50 miles north of Cancun, Mexico, or about 375 miles west-southwest of Key West, Fla.
Information from an Associated Press News Article.

 

[Genesis1315]

It is really hard to keep focused on our task here, esp with all of the hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis and other natural disasters. I think (Starting on 12/26/05) there have probably been more people lost to natural disasters in the past year compared to others. I would love to see some statistics on it.

But take heart. We were born for such a time as this. We are here to bring light into a dark world. Sometimes we may be discouraged, but we have a loving Father that will bring us through this. And until the time when we are all singing praises to the Father and the Son, we will continue to share His message of Love

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

 

[Dark Virtue]

Ask and you shall receive:

* Athens, 430 B.C.: Typhus epidemic
* Pompei, 79: Volcanic eruption
* Antioch, Syria, 526: Earthquake (250,000 dead)
* Costantinopole, 542: Bubonic plague
* Beirut, Lebanon, 551: earthquake and tsunami (tens of thousands dead)
* Japan, 1181: famine (100,000 dead)
* Holland, 1228: sea flood (100,000 dead)
* Chihli, China, 1290: Earthquake (100,000 dead)
* Europe and Asia, 1346-52: Bubonic plague or "black death" (one third of the European population dead plus millions in Asia and North Africa for a total of 25 million)
* Shensi, China, 1556: earthquake (800,000 dead)
* Napoli, Italy, 1631: Mt Vesuvius erupts (3,000 dead)
* Havana, 1648: Yellow fever epidemic
* Sevilla, Spain, 1649: Plague (80,000 dead)
* Turkey, 1668: earthquake (8,000 dead)
* Hokkaido, 1730: Earthquake (140,000 dead)
* Lisbon, 1755: earthquake and tsunami (30,000 dead)
* Calcutta, 1737: Earthquake (300,000 dead)
* Bengal, India, 1769: famine (10 million dead)
* India, 1775: Tsunami (60,000 dead)
* Northamerica, 1775-82: Smallpox (130,000 dead)
* Iran, 1780: earthquake (200,000 dead)
* Caribbeans, 1780: Hurricane (22,000 dead)
* Philadelphia, 1793: Yellow fever epidemic (5,000 dead)
* Sumbawa, Indonesia, 1815: Mt Tambora erupts (90,000 dead)
* Japan, 1826: Tsunami (27,000 dead)
* Cairo, 1831: Cholera epidemic, which spreads to London
* London and Paris, 1832: Cholera epidemic (25,000 dead)
* Ireland, 1845: famine (one million dead)
* Mapoli, Italy, 1857: earthquake (11,000 dead)
* India, 1864: Cyclone (70,000 dead)
* France, 1870-71: Smallpox (500,000 dead)
* Bangladesh, 1876: Cyclone (200,000 dead)
* China, 1876-78: Drought (9 million dead)
* China, 1881: Typhoon (300,000 dead)
* Indonesia, 1883: Tsunami (36,000 dead)
* Huayan Kou, China, 1887: Yang-tse Kiang flooding (one million dead)
* Mino-owari, Japan, 1891: earthquake (7,000 dead)
* Sanriku, Japan, 1896: Tsunami (27,000 dead)
* India, 1897: earthquake (1,500 dead)
* Galveston, 1900: Hurricane (8,000 dead)
* Martinique, 1902: Volcano (38,000 dead)
* San Francisco, 1906: earthquake and fire (3,000 dead)
* Colombia, 1906: earthquake (1,000 dead)
* Chile, 1906: earthquake (20,000 dead)
* China, 1907: famine (20 million dead)
* Messina, Italy, 1908: 7.5 earthquake (70,000 dead)
* Mexico City, 1911: earthquake
* Worldwide, 1918: Influenza pandemic (25-100 million dead)
* Gansu, China, 1920: 8.6 earthquake (200,000 dead)
* Ukraine, 1921: Famine (5 million dead)
* Yokohama, Japan, 1923: 8.3 earthquake (143,000 dead)
* Nanshan, China, 1927: 8.3 earthquake (200,000 dead)
* China, 1928: Famine (3 million dead)
* Florida, USA, 1928: Hurricane (1800 dead)
* China, 1931: Flooding (3.7 million dead)
* Ukraine and Russia, 1932: Famine (5 million dead)
* Gansu, China, 1932: 7.6 earthquake (70,000 dead)
* Sanriku, Japan, 1933: 8.4 earthquake (3,000 dead)
* Bihar, India, 1934: 8.1 earthquake (10,700 dead)
* Quetta, Pakistan, 1935: 7.5 earthquake (60,000 dead)
* China, 1936: Famine (5 million dead)
* New York, USA, 1938: Rains (600 dead)
* Erzincan, Turkey, 1939: 7.8 earthquake (33,000 dead)
* China, 1941: Famine (3 million dead)
* Bengal, India, 1943: famine (3.5 million dead)
* Tonankai, Japan, 1944: 8.1 earthquake (1,200 dead)
* Nankaido, Japan, 1946: earthquake (1,330 dead)
* Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, 1948: earthquake (100,000 dead)
* Assam, India, 1950: earthquake (1,526 dead)
* Holland, 1953: Sea flood (1,794 dead)
* Iran, 1953: Rain flood (10,000 dead)
* Louisiana, USA, 1957: Hurricane (400 dead)
* Worldwide, 1957: Influenza pandemic (about four million dead)
* Japan, 1958: Typhoon (5,000 dead)
* China, 1960: Famine (20 million dead)
* Morocco, 1960: earthquake (10,000 dead)
* Chile, 1960: 9.5 earthquake (5,700 dead)
* Mt Huascaran, Peru, 1962: Volcano eruption (3,000)
* India, 1965: Famine (1.5 million dead)
* Worldwide, 1968: Influenza pandemic (about 750,000 dead)
* China, 1969: Famine (20 million dead)
* North Peru, 1970: 7.8 earthquake (66,000 dead)
* Bangladesh, 1970: Sea flood (200-500,000 dead)
* Vietnam, 1971: Red River flood (100,000 dead)
* Nicaragua, 1972: earthquake flood (10,000 dead)
* Bangladesh, 1974: floods (28,000 dead)
* Ethiopia, 1974: famine (200,000 dead)
* Haicheng, China, 1975: 7.0 earthquake (10,000 dead)
* Tangshan, China, 1976: 8.0 earthquake (750,000 dead)
* Guatemala, 1976: earthquake (23,000 dead)
* Andhra Pradesh, India, 1977: cyclone (10,000 dead)
* Caribbeans, 1979: Hurricane (2,000 dead)
* Mexico, 1982: volcanic eruption (1,800 dead)
* Yemen, 1982: earthquake (3,000 dead)
* Bhopal, India, 1984: Chemical pollution (3,800 dead)
* Ethiopia, 1984: Famine (900,000 dead)
* Ciudad de Mexico, 1985: 8.1 earthquake (9,500 dead)
* Colombia, 1985: Volcano (25,000 dead)
* Armenia, 1988: earthquake (55,000 dead)
* Colombia, 1985: eruption of Nevado del Ruiz (23,000 dead)
* Bangladesh, 1988: Monsoon flood (1,300 dead)
* Gilan and Zanjan, Iran, 1990: 7.7 earthquake (35,000 dead)
* Bangladesh, 1991: tsunami (138,000 dead)
* Latur, India, 1993: earthquake (22,000 dead)
* Kobe, Japan, 1995: earthquake (5,500 dead)
* Niger, 1995: meningitis epidemic (3,000 dead)
* Chicago, USA, 1995: heatwave (739 dead)
* North Korea, 1995-98: Famine and floods (3.5 million dead)
* West Africa, 1996: meningitis outbreak (25,000 dead)
* Tashkent, Uzbekistan, 1996: earthquake (??,000 dead)
* Papua New Guinea, 1998: Tsunami (2,200 dead)
* Yangtze Kiang, China, 1998: flooding (3,600 dead)
* Central America, 1998: Hurricane Mitch and floods (12,000 dead)
* Afghanistan, 1998: Earthquakes (10,000 dead)
* Colombia, 1999: earthquake (1,185 dead)
* Izmit, Turkey, 1999: earthquake (17,000 dead)
* Taiwan, 1999: 7.6 earthquake (2,400 dead)
* Orissa, India, 1999: Cyclone (7,600 dead)
* Venezuela, 1999: Floods (20,000 dead)
* Gujarat, India, 2001: earthquake (20,000 dead)
* El Salvador, 2001: earthquake (850 dead)
* Afghanistan, 2002: earthquake (2,500 dead)
* Algeria, 2003: earthquake (2,266 dead)
* Andhra Pradesh, India, 2003: Heat wave (1,300 dead)
* France, Spain and Italy, 2003: Heat wave (50,000 dead)
* Bam, Iran, 2003: earthquake (26,300 dead)
* Al-Hoceima, Morocco, 2004: earthquake (571 dead)
* Haiti and Dominican Republic, 2004: rains (2,400 dead)
* Philippines, 2004: typhoon (1,000 dead)
* China, 2004: floods (1,300 dead)
* Southeast Asia, 2004: tsunamis caused by 9.0 earthquake (111,000 dead in Indonesia, 31,000 in Sri Lanka, 10,700 in India, 5,400 in Thailand, 68 in Malaysia, 82 in the Maldives, 300 in Myanmar and 150 in Somalia, including 1,500 Scandinavian tourists, and dozens of Germans, Italians, Dutch, etc)
* Zarand, Iran, 2005: earthquake (500 dead)
* Nias, Indonesia, 2005: 8.7 earthquake (1000 dead)
* Mumbai, India, 2005: monsoon (1,000 dead)
* China, 2005: floods (567 dead)
* Louisiana and Mississippi, USA, 2005: hurricane (1,069 dead)
* Niger, 2005: famine (10,000? dead)

Note: The government of mainland China in Beijing does not disclose the numbers of victims of natural disasters, thus many disasters that took place in China may not be known to the rest of the world

From: http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/disaster.html

 

[Marcylene]

But take heart. We were born for such a time as this. We are here to bring light into a dark world. Sometimes we may be discouraged, but we have a loving Father that will bring us through this. And until the time when we are all singing praises to the Father and the Son, we will continue to share His message of Love

(((((((Gen))))))) Amen! May we always with boldness share His Greatest Love of All, as long as we have breath!

 

[Didasko]

Omega is the one we really have to worry about

 

[Arkanjel]

Did anybody draw a connection to what other major event took place in 1933? That is the year that Hitler became Chancellor of the german government. Of course he took power before the hurricane season then. Just an interesting sidenote.

*Its amazing that the bulk of the list had taken place during the 20th century alone. And that doesnt include the number of people killed in wars.*

 

[[toj.cc]WildBillKickoff]

Did anybody draw a connection to what other major event took place in 1933? That is the year that Hitler became Chancellor of the german government. Of course he took power before the hurricane season then. Just an interesting sidenote.

*Its amazing that the bulk of the list had taken place during the 20th century alone. And that doesnt include the number of people killed in wars.*

Please don't tell me you're trying to draw a comparison between Hitler's rise to power and the number of hurricanes half a world away.

The reason the bulk of the list occurred in the 20th century is because we have better recordkeeping abilities now.

 

[Arkanjel]

The reason the bulk of the list occurred in the 20th century is because we have better recordkeeping abilities now.

So you dont think this has anything to do with it?

Matt 24:
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

 

[Dark Virtue]

Did anybody draw a connection to what other major event took place in 1933? That is the year that Hitler became Chancellor of the german government. Of course he took power before the hurricane season then. Just an interesting sidenote.

*Its amazing that the bulk of the list had taken place during the 20th century alone. And that doesnt include the number of people killed in wars.*

Did you stop to think that the bulk of the list took place during the 20th century because we actually had the TECHNOLOGY to keep track of these things?

 

[Dark Virtue]

So you dont think this has anything to do with it?

Matt 24:
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

Guess what?

Those things have been happening for MILLENIA.

See the end times thread for more.

 

[Azzie]

I agree completely with DV here.

 

[Arkanjel]

It amazes me that so many folks..even believers..absolutly refuse to see biblical precendent in events. It saddens me that believers are more and more becoming dismissive of Biblical prophecy. It appears that the falling away where even the children of God are decieved is stampeding into reality.

AMEN! You could not have said that any better.

 

[[toj.cc]WildBillKickoff]

It amazes me that so many folks..even believers..absolutly refuse to see biblical precendent in events. It saddens me that believers are more and more becoming dismissive of Biblical prophecy. It appears that the falling away wehre even the children of God are decieved is stampeding into reality.

On the contrary, I believe that prophecy concerning the end times is a VERY tricky subject, and I agree with DV on this one-- hurricanes which kill over 1,000 people, earthquakes that kill 30,000, and other natural disasters have occurred throughout world history. Wars and famine have always been around.

I have a hard time attributing every "act of God" to being a sign that end times are coming soon. I see "acts of God" as calls to repentance-- as a reminder that our time here is limited-- but it is fruitless to try to assume that "this is the sign that the end is coming now," since ALL events like this are a reminder of the power and righteousness of God!

Please don't make the assumption that I don't believe the words of Jesus simply because I don't see anything historically extraordinary about current events. I believe in His return, I just believe that since He's coming back as "a thief in the night", trying to tie together current events with Biblical prophecy is far from an exact science, and that making wild, unscriptural claims (like claiming that Hitler's rise to power caused the hurricane season of 1933) is treading on dangerous theological ground.

 

[Arkanjel]

I have a hard time attributing every "act of God" to being a sign that end times are coming soon. I see "acts of God" as calls to repentance-- as a reminder that our time here is limited-- but it is fruitless to try to assume that "this is the sign that the end is coming now," since ALL events like this are a reminder of the power and righteousness of God!

Im not saying that this is THE sign, but these are THE birth pains. Just like a woman giving birth they come closer and closer together as the time of birth draws closer. There is no ONE sign, it is a combination of all of them occuring with more and more frequency. Just as with labor pains you can tell when the baby is about to be born. Now whether or not Jesus is going to come at the end of those labor pains, or right before they end or whenever, that is not known, but we can get a pretty good idea that it will be sooner than later if we are to follow His association with the labor pains.

I believe in His return, I just believe that since He's coming back as "a thief in the night", trying to tie together current events with Biblical prophecy is far from an exact science, and that making wild, unscriptural claims (like claiming that Hitler's rise to power caused the hurricane season of 1933) is treading on dangerous theological ground.

I never claimed there was anything scriptural about Hitler and the hurricanes. I simply said it was an interesting association, if not my exact words, then that is what I meant. It is no secret that Hitler's regime was steeped in the occult. He himself was a anti-christ type figure. Im not saying he was, but he is somewhat what we can look forward to when the real one does come. VERY charismatic, all about annihilating the Jews, and anyone who does not worship him for that matter, and in complete control. Now whether the hurricanes where actually associated with this, who knows, but it certainly does sound like God was trying to warn the America's to repent and clean up there act. One thing for sure is He is doing that now, but Im afraid no one is listening.

 

[[toj.cc]WildBillKickoff]

Now whether or not Jesus is going to come at the end of those labor pains, or right before they end or whenever, that is not known, but we can get a pretty good idea that it will be sooner than later if we are to follow His association with the labor pains.

Ark, if you can explain to me the difference between these recent disasters and the disasters of say, 100 years ago, that would be a good start.

That's not to say that I don't believe Jesus could come back tomorrow! I also believe we are closer to the end-- each day that passes brings us closer to His glorious return. I'm just saying that I don't understand why you base your claim that we are close to Jesus returning on things that to my knowledge have been happening since the fall of Adam.

^^That is a sincere question-- if I'm wrong, please let me know why you interpret scripture in that way.

Did anybody draw a connection to what other major event took place in 1933? That is the year that Hitler became Chancellor of the german government. Of course he took power before the hurricane season then. Just an interesting sidenote.

Emoticons my addition.

The implication was pretty clear, in a wink-wink sort of way.

 

[Arkanjel]

Usually I can never find anything good to come out of the U.N. But I just found an article that should shed some light on current events. Everybody knows that the U.N. has their nose poked into every corner of the world so who better to know of all the disasters and what not going on right now.

Here is a link to the article.

Here are some excerpts.
If nothing is done to cushion the blow of natural disasters, they declared, by 2010 some 50 million people around the world could be driven from their homes annually.

MARGOLIS: Are natural disasters getting worse?
BOGARDI: There are absolutely clear signs and compelling statistics showing the situation is getting worse. We now are experiencing 2.5 to 3 times as many extreme events of climatic or water-related emergencies per year as we did in the 1970s. At the same time annual economic losses [from disasters] have increased sixfold.

Jesus foresaw "the seas and the waves roaring" in the last days.

Why is this happening now?
Climate change certainly plays an important role. That leads to extremes at both ends of the spectrum. We have more floods, more droughts, longer heat spells without rain and more storms. But we also have increasingly unsustainable land use.

Some other points of intrest:
The unusable land certainly leads to famines, as these poor people die from starvation.

852 million people across the world are hungry, up from 842 million a year ago.

Rev:16
12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.
Ataturk Dam

However this is a very interesting bit of scripture that is overlooked.
1 Thessalonians 5:
1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. 2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. 4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. 6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. 8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
What is your interpretation of that?

 

[[toj.cc]WildBillKickoff]

Ark, before we go any further, I'll list the things we agree on:

1. Jesus is coming back.
2. No one knows the exact time.
3. We, as Christians, need to always be prepared for his return.
4. Natural disasters are often a call to repentance from a righteous Judge.

Basically, the only thing we're disagreeing on here is the degree to which we are matching current events up with Biblical prophecy. IMO, you're putting a square peg into what might be a square hole, might be a round hole, and I'd rather have a little bit clearer picture of what that hole looks like before I try to cram a peg in there. Time will tell if you're right.

 

[Arkanjel]

Ark, before we go any further, I'll list the things we agree on:

1. Jesus is coming back.
2. No one knows the exact time.
3. We, as Christians, need to always be prepared for his return.
4. Natural disasters are often a call to repentance from a righteous Judge.

Basically, the only thing we're disagreeing on here is the degree to which we are matching current events up with Biblical prophecy. IMO, you're putting a square peg into what might be a square hole, might be a round hole, and I'd rather have a little bit clearer picture of what that hole looks like before I try to cram a peg in there. Time will tell if you're right.

AGREED!

 

[Eon]

It amazes me that so many folks..even believers..absolutly refuse to see biblical precendent in events. It saddens me that believers are more and more becoming dismissive of Biblical prophecy. It appears that the falling away wehre even the children of God are decieved is stampeding into reality.

You know, you haven't left a chink in this big enough to fit a credit card in, have you?

If everybody agrees with you - then the end times are coming.
If nobody agrees with you - then the end times are coming.

This is like some weird drinking game.

 

[Dark Virtue]

It amazes me that so many folks..even believers..absolutly refuse to see biblical precendent in events. It saddens me that believers are more and more becoming dismissive of Biblical prophecy. It appears that the falling away wehre even the children of God are decieved is stampeding into reality.

And it amazes me, how year after year, generation after generation, Christians continually believe that THEY are the ones living in the "end times" and that Christ must surely return during THEIR lifetimes.