Rana on Covid and mRNA vaccines

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105

Go get Covid and report back how that works. Remember a control group.

Btw I should add, that hypothesis was tested in 1346. It failed.

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106

That’s not the kind of healing I was referring to.

107

“Is there another kind?”

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108

For thus says the One who is high and lifted up,
who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:
“I dwell in the high and holy place,
and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit,
to revive the spirit of the lowly,
and to revive the heart of the contrite.
16 For I will not contend forever,
nor will I always be angry;
for the spirit would grow faint before me,
and the breath of life that I made.
17 Because of the iniquity of his unjust gain I was angry,
I struck him; I hid my face and was angry,
but he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart.
18 I have seen his ways, but I will heal him;
I will lead him and restore comfort to him and his mourners,
19 creating the fruit of the lips.
Peace, peace, to the far and to the near,” says the Lord,
“and I will heal him.

Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.

109

Yes, it’s definitely a coincidence. When God’s providence closely resembles God doing nothing, why should we think it’s happening at all?

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110

You can’t have it both ways - you can’t say “Christians only talk about God’s providence with good things, not bad things!” and then say “When bad things happen, God’s actually doing nothing.” If that’s your opinion, then what’s the point, other than your desire to either point out God is evil or Christians are inconsistent?

111

Of course I can. You have merely established that you are an unusual Christian. Why is God causing bad things to happen? Now what I would say isn’t that God’s doing nothing just when bad things happen; I think that’s the case when good things happen too. I don’t believe that God acts in the world at all; at least I see no evidence of it.

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112

OK. I’ll take that as a compliment.

I don’t know. I can only say what Job said:

Then Job answered the Lord and said:

2 “I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
3 ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
4 ‘Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.’
5 I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
6 therefore I despise myself,
and repent[a] in dust and ashes.”

You haven’t been to church in a while:

For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,

113

Reading his article, I don’t think that’s the point he was making. He was speaking pretty sloppy though.

It amounts to basically saying, “I’m thankful to God that this pandemic came at a point we were barely ready to respond to it quickly with new vaccine technology.” I also share that sentiment.

I’m not invoking a theodicy here, nor am I making any statements about pandemics in the past. I’m merely thankful to God for this particular thing in our moment.

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114

It is, sort of.

Yes, that’s the common response.

That’s an understatement.

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115

But why would you be thankful to God for that? He would either have to have sent the pandemic or created the vaccine technology. And are you non-thankful to God for not having done anything like that (whichever it was) for the 1919 flu pandemic?

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116

Probably thank Him for both the 1919 flu pandemic and covid 19.

I form light and create darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the LORD, who does all these things. - - Isaiah 45:7, ESV.

If you country has any unfair or evil laws you might thank God for them too;

Moreover, I gave them statutes that were not good and rules by which they could not have life, and I defiled them through
in their offering up all their firstborn, that I might devastate them. I did it that they might know that I am the Lord. - - Ezekiel 20:25-26, ESV.

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117

Seems like a bit of a douche, doesn’t he?

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118

Sure I would if that’s what’s necessary to bring you to repentance. That’s the point of the verses. Then you would be my brother.

Mark 14

And they all condemned him as deserving death. 65 And some began to spit on him and to cover his face and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!” And the guards received him with blows.

119

Sounds like a two wrongs make a right argument.

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120

I didn’t expect the Spanish Inquisition!

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121

Well. If God does exist, I don’t think He is a douche.

But the biblical God, particularly as depicted in the OT, appears to be one.

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122

Cue scenes from a Mel Brooks movie here…

123

If you can reason that such a God exists, please describe his character and attributes. I’m curious what these would be.

124

Well. For example, in the OT and the episode of the golden calf on Mount Sinai, God is capricious and without integrity; He promises Moses He will not punish the people after Moses intercedes for them, but reneges on His promise to Moses and punishes them - not once, but multiple times.

Twice Moses intercedes for the people. The first time, Yahweh agrees to withhold punishment — yet the people are punished three times anyway. They are slaughtered by the Levites, struck by a plague, and then put on notice for punishment on an unspecified future date.

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