It seems that the LDS Church in Australia has joined the interfaith effort to control the weather using religion. PDF
The 116,000 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are taking a unique approach to the recently declared National Day of Prayer for drought relief in Australia. They are dedicating their monthly fast, next scheduled for this Sunday 3rd December 2006, towards the effort.
Apparently, God, who controls the weather, would like to see people go hungry a bit before he looses the torrents. Quite a guy. The press release does not say whether he would like anyone to do the little dance.
Will it work? Well, if it rains somewhere in the next indefinite period, I’m sure they’ll claim a win. If it doesn’t, I’m equally sure that everyone will realise it, and say, “Well, that was ineffective!” Then they’ll give up on Christianity and become Wiccans and Scientologists. You watch.
There is ample scriptural encouragement for fasting in times of great need says the Australian Area President of the Church, Elder Paul K. Sybrowsky. He also points out references in the Old Testament where God’s people were invited to “humble themselves and pray” so that God may “heal [the] land” and once more bring rain to parched pastures (see 2 Chronicles 7:12-14; 1 Kings 8:35-36; and Leviticus 26:2-4).
Hmm, those Old Testament scriptures are looking crunchy. Let’s have a look at Chronicles:
If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
The lesson here: If there’s a drought, it’s because you were bad. You know it’s true. Fess up! I’m sure some Australian has done something wrong.
Of course, since people have always done superstitious things to try and control the weather, it’s nice to see modern-day Christianity keeping up the atavistic tradition. The problem, though, is that it is now the year 2000-freaking-six and people should be a little better informed about things like what causes rain. I say this, knowing that if it had been a couple of years ago, I could have been right there, believing it with the best of the faithful, and not thinking too hard about it.
But now I’ve learned. And I’m doing something constructive about Australia’s drought situation. Ladies and gentlemen, I introduce the Magical Wishing Ferret!
Eeep!
He’s not just cute, he’s consolation in a time of sadness. And he grants wishes. Except those relating to Photoshop skills.
And because I like a challenge, I propose an Elijah-style test. For the first week, the Mormons can do their thing: fast, pray, supplicate to their hearts’ content. Then, on the second week, it’s me and the MWF. Any rain that falls after next Sunday, you know who to thank.
UPDATE: Faith-based rain report: Tuesday. Fine and 27. God is not appeased. Keep praying. There’s an early shower due on Friday, but that’s hardly miraculous, is it? Never mind; all rainfall will be dutifully recorded.
4 December 2006 at 7:16 am
Some Christians have got it right and do what they can, practically to help the planet. My Dad says God has given people the earth to look after (says so in Genesis and Psalms) and that’s what they should do. Sure, he may be deluding himself on many matters but at least he’s not taking the annoying and fatalistic ‘all we can do is pray’ attitude. Grrr
4 December 2006 at 7:59 am
Actually, this is an encouraging meme that’s gaining some traction in Christian circles. I’m glad.
4 December 2006 at 7:14 pm
Damn, I was really hoping on some help with the photoshop skills. Damn. Guess I’ll just have to use a damn book. Damn!
And as I have heard it told God always likes “the little dance”. Unless you are from Lehi, Utah.
Have I ever shared my little pet idea that all religion is actually based on psychoactive drugs. (well, its really not mine, others have put it forward and I just regurgitate here but that kind of makes it mine…No?)
5 December 2006 at 12:55 am
Faith-based rain report: Tuesday. Fine and 27. God is not appeased. Keep praying.
There’s an early shower due on Friday, but that’s hardly miraculous, is it? Wait till the Magical Wishing Ferret does his stuff. Then you’ll see.
I love theories on the origins of religion. What have we had so far?
Comfort from the awareness of death
Controlling the weather
And now… psychoactive drugs.
Hey, that’s not a bad one. Peyote buttons and wine for the sacrament, sorta?
The one I like best, though, is that people were trying to make sense out of a confusing world. That was fine for a while, but allow me to be the trillionth person to say that we’re now at the stage where science does a much better job, and religion makes it worse. Gives wrong answers. People do like the fuzzy feeling though.
5 December 2006 at 1:03 am
Science is great for making sense of the confusing aspects of the physical world but pretty crap at making sense of fuzzier aspects such as human behaviour (and don’t you dare suggest that psychology is a science!!!!), ethics, society, culture and so on. These aspects seem to get more confusing by the minute. So I think that religion is an easy way to find certainty without having to think too hard.
Today’s verification word: qoffibl
qoffibl, adj. describes a person who imagines that divine intercession can control the weather.
e.g. the qoffibl man prays while the farmer watches the met report.
5 December 2006 at 6:24 am
I agree that these areas seem intractable, but not that we can’t analyse them using the scientific method. For example, we can use evolutionary theory to see how ethics might have arisen in human communities, we can examine sociological trends using statistics, and so on. Maybe these methods are difficult to use and sometimes give ambiguous results, but they can give us a bit of insight. Theological hand-waving doesn’t do a better job.
I do dare to suggest that psychology is a science, as long as we are studying observables. Statistics, in particular, has been helped along by psychology.
tyqlthba: A young woman of marriageable age in Morocco.
5 December 2006 at 11:32 pm
You didn’t say scientific method – you said science. I think there are (necessarily) different types of methodologies for different types of enquiries. And I think that too many horros have been perpetrated in the name of psychology for it to be deemed scientific – observables are just that – even Galilleo didn’t make the mistake of thinking that what one can observe can tell us about the essence of a thing. And Francis Bacon warned against the ‘evil’ of empiricism – imagining that it is automatically generalisable.
djyfn: arabic slang for ‘friend’. e.g. inta djyfni, ya shebab.
5 December 2006 at 11:34 pm
horros: chav pronounciation of ‘horrors’
6 December 2006 at 7:13 am
Brookton got 10mL of rain last week which put me out of a job for 2 days. Now I am at home and without a job or moolah for the next week or so (desperate times!) because there was not enough grain coming into Aldersyde. Disappointing. If only it had rained IN SEPTEMBER!!!
Ycigbvl: The rainfall pattern that occurs throughout the year whereby rain will always occur when you don’t need it and will abstain from pouring down on your struggling crops when you’re desperate for it.
6 December 2006 at 3:32 pm
Wait — you mean getting rain now makes it worse? So people should have praying for rain months ago, but they’re only getting around to it now. God, with infinite foreknowledge, knew people were going to pray for rain too late, but still decided to grant it only after they’d asked, when it would make everything worse.
God’s a real shit sometimes, isn’t she?
6 December 2006 at 11:41 pm
Well, I did type a whole big comment explaining it all on here, but blogger decided it didn’t like it, so it’s not here yet.
Yes. Rain between now and the end of harvest is not so good. Rain in September and October is better. And I can bet there were people praying for rain back then!
So, if Magic Wishing Ferret decides to grant rain next week, it will not necessarily be a good thing, unless the rain in question is directly over a dam and not over the crops.
Kjbmv (v.): The winding movements my cat makes around your legs when you go to the fridge in the morning, in an effort to trip you over and remind you that he needs to be fed.
7 December 2006 at 6:54 am
Rain over dams. Check.
Got that, MWFerret?
Meep!
He said he’ll do his best.
fskav: A Swedish knife, used for flensing. Available at Ikea, if I’m not mistaken.
9 December 2006 at 3:21 pm
I recently lost my left leg. I have looked everywhere for it but it is nowhere to be seen. Do you think perhaps if I pray and fast, God will grant me a new one? Perhaps I should just ask the MWF ?
10 December 2006 at 4:58 am
Um… really?
The MWF can do that kind of thing, but only if you have enough faith. And if you give him lots of chocolate.
Eeep!
He says it could take a while. A lo-o-ong while.
nsyelet: The first draft of a papal decree.
10 December 2006 at 5:45 am
cadbury or nestle? I’m afraid that if I offer the wrong kind of chocolate, the MWF will look down on me with judgement instead of love, and I will be forever damned to a life with only one true leg. Does MWF like nuts or nougat? Caramello or mint? I don’t know….I want to do the right thing but there are too many variables……this whole religion thing is hurting my stump…..perhaps MWF is more of a Kitkat fan ???