New date for end of the World!

vq

I would not want to survive an apocalyptic event.

It is what I tell the JWs when they come trying to sell their religion door to door. I tell them that they might enjoy looking forward to walking on the ashes of their dead faithless neighbours in their imagined paradise, but I would not want anything to do with their genocidal god, who has acted like Hitler and the Nazis

The first Survivors was good but the remake went on for too long. I got bored.

I'd forgotten about the Last Train. I really enjoyed that.

HildaW I agree. Does anyone remember the television serial called the Survivors circa 1970s? They did a remake a couple of years ago. Also the Last Train circa 1999. I would not want to live in a world like that.

Flickety I am currently taking instruction to become a Catholic. Although my DH was a "cradle Catholic" he never pressurised me into converting to his religion. My parents raised my brother and I in the Church of England but once we reached an age when we could think for ourselves we were allowed to make the decision whether to continue going to Church or not and although I still believed in God I chose not to attend Church.

However, when my DH died, I was struck by the strength and support his family received from their faith, although they were as devastated as I was their belief seemed to sustain them. As a result after thinking about it for a very long time I contacted my local Catholic Church and found them welcoming and supportive. I am under no pressure to continue with the instruction but do find I gain a great deal of comfort from the Mass

I have no objection if people who do not have a faith express their views, but it does seem that when attacking the Catholic Church people always talk about Priests abusing children, seemingly forgetting that this abuse also occurs in other faiths. The abuse of a child, by anyone is vile and needs to be severely punished. Just because some Priests, Vicars, Imams, Scoutleaders or teachers abuse children doesn't mean it negates all the good work carried out by the vast majority of people in those roles.

My advice is to take a good book. The queue for passport control to get into heaven is likely to be very long.

Yes, I'm with you there, Hilda! After all, if it was really 'the end of the world' there wouldn't be any world left to live on, in a pod or otherwise...

What I find odd.....but then it could be me.........is that when these apocaliptic type thingies are forcast that some folks build pods etc so that they survive. I would much rather go up in a big bang withe the rest of the world than be left in the wreckage fighting tooth and nail with any other nutters who had somehow survived the end of the world.

Lovely post Flickety. You have encapsulated my experience exactly.

As for Dawkins, he is a scientist, and yet he feels able to make a statement like that based on what one woman told him.

As for abuse, of course it is dreadful, whoever the perpetrator is, scoutmaster, media star, teacher, priest or parent. The abuse of the powerless by the powerful is a great evil and everyone should be constantly vigilant and prepared to challenge and confront it if they come across it.

Well, I managed to survive a catholic childhood without anyone putting me in fear of hell's fires or any other of the things that catholic children are meant to be terrified by. Even the much talked about 'catholic guilt' passed me. I was in my 20s before I discovered what that was all about.

What I do remember from my catholic upbringing, and these impressed me when I was very young, were the often repeated teachings; 1) that we are all equal in the sight of God 2) That everyone is capable of wrong doing, or 'sinful' in old fashioned terms.

This last teaching was an immeasurable aid through childhood because like most children I could see many of the adults around me telling lies, losing their tempers and generally behaving in a way I was told not to. Knowing that they were as just as capable of misdemeanours as I was, was very liberating and reassuring.

These teachings inculcated in me a strong sense of justice and a respect for people as individuals. They have also shaped my political values, and consistently had me in trouble for challenging authority.

Religion and money - very strong combination in some places. In Britain and Australia religion is of little consequence to most people, but it is still a strong force for power and influence in the USA, hence lots of people make lots of money out of it.

Ooops - just remembered - old Dawkins is in bother again: he said catholic brainwashing about hell, which terrifies kids who believe, is worse than some sexual abuse against a child. He said this because a woman told him that she was terrified of what the priest told her, that her protestant friend's dead relative was burning in agony in hell for ever. That same priest molested her, but the hell thing lasted in her psyche much longer.

Me - I reckon ALL abuse against kids by people in power is evil, whether it is abusing the mind or the body.

This link has few more mentions of previous apocolypse events past. I particular like the bit about the USA preacher who has made six previous such claims.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20712815

What I can never understand why it is that so many Americans seem to go for these types of theories. I am sure we don't get so many people in Britain getting carried away with these strange ideas.

I suspect someone is making money out of them.

They must be relatively new btw as they're not even in Wiki yet lol.

Do we know what time on 1st January 2017? The Mayans were very considerate and told us so we didn't have to worry all day.

That's one New Year's Eve party that should go with a bang!

OK, I'll forget that until nearer the time and assume someone will put up a thread in time to stop me doing anything useless like housework before we go

Surely a 4-year one would do?

Oh no, I'll have to get one of those 5-year diaries....

"The Sword of God"! Wow!!!

Never 'eard of 'em.