Yes, a natural disaster that happens regularly enough around the world. Why do you think this has any more significance than those in non Communist countries? Lk 13:4 Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem?
To me it sounded interesting, it reminded me of the various Moses movies. Anyway, if you read the article, you'll notice that this time has apparently been different: The waves of locusts began around July 20, according to Stavropol’s regional agricultural ministry. Vasilii Yegorov, a deputy agricultural minister, told ABC News that locusts appear in the region every year but normally they are able to exterminate them before they hatch. This year though, Yegorov said, locusts had migrated from neighboring Russian regions, meaning authorities were unable to halt them easily, threatening what is one of Russia’s major farming areas. Swarms have been reported across many other southern regions, stretching from Chechnya to the Astrakhan province on the Caspian Sea. Because of the locusts, a state of emergency has been declared in three regions near Stavropol, according to local media. In Stavropol alone, efforts to kill the insects have stretched across more than 350 miles, according to officials. If you've something even more interesting to share with us, I'll patiently wait for your updates, though.
Yes, man is often powerless to halt Nature's bigger disaster's which shows how puny we really are. But why do you feel the need to give this particularly large disaster some religious significance? Is it because its about locusts and a natural plague of locusts was once used by God to punish the Egyptions? Or is it just due to the bigger than usual size of the disaster?
God certainly does send War,plagues,storms,Famine, etc ,to warn and punish man. ''The willfulness of men does not change and they stubbornly continue in their sins. The punishments and afflictions, God sends to make them become reasonable, are severe, but men are enraged as if they were wounded beasts, and harden their hearts against the grace of God.'' SISTER ELENA AIELLO
I disagree with you. God has always sent war, plagues, famine to chastise men, not to warn them. See for example what happened in Egypt, or with Sodom and Gomorrah thousand of years ago. Or, more recently, WW II. God send signs in the Moon, in the Stars, in the Sun, through the nature to warn men about upcoming chastisements, if they don't convert. He sends prophets and he works miracles. We could see this unusual event (as stated in the article) of the locusts, as a sign to warn men of the upcoming famine, for example. Interestingly enough, this happened in Russia, a country badly affected by the recent economic sanctions and which is largely counting on his internal food resources to rise again. And this is the thread of the signs after signs after signs, so...
I don't really under stand this. If a specific natural disaster (eg this swarm of locusts in Russia) is a sign to us that we are in the end of times, and we know that its not the usual sort of natural disaster that has always plagued the world (because we are in the end-times) .... isn't this circular thinking? There seems to be no basis for us to distinguish "God sent disasters" from "those due to the nature of God's imperfect creation" which are equally inexplicable and uncontrollable by man. Or are you saying all apparently "natural" disasters are in fact directly sent from God, punishing specific nations for their more extreme moral evils?
Not every negative event is sent from God to chastise humanity, only the bigger ones. Remember the prophecy "if you don't convert, a greater war will follow (WW II)". I see this particular event of the locusts as a warning sign for a upcoming famine. And I find it interesting that it happened in Russia. But this is a subjective consideration and a personal sensation, obviously.
The big disasters (hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes) are used by God in the unfortunate event that he needs to bring humanity back to the true path. Obviously, not every single disaster comes from God to chastise men. But, some disasters could occur in a not-too-distant future, and these will be truly sent by God to chastise humanity, if it doesn't repent. Anyway, this is an interesting message that time ago the Virgin Mary told an Irish seer: if people of Ireland pray and convert, then the climate will change in better. So, as you can see, prayers could influence even weather. I believe that if a nation was really Catholic and following God plans, then it would be spared from disasters.
No disaster is natural and random in the sense that God controls all things. Nothing happens outside of His Divine Providence and Omipotence. Holy Scriptures tell us that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him.
Of course. Yet when we say some natural things are signs and others are not then we do not seem to be talking of His usual natural control (which he leaves to natural secondary powers) with these specially sent disaster signs. I am trying to understand on what basis Pijon picked out the Russian locust disaster (amongst many other similar natural disasters around the world) as one of these special signs from God. Because it is the same type of natural disaster God sent the Egyptions 3000 or so years ago doesn't seem to be enough reason but maybe I am missing something.
Perhaps it is just that our imperfect human nature inclines us towards finding signs everywhere simply because we are seeking signs. And on the flip side, to miss those signs that truly are signs. I'm curious as to why one potential "sign" that happened earlier this year has never been mentioned or discussed as such on this forum (or elsewhere, as far as I'm aware). Following the earthquake in Nepal in April, Mt Everest was found to have moved by 3cm and shrunk by 2.5cm. So the world's highest mountain gets moved and lowered and nobody seems to have picked up on that as a sign. I find that kind of curious.
And Here it starts the Chinese Communists have started demolishing Christian Churches for refusing to take down the Cross from the roof of their Churches. I wonder how long it will be before the rest of the world follows suit?. China detains Zhejiang Christians amid cross removal dispute http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-33783463 Seven Christians have been detained in China accused of embezzlement and disrupting social order. Pastor Bao Guohua, his wife and five church employees were detained in Jinhua, in eastern Zhejiang province. But the church's lawyer Chen Jiangang told the BBC he believed they were being punished for protesting against the removal of their church cross. The local government in Zhejiang has recently been ordering state-sanctioned churches to stop displaying crosses. A number of churches have also been demolished after the government said they broke building regulations. Christians have said the crackdown is an attempt to rein in the influence of Christianity. China blog: China cracks down on Hong Kong evangelists Chinese state media on Wednesday said that Mr Bao and his wife, Xing Wenxiang, who are pastors at the Holy Love Christian Church, had embezzled hundreds of thousands of yuan in church funds and "conducted illegal business". They are also accused of "deliberately hiding accounts, and on several occasions distorting the truth to incite social unrest among believers," according to a widely reproduced report by Zhejiang Daily newspaper. But lawyer Mr Chen told the BBC that their arrest was an act of retaliation by authorities. He said a local religious affairs official told the church in June to take down their cross, and the church refused. "I can tell you that if church leaders had agreed to take down the cross, there would have been no problem. But they refused. That's why they were detained," he said. "What is unusual is that this was an official church, recognised by the Communist Party. Everything had been properly approved by the authorities," he says adding that the church gained approval in 2008. China is officially atheist but constitutionally guarantees religious freedom. But churches, which have flourished in particular in the country's southeast, have to be approved by the state.
I think human nature inclines us to many things some normal and some doubtful. Faith looking for signs seems different from faith looking for reasons. I am not sure what some posters mean by signs here.
We should remove at least 60% of the message of this thread, then. Discerning the true signs is very difficult, so the main events we see on TV or other curious things which we read elsewhere, allegedly related to end times, are reported here. Then everyone will make use of his discernment.
Catholics Prepare for Changes in Communion Ritual Catholics Prepare for Changes in Communion Ritual CLEVELAND -- Raising their hands at the Lord's Prayer. Losing the handshake and embracing the person in the next seat at the sign of peace. In an extra act of reverence, bowing before receiving the Communion host. And undoing a lifetime of tradition by not kneeling in prayer after Communion. Instead, in a sign of the communal nature of the sacrament, worshippers will stand and sing until each person has received Communion. American Catholics are about to experience major changes in the Communion rite as dioceses begin implementing the updated General Instruction of the Roman Missal. Church officials here, like in the rest of the country, are gradually preparing their flocks for the change. Parishioners will begin hearing about the changes in their churches the last two weeks in September. They will receive instruction in sermons and bulletins through October and November. Cleveland Bishop Anthony M. Pilla plans for the changes to be implemented in all of the diocese's 234 parishes by Nov. 30, the first Sunday of Advent. The Rev. J-Glenn Murray, director of the diocesan Office for Pastoral Liturgy, said the changes will unsettle many Catholics, but the diocese hopes the uniform guidelines will help people in the pews have a richer experience of the sacrament. "I think the current rite stresses presence and holiness in a very powerful manner," Murray said. "I think it's a vast improvement." Diocesan bishops are now putting in place the changes approved by the Vatican and then by U.S. bishops with adaptations for American culture. "We're taking our time. We're trying to do it well," said the Rev. Michael G. Woost, who teaches liturgical and sacramental theology at St. Mary Seminary in Wickliffe. Perhaps the biggest change "and probably the most problematic change," Murray said, will be getting Catholics to break the habit of immediately returning to their pews to kneel in prayer after Communion. The diocese is encouraging people to return to their pews and continue to stand and sing until everyone has received Communion and the priest has sat down to pray. At that point, worshippers would kneel in private prayer. The changes are designed to retain both the personal and social nature of the sacrament, Murray said. "Communion is also about being in communion with the Body of Christ, the church," Murray said. "If you receive the body and blood of Jesus Christ, you make a commitment to the body of Christ, the church." Some people may consider it an infringement on their private prayer, Woost said. But "we're really not giving up anything. We're getting so much more." Other changes include: -- Asking worshippers to raise both hands upward at the "Our Father." In some churches, people have a custom of holding hands during the prayer. The raised arms go back to the way Jesus and early church members prayed, diocesan liturgists said. They are a symbol of surrender to God and Christian belief in Jesus' victory over death, Woost said. -- At the sign of peace, there is a tendency now at churches to shake hands with several nearby people. The new rite encourages people to embrace one or two people in a serious, sober gesture of reconciliation. "The meaning of the sign of peace is not hail fellow, well met," Murray said. "It is a rite of reconciliation, of unions of minds and hearts." -- In a special sign of reverence, Catholics also will be asked to bow before receiving the host that they consider the body of Christ. St. Bede the Venerable Catholic Church in Mentor, a test parish for some of the changes, already has adopted the practices of bowing before the Eucharist and the raising of hands at the Our Father. Joanne M. Tadych, liturgist at St. Bede, said the changes have had a profound effect on parishioners -- in particular, bowing before receiving Communion. "It has a very calming effect. It gives you just a moment of peace to think about what you're really doing," Tadych said. "You're not just rushing through." Congregation members said after a recent morning Mass that they like the changes. Michael Williams, 50, said raising his hands during the Our Father "is a great way to show reverence and respect for the Lord. It's more of a sign of surrender to the Lord." Joan Kiesel, 76, said bowing before receiving Communion "is a wonderful mark of respect." But making these two changes has not been easy. Some parishioners prayed the Our Father with their arms at their sides or with a hybrid of clasped hands and raised arms. Murray noted that while the new practices will be the norm in all parishes, they are being presented as invitations to individuals to show the unity of the church by all sharing the same practices. He said no one will be forbidden from going back to the pew and immediately kneeling after receiving Communion. At St. Bede, people uncomfortable with raising their hands during The Lord's Prayer can keep their hands folded in a gesture of respect. Church officials and parishioners said they realize changing lifelong habits will be a challenge. Kathleen Buse, 44, said she sometimes has to remember to bow at Communion time during Mass at St. Bede. After more than 40 years of experiencing the Communion rite one way, she said, "It's a big change."
Now we're to be hugging people at Mass....really? New rule: -- At the sign of peace, there is a tendency now at churches to shake hands with several nearby people. The new rite encourages people to embrace one or two people in a serious, sober gesture of reconciliation. "The meaning of the sign of peace is not hail fellow, well met," Murray said. "It is a rite of reconciliation, of unions of minds and hearts." How do others feel about this? Not making me happy.....
Are these for real? To be instituted in all dioceses? We already bow before receiving, that is very good. No issue with others except no kneeling after receiving, that makes no sense. Some of the most powerful prayer I've ever had and some of the most spiritual experiences, including just this past Sunday, have been while kneeling with head bowed and eyes closed in personal prayer after receiving.
