 |
| (Hurricane Katrina) |
After Hurricane Katrina, many were asking this same question. Anne Arlinghaus of Vanderbilt University investigated the theories of divine retribution that emerged in Katrina’s aftermath. Arlinghaus quoted Rev. Dwight McKissic as saying: New Orleans
flaunts sin in a way that no other places do… You can’t shake your fist in God’s face 364 days a year and then ask, “Where was God when Katrina struck?” She then quoted Billy Graham’s son, Rev. Franklin Graham, as saying: …God is going to use that storm to bring a revival. God has a plan. God has a purpose.
Arlinghaus later pointed out that it is not only Christians who interpret hurricanes as divine retribution. Former Chief Sephardic Rabbi, Ovadia Yosef, claimed that Hurricane Katrina was a result of then-President Bush’s “support for the recent Israeli withdrawals from the Gaza Strip…” She also mentioned that “several Muslims interpreted the hurricane as punishment for the U.S. invasion of Iraq.”
Media Matters for America focused upon claims made by three of America’s famous religious conservatives: Pat Robertson, Hal Lindsey, and Charles Colson. Pat Robertson was convinced of a link between Hurricane Katrina and America’s legalized abortion. Hal Lindsey saw Katrina as a clear sign that America’s days of judgment had begun. Charles Colson believed that Katrina was God’s way of showing America just how vulnerable she really was.
As people begin battening down the hatches in preparation of Irene’s mighty visit, it might be wise for us all to at least consider what can be learned from such an event. After all, it doesn’t take a prophet to detect the many ways in which America - and the rest of the world - need to take heed.
Resources
http://ejournals.library.vanderbilt.edu/ojs/index.php/vurj/article/viewFile/2978/1249
http://mediamatters.org/research/200509130004
Copyright August 26, 2011 by Linda Van Slyke All Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment