My mom shared with me some conspiracy theories she heard today which really annoyed me. The reason why I am annoyed is because it came from the mouth of a Christian. We are representation of Christ and should we not protect the image of Christians, the Church and of Christ and check the validity of our messages before we spread them? If we have zeal but not knowledge (real tested knowledge, not information gathered from internet), we will miss the way (Proverbs 19:2). It is important for us to be knowledgeable. There is a difference between having information and having knowledge. One can gather lots of information from the internet. This is where many people believe in those conspiracy theories because they do not understand the truth and relied on the selective information the presenter gave to them. It is like someone write a book and present to you something without any contrary information so that you will believe it completely.
Just because I went against all these conspiracy theories because they really annoy me and I find them tarnishing our and God's reputation, some even considered me as prideful, proud and arrogant. I only commented that I know of all those sayings. I did my research a long time ago (since age 16 actually which I started debating and defend my faith back then but later stopped as I find it pointless and meaningless and that we relied on false evidence as well).
SO WHAT ABOUT OBAMA?
People like to spread the myth that Obama is a radical Muslim (no offence to my Muslim friends, I know it is unfair to you to label the radicals as 'Muslims' but for simplicity to allow people to understand, please bear with it) that may harm USA and the world.
Lots of myths have already been reputed. Just look at snopes.
There are more claimed evidences made like he ordered Christian symbols at Georgetown to be covered when he made a speech and that he supports the building of a mosque.
These are only partial truths. Stop having selective reading and create more conspiracy theories in this world! For Georgetown, it is just White House communication policy! For those in the working world who dealt with Brand & Communications or Public Affairs/Relations people, you will understand that they have very strict guidelines on communications, the background and even for company's logo, they will go to the very milimetre accuracy in spacing! There is nothing conspiracy or Obama is trying to deny Christ! For more information, please read here.
As for supporting the building of Mosque near World Trade Centre, it is just a freedom of practising religion! Yes, it is sensitive because of 911 but please do not blame all Muslims. Just as they are radical Muslims, there are also radical Christians! Christians who anyhow spread rumours creating social panic are not much better! The harm is not immediate but it can grow to become serious! Obama is saying they are free to practice their faith but that decision may not be wise. Read more about it here.
I really hope for God's sake (really for His sake, not that He needs us but we need to present ourselves well as good representation), we start to gain knowledge and stop looking in the internet and take whatever that fits our initial beliefs. Truth is not what you believe in. Truth is Truth regardless of your beliefs. Be objective, stop having confirmation bias (the bias that we deliberately pick information that supports our belief but ignore or deliberately try not to find evidences that does not support it).
Sunday, 25 January 2015
Saturday, 24 January 2015
Why I do not believe too much into End Times Prophecies Interpretations
Since the time of the Apostles (like 2,000 years ago), people have crazed over when the end of world is coming (the Apostles were guilty of that as well). I have crazed over it before but later I find it quite meaningless to guess and decided to live my life as normal. While I believe God is in control to decide when will be the end, I believe God is also reactive that mankind can determine when is the end. For example, if we do nothing about global warming, we will destroy ourselves. God would not come in and intervene because of our stupidity (I believe) since we are given stewardship to govern the earth. He probably will not say "hey, I planned the end on this or that date and you are going to ruin my plan so I shall reverse it!". Remember Jonah? God asked him to get a city to repent else if they do not, He will destroy them (read the Book of Jonah for more information). So, I believe in intervention rather than reaction. If you believe this or that means the end and you react accordingly, you can create a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Yes, we were told to keep a lookout for signs (Matt 24). I believe that is not meant for us to predict when is the end but more of a reminder that we ought to behave as we should, being faithful (Matt 24:45). Surely, if you believe Jesus is your Saviour and Lord, do you not submit to his Lordship? If you are not being faithful, are you then his sheep? If you are His sheep, what is there to fear? So no rationality to craze over such thing if you are faithful. If you are not faithful in your heart (not acts as not possible to be sinless though can try to be), then crazing over these, your heart is still not faithful! If you behave because of punishment, there is no change of heart but only a change of behaviour. It therefore wouldn't make a difference as God sees the heart!
We were told to be ready as He will return at a time we do not expect (Matt 24:44). In fact, if we craze over end times message, we may be the very ones being predicted to be deceived! Jesus said that there will be wars and rumours of war (e.g. Israel being surrounded by enemies etc.) but see to it that you are not alarmed! (Matt 24:6) When people start to panic, they feel helpless and believe easily on any message and can get deceived which Jesus warned against (Matt 24:4, 23-24, 26). Even if that person is someone nice, do not believe him/her. I was once a deceiver also believing in a false rumour and spread the message that the end is coming and Singapore will have earthquake asking everyone to stockpile food etc. many years ago! How stupid... So do not be deceived and start spreading such rumours. If people really do that, food prices will go up and poor will suffer and police will come find you because of creating social panic!
REASONS WHY I NO LONGER CRAZE OVER END TIMES PROPHECIES
There are a few reasons I do not craze over end times messages.
A key contribution is Applied and Social Psychology module that I took during my undergraduate that exposed me to how vulnerable we humans can be to being deceived. And the impact of a group of people being deceived is dangerous since unity is strength. So now I am rather very skeptical of things and do not accept something without questioning (most of the time). In my last blog entry, I mentioned a few psychological errors we are subjected to. One of them that is very relevant to end times prophecy messages is confirmation bias. If you are familiar with biblical prophecies, they are very vague. For example, in Revelation 13:1 it was mentioned that there will be a ten horns with crowns in each and seven heads. We know there is no literal beast that looks like that but what exactly it meant? No one knows but can only guess. So what is the accuracy of our guesses? I believe not very high. You can just find anything that has ten and seven to randomly fit the bill and say "it meant this...". Then people will start looking at history and trying to fit their stories into the prophecies but ask them to predict the future, they cannot. In social psychology, this is called 'hindsight bias' where people assume they can predict future with the Bible but only after the thing has already occurred. Many things happened in history may be able to fit the bill. How do you know which of them is exactly what it says it is? Some of the interpretations are also a bit overstretched. Like the green horseman video taken during the Egyptian riots. It is just a light reflection! You think this is the first time such phenomenon appear in history? Ask cameramen around, they probably seen that many many times! Some will say "although may be coincident, that may be a sign"... yes, maybe only. If you take it as a sign for sure, then its randomness error, trying to find meaning out of randomness.
Time is another problem. People says many prophecies have been fulfilled so the end must be very near. In view of prediction and prophecies, one must note that the timeline between each of them are not evenly spread out. So even if there are few left, it doesn't mean the end is like few years time or close. The sacrificial lamb was prophesised like 700-800 years ahead by Isaiah. Yet Peter's denial was prophesised like just a few weeks ahead. Jesus said "The Kingdom of Heaven is near" 2,000 years ago. Note that 'time' is relative. Even if only the last prophecy is yet to be fulfilled, it may take like 10,000 years for that to be fulfilled! Jesus said "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." (Matt 24:14). So if you preach to the last person on earth, will the end come the next second? Next minute? Next hour? Next month? Next year? Next decade? No one knows! We know the sequence but not the time.
Some of the predictions are also meaningless and redundant. For example, they say there will be more wars and famine (Matt 24:7). Wars have been increasing since the beginning of time. That is true. A research by Warwick University based on data from since 1870 showed this to be the case. So at any point of time, that prophecy will still be fulfilled. As world population increases, social conflicts will also increase and hence more tendency for war. We need more food production and harder for us to feed more people when we keep on encouraging people to give birth without planning on being sustainable. Of course there will be famine! You know, people are very selective in the things they read. God says "Be fruitful and multiply...". They never read it in context and kept encouraging people to give birth. The exact word is "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it". If population is just nice, you can subdue it. If overpopulated, you will fail to subdue it as no longer sustainable. Governments generally will also encourage more births cause its a prisoner's dilemma where no individual country will want to give in as if a country lower birth rate to protect earth as a whole and others do not follow suit and continue increase population, economically the country that lower birth rate will lose out. So everyone just competes like there's no tomorrow. Imagine if everyone believes end times is like deterministic, no one will bother about birth control and making the earth more sustainable.
So better to just behave yourself and be faithful. All other things are not that important.
REASONS WHY I NO LONGER CRAZE OVER END TIMES PROPHECIES
There are a few reasons I do not craze over end times messages.
A key contribution is Applied and Social Psychology module that I took during my undergraduate that exposed me to how vulnerable we humans can be to being deceived. And the impact of a group of people being deceived is dangerous since unity is strength. So now I am rather very skeptical of things and do not accept something without questioning (most of the time). In my last blog entry, I mentioned a few psychological errors we are subjected to. One of them that is very relevant to end times prophecy messages is confirmation bias. If you are familiar with biblical prophecies, they are very vague. For example, in Revelation 13:1 it was mentioned that there will be a ten horns with crowns in each and seven heads. We know there is no literal beast that looks like that but what exactly it meant? No one knows but can only guess. So what is the accuracy of our guesses? I believe not very high. You can just find anything that has ten and seven to randomly fit the bill and say "it meant this...". Then people will start looking at history and trying to fit their stories into the prophecies but ask them to predict the future, they cannot. In social psychology, this is called 'hindsight bias' where people assume they can predict future with the Bible but only after the thing has already occurred. Many things happened in history may be able to fit the bill. How do you know which of them is exactly what it says it is? Some of the interpretations are also a bit overstretched. Like the green horseman video taken during the Egyptian riots. It is just a light reflection! You think this is the first time such phenomenon appear in history? Ask cameramen around, they probably seen that many many times! Some will say "although may be coincident, that may be a sign"... yes, maybe only. If you take it as a sign for sure, then its randomness error, trying to find meaning out of randomness.
Some of the predictions are also meaningless and redundant. For example, they say there will be more wars and famine (Matt 24:7). Wars have been increasing since the beginning of time. That is true. A research by Warwick University based on data from since 1870 showed this to be the case. So at any point of time, that prophecy will still be fulfilled. As world population increases, social conflicts will also increase and hence more tendency for war. We need more food production and harder for us to feed more people when we keep on encouraging people to give birth without planning on being sustainable. Of course there will be famine! You know, people are very selective in the things they read. God says "Be fruitful and multiply...". They never read it in context and kept encouraging people to give birth. The exact word is "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it". If population is just nice, you can subdue it. If overpopulated, you will fail to subdue it as no longer sustainable. Governments generally will also encourage more births cause its a prisoner's dilemma where no individual country will want to give in as if a country lower birth rate to protect earth as a whole and others do not follow suit and continue increase population, economically the country that lower birth rate will lose out. So everyone just competes like there's no tomorrow. Imagine if everyone believes end times is like deterministic, no one will bother about birth control and making the earth more sustainable.
So better to just behave yourself and be faithful. All other things are not that important.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)