HollyWilliams Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 It seems like this year has been really bad so far for severe weather across the United States. Does this bother anyone else? Could increasing bad weather be a sign that we are living in the very last days? I ask because the Bible seems to prophesy such: "And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, look up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." (Luke 21:25-28 RSV) Of course I could be totally misreading that too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maximilianus Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 More infrastructure, higher population and nonstop ubiquitous news coverage contributes to the seemingly worse than usual calamities...IMO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyWilliams Posted May 25, 2011 Author Share Posted May 25, 2011 [quote name='Maximilianus' timestamp='1306304493' post='2245674'] More infrastructure, higher population and nonstop ubiquitous news coverage contributes to the seemingly worse than usual calamities...IMO [/quote] Yeah, I suppose you're right. It just seems like things are worse this year than ever before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maximilianus Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 (edited) It always does, especially when many lives are lost. I don't think I ever remember seeing so much tornado destruction before. It's crazy. Edited May 25, 2011 by Maximilianus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyWilliams Posted May 25, 2011 Author Share Posted May 25, 2011 [quote name='Maximilianus' timestamp='1306305825' post='2245680'] It always does, especially when many lives are lost. I don't think I ever remember seeing so much tornado destruction before. It's crazy. [/quote] Yeah this is all rather scary. The National Weather Service has my area under a high risk for severe weather today. We are also under a Tornado Watch until 10 PM EST. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmotherofpirl Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 The world has good years and bad years and much of it depends on El Nino and the sunspot cycle, neither of which we have any control. Taking the weather channel off the air would help, their 24/7 hype contributes to much of the perception of the severity of the weather. People contribute to the problem by building their houses on known flood plains, dangerous slopes and not preparing for whatever extreme weather their area offers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archaeology cat Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 [quote name='cmotherofpirl' timestamp='1306346442' post='2245845'] The world has good years and bad years and much of it depends on El Nino and the sunspot cycle, neither of which we have any control. Taking the weather channel off the air would help, their 24/7 hype contributes to much of the perception of the severity of the weather. People contribute to the problem by building their houses on known flood plains, dangerous slopes and not preparing for whatever extreme weather their area offers. [/quote] I grew up on the Ohio River. Part of the town, of course, was a floodplain. When I was in high school they built a cinema on that part of the flood plain, and we then had a really bad flood. The floodplain had moved due to construction, so peoples' homes were flooded worse than they would have been otherwise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thessalonian Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 (edited) Here is the tornado data to put things in to perspective. http://www.norman.noaa.gov/2009/03/us-annual-tornado-death-tolls-1875-present/ 1936 and 1953 were huge years for deaths so what we have seen has happened before. However we have more warning systems today than ever before. There is no doubt the weather has been extreme this year. Record snows, huge floods. Is that a sign of his coming? Much too early to tell. Next year could just as easily be normal. Edited May 25, 2011 by thessalonian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AudreyGrace Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 global climate change. but that's a whole other thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homeschoolmom Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 [quote name='Maximilianus' timestamp='1306304493' post='2245674'] More infrastructure, higher population and nonstop ubiquitous news coverage contributes to the seemingly worse than usual calamities...IMO [/quote] This. [quote name='cmotherofpirl' timestamp='1306346442' post='2245845'] The world has good years and bad years and much of it depends on El Nino and the sunspot cycle, neither of which we have any control. Taking the weather channel off the air would help, their 24/7 hype contributes to much of the perception of the severity of the weather. People contribute to the problem by building their houses on known flood plains, dangerous slopes and not preparing for whatever extreme weather their area offers. [/quote] Yeah, it's not like in a year with less flooding and fewer tornados we get news reports of how great the weather is. They just find something else bad to talk about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catholictothecore Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 (edited) The simple truth is that we will never know when the end times will be. Even speaking of what is happening in the context of "the end times" isn't what we should be doing. As the church, meaning us on earth, the souls suffering in purgatory, and the saints triumphant in heaven, we "wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior." Don't worry about the time and place of his return. "We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28) We are going through a period of intense disaster in the world. Add this weather to a decade of ongoing war with no end in sight and our nerves are frayed indeed. The important thing is to remember that Christ promised these things as signs of the end times, but we do not know when those will be. So it may be helpful to live, pray, and do as if they are, trusting that God knows and can handle better than anyone when they will be. Edited May 25, 2011 by Catholictothecore Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhetoricfemme Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 It bothers me, yes. I love a good thunderstorm, I really do. Since being a parent, though... I obsessively watch the weather to make sure we've taken all the proper precautions. My husband, who is smart about these things but still more lax than me, has learned not to argue when I say we're going to the basement. Aaaand, I feel like issuing a formal apology to my parents for having to deal with Four Year Old Christina, who used to throw on her swimsuit, sneak out of the house, and run around the block in severe thunderstorms. We had a lot of downed threes and power lines that year, too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lil Red Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 [quote name='Catholictothecore' timestamp='1306354057' post='2245907'] The simple truth is that we will never know when the end times will be. Even speaking of what is happening in the context of "the end times" isn't what we should be doing. As the church, meaning us on earth, the souls suffering in purgatory, and the saints triumphant in heaven, we "wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior." Don't worry about the time and place of his return. "We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28) We are going through a period of intense disaster in the world. Add this weather to a decade of ongoing war with no end in sight and our nerves are frayed indeed. The important thing is to remember that Christ promised these things as signs of the end times, but we do not know when those will be. So it may be helpful to live, pray, and do as if they are, trusting that God knows and can handle better than anyone when they will be. [/quote] "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me." (John 14:1) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatherineM Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 The hurricane season in 2004 just about drove me nuts. As to tornadoes, I've spent a few interesting moments in a bathtub covered with a mattress. The night I was born, my dad didn't make it to the hospital because he was dealing with blown out windows at home. I came in with a bang. Should have been an omen for my parents of what they had in store for them. More people die in hurricanes, typhoons, tsunamis, because we have more people living on coast lines. When the volcano blew in 535ad forming the split between Sumatra and Java, and caused a world-wide weather catastrophe, Anderson Cooper wasn't there to give everyone the details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laudate_Dominum Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 [quote name='Maximilianus' timestamp='1306304493' post='2245674'] More infrastructure, higher population and nonstop ubiquitous news coverage contributes to the seemingly worse than usual calamities...IMO [/quote] if you look at the data is it actually worse though. ten times more tornado deaths than last year. last time there was a comparable year was 60 years ago, and we still have two months of tornado season. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc6WAmzEUeE[/media] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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