If God is only supposed to strike you down if you sin then why does the Vatican have lightning rods?
2006-09-07 07:54:38 · 21 answers · asked by footynutguy 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Because lightning is a natural phenomenon. I'm going to be really presumptuous and put myself in God's place for just a moment: if I were going to create a universe, with a little blue dot of a planet at the middle of it all, I would probably want to set it up so it runs itself, and all I have to do is tweak it a little from time to time to keep it running according to my plans for it. I don't want to have to hover over it and blow every time there should be some wind somewhere, or have to constantly shift around clouds, or create each and every living thing that is born or hatches every day -- I still created it and take credit for everything that happens, but I don't want to have to micromanage it. So things happen on earth that are still my will, but that I don't have to make happen.
So now consider lightning. We know how it is formed, and the physics behind it. We also know that most of the time, lightning actually travels only from cloud to cloud, and a goodly percentage of the time, it hits inanimate objects or trees. Why? Is God punishing sinful trees? Or is it just random? I'd say it's just random, and it's only prudent to put lightning rods on the Vatican to protect the buildings and their inhabitants from random natural phenomena -- if God chooses to smite someone in or near the Vatican, I'm pretty sure He is capable of finding a way to make a lightning bolt strike the poor slob no matter how many lightning rods he's under, or find some other way of doing the sinner in. In other words, if lightning only strikes sinners, then what about the people who get struck by lightning and survive? Did God miss? Heaven forbid!
2006-09-07 08:16:26 · answer #1 · answered by theyuks 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Lightning rods or not, if God wants to light you up with a little lightning your gonna get it. It probably protection against those random strike not controlled by God that they're concerned about.
2006-09-07 15:00:21 · answer #2 · answered by Rick D 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If God is only supposed to strike you down if you sin......
...whoa, let's stop there. Where in the world did you come up with that? The entire book of Job is devoted to debunking that myth--and that's just the Old Testament. The New Testament also touches on how suffering brings us closer to God.
I hope that answers your question! God Bless!
2006-09-07 15:00:26 · answer #3 · answered by Mary's Daughter 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It was a bet between Thomas a Becket and Pope Nicholas IV to see who could get canonised first.
The Vatican, having got "wind" of this tomfoolery, decided to take no chances.
Thomas won by default, Henry II had him murdered, in a manner of speaking, by four knights who overheard Him, in a drunken rage, cry out...
"Who will rid me of this meddlsome Priest?"
2006-09-07 15:24:32 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ha ha! maybe coz they know that sinners come to the Vatican for forgiveness, they want to protect them from lightning so they don't get struck before they're forgiven! ha ha :)
2006-09-07 15:01:36 · answer #5 · answered by Snow White 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because if you lied, stole, cheated, or molested as many kids as the vatican you would be covered with lighting rods too.
2006-09-07 14:57:50 · answer #6 · answered by rab2344 4 · 7⤊ 0⤋
well, seeing how lightning usually strikes the ground and not people, then Zeus..I mean God...must be tossing his lightning bolts at the damned souls in hades...I mean hell.
...If you didn't catch the ancient greek to catholic belief transfer it will be lost on you in reality as well...
2006-09-07 15:20:34 · answer #7 · answered by theGODwatcher_ 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because holiness only provides an effective path to God, not to ground.
2006-09-07 15:00:37 · answer #8 · answered by Crabboy4 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Because god is fake and lightning is real.
2006-09-07 14:58:18 · answer #9 · answered by Toronto 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
lightning and science is stronger than God
2006-09-07 15:01:01 · answer #10 · answered by Rajan 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋