Posted on 05/22/2011 5:36:24 AM PDT by don-o
Harold Camping needs to publicly apologize for being wrong about his doomsday prediction and leading people astray, said a Southern Baptist leader.
The California radio broadcasters wrong prediction about the rapture and the end of the world reflected poorly on Christians, said Ed Stetzer, president of the Southern Baptist Conventions LifeWay Research and LifeWays missiologist in residence.
Stetzer issued a series of tweets about Campings eschatological prediction on Saturday, among which one noted that there was no earthquake in New Zealand after 6 p.m.
Harold Camping, pls update www.family.radio.com w/your repentance statement & instructions to your now-broke followers, Stetzer tweeted.
An hour later he tweeted again, 6pm here in Turkey. Im standing at the Temple of Athena waiting for the Rapture. Nothing happened. ;-)
For months, followers of the 89-year-old Camping, who previously wrongly predicted the rapture would occur in September 1994, have been warning that the rapture would occur on May 21, 2011. Supporters would hold placards on busy streets in major cities that read: Judgment Day May 21, 2011.
Family Radio, a non-profit Christian radio network headed by Camping, was the name seen on the placards, bus ads, billboards and in media coverage on the May 21 prediction.
But surprisingly, many within the California-based radio network do not believe that the first phase of the end of the world begins Saturday.
I dont believe in any of this stuff thats going on, and I plan on being here next week, a receptionist identified as Esther at the groups headquarters in Oakland, Calif., told CNNMoney.
Esther said some of her co-workers who believe in Campings prediction had bought expensive cars or taken their families on vacation ahead of May 21.
In New York, follower Robert Fitzpatrick, 60, spent his entire $140,000 life savings on 1,000 subway-car placards and ads at bus stops warning about May 21. The ads read: Global Earthquake: The Greatest Ever! Judgment Day May 21, 2011.
Another Camping follower, 27-year-old Adrienne Martinez, was planning to go to medical school but decided not to after listening to Family Radio. Martinez and her husband, Joel, had lived in New York City but a year ago quit their jobs and moved to Orlando. They spent their time reading the Bible and distributing tracts, according to NPR. They have a two-year-old daughter and a second child due next month.
We budgeted everything so that, on May 21, we wont have anything left, Adrienne said to NPR.
While some of Campings listeners are all-in when it comes to his rapture prediction, Family Radios Esther estimates that 80 percent of her co-workers dont believe their own boss about May 21, according to CNNMoney.
The receptionist is still scheduling appointments for her co-workers after Saturday.
Family Radio has about 350 paid staff working to run 66 radio stations across the nation. The networks financial documents, according to CNNMoney, shows that it received $80 million in contributions between 2005 and 2009. But Camping, according to documents, has not been paid a penny from the contributions. He has worked as a volunteer at Family Radio.
Not only that, but repentance is between a man and God. In no way should anyone be asked to repent to their fellow man. First, it would do no good, and second, the spectacle of calling for public humiliation is disgusting.
There are special places in the hotter parts of Hell for those who presume to know the mind and will of God...
Merciful Freepers might consider sending the good Pastor a variety of BBQ seasonings as tokens he might consider trying to take with him to the hereafter....
What I want to know is where is Harold Camping? I cannot find a single news story today May 22 that is interested in finding out what happened to him. Does anyone know?
I would expect that both MSM reporters as well as the alternate (real) media in Oakland are on patrol both at Camping’s home and his office.
A fruitful inquiry might be to try to reach some of that 80% of his employees that the article said did not buy in to the prediction. What are they hearing and saying?
“And should a person who truly and possibly did believe the end of times was tomorrow and gave his empire away to me should happen I would have no reservations about accepting, as long as it was final and iron clad.”
I understand what you are saying, but it does provide an ethical dilemma. Should a person profit from an action that this person knew would not occur? In other words, your coworker gave you the car because he believed he was being raptured on May 21. You did not believe for one second that this would occur, but took the car anyway knowing full well that when May 22 came around the coworker would still be here. That is like standing with a coworker at the door to the hallway and having him give you his Rolex watch because he tells you when he steps into the hallway he will be on Mars and will not need a Rolex watch. You take the Rolex , knowing full well that when he steps through the doorway, he will be in the bathroom. If he turns around, depressed and disillusioned with nothing left, would you give him his Rolex back? After all you knew he was not going to Mars, but to the toilet. I would think an ethical person would give the watch back. What do you think?
I told my boss off, quit my job, trashed my car, I told my landlord to eff off and I gave away everything I own. Now what I going to do?
Uh, the authority is scripture.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-rapture-20110522,0,5118540.story
The above link has a lot of new info.
Oh, that clears it up. But whose interpretation -- Camping's, or the Baptist's? Or yours?
Most reputable Christian leaders, even those with very large ministries (Franklin Graham, Max Lucado, et. al) have accountability partners who they can talk with and run ideas past, and these people can tell them if they're 'going off the reservation' scripturally. They put themselves under authority of fellow believers to help them stay the proper course in their walk with Christ. Many of them also have pastors and churches that they are a part of who have authority over them.
Most nutjobs or cult leaders, like Camping, don't have anyone in authority over themselves, setting themselves up as the highest authority. In their minds, the only one they answer to is "God".
(Note: I put "God" in quotes because a lot of times their ideas are so half-baked and strange that the true God had absolutely nothing to do with it, even though they give Him 'credit' for it.)
Camping did have resources for accountability, and chose to ignore them. He was teaching at Alameda Community Church, of the Christian Reformed Church denomination, where he was asked to stop teaching on May 1988. My guess is that the other elders of the church had previously approached him with their concerns (a Biblical approach BTW). Camping chose to walk out in a huff. His claim that the Holy Spirit left the church on 21May1988 and no one would be saved after that may coincide with the date that he was to stop teaching.
Between two and four, as the cableguy says..
I guess you must have missed the parts of the New Testament calling sinner’s to repentance? St. Paul and Peter seemed to mention it a few times. Maybe you could read the NT through a couple of times and give us your interpretation?
I don’t follow Camping (because he is a proven false prophet), so you’ll have to excuse me for not knowing about his affiliation - or lack thereof.
I don’t have any interest in a Rolex personally.
But I did buy from another co-worker years ago a somewhat damaged but ultimately repairable a 12,000 watt (12KW) Onan diesel generator that he found along the Alaska Highway miles from no where and hauled it back onto his truck, I bought it, a welder and an air compressor for $150. He needed fast cash right then and there. I’m not a pawn shop.
The generator is worth at least $2,000, months later he came back demanding I sell everything back to him.
What would you do?
That reminds me of the joke about Epiphany that ends, “The Gospel says the wise men came from a faaaahr.”
I did. The topic is false teaching, something of which both Catholicism and Harold Camping are guilty.
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