World-wide Fast

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dareka
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World-wide Fast

Post by dareka » Mon Mar 30, 2020 12:34 pm

Have any of you heard or seen anything about the reaction of "the world" to RMN's invitation to join the world-wide fast? I know it was a big deal to TBMs, but I'm guessing that most others rolled their eyes and scoffed, if they even heard about it.

The idea of skipping a couple meals to try to persuade God to intervene seems strange to me. Don't Mormons believe in an omniscient, omnipotent God? Don't they believe that everything happens according to God's will? So if God has all those attributes, what is the chance that mere mortals can change his will? If God's will is to have this corona virus work its way through the entire population, fasting won't help. If God's will is to test us to see how we react to it, that will happen with or without fasting. If it is a test to see who will fast, what's the point? An all-knowing God would already know what the end result would be, so tests are pointless.

I can believe that fasting as a group can make members of the group feel united in a cause, and there is value in that, I suppose. But for me to believe the fast really had a direct effect on the virus, it would have to be stopped immediately and be gone with no trace. Afflicted people would be immediately healed. The inevitable claims that the fast helped the situation, after a few weeks when the rate of infection slows, will make me cringe. It's like all the fasts for rain (moisture) during the frequent dry years in Utah. Years ago a guy in my ward said that he'd noticed that it rained every Fast Sunday. I remember recalling the previous Fast Sunday was a bright, sunny day. And I could think of many Fast Sundays just like it. I'm sure it rained somewhere in the world on those days, and maybe that was what he was counting. Didn't do much good in Utah.

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wtfluff
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Re: World-wide Fast

Post by wtfluff » Mon Mar 30, 2020 1:39 pm

Relevant thoughts:

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=5104
Faith does not give you the answers, it just stops you asking the questions. -Frater Ravus

IDKSAF -RubinHighlander

You can surrender without a prayer...

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Spicy McHaggis
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Re: World-wide Fast

Post by Spicy McHaggis » Mon Mar 30, 2020 1:52 pm

They need those extra fast offerings to pad their portfolio. The market has been rough the last month.

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Hagoth
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Re: World-wide Fast

Post by Hagoth » Mon Mar 30, 2020 3:45 pm

dareka wrote:
Mon Mar 30, 2020 12:34 pm
... I'm guessing that most others rolled their eyes and scoffed, if they even heard about it.
I'd guess 99.9+% fall into the "if they even heard about it" category.
“The easy confidence with which I know another man's religion is folly teaches me to suspect that my own is also.” -Mark Twain

Jesus: "The Kingdom of God is within you." The Buddha: "Be your own light."

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