WHAT DID ALL THOSE CELEBRITIES WHO DIED IN 2016 BELIEVE ABOUT GOD?
Pop star George Michael wrote this in 2005: “As a gay Englishman, should I be more afraid of God? I’ve never had a problem with God, you see. The God that Americans are presented with day after day would, I think, have a few problems with me….”
Every death is a tragedy. Every one of them a great loss. But it really seems to hit home when it’s someone famous, someone you grew up with on TV or the movies, heard on the radio or watched in a sport. Being a Christian pastor, I’m always curious as to what people thought about God. Here are some quotes from the famous before they passed away in 2016.
Carrie Fisher said, “I love the idea of God, but it’s not stylistically in keeping with the way I function. I would describe myself as an enthusiastic agnostic who would be happy to be shown that there is a God.”
Astronaut John Glenn:
UNLESS WE EXPERIENCE A MILITARY COUP, a thermo-nuclear war or Jesus returning, in all likelihood, by November 9, we will have as our President either Trump or Hillary. Both have endured gloves-off politicking, scandals and stupid things said and done, but, regardless, one of these two will hold the highest office in the land.
Yes, in this great nation of ours, almost anyone can make it to the top spot. The Commander-in-Chief’s shoes can be filled by nearly anybody. With enough hard work and God’s sovereignty the most unlikely of candidates can have their shot at POTUS.
Well, nearly anybody.
There is one candidate who is completely unelectable. Pigs will fly on the 12th of Never, when Hell freezes over in a month of Sundays before this type of person makes it as our Chief Executive. Who might this be?
So far, only one sitting congressman, Pete Stark, has ever admitted to being one, and when he did, he lost his re-election bid after serving in the U.S. House for 40 years.
Former Representative Barney Frank “came out of the closet” after retiring in 2013 and 25 years past the time he came out as the first openly gay member of Congress; but, then in his memoir he backpedaled and did not want to be identified as “one of them.”
“One of what?” you ask. Hold on.
The Friendly Atheist is a daily email I receive in my inbox. No, I haven’t crossed over to the dark side and I have no doubts who God is, but I do like to find out what the “other guys” are thinking about me and my beliefs.
They thought it newsworthy to report that “Pastafarians” won the right from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to wear colanders on their heads in their license photos.
Michael Schumacher’s lawyer wrote a legal letter on behalf of his “Pastafarianism” that intimidated the Wisconsin DoT into letting him wear one, explaining that it was a religious head cover and that his civil rights were being violated.
Here’s an excerpt:
“I represent Michael Schumacher, a member of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster and a practicing Pastafarian. …Mr. Schumacher’s religious beliefs include donning a colander as a head covering…however, when he attempted to practice his religion while having his driver’s license photo…a DMV supervisor…informed him that he could not do so.”
Why the Atheist Mocked My Blog
On this day, five years ago, I wrote this…and nothing has changed!
I got an email recently from an adolescent atheist mocking my decision to make “Atheist Tuesday” posts an occasional blog item instead of weekly. Here it is:
SUBJECT: Laughter
If I wanted to pander to atheists, I suppose that it would be more popular, but why would I want that? I will end up having to answer over and over again the same Googleable questions that are found ad nauseum on Christian apologetic sites’ comments sections. You know, questions like these:
Remember, this is an evangelism blog “written to be an encouragement to those who share their faith and a motivation to those who don’t.” (Steve’s note: The emphasis of this blog changed in 2013.)
I found I was getting off-track and wasting my time answering questions that never lead to salvation. That is, I can try and answer all those questions, but really, atheists will not believe the truth by my answers, only if they have been called by the Holy Spirit.
So, back to the adolescent atheist’s email….
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