Evidence for God from Science

Teaching them "the 3 little pigs" would be a good start. so come on, betray yourself and admit that you think throwing loads of "aid" at a problem fixes it.(which it doesn't)

Of course it doesn't solve long term problems... Where does your hubris come from?? But teaching is a long-term solution. In the meantime, there are mouths to feed, wounds to care for, and people to save. People won't care about knowledge if they are starving.

Cactus wrote:Teaching them "the 3 little pigs" would be a good start. so come on, betray yourself and admit that you think throwing loads of "aid" at a problem fixes it.(which it doesn't)

You can't teach people who have died of starvation. Aid is not being "thrown at a problem". Aid is being given to starving people who are poor and who need it.

Many won't like this comment either but don't look too hard at how poverty came in part to the nation of Haiti. The US won't look particularly noble when you do.

Cactus wrote:Teaching them "the 3 little pigs" would be a good start. so come on, betray yourself and admit that you think throwing loads of "aid" at a problem fixes it.(which it doesn't)

What a stupid insensitive thing to say. For one these people do not have the money to build proper houses due to the poverty in the country. So they are suffering because of mans greed and corrupt government. These people need food, shelter and medical supplies just to survive. Would you really walk about in Haiti saying to the people you don't deserve any of this because you didn't build your houses properly.

Please read the following from Matthew 25

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

41"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'

44"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'

45"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'

46"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

The presidential palace was built of brick, (modern, well fortified) and it crumbled.

The geology has a lot to do with it. There is little cushion between the source of the quakes and the surface where they were felt. The epicenter was only 6.2 miles from the surface.

To be honest, I can agree the best "aid" is wisdom, because then they'd likely be able to support for themselves. A man can eat for a lifetime if you teach him to fish.

And where do you think all this "aid", basically money, is going to? Because I have this really honest suspicion that it's going to the government there.

Yeah, all they need is some knowledge. Next time they might not be so stupid as to let an earthquake thunder into them.

What are you talking about? Hugely inhabited areas of the country have been literally destroyed, what knowledge would you give them?

Apart from moving off the island, I don't know what you could do. HOw can you give someone 'wisdom' to know an earthquake will devastate their country.

There is something to be said for imparting wisdom. It is one of the failings of our modern mission field. There is actually a lot of resentment from those who are ministered to in the mission field. It has been a topic of discussion. Missionaries come in, throw around some bible verses and hand outs, but the underlying problems never change. It is a very tough situation. We want to do good. We want to help, but we also don't want to come in, force our views on a culture and then up and leave.

Example: missionaries go into Africa. The big problem is there is little water. Missionaries bring in water. People are happy. Missionaries build a church get some converts and leave. Water runs out, people right back in same boat. Compare that to a recent empowering mission trip. Missionaries went in and discovered that this part of Africa sits atop an enormous underground lake. Missionaries teach locals to drill wells. People are empowered and welcome the gospel.
Big difference in the two.

In Haiti we are dealing with severe turmoil. The people need immediate aid. Sadly a lot of the generous donations will be thinned out through bureaucrats and such.

jlay wrote:In Haiti we are dealing with severe turmoil. The people need immediate aid. Sadly a lot of the generous donations will be thinned out through bureaucrats and such.

Sadly this is too true. Fortunately some governments are doing a very good job at making sure their pledges actually do reach the relevant places in a timely manner.