This one will be updated, because there is so much information. A genocide is currently claiming the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in Darfur, Sudan. I started hearing about this genocide about a year ago, after watching Hotel Rwanda with the church youth group that I volunteer with, and deciding to look up the term, "genocide" online. At first, I didn't believe the information I was finding because I hadn't heard anything about it in the news. I decided to research the information myself, thinking maybe the term, "genocide" was a rhetorical phrase used by one special interest group to get people's attention. After spending the day online, however, looking up news articles, special interest sites, and even official governmental sites, etc, I was convinced that it really is a genocide; a whole culture of people really are being killed, though not currently in the way Hitler did it- Darfur is instead using forced poverty and forced homelessness to lead the group down the trail towards death. Then again, Hitler didn't start off killing everyone directly either.
Our government (the U.S.) is involved, trying to end the genocide, but we are not doing much, certainly not enough. The UN is involved; they have agreed that it needs to stop. There have been peacemaking efforts, and some states are creating economic sanctions to force it to stop, but a whole culture of people are being forced into a death-trap lifestyle. I will give examples, but I want to give sources with those examples, and don't have them right now. I know that many people do not believe in involving themselves in the affairs of another country. But if my country forced me out of my home, into refugee camps full of desparate people, where I could not work to obtain food, but had to rely on sharing the minimal in rations, or quite possibly starve, and where I would be fighting a huge risk of being beaten, raped, etc, I would hope that someone somewhere would see me as an individual, and get me out of my situation. A country is like a parent; if it is not willing to provide for the basic needs of its' people, then someone needs to step in. If you want to look it up, for now, here's one path: type "Save Darfur" into your search engine (and press enter). ...update: I now have a site specifically dedicated to understanding the Darfur Genocide: http://understandingdarfurgenocide.blogspot.com
Game of the Week: #8) Smugglers
12 years ago
Hi Fern. Shaun from PowerBlog! here. Thanks for your comments. I'd be honored if you would link my site.
ReplyDeleteAs for your question about Jesus suffering in hell...
Jesus suffered here on earth when he was crucified. Many people misunderstand 1 Peter Chapter 3. I suggest you read that carefully. I can only tell you what I believe.
By the grace of God" Jesus tasted death "for every one".In his plan of salvation, God ordained that his Son should not only "die for our sins" but should also "taste death", experience the condition of death, the separation of his soul from his body, between the time he expired on the cross and the time he was raised from the dead. The state of the dead Christ is the mystery of the tomb and the descent into hell.
Scripture calls the abode of the dead, to which the dead Christ went down, "hell" - Sheol in Hebrew or Hades in Greek - because those who are there are deprived of the vision of God.The descent into hell brings the Gospel message of salvation to complete fulfilment. For the gospel was preached even to the dead. Christ went down into the depths of death so that "the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
By the expression "He descended into hell", the Apostles' Creed confesses that Jesus did really die and through his death for us conquered death and the devil "who has the power of death" (Heb 2:14).
Jesus did not suffer in hell, but he did go to free the souls who accepeted him. This is my belief and the teaching on the Holy Catholic Church. It has been the teaching for over 2000 years. I hope this helps explain a bit better.