I know I am not a regular blogger but sometimes things move me to print, I guess you will never really know the man behind the moustache from these pages. Now and again however something rouses me from a blog slumber to pat a few keys into some semblance of a thought. My title is a little elusive, camping cynicism could have referred to the general expectation that it will rain anytime you erect a tent in the UK.
My Camping, is Harold Camping voice of Family Radio predictor of the Rapture that didn't occur. I am no professor of eschatology but the timing surprised me a little and I am glad we have a little more time to harvest. What surprised me more than the timing was the level of cynicism amongst Christians, including many in leadership. I didn't expect Christian Leaders to have a conference to discuss but many dismissed Mr Camping in a derisory or off hand manner. The truth is no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. (yup plagiarised from Matthew 24:36). If only the father knows then it is maybe a little arrogant to dismiss a brother in Christ or even poke fun at him.
As I have said I didn't feel any divine quickening over Mr Camping's prognostications but I was open to being wrong. I am left wondering if we missed an opportunity to say "I don't know if tomorrow is the rapture but if it is coming - I know I am going"; did we miss an opportunity to honour Harold Camping and say "You know what, I don't hear or see what he sees but he is passionate about God and about reaching the lost and I can admire that, he has been serving God in the best way he knows how with radio since 1958 and that is longer than I have lived and I want to honour that, and if he turns out to be right or wrong I will stand by him as a brother because that is what we do; whether we look foolish or smart." Could we have looked different to everyone else in how we treated this man?
