God Smites Jesus Statue

So, the news yesterday out of Ohio about lightning striking a sixty-foot-tall statue of Jesus and burning it to a cinder in minutes is a good example of an event that invites any number of interpretations.* The event itself is fairly straightforward, but the story depends upon what we bring to it.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/15/king-of-kings-ohio-jesus_n_612360.html

Possible Interpretations:

theological explanation #1: family squabble. Jehovah smites statue of Jesus with a bolt from the blue. Jesus refrains from miraculously restoring it. Holy Ghost stays out of it.

theological explanation #2: Jesus never really thought it was a good likeness anyway, takes out the statue himself.

non-theological explanation: high structures tend to attract lightning.

atheists' explanation: this is the result of random causation, an event without meaning in a meaningless universe.

smug atheists' explanation: this is the result of random causation that gives them a good excuse to smirk at anyone who thinks otherwise.

the Lovecraft explanation: a meaningless event in a universe without meaning that's out to get us!

all-purpose explanation: The Lord moves in Mysterious Ways.

and finally, from Janice, theological explanation #3: what part of 'no graven images' do you people not understand?

--JDR

current books: WISDOM'S DAUGHTER [1923] by Rider Haggard, & CHARLES WMS: ALCHEMY & INTEGRATION by Gavin Ashenden [2008]

*and mind you, this was only one of three weird news stories on the same day, narrowly beating out the NAACP getting all hot and bothered about a Hallmark Card's mention of black holes ( http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michele-langevine-leiby/political-correctness-run_b_612588.html ) and scientists starting an official study to try to figure out why Ozzy Osbourne's still alive ( http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/15/ozzy-osbournes-blood-to-b_n_612758.html ).

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