Global Warming?

Tuesday, December 31st, 2013     . It’s still there, tapped in deep, Antarctic ice. The passengers have been on board for nearly a week with nowhere to go. An Australian vessel has tried reach them. Same for a Chinese rescue boat which came within six nautical miles before turning back because of the unusually thick ice. As I write this, a French ship is also attempting a mission of mercy. Aboard the stranded vessel are 74 researchers, crew and tourists. So far they are all in good spirits, but if weather conditions worsen, things could get dicey. The stranded ship, Russian registered, has been stuck since last Tuesday after a blizzard pushed sea ice around the ship, freezing it in place. It won’t sink, experts say, and there is plenty of food aboard; but it isn’t going anywhere soon.

Now for the punch line, if you’re not familiar with this story. The jaunt was organized by an Australian professor of climate change and paid for by the Australian government. Its purpose was to report first-hand on how much global warming has adversely affected the planet. Unfortunately, an awful lot of ice, a record-breaking amount of ice, got in the way. So much for the science of global warming. My purpose isn’t to necessarily disdain Al Gore and friends, although they must be a bit red-faced at the moment. (Or is it even possible to embarrass a political liberal with facts?) My observation is on the uncertainty of human certainty. There isn’t space enough to admit how many times “science” has got it all wrong. (Piltdown Man anyone?) So when we’re told that Christians beliefs in a real Adam and Eve, a real Noah’s ark, and a real rapture are ridiculous, remember this stranded ship. And remember Peter’s words in 2 Peter 3:3: There shall come in the last days scoffers who are willfully ignorant. And that includes not only their assessment of Antarctic ice but also their opinion on the Second Coming.