Lioness in zoo kills man who invoked God

booper54

news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060...NlYwM5NjQ-

Chris OConnor

I'm not sure how to react. Part of me finds it pretty funny and another feels bad that people like this exist...millions and millions of people.

booper54

Maybe the guy was suicidal already and wanted to prove a point... or maybe he was a fanatical christian. Too bad the article doesn't say.

Chris OConnor

Yes, I'd like to know more information. It seems there was a similar story a few months ago in the media. I forget the outcome of that one.

tomiichi

Maybe he was trying to test his faith. Maybe he came to a breaking point in his beliefs and decided to test them. He probably figured he had believed in God for so long, and now he wanted proof for his beliefs to find out if he was wasting his time or not. He figured if he survived then there really was a God, and if he died then there must not be a God. The only problem with this theory is that if he dies and finds out there is no God, then he also doesn't have a precious heaven to arrive at. With no heaven in sight, he may have changed his mind about testing his faith to begin with. ::100

Chris OConnor

Can you imagine the thoughts he must have been having as the lion ran towards him and then started the attack. At some point right before he died he must have realized his God wasn't coming to save him. Pretty scary stuff, but I have to nominate him for a Darwin Award.

MadArchitect

This, from Fox News: "Ukrainian TV channel NTN broadcast interviews with witnesses who said the man told them that he wanted to test God, believing that God would not allow the lions to hurt him."

Sounds like he may have modelled the display on the story of Daniel in the Lion's Den. Also sounds like the guy may have been a little unhinged -- I mean, aside from believing in God, which some people treat as a form of mental illness.

Dissident Heart

I am curious as to what sort of God he thought would respond to such a test or challenge; what kind of God would intervene in that instance and for what purpose, to what end?

"God, either you are there or you are not. If you are there, then show me your strength and protect me from this ferocious beast. I know you will protect me because I am worthy of your care. I am worthy because I am willing to put my faith in you to the test. The test involves risking my life for no other reason than to see you act in the world. Thus, my bravery in this account warrants your presence and action."

Sheer desperation tied to a trivial display of dangerous lunacy.

MadArchitect

I think it's pretty obvious what sort of a God he thought he was appealing to. And I think it's pretty obvious that he was desperate to validate that faith. Which indicates to me an internal conflict between questioning faith and the desire for certainty. If he were already certain that God would protect him, then I can't see any reason for him to dip down into that lion's den in the first place. And if he were comfortable with doubting, then I don't think he'd have had the urgency to test his faith in such a theatrical way. So if the question is, do you think that he honestly believed that God would protect him, I think the most likely answer is that he wanted to believe, and this was his way of forcing the issue.

It seems entirely possible to me, whether or not he would admit it to himself, that whether or not God proved His own existence by swooping down and saving him was of secondary importance. What he wanted most of all to prove was that he had enough faith to face death in the name of his belief.

It's a pity he died -- not only, but at least, because it would be interesting to know what went through his mind leading up to the attack.

Dissident Heart

Mad: I think it's pretty obvious what sort of a God he thought he was appealing to.

I don't think it's so obvious. I mean, is he hoping for a God of compassion who will show mercy for this poor lunatic; or a God of simple quid pro quo...you offer your life, I'll return the favor with reward; or a God that will endorse his bravery and lift him up as a model and exemplar and hero...God will raise him out of this pit of death as a savior and messiah to show the human race how to be a human being- how to be a man and how to trust God?

Or is he looking for a God to finally end his misery, deliver him from this cesspool of nonsense that has driven him mad...using this noble lion as his tool for deliverance; having never accomplished a noble deed while living, perhaps he can have one last chance while seeking his death?

Maybe his God was of the malicious sort...taunting, pushing, provoking him to confront the lion...promising support, only to with-hold it at the very end; mocking our poor victim with each rip and slash and slice and chew.

I suspect we can speculate as many Gods for as many mental states that harrassed his desperate soul.

Mad: So if the question is, do you think that he honestly believed that God would protect him, I think the most likely answer is that he wanted to believe, and this was his way of forcing the issue.

I think we need to consider who his audience was; or his perceived audience. Was it only God? Or did he see this performance as a kind of "ministry" to others? Was he trying to model a type of piety and orthopraxy? Perhaps he knew death followed his act, and embraced it fully: wanting to show others how they, too, must seek their own suicidal act and embrace a similar death?

Or did he want others to know how strong was his belief? In other words, God was not the primary audience for his act: but significant others in his life (real and make believe)...maybe nobody who even knew him, but celebrities and prominent names with whom he had created delusional relationships entirely in his head?

"Now" he says to himself while climbing into the pit of his death "they will all see the kind of man I am, the strength of my convictions, the courage of my ideals, the power of my will to follow through to the bitter end...and they will marvel at my heroic bravery and respect me, honor me, accept me and love me."

Mad: What he wanted most of all to prove was that he had enough faith to face death in the name of his belief.

Who was he proving this to?

MadArchitect

Wow. You've actually made me lose all interest in this story.


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