Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on September 4, 2010 — the day a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Christchurch, New Zealand. While our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims of today’s far greater tragedy, it is reasonable to assume, based on history, that the comments made by a certain noted evangelist at times such as this will continue to remain consistent…
Noted television evangelist and amateur seismologist Pat Robertson, who never misses an opportunity to combine his two great passions, admits he was caught totally off guard by today’s 7.1 magnitude earthquake that caused much damage — but thankfully no fatalities — in New Zealand.
Taking time out from his daily prayers on behalf of friend and business partner Charles Taylor, the former Liberian President currently on trial in The Hague for war crimes and crimes against humanity, Robertson told reporters, “The fact that nobody was killed clearly indicates that, unlike similar recent events in Haiti and Chile, God’s wrath clearly was not directed at the general population. This of course leaves us to wonder what message we are to take away from this obviously strong statement. After all, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake is indicative of a considerable amount of anger.”
When pressed for his theory as to the Almighty’s message, Robertson, who this weekend is in Ozark, Alabama for his much-anticipated and long-awaited induction into the Bingo Caller’s Hall of Fame (which will be broadcast live on the Robertson-owned Christian Broadcasting Network beginning at 6 PM EDT on Sunday with coverage of the Red Carpet festivities beginning at 3 PM), responded, “When we look at what damage was caused and where, I can only conclude that for some reason — a reason likely beyond the understanding of mere mortals — God was sending a warning to Jesus. God struck a city called Christchurch — in essence, ‘Jesus’ church’. So in the absence of any message that would be discernible to those of us on earth, it seems clear to me that the message was not directed at any of God’s mortal creations, but at Jesus Himself — who, based on where this message was delivered — may already be walking among us.”
Mr. Robertson, a former Republican presidential candidate who is considered by many a living legend credited with single-handedly raising ‘religious entrepreneurship’ to an art form, then drove home his point, concluding, “While the inhabitants of the affected area — every last one of them — were spared, façades were ripped off of buildings and the entire infrastructure now lies in ruins. As a result, what we have here is a place called Christchurch where what lies inside its buildings has been exposed to the light of day and which God, Himself, has mandated through this action must be rebuilt from the ground up and the inside out. I’ll be damned if I can find any symbolism in that.”