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2 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW UPDATED: UCC gunman committed suicide, left manifesto ... Should mass shooters be named? ... Victims at UCC ranged from teens to adults seeking a second career ... UPDATED: UCC gunman committed suicide, left manifesto ... Should mass shooters be named? ... Victims at UCC ranged from teens to adults seeking a second career ... Kent Bush: Blood moons shine the light on phony prophets Comment By Kent Bush More Content Now MailTribune.com By Kent Bush More Content Now Posted Sep. 29, 2015 at 6:37 AM Updated Sep 29, 2015 at 6:38 AM By Kent Bush More Content Now Posted Sep. 29, 2015 at 6:37 AM Updated Sep 29, 2015 at 6:38 AM » Social News How many blurry photos of the moon did you see Sunday night? If you use Instagram, Twitter or Facebook, the answer is probably a large number. At least your neighbors weren’t ancient Incas who believed the eclipse was caused by a jaguar attacking the moon. If you did live in an Incan neighborhood centuries ago, you wouldn’t have gotten much sleep because all of your neighbors would have put down their ancient Incan iPhones and tried to make enough noise to scare the jaguar in the sky away. While we watched the shadow of the earth overtake the moon Sunday night, I talked with my sons about what it would have been like to see something like this when you didn’t understand what was happening and what they would have thought it was. But today, we have known for months that it was coming. There were books and news stories written and more video than you could watch was broadcast or posted online to discuss the event. I want to meet that person that didn’t know about Sunday’s lunar eclipse. They must have no social media presence, they don’t read newspapers and don’t see or hear news on a television, radio or computer and they have no friends who do any of the above. This person would be the world’s truest lone wolf Luddite. What occurred Sunday night was the fourth of four blood moons – whose name comes from the reddish hue the moon takes on during the eclipse - in a short time period. This has happened 50 times since the birth of Christ. The dates of the blood moons have corresponded with dates of Jewish feasts 10 times. Since 1492, that has only happened three times. Some see this correlation as the fulfillment of end time prophecies. The people who see significance in this tetrad of lunar eclipses that are in proximity to the ancient Jewish feasts and festivals are really reaching. Some point out that one happened a year or so after the reformation of Israel in 1948. Another happened the same year the Jerusalem was reunited. Now people are guessing what the significance of this year’s feast-aligned tetrad of blood moons will mean for eschatology – or the study of biblically prophesied end times. Here is a hint. Nothing. There have been times when God used the natural world to send signs and signals to his people. But astronomers knew this was coming and they know when it will happen again. God doesn’t speak in confusion. I don’t think he would say, “Here is a major event 18 months after some blood moons” and then, “Here is another event during the same year as a blood moon.” I have never understood the people who pull phrases and verses out of the Bible and make doctrine based on particular phrases. When reading the Bible, context and background are always important. It is also important to remember that Jesus said even he didn’t know the date and time where everything would be fulfilled – only God the Father knows that. I hate it when these phony forecasters use the guise of prophecy to profit off of well-meaning people who just want to do the right thing. A good rule of thumb is just to do the right thing all the time regardless of whether the end is near and stay plugged in to a local church where there are far fewer crazy people trying to sell books and far more coffee and doughnuts. Kent Bush is publisher of Shawnee (Oklahoma) News-Star and can be reached at kent.bush @news-star.com. By Kent Bush More Content Now MailTribune.com By Kent Bush More Content Now Posted Sep. 29, 2015 at 6:37 AM Updated Sep 29, 2015 at 6:38 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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