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ada- Manitoba and Saskatche–
wan in particular.
As these huge air masses grad–
ually moved out over the North
Atlantic during the summer and
fall months in the northern hemi–
sphere, they picked up heavy
loads of moisture and dumped
them over Europe, then a low
pressure zone. Europeans and
Russians sutfered under massive
rains, floods, unseasonable cool
weather and crop damage.
A variety of explanations for
such mixed-up weather have been
otfered.
Sorne weathermen blamed a
dry winter and spring in North
America for fueling the ferocity
of summer and fall heat, since dry
soil warms faster than damp soil.
Others blamed sunspot activity.
Sorne feel pollution of the atmo–
sphere from industrial or man–
made sources is involved.
Still others blamed antihurri–
cane or other rain-inducing
doud-seeding experiments. There
is sorne evidence that the Rus–
sians are experimenting with su–
per, high-powered electromagnet–
ic waves in the atmosphere. These
waves could be altering the
earth's magnetic field , which, in
turn, atfects weather patterns.
A few meterologists blamed
the eruption of Mount St. Helens
in the state of Washington in
May. There is, as yet, only lim–
ited evidence to substantiate this
theory. Yet, it is possible that the
fine !ayer of ash spewed into the
atmosphere from the eruption
aggr avated adverse we a ther
conditions.
Much That Weathermen
Don't Know
Weathermen admit there is much
about weather they don' t under–
stand .
"Meteorology is a science
which understands how but not
why," says a European weath–
erman.
" It
is a discipline that
breeds conflicting theories and
always will until the secrets of the
forces of the atmosphere are
finally known to us."
Using up-to-date weather in–
struments and
chart~.
meteorol–
ogists can explain major changes
36
in high or low pressure areas, or
shifts in powerful high altitude
jet streams of air. "We under–
stand how the jet stream locks
into place for weeks or months,
but not
why,"
says Dr. Jean Palu–
tikov at the Climatic Research
Unit of the University of East
Anglia in England.
Weather science has discov–
ered that the earth's weather pat–
terns are chiefty governed by an
intricate interplay of forces in–
volving the sun's radiant energy
upon the atmosphere, the revolv–
ing earth, the continental masses,
the oceans and shapes and eleva–
tions of various land structures.
They have also discovered that
human activities on earth can
change weather and rainfall pat–
terns toa certain extent. Weather
in or shortly downwind of sorne
huge metropolitan areas has been
demonstrated to be slightly
warmer and wetter than areas
farther away.
In some areas of the earth,
massive overgrazing, deforesta–
tion and vast arcas exposed by
harmful farming practices have
altered weather and rainfall pat–
terns. Over the centuries, these
harmful practices turned fertile
areas into great deserts. Notable
examples are North Africa and
parts of the Middle East. Once
these were major food granar–
ies.
David Houghton, head of the
long-range forecasting and di–
mate studies of England's Me–
teorological Office says: "Man's
activities inevitably are doing
things to the local climate. He
upsets the water balance, over–
grazes, allows the rain to wash the
top soil away.... Now that the
population of Africa is rising rap–
idly, slash and burn agriculture is
having far more serious etfect on
weather than ever in the past."
Mr. Houghton adds, "The fact
that the Amazonian forest is
being chopped down is likely to
have an etfect on the local di–
mate, if not a small etfect on
global dimate."
Splrltual Force• In the Weather
What a tragedy that modero man
and science have ignor-ed or
rejected the Source that reveals a
very critical dimension in world
weather.
The Bible reveals God- the
Creator of the heavens and
earth- is the one who set weath–
er-making forces in motion. The
power of God sustains all of the
forces of the earth and universe
(Hebrews 1:2-3).
Weather-making forces , for
the most part, operate by them–
selves, without God's constant
interference. Nations of mankind,
largely living their own ways of
ignorance or defiance of God's
laws or presence, reap the bulk of
their weather benefits or prob–
lems from the natural physical
forces and laws governing weath–
er.
But God does intervene in
weather more than many realize.
Few seem to understand that cat–
astrophic weather conditions are
the inevitable consequences of not
only broken physical laws in–
fluenc ing weather, but broken
divine, or spiritual, laws!
God has an awesome purpose
for mankind. He has a purpose
for the ditferent races and nations
of mankind. In His merey, the
Creator has seen to it that unjust
nations are at times blessed with
enough essential rainfall and good
weather to survive (Matthew
5:45).
If
God didn't see to this bless–
ing, few nations or peoples could
survive for long. They would not
live to experience the full results
of their own selfish ways under
Satan's sway (11 Corinthians 4:4).
Nor could they experience the
blessings of God' s goodness in
His creation, or His merey and
long-sutfering despite their per–
petual sins (Exodus 34:6, Romans
1:20, 2:4) .
God is the Creator. He is
greater than natural weather
patterns or cycles. The Bible
reveals He intervenes in weather
to work out His purposes here
on earth.
Weather is but one tool- and a
major tool- at
God's disposal to
bless or punish nations for the
way they live. Many times during
history God has used adverse
weather to change the balance of
The
PLAIN TRUTH