SDA News & Comment

[Gregory Matthews]

In this special post I will address Hurricane Ina and its effect on the SDA Church.  However, this is a developing situation in which the facts are changing rapidly.  As I evaluate, I believe that the full extent of damage is not known.  I will also make a few comments in regard to the situation in the Ukraine. 

Hurricane Ina: 

Southern Union Conference:      9:20 AM   October 4, 2022 

Three SDA Churches have sustained significant damage. 

Reports are still coming in and the full extent is not known. 

Florida Conference:      1:10 PM  October 3 

•  Central Florida, no power otherwise limited damage? 
• Some members have lost homes. 
• No Church property known to be seriously damaged, some flooding. 

Southeastern Conference:     

Unable to determine.

Gulf States Conference:   9;10 AM   October 3 

No known damage! 

Carolina Conference:    9:15  October 4 

No significant damage 

On the Ukraine: 

President Putin is making some statements in regard to the use of nuclear weapons that are unclear as to his meaning.  Nuclear weapons come in two categories—strategic and tactical   I do not believe that President Putin is either threatening to use strategic nuclear weapons or that he would use them.    I think that he probably would not use tactical nuclear weapons, but that such is not certain. 

The use of a nuclear weapon put radioactive particles into the air.  Those particles may be carried hundreds and thousands of miles to be dropped in places far away.  When I lived in South Korea, I received dust particles that came from the Gobi Desert in China. 

Radioactive particles resulting from a nuclear use in the Ukraine would likely be carried to NATO countries.  If that were to be considered a military attack, under the NATO charter, the NATO countries would be required to defend all. 

I believe that in such a situation the NATO Countries would:  1) Attempt to sink every Russian ship in the combat area.  2)  Attempt to destroy the Russian military forces on the ground in the combat area.  This, of course would be an escalation of the war in a major way what would involve all NATO Countries to include the United States.