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Holy Smoke!

Pope Francis has died and the process of selecting a new pope has begun. Today, the puffs of smoke from the Vatican chimney were black.  The Conclave’s first vote to elect the next pope did not produce enough votes for a single individual to be selected. Traditionally, black smoke from the chimney means that the Cardinals must take at least one more vote, and probably more than that. White smoke means, “We have a Pope!”

Many people believe that this is the origin of the English-language idiomatic expression of surprise, Holy Smoke! Surprisingly, this does not seem to be the case.

Holy Smoke! is a minced oath.  (I will talk about minced oaths in another post). The fact-checking website Snopes.com (I will talk about Snopes.com in another post) says that the belief mentioned above is false. Snopes.com/fact-check/holy-smoke/

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the earliest known written mention of holy smoke was in The Epiphany, a 1627 poem written by Sir J. Beaumont and it references the burning of incense. The earliest known use of holy smoke as an exclamation or expletive was in 1892, by Rudyard Kipling in his The Naulahka.

            The expression may, ultimately, have been derived from the Roman Catholic practice but there is no known documentary proof of this.

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Update: On 8 May 2025, white smoke emerged from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was selected as the next Pope. He chose as his regnal name Pope Leo XIV.  

Modern Names of Places Mentioned in the Bible

 

Attalia                            Acts 14:25                Antalya, Turkiye

Cenchrae                       Romans 16:1            Kechries, Greece

Harosheth Haggoyim  Judges 4:13               El-Ahwar, Israel

Kir of Moab                 Isaiah 15:1                Al Karak, Jordan                    

Laish/Leshem              Judges 18:29             Tel Dan, Israel

                                      Joshua 19:47

No-Amon/Thebes        Ezekiel 30:16            Luxor/Al Uxxor, Egypt          

                                      Nahum 3:8

On/Awen                      Genesis 46:20           Heliopolis, Egypt

Pi-beseth/Bubastis       Ezekiel 30:17            Tell Basta, Egypt

Sarepta                         1 Kings 17:9              Sarafand, Lebanon

                                      Obadiah 20

Sin/Pelusium                Ezekiel 30:15            Tell el-Farama,Egypt

Follow the Finger

 

Apologetics, derived from the Greek word, ἀπολογία, translated in English as "defense," consists of logical arguments and the presentation of provable facts which are intended to explain or justify religious doctrines and is aimed at defusing objections to the faith. This occurs in every religious tradition but, for our purposes, refers to Christian Apologetics.
            

It is difficult to understand how people can ignore or entirely discount some of the facts brought to light by Christian Apologetics, but some always do, sometimes vehemently. Some will insist that apologeticists are misinterpreting facts or taking them out of their proper context. Others outright reject any supernatural interpretations of any facts.

One can easily get bogged down in all the arguments, but I believe that the point of apologetics can be summed up by a line from the Jean-Pierre Jeunet film masterpiece, Amelie: “When the finger’s pointing at the sky, only a fool looks at the finger.” 

            Amelie is a quirky, but beautiful, French-language comedy and is not a Christian film. I, admittedly, am quoting the film totally out of context. The quote is a perfect fit for the point I am making in this post.

Hello Kosovo!

 

Përshëndetje Kosovë! Здраво Косово!

Kosovo has just been added to the list of 144 countries from which this blog has been viewed. The total number of blog views as of today, 25 April 2025, is 526,801. The Church is for everyone in every culture! Thank you for your interest! Praise the Lord! Μαράνα θά.

מרנאתא

Modern Names of Places Mentioned in the Bible

 

Assos                           Acts 20:30                   Behramkale, Turkiye

Berea                          Acts 17:10-13              Veria, Greece

Cauda                         Acts 27:16                   Gavdos, Greece

Erech                          Genesis 10:10             Uruk, Iraq

Iron                             Joshua 19:38               Yaroun, Lebanon

Joppa                          Jonah 1:3                    Jaffa, Israel

Myra                           Acts 27:5                     Demre, Turkiye

Philadelphia               Revelation 3:7             Alasehir, Turkiye

Rabbah                      Amos 1:14                   Amman, Jordan

Tahpanhes                  Jeremiah 44:1             Tell Defenneh, Egypt

Book Comment: You Mean That Isn’t in the Bible?

 

In his book, You Mean That Isn’t in the Bible?, David A. Rich points out ten things you probably think are in the Bible but are not. Rich says, ”… my intention is not necessarily to cause you to agree with everything I write about, but rather to cause you to study for yourself.”

As with most books such as this, the author is not trying to tell you what to think. He specifically says in the quotation above that he does not expect you to agree with everything he says, He is trying to challenge you to read your Bible and to listen to what it says. Do not believe anything just because someone else told to believe it; let the Holy Spirit guide you to the truth.

The ten beliefs Rich mentions include:

There are many roads to Heaven.

When we die, we become angels.

God helps those who help themselves.

God wants you to be rich.

Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven.

We are God’s co-pilots.

Pray hard and God will answer.

God and Satan are battling it out.

God is not a micromanager.

Everyone has their own free will.

 

Information you will need to search for this book: Rich, David A., You Mean That Isn’t in the Bible? 10 Popular Beliefs That Simply Aren’t True (Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2008)

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A general caution: books may give you wonderful new insights and explanations of subjects, but you should never base your Christian beliefs on any one book or the teachings of one person, no matter who they are. All teachings must be consistent with scripture. Read as the Bereans did, with discernment. “… for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.” Acts 17:11 NASB

Any doctrines must be consistent with the historical full body of Christian thought. Doctrines or teachings inconsistent with scripture in any way must be rejected. You would not eat cheese which had a fuzzy fungus growing on it.