What They Think of Us: Mark Twain

"It ain't the parts of the Bible that I can't understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand. ...
I believe in God the Almighty. I do not believe He has ever sent a message to man by anybody, or delivered one to him by word of mouth, or made Himself visible to mortal eyes at any time or in any place." Mark Twain (pen name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 1835 - 1910)


Mark Twain was a very complicated and conflicted man.  Though he held strong views against organized religion, he was obsessed, according to his daughter Clara, with the afterlife and was a lifelong Presbyterian.  He raised the modern equivalent of $2200 for the completion of a Presbyterian church attended by his brother, Orion, in Carson City, Nevada.

Kagawa Toyohiko to Hirohito, Emperor of Japan, 1946

"Whosoever will be great among you ... shall be the servant of all.  A ruler's sovereignty, Your Majesty, is in the hearts of the people.  Only by service to others can a man, or a nation, be godlike." Kagawa Toyohiko to Hirohito, Emperor of Japan, 1946, in the Imperial Palace in Tokyo.

Today, 29 April, is the birthday of Emperor Hirohito (1901-1989).  In Shinto, the official state religion of Japan, Emperor Hirohito was regarded to be a deity, a lineal descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu omikami.

Pray for the People of Alabama

Today is a beautiful sunny mild day.  Yesterday was sheer terror.

Yesterday there were at least 164 tornadoes in six southern states (Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, Virginia, and Kentucky) of the United States.  At least 280 people died, with 195 of those in Alabama.  They are still finding more and many are still missing.  Hundreds were injured.

Please pray for the people of Alabama.

The tornado which hit Tuscaloosa and Birmingham (it was the same mile-wide tornado) was probably an EF3 - EF5.  An EF3 tornado has wind speeds of 158-206 mph while an EF5 has speeds of 261-318 mph.  The EF ratings are part of the Fujita Scale devised by Tetsuya "Ted" Fujita (1920-1998) in 1971 at The University of Chicago.

The authorities are discouraging people from showing up to help because of the danger; you can not safely just begin to pull and tug on some of these buildings or they might collapse on you. The National Guard, police, and firemen are doing that work.  Local churches are helping in another way; preparing food for the hundreds of rescue workers.  This is a noble work by the churches.  Please pray for them, the rescue workers, the injured, and the families which have lost loved ones.

Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Birmingham, Alabama

Cullman, Alabama

http://tweetbeat.com/events/16695-tornado-strikes-cullman-alabama?mqhom=car

30 Incredible Pictures of the Tuscaloosa Tornado

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/30-incredible-pictures-of-the-tuscaloosa-tornado?s=mobile

Stacked up cars

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150562248780293&set=a.10150162584525293.415108.261724115292&type=1&ref=nf

12 photos

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150172071421336&set=a.10150172070936336.296372.15704546335&type=1&ref=nf

Christians

At some time during their lives, the following people have publicly identified themselves as Christian.   Inclusion in this list does not indicate approval or disapproval of the person, of their orthodoxy or lack of it, or of their actions.  Readers are encouraged to suggest persons who should be included on this list.  This is a recurring segment in this blog.

John Fullerton MacArthur, Jr.: (b.1939) American Evangelical writer, expository preacher, radio commentator, pastor, college president. He has authored and/or edited over 150 books. His theology is Calvinist and Dispensational.  He is a cessationist (the charismatic gifts of the New Testament are not for this time) and he declares that Roman Catholicism is a non-Christian, Satanic religion.  He is a fifth cousin of U.S. General Douglas MacArthur.

Paulo Rodrigues Romiero: (b. Brazil) Christian apologist and pastor.  He was raised in a mixture of Roman Catholicism and Spiritism and, in the 1970's became a Presbyterian. He is an outspoken opponent of the Prosperity Gospel.

Father William Johnston, S.J.: (b.1925, Northern Ireland - d.2010, Japan) Roman Catholic Jesuit missionary to Japan, scholar, author, translator, mystical theologian, preacher, college professor.

Arnold Alois Schwarzeneggar: (b. 195-47, Austria) Roman Catholic.  Bodybuilder, actor, politician.  Mr. Universe, seven time Mr. Olympia, film actor, Governor of California (2003-2011).

Giacomo Antonio Domenic Michele Secondo Maria Puccini (b. 1858, Italy - d. 1924)

Composer of operas, sacred music, orchestral pieces, and chamber music.

Biblical Sources of Phrases in Common Use: Money is the Root of All Evil

"Money is the root of all evil." Actually that's not what the Bible said.  Read it again.

This phrase is one of the often misquoted Bible phrases which have entered into common usage.

"For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." 1 Timothy 6:10


The love of money is actually a love of self, because money can give power to the self.  Money itself is just a tool, which can be used for good or for evil.

Go Ahead! Poke Me!

The other day I saw a rather corpulent young man wearing a tee shirt bearing the image of the Pillsbury Doughboy and the slogan, "Go Ahead!  Poke Me!"  The Doughboy is an advertising icon for the Pillsbury Company, a company which sells pastries, rolls, bread, etc.  In commercials featuring him, a finger pokes him in his round belly and he giggles.

That's not what the young man I saw had in mind.  From the scowl on his face it was obvious that he was daring someone, anyone, to say something about his size.   He looked as if he were carrying around a cloud of hostility, a  pervasive dark attitude, simmering belligerence.

The Bible doesn't deny the emotion of anger, Jesus became angry; His anger was Holy and justified.  The Bible does have something to say about unreasoning generalized bile and about true ill-wishing directed at another person.

"Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire." Matthew 5:21-22.


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Concerning "Raca ," the word means "empty head," something like "idiot" or "stupid."

Book Comment: The Baptist Faith and Message

This book, The Baptist Faith and Message (1971), by Herschel H. Hobbs, was actually somewhat controversial upon its release.  Many called it ultra-conservative, even fundamentalist.  Actually it is a clear and concise statement of the beliefs of the majority of Southern Baptists.

Baptists come from the Anabaptist tradition, insisting on adult believer's baptism and denying the usefulness of infant baptism.  The name of the Southern Baptist Convention (the SBC) reflects our particular denomination's historical origins.  We arose during the conflict between North and South, the American Civil War.  We have long since left behind the main source of conflict with our northern brethren, a defense of the institution of slavery, and we are now worldwide, not merely "southern."  We number about 13,000,000.

The SBC is congregational; each church is autonomous and participation in state and national conventions is voluntary.  Each church calls its own pastor(s) and elects its own deacons (elders).  Elected representatives from the church attend the state and national conventions.  Statements by the conventions are "advisory" but are not binding on local churches.

The Baptist Faith and Message discusses our main doctrinal points.
1. We believe in "the competency of the soul in religion."  Man is endowed by God with the privilege of choice.  The relationship is between God and the individual believer.  Every person on Earth has an equal right to direct access to God.  The priesthood of all believers means that all believers have the right to read and interpret the scriptures as led by the Holy Spirit.
2. Baptism is by immersion only (βαπτίζω is Greek, meaning "I immerse").  Baptism is not a magical act, it is a statement of belief.
3. We practice "closed communion."
4. The Scriptures are inspired and inerrant in all their assertions.  They were written by men, divinely inspired, whose individual personalities and writing styles can be heard in their writings.  All doctrine must be based on the totality of scripture, not on hand-picked individual verses.  The ultimate criterion for interpretation of the Bible (Old and New Testaments) is Jesus Christ.
5. We are obligated by our salvation to offer this salvation to whoever will accept it.  We are not to compel or coerce belief.
6. We have a living faith, not a creedal one.
7. God is utterly holy and perfect.  He exists as one God in Three Persons, The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  His ultimate revelation of Himself to man is Jesus Christ.
8. Man is created in God's image.  Every person on Earth is worthy of respect.
9. There is nothing we can do to earn our salvation, it is the freely given gift of God.
10. All believers are saints, "set apart."  The process of sanctification of the believer proceeds over our lifetime as we become increasingly like Christ; the believer's ultimate destiny is moral and spiritual perfection, like Jesus.  This is not the result of the believer's actions, but by the work of the Holy Spirit upon him or her.
11. All true believers endure to the end.
12. The Church, the Bride of Christ, is the ἐκκλησία, the body of all believers in Christ down through the ages and for all time to come.
13. The Lord's Supper (communion) is a symbolic act of obedience to Jesus.  It is for baptized believers only.

The Broadway Play,"High," Closes Today

High, a Broadway play starring Kathleen Turner, closes today after only twenty-eight off-Broadway previews and eight Broadway performances.  Reviews of the play were mixed and the box office receipts were disappointing.  The only thing that everyone agreed upon was that the star, Kathleen Turner, is still capable of a great performance even in what many consider to be inferior material.  Some called the production a "boulevard play."  An Internet commentor named “wim” said, “A "boulevard play" is a so-so play that is only produced because some major late-career actor sees an opportunity for a big (essentially solo) star vehicle where the play itself won't get in the way.”


High is the story of a rough-edged Roman Catholic nun who has a crisis of faith while working with a drug addict.  Here is the link if you wish to read the article.

I have not seen the play.

A Chinese Christian Song

This Chinese language Christian song is titled  這一生最美的祝福  (The Most Beautiful Blessings in This Life.)

Stupidity

Does anyone understand what Pope John Paul II was talking about when he said, "Stupidity is also a gift of God, but one mustn't misuse it."  Does anyone know the context within which this was said and the source of the quotation?  All I can find is the quoted sentence, repeated over and over again.

If you have any idea about this, please leave a comment.  In a few days I will post what I believe he might have meant.

Bible Trivia: Thumb Bibles

Thumb Bibles usually have to be read with a magnifying glass. The first Thumb Bible, printed for children and containing illustrations, was printed by John Weever in London in 1601. It was 3.3 by 2.7 cm (1.3 by 1.1 inches) and consisted of 128 pages.  It was abridged and did not contain the full biblical text.  Because of its size, it could only be read with a magnifying glass.

The term "Thumb Bible" was not actually used in reference to these tiny Bibles until 1849 and probably was a reference to General Tom Thumb, a circus little person who visited London in 1844 with the P.T. Barnum Circus.

There are surviving copies of over 300 different editions of the Thumb Bibles dating from the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries.

Biblical Sources of Phrases in Common Use: A Fly in the Ointment

A "fly in the ointment" is an inconvenient fact which can ruin or taint an otherwise positive situation; like finding half a worm in the apple you are eating.  Think of your dismay at discovering that the wonderful philanthropic projects of a local businessman were funded by deceit and illegal financial dealings on his part.  The "fly in the ointment" would be the source of the money; should you refuse it and send it back?

Think of the respected and powerful preacher whose ministry is ruined when he is exposed as a marital cheater.  The "fly in the ointment" is the sexual infidelity.


"Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: [so doth] a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom [and] honour." Ecclesiastes 10:1

What They Think of Us: Napoleon Bonaparte

"Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and myself founded empires but on what foundation did we rest the creations of our genius?  Upon force.  Jesus Christ founded an empire upon love, and at this hour millions of men would die for him."  Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of the French (1804-1815).

Napoleone di Buonaparte (1769 - 1821) was born on the island of Corsica to parents of Italian ancestry.  Before being ceded to France, the island had belonged to the Republic of Genoa.  As a military leader and ruler, Bonaparte was never known for his humility.

Raised as a Roman Catholic, as an adult he was a deist who rejected the deity of Jesus and thought of God as distant and absent.  Even so, he accepted the Anointing of the Sick sacrament from a Roman Catholic priest shortly before he died.

The Cash Family Singing "Will the Circle be Unbroken"

Johnny Cash (1932 - 2003) opened all his concerts by saying, "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash."  He is considered to be one of the legendary icons of American Country Music and is in the Country Music Hall of fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

As a young man, Cash led a highly troubled life.  He had a failed marriage complete with numerous marital infidelities.  He fell into alcohol and drug abuse just as his career began to flourish,  His life began to slowly turn around after he married the established country music singer, June Carter with whom he toured and performed for thirty-five years until her death in 2003.  The video above features Johnny, June, and their son, John Carter Cash (b. 1970).

Cash remained a troubled and conflicted man even after his conversion to Christianity.  He became an outspoken Christian and called himself "the biggest sinner of them all."

Christian Heresies: Pneumatomachianism

The Pneumatomachi (aka Macedonians) were a fourth and fifth century sect which flourished primarily in what is now Turkey.  Led by Macedonius, Bishop of Constantinople (d.  about 364), they denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit.  They said the Holy Spirit was a creature, merely a ministering angel.  They would say only, "We believe in the Holy Ghost."  Macedonius tortured, forced baptisms, and excommunicated those who would not agree to his doctrine.  Macedonius was deposed by Emperor Constantius (Constantius II, son of Constantine I) for disinterring the body of Constantine.

The teaching of Macedonius was condemned as a Trinitarian heresy by the First Council of Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey).

Igbo Gospel Music by Gozie Okeke

Christians

At some time during their lives, the following people have publicly identified themselves as Christian.   Inclusion in this list does not indicate approval or disapproval of the person, of their orthodoxy or lack of it, or of their actions.  Readers are encouraged to suggest persons who should be included on this list.  This is a recurring segment in this blog.

Sung Shang-Chieh: (b. 1901, China – d. 1944; aka: Song Shang-Jie; John Sung; Little Pastor) Evangelist, revivalist in China, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia. Over 100,000 converts. He worked with Watchman Nee. Wesleyan Methodist.

Pachomius: (b. ca 292, Egypt – d. 348; aka. Pakhom, Pachome, Pakhomius) Pachomius’ name in Coptic means “the falcon.”  He is considered to be the founder of Christian cenobitic monasticism.  After being involuntarily conscripted into the Roman army, he became a Christian and follower of the hermit, Palaemon.  Before Pachomius, Christian asceticism was solitary; he organized the hermits into communities.

Mary of Egypt: (b. ca. 344, Egypt – d. ca. 421; aka. Maria Aegyptica) Mary was not a prostitute but appears to have been a sexually promiscuous nymphomaniac from the age of twelve.  At age twenty-six, she underwent a religious conversion and became an ascetic.  She lived the rest of her life as a hermit in the desert near the Jordan River.

Lech Aleksander Kaczynski: (b. 1949, Poland – d. 2010) Anti-Communist President of the Republic of Poland.  He and his wife, Maria Kaczynska, died in an airplane crash in 2010. (Ninty-six people died in the crash.)

Spencer Perceval: (b. 1762 – d. 1812)  Perceval was an ardent opponent of the slave trade and served, from 1809, as the British Prime Minister until his assassination in 1812.

Film Comment: Woman In the Dunes

In the black and white 1964 film Woman in the Dunes (Japanese Title: Suna no Onna), an insect collector from Tokyo escapes his boring existence by spending time in the desert region of Japan, collecting bugs, and staying in the homes of local people.  On his current trip, the only place to stay is with a woman who lives at the bottom of a sand pit.  The man happily climbs down the unstable wooden ladder into the pit to spend the night.

The next day the man realizes that the ladder is gone and that the walls of the sand pit are sliding down onto the house.  Then comes the surprise: he is expected to to stay with the woman and help her shovel sand away from the house.  In return, he gets her.

At first the man struggles to leave, but soon, he gives in and wouldn't leave even if he could.

This film received two Oscar nominations and won the Grand Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.  It is obviously an allegory, lacking any logical story sense, being more a situation than a narrative.  With nudity, vaginal, and phallic symbols abounding it is obvious that the ensnarement is sexual.  The man finds himself trapped in a situation for which he is partially responsible; he was not forced to climb down into the pit and he should have known better than to do so.

The woman is the sugar and the glue, and the pit is the trap.  The man is the fly, but he does not struggle for long, because the sugar is so sweet.  Before he is even aware of it, the man does not want to leave.

People often create their own prisons by the bad choices they make.  Each choice, good or bad, makes it easier to make the next choice in the same direction.  It also makes it less likely that we will turn around and go back the way we came (μετάνοιά/repentance.)  Each bad choice can limit future choices.

Many things (food, sports, career, hobbies, etc) which may on their surface seem to be benign, innocent, or essentially harmless, can, if we make them our entire lives, ensnare us like the Woman in the Dunes. Some situations and activities (gambling, smoking, recreational drug use, pornography, drinking, heavy flirting, promiscuity, etc) must be avoided because of their ability to ensnare us in unexpected ways which can rapidly escalate out of our control and from which it becomes impossible to extricate ourselves.

The Christian West

"...most people in the Western world are not Christians, and most Christians in today's world do not live in "the West." Most, actually, live in Africa or Southeast Asia."  N.T. Wright, Simply Christian. Why Christianity Makes Sense (2006)

Christian Poetry: "Spoken Word"

This video is of SHALOM reciting her poem, "Spoken Word."

What Eventually Happened to the Apostles Named in the Bible?

What eventually happened to the Apostles named in the Bible?

According to Christian tradition:

1.    Peter (aka: Simon bar Jonah, Simon bar Jochanan, Cephas, and Simon Peter), a fisherman from Bethsaida in Galillee, was crucified upside-down in Rome c. AD 64-67.2.    James, son of Zebedee was beheaded in AD 44 in Judea.

                       John, son of Zebedee, no biblical record of death, he is believed to have died of natural causes due to old age.  The only one of the original Twelve not to be martyred.  He apparently died ca 100 at Ephesus (Efes, Turkey) and is buried at Selcuk.

Andrew, Peter's brother and also originally a fisherman, was crucified upside-
down on a diagonal or X-shaped cross in Patras.

Philip, from Bethsaida in Galilee, was crucified in AD 54 -80, probably in Hierapolis
Bartholomew (aka: Bartholomew, son of Tolmai/Talemai; Nathaniel) was skinned 
alive and then beheaded; possibly in Derbend (a city in Dagestan in Russia) or 
in Albanopolis (near Zgerdhesh), Armenia.

Matthew (possibly also known as Levi), the tax collector, was killed by an axe in AD 
60 near Hierapolis in Ethiopia.

Thomas (aka: Judas Thomas Didymus, Didymos) was killed by a spear in 
Mylapore, Madras, India in AD 72.  Didimus (Greek) and t’oma (Aramaic) both 
mean “twin.”

James, son of Alphaeus (aka: James the Less, James the Just) was , beaten to death 
with a club after being crucified.

Jude was crucified.  Possibly the same man as Thaddeus (aka: Lebbaeus) 
Armenian tradition says he was martyred in Beirut ca. 65.

Simon the Zealot (possibly also known as Simeon of Jerusalem or Simon 
the Cananean) was crucified in AD 74.

Judas Iscariot (Judas the son of Simon), according to Matthew, hanged himself 
after betraying Jesus. In Acts, he is described as falling in a field and bursting open.

Matthias, the replacement for Judas Iscariot picked by the surviving  
eleven original Apostles, was stoned and beheaded, possibly ca, 80,
at Colchis (in modern Georgia.)

Barnabas (Acts 14:14), a Cypriot, was martyred in 61 at Salamis, Cyprus.

Andronicus (Romans 16:7), was probably the husband of Junia.

Junia (Romans 16:7) is the only woman named in the Bible as an apostle.  The 
name is clearly female, the male form of the name would be Junius.

Silas (1Thessalonians 1:1 and 2:6) was Paul’s travelling companion.

Timothy (1Thessalonians 1:1 and 2:6) was close enough to Paul to be called his “son.”

Apollos (1 Corinthians 4:9) is thought by some to have been the author of Hebrews.

Paul (aka: Saul of Tarsus) was, according to Christian tradition, he was beheaded ca. 67, in Rome. 
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I edited this post because the formatting didn't look right. JFM

Hello, Aruba!

Hallo, Aruba! Welkom bij de groep van lezers tachtig-drie andere landen die ook een bezoek aan deze blog. Ik hoop dat u een deel van de posts nuttig of zinvol is.

De 'Vertaal deze pagina "gadget direct boven de" Totaal Pageviews "Counter heeft de mogelijkheid van het vertalen van de Engels tekst van dit blog rechtstreeks in het Nederlands.


Vierentachtig landen: Argentinië, Aruba, Australië, Oostenrijk, Bahrein, Wit-Rusland,België, Belize, Brazilië, Bulgarije, Canada, Cayman Eilanden, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Kroatië, Tsjechië, Denemarken, Ecuador, Egypte, El Salvador,Estland, Ethiopië, Finland, Frankrijk, Georgië, Duitsland, Griekenland, Hong Kong, Hongarije, India, Indonesië, Iran, Irak, Israël, Italië, Ivoorkust, Japan, Jordanië,Koeweit, Letland, Litouwen, Luxemburg, Macedonië , Maleisië, Malta, Mexico,Moldavië, Marokko, Nederland, Nieuw Zeeland, Nigeria, Noorwegen, Pakistan,Panama, Paraguay, de Filippijnen, Polen, Roemenië, Rusland, Saoedi-Arabië, Senegal, Singapore, Slowakije, Slovenië, Zuid-Afrika, Zuid-Korea , Spanje, SriLanka, Zweden, Zwitserland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad en Tobago,Turkije, Oekraïne, Verenigde Arabische Emiraten, Verenigd Koninkrijk, VerenigdeStaten, Venezuela, Vietnam, Zimbabwe.

The Meaning of Life

"... the Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs.  If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time.  God became Man for no other purpose.  It is even doubtful, you know, whether the whole universe was created for any other purpose.  It says in the Bible that the whole universe was made for Christ and that everything is to be gathered together in Him."  C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, 1952.

Who Am I?

All bloggers who use the Blogger service have statistical tools available to them so that they can track usage of their blog.  The types of information which we can see include the number of times the blog is viewed, the number of times each post is viewed, the type of operating system being used by the viewer, the search engine used to visit the blog, the search keywords, and the country of origin of the search. The statistical information is useful in better responding to the interests of our readers.  Your privacy is 100% preserved because we cannot identify individual visitors to our blogs.

Several persons have searched for me.  One person has asked about my "spiritual credentials."  The answer is that I am not your teacher, I am not your pastor; I am your Christian brother and I feel that this blog is my ministry to you.  This blog is for discussion of doctrinal and theological issues, current news as it relates to Christianity, the incredible diversity present among the ἐκκλησία through the centuries and especially today,  and the true basis of our unity, The Holy Spirit, who indwells every believer.  Most of all, this blog is a challenge to everyone to think, to not just accept the way things are, to wonder why things are the way they are, to challenge those things in our belief systems which are not biblical, and especially, to not accept the answers put forth by our modern relativist culture.

As to me, I am a Medical Technologist with a concentration in Hematology, the study of blood diseases like leukemias, anemias, and clotting disorders.  I work in two local clinical laboratories and have a certification by the American Society for Clinical Pathology .

In 1970, I was one of the three hundred who stood up and left in protest, along with our pastor, Dr. Herbert Gilmore, when The First Baptist Church of Birmingham voted not to admit Winifred Bryant and her daughter, Twila Fortune, who had made a profession of faith.  The reason they were refused membership was because they were black.

Led by Dr. Gilmore, we formed The Baptist Church of the Covenant, which is still active today in downtown Birmingham.  Both Winifred Bryant and Twila Fortune remain as members of the church.

The local church I currently attend has members of all races and nationalities.

In my early twenties, for two years I attended The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.  During this time, my interest in comparative religion developed.  Over the years I have studied the world's major religions and have discussed and corresponded with adherents of each of them.
I have also been in contact with numerous cultic and occultic groups including Wiccans, Pagans, Spiritualists, the Unity Church, the Unification Church, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, the Children of God, the Way, the Church of Scientology, and even the Church of Satan.

My interest in word origins and meanings led to my study of onomastics, the meanings of place names, and resulted in my book, An International Glossary of Place Name Elements .

I believe that I do have something to add to the discussion and I feel led by the Lord to do it.

What They Think of Us: Jesus Pee

The Urban Dictionary collects and explains current American street slang and phrases.  If you want to know the meaning of "phat" (1), or "fubu" (2),  or "lol" (3), or "body count" (4),  or  "rad" (5), this is the place.  All the phrases and words, silly or serious, loving or hateful, innocuous or vile; they are all here.  This is a good place to check on what they think of us.

If you are easily offended, stop reading this post now.  If you want to know how they really feel, read on.

Check out the phrase "Jesus Pee ."  Pee is a slang word for urine.  Mountain Dew is a carbonated yellow soft drink.  The idea is that the flavor of the soft drink is as good as Jesus, or at least His urine.

There are many (over one hundred) "Jesus" phrases. A few of the more offensive are Jesus Only (A rating for a video game so violent that only Jesus could survive playing it); a Jesus Poop (a bowel movement so difficult that it feels really good after it is over);  Jesus Rape (when a fundamentalist tries to push his religion on you even after you say no), and perhaps the most offensive of all, Jesus on a Stick! (an exclamation of disgust mocking Jesus on the Cross).

They really do hate us.
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The words in the second sentence mean:
(1) Pretty hot and tempting
(2) For us, by us
(3) Laughing out loud
(4) How many people you have had sex with; the number of murders in a horror film; how many "dead presidents" (paper money bills) you have in your pocket
(5) radical, high praise, awe

Are You a Powerful Person?

Are you nice, or friendly, or smart, or talented, or are you powerful?

Christians

At some time during their lives, the following people have publicly identified themselves as Christian.   Inclusion in this list does not indicate approval or disapproval of the person, of their orthodoxy or lack of it, or of their actions.  Readers are encouraged to suggest persons who should be included on this list.  This is a recurring segment in this blog.

Achileo Kiwanuka: (b. Uganda – d. between 1885 and 1887) Roman Catholic martyr. Killed by Mwanga II, King of Buganda.  Canonized by Pope Paul VI in 18 October 1964.

Robert Alexander Jaffray:  (b. 1873, Canada – d. 1945) Christian and Missionary Alliance.  Jaffray was a missionary to China, Vietnam, and Indonesia.  In 1911, he introduced Protestantism into Vietnam at DaNang.

Catherine de Hueck Doherty: (b. 1896, Russia –d. 1985) Christian social justice worker in Canada and the United States.  She was raised as a Russian orthodox but converted to Roman Catholicism.

Nguyen en Van Tam: (b. Vietnam) Roman Catholic priest who led 2000 Catholic Vietnamese troops during the Le Van Koi Revolt (1833-1835) in an attempt to overthrow Emperor Minh Mandg and install a pro-Catholic government.

Albert Schweitzer: (b. 1875, Alsace (now in France) –d. 1965) Humanitarian, physician, philosopher, theologian, musicologist, organist.  He was one of the first to write of the search for the “historical Jesus.” 

A Little Fable

I believe that "A Little Fable" is in the public domain.  If I am in error on this I will remove it immediately.

A Little Fable, by Franz Kafka.

""Alas," said the mouse, "the whole world is growing smaller every day.  At the beginning it was so big that I was afraid, I kept running and running, and I was glad when at last I saw walls far away to the right and left, but these long walls have narrowed so quickly that I am in the last chamber already, and there in the corner stands the trap that I must run into." "You only need to change your direction," said the cat, and ate it up."

When I was in college, there was a student there, a very free-spirited girl, who had a reputation for never missing a party.  She was friendly, never met a stranger, and everyone liked her.  Then, one day, she disappeared.

Eventually, her body was found and her murder was linked to a serial killer after one of his victims was able to escape.

Everyone was talking about the case.  When the idea was advanced that the girl contributed to her own murder by the situations in which she placed herself, one person became incensed.  "You're saying that she deserved to be raped and murdered!"  Others insisted that no, she did not deserve to be raped and murdered, but she did place herself into dangerous situations which she could have avoided if she had chosen to do so.

We sometimes create our own boxes, our own mazes, our own traps, our own prisons.  There is an old Southern saying (I've "cleaned it up" for this blog), "If you walk in the sewer, you will get sewage on your shoes."

We all make many choices and each choice we make in a particular direction, good or bad, makes it easier to make the next choice in the same direction.  It also makes it less likely that we will turn around and go back the way we came. (Remember our old friend, μετάνοιά/repentance, from the 9 February 2011 post?)

Each bad choice we make can limit our future choices and we can paint ourselves into a corner.  This is an American idiom which calls to mind the image of a man with a can of red paint who begins painting the floor as soon as he enters a room.  When he reaches the far corner of the room, the only way out is to walk back across the wet red paint.

The foolish mouse in "A Little Fable" made poor choices, increasingly boxing itself into one particular direction.  When it finally realized its error, it turned around, and there was the cat.

Film Comment: The Stuff

The Stuff (1985) is a science-fiction/horror/comedy directed by Larry Cohen, who has given the world God Told Me To! (see the Labels below for "film comments") and the particularly disturbing killer infant film, It's Alive! (What would you do if everyone, including the police, wanted to kill your newborn son because he used his claws and fangs to massacre everyone in the hospital delivery room immediately after his birth?)

In The Stuff, a corporation begins marketing a yogurt-like dessert called The Stuff and it quickly becomes a sensation.  People love it and quickly develop a missionary-like desire to get all their family, friends, and acquaintances to eat it, even if they have to force them to do so.  Devotees of the dessert call themselves Stuffies.  A television commercial presents the the snappy jingle, "I just can't get enough of the stuff!"

Enter an industrial spy, Mo Rutherford, who's trying to discover (steal) the secret of the dessert's popularity.  He discovers that it is not manufactured at all; it is siphoned from a hole in the ground and is alive and sentient.  One boy, who allies with Rutherford, ran away from home after he saw The Stuff move in his refrigerator and his parents tried to force him to eat it.

Rutherford realizes to his horror that The Stuff is colonizing those who consume it, hollowing them out inside, making them empty.  He teams up with the young boy, a group of right-wing militiamen led by a possibly insane Colonel, and Chocolate Chip Charlie, a cookie manufacturer who has lost control of his company due to other's stock manipulations (think of Famous Amos ).  This odd conglomeration of people set out to do battle with the dessert.

This is a pointed social satire about our shallow and empty modern consumer society.  We jump on fads and trends and pursue them with gusto, even when they are clearly damaging to us.  Many of us put pressure on others to join us in our self-destructive ways.

Whatever we continually think about and do repeatedly becomes our God.

Hello, Tanzania!

Hello, Tanzania! Karibu katika kundi la nchi wasomaji themanini na wawili wengine ambao pia kutembelea hii blog. Natumaini utapata baadhi ya posts na manufaa au maana.
Ya "Translate huu Ukurasa" Gadget moja kwa moja juu ya "pageviews Jumla" Counter ina uwezo wa kutafsiri Nakala ya Kiingereza ya blog hii moja kwa moja katika lugha ya Kiswahili.

Themanini Nchi: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belarus, Ubelgiji, Belize, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Cayman Islands, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Croatia, Jamhuri ya Czech, Denmark, Ecuador, Misri, El Salvador, Estonia , Ethiopia, Finland, Ufaransa, Georgia, Ujerumani, Ugiriki, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italia, Ivory Coast, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Kimasedonia, Malaysia, Malta , Mexico, Moldavia, Morocco, Uholanzi, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Afrika Kusini, Korea ya Kusini, Hispania, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad na Tobago, Uturuki, Ukraine, Falme za Kiarabu, Uingereza, Marekani, Venezuela, Vietnam, Zimbabwe. 

He burned a Quran and twelve died.

In response to plans to build a mosque two blocks from the site of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attack on New York City, Pastor Terry Jones of the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, set off an international incident when he declared "International Burn a Koran Day" for September 11, 2011.  He planned to burn multiple copies of the Quran.  Christian church leaders quickly called on him not to do this, followed by calls from political leaders from around the world.  Jones said he might not burn the Qurans if U.S. President called him.

After traveling to New York and speaking with President Obama, Jones said "there's no longer a need to actually set fire to anything."  He declared that his church would not burn the books, "Not today, not ever."

On 20 March 2011, Jones and another pastor put the Quran on trial (International Judge the Quran Day) and burned it in front of thirty people in Gainesville.  He denied breaking his earlier pledge, saying the the pledge was about International Burn a Koran Day.

On 1 April 2011, Islamic protesters in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan attacked a United nations office. Three foreign United Nations workers, five Nepalese United Nations guards, and four of the protesters died.  Two of those killed were beheaded.  Eight-one other persons were injured in the attack.

The Quran burning was also cited as the cause of an attack at a Catholic Church in Pakistan in March, 2011.

A Pakistani Islamic court has declared a fatwa against Pastor Jones, offering $2,200,000 for his head for desecrating the Quran.

Many are blaming Pastor Jones for the violence, injuries, and deaths and he bears a large part of the blame.  The response to his action seems irrational and disproportionate to many.   U.S. President Barack OBama responded to the incident:

"The desecration of any holy text, including the Koran, is an act of extreme intolerance and bigotry.  However, to attack and kill innocent people in response is outrageous, and an affront to human decency and dignity. No religion tolerates the slaughter and beheading of innocent people, and there is no justification for such a dishonorable and deplorable act.”

The entire incident could have been avoided if Pastor Jones had iust read and obeyed Romans 12:18.

"If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men."

A Sign Language Dictionary

I have recently (March 14, 22, and 23) placed three blog posts about American Sign Language for the Deaf.  You can see them by clicking on "sign language" under the Labels listing.  Here is something I had never seen before, a sign language dictionary.

This ASL Video Dictionary of Religious Words was prepared by the members of Valley Bible Church in Lancaster, California. 

http://www.valleybible.net/DeafMinistry/ASL_Dictionary/asl_dictionary.php

A Lao Christian Song