GOD?

Yes we all know God, well we claim to know God. People hear the word God and they would rather run the other way then to stop and hear what anyone has to say. Understanding is knowledge, and to understand you must learn... correct? To learn about a faith, we need to do research. Yet we are afraid we will get "TURNED" as they say, but as Americans we learn many things we fill our heads with knowledge everyday, whether its on which brand of jeans fit my body better? What kind of car should we get as a family? What is the best camera we can get for our money? We will sit and do countless hours of online research, we will even go and try the product out, we even research vacation spots. We equip our self with information.

Religion is not any different.  We have just pushed into today's society that its almost taboo to claim a religion.  We take God out of the pledge to accommodate people, yet our country the very constitution was founded on God fearing men. But really who is God, who is this man that Christians speak of?

To know God is to love and fear him. He sent his only son to die for our sins, for we are only human and are not perfect or never will be.  Jesus knew Gods will for him, and went willingly he didn't run, hide, or like a child throw a fit and question God.  He took the beatings and ridicule, he hung on that cross so my sins OUR sins would be forgiven and we could get into the kingdom of heaven.

To some living on faith and trust in something we cannot see is foolish, but yet we have faith and trust the trees and plants wont fails us and keep producing the oxygen we need to breath yet we don't see the oxygen. Before you go claiming i know what your religion is about, I know God, read his book, take the time to research him for countless hours. Come to the conclusion with knowledge with information about him and his word, find out for yourself who God is. 

God is kind, God is understanding, and God has unconditional love for you.

                                                             written by Bable 

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 News To Share 

Good Afternoon too all our readers of Spiritual Friends Columnist page, We recently started a group for Spiritual Friends On Facebook and unfortunately can not merge the group with Spiritual Friends page at this time, We want to invite all that find this site interesting to come by and check out our group.We have lots of new exciting things coming soon and hope to see our old friends and new friends there.

 https://www.facebook.com/groups/Spiritualshare/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Spiritual-Friends/173606046053051

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Seeds Of Love

 The weather is pleasant, People are working tirelessly to groom their lawns on the weekends and getting a jump start on planting their gardens. My 6 year old grandson is excited because spring brings with it baseball and the release from the confines of the house. My daughter caught the planting bug and purchased three packs of flower seeds to plant along the side of the house. I labored to get the flower beds ready for planting , painstakingly pulling weeds, turning the ground to expose the rich black soil between rain storms. My grandson was always a step behind me battling with an over sized rake smoothing out the dirt as we went. Each day as we worked my grandson would ask," if it was time yet to plant", Each day I would reply." Not yet we have to prepare clean beds for them to grow properly" Then we would continue to work until we earned our time to sit on the porch with a glass of tea .  Well into the evening hours , My grandson would go over what he learned at school for the previous week and added a few adventures he had. Telling of wild tales of how he fought off a dragon during their play time outside. The temptation was too great for me to contain so I asked ,"Was it a two headed fire breather or a Green Razor Back horn nosed one," He giggled and said, " It was two headed fire breather kind." I then said," You must be the bravest boy I know to fight with one of those and live to tell about it." This conversation went on for a bit longer , As I listened and asked questions he weaved such a glorious tale for me.

We established a routine of working in the flower beds and sharing wonderful tales on the weekends. 10 days ago on a Monday afternoon I waited for school to be out , Nothing really to keep me occupied any longer, I went to check the mail and pulled in the parking lot to await for my little hero to burst through the doors of the school. He made his way to me through the sea of children milling about and when he reached me he asked, "Is it time yet?" I smiled down at him and said," You bet it is." He took my hand as we started off on our new adventure of the day. When we got home my grandson went into the house got the packages of seeds and came running back out the door with questions on his mind. His first was how was we going to plant the seeds? Where is the little shovel, How long does it take them to grow ? What makes them grow? I took a deep breath and begin to try to explain the proses of the gift of growing plants, I slowed him down as I said." Well my boy we are going to put the seed in the ground," He said," OK where is the little shovel so I can dig the holes ?" I had to inform him we did not own a little shovel and we would be using our fingers to poke a hole in the rich soil then plant the seed. He looked at me for a minute and then said, "I will be right back." and he ran off into the house, I chuckled a bit as i waited for his return. A few minutes clicked by then here before me was my grandson with two spoons in his tiny hands, He handed me one and said," I know, We can use these for tiny shovels," I Looked at my good spoons trying to decide on how I felt about it. but when I seen the smile on my grandson's face all thoughts of dirt on my spoons went out the window. The child faced a life problem and he solved it on his own. It was good to see he was learning to use his problem solving skills at an early age. I said," if you dig the holes I will open the packages and hand you the seeds one by one. " He got on his knees and started the first hole then held up his hand for me to place the seed in his palm. He looked at it for a few minutes then looked up at me and said," how can this little thing become a flower Nanah ? I smiled at him and said," Hun you started out just a tiny little seed in your mommies tummy now look how you turned out." As he thought about this he put the seed in the hole and covered it up then dug another hole. He held up his hand and I placed another seed in his palm. We repeated this proses a few more times until he stopped and asked,"  How did I grow in my mommies tummy, I said," God planted a tiny seed in your mommies tummy then added a whole lot of love to make you grow. Your mommie and I had to learn to have patients because it took a whole 9 months we had to wait to meet you. Then one day your were born. Your mommie and I keep piling so much love on you that you keep growing bigger each day. " He continued planting for a little longer with a little smile on his face. We got to the last seed and as he was covering it up with the rich soil he made a statement," I sure hope I don't have to wait 9 whole months before I get to meet my flowers." This made me laugh a bit and then I said, "Hun I think if we Show these seeds a bunch of love you just might get to meet them a whole lot sooner than 9 months."

Every day my Grandson would come home from school and the first thing he would do is check the flowerbeds for any sign of his seeds growing. Each time he would say, " Nanah make sure you give them some of that love you give me while I'm at school because it is taking forever for them to grow." Every day I would tell him," I have loads and loads of love and will be sure to share some for your flowers," Then we would go in the house and we would mark the day off our calender. This morning 10 days later, I went to look at his flowerbed and thought about how much time we have spent together as we labored over this adventure. When I focused on my task at hand, I noticed a little tiny leaf, Then another one and another one. I got so excited because I knew how much this was gonna mean to my grandson.  Frankly as the day continued I must admit I was feeling a bit like I was 6 years old again and could hardly contain myself waiting on when my grandson would get home and discover his flowers had busted through the dirt to meet him today. After a long morning for me I went to pick up my grandson from school. We got home and he rushed over to his flowerbeds, As I was getting out of the Car he was dancing about and grinning from ear to ear yelling at the top of his lungs," The plants Nanah, The plants, we have baby Plants". I hugged him and said," I guess we gave them just the right amount of love." He said we sure did Nanah we sure enough did."

1 Corinthians 13

The Way of Love

13:4 Love is patient, love is kind, it is not envious. Love does not brag, it is not puffed up. 13:5 It is not rude, it is not self-serving, it is not easily angered or resentful. 13:6 It is not glad about injustice, but rejoices in the truth. 13:7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
                                                   By Rev.Lisa Taylor
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 Davenport Bulldog's T-Ball

 Our little Davenport Bulldogs had their first game at the home field against Stroud today. Ending score was Davenport 26 - Stroud 6 . The starting  pitcher was my grandson Riley . Davenport Bulldogs took the field first. The pitcher ran home to procure the first out of the game. Then tossed it to first for the second out, He then ran home for the third out leaving Stroud with one run. Bulldogs up to bat starting strong. With three runners on base Riley hit a line drive bringing in two runners back to back. No outs for the Bulldogs. Had to implement the run rule of 7. Riley took the pitchers mound for the second inning  Getting three outs at home plate Leaving Stroud with no runs. Bulldogs up to bat again and swings a way taking the first out when Chase forgot to run to third then Implementing the run rule of 7 again.. As the Bulldogs take to the field in third inning Riley takes over First base as Wyatt takes the pitcher mound. Riley picks off the runner at first base with an assist throw from Zenden then Wyatt finishes it up with two outs at home plate, Leaving Stroud with two runs. Bulldogs up to bat and just kept them hits going strong with no outs leaving Bulldogs 7 runs. As the Bulldogs took the field for the fourth inning Riley takes over second base. Wyatt Continues on the pitcher mound and Zenden on first . Stroud scores with three runs back to back then Wyatt throws an assist to Zenden for an out on first then gets two more outs at home plate sending the bulldogs to the dugout. Bulldogs come out swinging finishing up the last inning with 5 runs before the time ran out !
     
WAY TO START OFF THE SEASON LITTLE BULLDOGS !!!!!

                                                                      by Rev.Lisa Taylor

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 Jealousy and Envy

The green monster dates back for many a year and is written about through out the bible.

3:1 So, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but instead as people of the flesh,as infants in Christ. 3:2 I fed you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready. In fact, you are still not ready, 3:3 for you are still influenced by the flesh. For since there is still jealousy and dissension among you, are you not influenced by the flesh and behaving like unregenerate people?
                                                    Corinthians 3:1- 3:3

3:13 Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct he should show his works done in the gentleness that wisdom brings.3:14 But if you have bitter jealousy and selfishness in your hearts, do not boast and tell lies against the truth. 3:15 Such wisdom does not come from above but is earthly, natural,demonic. 3:16 For where there is jealousy and selfishness, there is disorder and every evil practice. 3:17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, accommodating, full of mercy and good fruit,impartial, and not hypocritical. 3:18 And the fruit that consists of righteousness is planted in peace among those who make peace.
                                                     James 3:13- 3:18

27:1 Do not boast about tomorrow; or you do not know what a day may bring forth.

27:2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; someone else, and not your own lips.

27:3 A stone is heavy and sand is weighty,but vexation by a fool is more burdensome than the two of them.

27:4 Wrath is cruel and anger is overwhelming,but who can stand before jealousy ?

27:5 Better is open rebuke than hidden love.

27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend,but the kisses of an enemy are excessive.

27:7 The one whose appetite is satisfied loathes honey, but to the hungry mouth every bitter thing is sweet.

27:8 Like a bird that wanders from its nest, so is a person who wanders from his home.
                                                          Proverb 27:1-27:8

We all have experienced the Green monster in some form as we are of flesh and some have moved forward in correcting this problem while others have no idea they have falling into the grasp of this monster.. allowing it to control their life to the point of doing harm to another and justifying it by false truths. I have been at the hands of jealousy and I have learned from it through the early years of my growth. The first thing I have learned was to cherish the things I am blessed with and not fixate on the things I do not have. Accept God's plan for you and live your life accordingly.  Some point along the line one will start to recognize the signs in their self and others of jealousy and envy and can see it for what it is, The question is in how one deals with it every single day. Do we feed upon it like a predator does its prey or Do we do the right thing and learn from it? Embrace it, Squash it , Correct it !

Different forms of the monster:

There are many different types of jealousy that the human body can experience. Jealousy can be seen in everyday activities and settings. Jealousy is an intense emotion that is associated with the loss of services or outcomes associated with other individuals. This intense emotion can be seen or experienced in family situations, at work, in romantic relationships and even between friends.
Sibling rivalry – Sibling rivalry is a common form of family jealousy. Family jealousy can affect all ages and different members of any family. This jealousy can arise from lack of attention from a specific member in the family. More attention towards another member of the family can cause this emotion or the emotion can be seen through comparison to another member in the family. This type of jealousy is once again in result of losing some sort of attention or services that someone once had or that they believe that they had.
Workplace jealousy – Jealousy in the work place is not uncommon. People can experience jealousy of one another in practically any setting that one person feels like they are losing services from something or someone else. This type of jealousy is often seen between colleagues in similar job positions. If one worker receives positive feedback from the boss while the other employee feels like they deserved that, positive feedback jealousy can arise. Jealousy between colleagues can also arise if the employees are working for a raise or trying to outdo each other for similar job positions. Once again, the attention received towards one employee and not the other may cause intense emotions of jealousy to develop.
Romantic jealousy – Romantic jealousy can be experienced in long-term or short-term relationships. One partner can feel the emotion of jealousy arise if the other partner is paying more attention or time with someone else. To lose services from one partner and have their attention directed towards someone else does not have to be in a romantic way. One partner could be spending more time with a friend that no romantic feelings could ever develop.
Platonic jealousy – Platonic jealousy is a form of jealousy that is seen in friendships. Platonic jealousy is similar to romantic jealousy in the way that this type of relationship can lead to jealousy in result of fear of being replaced, having competition or being compared to a third party. For example, the intense emotion of jealousy can arise if two friends that are females decide that they like the same man and both want to possibly start a romantic relationship with him. Comparison and competition will more often than not lead to the two females experiencing the emotion of jealousy.

The common experience of jealousy for many people may involve:
Fear of loss
Suspicion of or anger about a perceived betrayal
Low self-esteem and sadness over perceived loss
Uncertainty and loneliness
Fear of losing an important person to another
Distrust
The experience of envy involves:
Feelings of inferiority
Longing
Resentment of circumstances
Ill will towards envied person often accompanied by guilt about these feelings
Motivation to improve
Desire to possess the attractive rival's qualities
Disapproval of feelings
Parrot acknowledges that people can experience envy and jealousy at the same time. Feelings of envy about a rival can even intensify the experience of jealousy. Still, the differences between envy and jealousy in terms of thoughts and feelings justify their distinction in philosophy and science.
In psychology.
Jealousy involves an entire “emotional episode,” including a complex “narrative,”: the circumstances that lead up to jealousy, jealousy itself as emotion, any attempt at self regulation, subsequent actions and events and the resolution of the episode.The narrative can originate from experienced facts, thoughts, perceptions, memories, but also imagination, guess and assumptions. The more society and culture matter in the formation of these factors, the more jealousy can have a social and cultural origin. By contrast, Goldie (2000, p. 228) shows how jealousy can be a “cognitively impenetrable state”, where education and rational belief matter very little.

I understand after reading this, One begins to see certain similarities that has penetrated one's own life undetected. Now is the time to do something about it. Break the chains that bind you with such emotional garbage. It is not healthy, it holds one back from obtaining true peace in their life here on earth and it also comes between one's relationship with God. Strive to better one's life. Strive to reach spiritual living. One can only benefit from eliminating the green monster from the control it has over you. My challenge to those that read this is: Think about things in your life, find a period in time which one might have found them self under the control of jealousy then write a letter to one self in how it effected your life as well as that of the one that was a recipient of said jealousy. Then write another letter about what one could have done to prevent such behavior. You are welcome to share your experience with this challenge with other readers by sending them through contact us page on Spiritual Friends website or by posting them on Face Book Spiritual Friends Page. If anyone wants to share in privet can do so by sending e-mail to Rev.lisaTaylor@gmail.com

                                                                      by Rev.Lisa Taylor

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 Symbolism Of This Crucifix .

This Crucifix was shared with me by a friend that he just bought and I thought it would be nice to share what the holes carved into it with the roman numrals  1-through 15  and what it repesent.

THE FIRST STATION :

Jesus Is Condemned To Death

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

Jesus Who never rejected anyone was rejected more than anyone else.

"There is no condemnation now for those who are in Christ Jesus." —Romans 8:1

"God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him." —John 3:17

"No one who comes will I ever reject." —John 6:37

"He was spurned and avoided by men, a Man of suffering, accustomed to infirmity, One of those from Whom men hide their faces, spurned, and we held Him in no esteem." —Isaiah 53:3

"All deserted Him and fled." —Mark 14:50

Prayer: Jesus, I repent of rejecting You by rejecting others (Lk 10:16). May I forgive those who have rejected me.

At the Cross her station keeping,
Stood a mournful Mother weeping,
Close to Jesus to the last.

SECOND STATION :

Jesus Takes Up The Cross

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"Jesus said to all: 'Whoever wishes to be My follower must deny his very self, take up his cross each day, and follow in My steps." —Luke 9:23

"It is your privilege to take Christ's part — not only to believe in Him but also to suffer for Him." —Philippians 1:19

"I wish to know Christ and the power flowing from His resurrection; likewise to know how to share in His sufferings by being formed into the pattern of His death." —Philippians 3:10

"Even now I find my joy in the suffering I endured for you. In my own flesh I fill up what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the sake of His body, the Church." —Colossians 1:24

"It is for His kingdom you suffer." —2 Thessalonians 1:5

"Never be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for His sake; but with the strength which comes from God bear your share of the hardship which the gospel entails." —2 Timothy 1:8

Prayer: Jesus, I rejoice in the measure that I share Your sufferings (1 Pt 4:13).

Christ above in torment hangs,
She beneath beholds the pangs
Of her dying, glorious Son.

THIRD STATION :

Jesus Falls The First Time

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

The First Sin

"The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it." —Genesis 3:6

The First Sin in the New Testament

"Once Herod realized that he had been deceived by the astrologers, he became furious. He ordered the massacre of all the boys two years old and under in Bethlehem." —Matthew 2:16

The First Sin against Jesus in His public ministry

"At these words the whole audience in the synagogue was filled with indignation. They rose up and expelled Him from the town, leading Him to the brow of the hill on which it was built and intending to hurl Him over the edge." —Luke 4:28-29

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for having mercy on me and forgiving me of my first serious sin.

Is there one who would not weep,
'Whelmed in miseries so deep
Christ's dear Mother to behold?

FOURTH STATION :

Jesus Meets His Sorrowful Mother

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"Come, all you who pass by the way, look and see whether there is any suffering like my suffering." —Lamentations 1:12

"Simeon blessed them and said to Mary His mother: 'This Child is destined to be the Downfall and the Rise of many in Israel, a sign that will be opposed — and you yourself shall be pierced with a sword — so that the thoughts of many hearts may be laid bare.'" —Luke 2:34-35

"Near the cross of Jesus there stood His mother." —John 19:25

"Because she was with child, she wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth." —Revelation 12:2

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for giving me Mary to mother me. Mary, pray for me to love Jesus as You do.

Can the human heart refrain
From partaking in her pain,
In that mother's pain untold?
Bruised, derided, cursed, defiled,
She beheld her tender Child,
All with bloody scourges rent.

FIFTH STATION :

Simon of Cyrene Helps Jesus To Carry The Cross

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"As they led Him away, they laid hold of one Simon the Cyrenean who was coming in from the fields. They put a crossbeam on Simon's shoulder for him to carry along behind Jesus." —Luke 23:26

"Insult has broken My heart, and I am weak, I looked for sympathy, but there was none; for comforters and I found none." —Psalm 69:21

"The Lord saw this, and was aggrieved that right did not exist. He saw that there was no one, and was appalled that there was none to intervene." —Isaiah 59:15-16

"The twelve accompanied Him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and maladies; Mary called the Magdalene, from whom seven devils had gone out, Joanna, the wife of Herod's steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who were assisting them out of their means." —Luke 8:1-3

"Roam the streets of Jerusalem, look about and observe, search through her public places to find even one who lives uprightly and seek to be faithful, and I will pardon her!" —Jeremiah 5:1

Prayer: Father, I offer my life to help complete Your plan of salvation.

O dear Mother, fount of love,
Touch my spirit from above;
Make my heart with yours accord.
Make me feel as you have felt;
Make my soul to glow and melt
With the love of Christ, my Lord.

SIXTH STATION :

Veronica Wipes The Face Of Jesus

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"Since then no prophet has arisen in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face." —Deuteronomy 34:10

"If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." —2 Chronicles 7:14 KJV

"Even as many were amazed at Him — so marred was His look beyond that of man, and His appearance beyond that of mortals — So shall He startle many nations, because of Him kings shall stand speechless." —Isaiah 52:14-15

"His face became as dazzling as the sun." —Matthew 17:2

"Now we see indistinctly, as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face." —1 Corinthians 13:12

"They shall see Him face to face and bear His name on their foreheads." —Revelation 22:4

Prayer: Jesus, may I have the love and courage to "seek Your face."

Holy Mother, pierce me through;
In my heart each wound renew
Of my Savior crucified.

SEVENTH STATION :

Jesus Falls The Second Time

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"Later on, Jesus found him in the temple precincts and said to him: 'Remember, now, you have been cured. Give up your sins so that something worse may not overtake you.'" —John 5:14

"For when men have once been enlightened and have tasted the heavenly gift and become sharers in the Holy Spirit, when they have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to make them repent again, since thy are crucifying the Son of God for themselves and holding Him up to contempt." —Hebrews 6:4-6

"If we sin willfully after receiving the truth, there remains for us no further sacrifice for sin — only a fearful expectation of judgment and a flaming fire to consume the adversaries of God." —Hebrews 10:26-27

"When men have fled a polluted world by recognizing the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and then are caught up and overcome in pollution once more, their last condition is worse than their first. It would have been better for them not to have recognized the road to holiness than to have turned their backs on the holy law handed on to them once they had known it." —2 Peter 2:20-21 (see also Lk 11:24-26)

Prayer: Jesus, by Your grace may I never sin another time.

Let me share with you His pain,
Who for all our sins was slain,
Who for me in torments died.

EIGHTH STATION :

Jesus Meets The Weeping Women Of Jerusalem

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"Jesus wept." —Luke 19:41

"My tears are stored in your flask; are they not recorded in your book?" —Psalm 56:9

"Oh, that My head were a spring of water, my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night over the slain of the daughter of my people!" —Jeremiah 8:23

"Let my eyes stream with tears day and night, without rest, over the great destruction which overwhelms the virgin daughter of my people." —Jeremiah 14:17

"Thus says the Lord: 'In Ramah is heard the sound of moaning, of bitter weeping! Rachel mourns her children, she refuses to be consoled because her children are no more.' Thus says the Lord: 'Cease your cries of mourning, wipe the tears from your eyes. The sorrow you have shown shall have its reward,' says the Lord, 'they shall return from the enemy's land. There is hope for your future.'" —Jeremiah 31:15-17

Prayer: Jesus, give me the gift of tears. May I weep for the same reason You did.

Let me mingle tears with thee,
Mourning Him Who mourned for me,
All the days that I may live.

NINTH STATION :

Jesus Falls the Third Time

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"Jesus replied: 'I tell you, Peter, the cock will not crow today until you have three times denied that you know Me.'" —Luke 22:34

"A third time Jesus asked him, 'Simon, son of John, do you love Me?' Peter was hurt because He had asked a third time, 'Do you love Me?' so he said to Him: 'Lord, you know everything. You know well that I love You.' Jesus said to him, 'Feed My sheep.'" —John 21:17

"Those who accepted his message were baptized; some three thousand were added that day." —Acts 2:41

"He will revive us after two days; on the third day He will raise us up." —Hosea 6:2

Prayer: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore You. Thank You, Jesus for rising from the third fall and rising on the third day. May I be transformed by my faith that You will raise me from the dead.

By the cross with you to stay
There with you to weep and pray,
This I ask of you to give.

TENTH STATION :

Jesus Is Stripped Of His Garments

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves." —Genesis 3:17

"She gave birth to her first-born Son and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger." —Luke 2:7

"There was a young man following Him who was covered by nothing but a linen cloth. As they seized him he left the cloth behind and ran off naked." —Mark 14:51-52

"Then the disciple Jesus loved cried out to Peter, 'It is the Lord!' on hearing it was the Lord, Simon Peter threw on some clothes — he was stripped— and jumped into the water." —John 21:7

"We groan while we are here, even as we yearn to have our heavenly habitation envelop us. This it will, provided we are found clothed and not naked. While we live in our present tent we groan; we are weighed down because we do not wish to be stripped naked but rather to have the heavenly dwelling envelop us, so that what is mortal may be absorbed by life." —2 Corinthians 5:2-4

Prayer: Father, "strip away everything vicious, everything deceitful; pretenses, jealousies, and disparaging remarks of any kind" (1 Pt 2:1). Then clothe me in righteousness.

Virgin of all virgins blest,
Listen to my fond request;
Let me share your grief divine.

ELEVENTH STATION :

Jesus Is Nailed To The Cross

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"He was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins, upon Him was the chastisement that makes us whole, by His stripes we were healed." —Isaiah 53:5

"I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and petition; and they shall look on Him Whom they have thrust through, and they shall mourn for Him as one mourns for an only son, and they shall grieve over Him as one grieves over a first-born." —Zechariah 12:10

"As He said this He showed them His hands and feet." —Luke 24:40

"See, He comes amid the clouds! Every eye shall see Him, even of those who pierced Him. All the peoples of the earth shall lament Him bitterly. So it is to be! Amen!" —Revelation 1:7

Prayer: Father, pierce me with love and repentance when I look at the crucifix.

Let me, to my final breath,
In my body bear the death
Of that dying Son of thine.

TWELFTH STATION :

The Death Of Jesus

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.

"Silence before Him, all the earth!" —Habakkuk 2:20

"Silence in the presence of the Lord God!" —Zephaniah 1:7 (see Zech 2:17)

Prayer: Jesus, You gave Your life for me; I give my life for You.

Wounded with his ev'ry wound,
Steep my soul till it has swooned
In His very blood away.

          Tragedy or Miracle ?

I want to thank those that sent prayers and energy during my illness it means the world to me and makes a huge difference in my long recovery ahead of me. I am in absolute awe at the outreach of so many and humbled as well. I would like to that this opportunity to share my story so that others may benefit in some small way. I never thought for one second that my life would turn out this way. I never thought that my faith would be tested many times over in such a short time. I look back over the years and wonder how anyone could survive that, let alone how I could. In the last three years I have had cancer scare, I lost my husband, relocated and thought my life was on track when February 3, 2012 I was rushed to the hospital with pain in my stomach, after three hours and ton of x-rays later I was transferred to a larger hospital by helicopter. There I was told I could have ovarian cancer because there is a huge mass growing on my right ovary. The mass was leaking into my body causing major pain. Hours later the team of doctors told me the mass was the size of a beach ball I had no fear not even a hint of it. Some would think it was because of the morphine that I was receiving, but it wasn't I did not have any fear from the second it started. Others would lead you to believe, it was because I wanted to die. They are wrong, It never crossed my mind. I remember laying on this table and telling my daughter that she needed to leave and go on her ski trip and how sorry I was I couldn't babysit Riley for her but she shouldn't miss her trip because of me. As they loaded me in the helicopter I remember my grandson standing there with a bit of fear on his face as he waved to me slowly as my daughter assured him, I even remember the medics telling my grandson they were gonna take good care of his grandmother. There were so many that stepped in and was caring for me. It brings tears to my eyes even now as I am reflecting back on it. Each and every one of these people were in place with the gift God gave them to carry out his will. I am a living breathing product of one of God's unbelievably beautiful miracles here on earth. I am truly blessed in all aspects of my life.  I know how strange it is to hear this from someone that was stricken with so much trials in her life to be so optimistic about it all. It has nothing to do with being a person that thinks the glass is half full or one that thinks it is half empty. I have been on both sides of that fence. It boils down to having one's eyes opened and embracing ones faith after so long of living in the darkness. If it wasn't for the ugly tragedies that have been a part of my life I would not have been able to see the beauty of every day miracles as they unfold around me. When my husband was in ICU three years ago , I was blessed with witnessing strangers coming together praying for one anthers loved ones and what started as two grew to a group the size of 20 and 30 people gathered in the hall when some would leave others would join . During my illness I witnessed not a handful but an army of people coming together for a single cause yet again. Each and every one of these people were not of the same faith nor did it matter in the least. The peace, The love, and The compassion are the main ingredients that connected each one of us during these trying times. The true miracle is each time we are blessed with seeing such things happening around us , we are also blessed with taking a small part of it into our self becoming the miracle God intended it to be.        

"Thought I want to share with everyone that is reading this, My trials managed to bring so many of my family, friends, and medical staff and their families and friends together for one cause, and that wasn't even the end of it, through my latest trials it became a learning experience for medical students for years to come as well as myself. Even now those that read this have been brought together. No matter what happens No matter where you are in your own life, Just let your light shine through and keep strong in your faith !"

                                                      by Rev. Lisa Taylor

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                                       Recipes :

Thanksgiving is around the corner. Recipes are being dusted off and shared around the world. Here are some of my favorites :
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                           Letter To Lisa

                                 Christianity

I was graced with a posting on Facebook. The post was as such: " I ran a poll on FB asking Weather Christians should boycott Halloween? The results were 76 % said No. How did this happen? How did we become so accepting? "

( Let it sink in a bit before I get to the point I am making. )

Had enough time yet? If not do not be discouraged so early into this piece that I am laying out in front of you to read so you can decide on your own.

During my time I spent going through and reading every last post among adding my own , My heart became heavy, and it went from bad to worse.

Now I am going to take the time to quote from some of the comments on the post so that one can get a good idea on how things progressed over the course of the discussion. I will leave names out of it for reasons of protecting the identity of those that had this to say.

1. Add me to the Yes's. I hate Halloween.

2. What your eyes and ears take in will become a part of you. Please stay away from the demonic evil of that night.

3. Is Santa work of the devil too? It's magic just like Harry potter? And just to add to someones comments earlier, you'll also find that the Christmas tree is an idea taken from pagans too.

4. Santa and the tree teaches our kids that its OK to lie and to worship false gods. Period!

5. Why do we teach our kids to pray to Santa? We sing songs that say he is all knowing. Satan finds a way to destroy any Holy-day. He even rearranged the letters of his name to creation Santa. Let's teach our children what Christ-mas really means.

6. Mark, I didn't participate in your poll, but my vote would have been in favor of boycotting Halloween. Why? Because (as most everyone knows) it has pagan origins, and because it in no way glorifies our Heavenly Father - in fact, it distracts people from God and the Word (as do most of today's secular 'holidays'). We're very near to HIS return, bro - the longer HE tarries, the more ungodly things are going to get down here - a year from now, don't be surprised if that same poll nets you 82% in favor of the Halloween thing. Matthew 7:20 "Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." - Y'shua Ha'Mashiach

7. And the Tooth Fairy...and the Easter Bunny...shall I go on??

8. I say "YES"!!

9. So me loving Halloween makes me not Christian?! I cannot stand Christmas only because of how commercialized it is.

10. What harm could taking one bite of a piece of forbidden fruit do? I mean it's not like Eve is trying to kill anyone. Right? (If you've ever read the Bible, and taken a look around, you know that much harm has come, from a seemingly simple act of disobedience.)

11. It's amazing how ignorant people have become of what is holy and what isn't holy. The Bible says, "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" (Isaiah 5:20 NKJV) Real Christians don't celebrate Halloween. I commend those who are standing strong against this evil practice. Don't let unholy people confuse you on this matter. You are right to reject Halloween.

12. Its been a long Journey from the Fourth Century Bishop of Myra, St. Nicholas, who showed his devotion to God in extraordinary kindness and generosity to those in need, to America's jolly Santa Claus, whose largesse often supple luxuries to the affluent, however, If you peel back the accretion, he is still Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, who caring surprises continue to model true giving and faithfulness.A Bishop, Nicholas put Jesus Christ at the center of his life, his ministry. his entire existence. families, Churches, and Schools are embracing true St, Nicholas traditions as one way to claim the true center of Christmas - The birth of Jesus. Such a focus helps restore balance to increasingly materialistic and stress filled Advent and Christmas seasons.

13.May I ask a question here?, I have read about quote" real Christians" in a few post , Can the" Real Christians" stand up and explain to me what is it that makes you a "Real Christian" verses us Fake ones?

14. real Christians r those who do what Christ says, like, Love one another...even your enemies...Forgive one another...get along with one another or don't cast stones at one another. In other words...be a good reflection of who Christ is so unbelievers will see His glory. I haven't seen very much of that on here. Thank you to those that have displayed Christ. Thank you, Lord.

15. Better yet explain where did Halloween come from?

16. Satan's playground....ghosts, goblins, skeletons, horror, evil, death, zombies, mutilations, costumes..(pretending to something one is not; hiding behind true identity as to feel free)....darkness...satanic worship....demons...so, where is there anything good in any of this?....you call this "family fun"....participating in such a DARK pagan holiday and you think God is OK with it??...anything that doesn't HONOR God is of the world and we as Christians are to be in the world and not of the world...to be a light in the darkness not participate IN the darkness...keep on taking pagan holidays and masking them and saying it's OK...i would love to hear what will be said to God himself on the day of Judgement....come on people we are called to be examples in this world not go along with the ideals of the world...to stand up and proclaim truth and light in the dark....to help people see the underlying schemes of the enemy not be a part of them...when we say it's OK we are helping the enemy...its about good and evil..light and darkness...there is NO middle...God says in His word to choose whom you will serve, as for me and my House we will serve the Lord...you cannot serve two masters!!!...it's sad that some Christians would rather go with the flow than stand up and go against the flow for truth and righteousness...i will to continue to pray that God will helps us all....In Love.

17.Christmas is worse than Halloween it was started by the Catholic church to get more money (greed) for the holiday that started the week before and ran through the 25th they tacked on Jesus to make people give more Christmas started as an evil holiday of lawlessness with people running wickedly...

18. Whoever looks down on Mark for saying this, is a fool. Halloween might be harmless to those who know no difference but Satan takes Halloween very seriously. He sees is as though he is being worshiped and serious satanists also take the event very seriously. It is not a question of your salvation, we all know that Jesus is the answer to that. But it is a question of your love for God. If you truly want to obey God and not please Satan, then don't take part in Halloween. No one is stating you are not saved, but certainly, if you are followers of Christ, and love Christ. Halloween is not something to be taken lightly as much as it might appear to be fun,laughs and little squeels on the outside, Satan is rubbing his hands. Do you think Jesus would have walked around in demon masks? NO WAY. don't kid yourselves, because that's what you're doing. Do some research and ask Jesus for forgiveness

19. WOW, Zoe, I have done research on this subject and I tend to go by what is rather than what isn't,Maybe it would be best if you might have done a little reading as well. Being a fool is to think it is only one day out of the year that one thinks serious satanic cults and rings get together and pray against christian families. Maybe it would do some good to open up that mind and do some studies on cultures and religion before condemning others, and wouldn't hurt to have a little faith in ones own belief system ! Mark has his right to his opinion as well as each and every one of us does. and for good measure do a little research on the basic statistics of murders, muggings, rapes, hate crimes, and child pornography through out the year, those numbers are not on just one day !

20. IN the Roman Catholic Church the next day, All Souls Day, specifically commemorates the departed faithful who have not yet been purified and reached heaven. Catholics celebrate All Saints Day and ALL Souls Day in the fundamental belief that there is a prayerful spiritual communion between those in the state of grace who have died and are either being purified in purgatory or are in heaven(the church penitent' and church triumphant, respectively )and the church militant" who are the living. Other Christian traditions define, remember and respond to the saints different ways.

21. oh i see, so you're basing your opinion on Halloween on what the roman catholic church says, but Catholicism has NOTHING to do with Christianity, but yet you probably don't know that, seeing as how you've been spoon-fed that Catholicism and Christianity are the same. seriously, Catholicism has more occultism in it than most false religions out there, and that is because Catholicism was founded on a mixture of Baal, or IDOL worship and Christianity, thus the reason why Catholics pray to a statue of Mary or of their chosen saint, such as saint peter. the whole concept of purgatory is not biblical AT ALL. there's no such place as purgatory. that's all deception devised to put people in FEAR that if they don't do what the catholic church says, then they're not going to Heaven, but to purgatory, which is a "holding place" between death and hell, and God's Word says CLEARLY that those that die without knowing Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior are going to hell when they die. sound harsh? that's the reality. i know a whole lot more than you think i do about Halloween, Catholicism, and a whole bunch of other things and how all of these things are related. save yourself from trying to convince me. I've been a born-again Believer in Jesus Christ since i was 6 years old, and filled with the Holy Spirit since i was 16. I'm 37 years old now, so do the math. I'm not trying to sound harsh in what I'm saying. I'm just tired of all the deception floating around that "this is innocent fun! let's get the kids involved!", and all the while, most parents do not have a CLUE about what it is they are letting into their households! let me ask you something: how many demons have YOU let into your household because of YOUR choice to celebrate Halloween and to take a passive stance on it? are you even aware that you have allowed demonic spirits in, or are you "comfortable" in your opinion concerning demonic things?

22. I am not Catholic but I know a lot of Catholics and they are Christians. They do a lot of things that I don't believe in doing, but they believe Jesus came to earth to die on the cross for our sins. The movie "The Passion Of The Christ " that Mel Gibson produced is all about the sacrifice Jesus made for us all and Mel Gibson is Roman Catholic. Maybe I have misunderstood you, but if a person accepts Jesus Christ as their lord and Savior doesn't that make them a Christian? I am not trying to argue, I am just concerned you may have just offended a lot of people. I am a Christian not any sort of organized religion so you haven't offended me but you did peak my interest in knowing what it is that you believe makes a person a Christian?

23. That is a very good Question, I have asked 'quote' The real Christian as I have seen posted on this thread to stand up and explain to me the difference in yourself and others,One Person responded which was Philip Watson. (which in reading seems pretty close to my life.) Now you have bashed Catholic's in such a bad manner and have decided to proceed to tell me that my belief is a one way ticket to hell basically.So you have concluded that your choice in religion is the one true religion and not at all false.In this conclusion leaving out every other religion but your own, am I correct?

24. if people are offended at the truth concerning Catholicism, that's not my fault. the truth is all over the place to those that want to know. to me, being a born-again Christian means that i asked Jesus into my heart to be my Lord and Savior and i received Him into my heart by faith. it's that simple, and that's exactly how God's Word says that we come to salvation. essentially, it means that i had to admit that i couldn't fix my life, and i knew even at a young age that i need Jesus. my picture of salvation is not based on me doing works in order for Jesus to love me more, because the truth is that He has ALWAYS loved me far more than i could EVER imagine, and the same exact thing goes for every single person! I'm not here to judge people's hearts. that's not my place. all i am saying is that basing a critical judgment on something other than the Word of God is a HUGE mistake, and this is because there is nothing else that can take the place of the Word of God, not religion, not dogma, not man-made doctrine. the problem is that there's WAAAAY too many man-made religions out there that people THINK is "Christianity", but they're not sure, and that is because they were raised in it their whole life. i wasn't raised in a religious system. i was raised on the Word of God, plain and simple, and that's what i base my life on. you can call that "old school" or whatever else you want to call it, but what you can't call it is a lie, because the Word of God is in no way, shape, form or fashion a lie. what we do with it can make it seem as though it's a lie, but that's due to our misuse of it, and that's a whole other ball of wax. if Mel Gibson is a roman catholic, then good for him. that's his choice. i personally LOVE the passion of the Christ, and that is because i know the way that Jesus is depicted in that movie is as close to what actually happened to Him than ANY movie about Jesus has EVER come to depicting His crucifixion. there's no doubt that God's Power is all over that movie, but that has NOTHING to do with the catholic church. it's because the movie is about the sacrifice that Jesus made for our sins. we need to stop making a religion out of every single thing that has anything to do with God and instead embrace the fullness of who God IS, and this is a daily process. this is why God's Word says that we are to walk out our salvation DAILY through fear and trembling. why fear and trembling? because God is to be REVERENTIALLY feared because of who He is!

25. The largest Christian denomination is the Roman Catholic Church, with 1.17 billion adherents, representing half of all Christians. ( wow big shocker to see Christian right next to Roman Catholic ) The term Christian is also used adjectivally to describe anything associated with Christianity, or in proverbial sense* all that is noble, and good, and Christ-Like. It is also used as a label to identify people who associate with the cultural aspects of Christianity, irrespective of personal religious beliefs or practice. Now that said. To quote your post" "Yet you probably don't know that, seeing as how you've been spoon-fed that Catholicism and Christianity are the same. seriously, Catholicism has more occultism in it than most false religions out there." (your words not mine or anyone else on this thread.) You indeed bashed Catholic's as well as myself. You have assumed too much in all your pointing fingers and being judgmental at best. I am not offended at what you have said about myself or towards Roman Catholic. During this thread I have pointed out time and time again that Halloween is not just about pagan. Which it is proven simply by a little research. I have defended the Catholic belief. which you, openly attacked as well as attacked myself. My sister you assumed I am Catholic !

This is but 25 of the 522 comments on this subject at hand that I have shared with you. These were not even the worst of the comments. I am a Christian and will not waver from my belief's. It is simple as to follow a few guide lines... 1. Accept Jesus into your heart. 2. Sense of all that is Noble, and Good, and Christ-Like. 3. Work towards a spiritual life and not that of the flesh as we were born into.
I have a point to all this madness, It seems that this poll and posting has created more or less an opportunity for Christians to attack one another for their personal views in the choice they have made in their faith. No wonder the word Christian has a bad stigma attached to it. According to the World Christian Encyclopedia (year 2000 version), global Christianity had 33,820 denominations with 3,445,000 congregations/churches composed of 1,888 million affiliated Christians.

The differences between these groups are vast, and the list of denominations that I have provided is by no means complete. There were at one time believed to be near 100,000 different denominations of Christianity, each of which fell mostly into one of these groups. It is crazy to try and take it all in at once. This part might be hard to grasp but Christianity Is One Religion: Catholicism, Protestant, Methodist etc. are just branches of Christianity. The definition of Denomination : A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and another are defined by doctrine and church authority. Issues such as the nature of Jesus, the authority of apostolic succession, and papal primacy separate one denomination from another. It is interesting at how one religion can breed intolerance towards Christians and None Christians alike. An act of intolerance is conduct that adversely targets an individual or group on the basis of sex, race, color disability, religion, sexual orientation, and/or national/ethnic origin. Makes one wonder if it is the lack of education or blatantly disregard for facts among the human race. One would think as a spiritual leader it would be wise to educate one self before leading loyal members of your following down this rut ridden road. But let us not forget the importance of education is equally the responsibility of the individual free thinking soul that we come to believe we are. I was told resonantly that one has to know the dates and time periods in the bible in order to learn/teach the good word. One could ask : Is it not equally important to know the history of all religion in order to learn/teach Tolerance. IMHO one has to live the life in order to help others understand the teachings, We humans learn by what we see in others as example not by being lectured at. This revelation of Ethical and Moral Standings can be implemented in any Christian and none Christian belief out there.

I wrote this paper in the hope Christians and none Christians alike, Will come a way from this bit of time spent with me and have something to think about towards their own compassion and tolerance in their own belief / Life. One maybe wondering how this is all connects with the poll/comments. Maybe I can tie it in for those that have not grasped the concept. Boycotting Halloween as Christians is not the subject but acceptance of one another. The questions asked in the post was How did this happen? How did we become so accepting? In which I provided some history about Christianity/ religion as to why we should be accepting of one another , The question should of been," How did we waver from acceptance in our life towards one another? 

                          " A great question to ponder on "

                                     by Rev. Lisa Taylor

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                     HOMOSEXUALITY IS NOT A SIN

I have stayed away from this topic, due to the fact, I didn't want to cause any controversy in the ULC. However, it seems there has been an increase in the number of posts and comments made by my fellow Christians.  Well boys and girls, pull up a chair, Uncle Mikey is going to let you in on a few things.

First off, we need to define a few terms. These are terms that will help guide the path of this blog entry, as well as understand the differences between things. Terms shall be added as confusions arise.

Christianity – Christianity is, typically, a belief in the teachings of Jesus the Christ. It is a belief that He is the Son of God and the Son of Man, Alpha and Omega, and the Messiah prophesied in the Holy Texts of the prophets. Belief in the resurrection of Christ, endowment of the Holy Spirit, and the Bible are also normally  beliefs included in Christianity.

Gnosticism – Gnosticism is a form of Christianity that, to be honest, I don’t have much of a clue about.  I have been asked to read them by Debra Tipton and a few others, and have started. However, it is to be noted that Gnostic Christianity is distinctly different from Established Christianity, that of the Church founded by the Apostle Paul. I merely want it to be known that we will not be discussing Gnosticism in this thread. This thread is intended mainly for Christians. 

 

Popular Christianity – We’ll note now that, yes, this one is a tad different from Christianity. Unfortunately, it’s also what nearly everyone claims or thinks is Christianity, and it’s been giving Christians a bad name for a while. Another name for this might be embellished Christianity. Basically, it is a faith in the Church or the Clergy, a faith that whatever they say on matters pertaining to the Bible and the Spirit. People that ascribe to this version of Christianity almost never have actually read the Bible, are unable to list the Ten Commandments, and are laden with other woes and ignorance that is found easily in the Scripture. It’s this type of Christianity that spawns so many problems and misconceptions, especially thanks to the Catholic Church and the Papacy being able to say whatever they wanted about the Bible and be infallible. Misconceptions that sprout from this PC include hell, homosexuality is a sin, the Deadly Sins, etcetera. Those misconceptions spawned from this form of Christianity are what we’ll be covering.

Sin – Here’s a word some people use a tad liberally. A sin is simply a transgression against God and His Laws. Cursing is not necessarily sinful, but cursing God is. Lashing out in anger is ALSO not sinful. Jesus Christ Himself did it on at least two occasions. Once in the Temple, and once on a road, striking a fig tree with withering plague. Also, just because it is sinful does not mean it is horrendously wrong. Imagining someone in a sexually pleasing to you manner is lust, a sin. However, it is not a “great evil”. There is no sin that cannot be forgiven, except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. And that’s a Biblical fact.

I've noticed that people are having troubles with prayer vs. worship and the term homosexuality. This last is a problem as it seems to be this blog's main attraction. Therefore, we shall define them.

Prayer – Prayer is merely talking to someone of a higher realm. A prayer can be as simple as "Dear God, please help!", or as used as the Pater Noster (Our Father). Prayer, it is to be noted, does not mean worship. They are seperate terms. Merriam-Webster tells us that to pray is merely to entreat, implore, or address God or a god.

Worship – Worship, as I said, is different from prayer. Merriam-Webster says it well with "reverence offered a divine being or supernatural power; also: an act of expressing such reverence". Prayer is not an act of expressing reverence. It is an act of talking to someone of a higher power.

Homosexuality – Homosexuality is the natural sexuality that makes a person or animal find an attraction towards those of the same gender as they. Homosexuality is not the state of having sex with members of the same sex. Also, homosexual has been commonly used to refer to the male homosexuals, though it applies to males and females. In modern terminology we commonly use the words, "gay" and "lesbian."

NEXT we will deal with common MAJOR misconceptions Christians have. 

Misconceptions on Homosexuality – It Is NOT A Sin

This blog is dedicated to proving the popular passages as not anti-homosexual. For now, I only have the most common arguments, but more may appear. Here they are:

"Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve." - Insinuating Adam and Eve as the only humans on the Earth in the beginning, and all humans are children of Adam and Eve.

"Leviticus says:" - Insinuating that all of Leviticus is still to be used by Christians.

"God burnt down Sodom for homosexuality!" - Insinuating that the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah were homosexual sex.

"The New Testament says:" - Insinuating that the New Testament specifically says that homosexuality is a sin.

"Gays marrying is against God!" - Insinuating that marriage is a Christian rite and that homosexuality is a sin.

These arguments are all quite wrong. Let me show you why. For those that need A to B to C to D, this is how we will do it, and go merrily down the path with Tiny Tim and "Tip Toe Through the Tulips," in hopes that Uncle Mikey here, can show you there is a problem with the thinking in the Christian church.


Topic 1, Adam and Eve: The Only Humans?

NOTA BENE: The following idea that Adam was not necessarily created on day six, and that perhaps more than one human was created by God, is currently not supported by any research into the original language and is therefore very flimsy, and the order I have placed it in for easier understand seems to confuse certain people. However, it is something to consider. All in all, the argument that God's creation of Adam and Eve somehow should dictate what God intended as a sexuality for everyone is similar to a part to whole fallacy and has several flaws in it. It makes the argument that God intended every man to be with a woman, which we can see in the example of the Apostle Paul is simply untrue. Sometimes, man would be better alone. Adam, as a sole being, was not one of those men. It would also insinuate that Adam and Eve were examples in every way for we humans, as no way is specified, which would insinuate God's intention for a single race, single hair color, et cetera. As we can probably guess, this argument is fallacious and weak and need not be used in intelligent theological discourse. Also, remember for all of my dear Christian "brothers and sisters;" 2 Peter 3:8 reads, "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day."

Note: The NIV translation does, in fact, use some tenses of words that make my theory somewhat difficult to follow chronologically. Other translations support my theory more fluidly. However, said translation(s) are not on Biblegateway, so let's just move on, shall we? (For those that wish to find it, look up the verse in a New Century Version)

Genesis 2:4-6, NIV

This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.

When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens- and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground- the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

Genesis 1:9-13, NIV

And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good.

Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

As Adam was made before vegetation was on the Earth, he was made during the third day: After the water, but before the veggies. However:

Genesis 1:26-30, NIV

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."

Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food." And it was so.

More humans were created on the sixth day.

But some don't seem convinced by the plant argument. Okay. Let's say, just for fun, that Adam WAS created after the plants. Let's say that you really really can't follow the way this was set up, and need a tad more proof. Here. This section should help affirm things.

Genesis 1:21-26, 31, NIV

So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth." And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.

And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
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God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

Animals. Animals were created prior to man on the sixth day. Well, if we visit chapter 2...

Genesis 2:18-19, NIV

The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."

Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.

Adam was around prior to the animals. And yet, the Chapter 1 account says animals were created prior to man. This shows, yet again, that Adam was created prior to the "man" of the Day Six account.

Also:

Genesis 4:13-16, NIV

Cain said to the LORD, "My punishment is more than I can bear. Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me."

But the LORD said to him, "Not so; if anyone kills Cain, he will suffer vengeance seven times over." Then the LORD put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. So Cain went out from the LORD's presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

Cain was worried that others may find and kill him. If his parents were the only others on the earth, who would he have had to worry about? Also, the land of Nod was known as the land of wanderers. Who was wandering for it to be named so? Cain, of course, is one... But note the plural. These verses only strengthen the suggestion that Adam, Eve, and their family were not alone.

For those that are still unconvinced... That believe Adam was created after the plants and animals, that believe Cain feared the rest of his family, that believe Cain slept with his sister, that believe there were at least 5 accounts of incest to create the human race... I ask you this:

Genesis 4:17, NIV

Cain lay with his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch.

Why on earth was Cain building a city? And how was he doing it by himself?

Y'know, I find it amazing that the more people argue against me, the more stuff I find to support my argument.

I direct everyone to Genesis 6:1-2.

Genesis 6:1-2, NIV

When men began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose.

Where did the daughters of men come from? It is simple to assume that sons of God were those of God's chosen race of peoples, those from the lineage of Adam and Eve. However, it makes a distinction between these and the daughters of men. If there were those that God had chosen special and those that God hadn't... Who were the ones God hadn't chosen special?

Topic 2, Leviticus: Christian Law?

WARNING: Sarcasm follows through much of this. If you can't see it, then I'm sorry. Bill Duff you are rubbing off on me..........

Leviticus 19:27, NIV

Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.

So. Those that shave are sinning.

Leviticus 19:19, NIV

Keep my decrees.
Do not mate different kinds of animals.
Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed.
Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.

So. Those that crop in cycles, wear polyester cotton mixes, or breed mules are sinning.

Leviticus 15, NIV

The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When any man has a bodily discharge, the discharge is unclean. Whether it continues flowing from his body or is blocked, it will make him unclean. This is how his discharge will bring about uncleanness:

'Any bed the man with a discharge lies on will be unclean, and anything he sits on will be unclean. Anyone who touches his bed must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening. Whoever sits on anything that the man with a discharge sat on must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening.'

'Whoever touches the man who has a discharge must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening.'

'If the man with the discharge spits on someone who is clean, that person must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening.'

'Everything the man sits on when riding will be unclean, and whoever touches any of the things that were under him will be unclean till evening; whoever picks up those things must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening.'

'Anyone the man with a discharge touches without rinsing his hands with water must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening.'

'A clay pot that the man touches must be broken, and any wooden article is to be rinsed with water.'

'When a man is cleansed from his discharge, he is to count off seven days for his ceremonial cleansing; he must wash his clothes and bathe himself with fresh water, and he will be clean. On the eighth day he must take two doves or two young pigeons and come before the LORD to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and give them to the priest. The priest is to sacrifice them, the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. In this way he will make atonement before the LORD for the man because of his discharge.'

'When a man has an emission of semen, he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean till evening. Any clothing or leather that has semen on it must be washed with water, and it will be unclean till evening. When a man lies with a woman and there is an emission of semen, both must bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.'

'When a woman has her regular flow of blood, the impurity of her monthly period will last seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean till evening.'

'Anything she lies on during her period will be unclean, and anything she sits on will be unclean. Whoever touches her bed must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening. Whoever touches anything she sits on must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening. Whether it is the bed or anything she was sitting on, when anyone touches it, he will be unclean till evening.'

'If a man lies with her and her monthly flow touches him, he will be unclean for seven days; any bed he lies on will be unclean.'

'When a woman has a discharge of blood for many days at a time other than her monthly period or has a discharge that continues beyond her period, she will be unclean as long as she has the discharge, just as in the days of her period. Any bed she lies on while her discharge continues will be unclean, as is her bed during her monthly period, and anything she sits on will be unclean, as during her period. Whoever touches them will be unclean; he must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening.'

'When she is cleansed from her discharge, she must count off seven days, and after that she will be ceremonially clean. On the eighth day she must take two doves or two young pigeons and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. The priest is to sacrifice one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. In this way he will make atonement for her before the LORD for the uncleanness of her discharge.'

'You must keep the Israelites separate from things that make them unclean, so they will not die in their uncleanness for defiling my dwelling place, which is among them.'

These are the regulations for a man with a discharge, for anyone made unclean by an emission of semen, for a woman in her monthly period, for a man or a woman with a discharge, and for a man who lies with a woman who is ceremonially unclean.

So. Semen is "unclean". Women on periods must be cast out due to their uncleanliness. Remember, Uncle Mikey is taking you down the path so you will understand, so keep reading and bare with me.

Leviticus 11, NIV

The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Say to the Israelites: 'Of all the animals that live on land, these are the ones you may eat: You may eat any animal that has a split hoof completely divided and that chews the cud.

'There are some that only chew the cud or only have a split hoof, but you must not eat them. The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is ceremonially unclean for you. The coney, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you. The rabbit, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you. And the pig, though it has a split hoof completely divided, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you.'

'Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales. But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales-whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water-you are to detest. And since you are to detest them, you must not eat their meat and you must detest their carcasses. Anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales is to be detestable to you.'

'These are the birds you are to detest and not eat because they are detestable: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, the red kite, any kind of black kite, any kind of raven, the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe and the bat.'

'All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you. There are, however, some winged creatures that walk on all fours that you may eat: those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid, cricket or grasshopper. But all other winged creatures that have four legs you are to detest.'

'You will make yourselves unclean by these; whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. Whoever picks up one of their carcasses must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean till evening.'

 'Every animal that has a split hoof not completely divided or that does not chew the cud is unclean for you; whoever touches the carcass of any of them will be unclean. Of all the animals that walk on all fours, those that walk on their paws are unclean for you; whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. Anyone who picks up their carcasses must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean till evening. They are unclean for you.’

 'Of the animals that move about on the ground, these are unclean for you: the weasel, the rat, any kind of great lizard, the gecko, the monitor lizard, the wall lizard, the skink and the chameleon. Of all those that move along the ground, these are unclean for you. Whoever touches them when they are dead will be unclean till evening. When one of them dies and falls on something, that article, whatever its use, will be unclean, whether it is made of wood, cloth, hide or sackcloth. Put it in water; it will be unclean till evening, and then it will be clean. If one of them falls into a clay pot, everything in it will be unclean, and you must break the pot. Any food that could be eaten but has water on it from such a pot is unclean, and any liquid that could be drunk from it is unclean. Anything that one of their carcasses falls on becomes unclean; an oven or cooking pot must be broken up. They are unclean, and you are to regard them as unclean. A spring, however, or a cistern for collecting water remains clean, but anyone who touches one of these carcasses is unclean. If a carcass falls on any seeds that are to be planted, they remain clean. But if water has been put on the seed and a carcass falls on it, it is unclean for you.’

 'If an animal that you are allowed to eat dies, anyone who touches the carcass will be unclean till evening. Anyone who eats some of the carcass must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean till evening. Anyone who picks up the carcass must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean till evening.’

 'Every creature that moves about on the ground is detestable; it is not to be eaten. You are not to eat any creature that moves about on the ground, whether it moves on its belly or walks on all fours or on many feet; it is detestable. Do not defile yourselves by any of these creatures. Do not make yourselves unclean by means of them or be made unclean by them. I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves about on the ground. I am the LORD who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.’

 'These are the regulations concerning animals, birds, every living thing that moves in the water and every creature that moves about on the ground. You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.'

So, you can't eat lobster or crawfish.  Or pork.  I am going to die and go to hell, because I eat the hell out of all three, if these are for the modern day Christian and NOT for the Israelites who were wandering in the desert.

So why just pick at the verses against homosexuals? Oh, by the way. Christians do not have to follow Levitican Law. Bet you forgot that one that we are NOT under the Law of Moses. OK , brother and sister Christians, I will give you that one and say you forgot.

 

Acts 10:10-16, NIV

He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of fourfooted animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air. Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat."

“Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean." The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.

Suddenly the animals aren't unclean. But, some people don't seem to appreciate the double meaning behind this dream. So, straight from Christ's mouth is this:

Mark 7:14-19, NIV

Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can make him 'unclean' by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him 'unclean.' "

After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. "Are you so dull?" he asked. "Don't you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him 'unclean'? For it doesn't go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body." (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods "clean." wink

That's right. Christ said it. All the foods are officially clean.

Oh, and here.

Acts 15:24-29, NIV

We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul– men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.

If you are Christian, you are not to follow the Levitican laws, as mentioned in Acts 15. If you are Jewish, either follow all the laws, or just realize that you're not doing so hot as a Jew and don't follow any. Sheesh!!!

Let us not forget the verses Collosians 2:14 and Hebrews 7:18 either.

Collosians 2:14, NIV

having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.

Hebrews 7:18, NIV

The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless

Who are we to negate the sacrifice of Christ?


Topic 3, Sodom: Burned For Homosexual Sex?

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is as such: Lot, the nephew of Abraham, was living in the city of Sodom. Abraham had pleaded to God to spare the city under the condition that 10 righteous men were found there.

Genesis 18:32-33, NIV

Then he said, "May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?"
He answered, "For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it."

When the LORD had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home.

Unfortunately, that condition was failed to be met. However, God felt compassion towards Lot, and sent two angels to warn him of the impending doom of the city before its destruction. When they arrived, however, they were accosted by citizens of Sodom.

Genesis 19:4-30, NIV

Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. They called to Lot, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them."

Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him and said, "No, my friends. Don't do this wicked thing. Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don't do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof."

"Get out of our way," they replied. And they said, "This fellow came here as an alien, and now he wants to play the judge! We'll treat you worse than them." They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.

The two men said to Lot, "Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the LORD against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it."

With these verses, a couple of key things are to be noted. First, note that Lot mentioned the men were protected. Second, note that he offered his daughters. The protection is to be noted because inhospitality was a grievous offense. Just as in the Roman myth of Jupiter and Mercury visiting Baucis and Philemon, hospitality was rewarded as you never knew who would be in your house.  Lot offering his daughters, shows that, as he was their father and thus their consent, that he was offering them consenting sex as opposed to rape. Also:

Genesis 18:20-21, NIV

Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know."

God mentions an outcry that reached him. Would men consenting to homosexual sex cry out to God? No. Would people being raped repeatedly cry out to God? The answer is yes. Also, why would the sin of homosexuality be so grievous back then that it was worthy of razing an entire city, but is today not worthy enough for anything? The reason is that homosexuality was not the sin mentioned. The sin is rape and, slightly lesser, inhospitality. Note:

Ezekiel 16:48-50, NIV

As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, your sister Sodom and her daughters never did what you and your daughters have done.

Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.

Arrogance, gluttony, and apathy. Not helping the poor and needy, or being inhospitable. Haughty: Above the law. And detestable things? Rape. Case 2:

Luke 10:10-12, NIV

But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 'Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.' I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.

If you are not welcomed into a town, it says... If they are not hospitable to you, then they will suffer pains worse than that of Sodom.

I'd say that about clinches the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah, wouldn't you? Don't assume that since we have this word sodomy to refer to anal sex that Sodom's sin was sodomy.


Topic 4, New Testament: Condemning Gays?

Some will say that homosexuality falls under the category of sexual immorality, as mentioned in Acts 15:29. But commonly mistranslated for homosexuality is a section in Romans:

Romans 1:24-27, NIV

Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

In these passages, it blatantly states that lust was the cause behind their sin. Not only is lust a sexual immorality, but so is sleeping around.

1 Corinthians 6:12-18, NIV

"Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything. "Food for the stomach and the stomach for food"—but God will destroy them both. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, "The two will become one flesh." But he who unites himself with the Lord is one with him in spirit.

Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.

This verse says to "flee sexual immorality", but it only mentions whoring yourself. Further, to prove that God condones ALL forms of love, including homosexual love:

1 John 4:7-12, NIV

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

These verses, properly interpreted and read, not misquote or drug out of context, show that God is behind all forms of love, and that lust and prostitutional fornication are the sexual sins mentioned. The verses from 1 John specifically refer to unconditional love. It states that any love that is unconditional is from God. Homosexuals can love their partners unconditionally, therefore, can have unions blessed by God.

Topic 5, Gay Marriage: UnChristian?

I don't even need Bible verses for this. As I've already proven that homosexuality is not a sin in accordance with the Bible, there should be nothing wrong. However, if that isn't enough, picture this:

Christianity was formed approximately 2000 years ago. Jesus has been judged to die at around 28 AD (Born in 5 BC). Marriage has been a concept since ancient Sumeria.  Which is much older than two thousand years. Or, even better: The Roman Empire, founded around 57 BC I believe.  Before Jesus. Marriage happened. Better than that: Judaism, the religion that Christianity started upon? Marriages occurred.

Obviously, marriage is not a Christian concept. Holy matrimony was made into a Catholic rite long ago, but America is not a Christian nation anymore according to President Obama in one of his news reels. Therefore, Christianity would have no control over the marraiges in America anyways. Since homosexuality is not a sin, marriage is not a sin, and Christians have no control over marriage, it can be drawn, then, that homosexual marriage is not a sin, or unChristian.

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The following excerpt is an analysis of 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, done by Gaian Saltski Circe

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NASB)

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails.

Paul does not explicitly say here that this "love" is in any way limited to "a man or a woman." He gives no gender restrictions whatsoever. 

Therefore, a homosexual would only be lying to himself and torturing himself were he to deny his feelings or, even worse, trying to love women, and lying is one of the sins prohibited by the Ten Commandments. For example: One could easily take “Thou shalt not commit adultery” as a statement referring to any sort of sexual perversion and, thus, making homosexuality sinful.

However, according to Wikipedia….

Wikipedia

“Adultery is defined as sexual intercourse between a man and a married woman who is not his wife.”

There are no other mentions of sexual perversion in the Ten Commandments, including ones that condemn homosexuality. Again, take into account that the Commandment “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor,” though it references lying about one’s neighbor, clearly could condemn lying of any kind—especially to oneself.

Referring to Paul’s line about homosexuality and "unnatural lusts," it is to be noted this "love" he speaks of is not "kind and gentle." It is not a giving love; it is a love based off selfish needs, curiosity, and sexual gratification. It is an all-consuming, uncontrollable desire simply based off of taking and satisfying one's own pleasure. It is not “rejoicing in the truth.” You can easily say that this inflammation of lust is most certainly envious, boastful and proud.

What could be said of it, therefore, is that it is "unnatural," because there is an imbalance of compromise. Take a look at any stable, committed couple--they're not in a relationship just to copulate, but rather to be there for one another and support one another through thick and thin. Any purely sexual relationship would not do such a thing. Judging by the fact that Paul, once again, offers no gender-specifics, it cannot be assumed it applies to only heterosexual relationships, and it's more logical to conclude it means any sexually gratifying relationship.

Now take into account the fact that, in reality, MOST  homosexuals are not promiscuous, do not have sex with ten thousand men, have AIDS, and can raise children in a perfectly stable, loving home. There are, of course, exceptions to every rule--but humans have a tendency to focus on the most negative parts of themselves, especially in terms of religion.

I myself know many gay and lesbian couples who live together and they are the happiest, most giving, most caring of each other. They are no more or less hormone ridden than the next two straight people. They are not perverts. They are there for one another. The love they share is no more or less valid than a heterosexual relationship and seems to meet with all the tenants that Paul outlines here.  And from what I have seen, it is their devotion towards one another that defines what Paul says what love is all about; something that “always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres.”

The same can be said for my own marriage, we love each other with all of our hearts and we have never strayed to another since we began dating, married (in another country I might add), and we have two beautiful sons.  So homosexuals can have a normal decent relationship without all of the stereotypes slapped on us.

Thus, this line could very well apply to both homosexuals AND heterosexuals in that, if the beauty, intimacy and trust needed in any romantic relationship is there, then theirs is a love that will “never fail.”

Need I say more?

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It would seem I DO need to say more! Welcome to the 6th Topic!

"But Paul specifically condemns homosexuals!" - Insinuating that arsenokoitai and malakos translate into sodomites, effeminate, or homosexuals.


Topic 6, Paul: The Ever-Hateful Christian?

Paul has been described as a man who looks down on women and also as the soul source of anti-homosexual sentiment in the New Testament. People constantly forget two things, however. The first is the fact that, before Christ laid the Holy Smackdown of Conversion on Saul of Tarsus, Saul/Paul was a hugely devout Jew. A Pharisee with the most anal retentiveness to the law as was possible. At times, he allowed personal opinion on how the Church should be run to enter his Epistles. He has even specifically said such things. For example:

1 Corinthians 7:10,12, NIV

To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband.

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To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her.

He specifically states that his own opinion is being inserted. On to the second thing too many people forget about Paul and his Epistles: Many, if not most, of the things he wrote about were specific to the time, culture, and region he was writing to. To bring up the Romans quote again:

Romans 1:24-25, NIV

Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

Take note of what I have bolded there. It is a key verse, a key note that must be remembered to understand what Paul is talking of in the next part.

Romans 1:26-27, NIV

Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

Now. We have some key words in this part. Shameful, lusts, natural relations, indecent acts, perversion. These key words, when added to the verses above as well as a knowledge of Roman society, tell us something. We know that homosexuality is natural as it occurs in nature, yes? But even if it wasn't, what could Paul be talking about? What could he have knowledge of just by walking through the streets of Rome?

The Roman god Bacchus was a god of wine and pleasure. He, as well as other members of the pantheon, was celebrated with festivals that appropriately resembled or reenacted some aspect or story of the deity. When celebrating Minerva, goddess of crafts, they would weave a large blanket to drape over her statue. To celebrate Bacchus, god of wine and pleasure, they would get into a state of public drunkenness and have extremely large orgies that would last for days.

Such a public event is something Paul most likely had the "honor" of viewing when taking his trip through Rome. Remember that key verse that mentioned serving and worshiping things that weren't God? These festivals were definitely signs of worship to other gods. Still, people will say, "Well, Paul condemns homosexuals later in his Epistles, so it must've still been about gays."

Firstly, one must ask how Paul would've known about any homosexual acts the Romans did unless they were in public. Secondly, and most importantly, one must look to see if Paul actually condemns homosexuals. There are two verses that use the word homosexuals in the Modern English versions of the Bible, or at least many of the popular ones. Let's look at them in English, shall we?

1 Corinthians 6:9-10, NIV

Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

The next verse isn't commonly translated as homosexual, so we will temporarily depart from our use of the NIV.

1 Timothy 1:10, NASB

and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching,

Now. That's what they say in English. Homosexuals, homosexual offenders, effeminate, or sodomites. Let's look at them in Greek.

Homosexual, in Greek, is now: ομοφυλοφιλικός, or omophulophilikos as best as my translating abilities carry me. Now, we'll play spot the word.

1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Greek

ἢ οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι ἄδικοι θεοῦ βασιλείαν οὐ κληρονομήσουσιν; μὴ πλανᾶσθε: οὔτε πόρνοι οὔτε εἰδωλολάτραι οὔτε μοιχοὶ οὔτε μαλακοὶ οὔτε ἀρσενοκοῖται οὔτε κλέπται οὔτε πλεονέκται, οὐ μέθυσοι, οὐ λοίδοροι, οὐχ ἅρπαγες βασιλείαν θεοῦ κληρονομήσουσιν.

That section that I've bolded is where the words translated to homosexual and company are. Let's look at them closely.

μαλακοὶ, or malakoi, and ἀρσενοκοῖται, or arsenokoitai. Do those look like ομοφυλοφιλικός, or omophulophilikos? On to Timothy.

1 Timothy 1:10, Greek

πόρνοις, ἀρσενοκοίταις, ἀνδραποδισταῖς, ψεύσταις, ἐπιόρκοις, καὶ εἴ τι ἕτερον τῇ ὑγιαινούσῃ διδασκαλίᾳ ἀντίκειται,

See ομοφυλοφιλικός? Doubtful. ἀρσενοκοίταις is what shows up. It says arsenokoitais, which I'm told is the same as arsenokoitai. Still isn't omophulophilikos.

To continue with this, I will quote a man who has done much more research on the subject than I have.

Reverend Mel White from www.soulforce.org

Now what do the writings of Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:9 and 1 Timothy 1:10 say, first, about God, and then about homosexuality? These are the last two places in the Bible that seem to refer to same-sex behavior. We can combine them because they are so similar.

Paul is exasperated. The Christians in Ephesus and Corinth are fighting among themselves. (Sound familiar?) In Corinth they're even suing one another in secular courts. Paul shouts across the distance, "You are breaking God's heart by the way you are treating one another."

Like any good writer, Paul anticipates their first question: "Well, how are we supposed to treat one another?" Paul answers, "You know very well how to treat one another from the Jewish law written on tablets of stone."

The Jewish law was created by God to help regulate human behavior. To remind the churches in Corinth and Ephesus how God wants us to treat one another, Paul recites examples from the Jewish law first. Don't kill one another. Don't sleep with a person who is married to someone else. Don't lie or cheat or steal. The list goes on to include admonitions against fornication, idolatry, whoremongering, perjury, drunkenness, revelry, and extortion. He also includes "malokois" and "arsenokoitai."

Here's where the confusion begins. What's a malokois? What's an arsenokoitai? Actually, those two Greek words have confused scholars to this very day. We'll say more about them later, when we ask what the texts say about sex. But first let's see what the texts say about God.

After quoting from the Jewish law, Paul reminds the Christians in Corinth that they are under a new law: the law of Jesus, a law of love that requires us to do more than just avoid murder, adultery, lying, cheating, and stealing. Paul tells them what God wants is not strict adherence to a list of laws, but a pure heart, a good conscience, and a faith that isn't phony.

That's the lesson we all need to learn from these texts. God doesn't want us squabbling over who is "in" and who is "out." God wants us to love one another. It's God's task to judge us. It is NOT our task to judge one another.

So what do these two texts say about homosexuality? Are gays and lesbians on that list of sinners in the Jewish law that Paul quotes to make an entirely different point?

Greek scholars say that in first century the Greek word malaokois probably meant "effeminate call boys." The New Revised Standard Version says "male prostitutes."

As for arsenokoitai, Greek scholars don't know exactly what it means -- and the fact that we don't know is a big part of this tragic debate. Some scholars believe Paul was coining a name to refer to the customers of "the effeminate call boys." We might call them "dirty old men." Others translate the word as "sodomites," but never explain what that means.

In 1958, for the first time in history, a person translating that mysterious Greek word into English decided it meant homosexuals, even though there is, in fact, no such word in Greek or Hebrew. But that translator made the decision for all of us that placed the word homosexual in the English-language Bible for the very first time.

In the past, people used Paul's writings to support slavery, segregation, and apartheid. People still use Paul's writings to oppress women and limit their role in the home, in church, and in society.

Now we have to ask ourselves, "Is it happening again?" Is a word in Greek that has no clear definition being used to reflect society's prejudice and condemn God's gay children?

We all need to look more closely at that mysterious Greek word arsenokoitai in its original context. I find most convincing the argument from history that Paul is condemning the married men who hired hairless young boys (malakois) for sexual pleasure just as they hired smooth-skinned young girls for that purpose.

Responsible homosexuals would join Paul in condemning anyone who uses children for sex, just as we would join anyone else in condemning the threatened gang rape in Sodom or the behavior of the sex-crazed priests and priestesses in Rome. So, once again, I am convinced that this passage says a lot about God, but nothing about homosexuality as we understand it today.

A big question to ask is this: "If Paul didn't condemn homosexuals before these two verses... And Christ didn't condemn them... and the Old Testament didn't condemn them... But everything else Paul condemned was condemned by the Old Testament or Christ... Where'd he get it from?"

Paul does not condemn homosexuals. Bad translators do.

Here is another chunk on Paul's passage in Romans:

There are numerous clues to understanding that passage. First, "They knew the truth of the Creator, but exchanged it for a lie." (I'm paraphrasing from memory, btw.) In that bit, it says that they knew about God but decided to ignore Him. Second, "They worshiped other gods." There's mention of animals and such, as I recall. So, they knew about God, ignored Him, and started to worship other gods. Idolatry. Third, "So, God gave them to shameful lusts." Now, there's actually two things in that. First, "God gave them [...]" This wording is reminiscent of God turning the heart of the Pharaoh, or even better, removing His Spirit from King Solomon. If we recall the story of Solomon, Solomon was loved and blessed by God. However, Solomon began worshiping other gods. The gods of his wives. God, angered and saddened, removed His Spirit and allowed Solomon to fall into a degenerative path. The second bit, tied in with the Solomon story, is the word lusts. Shameful lusts, at that. Now, Solomon had tons of wives. He gave into their religious ways to please them because of their beauty. Lust. Which we already know is a sin. If Paul's "they" is indeed the Romans, there is a distinct possibility that Paul is referring to orgies. Idolatrous orgies. (Which is something Solomon could've done with his wives, btw...) In the Roman religion, there were many different sexual festivals and feasts. One that I like to liken this verse grouping to is the feast of Bacchus. Bacchus, as some may know, is the Roman equivalent of the Greek Dionysus. He is the god of debauchery and hedonism and, more importantly, alcohol. Wine. Bacchus had a group of women that followed him around the world, the Maenids. Crazy crazy sexual women. Like, by crazy, I mean insane. Anyways, one of the ways the Romans celebrated Bacchus was by getting piss-ass drunk and having raunchy, orgiastic sex. With everything and everyone. In public. I'd personally think that a public drunken orgy is rather shameful, wouldn't you? And it's definitely unnatural.

I am not going to apologize for my sarcasm in this blog, as I could either attempt sarcastic humor in some areas, or show my anger at the injustice that has been done to my brothers and sisters and to myself.  I will ask those of you who still may feel you have to go by the mainstream understanding and not realize the truth, to not take my word for it, but pray about, and ponder all of this, and then do an in-depth  study and find your own answers.  If you do not want to face the truth, I suggest you go and join the Westboro Baptist Church, they will love you just fine.  You know , and I will end with this, Jonathan Swift said it best,

"We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another."

       

                               by  Bishop Michael Collins-Windsor, Ph.D.

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 Friends Helping Friends

I have some friends I want you to meet today, Some of you may already know them, I have mentioned them often enough. They are exceptional people that help out with our four legged friends as well as our human kind. This place brings the both together in order to begin something special.  It all starts with the first steps right out side of Stroud Oklahoma at Autry Ranch Equine Rescue .Where their motto is,"  We believe that every child should have a horse and every horse should have a child. We want to help them both." Such Inspiring words coming from extraordinary people.  

10 Ways Horses Build Character in Children:

1. Learn responsibility – When caring for a horse your child will very quickly learn that they need to take responsibility for them. The best way to really bring about this responsibility is to make sure they take care of all the work involved in caring for the horse such as feeding it, grooming it, cleaning, and saddling and riding it. As with any child, they may feel that they should get to ride and play with the horse but they may not want to have to take care of it and want to leave that to you. One thing that results from a child taking care of their own horse is that they seem to have a deeper love for the horse when they put the effort into taking care of it. Once they understand that the horse needs them in order to survive and that they cannot ride without taking care of it, they will quickly learn that the work pays off.

2. Learn Trust – Horses don’t work well with trainers if they can’t trust them. Likewise an owner or rider must trust their horse if they plan on having a good time. If you can’t trust your horse then your horse probably won’t trust you which will make the horse more likely to disobey you.

3. Learn to be Open minded – When dealing with horses one will realize that horses don’t all act the same way. One will continually learn from their horse and your child will continually learn from their horse which may carry on into other areas of life.

4. Build Confidence – Horses can look big and be intimidating to any child. Once your child has the chance to handle their horse on their own they will receive a huge boost in confidence. This may allow them to build confidence in the areas of their life such as relationships or school. This may all end up as a huge boost for a child’s self esteem.

5. Learn patience – Horses wont’ immediately do what you tell them to do. Sometimes it takes a little while to get everything to work just right. So if your child has to deal with a horse that won’t just give in to its wishes right away they may develop patience learn to apply this to other things as well.

6. Self Discipline – Horses aren’t easy to take care of. Many children lack dedication and decide to give up on something as soon as it gets difficult and they can’t master it right away. Since horses need to be tended to early, your child may learn to get up early in the morning and get to work outside and take care of their horse which eventually can teach them many other aspects of discipline.

7. Teaches Sensitivity – Horses may become disturbed if their handler doesn’t handle them in the right way. Having a horse will teach a child that they can’t just assume a horse will follow directions or calm down if they talk in any voice. A handler has to learn to speak reassuringly to a horse and understand its behavior. Also a handler must learn why a horse is misbehaving whether out of fear, anger, or any other reason.

8. How to learn from our mistakes – Most kids aren’t able to just take on a task and perform it perfectly. This rule definitely applies to horses as well because a rider also has to deal with how the horse is acting. A child will quickly learn not to make the same mistake again after they learn the consequences of it. The important thing is to learn from your mistakes and not dwell on them though.

9. Learn Respect – Horses can be dangerous when not dealt with in the correct manner. Having a horse will quickly teach a child that they cannot disrespect a horse without consequences. After learning that they have to respect a horse a child will learn to respect other things as well.

10. To have Fun - The most important rule of anything is to have fun. If a child’s not having fun with their horse then they are less likely to want to take care of the chores that come along with it which may lead to disinterest. Be sure not to push your child to hard to do just chores and make sure they get to have a good time while riding the horse.
                                                  by Horse Adventures

A rider in right relationship with his or her horse will not be exhausted by the effort required to keep things moving along. Being in a right relationship with Christ provides a similar blessing. If your walk with Jesus is too much work you may be taking on way too much of the load. Be willingly led by the Holy Spirit and accept the peace and joy available to you. When you accept more of the work load than your horse you are not in right relationship. Your horse is riding you more than you are riding your horse. Become the leader your horse wants you to be. Teach him or her to be willingly guided. The best example of the most worthy leader is Jesus Christ.
                                                   by Horses in Ministry

There is so much to benefit from getting involved with those that strive to make it  better, regardless in what way that may be. My path led me to become a minister and Autry Ranch Equine Rescue path leads them to provide loving help to animals in need and unite them with a human friend that can provide a stable environment to improve their quality of life. This is a prime example of how spirituality merges and works in our every day life. So with all this said Would you please take the time to get to know my friends at  Autry Ranch Equine Rescue and let them know you support them in what they do for all of us...
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002136890445

                                        by Rev. Lisa Taylor

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Blind Faith

 I was sitting in a restaurant a few years ago and my attention happened zero in on the occupants at a table behind me , I listened as the waitress read off the menu to the elderly couple and took their orders. I went back to my book and trying to keep my mind off the couple but it kept drifting back to them time and time again. Clearly they were happy and enjoying each others company by the conversation they were having. As I sit there smiling to myself I noticed when the waitress brought their order she announced each plate as well as the beverage as she placed them on their table. I was thinking to myself that it was a bit of strange behavior, So I chanced a glance over my shoulder and that was when I realized the charming elderly couple to my surprise was blind. As I continued to sit there I could not help myself but to think how it must be to live in total darkness , how they must worry about being taken advantage of , even their safety must be a concern every single minute of their life's. I felt my smile start to fade and I laid my book down as my thoughts went through a series of emotions. I must have been sitting there for quite some time when I heard the voice of the waitress saying here is your check and I hope you have a nice day. I reached over to pick it up and my eyes gazed over the bill, as I fumbled around retrieving a few dollars to cover the bill and leave a tip , The voice of the elderly gentleman filled my ears once again when I heard him say: "Its quite alright" , and what followed froze me in my seat, The elderly man said: " I am glad you have asked how my wife and I are able to function  as well as we do, and my answer is a simple one, Blind faith." The waitress a bit embarrassed replied " Blind Faith , what do you mean by that?"  Then the elderly woman I assumed was amused by the answer her partner gave, laughed a bit and then replied:" Without faith Hun you have no life. " I sit there trying to take it all in, before I attempted to make sense of these new thoughts that flooded my mind. As I got up to resume the rest of my day. I silently began to giggle  at the colorful way the elderly man replied, 'Blind Faith"

A year passed and I went on about my life, then one day I was discussing the Bible with a friend while we were working , about scriptures and how they have answers to our own daily life questions. We continued our conversation through out the day passing our time in a pleasant way. Back then I remember many a day as this one was. During those early years there were things I myself didn't really know how to answer, and one of those times was about to happen and for once I could explain .My friend and I was in a conversation about faith and as He quoted word for word as he was drilling me for answers, James : "Faith and Works Together 2:14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith save him? 2:15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, 2:16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs, what good is it? 2:17 So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. 2:18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by my works. 2:19 You believe that God is one; well and good. Even the demons believe that – and tremble with fear. "

This I was quite impressed with and As the two of us was discussing what our thoughts were on this , A man approached us with anger in his heart, focusing the brunt of it mainly on me, said ," Christians are all the same. You justify your actions with a religion based on nothing, There is no scientific proof of your so called God and for the life of me can not understand why one would be so foolish." My friend alarmed by this mans demeanor began to step between myself and this angery man trying to shield me when I put out my hand out to stop him. I kindly smiled at my friend then looked into the eyes of this man and said, " Sir, it is simple, We have blind faith with out it we would have no life." The man turned on his heels and walked a way. He didn't even bother asking what my meaning of that was. I am not sure if I had stunned him or his anger of my choice in religion swayed his actions in leaving, but I prefer to believe I had given him food for thought that day. I am grateful and blessed for the lesson the charming elderly couple that help shaped my insight years ago, and I continue to use their story to explain my rock solid faith in God. 
                                                                  by Rev.Lisa Taylor

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 Carrots, Egg, Coffee

A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee...You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl.

Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me what you see."

"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.

Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled, as she tasted its rich aroma the daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its insides became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling.

Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.

                                   by Rev.Lisa Taylor

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 Education .

One does know a college degree does not necessary reflect a person's intelligence above one's peers and it surly does not automatically grant them the right to assume they are far above the rest of the population. It is, however, skills one had the pleasure of obtaining through the means of exchanging currency for the paperwork in which proclaims one has learned said skills during a period of time at the institution of their choosing.I am not knocking higher education by far,Any one that is desiring and have means should further their education through any learning institute of their choice, but it does seem some of those that have obtained their certificates of completion fall under false illusion it makes them far superior.In reality their certificate should be listed as completion of course at the University of "You Don't Have A Real Clue !" One should really ask one self in whom told them that they are superior over the majority of the population because of the time one spent in a controlled setting of a class room? I am sure the names of people on the list I composed would dispute that theroy some seem to have about traditional means of education.

Abigal Adams :
Clearly one of the most literate Americans of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, wife of the second president of the United States and mother of the sixth, Abigail Adams never attended school. She was tutored by her maternal grandmother and encouraged to read. Her letter correspondence with her husband, John Adams, chronicles an important part of American history and stands out as unambiguous testimony to the power and development of intellect that can be achieved simply by desiring to do so.

Edgar Allen Poe :
One of America's most revered literary figures, Poe is often credited with inventing the detective story. His gothic poetry has had a profound effect on American literature. He attended college for one year. Poe is often credited with inventing the detective story. His gothic poetry has had a profound effect on American literature. He attended college for one year.

Jane Goodall :
 Few people would be surprised to learn that primatologist Jane Goodall holds a doctorate degree in her field. But you might be amazed to discover that she accomplished the very work that made her famous without college. In fact, anthropologist Louis Leaky selected her to study primates in the wild because of her lack of formal training, so that academic bias would not influence the research findings

Ernest Hemingway :
He was one of America’s most celebrated literary giants. Author of For Whom the Bells Toll, The Sun Also Rises, and the Old Man and the Sea among others he decided to skip college in order to learn from the experience of living. In 1954, he received the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Srinivasa Ramanujan :
was a mathematical genius who made significant contributions to number theory after acquiring a math textbook at the age of 15. He secured a university scholarship but lost it because he refused to study anything but mathematics.

Herbert Spencer :
was a self-taught philosopher who became an avid defender of the theory of evolution. He declined a free education at Cambridge because of the implied religious strings he felt his benefactor assumed. His greatest work which he began in 1860 and took 36 years to complete was titled The Synthetic Philosophy.

Malcolm X :
(1925-1965)
Arguably one of the most influential African American voices of the twentieth century, Malcolm X was born Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1925. He dropped out of school after completing the eighth grade. After converting to Islam while in prison, he self-studied his way into becoming an articulate intellectual force in America.

Robert Hughes :
In the spring of 1997, a special issue of Time Magazine, a PBS special, and a book all titled American Visions, made their debut. This work represented the efforts of self-educated author, and art critic Robert Hughes. Hughes has become one of the most respected art critics in American and yet he has acquired his knowledge of art outside and far removed from academia.

Stanley Kubrick :
(1928-1999)
One of America's most celebrated film directors, Stanley Kubrick had such poor grades in high school that colleges couldn't admit him. So he enrolled as a non-credit student and monitored classes he found interesting. His films include Spartacus, Lolita, Dr. Strangelove, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, and Eyes Wide Shut.

Leonardo da Vinci :
received an informal education in Latin, geometry and mathematics.Many of us know that Leonardo Da Vinci was a brilliant artist with celebrated and poignant masterpieces such as the Mona Lisa, The Vitruvian Man and The Last Supper. These works have resonated within circles of art lovers for centuries, and their true meanings are debated in classrooms, cafes and art galleries all over the world. Aside from his masterful, artistic talent, Da Vinci also possessed an acute scientific mind that he put to good use by inventing and re-inventing dozens of contraptions. However, Leonardo Da Vinci inventions have been somewhat overlooked and one might be pleasantly surprised to discover some of the ideas that have sprung from this artist’s mind.He designed what is called the ornithopter flying machine. Although the invention never came to fruition during his time, many believe that the helicopter was indeed inspired by Da Vinci. His creations may also have given rise to today’s hand glider and parachute.

One can, of course,argue the definition of self-educated that forms my list, but I don’t think there is much doubt that all of these people were and are passionate about learning if not about traditional notions of education , And, indeed, are the most successful people throughout the ages. So in my personal opinion on the subject, Autodidact is by far more impressive and more common than one is lead to believe by some of those with false illusion their superior to those that do not posses certificates of completion. In conclusion of my theory Maybe one should take the time between looking at the framed certificates on their wall and opening their mouth spilling forth superiority slurs towards others to think about what really separates one from another...

                                 By Rev. Lisa Taylor

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Why Some Create Multiple Accounts.

I have noticed there are a few well known names being thrown around as having more than one account here on ULC, I also noticed there is a large amount of paranoid behavior because of this. It has me wondering as to why anyone would benefit from these type of behaviors. I have asked a few members what their opinion is on this matter. Those few I have asked all said the same thing " I just don't know the answer to that question. " So now I am researching these behaviors one by one, and so far I have came up with: Dissociative identity disorder (DID, known in the past as multiple personality disorder, which is a psychiatric diagnosis whose essential feature, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), "is the presence of two or more distinct identities or personality states...that recurrently take control of behavior. The diagnosis requires that at least two personalities (one may be the host) routinely take control of the individual's behavior with an associated memory loss that goes beyond normal forgetfulness; in addition, symptoms cannot be the temporary effects of drug use or a general medical condition. Memory loss will occur in those with DID when an alternate part of the personality becomes dominant. DID is less common than other dissociative disorders, occurring in approximately 1% of dissociative cases, and is often comorbid with other disorders. It is diagnosed significantly more frequently in North America than in the rest of the world. Individuals diagnosed with DID demonstrate a variety of symptoms with wide fluctuations across time; functioning can vary from severe impairment in daily functioning to normal or high abilities. Symptoms can include: Disruption of identity characterized by two or more distinct personality states Multiple mannerisms, attitudes and beliefs Pseudoseizures or other conversion symptoms Somatic symptoms that vary across identities Distortion or loss of subjective time (a long time) Current memory loss of everyday events Depersonalization Derealization Depression Flashbacks of abuse/trauma Sudden anger without a justified cause Frequent panic/anxiety attacks Unexplainable phobias Patients may experience a broad array of other symptoms that may appear to resemble epilepsy, schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, mood disorders, post traumatic stress disorder, personality disorders, and eating disorders. Despite research on DID including structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography, single-photon emission computed tomography, event-related potential andelectroencephalography, no convergent neuroimaging findings have been identified regarding DID making it difficult to hypothesize a biological basis for DID. In addition, many of the studies that do exist were performed from an explicitly trauma-based position, and did not consider the possibility of iatrogenic induction of DID. Studies have shown differences between cerebral blood flow and changes in visual parameters between alters,as well as support for amnesia between alters. There is no research to date regarding the neuroimaging and introduction of false memories in DID patients. This disorder is theoretically linked with the interaction of overwhelming stress, traumatic antecedents,insufficient childhood nurturing and the innate ability of children in general to dissociate memories or experiences from consciousness. A high percentage of patients report child abuse others report an early loss, serious medical illness or other traumatic events. People diagnosed with DID often report that they have experienced severe physical and sexual abuse, especially during early to mid childhood. Several psychiatric rating scales of DID sufferers suggested that DID is strongly related to childhood trauma rather than to an underlying electrophysiological dysfunction. Within the first six years of life young children are still developing a personality structure that allows integrative functioning. Early childhood trauma interferes with the the development of integrative functions (childhood trauma related dissociation). Repeated activation of trauma-related dissociative states (while the myelin in the hippocampus is still being formed) conditions the brain to function state-dependently (dissociative identities). (Then after reading up on this disorder I pretty much ruled it out as the cause of this behavior, Which sent me in another direction for searching for answers. Now what I have stumbled on is something called Sock Puppetry. ) Sock puppetry can take on several different forms: Creating new accounts to avoid detection Using another person's account (piggybacking) Logging out to make problematic edits as an IP address Reviving old unused accounts (sometimes referred to as sleepers) and presenting them as different users Persuading friends or acquaintances to create accounts for the purpose of supporting one side of a dispute (usually called meatpuppetry) The misuse of multiple accounts is considered a serious breach of community trust. It is likely to lead to a block of all affected accounts, a ban of the user behind the accounts, and on-project exposure of all accounts and IPs . Editors must not use alternative accounts to mislead, deceive, disrupt, or undermine consensus. This includes, but is not limited to: Creating an illusion of support: Alternative accounts must not be used to give the impression of more support for a position than actually exists. Editing project space: Undisclosed alternative accounts should not edit policies, guidelines, or their talk pages; comment in Arbitration proceedings; or vote in requests for adminship, deletion debates, or elections. Circumventing policies or sanctions: Policies apply per person, not per account. Policies such as the three-revert rule are for each person's edits. Using a second account to violate policy will cause any penalties to be applied to your main account, and in the case of sanctions, bans, or blocks, evasion causes the timer to restart. Contributing to the same page or discussion with multiple accounts: Editors may not use more than one account to contribute to the same page or discussion in a way to suggest that they are multiple people. Contributions to the same page with clearly linked legitimate alternative accounts is not forbidden (e.g. editing the same page with your main and public computer account or editing a page using your main account that your bot account edited). Avoiding scrutiny: Using alternative accounts that are not fully and openly disclosed to split your editing history means that other editors cannot detect patterns in your contributions. While this is permitted in certain circumstances , it is a violation of this policy to create alternative accounts to confuse or deceive editors who may have a legitimate interest in reviewing your contributions. (Misusing a clean start by switching accounts or concealing a clean start in a way that avoids scrutiny may also be considered a breach of policy.) "Good hand" and "bad hand" accounts: Keeping one account "clean" while using another to engage in disruption. (This means using one for constructive contributions and the other one for disruptive behavior.) Now after researching long and hard the latter of the two seems to be an explanation as to the why behind any given person creating more than one account on any one given website. My opinion : It is a combination of many factors that will lead a person to create many accounts. 1. An Act to gain attention 2. Spy on what might be said about them in public 3. Looking for any type of violation resulting in monetary gain for them self 4. To simply bully others , Not that it is successfully executed by any said member, because more often than not the Sock Puppetry lacks the intelligence it requires to understand IP fingerprinting , as well as anything to do with the net world other than creating account after account with the hopes of five minutes of fame in which they have only created in their own sad minds. The victim's of said behavior is a three part conclusion for me : 1. Victim's often become paranoid after experiencing such behavior from predators of the same website, resulting in showing bad behavior towards anyone that has similar traits as that of the predator . A victim often feels hurt and angered with no outlet. The victim can become a person which they may have been a valued member of society at one point start to show signs of bad judgment towards fellow human beings. A victim will find it hard to friend others because of fear of being a target of Sock Puppetry not once but multitude of times. This results in empowering the predator over the victims emotions and personal relationships in their life. 2. The Sock Puppetry fails to understand they are equally victims in their own scam. Lack of any creditability they may have had at one point in their professional carers as well as in their personal life. It is of their own doing but always want to blame others for the situation they find them self in as a result of their own behavior. The offender cross a line in this path of distortion of their own mind causing their self to be imprisoned with out the option of early parole for good behavior. Always carrying the stigma through out the rest of their life. Often more than not become paranoid of being found out and or retaliation from others. Only then does the offender start to feel the role of being a victim in their own scam. 3. In my research I have came to a single end. This will continue on any giving website until programing is in place to block all accounts on a single IP. This piece I have constructed will not prevent these offenders from continuing on their path but I wrote it in hope that it will wake awareness in potential victims in the future.

                                                   by Rev. Lisa Taylor

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Obituary - Common Sense

This interesting yet sad obituary was sent to Will and Guy by a regular reader of our site. It represents a view often taken by British people when looking at the society that they have helped create. It may also apply in other countries. Let us know.
Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since
his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:
Knowing when to come in out of the rain
Why the early bird gets the worm
Life isn't always fair
and maybe it was my fault
Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge). His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.
Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.
It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.
Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.
Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.
Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realise that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.
Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and by his son, Reason.
He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers:
I Know My Rights
I Want It Now
Someone Else Is To Blame
I'm A Victim
Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

                                                                         by Unknown

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Strange Reaction :

I wanted to share this comment on the movie The Hobbit which was posted on Moviepilot.com :Hide Your Children: 'The Hobbit' Is The Work Of The Devil!

We thought The Hobbit was going to be a family-friendly movie, but apparently we'll have to send out the exorcism squads. The latest target of Christians for a Moral America is none other than The Hobbit and its director Peter Jackson. We're not exactly sure who these people actually are. The only thing we know for sure is that they hate Ricky Gervais's and George Michael's guts, as well as gay people, 'liberal douchebags', 'sodomy', President Obama, the Golden Globes, the Occupy movement, Glee... and the list goes on and on.
 Now they've added Peter Jackson to their list of sworn enemies. But why? What can be so blasphemous about the Shire as to cause the wrath of these self-appointed moral authorities? Apparently Jackson, 'being the self-proclaimed Atheist he is', has deliberately expunged the film of the 'strong Christian undertone' in Tolkien's book. And who inspired the director to do so? Who else but Satan himself, duh! So the nice people at CFAMA are inviting all the good Christians to boycott The Hobbit and its 'blatant Anti-Christian bigotry and Atheist propaganda'.
 
Are you ready to fight this holy war against Jackson a.k.a Satan's Little Helper? Or are you going to sit back and enjoy the sweet, awesome work of the devil?

Now my Response to this posting:
I am Christian and I have to say I have not seen previews of the Hobbit.But if it looks to be a well made movie I will indeed watch it. I have a problem with this little statement for many reasons.*all the good Christians to boycott The Hobbit and its 'blatant Anti-Christian bigotry and Atheist propaganda'.* First off no one has the right to imply to be a good Christian you must boycott this movie, and if you watch this movie then your a bad Christian. I can assure you watching or not watching this movie does not define you as a good or bad Christian.It is one's personal relationship one has with God that defines who and what a Christian is. Let me ask this questions? Does it make one a good Christian because they blow up an abortion clinic in order to save a life? Does it make you a bad Christian because one may not have the income to donate money to each and every organization out there? Please think for yourself and don't fall under the thumb of a group of people that have nothing better to do than reflect judgment on others....

                                          by Rev.Lisa Taylor

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                   Merry Christmas

I'm inviting all my family and friends to join me in returning to the traditional greeting of "Merry Christmas" instead of the politically correct "Happy Holidays". If you agree with me, please  pass this post  around among your friends . Merry Christmas!

★*˚°。°*。°*。★*˚°。°*。°˚°★*˚°。°*。°*★*˚°。°*。°*★
˛°_██_*˚°。°/ ♥ \*˚°。°*。°*★*˚°。°*。°*★*˚°。°*。°*★
˛. (´• ̮•)*.。*/♫.♫\*˛.*˛_Π_____*˚°。*。°*❤*˚°。°*。°*★
.°( . • . ) ˛°./• '♫ ' •\.˛*./______/~＼*˚°。°*。°*°*❤ ˚°*★
*(...'•'.. ) *˛╬╬╬╬╬˛°.｜田田❤｜門｜╬╬╬╬╬*˚°。°*。°* ♥♥

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                          40 Day Challenge

I want to recommend this book with you called The Purpose Driven Life . Written by Rick Warren ( What on earth am I here for? )  I want to share some passages from the book in which is the bases of the 40 day challenge: The Bible is clear that God considers 40 days a spiritual significant time period. Whenever God wanted to prepare someone for his purpose, he took 40 days:
Noah's life was transformed by 40 days of rain.
Moses was transformed by 40 days on Mount Sinai.
The spies were transformed by 40 days in the Promised Land.
David was transformed by Goliath's 40 day challenge.
Elijah was transformed when God gave him 40 days of strength from a single meal.
The entire city of Nineveh was transformed when God gave the people 40 days to change.
Jesus was empowered by 40 days in the wilderness.
The disciples were transformed by 40 days with Jesus after his resurrection.
The next 40 days will transform your life. This book is divided into 40 chapters. I strongly urge you to read only one chapter a day. So that you will have time to think about the implications for your life. The Bible says,"Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. There you will know what God wants you to do."
The challenge I ask of you is to read this book and share your insight with the rest of us. If you choose to take this challenge of giving just 40 days of your life to read one chapter a day and reflect on the questions then discuss your findings with your friends. I will read along with you, chapter to chapter for 40 days, share my findings and share this with all of you my friends. The holidays are a busy time and there is a question of time finding a copy of the Book . So I propose that the 40 day Challenge start on January 2, 2012. Contact me and let me know if you do want to join us in this exciting time. I will post a count down each week for a reminder for those that want to take this challenge with the rest of us as well as a few passages from this book. I will be looking forward to seeing each of you on January 2, 2012.
                                     by Rev.Lisa Taylor



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                         Touch Of Reality

I had posted something that was really a post to make one think about the actions some of us have here on ULC site, I want to thank those that responded to the post. Some times people are not what they seem to be, they promote brotherly and sisterly love but attach conditions of their own to their friendships, and relationships towards their fellow humans. Granted that some are not even aware of this conditional behavior but there are a few that are and disregard it and make up excuses as to why their behavior is as such, Maybe laying blame to disagreements and personality differences , religion fall out, or lack of it. I would have to agree it is easy to fall in that category at one point or another. Now IMHO and this is the hard part for some of us to understand and it is perfectly fine that one does not grasp the full of it now because we all will in the end. When one considers all others as their brother or sister unconditional it means just that, regardless if one disagrees with the others views, religion, behavior, life style and too many others to list. Those very reasons are the foundation for implementing self awareness. Maybe we all can benefit from thinking about things before we put conditions on others as well as on our self, this does not mean we are not suppose to disagree, or dislike someones behavior and actions but it does mean if one does indeed consider everyone as their sisters and brothers that we do love one another not conditional or limited but absolute. This is a simple reminder before one promotes a belief to make sure one try's said shoe on before one try's to take a step in them because if one does not it is inevitable that one will trip and fall.

                              by Rev.Lisa Taylor

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                              Right to Religion

I am asking that you read this story. Then ask yourself if it was you being mistreated because of your religion. Have you ever been told you can not be who you are? Would you pray for help? Could you make it even one day? Do you or anyone else deserve this kind of treatment? In My Personal Opinion , I would not think I could live knowing at any second some one in power would tell me I could not find my salvation through my Heavenly Father, to be beaten daily, treated less than human. I am not asking you to sign this petition because I think he was wrongly imprisoned. I am asking you to sign this petition because it is the moral thing to do. Make your signature count, Make a difference so that treatment as this will be stopped. Stand up for our right of religion regardless of our choice.

Read below and then make your mark where it counts .... 

THE TORTURE OF CHIEF IRON THUNDERHORSE

by Tom Big Warrior

On June 7th, 2005, ranking officers of the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice (TDCJ), at the Polunsky Unit in Livingston, Texas, attacked an
elderly and legally blind inmate, Iron Thunderhorse, while he was
attempting to go to the chowhall. They knocked the glasses and UV
shields from his face and sprayed chemical pepper spray directly in his
eyes. They proceeded to spray him all over with the chemical irritant,
kicking him and wrenching his crippled arm behind his back.

For weeks, Iron had been denied entry into the chowhall, or any food at
all, as the TDCJ was attempting to starve him into complying with an
order to submit to a haircut, despite the fact that a federal court had
recently upheald that his civil rights were being violated. This was
the latest outrage in a struggle that has been going on for almost
thirty years.

After being railroaded by the FBI's COINTELPRO program, along with many
other dissidents and activists around the country, in the early 70s,
Iron went to court to assert his rights as a Native American spiritual
practicioner. He got off the bus from jail to prison armed with a court
order requiring the TDCJ to respect these rights, including his right
to wear long hair. He was met by the warden and a "goon squad" of
inmate "building tenders" armed with baseball bats and axe handles. The
warden tore up Iron's court order and had his "goons" beat Iron
unconscious and then forcibly cut his hair.

Year after year, Iron has suffered repeated beatings and torture,
including years in solitary confinement in the sweltering Texas heat.
His blindness stems from repeated gassings and being sprayed in the
eyes with pepper spray. His body is covered with scars, only a few of
which he received as a soldier in Vietnam.

Iron is the hereditary chief of the Quinnipiac Renapi, a branch of the
greater Lenape Nation, whose homeland runs along the Quinnipiac River
in Connecticut. His people have the dubious distinction of being the
first North American tribe to be placed on a reservation by the English
settlers at New Haven, in the early 1600s.

Iron's long ordeal began when he stopped at a diner for a cup of coffee
on his way home from work, more than thirty years ago. Some of the
local Connecticut white boys, who saw him pull up on his classic Indian
motorcycle, thought it might be fun to give this long-haired Indian a
hair cut.

After years in the rough and tumble Indian boarding schools, his
muscles now hardened by long hours of construction work, Iron defended
himself well. It was a clear case of self-defense, but the white boys
were sons of the local establisment, and so the cops arrested Iron. But
this was the least of his problems, as the white boys, enraged by their
deserved ass-whipping, began to stalk Iron waiting for a chance to get
revenge. It happened one winter night when two of them spotted his car
and gave chase. They ran the car off the road, but Iron wasn't in it.

After the highway patrol informed him that his young wife and child had
been killed in the resulting "accident," Iron begain drinking heavily.
Then he donned his war-paint, got on his motorcycle, and went looking
for revenge. He found the boys before the police did, and when they
arrived, they arrested Iron for aggravated assault. It was then that
the Army stepped in, and Iron was released into the custody of a
coloniel recruiting for special service in Vietnam.

Having frequently run away from boarding school, Iron fine-tuned the
woodlands skills he had been taught as a child by living off the land
in wilderness areas. These skills, coupled with the rage he was going
through, made him an ideal candidate for the covert operations he was
groomed for at Fort Bragg and other army training schools. Placed under
the direction of the CIA, Iron was sent to Vietnam, where he took part
in secret operations, as well as elsewhere in S.E. Asia. But
eventually, he and his team refused to obey an illegal order, and they
were sent back to California and discharged.

Iron gravitated to the American Indian Movement (AIM) and to others
standing up to the system, and he became a target of COINTELPRO, the
FBIs illegal campaign to infiltrate, entrap, frame-up, assassinate and
otherwize suppress activists in the anti-war and other movements for
social justice that had emerged in the 60s. Their intent was to lock
him up and throw away the key.

Iron went into prison in top physical condition and highly trained in
martial arts. Over the years, he fended off several attempts to
assassinate him, but now his health is precarious and he is virtually
blind. "I suffer from corneal dystrophy and have cataracts and open
angle glaucoma, my corneas no longer produce tears," Iron wrote in a
complaint over the June 7th attack, explaining the excruciating pain he
was in when he was at last taken to the medical unit. "Lt. Lawrence and
Sgt. Sheffield refused to allow the duty nurse to conduct a proper PHD
exam....Officers refused her admonishment to un-handcuff me due to
excruciating pain in [my] shoulder." Iron had a pass, repeatedly
renewed by doctors since 1992, prohibiting his being cuffed behind his
back due to his crippled arm. This was confiscated after the attack.

"Officers refused to allow the nurse to flush my eyes with water or
otherwise decontaminate my person from the pepper spray. The OC pepper
spray saturated both eyes, face, head, ear canals, neck, torso, arms,
palms, buttocks and thighs. Officers kept saying, 'LET HIM BURN!'"

Iron also suffers from rhinitis and sebhorric dermatitis, both of which
are specifically mentioned on the precautions list for use of OC pepper
spray. This was known by the officers prior to this premeditated
attack, and Iron had reported that he had been repeatedly threatened
with this type of assault. It was obvious that an allergic reaction was
taking place to the pepper spray, yet Iron was prevented from showering
until more than 12 hours later.

This torture is compounded by medical neglect. Iron suffers from high
blood preasure, heart arrhythmia, sleep apnea, recurrent shingles and
only has one functioning lung. All of these conditions were aggravated
by the assault, yet his requests to see a doctor were not only denied,
so were his regular prescribed medications for these conditions.

According to his wife, Ruth Thunderhorse: "The warden tells me that
Iron's glasses were lost in the property confiscation after the
'assault,' but if they cannot find them, they will get new ones.
Anything to keep Iron from his legal work, I assume. Since the warden
hemmed and hawed when I asked if Iron had his fan, that probably is not
in his possession, either. He also ignored my question as to whether
Iron has his magnifier." Meanwhile, Iron's glasses, UV shields and his
navigational cane, which were confiscated, have not been replaced, and
his typewritter has been confiscated. Basically, the TDCJ is doing all
it can to frustrate Iron's efforts to defend his civil rights,
including deliberately endangering his health.

President Bush, who was formerly the Governor of Texas, can claim all
he wants that, "We do not condone torture," but the facts show
otherwise. The torture of Iron Thunderhorse continued throughout his
term as governor and it continues today. The federal court had more
than enough justification to put Iron in federal protective custody
while he is litigating against the TDCJ. The very essence of this case
is the suppression of religious freedom for Native Americans here in
the USA, the history of which spans the whole history of the US.

Ruth asks for letters of support addressed to Iron. His adddress is:

Iron Thunderhorse, #624391
Polunsky Unit, 3872 FM 350 South,
Livingston, TX 77351.

                                  By Rev.Lisa Taylor

                         Emotion

          Generation Why?

    Death By Choice