Babies dead without baptism go to Limbo, where they do not enjoy God, but neither do they suffer, because, having Original Sin alone, they do not deserve Paradise, but neither do they merit Hell or Purgatory. ~ Pope Pius X 1904
So let's get our bearings straight as we think and talk about The Golden Compass. This movie does represent a great challenge, but a challenge that Christians should always be ready to meet. ~ Al Mohler
The Smithsonian Institution has never used the Book of Mormon in any way as a scientific guide. Smithsonian archaeologists see no connection between the archeology of the New World and the subject matter of the Book. ~ Letter from the Smithsonian Institution (SIL-76, Summer 1979).
This book must be either true or false. If true, it is one of the most important messages ever sent from God.... If false, it is one of the most cunning, wicked...impositions ever palmed upon the world, calculated to deceive and ruin millions. ~ Orson Pratt, Divine Authenticity of the Book of Mormon (Liverpool, 1851), 1-2.
O ye who believe! Enter not the dwellings of the Prophet for a meal without waiting for the proper time, unless permission be granted you. But if ye are invited, enter, and, when your meal is ended, then disperse. Linger not for conversation. Lo! that would cause annoyance to the Prophet, and he would be shy of (asking) you (to go); but Allah is not shy of the truth. And when ye ask of them (the wives of the Prophet) anything, ask it of them from behind a curtain. That is purer for your hearts and for their hearts. And it is not for you to cause annoyance to the messenger of Allah, nor that ye should ever marry his wives after him. Lo! that in Allah's sight would be an enormity. ~ Surah 33:53 (Officially the funniest verse in the Quran)
The United States, as the world's only superpower, is less vulnerable to military defeat. But it is more vulnerable to the animosity of other countries. Much like a top high school student, if it is modest about its abilities and achievements, if it is generous in helping others, it is loved. But if it attempts to dominate others, it is despised. American foreign policy needs to change its tone and attitude, open up, and reach out. The Bush administration's arrogant bunker mentality has been counterproductive at home and abroad. My administration will recognize that the United States' main fight does not pit us against the world but pits the world against the terrorists. ~ Mike Huckabee
Every pharisaical religionist claims to love his enemies, even though when wronged he consoles himself by thinking "God will punish them". Instead of admitting to themselves that they are capable of hating their foes and treating them in the manner they deserve, they say: "There, but for the grace of God, go I," and "pray" for them. Why should we humiliate and lower ourselves by drawing such inaccurate comparisons? ~ Excerpt from the Satanic Bible
Friday, August 31, 2012
Friday, August 24, 2012
Friday Quotes XXXIV
It consisted of all kinds of crooked characters disposed in columns, and had evidently been prepared by some person who had before him at the time a book containing various alphabets, Greek and Hebrew letters, crosses and flourishes, Roman letters inverted or placed sideways, were arranged in perpendicular columns, and the whole ended in a rude delineation of a circle divided into various compartments, decked with various strange marks, and evidently copied after the Mexican Calender given by Humboldt, but copied in such a way as not to betray the source whence it was derived. I am thus particular as to the contents of the paper, inasmuch as I have frequently conversed with my friends on the subject, since the Mormonite excitement began, and well remember that the paper contained any thing else but "Egyptian Hieroglyphics." ~ Charles Anthon 1834
[F]or I am going to tell you how God came to be God. We have imagined that God was God from all eternity. [That he was not is an idea] incomprehensible to some. But it is the simple and first principle of the gospel-to know for a certainty the character of God, that we may converse with him as one man with another. God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth the same as Jesus Christ himself did... ~ Joseph Smith - King Follett Discourse
[F]or I am going to tell you how God came to be God. We have imagined that God was God from all eternity. [That he was not is an idea] incomprehensible to some. But it is the simple and first principle of the gospel-to know for a certainty the character of God, that we may converse with him as one man with another. God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth the same as Jesus Christ himself did... ~ Joseph Smith - King Follett Discourse
Friday, August 17, 2012
Friday Quotes XXXIII
The day is short and the work is great, but the workers are lazy; however the wages are high since the owner is in a hurry. ~ Rabbi Tarfon (born c. 50-55 A.D.), (Avot 2:15)
He who has more deeds than knowledge, his knowledge endures, but he who has more knowledge than deeds, his knowledge does not endure. ~ Rabbi Hanina ben Dosa (mid-first century A.D.) (Avot 3:10);
A person whose knowledge is greater than his deeds, what is he like? A tree whose branches are many but whose roots are few; the wind comes and uproots and overturns it. However, a person whose deeds are greater than his knowledge, what is he like? A tree whose branches are few but whose roots are many; even if all the winds were to come and blow against it, they could not move it. ~ Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah (end of first century A.D.) (Avot 3:18).
Do his will as if it were your will that he may do your will as if it were his will. Conform your will to his will that he may conform the will of others to your will. (Avot 2:4)
Be as strong as the leopard, swift as the eagle, fleet as the gazelle and brave as the lion to do the will of your father in heaven. ~ Yehudah ben Tema (Avot 5:20)
Do not be like slaves that serve their master in order to receive a reward; rather, be like slaves that do not serve their master in order to receive a reward. (Avot 1:3)
Any love that depends on some passing thing, when the thing disappears, the love vanishes, too; but a love that does not depend on some passing thing will last forever.Which love was it that depended on some passing thing? — the love of Amnon and Tamar [2 Sam. 13:1]. And which love was it that did not depend on some passing thing? — the love of David and Jonathan [2 Sam. 1:26]. (Avot 5:16)
He who has more deeds than knowledge, his knowledge endures, but he who has more knowledge than deeds, his knowledge does not endure. ~ Rabbi Hanina ben Dosa (mid-first century A.D.) (Avot 3:10);
A person whose knowledge is greater than his deeds, what is he like? A tree whose branches are many but whose roots are few; the wind comes and uproots and overturns it. However, a person whose deeds are greater than his knowledge, what is he like? A tree whose branches are few but whose roots are many; even if all the winds were to come and blow against it, they could not move it. ~ Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah (end of first century A.D.) (Avot 3:18).
Do his will as if it were your will that he may do your will as if it were his will. Conform your will to his will that he may conform the will of others to your will. (Avot 2:4)
Be as strong as the leopard, swift as the eagle, fleet as the gazelle and brave as the lion to do the will of your father in heaven. ~ Yehudah ben Tema (Avot 5:20)
Do not be like slaves that serve their master in order to receive a reward; rather, be like slaves that do not serve their master in order to receive a reward. (Avot 1:3)
Any love that depends on some passing thing, when the thing disappears, the love vanishes, too; but a love that does not depend on some passing thing will last forever.Which love was it that depended on some passing thing? — the love of Amnon and Tamar [2 Sam. 13:1]. And which love was it that did not depend on some passing thing? — the love of David and Jonathan [2 Sam. 1:26]. (Avot 5:16)
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Friday, August 10, 2012
Friday Quotes XXXII
There's no vocabulary For love within a family, love that's lived in But not looked at, love within the light of which All else is seen, the love within which All other love finds speech. This love is silent. ~ T. S. Eliot Heard this on NPR this weekend. It's so true.
You shall forget these things, toiling in the household, You shall remember them, droning by the fire, when age and forgetfulness sweeten memory...Saints are not made by accident. Still less is a Christian martyrdom the effect of a man's will to become a Saint, as a man by willing and contriving may become a ruler of men. Ambition fortifies the will of man to become ruler over other men: it operates with deception, cajolery, and violence, it is the action of impurity upon impurity. Not so in Heaven. A martyr, a saint, is always made by the design of God, for His love of men, to warn them and to lead them, to bring them back to His ways. A martyrdom is never the design of man; for the true martyr is he who has become the instrument of God, who has lost his will in the will of God, not lost it but found it, for he has found freedom in submission to God. The martyr no longer desires anything for himself, not even the glory of martyrdom. So thus as on earth the Church mourns and rejoices at once, in a fashion that the world cannot understand; so in Heaven the Saints are most high, having made themselves most low, seeing themselves not as we see them, but in the light of the Godhead from which they draw their being. ~ TS Eliot - Murder in the Cathedral Found this gem, while looking for the other Eliot quote. God is most satisfied in us, when we are most satisfied in Him. Christian Hedonism.
mulier taceat in ecclesia (let your women keep silent in church) ~ I Corinthians, ch 14, v 34 This was used to keep women from singing in the Catholic choirs for millenia. The soprano and alto parts had to be sung by boys or castratos.
The reason I didn’t support their tax hike was that I made it very clear that I would support the revenue if it matched the level of reform; they failed to enact the level of efficiency reform that we all knew was necessary. ~ Mike Huckabee Huckabee had 90 taxcuts, but he netted a tax increase.
This will be the best security for maintaining our liberties. A nation of well-informed men who have been taught to know and prize the rights which God has given them cannot be enslaved. It is in the religion of ignorance that tyranny begins. ~ Ben Franklin Stole this from one of the only reasonable Ron Paul supporters I know.
Into this wild abyss,
The womb of nature and perhaps her grave,
Of neither sea, nor shore, nor air, nor fire,
But all these in their pregnant causes mixed
Confusedly, and which thus must ever fight,
Unless the almighty maker them ordain
His dark materials to create more worlds,
Into this wild abyss the wary fiend
Stood on the brink of hell and looked a while,
Pondering his voyage... ~ John Milton, Paradise Lost, Book II This is the basis of Philip Pullman's Dark Material Trilogy. God created several natures and the books are about their interconnectiveness. Also, they kill God.
You shall forget these things, toiling in the household, You shall remember them, droning by the fire, when age and forgetfulness sweeten memory...Saints are not made by accident. Still less is a Christian martyrdom the effect of a man's will to become a Saint, as a man by willing and contriving may become a ruler of men. Ambition fortifies the will of man to become ruler over other men: it operates with deception, cajolery, and violence, it is the action of impurity upon impurity. Not so in Heaven. A martyr, a saint, is always made by the design of God, for His love of men, to warn them and to lead them, to bring them back to His ways. A martyrdom is never the design of man; for the true martyr is he who has become the instrument of God, who has lost his will in the will of God, not lost it but found it, for he has found freedom in submission to God. The martyr no longer desires anything for himself, not even the glory of martyrdom. So thus as on earth the Church mourns and rejoices at once, in a fashion that the world cannot understand; so in Heaven the Saints are most high, having made themselves most low, seeing themselves not as we see them, but in the light of the Godhead from which they draw their being. ~ TS Eliot - Murder in the Cathedral Found this gem, while looking for the other Eliot quote. God is most satisfied in us, when we are most satisfied in Him. Christian Hedonism.
mulier taceat in ecclesia (let your women keep silent in church) ~ I Corinthians, ch 14, v 34 This was used to keep women from singing in the Catholic choirs for millenia. The soprano and alto parts had to be sung by boys or castratos.
The reason I didn’t support their tax hike was that I made it very clear that I would support the revenue if it matched the level of reform; they failed to enact the level of efficiency reform that we all knew was necessary. ~ Mike Huckabee Huckabee had 90 taxcuts, but he netted a tax increase.
This will be the best security for maintaining our liberties. A nation of well-informed men who have been taught to know and prize the rights which God has given them cannot be enslaved. It is in the religion of ignorance that tyranny begins. ~ Ben Franklin Stole this from one of the only reasonable Ron Paul supporters I know.
Into this wild abyss,
The womb of nature and perhaps her grave,
Of neither sea, nor shore, nor air, nor fire,
But all these in their pregnant causes mixed
Confusedly, and which thus must ever fight,
Unless the almighty maker them ordain
His dark materials to create more worlds,
Into this wild abyss the wary fiend
Stood on the brink of hell and looked a while,
Pondering his voyage... ~ John Milton, Paradise Lost, Book II This is the basis of Philip Pullman's Dark Material Trilogy. God created several natures and the books are about their interconnectiveness. Also, they kill God.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
McDowell on why not to believe the Bible
From my notes on a Josh McDowell conference:
Josh McDowell believes ironically few have intelligent reasons why they believe anything.
Christians tend to have the same kind of faith as Islam. We don’t know why the Bible is true. 95% answers no different than a Muslim, when asked why they believe.
Here are the top eight reasons Christians say they know Christianity is true.
1. What I have been taught…
2. How my parents raised me…
3. What my church teaches…
4. What I learned in Seminary…
5. I feel that it is true…
6. It’s what I believe…
Oh yeah, you want fulfilled prophecy...
P.S. - Preach the gospel. And if necessary, use words. ~ St. Francis of Assisi
I was reading a Mormon, who said that part of his reason for converting to mormonism is that he wanted to be like the mormons he saw. Their lifestyle was their evangelism. I have been wondering if how someone of a particular belief lives is sufficient reason for conversion to a particular point of view. In the inspiration/inerrancy controversy, both sides claim that the other side had elements of moral repugnancy. Truth, though seems to rise above the character of a person.
Josh McDowell believes ironically few have intelligent reasons why they believe anything.
Christians tend to have the same kind of faith as Islam. We don’t know why the Bible is true. 95% answers no different than a Muslim, when asked why they believe.
Here are the top eight reasons Christians say they know Christianity is true.
1. What I have been taught…
2. How my parents raised me…
3. What my church teaches…
4. What I learned in Seminary…
5. I feel that it is true…
6. It’s what I believe…
If anything you believe is true, there would never be heresy
Former generation - I believe it, because it is true7. I have Faith…
Current generation - Youth – its true, because I believe it.
54% of teenagers leave Christianity because no one will answer my questions
Faith doesn’t make anything true8. It changed my life…
Truth creates faith 1 Cor 15
If it isn’t true faith is worthless
Muslim – Koran changed their life – Sunni
Lies changes lives
Amway changes lives
They all have to do with being dogmatic, but dogmatic doesn’t mean its true, it just mean its dogmatic.
Josh McDowell says - Don’t ever think that this doesn’t matter or you will loose your children
Raise your children the way you were raised, kiss them good bye
Why? = Every belief system flies in the face of their belief system
You can not take your children farther than what you have gone yourself.
There are hundreds of answers why you are a Christian, but no one can answer one.
50% of kids come to Christ by their 4th birthday
Used to be 50% by their 11th birthday
Oh yeah, you want fulfilled prophecy...
And the God of our fathers, who were led out of Egypt, out of bondage, and also were preserved in the wilderness by him, yea, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, yieldeth himself, according to the words of the angel, as a man, into the hands of wicked men, to be lifted up, according to the words of Zenock, and to be crucified, according to the words of Neum, and to be buried in a sepulchre, according to the words of Zenos, which he spake concerning the three days of darkness, which should be a sign given of his death unto those who should inhabit the isles of the sea, more especially given unto those who are of the house of Israel.
1 Nephi 19:10
“They will not harm you except for [some] annoyance. And if they fight you, they will show you their backs (i.e., flee); then they will not be aided.” (Surah 3:111)
“And if those (Meccans) who disbelieve were to fight you, they would certainly turn their backs (i.e., flee). Then they would not find a protector or a helper.” (Surah 48:22)
P.S. - Preach the gospel. And if necessary, use words. ~ St. Francis of Assisi
I was reading a Mormon, who said that part of his reason for converting to mormonism is that he wanted to be like the mormons he saw. Their lifestyle was their evangelism. I have been wondering if how someone of a particular belief lives is sufficient reason for conversion to a particular point of view. In the inspiration/inerrancy controversy, both sides claim that the other side had elements of moral repugnancy. Truth, though seems to rise above the character of a person.
Friday, August 3, 2012
Friday Quotes XXXI
I have found that, to make a contented slave, it is necessary to make a thoughtless one. It is necessary to darken his moral and mental vision, and , as far as possible, to annihilate the power of reason. He must be able to detect no inconsistencies in slavery; he must be made to feel that slavery is right; and he can be brought to that only when he ceases to be a man. ~ Frederick Douglas - Narrative - X
It's terrible that we've been forced into this corner. It just should not happen. There are not enough foster carers around anyway without these rules. They were saying that we had to be prepared to talk about sexuality with 11-year-olds, which I don't think is appropriate anyway, but not only that, to be prepared to explain how gay people date. They said we would even have to take a teenager to gay association meetings. How can I do that when it's totally against what I believe? ~ Mr. Matherick - a foster parent who is having his foster child taken away for failing to abide by Britian's Equality Act 2006.
The truth you dig out yourself is so much more precious than anything else. ~ Josh McDowell
sic semper tyrannis (Thus ever [it be] with tyrants) ~ Virginia State Motto
It's terrible that we've been forced into this corner. It just should not happen. There are not enough foster carers around anyway without these rules. They were saying that we had to be prepared to talk about sexuality with 11-year-olds, which I don't think is appropriate anyway, but not only that, to be prepared to explain how gay people date. They said we would even have to take a teenager to gay association meetings. How can I do that when it's totally against what I believe? ~ Mr. Matherick - a foster parent who is having his foster child taken away for failing to abide by Britian's Equality Act 2006.
The truth you dig out yourself is so much more precious than anything else. ~ Josh McDowell
sic semper tyrannis (Thus ever [it be] with tyrants) ~ Virginia State Motto
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