journeyman’s blog

America's Christian Roots

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 23:23:02 -0800

This is great. It is taken from Congressional Resolution #888, 110th Congress
DECEMBER 18TH, 2007

The first act of America's first Congress in 1774 was to ask a minister to open with prayer and to lead Congress in the reading of four chapters of the Bible.

In 1776, Congress approved the Declaration of Independence with its 4 direct religious acknowledgments referring to God as the Creator (`All people are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness'), the Lawgiver (`the laws of nature and nature's God'), the Judge (`appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world'), and the Protector (‘with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence').

Four days after approving the Declaration, the Liberty Bell was rung; which was named for the Biblical inscription from Leviticus 25:10 emblazoned around it: `Proclaim liberty throughout the land, to all the inhabitants thereof'

In 1777, Congress, facing a National shortage of `Bibles for our schools, and families, and for the public worship of God in our churches,' announced that they `desired to have a Bible printed under their care & by their encouragement' and therefore ordered 20,000 copies of the Bible to be imported `into the different ports of the States of the Union'

In 1782, Congress pursued a plan to print a Bible that would be `a neat edition of the Holy Scriptures for the use of schools' and therefore approved the production of the first English language Bible printed in America that contained the congressional endorsement that `the United States in Congress assembled ... recommend this edition of the Bible to the inhabitants of the United States'.

In 1782, Congress adopted (and has reaffirmed on numerous subsequent occasions) the National Seal with its Latin motto `Annuit Coeptis,' meaning `God has favored our undertakings,' along with the eye of Providence in a triangle over a pyramid, the eye and the motto `allude to the many signal interpositions of Providence in favor of the American cause'

In 1783, the Treaty of Paris that officially ended the Revolution and established America as an independent begins with the appellation `In the name of the most holy and undivided Trinity'

In 1787 at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Benjamin Franklin declared, `God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid? ... Without His concurring aid, we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel'

In 1787 James Madison declared that he saw the finished Constitution as a product of `the finger of that Almighty Hand which has been so frequently and signally extended to our relief in the critical stages of the Revolution,' and George Washington viewed it as `little short of a miracle,' and Benjamin Franklin believed that its writing had been `influenced, guided, and governed by that omnipotent, omnipresent, and beneficent Ruler, in Whom all inferior spirits live, and move, and have their being'

In 1789, the first Federal Congress, the Congress that framed the Bill of Rights, including the First Amendment, appropriated Federal funds to pay chaplains to pray at the opening of all sessions, a practice that has continued to this day, with Congress not only funding its congressional chaplains but also the salaries and operations of more than 4,500 military chaplains

In 1789, on the same day that Congress finished drafting the First Amendment, it requested President Washington to declare a National day of prayer and thanksgiving, resulting in the first Federal official Thanksgiving proclamation that declared `it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor'

In 1800, Congress approved the use of the just-completed Capitol structure as a church building, with Divine services to be held each Sunday in the Hall of the House, alternately administered by the House and Senate chaplains

In 1853 Congress declared that congressional chaplains have a `duty ... to conduct religious services weekly in the Hall of the House of Representatives'

In 1854 the United States House of Representatives declared `It [religion] must be considered as the foundation on which the whole structure rests ... Christianity; in its general principles, is the great conservative element on which we must rely for the purity and permanence of free institutions'

In 1864, by law Congress added `In God We Trust' to American coinage

In 1864, Congress passed an act authorizing each State to display statues of 2 of its heroes in the United States Capitol, resulting in numerous statues of noted Christian clergymen and leaders at the Capitol

By 1867, the church at the Capitol was the largest church in Washington, DC, with up to 2,000 people a week attending Sunday service in the Hall of the House

In 1870, the Federal government made Christmas (a recognition of the birth of Christ, an event described by the U.S. Supreme Court as `acknowledged in the Western World for 20 centuries, and in this country by the people, the Executive Branch, Congress, and the courts for 2 centuries') and Thanksgiving as official holidays

Beginning in 1904 and continuing for the next half-century, the Federal government printed and distributed The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth for the use of Members of Congress because of the important teachings it contained

In 1931, Congress by law adopted the Star-Spangled Banner as the official National Anthem, with its phrases such as `may the Heav'n-rescued land Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation,' and `this be our motto, `In God is our trust!'

In 1954, Congress by law added the phrase `one nation under God' to the Pledge of Allegiance

In 1956, Congress by law made `In God We Trust' the National Motto, and added the phrase to American currency

The constitutions of each of the 50 states, either in the preamble or body, explicitly recognize or express gratitude to God;
America's first Presidential Inauguration incorporated 7 specific religious activities, including--
(1) the use of the Bible to administer the oath;
(2) affirming the religious nature of the oath by the adding the prayer `So help me God!' to the oath;
(3) inaugural prayers offered by the President;
(4) religious content in the inaugural address;
(5) civil leaders calling the people to prayer or acknowledgement of God;
(6) inaugural worship services attended en masse by Congress as an official part of congressional activities; and
(7) clergy-led inaugural prayers, activities which have been replicated in whole or part by every subsequent President
**********************************
Some of the most important monuments, buildings, and landmarks in Washington, DC, include religious words, symbols, and imagery

The United States Capitol the declaration `In God We Trust' is prominently displayed in both the United States House and Senate Chambers

Religious artwork is found throughout the United States Capitol, including in the Rotunda where the prayer service of Christopher Columbus, the Baptism of Pocahontas, and the prayer and Bible study of the Pilgrims are all prominently displayed; in the Cox Corridor of the Capitol where the words `America! God shed His grace on thee' are inscribed; at the east Senate entrance with the words `Annuit Coeptis' which is Latin for `God has favored our undertakings'; and in numerous other locations

Images of the Ten Commandments are found in many Federal buildings across Washington, DC, including in bronze in the floor of the National Archives; in a bronze statue of Moses in the Main Reading Room of the Library of Congress; in numerous locations at the U.S. Supreme Court, including in the frieze above the Justices, the oak door at the rear of the Chamber, the gable apex, and in dozens of locations on the bronze latticework surrounding the Supreme Court Bar seating;

The Washington Monument not only are numerous Bible verses and religious acknowledgements carved on memorial blocks in the walls, including the phrases: `Holiness to the Lord' (Exodus 28:26, 30:30, Isaiah 23:18, Zechariah 14:20), `Search the Scriptures' (John 5:39), `The memory of the just is blessed' (Proverbs 10:7), `May Heaven to this Union continue its beneficence', and `In God We Trust', but the Latin inscription Laus Deo meaning `Praise be to God' is engraved on the monument's capstone

The five areas inside the Jefferson Memorial into which Jefferson's words have been carved, 4 are God-centered, including Jefferson's declaration that `God who gave us life gave us liberty. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that these liberties are the gift of God? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, that His justice cannot sleep forever'

The Lincoln Memorial contains numerous acknowledgments of God and citations of Bible verses, including the declarations that `we here highly resolve that ... this nation under God ... shall not perish from the earth'; `The Almighty has His own purposes. `Woe unto the world because of offenses; for it must needs be that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh' (Matthew 18:7); `as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said `the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether' (Psalms 19:9); `one day every valley shall be exalted and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh see it together' (Dr. Martin Luther King's speech, based on Isaiah 40:4-5)

The Library of Congress, The Giant Bible of Mainz, and The Gutenberg Bible are on prominent permanent display and etched on the walls are Bible verses, including: `The light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not' (John 1:5); `Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore, get wisdom and with all thy getting, get understanding' (Proverbs 4:7); `What doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God' (Micah 6:8); and `The heavens declare the Glory of God, and the firmament showeth His handiwork' (Psalm 19:1)

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Faith of Our Founding Fathers

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 23:19:49 -0800

Stumbling upon a article written by an individual who calls his philosophy “freethought” regarding the place of religion in the lives of the founding fathers shows a typical lack of scholarship or understanding of religion in the culture of that period. It is incredible the number of articles and blogs created solely for the purpose of re-writing history and deviating from our historically religious...and “Christian” foundations. This article starts:

One of the most common statements from the "Religious Right" is that they want this country to "return to the Christian principles on which it was founded". However, a little research into American history will show that this statement is a lie. The men responsible for building the foundation of the United States had little use for Christianity, and many were strongly opposed to it. They were men of The Enlightenment, not men of Christianity. They were Deists who did not believe the bible was true.

First, Who are these men that would be called the “founding fathers”? Of the 56 signers to the Declaration of Independence; 30 were Episcopalian (previously called Anglican before the break away from England), 13 Congregationalists, 12 Presbyterian, 2 Quaker, 2 Unitarian (Universalist), 1 Catholic and 2 Deist. There were 48 signers of the Articles of Confederation. All 55 delegates who participated in the Constitutional Convention of 1787 are regarded as Founding Fathers, in fact, they are often regarded as the Founding Fathers because it is this group that actually debated, drafted and signed the U.S. Constitution, which is the basis for the country's political and legal system. Of those 55 delegates; 30 were Episcopalians, 16 Presbyterians, 8 Congregationalists, 3 Quaker, 2 Catholic, 2 Methodist, 2 Lutheran, 2 Dutch Reform and 1 Deist. The signers were those individuals who happened to be Delegates to Congress at the time... The signers possessed many basic similarities. Most were American-born and of Anglo-Saxon origin. The eight foreign-born... were all natives of the British Isles. Except for Charles Carroll, a Roman Catholic, and a few Deists, every one subscribed to Protestantism. For the most part basically political non-extremists, many at first had hesitated at separation let alone
rebellion.

Second, these were not men just of the “enlightenment” so much as they were men of the “reformation”, even though many of this “Age of Enlightenment” were strong theological apologists, such as Immanuel Kant, Descartes and Issac Newton. Stephen Gaukroger's biography of Descartes reports that "he had a deep religious faith as a Catholic, which he retained to his dying day, along with a resolute, passionate desire to discover the truth." Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica saw the movement and the order of the universe attributed to the act of a creator God and Kant engaged many of the major issues that contemporary philosophy groups together under the heading “philosophy of religion.” These include arguments for the existence of God, the attributes of God, the immortality of the soul, the problem of evil, and the relationship of moral principles to religious belief and practice. The Enlightenment is held to be the source of critical ideas, such as the centrality of freedom, democracy, and reason as primary values of society. This view argues that the establishment of a contractual basis of rights would lead to the market mechanism and capitalism, religious tolerance, and the organization of states into self-governing republics through democratic means. This is clearly seen the foundational principals and structures of the new republic. But the daily lives, traditions and beliefs came from a different source. These men had been directly affected in their development of moral and religious foundation by reformers such as: Martin Luther (Germany), Ulrich Zwingli (Switzerland), John Calvin (France), John Knox (Scotland),the lives of men like Gustavus Adolphus (Sweden) or Oliver Cromwell (England) ….as well as writers such as Isaac Ambrose. Later the “Great Evangelical Awakening” (1735-1744) would bring men like Jonathan Edwards to the forefront in New England. Edwards has been described as the “Greatest American Theologian”. All of these men…were just that..mortal men. Not only imperfect or even depraved but some like Luther had anti-Semitic philosophies that would later influence the evil of men like Adolph Hitler. Regardless, their effects on the ethical principals and moral foundations of these men we call our “founding fathers” cannot be overlooked. I think personally that the “Age of Enlightenment” gave a excellent balance to many who were deeply frustrated with the “church” with not only the political separation of Church of England and the Catholic Church (1534) but also the terrible persecution of first generation reformers (ie: Puritans, Quakers, Huguenots, Anabaptists).

Third, What did our “founding fathers think about the Bible? Did they believe it?

“We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that 'except the Lord build the House, they labor in vain that build it.' I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without His concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel." Benjamin Franklin

"Suppose a nation in some distant region should take the Bible for their only Law Book, and every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts there exhibited... What a paradise would this region be!" John Adams, 1756.

“It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great Nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religious, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here.?”
Patrick Henry, 1776

I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus. I have little doubt that our whole country will soon be rallied to the unity of our Creator and, I hope, to the pure doctrine of Jesus also.? Thomas Jefferson, Written on the cover of his personal Bible.

It is impossible to govern the world without God and the Bible. Of all the dispositions and habits that lead to political prosperity, our religion and morality are the indispensable supporters. Let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained
without religion. Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that our national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.? George Washington,
Farewell Speech, Sept. 19, 1796.

The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity.? John Quincy Adams, 6th US President.

The Congress of the United States recommends and approves the Holy Bible for use in all schools.? US Congress, 1782.

************************

The Declaration of Independence states, "[Men] are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." It also states that these rights are "self evident" and that they constitute the "Laws of Nature." These principles are taken directly from the Bible.

The Law of Nature can be viewed in Romans 2:14-16. That our Creator is the Author of life is seen in Genesis 2:7. That God, not government, grants liberty is seen in Galatians 5:1. The "pursuit of happiness" is found in Ecclesiastes 3:13.

Even America's constitutional form of government consisting of three co-equal branches, legislative, executive and judicial is taken directly from Isaiah 33:22.

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CHANGE....HOPE....REALITY

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 21:11:37 -0800

CHANGE....HOPE.....FUTURE....I CAN.... great mantras....but when undefined they have no substance. This is typical of a society that often has a difficult time using words over four letters. This election is a first in history in more ways than one. Never has a nations media…selected, packaged and marketed a candidate with such a massive and directed PR campaign. It is estimated that the media gave Obama over 3 billion dollars in free favorable coverage to promote their selection for President. With the complete loss of any objectivity…these “journalists” became nothing more than media “prostitutes”. They did not report the news….they distributed propaganda. And it worked. They made him into a rock star. And the majority of the public swallowed it…hook, line and sinker. The demise of critical thinking. As a reporter or news anchor, if you dared to bring up an issue involving character, lack of experience, unfavorable associations, voting record...or any other information that might actually make you think about who was running for office and what did he actually believe....and you would find yourself pulled off the assignment, censured or terminated. After all he is the media's "anointed one". They have created an “Obama Mania” that is on the verge of insanity. There is talk of an Obama stamp, a Obama national holiday, comparisons of Obama to Lincoln and JFK, an official Obama coin, Obama on US paper currency….there are Obama collectors plates, hats, shirts, …everything that can turn a profit. This adulation and worship is for a guy that has accomplished absolutely nothing. His association with communists, anarchists, terrorists and criminals, would prevent him from even passing a security clearance at a Wal-Mart. When I see him I think of Alice in Wonderland's Cheshire Cat. Remember the cat sitting in the tree with the huge smile and then he would disappear...and all you could see was the smile. Great smile, smooth voice and oratorical skills.....but no substance. The media turned a proverbial pigs ear into a silk purse.

His using Martin Luther King as a means to continue this adulation, especially in the black community, is also deeply disturbing. Obama did not fulfill the dream of Martin Luther King.... he betrayed it. Rev. King never had a dream of a black President, or a black Senator. His dream was that our society would grow up and mature...and eventually become color-blind. He prayed that the issue of race....would someday no longer be an issue at all. That his children would someday only be judged by the "quality of their character and not the color of their skin". But Obama was elected by totally ignoring the "quality of his character"...and strictly because of the color of his skin. The media ignored, de-emphasized or censured any adverse character attributes. At the same time they focused on the race issue. Remember when Tom Hanks is asked why he is voting for Obama. His answer was, "because it's time". Time for what? Time for a black man for president. A camera shot of a black man stepping into his pick-up truck outside a restaurant. He is asked by the reporter, "Who are you voting for"? His answer, "Take a look at me, who do you think I am voting for." This was type of coverage repeated over and over again. And the idea that if you did not support Obama...you must be a racist. People did not vote for Obama because of his management experience, his foreign policy experience, his associations and mentors, his legislative experience or his moral and religious beliefs. They voted for him because he was NOT Bush....and of course he is black. Promoted and worshipped by Hollywood airheads and songs created about him by rap artists, a star was created from nothing. I know of no one who voted for McCain because he was white...but I know lots of people that voted for Barack Obama because he was black. That is racism.

Now three days into his presidency one can see already the coming disaster beginning to take shape. Look at some of his appointments. Leon Panetta as CIA director. In a war against terrorist all over the world, placing an attorney in charge with no (nada) experience in the intelligence community or law enforcement. That is like getting a guy from McDonalds, giving him a scalpel and starting him as a brain surgeon. What a slap in the face of every agent and analyst that has worked for years to learn their jobs to keep us safe. If I was a field agent...I think it would be time to retire. How about his choice for Treasury Secretary...Tim Geither? Tim Geither failed to pay over $34,000 in taxes over four years. In fact, he only recently coughed up some of the money only after the nomination process exposed him. A 2006 audit exposed him but Geither still didn't pay the taxes he owed for two of those years, stating that they were outside the statue of limitations. Besides this he employed an illegal alien for domestic help...and was right in the middle of the failed TARP bailout that has already cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars. And this guy will be in charge of the IRS. How about his new Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton. Her only foreign policy experience is getting tea and coffee for foreign visitors at the White House...and covering criminal activity for 8 years by her husband. I am sure she will be deeply respected by our foreign dignitaries in the the way she put up with her husband screwing around with anything in a skirt for decades, so she could have position, power and money. I am so proud.

And let's look at some of the disastrous policy changes he has made already....and will do in the future.

1) Closing of Guantanamo military prison in Cuba. Already over 500 have been released or tried, and those 175 left are the worst of the worst. These are catagory three terrorists. We now have a choice of either releasing these cold-blooded murders so they can go back out into the world and kill hundreds more Americans...and others. Or we can bring them to America, spend million of dollars on slick defense attorneys, tie up the judical system for years, and eventually (after a book of the week, OJ publicity, a TV Movie)...they are released and can kill more innocent people. Brilliant. The emergence of a former Guantánamo Bay detainee as the deputy leader of Al Qaeda’s Yemeni branch has underscored the potential complications in carrying out the executive order President Obama signed Thursday that the detention center be shut down within a year. Ali al-Shihri, is suspected of involvement in a deadly bombing of the United States Embassy in Yemen’s capital, Sana, in September. He was released from Guantanamo to Saudi Arabia in 2007 and passed through a Saudi rehabilitation program for former jihadists before resurfacing with Al Qaeda in Yemen.

2) Redefining torture as anything unpleasant...and then totally outlawing it from use with this captured terrorists. So now when we capture a high profile terrorist that has information that can save thousands of American lives, we are only allowed to ask him his name and give him a cigarette. Imagine the interrogation technique. "Tell me when the attack will be. No. Oh, come on...please. No. Pretty please with sugar. No. Ohhhh. Ok" We have never tortured people as defined by the rest of the world. In Iran, Yemen, Korea...etc.. they dip people in acid, electrocution, cut off body parts. The worse thing we do..only in extreme cases, was water boarding. That does not hurt the person...but it does scare the crud out of them. I have several US Marine friends that were water boarded in interrogation school. They said it was so effective they would have told them they were from the planet Venus if only they would stop. By being able to check various portions of the information from the detainee, it has been found to be extremely effective and reliable. Question: If a terrorist is known to have information that could save many American lives and we do not do everything necessary to get that information.....and Americans die. Will President Obama be responsible for those American deaths?

3) Overturning the "Mexico-city" policy. Since the supreme court created law in Wade vs Roe in 1973, over 2 million children's lives per year have been terminated. Only 1 percent of those was for the mothers life in jeopardy, incest or rape. The rest were for personal convenience. It is bad enough that abortions in this country are done with tax payers money, so the "Mexico-city policy" was established to prevent our government from subsidizing abortions in other countries. That has now changed. We are not killing nearly enough. We can do better. So our tax dollars will now go to foreign family planning centers that support or conduct abortions. I am so proud to be an American. Also as he passes the Freedom of Choice Act we can now take 12 year old kids from their school for abortions without ever notifying their parents...well, except when they have to come down to the morgue to identify their dead daughter. But if the child wants an aspirin, they better have a note to the nurse. Besides the elimination of parental notification this Act will also again allow the barbarity of partial birth abortions. This is so sick that if you did this to a squirrel, they would put you jail for the next 5 years.

What else can we expect: Elimination of the "Don's ask/ Don't tell" policy of gays in the military. (Already they have determined that the open inclusion of gays in the military will result in a 20% departure of personal from our military ranks. One of the last bastions of moral sanity, gone.) Gun Control (reinstatement of the assault weapons ban...you know anything that has a magazine of more than 9 or 10 rounds. Like you could not kill someone with only three. Stupid) - (Closing of gun shows) - (Control of ammunition), The Most Massive Tax increases in history (and you thought all these billions ,actually over a trillion, dollars of welfare and bailouts was actually growing on trees....the collapse of our economy and the American dream), Government Controlled and provided Health-Care (socialism at its best...in Canada if you want an MRI and the government says no..or you have to wait 6 months...they just come across the border into the United States. Where will we go...Tiahuana? One more think to insure total socialism. Truly this is the death knoll for our system of government)

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Israeli/ Palestinian Conflict

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 23:37:41 -0800

Can you imagine if the Los Zeta cartel in Mexico began firing rockets into the United States penetrating 28 miles into the interior and targeting the civilian population? How many hours would it be until our military stopped those rockets? In the last year over 8,000 rockets have been fired from Gaza into Israel striking schools, hospitals, homes and marketplaces. Yet where is the media coverage of the attacks by terrorists on Israel? Even when they had a ceasefire...Hamas fired 80 missles in one day.

Apparently, Benjamin Netanyahu gave an interview and was asked about Israel's occupation of Arab lands.
His response was "It's our land". The reporter (CNN or the like) was stunned - read below "It's our land..." It's important information since we don't get fair and accurate reporting from the media and facts tend to get lost in the jumble of daily events.
"Crash Course on the Arab Israeli Conflict."
Here are overlooked facts in the current &n bsp; Middle East situation.
These were compiled by a Christian university professor:
BRIEF FACTS ON THE ISRAELI CONFLICT TODAY.... ( It takes just 1.5 minutes to read!!!! )
It makes sense and it's not slanted. Jew and non-Jew -- it doesn't matter.
1. Nationhood and Jerusalem. Israel became a nation in 1312 BCE, Two thousand years before the rise of Islam.
2. Arab refugees in Israel began identifying themselves as part of a Palestinian people in 1967, two decades after the establishment of the modern State of Israel.
3. Since the Jewish conquest in 1272 BCE, the Jews have had dominion over the land for one thousand years with a continuous presence in the land for the past 3,300 years.
4. The only Arab dominion since the conquest in 635 CE lasted no more than 22 years.
5. For over 3,300 years, Jerusalem has been the Jewish capital Jerusalem has never been the capital of any Arab or Muslim entity. Even when the Jordanians occupied Jerusalem, they never sought to make it their capital, and Arab leaders did not come to visit.
6. Jerusalem is mentioned over 700 times in Tanach, the Jewish Holy Scriptures. Jerusalem is not mentioned once in the Koran.
7. King David founded the city of Jerusalem. Mohammed never came to Jerusalem.
8. Jews pray facing Jerusalem. Muslims pray with their backs toward Jerusalem.
9. Arab and Jewish Refugees: in 1948 the Arab refugees were encouraged to leave Israel by Arab leaders promising to purge the land of Jews. Sixty-eight percent left without ever seeing an Israeli soldier.
10 The Jewish refugees were forced to flee from Arab lands due to Arab brutality, persecution and pogroms.
11. The number of Arab refugees who left Israel in 1948 is estimated to be around 630,000. The number of Jewish refugees from Arab lands were well over 1 million.
12. Arab refugees were INTENTIONALLY not absorbed or integrated into the Arab lands to which they fled, despite the vast Arab territory. Out of the 100,000,000 refugees since World War II, theirs is the only refugee group in the world that has never been absorbed or integrated into their own people's lands. Jewish refugees were completely absorbed into Israel, a country no larger than the state of New Jersey .
13. The Arab-Israeli Conflict: the Arabs are represented by eight separate nations, not including the Palestinians. There is only one Jewish nation. The Arab nations initiated all five wars and lost. Israel defended itself each time and won. The surrounding Arab countires have 600 times the land mass of Israel.
14. The PLO's Charter still calls for the destruction of the State of Israel. Israel has given the Palestinians most of the West Bank land, autonomy under the Palestinian Authority, and has supplied them.
15. Under Jordanian rule, Jewish holy sites were desecrated and the Jews were denied access to places of worship. Under Israeli rule, all Muslim and Christian sites have been preserved and made accessible to people of all faiths.
16. The UN Record on Israel and the Arabs: of the 175 Security Council resolutions passed before 1990, 97 were directed against Israel.
17. Of the 690 General Assembly resolutions voted on before 1990, 429 were directed against Israel.
18. The UN was silent while 58 Jerusalem Synagogues were destroyed by the Jordanians.
19. The UN was silent while the Jordanians systematically desecrated the ancient Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives.
20. The UN was silent while the Jordanians enforced an apartheid-like a policy of preventing Jews from visiting the Temple Mount and the Western Wall.

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The Greatest Gift

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 22:37:21 -0800

If I asked most Christians what they thought was the greatest miracle, I know almost everyone would say Christ's sacrifice and His resurrection. It is true that that event changed everything and made a way that the fallen race of Adam could come home again. Paradise lost....could be regained through faith in Christ. To be honest though, I would expect the God of the universe to defeat death but who would have really believed that the same creator of all things could be manifest in a lttle baby in Bethlehem. Think about it. God is outside our plane of existance reaching in. He did not make all things from part of himself...but apart from himself. Created from nothing (bara). God is non-linear. God is not subject to time, he does not age, he does not sleep and require sustenance. He is perfect and complete. To God everything is in the now. From His perspective he sees me at this computer, sees His Son upon the cross and at the same time the marriage supper of the lamb. We on the other hand are stuck in linear time, constantly moving forward in time. We age...and we die. But God loved us so much that he stepped out of his non-linear existence and in the person of His Son, Jesus...entered our linear history. God layed aside His robe of majesty and girded Himself with the towel of humanity. It is His birth that divides history. Our hopes, our dreams and God's greatest gift....all wrapped in swaddeling clothes....little baby Jesus.... laying in a manger. May you be blessed by the wonderful miracle of His Birth. Merry Christmas!!

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When was Jesus born?

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 22:29:30 -0800

A lot of people wonder not only why we celebrate Christmas on December 25th, but when was Jesus actually born? On a previous blog "Christmas Day", I went into the history of selecting the 25th of December as the traditional birthday of Jesus but there are indications in the scriptures that a good investgator could pick up that points to his birth in spring...around the season of Passover. Actually close to the same time he was cruxified 32 years later. First, the scriptures say their were "shepherds abiding in the field keeping watch over their flocks by night". The only time they had a night watch on the sheep was in the spring to protect the young spring lambs from wolves. Also in referance to Jesus birth it was prophecized, "Oh Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me to be ruler in Israel" (Mic 5:2). Ephratah is still just ouside Bethlehem. It is a small pasture area that was used by the priests to care for the Passover lambs. These shepherds were not ordinary shepherds but also levitical priests. How appropriate that the Lamb of God would be born in the season of the Passover and revealed to the priest shepherds watching the Passover lambs. For this lamb would become the final sacrifice for the sins on not just the nation of Israel...but the whole world.

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Christmas Day

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 22:25:01 -0800

I thought I would comment just to straighten out some of your "facts". Since early in the first century there was a desire to celebrate the birth of the Messiah by those who in Antioch were first called Christians. The problem was that gathering together in a celebration was a dangerous thing to do. The church was under terrible persectution by the Roman Empire from 64 AD with Nero...all the way to the Edict of Milian in 313 AD. The most severe was under Diocleation at the end of the third century and the begining of the 4th. Under his edict Christians gathering together or possessing any Christian writings was punishable by death. Now during the year there were a number of pagan festivals, usually following the harvests and lunar cycles. One of them, the Roman feast of Saturnalia, was held during the winter solstice. They already had a festival in April ..Resurection Day..later called Easter. The festival of Hanahka is held in Kislev 25 which is prestty close to our December 25th. By celebrating at the same time others were celebrating there pagan festivals...the Christians did not stand out and relieved them of much additional persecution. After the conversion of Anglo-Saxons in England from their polytheism in the very early 7th centurym Christmas was called geol, which is the name of the native pre-christian Germanic solstice festival. From geol...the current English word "yule" is derived. The prominence of Christmas Day increased gradually after the crowing of Charlemagne on Christmas Day, 800AD. The earliest writing referring to the celebration of Christmas is 354 AD which speaks of Epiphany as January 6th....12 days after Christmas Day. Tradition says that was the time between his birth and the arrival of the Magi bearing gifts for the newborn king.

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The Star of Bethlehem

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 22:23:10 -0800

Have you ever wondered what the star of bethlehem really was? The term star is used throughtout the Old and New Testament symbolically representing supernatural beings..either the Messiah (Num 24:17.."there shall come a Star out of Jacob", 2 Peter 1:19/ Rev 2:28/Rev 22:16..." the day star and the morning star), as well as angels both in heaven and those cast out of heaven (demons) Isa 14:13.."I will exalt my throne above the stars of God (angels), Rev 12:4/Daniel 12:3...stars cast out of heaven ...and even Satan himself ..Rev 9:1.."and I saw a star fall from heaven. What we do know is this "star" could not have been an actual star as it had to be low enough in the atmosphere to move...much like a satellite...so that it could be seen moving past the stationary stars to lead the Magi on there quest. It also had to be low enough to be able to stop over a house and this gave them the location of the babe. Actual stars are so far from the earth that you could move a thousand miles with no change, except declination and ascension. Also such a phenomenon if it were an actual star would be visible to everyone on earth as the earth rotated and would have been recorded in their star charts such as those recorded by those in ancient China. Imagine if this "star" was one of Gods messenger angels maybe 5 miles up in the atmosphere, radiating his glory. When he stopped...the Magi stopped. When he moved again....they followed. According to Matt 2:9/ 2:16, they wise men had been observing and following the star for two years. Until it made its final stop in Matt 2:9-11, "and lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. And when they were come unto the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshipped him; and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold and frankincense, and myrrh". Merry Christmas!

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Thoughts and memories

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 22:57:02 -0800

It has been 86 days since my son left us for heaven. I still have a hard time using the word died. That has such a finality that I guess I am not ready to mentally process yet. Ryan was a 29 year old US Marine full of life, which is why I spent so much time taking him to hospitals from injuries, sneaking in a Big Mac as he spent several days in jail for tickets, or trying to straighten up my credit damaged when I co-signed a car loan or an apartment lease for him. I knew some of his friends as they all came over to the house. Bonnie, my wife, knew them better than I did and would sit in the backyard with them as they had a beer and shared their experiences. I wish I had gotten to know Ryan more as an adult. He was…and still always will be my little curly haired blond little boy. He was my little cub scout. Even then he was full of mischief. A trait he never grew out of. I still can close my eyes and see his crooked smile…his eyes full of fun and wonder. He loved Christmas, especially my wife’s incredible turkey, gravy and stuffing. On his last birthday, June 19^th, he had asked Bonnie for her special turkey dinner instead of a birthday present. My wife Bonnie, who is dealing with the after effects of massive brain surgery last year, did feel up to making her turkey for him. It is a big job doing all that cooking. I know she wishes she could go back in time and make him his favorite dinner. It almost feels unreal that he is gone. Almost like any moment he will call me here at work on nightshift to ask me to come over and fix something at his apartment or with his vehicle…or to tell me about an upcoming fight with MMA…or to ask me questions about the Bible. God knows how much I miss that. I stay pretty busy between work, sleep and doing stuff around the house. It is in those down times when I think about Ryan….like now, that the protective walls fall away and a great sadness envelops me. Sometimes I can’t help but weep…and I know that that release is a good thing. My wife has had it incredibly hard. Last year she was diagnosed with a 4.7cm acoustic neuroma ( brain tumor) and had to have surgery at the Fort Worth Brain and Spine Center/Harris Hospital. The 13 hour surgery left her with stroke like effects on her left side. The cranial pain is continuous and has required massive pain blockers. Loss of balance, inability for her left eye to tear..and now dental problems caused by the lack of salvia production. She calls the brain tumor…the gift that keeps on giving. Now last week, we find out that she has kidney cancer. Both kidneys have tumors. The one on her left side is huge (4 cm) and so they will remove her kidney right after Thanksgiving to avoid a rupture. I don’t know what they can do for the other kidney tumor. My mind cannot fathom what I will do if my wife of 33 years is taken from me. Already the weight of grief and pain is almost overpowering. Over the years Bonnie and I have drifted farther and farther away from each other. Sometimes I feel that there is nothing I can do to please her. She seems to find fault in everything I do. Any yet she is so much a part of me, I feel like I could not survive this world without her. I don’t think she can understand how much I love her. Old hurts, resentments and unforgiveness … make a barrier in not only expressing love and compassion…but being able to feel it from others. I think we start to feel comfortable in our wounded state for so long that we are not sure what normal is anymore. Like a bird that does not fly, it has limited itself. Without love, we limit ourselves from the way we were originally created to live. I wish she knew what an impact just a smile…a kind word…a touch of compassion or a hug…can have on my day, when it comes from her. After the loss of my son, life without my Bonnie would be a sadness and darkness that would smother the light of my life.

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$250,000.00 REWARD

nobody@vox.com(journeyman) — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 23:00:25 -0700

It is interesting in talking with an Atheist, when you bring up the question, “Well, where did the all the matter/energy come from to form this primordial egg that exploded in a “big bang”?” There immediate answer is, “Where did God come from?” The Theist (a belief in God…as opposed to Atheism), will answer that eternity by definition is not only in a “eternity future”….but “eternity past”. This is in direct opposition to the basic scientific understanding of entropy that sees both a beginning and ending of all things. (Uniformitarianism). Second, as a scientist will admit, a belief in God regardless of the many assumptions of logic and evidence that point to a creator ultimately is an act of faith. God by definition, both transient and immanent, (omnipresent), is outside of what we perceive as time, therefore God has no beginning or ending. Where a scientist must base his belief on evidence (the scientific method of observation, recording and experimentation)… a Theist does not have that requirement. Therefore the question to an Atheist of “Where did the matter/energy come from”? is quite appropriate and requires an answer based upon known scientific principals and empirical evidence. But the question to a Theist of “Where did God come from”? not only does not require an answer but is based on an ignorance of basic theology and is merely a diversion, because science has no answers to this question of our universes initial advent. Remember, the study of origins as presented by scientists (and in our public school textbooks) is more than a biological process. It is presented as a process that:

1) Brought time, space and matter into existence from nothing.

2) Organized that matter into galaxies, stars, and at least 8 planets (Pluto and four other solar system bodies now being classified as “dwarf stars”) as well as other observed objects and phenomena. This is referred to as cosmic evolution.

3) Brought about life on at least one of the planets from nonliving matter. This is referred to chemical evolution.

4) Caused the living creatures to be capable of an interested in reproducing themselves.

5) Caused that first life form to spontaneously diversify by total random chance into different forms of living things, from simple one celled organisms into more complex forms such as plants and animals on earth today. This is referred to as biological evolution. Somehow this hypothesis must also account for thought, intelligence and creativity.

This is why a $250,000.00 reward is still ( since 1990) available to anyone that can prove evolution…ie: “that the universe came into being by itself by purely natural processes so that no appeal to the supernatural is needed. This offer of $250,000.00 by Dr. Kent Hovind is to anyone who can give empirical evidence of evolution. The inability to do so demonstrates that the hypothesis of evolution is nothing more that a religious belief. (www.drdino.com)

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