Since Time Immemorial: The Hallowed Symbol of the Cross

Throughout the world, people universally regard the Cross as the symbol of Christianity as the symbol recalls the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the redeeming benefits of his Passion, death and Resurrection. It is thus a sign both of Christ himself and of the faith of Christians.

However, what is not very well-known is that the reverence shown to the sign of the Cross occurred in all of the ages prior to Christianity, and still is revered in almost every land where that of Calvary is unrecognized and unknown. Yet, throughout modern times, anyway, official "history has been [mostly] silent on this subject" of this universal symbol. The obvious reason for the silence, in my humble opinion, is that this pre-Christian and pagan reverence for the Cross foreshadows the coming of Christ and  testifies to the presence of Him throughout the history of all mankind, as it proves that all human beings are innately predisposed to revere the Cross, and this knowledge might encourage or solidify belief in the very thing that the worldly powers are attempting to eliminate: Jesus Christ.

From an article in the Edinburgh Review, July 1870:

“From the dawn of organized Paganism in the Eastern world, to the final establishment of Christianity in the West, the cross was undoubtedly one of the commonest and most sacred of symbolical monuments; and to a remarkable extent it is so still in almost every land where that of Calvary is unrecognized and unknown. Apart from any distinctions of social or intellectual superiority, of caste, color, nationality, or location in either hemisphere, it appears to have been the aboriginal possession of every people in antiquity—the elastic girdle, so to say, which widely separated heathen communities—the most significant token of universal brotherhood, to which all families of mankind were severally and irresistibly drawn, and by which their common descent was emphatically expressed, or by means of which each and all preserved, amid every vicissitude of fortune, a knowledge of the primeval happiness and dignity of their species. Where authentic history is silent on the subject, the material relics of the past and long since forgotten races are not wanting to confirm and strengthen this supposition. “Diversified forms of the symbol are delineated more or less artistically, according to the progress achieved in civilization at the period, on the ruined walls of temples and palaces, on natural rocks and sepulchral galleries, on the hoariest monoliths and the rudest statuary; on coins, medals, and vases of every description; and in not a few instances, are preserved in the architectural proportions of subterranean as well as superterranean structures of tumuli, as well as fanes. The extraordinary sanctity attaching to the symbol in every age and under every variety of circumstance justified any expenditure incurred in its fabrication or embellishment; hence the most persistent labor, the most consummate ingenuity, were lavished upon it. Populations of essentially different culture, tastes, and pursuits—the highly-civilized and the semi-civilized, the settled and the nomadic—vied with each other in their superstitious adoration of it, and in their efforts to extend the knowledge of its exceptional import and virtue amongst their latest posterities. The marvelous rock-hewn caves of Elephanta and Ellora, and the stately temples of Mathura and Terputty, in the East, may be cited as characteristic examples of one laborious labor of exhibiting it; and the megalithic structures of Callernish and Newgrange, in the West, of another; while a third may be instanced in the great temple of Mitzla, the ‘City of the Moon’, in Ojaaca, Central America, also excavated in the living rock, and manifesting the same stupendous labor and ingenuity as are observable in the cognate caverns of Salsette—of endeavors, we repeat made by peoples as intellectually as geographically distinct, and followers withal of independent and unassociated deities, to magnify and perpetuate some grand primeval symbol…
Of the several varieties of the Cross still in vogue, as national and ecclesiastical emblems, in this and other European states, and distinguished by the familiar appellations of St. George, St. Andrew, the Maltese, the Greek, the Latin, etc. etc., there is not one amongst them, the existence of which may not be traced to the remotest antiquity. They were the common property of the Eastern nations. No revolution or other causality has wrought any perceptible difference in their several forms or delineations; they have passed from one hemisphere to the other intact; have survived dynasties, empires and races; have been borne on the crest of each successive wave of Aryan population in its course toward the West; and having been re-consecrated in later times by their lineal descendants, are still recognized as military and national badges of distinction…

Among the earliest known types is the crux ansata, vulgarly called ‘the key of the Nile’, because of its being found sculptured or otherwise represented so frequently upon Egyptian and Coptic monuments. It has, however, a very much older and more sacred significance than this. It was the symbol of symbols, the mystical Tau, ‘the hidden wisdom,’ not only of the ancient Egyptians but also of the Chaldeans, Phoenicians, Mexicans, Peruvians and of every other ancient people commemorated in history, in either hemisphere, and is formed very similarly to our letter T, with a roundlet, or oval placed immediately above it. Thus, it was figured on the gigantic emerald or glass statue of Serapis, which was transported (293 B.C.) by order of Ptolemy Soter from Sinope on the southern shores of the Black Sea, re-erected within that famous labyrinth which encompassed the banks of Lake Moeris, and destroyed them by the victorious army of Theodosius (A.D. 389) despite the earnest entreaties of the Egyptian priesthood to spare it, because it was the emblem of their god and ‘the life to come….

That each known variety has been derived from a common source and is emblematical of one and the same truth may be inferred from the fact of forms identically the same, whether simple or complex, cropping out in contrary directions, in the Western as well as the Eastern hemisphere.”

Nevertheless, as the recent Zeitgeist film portrays the biblical accounts of Jesus as plagiarizing the story of Horus, Krishna, Mithras, Dionysis and other pagan Gods, without any historical evidence whatsoever as these gods never existed, there are those who interpret the pre-Christian and pagan reverence of the  religious symbol throughout history up until today as proof that the Cross--because it was used and is used by non-believers/non-Christians-- is essentially meaningless despite Jesus' cammoand to "Take up your cross and follow me." Some even go as far as to interpret the cross as a symbol from the devil.

“Satan the devil knew long before Jesus was born that He would die by crucifixion (Numbers 21:4-9; John 3:14; Psalm 22:16). In an attempt to deceive the world and lead people into worshipping a false Christ, the Devil made the cross a popular symbol of worship.

Well, the fact of the matter is that demons hate the Crucifix. There is a reason it is used in exorcisms, and there is a reason, those who worship Satan try to reverse the Catholic mass, defile the Eucharist and mock the Cross. If the Cross was essentially meaningless or powerless, those who hate God wouldn't bother.  Satan's, the great counterfeiter, only power  is his persuasive ability to separate us from God through his genius ability to be whatever you want him to be, until he has hardened your heart to the point of what he believes is no turning back, only he's wrong: as long as you have breath in your body there is turning back thanks to God's great mercy.

Anyway, the Zeitgeist creators, and other Bible skeptics, benefit from the appeal to skeptic fallacy: I doubt therefore I am [superior]. Declaring Myself As A Skeptic Defaults Me Unearned and Unassailable Credibility without me having to lift a finger, or the belief that skeptics are exempt from having to provide authoritative outsider recitation or evidence to support a contended claim or counter-claim, as if skeptics are free of any kind of agenda but to find truth with no burden of proof placed on them.

In reality, no other figure, religious or otherwise, has received even close to the scrutiny that Jesus did and does, not to mention, the New Testament, which has been verified by manuscript evidence to be the most reliable and substantiated document in antiquity.  This alone should be enough to listen to Jesus when He says, "Take up your cross and follow me."

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Godless Society Makes Us Fodder for Parasites

"Do you think I am trying to weave a spell? Perhaps I am; but remember your fairy tales. Spells are used for breaking enchantments as well as for inducing them. And you and I have need of the strongest spell that can be found to wake us from the evil enchantment of worldliness which has been laid upon us for nearly a hundred years. Almost our whole education has been directed to silencing this shy, persistent, inner voice; almost all our modem philosophies have been devised to convince us that the good of man is to be found on this earth." - C. S. Lewis, "The Weight of Glory"

As we approach the end of the second decade of the new millennium, under the banner of progress, evolution, humanism, etc., the ongoing and multidimensional systematic war on mankind and his Creator is accelerating.  But we've become so deeply entrenched in the efficiency/profit-before-people material-carnal world--which has reversed spiritual and moral structures making spiritual and/or theological discernment almost impossible--that we've become blinded as a people, despite all the evidence of this continuous war on our pocketbooks, on our quality of our lives, on our psyches, and most importantly, on our souls.

Be honest with yourself for one moment and take an unflinching look at social reality. You will see overwhelming evidence of "spiritual wickedness in high places."

Just consider all of the declared wars on everything from drugs to cancer to terror to poverty, etc. Despite the trillions of dollars spent on battling diseases and in search of cures, disease rates--cancer, diabetes, autoimmune, etc.-- continue to skyrocket. Despite the trillions of dollars invested in health and medical care, our population may live longer but is sicker than ever. Despite the trillions of dollars poured into the "war on drugs", drug abuse rates are exploding, while drug cartels proliferate. Despite the trillions of dollars channeled into the "war on terror" and invested in greater technocratic surveillance, defense, security, and surveillance to keep us safe, fear levels are at a record high as there seems to be a proliferation of terror plots and terror cells, not to mention the all-powerful "lone gunman" around every corner, who is able to take down vast multitudes in mere seconds no matter how great the obstacles in his way.

If that doesn't convince you, consider the exploding cost of higher education and outrageous student debt as permanent full-time positions are eliminated in favor of temporary part-time work that can't possibly support a family, let alone pay off these permanent student loans. $80,000 to work at Starbucks pouring coffee is an outrage!  Just consider the ever-growing wealth and power of the ruling class as the middle class shrinks into oblivion.

In the October 2000 issue of The American Journal for Public Health Stephen J. Kunitz, MD, PhD, published an article entitled Public Health Then and Now: Globalization States, and the Health of Indigenous Peoples which, in a nutshell, stated that wherever the globalist managerial model is imposed, there is a marked deterioration both in public health, and in the environment itself.

These are just a few examples that demonstrate the results of the stage-managed, mob-manipulated, black-is-white war on us by a shadowy clique of power brokers.

Pathology of culture sprinting to its own demise.  

It's so easy to get caught up in our everyday routines, problems, issues, which, oddly enough, seem to accelerate at the same rate as the technology that is supposed to not only simplify life, but improve health and quality of life. This may sound extreme to the many who have yet to open their eyes to the depth of depravity that surrounds us, however, it is this exponential growth in technology that has enabled an elaborately choreographed escape from reality from which there may be no return.   While it's easy to forget or ignore the depth of the depravity that surrounds us, warping and desensitizing our perspective and distracting us from eternal matters.

Driven by our desires and passions, where no price is too high to pay for happiness and satisfaction, we are blinded to our true spiritual condition. Reality has been replaced with spectacle and cult-of-personality issues of the most trivial banalities.  We have been convinced to please ourselves and the world system instead of living to please God. Has there ever been a culture in recorded history that is as self-absorbed and adept at wasting time as ours? But how did we get to this point?

Parasitic and Predatory Class

Getting through life as a parasite is all about making the most out of the living conditions that you've been dealt, however, what's even better is when the parasite/predator can steer, cultivate and even create a cozy oasis for their parasitic and predaceous lifestyle, and cozy it is for an infinitesimally small part of our population: the parasitic and predaceous power elite.

Given the exponential growth in technology under their control over the last few decades, not to mention their increasing power, wealth, and resources, and ever-growing success in eliminating God, creating these optimal conditions are easier than ever before. And so it is more important than ever to learn more about the these highly adaptive, cunning, diligent parasites and symbionts with an exterior of surprising normality, that live on/in us and the effects that they have on their largely unaware and even fawning and celebrity-obsessed host society. Yes, we've come to worship our parasites.

Tax-Exempt Foundations as a Mechanism for Cultural Revolution

First, let's take a look at a very public modern day example of one of these parasites and their most effective tool, the foundation, which functions as a sort of shadow government: The Rockefellers

In 1708, Johann Peter Rockefeller emigrated from Rhineland Germany to New Jersey.  One of his descendants, William Avery Rockefeller, born in 1810 in Granger New York, known as Doc, was a traveling salesman and horse thief who sold crude oil door to door as a cure for snake bites, impotence and warts. At the age of 40, when he was already married with six children, Wiliam waa accused of raping a 15-year old girl and fled to Cleveland Ohio to avoid prosecution. At the age of 45, he abandoned his wife and six children and married a 20-year old without divorcing his wife. One of those six children, master-strategist and monopolizer John D. Rockefeller, became the robber-baron billionaire of Standard Oil. However, the Rockefellers did not stop with oil.

“I would rather earn one percent off one-hundred people's efforts than one-hundred percent off my own efforts." -- John D. Rockefeller

The Rockefeller initial foray into the field of eugenics was The Eugenics Record Office in Cold Springs Habor, NY, established in 1910, but it was, three years later, the incorporation of the Rockefeller Foundation that bought its pervasive global influence in so many areas of life it's impossible to list them all.  For instance, they created the Institutional Health Commission and American Hygeine Association to direct the scientific study of biological and social factors that influence human sexual conduct.   It's amazing how easily people have been duped into unwittingly thinking political, philanthropic organizations and political movements were created to help humanity.

“Rene Wormser, Reese’s legal assistant throughout the [Reece Committees } hearings documented in a book published in 1957 [Foundations: Their Power and Influence] not only the dangers posed by foundations to the institutions of the republic but also the influence of those foundations and their political allies bringing to bear on the nations cultural institutions. The great foundations--Ford, Rockefeller, Carnegie--were for the most part founded as a result of the New Deal as an attempt to prevent the flow of family money into the coffers of federal government under the tax policies instituted by Roosevelt. Created from the wealth of the nation’s major capitalists the foundation soon applied the techniques of the cartel and the trust to the flow of information and the reconfiguration of culture.  The foundations would put up money which would serve as venture capital in the politics of change. Foundations like those run by Rockefeller brothers would fund projects like Kinsey sex surveys which would've otherwise been impossible to support given the constraints of democratically elected government or the simple satisfying of market forces. Foundations would fund research which they found congenial and almost invariable involve instigating social change away from a position of congruity with the moral law. They involve more often than not, as the Kinsey studies did, the substitution of “scientific” data for moral principles and then when the project received a modicum of public acceptance foundations would turn the funding of the projects over to the government. This was by and large the mechanism of cultural revolution in this country. The foundations would fund the undermining of some law, generally having to do with sex, the family, morals or religion. The courts would remove any legal roadblocks and the press would proselytize whatever the social change entailed. Given widespread dissemination to the “scientific” surveys which foundations funded and eventually the government would set up programs based on  what the foundations proposed funded by government money. -- Dr. E. Michael Jones, "John Cardinal Krol and the Cultural Revolution."

Killing God is Essential

Since the time of the Enlightenment, there has been an attempt to erase man’s natural orientation toward the eternal, toward God, and unfortunately, it’s been quite successful.  That is, thanks to the wealthy and powerful ruling elite throughout the ages, who have covertly orchestrated a system that corrupts our environment, corrupts our thinking and emotions and finally, steal our souls. Believe it or not, it is the so-called "philanthropic" foundation that is one of their greatest tools. These foundations, cloaked in altruistic concern for human welfare and advancement, not only shelter the wealth of the powerful, they function to distort reality and to steer and create a culture that will fulfill their agenda to manipulate and control the fate of mankind. This parasitic ruling class-- culture creators--with the help of their "righteous" foundations using their network of tendrils that can squeeze through the nooks and crannies of the host's body (society at large) have worked very hard to steward the narcissism and moral decline of the modern world that is so necessary to the kind of vampiric spirituality--the antithesis of Christianity--that this class embraces.

Hence, today, it is no coincidence that the vampire, a blasphemous mockery of Jesus Christ, has been transformed into a hero through books, movies, and television. Both Christ and Dracula deal with blood and eternal life, however, whereas Christ shed his blood so that his followers could have eternal life, Dracula shed his follower's blood so that he could have eternal life. Vampirism is a reworking of Christianity according to the canons of social Darwinism which the ruling class believes in 100%. In a reversal of Christian order that the vampire creates, man achieves immortality through immorality, and by affecting others through lust. Christianity exalts love. Vampirism, Darwin's survival of the fittest pushed to its extreme, exalts the hunger of desire.

Social Justice Without God

Now that God has become marginalized, an afterthought, incorporated into nature, undefined, etc., our new "gods" need a positive face and that face is "social justice". Every issue, every agenda of these new gods is cloaked in social justice, because every agenda no matter how dehumanizing, no matter how unjust can be made to appear humanitarian, to appear like social justice, especially given the rapid-fire technological development in our Orwellian era, where war is peace, love is hate, and so on. For instance, when wars on: terror, poverty, cancer, drugs, you name it only results in more terror, poverty, cancer, drugs, you name it, they continue on ad infinitum. In other words, nothing ever gets resolved in these wars, except more of whatever they're trying to eliminate. Yet, we as a people continue to support these wars not only with our tax money but oftentimes, with either our willful ignorance or all-out defense of these so-called wars that exacerbate the problem.

Exploited class made involuntary fodder for parasites.

Like fungi that infect and zombify insects, and parasitic nematodes that turn an insect's innards into a soupy baby food for the next generation of killer worms, the parasitic class and their allies have not only drained our resources, they have, with their constant propaganda, indoctrinating institutions, smart technology, and enormous arsenal of psychological, physical, and spiritual toxins--chemicals, GMOs, vaccines, pharmaceuticals, industrial pollution, electrosmog, etc. -- at their disposal, infected, zombified us, casting their spells from which there might be no return because we forget our reason for being.

There's a good reason for being so imposing (ruling class) upon their host (us), as the more space they take up, the more "eggs" they can produce.  Just consider tech and social media companies who hire attention engineers who borrow principles from Las Vegas Casino gambling to make their products as addictive as possible.

The corrupting results of misplaced human ambition that ignores one’s true aptitudes who have misjudged their abilities Commerce, however necessary, however lucrative, as it deprives the manners, corrupts the language...

Remember, the powers that have ruled the worldly system/rule the worldly system know the bible inside and out, especially Adam and Eve in the Garden and Jesus in the Wilderness. They learned from the tactics of the Evil One. They learned the pattern of temptation and the mechanism of sin. They learned from the serpent who played word games with Eve while Adam stood by and watched, who warped the Word of God by misquoting the command not to eat the forbidden fruit, and who outright lied about the command and intention of God in that command--health-and-wealth prosperity gospel, anyone? They learned how to purposefully mishandle the Word of God, and how to woo us by sweet-sounding words that camouflage their true intent. They learned how to peddle false promises and entice through sin's slick suggestions. And most importantly, those who rule us understand the fallen nature of man, how sin so easily entangles us...they understand the flesh and spirit battle that rage in our bodies.  

So how does one stay clean even though they are living in the same invested environment? It's not easy, seemingly impossible, but in my humble opinion, the answer to that is Jesus Christ, who promised us eternal salvation if we would just choose Him.

“Consequently a necessary step for most of us in the work of renouncing This World is to become aware of it as an engineered control system. Thus the act of investigating the structure and exposing the agendas of the New World Order, for those dedicated to the spiritual path and also called to this work, can be of direct service to the contemplative life. . . . If we can witness the darkness of This World with apatheia, with detachment and equanimity, then we will have accomplished the greater part of the work of ‘shadow-integration’; we will be led, God willing, to the point of supreme nausea where we can vomit the World, along with the Ego, its master and slave, out of our souls forever.” --Charles Upton, Vectors of the Counter-Initiation: The Course and Destiny of Inverted Spirituality, p. 330

Links/Sources:

Ten Things I Wish Jesus Never Said

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New Age "Prosperity Gospel" Trumps Christ?

“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 
And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. 2 Corinthians 11 v 13-15  (Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing)

“If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.”  Matthew 19:21

“He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it." Matthew 16:25

“Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God." Matthew 19:24

“ My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.” John 18:36

“ For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Mark 8:36

“Do not love the world or the things in the world If anyone loves the world the love of the Father is not in him. 1 John 2:15

“If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." Luke 9:23

“Enter ye into at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in there at:
Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, bu inwardly they are ravening wolves.
Ye shall know them by their fruits. Matthew 7 v 14-16b

Do they sound like the words of a God who wants you to gain the world, and lose your soul?  Yet so many "Christians"  today truly believe in the false teachings of these predatory prosperity gospel preachers, who twist the Word of God in order to gain profit and power for themselves. How do they do it?  It seems they play to that which is most narcissistic and corporeal in us. I mean, these evangelists do not even try to hide their great wealth.  Why should they? They're blessed, but certainly not by Jesus. So if not Jesus, by whom?

Moreover, considering the almost complete dominance of New Age "Christianity" in the mainstream media, not to mention the political realm, one must consider if there is an even more powerful agenda besides the greed of individual preachers.  Especially now that one of its followers has been elected president. That is the "longtime disciple of “the great Norman Vincent Peale”--Donald Trump.   This, of course,  should come as no surprise when the fastest growing segment of "Christianity" in recent years has been among churches who preach the anti-Christian "prosperity gospel", an oxymoron if there ever was one.




Prosperity Gospel and The New Age:"Word of Faith" and "Positive Confession"

“The fastest growing segment of professing Christianity in recent years has been among churches connected with the Positive Confession movement or Word-Faith movement (all part of the modern Charismatic movement). It has involved two distinct but closely related factions: the Norman Vincent Peale/Robert Schuller Positive-Possibility thinkers/Positive Mental Attitude, with their roots in New Thought; and the Kenneth Hagin/Kenneth Copeland Positive Confession and Word-Faith groups, which have their roots in E.W. Kenyon, William Branham, and the Manifest Sons of God/Latter Rain movement. Well-known names among its leaders are E.W. Kenyon, Charles Capps, Kenneth Hagin, Kenneth Copeland, Frederick K.C. Price, Robert Tilton, and David [Paul] Yonggi Cho [also: Joyce Meyer, Joel Osteen, Paula White, Rick Warren, T.D. Jakes, Ed Young, Benny Hinn, Michael Murdoch, etc.], . It does not yet constitute a new denomination, but it certainly represents innovative teachings outside of mainstream Christianity. The situation is so serious now because of the dominance over the so-called Christian media achieved by the teachers of Positive/Possibility Thinking and Positive Confession.

D.R. McConnell points out that "any new religious movement [within Protestantism] must bear the scrutiny of two criteria: biblical fidelity and historical orthodoxy." Regrettably, the Positive Confession movement fails on both counts. The historical roots of this movement (which Charles Farah has called "Faith Formula Theology") lie in the occult, and most recently, in New Thought and its off-shoot, the Mind Science cults. Its Biblical basis is found only in the peculiar interpretations of its own leaders, not in generally accepted Christian theology.

- As the name "Positive Confession"/"Word-Faith" implies, this movement teaches that faith is a matter of what we say more than whom we trust or what truths we embrace and affirm in our hearts. The term "positive confession" refers to the teaching that words have creative power. What you say, Word-Faith teachers claim, determines everything that happens to you. Your "confessions," that is, the things you say -- especially the favors you demand of God -- must all be stated positively and without wavering. Then God is required to answer. Word-Faith believers view their positive confessions as an incantation by which they can conjure up anything they desire: "Believe it in your heart; say it with your mouth. That is the principle of faith. You can have what you say" (Charismatic Chaos, pp. 281, 285).

This is at the heart of the Positive Confession movement today, also known as the "name-it-and-claim-it" gospel. The Positive Confession movement is nothing but a charismatic form of Christian Science. This can be substantiated by simply comparing the similarities in their common beliefs. Positive Confession is basically warmed-over New Thought dressed in evangelical/charismatic language. Positive Confession's basic beliefs can be summarized as follows:

1. Faith is a force that both God and man can use: "Faith is a force just like electricity or gravity" (Copeland), and it is the substance out of which God creates whatever is (Capps). God uses faith, and so may we in exactly the same way in order to produce the same results through obedience to the same "laws of faith" (Capps) that God applied in creation. "You have the same ability [as God has] dwelling or residing on the inside of you" (Capps). "We have all the capabilities of God. We have His faith" (Copeland).

2. Faith's force is released by speaking words: "Words are the most powerful thing in the universe" because they "are containers" that "carry faith or fear and they produce after their kind" (Capps). God operates by these very same laws. "God had faith in His own words ... God had faith in His faith, because He spoke words of faith and they came to pass. That faith force was transported by words ... the God-kind-of-faith ... is released by the words of your mouth" (Hagin). "Creative power was in God's mouth. It is in your mouth also" (Capps).

3. Man is a "little god" in God's class: "Man was designed or created by God to be the god of this world" (Tilton, Hagin, Capps). "Adam was the god of this world ... [but he] sold out to Satan, and Satan became the god of this world" (Hagin). "We were created to be gods over the earth, but remember to spell it with a little 'g'" (Tilton, Hagin, Capps). "Adam was created in God's class ... to rule as a god ... by speaking words" (Copeland). "Man was created in the God class ... We are a class of gods ... God himself spawned us from His innermost being ... We are in God; so that makes us part of God (2 Cor 5:17)" (Copeland).

4. Anyone -- occultist or Christian -- can use the faith force: Because man is a little god "in God's class: very capable of operating on the same level of faith as God" (Capps), and "because all men are spirit beings" (Hagin), therefore anyone, whether Christian or pagan, can release this "faith force" by speaking words if he only believes in his words as God believes in His (Hagin). "God is a faith God. God releases His faith in Words, [and we must do the same:] ... Everything you say [positive or negative] will come to pass" (Capps). "Spiritual things are created by WORDS. Even natural, physical things are created by WORDS" (Hagin).

5. You get what you confess: The vital key is confessing, or speaking aloud, and thereby, releasing the force of faith. "You get what you say" (Hagin, Hunter). "Only by mouth confession can faith power be released, allowing tremendous things to happen" (Cho). "Remember, the key to receiving the desires of your heart is to make the words of your mouth agree with what you want" (Copeland). "Whatever comes out of your mouth shall be produced in your life" (Tilton). "They're [his two children] 30-some years of age today, and I don't believe I prayed more than half a dozen times for both of them in all these years. Why? Because you can have what you say -- and I had already said it!" (Hagin).

6. Never make a negative confession: The tongue "can kill you, or it can release the life of God within you ... whether you believe right or wrong, it is still the law" (Capps). There is power in "the evil fourth dimension" (Cho). If you confess sickness you get it, if you confess health you get it; whatever you say you get" (Hagin). "Faith is as a seed ... you plant it by speaking it" (Capps). "The spoken word ... releases power -- power for good or power for evil" (Bashan). Therefore, it is very important never to speak anything negative but only to make a positive confession -- hence the name of the Positive Confession movement.

- Positive Confession leaders have a wrong view of faith: Instead of trust in God as its object, it is a metaphysical force they trust. They have a wrong view of God: He is not sufficient in Himself, but can only do what He does by using this universal faith-force in obedience to certain cosmic laws. They have a wrong view of man: He is a little god in God's class who has the same powers as God and can use the same force of faith by obedience to the same laws that God also must obey. They also have a wrong view of redemption and the cross of Christ.

- Word-Faith teachers owe their ancestry to groups like Christian Science, Swedenborgianism, Theosophy, Science of Mind, and New Thought -- not to classical Pentecostalism. It reveals that at their very core, Word-Faith teachings are corrupt. Their undeniable derivation is cultish, not Christian. The sad truth is that the gospel proclaimed by the Word-Faith movement is not the gospel of the New Testament. Word-Faith doctrine is a mongrel system, a blend of mysticism, dualism, and gnosticism that borrows generously from the teachings of the metaphysical cults. The Word-Faith movement may be the most dangerous false system that has grown out of the charismatic movement so far, because so many charismatics are unsure of the finality of Scripture (Charismatic Chaos, p. 290).

- Linked to the Positive Confession movement is the concept of Positive Mental Attitude (PMA). PMA has become the major link between sorcery and Christianity. It is the human potential movement that incorporates the age old Eastern mystique that all men can acquire godhood, that "we can achieve anything we conceive." But the Bible says: "With God all things are possible." PMA, however, declares: "With man all things are possible," which means either that we do not need God or that we are God. Paul said, "I can do all things through Him [Christ] who strengthens me." The New Age/PMA "Christ" is a state of consciousness rather than a historic Person. The Christian has a positive attitude not because he believes in the power of positive thinking, but because he is trusting in God. The PMA that is promoted in today's New Age, however, is based upon humanistic psychology's first article of faith: "Human potential is infinite!" The real Christian is happy and positive in all circumstances because he believes that God, who alone is infinite, loves and cares for him. These two concepts -- Christian and PMA -- are mutually contradictory, in spite of the sincere people who believe they are the same thing expressed in different language.

- Those directly responsible for bringing PMA into the professing church are Norman Vincent Peale and Robert Schuller. Napoleon Hill and W. Clement Stone, the originators or the PMA concept, talk about "God" in their books, but their "God" is a metaphysical "Divine Power" that can be tapped into through mind-power techniques (from visualization to positive self-talk and other forms of self-hypnosis and self-image psychology). Hill and Stone don't substitute PMA for faith, but promote an even more dangerous idea: that PMA and faith are one and the same, that believing in the power of the mind is somehow the same as believing in God; that the human mind is some kind of magic talisman that wields a metaphysical force with infinite potential because, somehow, it is part of what they call Infinite Intelligence. This is the "God" of the mind-science cults and of the New Age.

Note: There are many faithful believers who live modestly and will never have more than the basic necessities of life. Yet they are content to have what they have. The prosperity teachers ridicule such and say that they only have that little because they don't trust God for more; the fact of their contentment (which is highly regarded by God) is looked upon as a lack of faith. And they are chastised because they haven't got the faith to get more so they can give more. Ultimately, the giving is expected to go into the coffers of the prosperity teacher; they may give to others, but not apart from also giving to the prosperity teacher.

All the prosperity teachers use a particular fear tactic to establish their rule for giving -- if you don't give, God will curse you. Many also teach that if one wishes to use the prosperity gospel for selfish ends -- to acquire personal wealth without giving -- it isn't going to work. If, however, one uses the prosperity gospel with the intention of acquiring wealth for unselfish purposes (i.e., giving to the prosperity teacher, no doubt), God's promise is that He will shower abundant financial blessings upon him.

There is not a single prosperity teacher who can rightly divide the Word of Truth sufficiently to be qualified as a teacher in the Church. They are renegades who present their own theories as absolute, Biblical authority. They allegorize, theorize, and spiritualize the Word of God; the only time they approach it from a literal standpoint is if it fits in with something they just happen to be saying that's true. Bottom line, the fact is that to deny the reality and to attempt to alter reality with one's positive words and/or thoughts is witchcraft; it is not Biblical. (Source: Media Spotlight -- v.13, #1, 12/92.)

* The material in this report, unless otherwise noted, was excerpted and/or adapted from two books: Beyond Seduction (pp. 51-53) and The Seduction of Christianity (pp. 28, 217).

I will be the first to say that much of what these preachers say feels right, feels good, makes us feel secure, and much of what they say is right, and does make sense. Especially when they preach tolerance and love, preach against hate and violence and refuse to judge, etc. It doesn't seem that Jesus would have a problem with that, right? Wrong. Because at the same time they are undermining and twisting His word,  doing exactly what Jesus preached against: gaming not only gaining the world, teaching us that is what Jesus wants us to do. The material world is their kingdom...let them have it.

Links:

A Theological Analysis of the New Age Movement

General Word-Faith Articles

New World Order or Occult Secret Destiny?

Beware! the New Age Movement Is More Than Self-Indulgent Silliness

Saved From New World Religion

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Mormanism: Temple of Doom?

How do intelligent, well-educated, and mostly well to do people--relatively speaking--end up with a cult-like belief system that started less than 200 years ago by one megalomaniac man, Joseph Smith, a sorcerer "treasure seeker,"  who claimed to have had a "Star Wars" like vision? Who claimed that he was called of God to re-establish Christ's true Church on the earth? And how could this obvious cult, who so thoroughly perverts the gospel of Jesus Christ, have formed into a major world religion of considerable respectability--so much so that a wealthy Mormon had a good chance at becoming president of the U.S.? Is this just another branch of Christianity with conservative, family-based values, or something much more sinister?

It all started in 1820, in upstate New York, when a man named Joseph Smith claimed to have had a vision--not taught in the church for 22 years after it happened, nor did it appear in his mother's biographical sketch of him-- from God that supposedly resolved his sense of religious confusion and personal questions and that relayed to him that all his sins were forgiven. In 1823, he received another vision that revealed the location of a buried book of golden plates. In 1827, Smith "transcribed" some of the Egyptian characters engraved on the plates (conveniently, no one in North America could decipher Egyptian at the time...more on that later). And finally in 1830, his "divine" translations were published.

Included amongst his almighty revelations from God were visions of John the Baptist, Elijah, and the voices of Peter, James and John, who confirmed his translations (John the Baptist) and who ordained (Peter, James, John) Smith and his friend, Oliver Cowdery to a higher priesthood.  In Smith's world, angelic revelations timed themselves perfectly with his desires.

In 1912, eight Egyptologists were asked to check Joseph Smith's translation of the sacred texts. Their conclusion when "held up to the merciless light of modern scholarship" was that Smith's translation was a "work of the imagination...its authenticity has been destroyed completely."

More from the Egyptologists in 1912:

"It is difficult to deal with Joseph Smith's impudent fraud." -- Dr. A.H. Sayce of Oxford University

"A Figaro of nonsense."--Dr. Arthur Mace, Assistant Curator of the Metropolitan Museum.

"The interpretation of the plates displays ignorance." Dr. John Peters, Univ. of Pennsylvania, who conducted an expedition to Babylon in 1888 could find nothing but amusement in the Mormon prophet's work

"None of those, either human or divine, who helped Joseph Smith translations had any conception of the most commonplace Egyptian characters." -- Prof C.A.B. Mercer, custodian of the Hibbard collection of Egyptian reproductions at the Western Theological Seminary

And the most interesting of all in my humble opinion:

"The papyrus which Joseph Smith declared to be the book of Abraham and explained in his fantastic way are parts of the well-known [Tibetan] Book of the Dead." -- Dr. Edward Meyer, University of Berlin

You must remember that in Mormonism, a living prophet is better than a dead one. This means that Mormon doctrine can change, sometimes, turning the original belief on its head. For instance, Joseph Smith said a Mormon cannot get into heaven without more than one wife. Later, when the Mormons desired statehood, they were told they must give up the practice of polygamy. Well, guess what? The "prophet" at that time received a revelation that told him polygamy was wrong. So, to the public, anyway, he declared that Mormons with more than one wife will be excommunicated.

Almost every law, article, rule, practice of the LDS Church is anti-Christian. Take the Law of Eternal Progression, , which is the cornerstone doctrine of the Mormon church, as well as many other occultic religions.  It's the idea that you can become a god.  Christian doctrine says the complete opposite, but Mormons, who claim to be Christian, accept this lie as truth, believing in a large number of man-gods who, now ruling over other planets, were once simply men, now ascended to godhood. How is that in any way, Christian?

As man is, God once was, and as God is, man may become. Law of Eternal Progression

"Brethren 225,000 of you are here tonight. I suppose 225,000 of you may become GODS. There seems to be plenty of space out there in the universe." Mormon Prophet Spencer W Kimball, General Conference, Oct 1975. Doctrine and Covenants (DC) 132: 20 Then shall they be gods,

Another thing, why do Mormons need a "temple recommend" to even enter a Mormon temple? Name one Christian church who does that.  What's more, the 8th Article of  the Mormon Faith denies the Bible is inerrant, claiming  the Book of Mormon to be perfect. Smith actually "corrected" many passages of the bible, such as Luke 10:22. 

Smith's concept of the trinity --the core of Christian doctrine--that is when he believed in the trinity, changed constantly to the point where he finally decidied it did not exist.  He replaced it with a polytheistic universe. God the Father is an extraterrestrial who lives on the planet, Kolob. "As man is, God once was. As God is, man may become." Also, God can be fired.

Did you ever wonder why Mormons have the largest genealogical record of any institution in the world, why they're so good at keeping genealogical records?  Well, it's due to their belief in baptism for the dead.  It is the duty of every Mormon to do their genealogy back at least four generations and then take those ancestors and baptize them by proxy, "do their endowments." Oh yeah, up until this time the ancestors are in "spirit prison," just waiting for you to liberate them.  They use children to substitute for the dead people they're baptizing.

Undertones of the occult abound in the Mormon church. For example, the inverted hexagram, where instead of the one point sticking up, two points stick up, is considered one of the most profoundly evil symbols in all of magic, yet it's on a Mormon temple in Logan Utah. And what kind of religion asks its members to pantomime their own murders? Up until 1990, the Mormon endowment temple ceremony required the members to do this. They stopped this as well as some other questionable practices after conducting a survey as to why members were leaving.

The LDS church has always been politically active. There is a high percentage of Mormons in the CIA, FBI, secret service and amongst the highest levels of presidential advisers. At one time four out five Joint Chiefs were Mormon. Now we have Glenn Beck doing his best to mainstream Mormonism. What's more, the Washington DC temple, located in Silver Springs Maryland, on the fifth floor has an exact replica of the oval office and corresponding telemetry so powerful that they actually have to reroute airplanes around the temple.

"Mormonism seems as American as apple pie, and Mormons seem to be the perfect citizens with their close families, high morals, patriotism, Boy Scout programs, Tabernacle Choir, and conservative politics. A Los Angeles Times article implied that Mormons have recently gained the image of "super-Americans . . . [who] appear to many to be 'more American than the average American." [vii]This may explain why such a high proportion of Mormons find their way into government. Returned LDS missionaries have "the three qualities the CIA wants: foreign language ability, training in a foreign country, and former residence in a foreign country."[viii] Utah (and particularly BYU) is one of the prime recruiting areas for the CIA. According to BYU spokesman Dr. Gary Williams, "We've never had any trouble placing anyone who has applied to the CIA. Every year they take almost anybody who applies."[ix] He also admitted that this has created problems with a number of foreign countries, who have complained about the "pretty good dose of [Mormon] missionaries who've gone back to the countries they were in as Central Intelligence agents."[x]

This may at least partially explain the reported close tie between the Mormon Church and the CIA.[xi] A disproportionate number of Mormons arrive at the higher levels of the CIA, FBI, military intelligence, armed forces, and all levels of city, state, and federal governments, including the Senate, Congress, Cabinet, and White House Staff. Sincere and loyal citizens, most of them may be unaware of the secret ambition of The Brethren. What could be better than having such patriots as these serving in strategic areas of government and national security?

The Council of Ytfif, originally called the Illuminati, was an elite secret order within the highest levels of the LDS church designed to bring about LDS rule of the U.S. Within in this group Smith was crowned king of the United States. This group later morphed into the Freeman Institute and National Center for Constitutional Studies in the 1970s, later changed to the National Center of Constitutional Studies in the 1980s, which still maintains its political agenda as best it can.

Furthermore, the oath of vengeance (or law of vengeance) is an oath that was made by participants in the Endowment ritual of the LDS Church in1845, in which participants vowed to pray that God would avenge the U.S. for the blood of the prophets Joseph Smith, Jr. and Hyrum Smith, who were assassinated in 1844 by a mob. Yes, Mitt Romney took this oath as he was once a Mormon bishop in Boston.  Good thing Mitt Romney didn't get elected, right?

Let's not forget the issue of polygamy, which despite what you're told, still exists to this day.  Joseph Smith married at least 33 women,  the youngest being 14-years old when he was 37-years old. Of those 33 women, 11 were already married to good active living members of the LDS church.  Smith would often send these men on missions and marry their wives while they were gone. Moreover, Smith did not treat his extra wives like wives, except for having sexual relations. They did they live with him, nor did he support them.  Upon his death, he was married to 27 women.

Apostle, John Taylor, who later became the third president of the church lied in a public debate with protestant ministers in France in 1850, when he boldly denied Mormons were practicing polygamy; he had 12 wives at this time. So, today, it is estimated that at least 50,000 people live in polygamist families in North America, solely because Joseph Smith received a revelation from God commanding him to do it.

Don't get me wrong. This is not a criticism of the Mormon people. Most LDS members are very sincere in their belief,  are very good hard-working people who actually have the right idea on some things, such as taking care of their own. Poor Mormons do not suffer the same fate that other poor Americans do.  However, it's very troublesome that this religion masks itself as Christianity when it's clearly not even close. 








Links for more information:

More Truth Foundation

Mormon Think The links page on this site provides all the best critic sites from both sides of the argument.

Richard Packham

Rethinking Mormonism 

Utah Lighthouse Ministries

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The Christianity that Denies Jesus Christ.

This is Gale Riplinger's exhaustive six-year collation of new Bible versions, their underlying Greek manuscripts, editions, and editors is culminated by this video. It objectively and methodically documents the hidden alliance between new versions and the New Age Movement's One World Religion. The emerging new Christianity - with its substitution of riches for righteousness, a crown for a cross, and an imitation for a new creation - is shown to be a direct result of the wording in new versions. Gale exposes new version editors' in agreement with Luciferians, occultists, and New Age philosophy in mental institutions, seance parlors, prison cells, and court rooms for heresy trials, and most shocking of all; denying that salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ.

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The Way of the Cross Co-opted By the Way of the Sword

Is there a single instance in all of Scripture where Jesus or even a follower of Jesus took up a sword to fight against another man? Oh yeah, once. Peter drew his sword, and Jesus told him to put it away. And didn't Jesus say things like, "turn the other cheek", and "love your enemy"? I do think He did.  Not exactly the actions and rhetoric of a hawk spouting the doctrine of preemptive military operations.

"And behold, one of those who were with Jesus reached and drew out his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear. 52Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. 53“Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels? 54“How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?” - Matthew 26:51

It's very clear that Jesus' life and teaching were in sharp contrast to the imperial language of war texts, yet, the militarization of Christianity marches on. Since 2004,  the U.S. Military endorsed special soldier bibles, complete with official U.S. military emblems from all four branches circulate as as the official religious text of the military, endorsing a profession that is completely antithetical to the teachings of Jesus. It's called the Holman Christian Standard Bible.

Following a request filed by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) under the Freedom of Information Act, the foundation discovered that the U.S. Military had given authorization to LifeWay Christian Resources, a subsidiary of the Southern Baptist Convention - the largest Baptist denomination in the world, in 2003 - allowing for reproduction of the emblems, an action that stood in direct violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Upon investigation, each branch of the military responded in succession with the notification that permission to use each branch’s imagery had been revoked.

This HCSB Military Bible contained material merging Evangelical symbolism and theology with national and military iconography and anthems. It also contained “quotations, prayers, and inspiration” from figures ranging from George Washington and President George W. Bush to various historical figures from each of the respective branches of the U.S. Armed Services. It is published by LifeWay Christian Resources’ Holman Bible Publishers, a subsidiary of the Evangelical fundamentalist Southern Baptist Bible Convention.

Official U.S. Military Emblems No Longer Allowed on Holman Military Bibles

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Supply Side Jesus

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Making Sense of Suffering in a Post Modern World

Life is filled with suffering. That's a given. Despite the fact that some of us suffer more than others, there is no escaping it, and this - evil and suffering - present the greatest obstacle to faith in God, especially in modern and post-modern America.

And let's face it, most of us lose more than we win. But what if there was a way to win by losing? Well, in the audio version of the book below, Making Sense Out of Suffering, by Peter Kreeft, you may begin to look at suffering and pain in a very different way.   I know I did. And you don't have to be Catholic or Christian to read as he - albeit with 100% Christian bias - compares and contrasts all the different religions, philosophies, ets.

If you find that hard to believe, too good to be true, know that even the atheist Ivan Karamazov understands that hope. He says,

I believe like a child that suffering will be healed and made up for, that all the humiliating absurdity of human contradictions will vanish like a pitiful mirage, like the despicable fabrication of the impotent and infinitely small Euclidean mind of man, that in the world's finale, at the moment of eternal harmony, something so precious will come to pass that it will suffice for all hearts, for the comforting of all resentments, for the atonement of all the crimes of humanity, of all the blood that they've shed; that it will make it not only possible to forgive but to justify all that has happened.

Why then does Ivan remain an atheist? Because though he believes, he does not accept. He is not a doubter; he is a rebel. Like his own character the Grand Inquisitor, Ivan is angry at God for not being kinder. That is the deepest source of unbelief: not the intellect but the will.

Often using the Socratic technique of dialogue between himself and a very skeptical prospective reader, Kreeft brings together a variety of novelists, poets, prophets, philosophers and scriptures and he gives, what I think, is one of the best answers - if not the best - to the question for all time, if God exists, why is there so much suffering?  He masterfully exposes the fallacious thinking of modern times in a thought-provoking chapter on why it is most, if not all of us cannot understand suffering. He urges us to view ourselves as protagonists in the midst of our own life stories, where, maybe not in this world, good finally triumphs, as Christians believe.

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The Death of Humility: Becoming God.

Is there an esoteric agenda that we, the mostly complacent white people (marginalized minorities - especially poor blacks - are already well aware of the diabolical nature of those in charge as they have been their targets for centuries), are helping to forward in absolute ignorance? Could it be that "transhumanism" - a term coined by Julian Huxley, a prominent eugenicist - upon closer inspection, is really a repackaged form of eugenics? After all, both transhumanism and eugenics seek to breed better human beings, and desire to perfect humanity through science.

“Initially, however, the greatest advantages will go to those who have the resources, the skills, and the willingness to learn to use new tools. One can speculate that some technologies may cause social inequalities to widen. For example, if some form of intelligence amplification becomes available, it may at first be so expensive that only the wealthiest can afford it. The same could happen when we learn how to genetically enhance our children. Those who are already well off would become smarter and make even more money. This phenomenon is not new. Rich parents send their kids to better schools and provide them with resources such as personal connections and information technology that may not be available to the less privileged. Such advantages lead to greater earnings later in life and serve to increase social inequalities.”

Scientism, the religion of the future, is the practice of science as religion, and is currently the religion of the elites, whether they admit to it or not. Achieving "godhood" is their ultimate goal and if history has anything to say about it,  this envisioned “technotopia” will be off-limits to the masses.

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Are We Cultural Hostages to the Technotronic Era and the "New Age Movement"

If you don't know where you came from, it's hard to figure out where you are going, because you have no context. The same is true for concepts, religions, and beliefs to which you subscribe. What is their history?  Where did it come from?  As Aristotle once said, "If you would understand anything, observe its beginning and its development". In other words, knowledge of the past is a key to understanding the present, which brings me to the New Age Movement (NAM) What is it? Where did it come from? Why, all of a sudden, is there no escaping it?

Personally, as a Christian, or more specifically, a Roman Catholic, I am always questioning: What about the vast history of the world before Jesus? Why did He wait so long?   Was the Vatican infiltrated by the Romans after the fall of their empire? If so, how much of Christianity actually remains? What about the vast number of people who have never heard of Jesus? What happens to them? Was Jesus gay? Jesus said rich men have a very slim chance of going to heaven. Well, in comparison to the rest of the world (not the US), I am rich. What's in it for me? If I'm not going to Heaven (that question, right there, will probably send me straight to hell)?

Read more and see documentary...

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Demonizing Homosexuality in the Name of Jesus Christ is Paradoxically Oxymoronic

Updated again: This poor woman can't even go to the park.

When there were two men relaxing at the side of the pool unnaturally close to each other, effeminately rubbing elbows and exchanging doe-eyes, I was again anxiously watching my children hoping they wouldn't ask questions. They don't see Daddy do that with anyone but Mommy. We haven't been back to the pool for a couple of weeks, except once but it rained. The truth is, now I don't really want to go back.

I have no words...Oh wait, yes I do. Thank goodness she won't be bumping into Jesus anytime soon. What the hell would she tell her children when they saw Jesus unnaturally close to his male disciples as he effeminately rubs their feet, exchaning, what can only be called, doe eyes?  

Not to mention, no one really knows the sexuality of Jesus, if He even had one.  The Secret Gospel According to Mark implies Jesus might even be gay, Himself.

According to Morton Smith, of Columbia University, a manuscript that he found at the Mar Saba monastery near Jerusalem in 1958, showed that the full text of St. Mark chapter 10 (between verses 34 and 35 in the standard version of the Bible) includes the passage:

"And the youth, looking upon him (Jesus), loved him and beseeched that he might remain with him. And going out of the tomb, they went into the house of the youth, for he was rich. And after six days, Jesus instructed him and, at evening, the youth came to him wearing a linen cloth over his naked body. And he remained with him that night, for Jesus taught him the mystery of the Kingdom of God".

Updated again: Should Gay People Be Allowed to Marry? - After a Maine state law permitting same-sex marriage was repealed at the polls Tuesday, the New York Times asked the question to students 13 years and older: Tell us what you think about same-sex marriage. Do you think gay marriage should be permitted or not? Why? Do you think it will be allowed nationwide in your lifetime?

Updated: James Lawson, an architect of the civil rights movement, sees a similarity today in attitudes toward lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, he said while addressing a gathering and panel discussion hosted by Soulforce.

“There is a great need for us to link the ‘isms’: anti-Semitism, racism, sexism and now heterosexism. They come from the same kind of place.”

Imagine being told you are not allowed to love who you love, not allowed to marry who you love, and are not allowed to express the way you feel about who you love. That there is something wrong with you for falling in love with who you fall in love with.

Jesus, an unmarried man, who spent the majority of his adult life surrounded by twelve men, who made no secret of his love for those men, preached about love, first and foremost. Homosexuality is about love, first and foremost.

Yet, many people, in the name of Jesus Christ, preach hate in order to abolish this type of love...the type of love involving two people of the same gender. These men and women experience the same deep and/or intense affection for each other as people of opposite gender. They just don't fit into society's idea of what romantic love should look like. So, we bash it...outlaw it...make sure it remains not only forbidden and inferior to heterosexual love, but claim it is somehow damaging to heterosexual love.

Hate is encouraged among those who want to curtail the rights of others who fall in love with their own gender, and what's even worse is that the hating or judging of homosexuals -- "Judge not and you shall not be judged" -- is often the central focus of attention of Christianity, at the expense of almost everything else Jesus Christ clearly stood for.

Promiscuity is often given as a reason for condemning homosexuality...that it's not so much about love, as it is sex. Really? If that's the case, then why does a Denmark study on divorce, where the vast majority of gay marriages are male-male, show a much lower divorce rate amongst homosexuals? The rate of divorce for gay men is the lowest at 14%, compared to 23% of all lesbian marriages, and 46% of all heterosexual marriages.

Homosexuality does not promote promiscuity...if anything, the prohibitive stance society takes against homosexual love is responsible for elevating the rate of indiscriminate sex practiced amongst gay men, in particular. However, keep in mind that that rate is more than likely, exaggerated a great deal.

What's truly remarkable is despite all the hate preached about homosexuality in the name of Jesus, more often than not, gay men and women build loving relationships with who they fall in love with anyway, proving that love can conquer all.

So, for those of us who insist on strictly adhering to Biblical teachings, we should seriously consider the following:

MARK 12:18-27
If a man dies childless, his widow is ordered by biblical law to have intercourse with each of his brothers in turn until she bears her deceased husband a male heir... Oh my, this may pit brother against brother...guaranteeing certain death for the brother who marries an attractive female.

DEUTERONOMY 22:13-21
If it is discovered that a bride is not a virgin, the Bible demands that she be executed by stoning immediately...Well, there goes 85% of the female population.

DEUTERONOMY 22:22
If a married person has sex with someone else's husband or wife, the Bible commands that both adulterers be stoned to death...And the rest of the female population and 60% of the male population.

MARK 10:1-12
Divorce is strictly forbidden in both Testaments, as is remarriage of anyone who has been divorced...Well without the female population divorce shouldn't be an issue.

LEVITICUS 18:19
The Bible forbids a married couple from having sexual intercourse during a woman's period. If they disobey, both shall be executed...Well, considering the female population has already ceased to exist, this should not be a problem.Jesus never mentioned homosexuality, and the Bible had very little to say about it, so why is Jesus so often used to promote an agenda of hatred toward those who are only trying to live what Jesus preached and lived?

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Has Christianity Gone Satanic?

Secular Christianity may sound like an oxymoron, more than likely, because it is, as it implies serving two masters: the state and Jesus Christ.  Nevertheless, despite the inherent paradox, if you examine the beliefs and actions of most American Christians, and then reflect on what Jesus actually taught, you will see there is very little, if any similarity between the two.  Many Christian churches have adopted a worldly spirit, and have united with the state.   Incorporated 501(c)(3) religious organizations comes to mind.  In fact, considering the evangelical Christian embracing of Twilight as a pro-abstinence narrative, satanic Christianity may be more accurate. A little more on that, later.

Of course, true Christians - those who really try to understand and live up to the teachings of Jesus - exist. However, you will never find them in places of power or celebrity. Why? Because the ruling elite truly hate everything for which Jesus stands. And, unfortunately, they are the ones who ultimately determine what society values. How? Well, by co-opting Christianity, of course. After all, the platform and tools necessary to promote any type of belief system requires massive resources. And, rather than crush the masses under their boot, our rulers have put forth "false apostles and deceitful workers, who transform themselves into the apostles of Christ" in order to promote their occultist belief system in such a way that the masses accept their version of Christianity - satanic Christianity - with a smile. 

Take the hottest pop culture phenomenon since Harry Potter: Twilight, not to mention, Buffy, True Blood, Vampire Diaries, etc, which has created an occult addiction amongst teens to such an extent that they think sinking their teeth into one another is the ultimate sign of intimacy and love. The juxstaposition of sex and violence portrayed is truely disturbing.
Uhm...hello?  Isn't vampirism the antithesis of Christianity?   The vampire is obviously the inversion of Jesus Christ. Both Christ and vampires deal with blood and eternal life.  But, whereas Christ shed his blood so that his followers could have eternal life, the vampire sheds his follower's blood so that he can have eternal life. You see, the vampire achieves immortality through immorality. Yet, Christian evangelicals hold Twilight up as somehow virtuous?

Sociopolitical Parasitism

Evil is parasitic. The whole idea of a beast subsisting on the essence of life sums up evil in a nutshell. Isn't it bad enough that we live at the mercy of a small powerful group of vampires people, who derive their wealth off the backs of the tax-paying working class? Why is it necessary to emulate them, too?

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C-Street House: Enemy Number One of the Cross of Christ.

Did you ever notice that the more fundamentalist the Christians, the further they stray from the actual teachings of Jesus Christ?  The reason for this apparent paradox may lie in the fundamentalist personality, which tends to be very critical, judgmental, rigid, and overly assertive, if not outright aggressive. People with such a personality aren't happy until you believe what they believe; think the way they think, and act or behave in accordance with their beliefs. This might explain the huge disparity between the Jesus, fundamentalist Christians worship, and the real Jesus Christ.

The following example might provide further clarification and moreover, provide a better understanding of why the fundamentalist's Jesus is so at odds with the real Jesus.

In April 1935, Norwegian immigrant, Abraham Vereide, a fairly prominent preacher, who strongly opposed the "New Deal" and trade unions, experienced, what he called a revelation from God, which proclaimed Christianity's been focusing on the wrong people for the last 2,000 years. It is not about the "down and out", it's about the "up and out". I guess Jesus didn't really know of what He was preaching. Nevertheless, talk about procrastination... 2,000 years to get the memo out?? Anyway, Abraham was called on to be a missionary to the "New Chosen" - politicians, executives, wealthy and powerful men - whose power was assigned through God's blessing.

After God spoke to Vereide, he, of course, had to spread the word. So, he gathered 19 businessmen in Seattle for a "prayer" session. And wouldn't you know...right there at the meeting: Hallelujah! More messages from God! Showering down upon them like raindrops and sunbeams. In fact, God told one man, Arthur Langlie, that he's destined to be Governor of Washington State.  Sure enough, Langlie was elected, giving this group of "up and outers" the success they needed to infiltrate Washington D.C.  As you can well imagine, it was not hard to garner support, and recruit for an organization based on the religious doctrine of wealth and power.  Soon after arriving in the other Washington, they started their power agenda, getting behind the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act, which was the beginning of the rollback of the "New Deal". From there, this anti-Socialist, pro big-business group, who hid behind the facade of a Christian evangelical movement, plowed full-steam ahead.

Fast forward some 70 years or so, and Jeff Sharlet, author of "The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power" and the follow up, "C Street: The Fundamentalist Threat to American Democracy" went undercover among America's secret theocrats.  He gained full access to the C-Street House, and discovered the covert mission of these men, who, because of their chosen status, are able to live above, what they believe are moral constructs imposed on the rest of us "down and outers".  Referring to themselves as The Family, this group hosts Prayer Breakfasts in public, while in private; preach a gospel of "biblical capitalism", military might, and American empire.

Religious differences and contradictions among its members are transcended by the member's drive for political and financial power.  This is why orthodox Jews, secular neo-conservative Jews, conservative Catholics, evangelical Protestants, Sunni and Wahhabi Muslims find it possible to unite through "Jesus" to further their power agenda.

Over the decades the Fellowship's Nazi and racist roots have been replaced with homophobic ones, although you won't hear it from their mouths, with the exception of one: David Bahati, the author of the anti-homosexuality bill. You see, racism interfered with their political goal of  internationally networking powerful "chosen" fundamentalists since these people come in a variety of flavors. However, just as important as burying their racist past, to their international mission, is the common enemy, who provides a symbol of the evil against which they must unite, distracting them from issues that might divide when trying to conquer foreign territory.  Hence,  homosexuals become the new common enemy.

Sharlet explores, in his new book, the specific connections between C-Street and the draconian Anti-Homosexuality Bill that was introduced into Uganda’s Parliament last year, and whose ultimate goal is to eradicate homosexuality throughout Africa. The Family created the structure that made this possible. How?

Well, David Bahati is one of the leaders of the The Family's presence in Uganda, which is one of their strongest countries in Africa, a place where they've invested millions of dollars in leadership development. Uganda became The Family's guinea pig for exporting culture war issues from America.

So, one day while visiting David Bahati at his home Jeff Sharlet asked, "Is there a connection between your bill and The Family?" Bahati responded, "No, there is no connection, the bill IS The Family." Now, to the American press, C-Street says that's not what we meant, however they've done nothing to hold Bahati accountable, never told him to stop the bill, only assured him that he remains a member in good standing. The only thing The Family mentioned to Bahati was that they were concerned about their reputation in America.  Because they believe the more invisible the organization the more influential, and this bill could destroy their invisible influence.

Invisible influence? Well, invisible power. This invisible and powerful organization, states they're working for "democracy" and "free markets," when in reality, they're extending the American empire. Jeff Sharlet tells the following story about  David Coe, son of Doug Coe, C-Street's current leader, that illuminates the darkness at the core of this influence.

"I met the younger Coe when I lived for several weeks as a member of the Family. He's a surprising source of counsel, spiritual or otherwise... Attempting to explain what it means to be chosen for leadership like King David was -- or Mark Sanford, according to his own estimate -- he asked a young man who'd put himself, body and soul, under the Family's authority,  "Suppose I hear you raped three little girls. What would I think of you?"

One of the young men responded, "You would think I'm a monster."

Coe responded, "No, I wouldn't, because you're chosen."

As a member of the Family, he's among what Family leaders refer to as the "new chosen". If you're chosen, the normal rules don't apply.

Not to worry, the New Yorker is their friend.

The Bible warns us of many . . . "whose god is their belly," their appetites, their physical senses.

“For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the Cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose God
is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things."
Philippians 3:18, 19.

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God, Gold, and Guns, But Hold the Gay.

Amidst Glen Beck's tearful patriotic schtick, and his dehumanizing talk of cockroaches, rats, viruses and disease, in one of his "lessons", he told his audience about the "three G system" he cooked up for survival should the United States face collapse, and that consists: "God, Gold, and Guns".

The third one is Collapse. That's 'Get out of debt and save,' plus, 'Have a fruit cellar,' plus -- I like to call the "three G system" here for this -- it's, uh, God, Gold, and Guns.

Now personally, you might take God and put him as an umbrella over the whole thing. And then you got your gun and your gold down here too. But that's your choice. -- Glen Beck

However, as much as Glen's devoted to words that start with the letter 'G', it appears he's not to keen on one 'G' word: gay.  He "has surrounded himself with religious and secular figures who share a fervent opposition to the "homosexual agenda."Glenn Beck's anti-gay army of God

Alexander Zaitchik on his book "Common Nonsense: Glenn Beck and the Triumph of Ignorance"

"Right. Well, his more recent controversies are pretty well known. But even going back to the '80s and ’90s, he was known for a racist, sexist shtick. He famously, or infamously, called up the wife of a competing DJ in Phoenix in the mid-'80s and mocked her for having a miscarriage live on the air. He made fun of a guy named Malik Jones in New Haven, who was an unarmed black man shot by a white police officer, and it was quite a big police brutality case at the time. He went on air that week making fun of Jones, talking about how he used to smoke crack with his grandmother. Stuff like this. So, you know, this Glenn Beck that is so divisive today has been there the whole time. And the idea that he had this, you know, transformative experience when he became a Mormon and became a good guy and is this sort of moral beacon is just ludicrous."-- Alexander Zaitchik

Beck said "People don't recognize Obama's version of Christianity", nevertheless, gauging by the numbers that follow Glen Beck, too many people recognize his twisted version, a version that takes everything Jesus stood for, and transforms it to promote the only person who matters to Glen Beck, that is, Glen Beck.

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Jesus Who?

Names like Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Martha Stewart, Howard Hughes and every other wealth-creating titan's name normally roll off our tongues as if they were part of our family. However, a physician, who revolutionized the delivery of health care around the globe and is responsible for saving millions of lives in Rwanda, Haiti, Peru, Russia, United States, Malawi and Lesotho? Never heard of him. That is, until 60 Minutes aired a 10-minute segment on Dr. Paul Farmer, tonight.

Jesus Christ, or Jesus H. Christ as some people like to refer to him, is spoken every day, all over the world, and uttered more than all the household names in history combined, yet Dr. Paul Farmer's work resembles Jesus Christ's work a hell of a lot more than any of the titan's names I just mentioned. I guess it's a good thing Jesus Christ lived 2,000 years ago because if he lived today, Mr. Jesus Christ would come and go just like any other Tom, Dick, or Harry.

But, thanks to 60 Minutes, I now know who Dr. Paul Farmer is and I know about his pet project, Partners in Health (PIH), which he started twenty years ago, but please don't ask me who this man is next year, next month, next week and possibly even tomorrow...I will have forgotten.

The PIH Vision: Whatever it takes
At its root, our mission is both medical and moral. It is based on solidarity, rather than charity alone. When a person in Peru, or Siberia, or rural Haiti falls ill, PIH uses all of the means at our disposal to make them well—from pressuring drug manufacturers, to lobbying policy makers, to providing medical care and social services. Whatever it takes. Just as we would do if a member of our own family—or we ourselves—were ill.

PIH has been ranked as one of the top three charities for saving lives reliably and cost-effectively by Givewell.net. The charity research group cited PIH as "the 'lowest-risk' charity available" because "its model is extremely logical and tangible, and we have high confidence in it."

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Does the Religious Conservative Willfully Misrepresent Jesus?

Most religious conservatives probably do not willfully misrepresent Jesus; rather they are on auto pilot, afraid to think beyond what they've been taught, even when the object of their worship clearly states the exact opposite in His teachings. Religious conservatives' beliefs are based in and defined by fear of what they have to lose by opening up their minds to what Jesus has to say, and they're right to be afraid. Jesus doesn't mince words when it comes to the almighty dollar.

His main message threatens all of us because He is very clear as to how He feels about money. Some of us, like me, admit we know what Jesus is talking about but rather than follow Jesus the way he instructed us too, we feel the guilt and/or rationalize that we are following Him when we shove a $1 into the poor box.

On the other hand, religious conservatives resort to the Old Testament, searching out any Biblical verse that will set them free from Jesus' instructions. Not only that, they will turn around and preach chapter and verse on what they've found and try to convince others that this is what Jesus wanted, condemning anyone who does not conform and usually those non conformers are practicing what Jesus taught in some form.

As Peter Gomes points out in his book, Jesus’ parables all point to a standard that has not yet become the norm, and appeal to a moral reality that has not yet become the cultural social or political consensus. He is very consistent about this. Jesus preaches about a new truth which he calls the “good news” or gospel. He is not encouraging us to hold on to the "truths" of old; He is describing a truth He wants us to seek out.

Yet, the word conservative means to preserve existing conditions, to limit change as much as possible...the exact opposite of what Jesus is all about. Jesus indicts contemporary culture encouraging radical change and challenges the status quo. He hangs out with the wrong people, antagonizes the establishment and resists anyone who attempts to tame his message. Jesus is anything but conservative and ironically succumbs to a fate avidly promoted by so many of those who now worship Him.

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"Reconstructing Bibleland Doesn't Cut the Mustard"

Jesus' words: Feed the hungry; Clothe the naked; Love your neighbors; Pray for the coming of the Kingdom; Live as if the Kingdom were already here; Love your enemy, etc. do not require a genius IQ to understand, yet so many people who vociferously claim Jesus as their savior are often times the least likely to follow these simple instructions.

They are, as the Rev. Peter Gomes, Harvard professor, pastor and author of The Scandalous Gospel of Jesus says, more likely to try and "reconstruct bible land", speak in tongues, obsess over the horrors of sex...anything to take the focus off of what Jesus really said.
Pentecostal ecstasy is not the confusion of tongues. It is understanding of what the Gospel is all about.

Rev. Gomes answers the question, "What would Jesus do?" with the response,

"Who do you think you are?

Jesus can do all sorts of things, you can't. Sooo...when was the last time you turned water into wine? When was the last time you walked on the water? When was the last time you brought somebody back from the dead? Probably a very long time ago, if ever. Soooo...what would Jesus do is an excuse to do nothing and a pious loop or way out from any responsibility.?

The question should be, 'What would Jesus have me do?' You have certain talents, skills, means, motive and opportunities... given what was given to you and where you were at the moment, what did you do with what you had?

Not, what would Jesus do...invariably Jesus would do the right thing, being Jesus means you are always doing the right thing...that's great...hooray for Jesus! But the rest of us who have to cope with circumstances and difficulties and opportunities and resources...how do we use the talents that we have?
[...]
How, when and where do we apply the teachings of what we know to be the teachings of Jesus to the world in which we live.

The challenge is, can you live as fully and faithfully now with what has been given to you and what has been presented before you as Jesus did in his time. Not doing what he did but doing what you are called to do. -- Rev. Gomes

What we are meant to do is not a great mystery. It is at the heart of the teachings of Jesus. The first step is admitting that we do understand what Jesus said, instead of purposefully creating smoke and mirrors to distract from His teachings, and then we can admit those same instructions that are so simple to understand are practically impossible to live every day...all we can do is try our best .

Jesus knows that what he's telling us to do is tough...that's why he invented forgiveness.

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