Keep on Singing
August 31, 2007
The prisoners of Sing Sing, one of the most repressive, oppressive and dehumanizing penal institutions ever erected on the grounds of New York, were prohibited from singing during their incareration. The authorities felt that it would contribute to prison disturbance and ultimately, chaotic discord.
Unlike the prisoners of Sing Sing, the prisoners of Babylon were forced to sing. Judah had been invaded by the superpower Babylon, broken under the siege, and their beloved and holy Jerusalem had been crushed. The walls had been broken down, the temple demolished and the surviving Judean people taken helplessly to the homeland of the arrogantly victorious Babylonian army. In Babylon, their captors thought it amusing to force the defeated foreigners to sing hymns and religious songs in their strange language. But the prisoners were overcome by their loss and they asked, “How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land?” (Psalms 137:4 NIV).
I believe those of us living in the 21st century can relate to the cries of the Judean prisoners. We often hear the term “globalization” which basically refers to the fact that the world has grown smaller and more interconnected. But has it? Many of us are finding ourselves in a strange land without traveling anywhere.
Getting Your Money Out of Israel: The Presbyterian Church (USA) Recipe
August 30, 2007
Recently, the Presbyterian Church (USA) beat a drum for justice. This brave denomination took the first steps toward removing its monies from companies that profit from the Israeli theft of Palestinian land.
The church will target companies that operate in the occupied territories; that sell products, services or technology to support Israeli settlements; that do business with organizations that rest on a patio of violence against civilians; or that help the construction of the long, dismal, fenced and stone barrier of hate which separates Palestinians from their loved ones.
As is the case with all peoples who install injustice, American Jews and Christian evangelicals bang the pots and pans of opposition. Despite the clanging the Presbyterian Church (USA) made the only decision justice could hug and kiss. It heard the trumpet call of Amos 5:7: "You are doomed," yells the prophet, "you that twist justice and cheat people out of their rights!"
How did the Presbyterian Church (USA) interpret that call? If it keeps its monies in those companies, the Jehovah of justice convicts it. If it withdraws its monies, it has sprayed water on the fire of condemnation.
Conspiracies: The Pyramid and the Sphinx
August 29, 2007
Egypt has long been the source of countless conspiracies, ranging from ancient lost civilizations to extraterrestrial markers. The reason for this focus is likely because Egypt is the most romanticized ancient civilization, and also because it is home to the mystical Great Pyramid of Giza, the only surviving Wonder of the Ancient World. This article will describe some of the conspiracies surrounding the Sphinx and the Pyramid.
The Riddle of the Sphinx
Most of the conspiracy theories revolving around the Sphinx usually involve its age. The Sphinx is generally accepted to have been built along with the Pyramids of Giza around 2500 BC. It is even accepted that the face of the Sphinx bears the likeness of Khafre (Chephren), the Pharaoh during that time.
However, there was no written record from that era regarding the Sphinx or its construction. In addition, the human head of the Sphinx is small in relation to the rest of the body, indicating that the head bearing Pharaoh Khafre’s likeness could have been carved out of a larger lion’s head. These points led some researchers to believe that the Sphinx could have been built much earlier by a more ancient civilization, thus starting a whole host of conspiracy theories.
Ode to Chocolate
August 28, 2007
Chocolate delays reality. When I am eating chocolate, everything is on hold: anxiety, panic, frustrations, and insecurity. Chocolate offers a profound richness, a sweetness of life, a euphoric sensation of luxury. I love chocolate in many forms, from M&M’s, to imported Lindt balls, to dark fudge frosting in a pop-top can, to Hershey’s dark chocolate bite-sized morsels.
It is difficult to eat only a little chocolate. I cheat myself when I chew it up quickly and swallow it like other food. To eat chocolate correctly, one must let it melt in the mouth with eyes closed, feeling the tasty, thick smooth velvet coat the tongue. It is also difficult to eat really good chocolate silently. I usually purr a long ummmmmmm of feminine satisfaction when enjoying such a pleasure.
I have strategies to keep from eating chocolate. I meditate after lunch, enjoying the sweetness of life without calories, I brush my teeth after drinking my afternoon coffee, and I give chocolate away to my mother so that it’s not in the house. But it comes back as gifts from other sources, knowing that it is loved and cherished in my presence.
Undoing a Catholic and an Orthodox Christian Feud
August 28, 2007
There’s an anecdote about twins still in their mother’s womb. They argued about who should come out first. One of the embryos complained "I’m the most beautiful; I should be born first."
"Maybe you are beautiful," responded the other, "but I’m the strongest; I should ooze out first."
The pair pushed and shoved in their mother’s uterus until their umbilical cords broke. The mother miscarried and both fetuses perished.
Divisiveness is a scoundrel who can’t leave without being pushed and who won’t leave without being forced. He is the star in his own drama.
How many times have Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christians seen his film in the theater of Christian dispute?
Pope John Paul II has waged war against divisions within Christianity in hopes of hastening a curtain call to these stains on divine memory. We wish him well. Selfishness, theology, self-righteousness and conceit are the emcees that have broadcast disunity among Christian communities for centuries.
But the Pope took a welcomed step in his battle. He recently returned the bones of John Chrysostom and Gregory Nazianzen to the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians. These honored ancient leaders’ graves were looted from Constantinople, today known as Istanbul in Turkey, in 1204 by Catholic marauders during the Fourth Crusade.
Heretical Chinese House Churches
August 27, 2007
One of the more insightful warnings Christians can receive bears on relationships with other Christians. It goes something like this: Do you want to ignore what other Christians say and do? That’s like giving your charitable donations to donkeys and reindeer.
That’s an alarm more deafening than the siren of a nearby fire station when you consider what’s happening among some house churches in China, as reported in the ‘Outlook" section of The Washington Post on Nov. 28, 2004.
Three Grades of Servants, a house church that claims to have several million followers, is organized around a fire-breathing leader named Xu Shuangfu. Xu claims God has given him special knowledge; and to cement his claim, he has reportedly ordered the killing of his Christian enemies.
Another house church, Eastern Lightning, is as hot and full of lava as Three Grades. It is the sworn enemy of Three Grades, and is just as heretical. Eastern Lightning believes Christ has already returned to Earth and now walks and bathes in the flesh of a Chinese peasant woman. Like Three Grades, Eastern Lightning tries to compel people to join its movement, allegedly by kidnapping leaders from other house churches and trying to brainwash them, until they willingly become members.
Feng Shui North versus South Hemisphere
August 26, 2007
The North South Hemisphere Question:
The question of whether or not the orientation of the Lo Pan, Lo Shu should be reversed when applied to the Southern Hemisphere has been thrown back an forth for years so lets consider the excellent arguments put forward in Qi Concepts at the www.dragonsbreath.co.uk
Feng Shui originated in China between 3000 and 5000 years ago. China is a vast country however its placement is entirely in the Northern hemisphere no part is closer than 18 degrees North of the equator. There is neither authentic historical data, nor are there any records regarding the application of Feng Shui theory in the Southern Hemisphere. Evidence simply does not exist, so unfortunately we have to debate the question, postulate our theories and make our own decision on what we feel comfortable with. Certainly if you live close to the equator, you need to be aware of the difference between the geographical equator and the magnetic equator, as I have already pointed out in the previous section. The difference can be quite considerable as much as 12? of latitude that’s 720 nautical miles or 828 statute if you like.
Health and Happiness - Self Test
August 25, 2007
First of all, examine yourself outwardly.
Look at your fingernails. Are they glossy? Do they appear nice and strong? How about your hair. It should be shiny and full of body. Now look at your tongue. Does it have a white coating on it or is it pink? Next your eyes: are they bright or dull…do they appear to be happy eyes or worried or lackluster? Do your eyes have brown flecks in them? If they do, those spots indicate injuries or malfunctions within your body…depending upon the location of the fleck.
How about your skin, which is your largest organ. Does your skin have bumps, moles of various colors, liver spots of varying sizes? Whatever is represented on your skin is represented upon your brain as well (except the spots there are at least twice as large). Do you have any evidence of jaundice (yellowish skin or eyeballs? orange skin or eyeballs?). If so, your liver has overflowed and the toxins are trying to exit your body through your skin!
Let’s consider your internal health.
Books of the Living and Dead
August 24, 2007
Revelation 20:12 makes a powerful claim: "And I saw the dead, great and small alike, standing before the throne. Books were opened, and then another book was opened, [called] the book of the living. The dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books."
Few people would keep a diary if they knew that, by a magical act of memory, the mind publishes every thought and feeling, every act and intuition, as a book to be read by everyone. Think how surprised we all will be when, at some point in the future, after crossing the border that separates mortal life from immortal life, we find ourselves in the courtroom of eternal justice. There, we will face some menacing moments. Everything we have ever done will be made public.
For those whose lives are written in the book of the living, your destiny is one of eternal life with the Christ you serve. For those whose lives are not recorded in that book, the riddle of your fate, which you may have tried to unwind while on earth, will be finally unwrapped. As Revelation 20:15 pointedly states, "Those who did not have their name written in the book of the living were thrown into the lake of fire."
Do Organizations Serve Us Or Do We Serve Organizations
August 23, 2007
We have seen an erosion in the confidence that society has in organizational leadership and its integrity recently with the numerous accounting scandals that have become public.Clearly this has led to the demise of several large organizations. In performance terms it is obvious that erosion of leadership integrity is not good for business.
The integrity that exists within an organization either lives or dies with the mission statement and underlying values around which an organization functions. Often the mission and values focus on such things as organizational performance, customer service, quality products, profit goals etc. These are then used as guiding posts and navigational aids to lead and inform leaders and employees at all levels within the organization.
Effectively, individuals then have to “integrate” themselves within the organizational directive in order to survive there. The organizational mission becomes an overarching theme in the lives of these individuals whether or not it is truly aligned with their own values and purpose in life. Of course most individuals are not in the habit of considering their values or purpose in life so they are only too happy to adopt someone else’s in order to stem the inner feelings of insecurity that arise from not having their own.
