#How a Pagan Philosopher Came to Believe the Scriptures are from God

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

by Michael J. Kruger | It probably comes as no surprise that the most common question I receive from both Christians and non-Christians is “How do I know the Bible is the Word of God?” And the reason this question is at the top of the list is not hard to...

[beatrice-otter]

jewish practises were shared by christians and even jesus

Ooooh, you have that backwards.

Jesus was Jewish. Full stop. He and his disciples were Jewish and lived Jewish lives according to Jewish practices and customs at the time. His arguments with various Pharisees were in-community disagreements about details, not fundamental differences in belief or practice.

Then came Paul. Paul, who never even met Jesus in person. Paul, who was a devout Jew, but one who also believed that the Day of the Lord meant that people of all nations would flock to God and thus when he had Gentiles interested in this Jesus fellow, he did not want them to convert to Judaism because to him their following God while still being Gentiles was a) proof that Jesus was the Messiah and b) proof that God's kingdom was going to be made manifest soon.

So with Paul, you have a lot of Gentiles (i.e. non-Jewish people) worshiping and bringing their own culture and understanding to things. Most of them don't even speak Hebrew, they can't read the Scriptures (which are starting to be called the "Old Testament") in the original language, they can only read it in a Greek translation. And they know a lot more about Greek philosophy than they do about Jewish theology. So that's how they heard and interpreted the Scriptures and the stories about Jesus. And that's how they formed worship practices! They were using very few Jewish worship practices, and those they did use (communion as a version of the Passover meal) were radically different. So after about 60 AD, the majority of Christians were not Jewish and they did not practice Jewish anything.

And then came the "first Jewish/Roman war" i.e. the First Jewish Revolt, when Jewish people tried to throw off the yoke of the Roman Empire. And the Romans crushed them. Killed a ton of them, and carried most of the rest off into slavery throughout the Roman Empire. At that point, most of the Jewish followers of Jesus died, and only the Gentiles were left. And they lost what little connection to Judaism they'd had.

Modern Christian interpretations of the Bible and theology have far more to do with pagan Greek philosophy than with Jewish interpretations and theology, and that's whether you're looking at 1st Century CE Judaism or present-day Judaism. For example! You know how most Christians think of God as being perfect and unchanging and all-knowing and all-powerful and all of that? That comes from Greek philosophical ideas of "if there were one overarching god, what characteristics must that god have?" which was actually a pretty common discussion topic for Greek philosophers in the ancient world. It does not come from Judaism, past, present, or future. (Neo-Platonism was a HUGE influence on Christianity's development in its first 500 years or so.)

So yes, absolutely, Jesus was Jewish. But most Christian practices don't come from him. Neither does the theology! They don't even come from Paul! They come from Greek-speaking Gentiles, who had little or no contact with Jews or Judaism. Jewish practices aren't ours and never have been.

And then we spent 2,000 years actively perpetrating genocide against them. So even if we did at one point have a legitimate claim to Jewish practices and beliefs, that claim would be wiped out by our own actions.

If you don't find modern Protestantism meaningful and are looking for ritual and mysticism to deepen things, guess what! There is 2,000 years of Christian practice and mysticism to draw from. There's a ton of stuff there! You can have all sorts of ancient rituals without having to be a bigoted, antisemitic asshole.

technically christianity came from judaism, jewish practises were shared by christians and even jesus so for some christians judaism is returning to the roots of christianity its not "appropriation" or disrespectful

Jewish practice has evolved over the past 2000 years. Most Christian appropriation of Judaism is based on those later evolutions of post-schism Judaism. You have no “right” to any of that, especially when you consider that Christians have tried to forcibly convert, purge, marginalize, exile and murder us for those same 2000 years. When you let us practice our religion without policing us with discriminatory laws and behaviors that punish us for refusing to work on Saturday and for wanting to take time off work for our holidays, when you stop vandalizing our homes, businesses and synagogues, when you stop telling us to shut up about our various persecutions, when you stop policing our identities, when you stop mocking the “Old Testament” as outdated or barbaric, when you stop making laws against us, when you stop telling us to not be concerned about our representations in popular media, when you stop telling us anti-semitism is over because six million of us were murdered in the Holocaust and we haven’t been killed in the millions since (even if we’ve been exiled and oppressed in those numbers), and when you stop showing utter apathy to Jews in distress and when you stop denying the recent increase in global anti-semitism. Maybe then we’ll talk about whether or not I should have a problem with Christians treating us as some kind of cheap buffet of “outdated” customs for them to pick and choose from.

[wisdomrays]

TAFAKKUR: Part 376

THE QUR'AN AND ESTABLISHED SCIENTIFIC FACTS: Part 1

It is another argument for the Divine authorship of the Qur’an that it refers to certain facts of creation recently established by modern scientific methods. How, except on account of its Divine authorship, is it possible for the Qur’an to be literally true on matters of which people had not the least inkling at the time when it was revealed? For example, if the Qu’ran were not a Divine Revelation, would it have been possible for it to contain such a verse as this: Do not the unbelievers realize that the heavens and the earth were one unit of creation before we split them asunder? (21.20).

Whether the Qur’an really does refer, explicitly or implicitly, to the kinds of facts the sciences deal with, and the relationship between the Qur’an and modern sciences, are matters of considerable controversy among Muslim intellectuals. We should therefore treat the subject at length.

SCIENCE AND RELIGION

THE CIVILIZATION ISLAM CREATED

The conflict of science and religion in the West dates back as far as the thirteenth century. Due to the essential character of the corrupted Christianity represented by the Catholic Church, which condemns nature as a veil separating man from God and curses the knowledge of nature, any scientific advances were not seen in the West during the middle ages, which are called dark ages in European history. However, during the same period a magnificent civilization was flourishing in the Muslim East. Muslims, obeying the injunctions of the holy Qur’an, studied both the Book of Divine Revelation, that is, the Qur’an, and the Book of Creation, that is, the universe, and founded the most magnificent civilization of human history. Scholars from all over the old world benefited from the centers of higher learning at Damascus, Bukhara, Baghdad, Cairo, Fez, Qairwan, Zeitona, Cordoba, Sicily, Isathan, Delhi, and other great centres throughout the Muslim world. Historians liken the Muslim world of the Middle Ages, dark for the West but bright for Muslims, to a beehive. Roads were full of students, scientists and scholas travelling from one center of learning to another. Many world-renowned figures such as al-Kindi, al-Khwarizrni, alFarabi, Ibn Sina, al-Mas’udi, lbn al-Haytham, al-Biruni, al-Ghazzali, Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, al-Razi and many others shone like stars in the firmament of the sciences. In his multivolume History of Science, George Sarton divided his work into fifty- year periods, naming each chapter after the most eminent scientist of the period in question. For the years from the middle of eighth century (second century after Hijra) to the twelfth century, each of seven fifty- year periods carries the name of a Muslim scientist. Thus we have ‘the Time of al-Khwarizmi, the Time of al-Biruni’, etc. Within these chapters Sarton lists one hundred important Muslim scientists and their principal works.

John Davenport, a leading scientist, observed:

It must be owned that all the knowledge whether of Physics, Astronomy, Philosophy or Mathematics, which flourished in Europe from the 10th century was originally derived from the Arabian schools, and the Spanish Saracen may be looked upon as the father of European philosophy (Quoted by A. Karim in Islamic Contribution to Science and Civilization).

Bertrand Russell, the famous British philosopher, wrote (Pakistan Quarterly, Vol.A, No.3):

The supremacy of the East was not only military. Science, philosophy, poetry, and the arts, all flourished in the Muhammadan world at a time when Europe was sunk in barbarism. Europeans, with unpardonable insularity, call this period ‘the Dark Ages’: but it was only in Europe that it was dark---indeed only in Christian Europe, for Spain, which was Mohammedan, had a brilliant culture.

Robert Briffault, the renowned historian, acknowledges in his book The Making of Humanity:

It is highly probable that but for the Arabs, modem European civilization would have never assumed that character which has enabled it to transcend all previous phases of evolution. For although there is not a single aspect of human growth in which the decisive influence of Islamic culture is not traceable, nowhere is it so clear and momentous as in the genesis of that power which constitutes the paramount distinctive force of the modern world and the supreme course of its victory- natural sciences and the scientific spirit... What we call sciences arose in Europe as a result of a new spirit of inquiry; of new methods of investigation, of the method of experiment, observation, measurement, of the development of Mathematics in a form unknown to the Greeks. That spirit and those methods were introduced into the European world by the Arabs.

For the first five centuries of its existence, the realm of Islam was the most civilized and progressive portion of the world. Studded with splendid cities, gracious mosques and quiet universities, the Muslim East offered a striking contrast to the Christian West, which was sunk in the night of the Dark Ages (L. Stoddard, The New World of Islam).

This bright civilization progressed until it suffered the terrible disasters which came like huge overlapping waves, from the West and Far East one after the other in the form of the Crusades and Mongol invasion. The disasters lasted centuries until the Muslim government in Baghdad collapsed and the history of Islam entered, from the beginning of the fourteenth century, a new phase with the Ottoman Turks. Islamic civilization was still vigorous and remained far ahead of the Christian West in economic and military fields until the eighteenth century, despite (from the sixteenth century onwards) losing ground to it in the sciences.

Cordoba in the tenth century under Muslim rule was the most civilized city in Europe, the wonder and admiration of the world. Travellers from the north heard with something like fear of the city which contained 70 libraries with hundreds of thousands of volumes, and 900 public baths, yet whenever the rulers of Leon Navarre of Barcelona needed a surgeon, an architect, a dressmaker or a musician, it was to Cordoba that they applied (T. Arnold, The Legacy of Islam, p.9). Muslim literary prestige was so great that in Spain, for example, it was found necessary to translate the Bible and liturgy into Arabic for the use of the Christian community. The account given by Alvaro, the Christian zealot and writer, shows vividly how even the non- Muslim Spaniards were attracted to Arab/Muslim literature:

My fellow-Christians delight in the poems and romances of the Arabs.They study the works of Muhammadan theologians and philosophers, not in order to refute them, but to acquire a correct and elegant Arabic style. Where today can a layman be found who reads the Latin commentaries on holy Scriptures? Who is there that studies the Gospels, the Prophets, the Apostles? Alas, the young Christians who are the most conspicuous for their talents have no knowledge of any literature or language save the Arabic; they read and study with avidity Arabian books; they amass whole libraries of them at a vast cost, and they everywhere sing the praises of the Arabian world (Indiculus Luminosus, translated by Dozy).

If the purpose of education and worth of civilization is to raise the sense of pride, dignity, honour in individuals so that they improve their state and consequently the state of society, Islamic civilization is proven to have been a worthy one. There is ample evidence quoted by various writers showing how Islam has succeeded in doing this to various peoples of various regions, e.g. Isaac Taylor, in his speech delivered at the Church Congress of England about the effects and influence of Islam on people, said:

When Muhammadanism is embraced, paganism, fetishism, infanticide and which craft disappear. Filth is replaced by cleanliness and the new convert acquires personal dignity and self-respect. Immodest dances and promiscuous intercourse of the sewes cease; female chastity is rewarded as a virtue; industry replaces idleness; licence gives place to law; order and sobriety prevail; blood feuds, cruelty to animals and slaves are eradicated. Islam swept away corruption and superstitions. Islam was a revolt against empty polemics.. It gave hope to the slave, brotherhood to mankind, and recognition to the fundamental facts of human nature. The virtues which Islam inculcates are temperance, cleanliness, chastity, justice, fortitude, courage, benevolence, hospitality, veracity and resignation.. Islam preaches a practical brotherhood, the social equality of all Muslims. Slavery is not part of the creed of Islam. Polygamy is a more difficult question. Moses did not prohibit it. It was practised by David and it is not directly forbidden in the New Testament. Muhammad limited the unbounded license of polygamy. It is the exception rather than the rule... In resignation to God’s Will, temperance, chastity, veracity and in brotherhood of believers they (the Muslims) set us a pattern which we should well to follow. Islam has abolished drunkenness, gambling and prostitution, the three curses of the Christian lands. Islam has done more for civilization than Christianity. The conquest of one-third of the earth to his (Muhammad’s) creed was a miracle.

[roman-catholic-mass-readings]

28th April >> Mass Readings (Except USA)

Wednesday, Fourth Week of Eastertide

   or 

Saint Peter Chanel, Priest, Martyr

   or 

Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort, Priest.

Wednesday, Fourth Week of Eastertide

(Liturgical Colour: White)

First Reading

Acts of the Apostles 12:24-13:5

'I want Barnabas and Saul set apart'

The word of God continued to spread and to gain followers. Barnabas and Saul completed their task and came back from Jerusalem, bringing John Mark with them.

   In the church at Antioch the following were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. One day while they were offering worship to the Lord and keeping a fast, the Holy Spirit said, ‘I want Barnabas and Saul set apart for the work to which I have called them.’ So it was that after fasting and prayer they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

   So these two, sent on their mission by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and from there sailed to Cyprus. They landed at Salamis and proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews; John acted as their assistant.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 66(67):2-3,5-6,8

R/ Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. or R/ Alleluia!

O God, be gracious and bless us    and let your face shed its light upon us. So will your ways be known upon earth    and all nations learn your saving help.

R/ Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. or R/ Alleluia!

Let the nations be glad and exult    for you rule the world with justice. With fairness you rule the peoples,    you guide the nations on earth.

R/ Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. or R/ Alleluia!

Let the peoples praise you, O God;    let all the peoples praise you. May God still give us his blessing    till the ends of the earth revere him.

R/ Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. or R/ Alleluia!

Gospel Acclamation

John 20:29

Alleluia, alleluia! ‘You believe, Thomas, because you can see me. Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe. Alleluia!

Or:

John 8:12

Alleluia, alleluia! I am the light of the world, says the Lord; anyone who follows me will have the light of life. Alleluia!

Gospel

John 12:44-50

I, the light, have come into the world

Jesus declared publicly:

‘Whoever believes in me believes not in me but in the one who sent me, and whoever sees me, sees the one who sent me. I, the light, have come into the world, so that whoever believes in me need not stay in the dark any more. If anyone hears my words and does not keep them faithfully, it is not I who shall condemn him, since I have come not to condemn the world, but to save the world. He who rejects me and refuses my words has his judge already: the word itself that I have spoken will be his judge on the last day. For what I have spoken does not come from myself; no, what I was to say, what I had to speak, was commanded by the Father who sent me, and I know that his commands mean eternal life. And therefore what the Father has told me is what I speak.’

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Saint Peter Chanel, Priest, Martyr

(Liturgical Colour: Red)

(Readings for the memorial)

(There is a choice today between the readings for the ferial day (Wednesday) and those for the memorial. The ferial readings are recommended unless pastoral reasons suggest otherwise)

First Reading

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

We preach a crucified Christ, the power and wisdom of God.

The language of the cross may be illogical to those who are not on the way to salvation, but those of us who are on the way see it as God’s power to save. As scripture says: I shall destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing all the learning of the learned. Where are the philosophers now? Where are the scribes? Where are any of our thinkers today? Do you see now how God has shown up the foolishness of human wisdom? If it was God’s wisdom that human wisdom should not know God, it was because God wanted to save those who have faith through the foolishness of the message that we preach. And so, while the Jews demand miracles and the Greeks look for wisdom, here are we preaching a crucified Christ; to the Jews an obstacle that they cannot get over, to the pagans madness, but to those who have been called, whether they are Jews or Greeks, a Christ who is the power and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 116(117):1-2

R/ Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News. or R/ Alleluia!

O praise the Lord, all you nations,    acclaim him all you peoples!

R/ Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News. or R/ Alleluia!

Strong is his love for us;    he is faithful for ever.

R/ Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News. or R/ Alleluia!

________

Gospel Acclamation

Mark 1:17

Alleluia, alleluia! Follow me, says the Lord, and I will make you into fishers of men. Alleluia!

Gospel

Mark 1:14-20

I will make you into fishers of men

After John had been arrested, Jesus went into Galilee. There he proclaimed the Good News from God. ‘The time has come’ he said ‘and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent, and believe the Good News.’

   As he was walking along by the Sea of Galilee he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net in the lake – for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you into fishers of men.’ And at once they left their nets and followed him.

   Going on a little further, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John; they too were in their boat, mending their nets. He called them at once and, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the men he employed, they went after him.

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort, Priest

(Liturgical Colour: White)

(Readings for the memorial)

(There is a choice today between the readings for the ferial day (Wednesday) and those for the memorial. The ferial readings are recommended unless pastoral reasons suggest otherwise)

First Reading

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

We preach a crucified Christ, the power and wisdom of God

The language of the cross may be illogical to those who are not on the way to salvation, but those of us who are on the way see it as God’s power to save. As scripture says: I shall destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing all the learning of the learned. Where are the philosophers now? Where are the scribes? Where are any of our thinkers today? Do you see now how God has shown up the foolishness of human wisdom? If it was God’s wisdom that human wisdom should not know God, it was because God wanted to save those who have faith through the foolishness of the message that we preach. And so, while the Jews demand miracles and the Greeks look for wisdom, here are we preaching a crucified Christ; to the Jews an obstacle that they cannot get over, to the pagans madness, but to those who have been called, whether they are Jews or Greeks, a Christ who is the power and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 39(40):2,4,7-10

R/ Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.

I waited, I waited for the Lord    and he stooped down to me;    he heard my cry. He put a new song into my mouth,    praise of our God.

R/ Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.

You do not ask for sacrifice and offerings,    but an open ear. You do not ask for holocaust and victim.    Instead, here am I.

R/ Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.

In the scroll of the book it stands written    that I should do your will. My God, I delight in your law    in the depth of my heart.

R/ Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.

Your justice I have proclaimed    in the great assembly. My lips I have not sealed;    you know it, O Lord.

R/ Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.

Gospel Acclamation

Luke 4:17

Alleluia, alleluia! The Lord has sent me to bring the good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives. Alleluia!

Gospel

Matthew 28:16-20

Go and make disciples of all nations

The eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations; baptise them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.’

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

[beerecordings]

Weird question that came to me during scripture study: what relationship do each of the boys have with God and religion? Jewish Henrik has popped up a few times, and Starboy!Marv has that connection to that great spirit, but what else? How do Marv and JJ reconcile their magic with religion? Do any of them ever wonder where they fit in God’s plan, since they were “created” by Anti/Jack/a bunch of randos on the internet? I am curious, and I always love to see how religion plays into your stuff.

oh well i’m not sure how to answer this because most of them change from fic to fic depending on what they’ve been through and the lives they’ve lead and how close they are to each other and whether they had childhoods and so forth. even Henrik, like you said, he’s Jewish but his relationship with God is still complicated! he doesn’t always believe He exists, but he needs something to cling to when he’s in pain, and, looking back, he swears God is the only thing that got him through some of the hard times in his life and he’s very proud of his cultural background, so he doesn’t give up on religion or belief. Generally I see JJ as very existential, religious, philosophizing to the conclusion that there must be a higher power. at first he’d be very bitter towards Him and even take a lot of pleasure in telling God to fuck off and doing shit he knows he shouldn’t just as a screw you to the person who created him and left him to rot, but usually in fics where he has developed over time and become like a self-actualizing and content person I see him as Catholic like me and strongly religious. the saints are his favorite part, he never feels alone and knows that if they could be holy people so could he, despite everything he’s done. plus it would be really interesting with him being possessed and controlled - as a Catholic, let me tell you we believe demons and possession are definitely real, and it would be really torturous to a little 1920s Catholic guy to feel like God has abandoned him to be controlled by demons and damned to hell.

James and Henrik are really the only ones I’ve thought about haha.

but all of them wonder that sort of stuff. that’s part of being human. i don’t know what they’d end up deciding but they all wonder about it and try to figure it out so they can have some peace, otherwise they’re just always restless. and i do think Jackie and Marv and Chase are pretty spiritually restless people, but maybe Marv’s pagan and Chase is trying to get over some spite from feeling judged by others after his divorce and maybe Jackie believes in a world that doesn’t care but people who do and they’re all five of them working on it and trying to find fulfillment and all that, i guess.

[orthodoxydaily]

Saints&Reading; Wed., June 5, 2019

Leavetaking of Pascha.  Forefeast Ascension

Hieromartyr Doroteus Bishop of Tyre

The Hieromartyr Dorotheus was bishop of the Phoenician city of Tyre, during the time of the persecution against Christians under the emperor Diocletian (284-305). Heeding the words of the Gospel (Mt.10:23), the saint withdrew from Tyre and hid from the persecutors. He returned to Tyre during the reign of Saint Constantine the Great (306-337, May 21), again occupying the bishop’s throne he guided his flock for more than fifty years, and converted many of the pagans to Christianity. When the emperor Julian the Apostate (361-363) began openly to persecute Christians, Saint Dorotheus was already over 100 years old. He withdrew from Tyre to the Myzean city of Udum (present day Bulgarian Varna). Delegates of the emperor arrested him there for his refusal to offer sacrifice to idols. They began to torture the holy Elder, and under torture he surrendered his soul to the Lord (+ ca. 362) at the age of 107. Some ascribe to Saint Dorotheus the compilation of a work, “The Synopsis”, a collection of sayings, and including lives of the holy prophets and apostles.

More Saints of the day at OCA

Abba Doroteus of Gaza

The Holy Abba Dorotheus was a disciple of Saint John the Prophet in the Palestinian monastery of Abba Seridus in the sixth century. In his youth he had zealously studied secular science. “When I sought worldly knowledge,” wrote the abba, “it was very difficult at first. When I would come to take a book, I was like a man about to touch a wild beast. When I forced myself to study, then God helped me, and diligence became such a habit that I did not know what I ate, what I drank, whether I had slept, nor whether I was warm or not. I was oblivious to all this while reading. I could not be dragged away by my friends for meals, nor would I even talk with them while I was absorbed in reading. When the philosopher let us go, I went home and washed, and ate whatever was prepared for me. After Vespers, I lit a lamp and continued reading until midnight.” — so absorbed was Abba Dorotheus in his studies at that time. He devoted himself to monastic activity with an even greater zeal. Upon entering the monastery, he says in his tenth Instruction, he decided that his study of virtue ought to be more fervent than his occupation with secular science had been...continue reading

Act 18:22-28 NKJV

22 And when he had landed at Caesarea, and [a]gone up and greeted the church, he went down to Antioch. 23 After he had spent some time there, he departed and went over the region of Galatia and Phrygia [b]in order, strengthening all the disciples.

Ministry of Apollos

24 Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. 25 This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John. 26 So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. 27 And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace; 28 for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.

Footnotes:

Acts 18:22 To Jerusalem

Acts 18:23 successively

John 12:19-36 NKJV

9 The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, “You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him!”

The Fruitful Grain of Wheat

20 Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast. 21 Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”

22 Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus.

23 But Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.24 Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much [a]grain. 25 He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.

Jesus Predicts His Death on the Cross

27 “Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify Your name.”

Then a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.”

29 Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to Him.”

30 Jesus answered and said, “This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. 32 And I, if I am [b]lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” 33 This He said, signifying by what death He would die.

34 The people answered Him, “We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever; and how can You say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man?”

35 Then Jesus said to them, “A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

Footnotes:

John 12:24 Lit. fruit

John 12:32 Crucified

New King James Version (NKJV) Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.

[johnchiarello]

Acts 25

ACTS 25

Acts 25:19 But had certain questions against him of their own superstition, and of one Jesus, which was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be alive.

Acts 25- https://youtu.be/GO_EbKzNSpk

http://ccoutreach87.com/10-10-17-acts-25/

http://ccoutreach87.com/10-10-17-acts-25-2/

https://vimeo.com/238060868

ON VIDEO-

.Paul’s appeals

.The new governor comes in

.festus replaces Felix

.The local court out of Jerusalem still had the plot!

.From Ceasarea to Jerusalem was about 60 miles- a 2 day trip back then

https://www.britannica.com/place/Caesarea

.Paul appeals- to Nero!

.Why?

.Seneca the Stoic

.King Agrippa the 2nd- and Bernice the queen

.Wait- aren’t they brother ans sister?

.Bernice is the oldest daughter of Agrippa the 1st- and Agrippa the 2nd is his son

.How they they be King and Queen?

.Can you solve this riddle?

.Homer- Iliad- Odyssey

  NEW- Just a few notes- these past few chapters are simply covering Paul’s appeals thru the local court system [Sanhedrin] and going up the ladder to the top court of the land- Caesar of Rome.

 The caesar at this time- is Nero- http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/nero

Nero was one of the worst persecutors of the early church- yet Paul took his case to him.

Why?

 At this stage Nero was not ‘as bad’ as we know him to be later on.

He actually will martyr both Paul and Peter later on.

Yet at this stage of the game he was influenced by Seneca- a Stoic philosopher- https://dailystoic.com/seneca/

 Though the Stoics were not considered Christians- they did indeed have moral elements to their teaching.

Self denial- stuff like that.

 So it would not be strange for Paul to take his case to him.

Another point-

Paul has been sitting in the ‘county jail’ for 2 years by now.

Governor Felix left office- and festus took his place.

 So the case is reviewed by the new governor-

And after 2 years- the high priest at Jerusalem [the top judge in the county] still wants to kill Paul!

We see a lot of corruption in the system- and how those who hold seats of authority- positions the public should be able to respect- yet these same people are some of the most corrupt of the day.

 Yet- we also see Festus- and in his dealings with Paul- he does what is right.

The local court out of Jerusalem wants Festus to bring Paul to them- so they could carry out the plot to kill Paul.

 Paul is aware of the plot- for 2 years now.

And he appeals his case to Rome- and Festus takes the appeal.

I’ll add my past teaching below- but wanted to simply give this update-

John.

 NOTE- The regular PAST POSTS and VERSES section is still below- but I made this short post [below] last night- thinking I might do a daily ‘roll out’- But didn’t want to waist an entire post just for this- so I stuck it here- [More below] I also talked about a strange experience I had- it involved a person who was put to death last night in Texas [2 nights ago now] I talked about it on an upcoming teaching post- KINGS 13- but here’s the news link- http://www.kztv10.com/story/36586596/inmate-executed-for-beeville-prison-guards-death

His sister asked me to pray for him a few years ago- I did- Then she asked me to pray for her brother again- because he was on death row- again? Well it will be explained on the KINGS 13 post- I thought maybe his sister was wrong- she wasn’t. Most of my Bluff friends would know his sister- but I won’t mention her name here [If I do a roll out- I might mention it before the kings 13 post- there are a few issues I might want to talk about as well]

 ILLEGAL COP STOP- CAUGHT ON CAMERA

COP STOP- https://youtu.be/jfdKqg_e8FU

https://vimeo.com/238111606

 I pulled out of a gas station- as the cop was pulling in- we were right next to each-other.

You can see my sticker easily from the highway.

He saw it too- but he decided to turn around from the gas station he was pulling into- and followed me for a short distance.

 Notice- he already had in his mind what to say- it was basically an excuse to pull me over-

Why?

I’m wearing sunglasses- have the long hair- and I’m not from his town [Mathis].

 Cops profile like this- thought it is illegal.

As he came up to me from behind- before even seeing the sticker- he saw my fire dept retirement badges and union sticker on my back window.

 That's when he realized it was not what he was looking for- possibly some drug dealer or whatever.

But at least today you get to see it on video.

Why make a big thing out of it?

 Honestly- this stop was no big deal- but others are.

Many unjustified stops have lead to the deaths of people later on- Sandra Bland being one of them.

I’m sure they mean well when they profile- but it is illegal.

 They did it to the top lawyer from Florida a few weeks ago- I talked about that case.

[She is a Black woman- driving an expensive car]

 You also see a crime-

Huh?

Not only is it a crime to profile- but it is also a crime to lie-

Howbeit a small one-

 But these ‘small ones ‘have lead to the deaths of people in the past-

It would be better if they avoided all crimes.

Oh I forgot officer- smile- you are indeed on Candid Camera.

 One small note- he is a cop from Mathis- where I have caught them before doing wrong- and exposed it.

So maybe he knew who I was after all?

 Note- I’ll post the picture of the sticker to Facebook- he supposedly couldn’t see it because of the bible on my dashboard.

As I uploaded this video to Youtube- once again- someone changed the settings to PRIVATE- This only seems to happen when I talk about cops?

  PAST POSTS-

https://ccoutreach87.com/overview-of-philosophy/

ACTS-

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/01/18/acts-1/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/01/26/acts-2/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/02/acts-3/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/09/acts-4/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/23/acts-5/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/31/acts-6/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/06/acts-7/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/14/acts-8/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/18/acts-9/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/07/acts-10/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/16/acts-11/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/22/acts-12/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/06/01/acts-13/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/06/14/acts-14/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/07/03/acts-15/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/07/07/acts-16/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/07/27/acts-17/

http://corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com/2017/08/acts-18-acts-1828-for-he-mightily.html

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/08/09/acts-19/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/08/20/acts-20/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/09/04/acts-21/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/09/20/acts-22-2/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/10/04/redo-acts-23-2/

https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/10/08/acts-24-2/

(765) ACT 25- Festus hears the Jews at Jerusalem, they want him to bring Paul to Jerusalem. Festus goes back to Caesarea and asks Paul ‘why don’t you go back with me’? Paul appeals to Caesar! Of course going to Rome was part of the plan. Now King Agrippa [another one of the many ruling authorities that Rome had over the people!] comes to Caesarea and Festus tells him about Paul. Agrippa will get a strong word in the next chapter. Also the Jews come down from Jerusalem and accuse Paul of many things. I want to make a note here. In the area of apologetics, which we do a lot of, you need to be careful that you don’t jump on the bandwagon of unfounded accusations. There are and have been real doctrinal heresies that needed to be dealt with, but some of the apologists really get personal. Even calling family members degrading names! In Paul’s case he had accusations that were not true. He does defend himself against the false ones, but also admitted that he believes in Christ’s resurrection and that this is considered heresy among certain Jews. Paul’s main message was Christ and the resurrection! As we get ready to close our study in a few more days, I want to recap the importance of seeing Jesus and his fulfillment of the Old Testament prophets as the main message of the Apostles. This early teaching by the Apostles needs to be the ‘tradition’ if you will, once again. We [believers] have a tendency to delve deeply into all sorts of stuff. Paul will warn his spiritual sons ‘don’t get lost in endless genealogies and debates about the law’ and Hebrews says ‘it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace, not with meats [legalistic doctrines] which have been unprofitable to those who have gone that route’. Now, you guys know I believe in correct doctrine, and Paul wasn’t advocating ‘no doctrine’. But it is easy to get lost in endless debates that lead to nowhere. Ultimately our goal is to present every man perfect in Christ. Paul will stick with this message all the way to Rome!

MY OLD POSTS-

The Iliad and Odyssey [Homer]

I want to cover some of the classics of Western Literature- when I do the philosophy and science stuff- the purpose is to show how God- and ‘religion’ are an inescapable thread that we see all thru out history- and in fact- the rise of what we call ‘intellectualism’ did indeed come from the Judaic/Christian tradition [for instance- the modern day university system did come from the Church].

 Ok- lets start with what most believe to be the greatest work from antiquity- outside of the bible.

 These are 2 poems by Homer- the Iliad and Odyssey.

 These poems were written in the 8th century BCE- and cover the Trojan war- which most believe was a real war- that took place in the 12th-13th century BCE.

 In Homers works we read about this epic battle.

 The war starts with- once again- a ‘woman’ issue.

 Prince Paris of Troy steals Helen of Greece- from her husband King Menelaus [king of Sparta].

 The Greeks- led by Achilles- lay siege to Troy.

 In Homers telling of the event- the Greeks are actually defending the honor of marriage- and are carrying out a just retribution against an unjust act.

Sort of the same themes we read in scripture- when the sons of Jacob defended the honor of their sister Dinah- when she was treated unjustly by the pagan nation that took her- forcefully- to be the wife of a kings son.

 The brothers meted out justice- by tricking these pagans to get circumcised- then- while recovering ‘from surgery’- the sons went in and wiped out the city- to their fathers dismay!

 In the story- Achilles is a warrior- who displays extreme violence- and also the human traits of a man who acts out of selfish motives.

 At one point in the war- he removes himself from battle- because he feels his honor was betrayed.

 The only thing that brings him back is the killing of his close friend Patroclus- by Hector.

Achilles leads the Greeks to victory- and reflects the struggle between living a long life- or dying young- yet dying for a just cause.

One of the more famous quotes form Homer’s Poems- attributed to Achilles- is ‘I carry 2 sorts of destiny to the day of my death. Either, if I stay here and fight beside the city of the Trojans, my return home is gone, but my glory shall be everlasting; but if I return home to the beloved land of my fathers, the excellence of my glory is gone, but there will be a long life- left for me, and my end in death will not come to me quickly.’

 There has been some debate over the historicity of the war itself.

 Some scholars believe it was Myth [I’ll get to this in a moment].

That is- they believe the war itself was not true- but a sort of Oral Tradition- that encompasses the reality of the human condition- and that Homers Poems are simply mythological ways to reveal the true condition of man.

 Yet- much like the debate that took place in the 19th century German universities- over the ‘Myth’ of the bible- later on- the rise of what we now call Archaeology [because of the Industrial revolution- a new field arose- men started digging up the ground- for the primary purpose of extracting materials from the earth- and at this time we also discovered ‘lost worlds’- that is we could actually trace cities and lands that were once deemed fake].

 So- as with Homers Troy- and bible lands- these archaeologists did indeed find Cities that matched the stories.

 In 1870 the German Archaeologist Schliemann discovered remains that seemed to find the city of Troy- the area is known today as modern day Turkey.

 This same thing happened with the bible- we did indeed find historical evidence that seemed to back up the historicity of the stories we find in the bible.

 As a matter of fact- a famous doubter of the bible embarked on a search- to prove the bible was ‘myth’ yet- after researching carefully the historical names and places we read about in the book of Acts- he came to believe that the book of Acts- written by both an historian and doctor [Luke] was the most historically accurate writing that came from the first century [Acts has lots of names of political figures- court proceedings- stuff like that- and when doing research like this- it is quite easy to debunk the historical reality of a fake work- but- when these names and places were researched- from actual historical records dating back to the first century- it was amazing how the pieces fit].

 The Trojan War is found in many works of Greek literature- and art.

 But the most comprehensive account comes from Homer’s 2 poems.

 Now- in Homer’s poems there are obvious references to Mythology- Goddesses- Golden apples- the Greek gods intervening in the affairs of men.

 So yeah- we see that there are obvious mythological aspects to the work.

Yet- the ancient Geeks did indeed believe the war itself was a real war that took place at around the 12th century BCE.

 Some believe that Homer never actually wrote the poems- but that he told the stories- like Oral Tradition- and they were later written down by others.

 Sort of like the classic- Paradise Lost- by John Milton. Milton was blind- and told the story to his daughters [oral tradition] and the actual work was penned by those who heard it.

 Jesus himself used this method- he never wrote a book- or letter in the New Testament- yet the gospels were compiled by his men after his death.

 We read about this when Luke [who I mentioned above] gives the reason for his documenting stuff in the book of Acts [read Acts chapter one].

 Luke also wrote his gospel a few years after the death and resurrection of Christ.

 So- some believe the same thing happened with Homer- those who heard him tell the story multiple times- simply put it together later on.

 Most scholars believe that Homer did indeed write the poems- and that the famous Trojan War was a real historical event.

 Last year- when in North Bergen- my atheist friend Daniel said he watched a PBS show- and he said ‘even a priest said the bible was Myth’.

 I explained to Daniel that when the more liberal scholars use this term [like in the writings of Bultman] that they do not mean ‘fake’- like Greek Mythology.

 But they mean that some of the stories in the gospels might be a compilation of the many Oral teachings of Jesus- and they were put together as one story [some think the Sermon on the Mount was actually multiple teachings Jesus did- and they were compiled into one event].

 Now- when I explained this to Daniel- he said ‘see- even you believe it was Myth’.

 I told Daniel that no- I do not hold to this theory [not 100%] but that I was simply telling him that even those who use the term Myth- when talking about Theology- they do not mean Myth- as in fake.

 So- I find it interesting that both the New testament- and Homers poems- got the same scrutiny.

 In these poems we do indeed see the condition of man- which Homer depicts as one of constant war- not peace.

 The letter of James in the New Testament says- James 4:1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?

James 4:2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

  Homers poems are considered by some to be the beginning of the great works of Western literature- of which there are many.

 The great writer C.S. Lewis- who rejected Christianity for many years- later became a believer.

 He attributed his conversion to the fact that he could not escape the reality of the Church- or Christian themes- found in all the fields of study.

 Whether it was the classics- or history- philosophy.

 He said every were he read- studied- he could not escape this scarlet thread that ran thru out all the fields of knowledge.

 Yeah- in the end- his thirst for knowledge- his intellectual search- led him to the Cross.

 Jesus- in a way- was a 1st century Achilles- he battled the forces of darkness- for the honor of a woman- the Bride- the church.

 He- Like Achilles- chose a just death- for a just cause.

 There’s a prophecy in the Old Testament- it speaks of Christ ‘the zeal of thine house has eaten me up’.

 Jesus was a righteous warrior- a prophet, priest and king- and he had a zeal for the church- that far exceeded anything we find in Homers poems.

[parts]

The Epicureans and the Stoics.

 The Epicureans were an early form of what we call Hedonism today- the idea that pleasure is the principle purpose of man.

 The Stoics believed in ‘stoicism’ that man should have no emotional response to pain or pleasure- that’s why we call people today ‘Stoics’- when they seem to not be moved by anything.

 Ok- that’s it for now- might make some comments tonight- but I’m getting ready to fly out soon- and trying to wind down before I leave.

If I don’t write tonight- I’ll talk again when in North Bergen- God bless you all.

[parts]

  HERACLITUS- Ok- lets pick up on my philosophy stuff.

Heraclitus lived in the 6th/5th century BC. - He was from Ephesus and his key thought was Ever Present Change.

 That is he saw everything as being in a state of continual flux- one of his famous sayings was ‘No man ever steps into the same river twice’.

 He is called the Weeping Philosopher- sort of like the prophet Jeremiah in the bible- also called the Weeping Prophet.

 Heraclitus is known for his concept of the Logos- the Word- or thought/reason.

 Now- this aspect of his thought plays a role in the development of the Christian understanding of Christ himself- in our New Testaments [written in Greek] Jesus is indeed referred to as the Logos- or Word of God.

 The Greek philosophers understanding of the Logos was not the same as the Christian view- mainly expressed thru the writings of John [The gospel- the 3 epistles- and Revelation].

But- some see the Greek view as a precursor to Christ.

 In the work of one of the early church fathers- Hippolytus ‘The Refutation of all Heresies’ he attacks Heraclitus view of the Logos as an early form of heresy.

 The apologist Justin Martyr is more gracious- he [Like Ulrich Zwingli- the great Swiss reformer of the 16th century] viewed the early Geek thinkers as ‘pre- Christian’ or ‘Christians before Christ’.

 Though many reject this view- yet there is some scripture to back it up.

The apostle Paul said in his letter to the Romans that if the Gentiles [non-Jews] do by nature the things contained in the law- then they are justified in God’s sight.

 Of course these things are debatable- but I add this to show you that some great Christian thinkers did indeed view the early Greek thinkers- who did live by a moral code- as being right in God’s eyes.

 And the bible does teach a theme that we will be judged according to the amount of light [understanding] that we had at the time.

 I should note that Plato [one of the 3 titans that arose after Heraclitus- from the city/state of Athens] disagreed with Heraclitus on all things being in a state of constant change.

 When [if?] we get to Socrates- Plato and Aristotle- I’ll try and cover the ways they advanced- built upon- the thought of the pre Socratic thinkers.

 As a side note- the most famous student of Aristotle- who was the most famous student of Plato- who was the most famous student of Socrates- was Alexander the Great.

 This goes to show you how great an influence Greek philosophy had on the ancient world.

 A few nuggets from Heraclitus- ‘all things come to pass in accordance with this Logos’ ‘follow the common’ ‘not having their own judgment’.

 Recently I covered Acts chapter 2- and we see some of these ideas in the early Christian movement.

The first Christians did ‘follow the common’ they sold their goods- and had ‘all things common’ [communal lifestyle].

 The apostle Paul teaches the early church to all ‘speak the same thing- that there be no divisions among you’.

And the New Testament also says the scripture should not be given to Private Interpretation- meaning- ‘not having your own personal judgment’.

 All in all- we do indeed see a sort of pre Christian thought in the pre Socratic thinkers- they did indeed speak of the Divine- God- though there understanding of him was not the same as the Christian church.

 In a sense- Heraclitus idea that in life- the only ‘constant’ is the fact that there is no constant- that life itself is made up of an ongoing journey- we live day by day- not ever knowing what ‘the next day will bring forth’- Jesus.

 Yeah- the man had some good points- the later Stoics would consider Heraclitus as the father of their movement.

And in the study of Philosophy- the Stoics- who had a good run from a few years before the Common Era- were overtaken in the 4th century [as the main influential philosophy of the time] by some new and lasting philosophy- started by a man named Jesus Christ- who his followers claimed rose from the dead.

Yeah- this New Way was called Christianity- and this philosophy has endured now for over 2 thousand years.

     VERSES-

Acts 25:1 Now when Festus was come into the province, after three days he ascended from Caesarea to Jerusalem.

Acts 25:2 Then the high priest and the chief of the Jews informed him against Paul, and besought him,

Acts 25:3 And desired favour against him, that he would send for him to Jerusalem, laying wait in the way to kill him.

Acts 25:4 But Festus answered, that Paul should be kept at Caesarea, and that he himself would depart shortly thither.

Acts 25:5 Let them therefore, said he, which among you are able, go down with me, and accuse this man, if there be any wickedness in him.

Acts 25:6 And when he had tarried among them more than ten days, he went down unto Caesarea; and the next day sitting on the judgment seat commanded Paul to be brought.

Acts 25:7 And when he was come, the Jews which came down from Jerusalem stood round about, and laid many and grievous complaints against Paul, which they could not prove.

Acts 25:8 While he answered for himself, Neither against the law of the Jews, neither against the temple, nor yet against Caesar, have I offended any thing at all.

Acts 25:9 But Festus, willing to do the Jews a pleasure, answered Paul, and said, Wilt thou go up to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these things before me?

Acts 25:10 Then said Paul, I stand at Caesar's judgment seat, where I ought to be judged: to the Jews have I done no wrong, as thou very well knowest.

Acts 25:11 For if I be an offender, or have committed any thing worthy of death, I refuse not to die: but if there be none of these things whereof these accuse me, no man may deliver me unto them. I appeal unto Caesar.

Acts 25:12 Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? unto Caesar shalt thou go.

Acts 25:13 And after certain days king Agrippa and Bernice came unto Caesarea to salute Festus.

Acts 25:14 And when they had been there many days, Festus declared Paul's cause unto the king, saying, There is a certain man left in bonds by Felix:

Acts 25:15 About whom, when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, desiring to have judgment against him.

Acts 25:16 To whom I answered, It is not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to die, before that he which is accused have the accusers face to face, and have licence to answer for himself concerning the crime laid against him.

Acts 25:17 Therefore, when they were come hither, without any delay on the morrow I sat on the judgment seat, and commanded the man to be brought forth.

Acts 25:18 Against whom when the accusers stood up, they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed:

Acts 25:19 But had certain questions against him of their own superstition, and of one Jesus, which was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be alive.

Acts 25:20 And because I doubted of such manner of questions, I asked him whether he would go to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these matters.

Acts 25:21 But when Paul had appealed to be reserved unto the hearing of Augustus, I commanded him to be kept till I might send him to Caesar.

Acts 25:22 Then Agrippa said unto Festus, I would also hear the man myself. To morrow, said he, thou shalt hear him.

Acts 25:23 And on the morrow, when Agrippa was come, and Bernice, with great pomp, and was entered into the place of hearing, with the chief captains, and principal men of the city, at Festus' commandment Paul was brought forth.

Acts 25:24 And Festus said, King Agrippa, and all men which are here present with us, ye see this man, about whom all the multitude of the Jews have dealt with me, both at Jerusalem, and also here, crying that he ought not to live any longer.

Acts 25:25 But when I found that he had committed nothing worthy of death, and that he himself hath appealed to Augustus, I have determined to send him.

Acts 25:26 Of whom I have no certain thing to write unto my lord. Wherefore I have brought him forth before you, and specially before thee, O king Agrippa, that, after examination had, I might have somewhat to write.

Acts 25:27 For it seemeth to me unreasonable to send a prisoner, and not withal to signify the crimes laid against him.

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[kabane52]

On Creation and the Fathers

A comment I wrote on Facebook...

As you read, if you are a theistic evolutionist or old ager, I suspect you will have many objections and arguments. I ask that before you write them, you read through my articles here: http://kabane52.tumblr.com/creationism I spent seven years as a theistic evolutionist, and I articulated many of the same objections undoubtedly forming in your mind. In the above compilation of articles, I have compiled my responses to these common arguments. I don't know when Patriarch Kirrill said this. What I do know is that Metropolitan Hilarion Alfayev said something similar several years ago, but has since changed his views and argued that Darwinism is inherently hostile to the Christian faith. So these folks are not in theological stasis: their views develop, and they are developing in a positive direction. Those saying that a young-age view is "Protestant" should stop talking. This is like saying that belief in Jesus is Protestant because of how much evangelicals talk about Jesus. Read the Fathers on Genesis 1. Almost every one of them take it as a historical account of creation. For those who incessantly quote the Fathers on allegorical exegesis, these same Fathers are always careful to emphasize that allegorical exegesis is not opposed to literal, historical exegesis, but actually depends on it. The Scriptures are allegorical because they record history, and history is providentially overseen by God. Thus, instead of imposing allegorical and symbolic meanings onto a world which does not inherently possess them, the Scriptures reveal the symbolic aspects which are inherently had by the creation. This flows necessarily from the doctrine that the world was made in and through the Divine Logos: everything in creation is symbolic of Christ. As far as I can tell, two ancient writers have been cited in favor of an ahistorical reading of Genesis 1: Augustine and Origen. Origen was a brilliant scholar, without question. But his theology was explicitly rejected at the Fifth Ecumenical Council, and the Church spent centuries purifying his insights from his false teachings. Why did he take Genesis 1 as ahistorical? Because Origen had a preexisting philosophical belief that the world was not created out of nothing, but had existed eternally. In other words, his reading of Genesis 1 directly flowed out of a false theological doctrine condemned as heresy by the Church. Next, there is St. Augustine. Before I comment on why Augustine held this view of Genesis 1, let me point out three things. First, Augustine held that the chronology of Scripture set forth in Genesis 5 and 11 was inerrant and binding on the Church, and he calculated the date of creation from that chronology. That is diametrically opposed to what theistic evolutionists try to argue. Second, Augustine explicitly rejects the view that allegorical readings of Genesis 2-3 are opposed to historical readings. Third, Augustine takes to task pagan critics of Christianity who mock the flood story, and he does so by defending its absolute literal historicity. He calculates the dimensions of the ark, estimates the number of animal kinds on Earth, and thereby defends the historical authenticity of the global flood. So, what of his reading of Genesis 1? Here is where things get deeply ironic. Augustine held this reading of Genesis 1 because he mistakenly interpreted Sirach to teach an instant creation. Thus, he was trying to reconcile Genesis with his reading of Sirach. In fact, Sirach says no such thing, so we can take Genesis 1 in its obvious historical sense, as stated by God Himself in Exodus 20 where He says He created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. But the irony is that Augustine held his reading of Genesis 1 because he believed in the absolute inerrancy of the Bible, a concept ludicrously mocked as "Protestant" by some moderns, despite the fact that the Fathers are soaked through with affirmations that there are no errors in Scripture. Look. If you want to defend theistic evolution, you need to do it honestly. And the honest truth is that almost all of the Fathers affirmed the historicity of Genesis 1 as six-day creation, and every single one of them without exception believed that the Flood of Noah covered the entire Earth and the highest mountain fifteen cubits deep. This will be the case no matter how many times Augustine is mentioned. As Gideon mentioned above, I used to be a very passionate theistic evolutionist. I was so passionate about it that I wanted to study evolutionary biology as a career. During this time, God was still faithful and treated me as His son. I was asked by one pious Orthodox Christian to simply ask God to reveal to me the truth of the matter. Even though I was absolutely confident of my correctness, I figured it could do no harm to ask God, so I did. And within a year and a half, I found myself believing young-age creation. When I came to believe in young-age creation, I realized something. My doubt about the truth of the Christian faith, doubts which had plagued me for seven years, were utterly gone. And when I realized that, I discovered for myself the massive untruth of the idea that young-age creation causes doubt. No, it is theistic evolution which causes doubt, because those who think through its implications can see for themselves the disturbing implication- God is distant and relatively uninvolved with the world. The implication is that God's own children, the Church, were misinformed about the origins of the creation, and the truth was discovered by secularists, atheists, and liberal Protestants. Certainly in such a world it seems as if Christianity is not true. One might be able to hold them together for a time. But it is a highly unstable synthesis. So those Orthodox Christians who hold theistic evolution are my brothers in the Lord, yes. And God deals with them as His children. But I do ask that you pray to God about the matter.

[romancatholicreflections]

24th May >> Daily Reflection on Today's First Reading (Acts of the Apostles 17:15, 22) for Roman Catholics on Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Commentary on Acts of the Apostles 17:15, 22 We continue to accompany Paul on his Second Missionary Journey. After passing through Thessalonica (to whose Christians are addressed two of Paul’s earliest letters) and Beroea (both in Macedonia), Paul’s next destination was Athens, at that time still the cultural centre of the Mediterranean, although political power was now in Rome. Our reading begins with Paul arriving in the city, with instructions for Silas and Timothy to follow on as soon as possible. At this time, Athens was really only a shadow of its former self. Some five centuries before Paul it had been at the height of its glory in art, philosophy and literature with a culture which still influences modern life today. In the generations which followed, the city still had a reputation for philosophical thinking and in Paul’s day there was a leading university in the city. While waiting for his companions to arrive, Paul was quite horrified at the level of idolatry he found in such a supposedly sophisticated city. He was engaged in discussions not only with Jews and other sympathisers but also got involved with Stoic and Epicurean philosophers who found his teaching rather strange. “What is this scavenger trying to say?” they asked. Because of his mention of someone called ‘Jesus’ and terms like ‘resurrection’, they said he sounded “like a promoter of foreign [i.e. non-Greek] deities”. Eventually they invited him to address the Council of the Areopagus, an indication of how seriously they took him even though they found his ideas outlandish. It should have been a very important venue for Paul. If he could win the Athenians round to accepting the message of Christ, it could have far-reaching effects. The Greeks were famous for their intellectual interests and their love of discussion and debate. As Luke comments rather laconically, “The one amusement the Athenians and the foreigners living there seem to have, apart from discussing the latest ideas, is listening to lectures about them.” Yet, in a way, it was this passion for discussion of ideas which made the Greeks so outstanding in philosophy and literature. (cf. Bernard Lonergan SJ on the Athenians’ gift for conversation, a source of great intellectual creativity.) So Paul went to the Areopagus in the heart of the city and spoke to the people assembled there. And it is Paul’s address which forms the main part of today’s reading. The Areopagus was a hill to the south of the Agora, the central market place of Athens where people gathered. Areopagus also referred to the Athenian supreme council which held its sessions there. Paul chose as his topic the knowledge of God, a theme very popular in the propaganda of contemporary hellenistic Judaism. The pagans are accused of not knowing God, the proof being that they worship idols. This ignorance, Paul tells them, is culpable, since all are capable of knowing God as creator and controller of the cosmos. Nevertheless, Paul’s address is in a totally different style from what he had been giving up to this. He makes no explicit mention of the Scriptures; he does not even mention the name of Jesus. He speaks of the Greeks as “scrupulously religious”, although the word he used could also mean “superstitious”, depending on the context. Paul’s meaning will emerge as he speaks. In the context, it is clear that Paul wanted to be complimentary in order to get a hearing. He tries to go in their door by taking as his cue an altar he saw, dedicated to an “unknown” god. Polytheists (like the Greeks) used to dedicate altars to ‘unknown gods’, in case they incurred the vengeance of gods whose names they did not know. It was a kind of all-inclusive title. While it was a way to make sure that none of the many Greek gods was left unworshipped, it also indicated the level of superstition that co-existed with the Athenians’ much-vaunted intellectualism. Paul uses the practice for his own ends and also turns back the charge of preaching about ‘outlandish’ gods which people had never heard of. And he goes on to spell out for them just who this ‘unknown’ God really is. He is the God who made this world and all that lives in it. This idea was common in Greek thought and hellenistic Judaism; it is a form of the old biblical theme found in the prophet Amos (5:21ff) and in Psalm 50:9-13. Paul proclaims a personal Creator in contrast with the pantheistic God of the Stoics. He is a Lord who pervades the heavens and the earth and is not confined to man-made sanctuaries. Nor does he need the help of any human. On the contrary, it is he who gives life and breath and everything with it. He made from one the whole human race, meaning that all belong to one family (Athenians, Romans, Greeks, ‘barbarians’, Jews, Gentiles). A belief we assert every time we pray ‘Our Father…’. Through his creation he made his presence evident all over the world, “so that people might seek God, even perhaps grope for him and find him, though indeed he is not far from any of us.” He is the Designer God where nothing is left to mere Chance, as the Epicureans thought. He even gives two quotations from Greek poets to strengthen his argument. – “In him [i.e. God] we live and move and have our being.” This quotation is attributed to the poet Epimenides (about 600 BC) who came from Knossos in Crete and is found in his work Cretica. – “We are his [i.e. God’s] offspring” is from the Cilician poet Aratus (about 315 to 240 BC) in his Phaenomen and also found in Cleanthes’ Hymn to Zeus. Paul also questions the practice of worshipping objects of stone or metal as gods. If we human beings have come from God, how can that God be contained in images of gold, silver or stone – materials which are on a lower level than ourselves? (It is a very different thing – as we have in the Catholic church – to have images representing our God or the saints. They play the same role as family photographs. No one believes that a picture of Uncle Joe is really Uncle Joe.) Up to this, God had tolerated this practice which was done in ignorance but, with the coming of Jesus, all that has changed. It is time now to ‘repent’ (a word which, as we have already seen, implies a total conversion in our way of living) because God will ‘judge the world with justice’ through the “man he has appointed”, namely, Jesus. And all this, says Paul, is confirmed by Jesus having been raised from the dead. But at the mention of ‘resurrection from the dead’ some of Paul’s listeners began mocking and others, perhaps with their interest whetted, said, “We must hear you on this topic some other time.” However, it seems clear that their interest was purely on the level of intellectual speculation and not at all on the spiritual or religious. Immortality of the soul was accepted by the Greeks (see Plato’s Dialogues) but not the resurrection of a dead body. In the Greek world, even among Christians, the doctrine of the resurrection was strongly resisted, as we see in the First Letter to the Corinthians (15:12ff). The Jerusalem Sanhedrists also condemned and attacked this Christian dogma, whereas the Athenians of the Areopagus were content to mock. Basically speaking, then, Paul’s mission to the Athenians was a dismal failure. From now on he refuses to use the arguments from Greek philosophy. So he writes later on to the Christians of Corinth: “When I came to you, brother and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God in lofty words or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you, except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor 2:1-2) and a little before that, in the same letter, he had written, Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. (1 Cor 1:20-24). From now on he would rely only on the power of the Gospel message. In spite of this, there were some converts made in Athens. Among these was Dionysius the Areopagite. The Jerusalem Bible notes: “Luke’s readers must have known him. He became the subject of legend, especially since the 5th century when an author (the ‘pseudo-Dionysius’) published various mystical writings under his name. Later legend identifies him with St Denys, the first bishop of Paris (3rd century)” or even that he was bishop of Athens. Another convert mentioned was Damaris. The NIV notes: “Some have suggested that she must have been a foreign, educated woman to have been present at a public meeting such as the Areopagus. It is also possible that she was a God-fearing Gentile who had heard Paul at the synagogue.” From Athens, Paul continued south to Corinth. He would have gone there either by land along the isthmus, a distance of about 80 km (50 miles) or else by sea from Piraeus, the port of Athens, to Cenchrea, the port of Corinth, on the eastern shore of the isthmus of Corinth. Corinth had been rebuilt by no less a person than Julius Caesar and became capital of the Roman province of Achaia (southern Greece). Its population was largely Roman and Latin-speaking but it was a lively commercial centre which attracted people of all nations. There was also a considerable Jewish colony. The immorality of the city was proverbial even by the standards of the day. Paul does not seem ever to have ever returned to Athens. But, once again, we see that God’s ways are not our ways. Once again we see how Paul is turned in a different direction from what seemed the obvious way to go. His next stop will be Corinth, a city, on the face of it, which – compared to sophisticated Athens – was not at all promising, given its reputation for lewdness and immorality. On the positive side, we should look carefully at how Paul presented his message in a language that would make sense to his hearers. He did not dilute or compromise his message but he did try to express it in language that would give an opening to an audience totally unfamiliar with the Jewish scriptures. This is something we need to remember whether we are bringing our message to a culture which has never heard the message before or to one which has lost it. Much of our preaching, it has to be said, is to the converted and not to those who have not heard the message or have only heard it in distorted forms.

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

by Michael J. Kruger | It probably comes as no surprise that the most common question I receive from both Christians and non-Christians is “How do I know the Bible is the Word of God?” And the reason this question is at the top of the list is not hard to determine. The authority of the Bible is the foundation for everything that we believe as Christians. It is the source of our doctrine and our ethics. Thus, we need to be able to answer…

[torreygazette]

Interview with Rachel Miller

Rachel, thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. Can you tell our readers a little bit about yourself?

My name is Rachel Green Miller. I grew up in a Christian home and came to faith at an early age. My dad is a retired PCA pastor, and my mom is a retired professor. My husband, Matt, and I met at Texas A&M University, and we’ve been married 19 years this December. We have three boys, Jonathan, Gabriel, and Nathanael, and we homeschool. I’ve been a writer and a blogger for several years now focusing mainly on theology and practical applications. My first book, Beyond Authority and Submission: Women and Men in Marriage, Church, and Society, will be released September 3.

Rachel, Aimee Byrd has called you unintentionally controversial. Why do you think people push back on the nuances in your book Beyond Authority and Submission?

It’s funny. I never set out to be controversial. If you read through what I believe about the Bible and about marriage and the church, I hold to very conservative views. Marriage should be between one man and one woman, ideally for life. Husbands should be servant leaders in the home, loving their wives sacrificially as Christ loves the church. Wives should submit voluntarily to that leadership as the church submits to Christ. In the church, only qualified men should be ordained leaders. There really shouldn’t be controversy over what I believe and teach.

And yet, I regularly get pushback about what I’ve written. Some people call me a feminist or an egalitarian, even though my beliefs indicate otherwise. Much of the pushback I’ve received comes from people who have certain views about the nature of women and men, and they take issue with me saying those views are culturally influenced and unbiblical.

In the 1980s, many conservative Christians were concerned about aspects of the second-wave feminist movement, particularly the sexual revolution and abortion. Many traditional beliefs about marriage and family, and even about religion and the church, were being attacked. In response, a number of conservative Christians looked back to a cultural ideal that they believe existed before the sexual revolution and the second-wave feminist movement.

However, instead of going back to the Bible to defend a biblical view of marriage, sexuality, and the church, they imported pagan beliefs about women and men from the Victorians who got them from pre-Christian Greek and Roman culture. Unfortunately, many conservative Christians believe these views are biblical. When I challenge these extra-biblical and unbiblical beliefs, some people react defensively because they think I’m trying to undermine biblical teaching. But I’m not. I want us, as conservative Christians, to go back to the Bible and study for ourselves what it teaches about women and men in marriage, church, and society. I want us to be willing to reform our teaching so that we are faithful to Scripture.

You did a lot of historical research for your book. What is the strangest concept of masculinity or femininity you ran across in the process? 

That’s a good question. I read many odd ideas about men and women. One that stands out, though, is the Greek belief that women were defective and inverted versions of men. Because of a lack of heat during the development in the womb, babies were born female. This deformity meant that women were physically, mentally, emotionally, and morally inferior to men. As disturbing as this may seem, the really sad thing is how influential these beliefs have been in western culture.

You have endured misrepresentations of your theological position. What is something encouraging you have heard?

I’ve been very encouraged by a number of people, women and men, who have reached out to tell me how my writing has helped them.

There is a lot of discussion around purity culture at the moment. Did purity culture influence how you perceive gender at all?

The purity culture didn’t have much influence on me. The books and movements that defined the modern purity culture came out in the mid- to late-90s when I was in college. So, the discussions were going on around me, but they weren’t formative for me. It certainly wasn’t part of what my family believed or taught me. Through my research, though, I saw many connections between the purity culture and prevalent conservative beliefs about sexuality, modesty, dating, and marriage.

How can we encourage other female writers to come forward with theologically sound resources?

I think it helps to promote women writers by reading and sharing what they’ve written. But the key is to support theologically sound teaching. Women, and men, in our churches need to be taught sound doctrine, and they need to be encouraged to study for themselves. It matters what women are taught in the local church and in parachurch settings. We shouldn’t promote women authors simply because they are women. There are a lot of unorthodox resources out there written by women (and men). We need show discernment and be careful who and what we promote.

Do you think certain positions about feminine subordination promote abuse?

A hyper focus on authority and submission can create an environment that is emotionally, spiritually, and physically abusive for women and children—especially when a man’s authority over his wife and children is almost absolute. In this system, men are the authority that’s been put into place by God over families. To reject or resist that authority, even when it’s used abusively, is to put oneself at risk of spiritual and physical harm.

These teachings create a system that tolerates abuse by calling on women to endure abuse or “difficult” marriages as a holy burden, by teaching that marriage is primarily about holiness and procreation, and by insisting that divorce isn’t a biblical option even in the case of abuse. If a man is abusing his wife emotionally or verbally but not physically, the advice from many conservative Christians is for the wife to endure the abuse.

Now, abusive men will be abusive regardless of their religious or cultural backgrounds. However, these beliefs about the natural authority of men and the natural submission of women create and maintain a system that provides cover for a particular kind of abusive man.

What are you reading right now, or tell me about a book you’re excited to read?

I’m currently reading The Concept of Woman by Prudence Allen. It’s a three-volume set that looks at how philosophers and other writers have defined women in relationship to men over history. It’s been very interesting so far. I’m looking forward to reading Rachael Denhollander’s book, What is a Girl Worth? and also Aimee Byrd’s upcoming Recovering from Biblical Manhood and Womanhood.

What is your hope that people will take away from your work? 

As Christians, we need to speak out about what the Bible teaches about women and men, the definition of marriage, and the purposes and boundaries of sexuality. But we need to be very careful about what we say. Our society needs clear teaching from the Bible. That means that we need to study the Bible and allow the Scriptures to peel back any layers of unbiblical and extra-biblical beliefs we have added.

I wrote this book because I care deeply about what the Bible teaches about women and men. My desire is for women and men to be co-laborers in all of life so that our families and churches will be strengthened and encouraged. Working together, we can then be a blessing to our society, which so desperately needs the truth of the gospel.

[icephas]

Paul in Athens

Wednesday, August 29

Athens, the intellectual center of ancient Greece, was literally given to idols. Marble statues of persons and gods were found everywhere, especially at the entrance of the agora (public square), which was the hub of urban life. Paul was so distressed about such dominant idolatry that he changed his usual practice of going first to the synagogue, and pursued a dual course of action: he disputed weekly in the synagogue with Jews and devout Gentiles, and daily in the public square with the Greeks. (See Acts 17:15-22.)

As the Athenians were always ready to hear something new, some philosophers took interest in Paul’s teaching and invited him to address the Areopagus, the high council of the city. In his speech, Paul did not quote from the Scriptures or recap the history of God’s dealings with Israel, as he did when speaking to a Jewish audience (compare with Acts 13:16-41); this approach would not make much sense with this audience. Instead, he presented some important biblical truths in a way that cultured pagans could understand.

Read Acts 17:22-31. In his Areopagus speech, what great truths about God and salvation and history and humanity did he preach to these people?

Most of Paul’s words sounded ridiculous to that sophisticated pagan audience, whose concepts about God and religion were greatly distorted. We do not know how Paul intended to end his message, for he seems to have been interrupted the very moment he referred to God’s judgment of the world (Acts 17:31). This belief collided head on with two Greek concepts: (1) that God is utterly transcendent, having no dealings whatsoever with the world or concern in human affairs, and (2) that when a person dies there can be no resurrection at all. This helps to explain why the gospel was foolishness to the Greeks (1 Corinthians 1:23) and the number of converts in Athens was small.

Yet, among those who came to believe were some of the most influential people of Athenian society, such as Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, and Damaris, whose mention by name implies she was of some status, if not also a member of the council herself (Acts 17:34).

Paul’s different approach before the Areopagus shows his awareness of social and cultural differences. He even quoted a pagan poet (Acts 17:28) in order to make his point. What should this teach us about how we can use different methods to reach different people?

[roman-catholic-mass-readings]

19th October >> Mass Readings (Except USA)

  Monday, Twenty Ninth Week in Ordinary Time 

    or 

Saints John de Brébeuf and Isaac Jogues, priests, and their Companions, Martyrs 

    or 

Saint Paul of the Cross, Priest.

Monday, Twenty Ninth Week in Ordinary Time

  (Liturgical Colour: Green)

       First Reading

Ephesians 2:1-10

Sinners are saved in Christ Jesus

You were dead through the crimes and the sins in which you used to live when you were following the way of this world, obeying the ruler who governs the air, the spirit who is at work in the rebellious. We all were among them too in the past, living sensual lives, ruled entirely by our own physical desires and our own ideas; so that by nature we were as much under God’s anger as the rest of the world. But God loved us with so much love that he was generous with his mercy: when we were dead through our sins, he brought us to life with Christ – it is through grace that you have been saved – and raised us up with him and gave us a place with him in heaven, in Christ Jesus.

This was to show for all ages to come, through his goodness towards us in Christ Jesus, how infinitely rich he is in grace. Because it is by grace that you have been saved, through faith; not by anything of your own, but by a gift from God; not by anything that you have done, so that nobody can claim the credit. We are God’s work of art, created in Christ Jesus to live the good life as from the beginning he had meant us to live it.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

   Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 99(100)

 R/ He made us, we belong to him.

Cry out with joy to the Lord, all the earth.

 Serve the Lord with gladness.

 Come before him, singing for joy.

R/ He made us, we belong to him.

Know that he, the Lord, is God.

 He made us, we belong to him,

 we are his people, the sheep of his flock.

R/ He made us, we belong to him.

Go within his gates, giving thanks.

 Enter his courts with songs of praise.

 Give thanks to him and bless his name.

R/ He made us, we belong to him.

Indeed, how good is the Lord,

 eternal his merciful love.

 He is faithful from age to age.

R/ He made us, we belong to him.

    Gospel Acclamation

Psalm 24:4,5

Alleluia, alleluia!

Teach me your paths, my God,

make me walk in your truth.

Alleluia!

  Or:

Matthew 5:3

Alleluia, alleluia!

How happy are the poor in spirit:

theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Alleluia!

    Gospel

Luke 12:13-21

Fool! This very night your soul will be demanded of you

A man in the crowd said to Jesus, ‘Master, tell my brother to give me a share of our inheritance.’ ‘My friend,’ he replied, ‘who appointed me your judge, or the arbitrator of your claims?’ Then he said to them, ‘Watch, and be on your guard against avarice of any kind, for a man’s life is not made secure by what he owns, even when he has more than he needs.’

Then he told them a parable: ‘There was once a rich man who, having had a good harvest from his land, thought to himself, “What am I to do? I have not enough room to store my crops.” Then he said, “This is what I will do: I will pull down my barns and build bigger ones, and store all my grain and my goods in them, and I will say to my soul: My soul, you have plenty of good things laid by for many years to come; take things easy, eat, drink, have a good time.” But God said to him, “Fool! This very night the demand will be made for your soul; and this hoard of yours, whose will it be then?” So it is when a man stores up treasure for himself in place of making himself rich in the sight of God.’

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

 —————————

     Saints John de Brébeuf and Isaac Jogues, priests, and their Companions, Martyrs 

  (Liturgical Colour: Red)

     (Readings for the memorial)

(There is a choice today between the readings for the ferial day (Monday) and those for the memorial. The ferial readings are recommended unless pastoral reasons suggest otherwise)

    First Reading

2 Corinthians 4:7-15

Such an overwhelming power comes from God and not from us

We are only the earthenware jars that hold this treasure, to make it clear that such an overwhelming power comes from God and not from us. We are in difficulties on all sides, but never cornered; we see no answer to our problems, but never despair; we have been persecuted, but never deserted; knocked down, but never killed; always, wherever we may be, we carry with us in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus, too, may always be seen in our body. Indeed, while we are still alive, we are consigned to our death every day, for the sake of Jesus, so that in our mortal flesh the life of Jesus, too, may be openly shown. So death is at work in us, but life in you.

But as we have the same spirit of faith that is mentioned in scripture – I believed, and therefore I spoke – we too believe and therefore we too speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus to life will raise us with Jesus in our turn, and put us by his side and you with us. You see, all this is for your benefit, so that the more grace is multiplied among people, the more thanksgiving there will be, to the glory of God.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

   Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 125(126):1-6

 R/ Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

When the Lord delivered Zion from bondage,

 it seemed like a dream.

Then was our mouth filled with laughter,

 on our lips there were songs.

R/ Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

The heathens themselves said: ‘What marvels

 the Lord worked for them!’

What marvels the Lord worked for us!

 Indeed we were glad.

R/ Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

Deliver us, O Lord, from our bondage

 as streams in dry land.

Those who are sowing in tears

 will sing when they reap.

R/ Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

They go out, they go out, full of tears,

 carrying seed for the sowing:

they come back, they come back, full of song,

 carrying their sheaves.

R/ Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

    Gospel Acclamation

Matthew 28:19,20

Alleluia, alleluia!

Go, make disciples of all the nations.

I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.

Alleluia!

    Gospel

Matthew 28:16-20

Go and make disciples of all nations

The eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations; baptise them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.’

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

——————————- 

     Saint Paul of the Cross, Priest 

  (Liturgical Colour: White)

     (Readings for the memorial)

(There is a choice today between the readings for the ferial day (Monday) and those for the memorial. The ferial readings are recommended unless pastoral reasons suggest otherwise)

    First Reading

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

We preach a crucified Christ, the power and wisdom of God

The language of the cross may be illogical to those who are not on the way to salvation, but those of us who are on the way see it as God’s power to save. As scripture says: I shall destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing all the learning of the learned. Where are the philosophers now? Where are the scribes? Where are any of our thinkers today? Do you see now how God has shown up the foolishness of human wisdom? If it was God’s wisdom that human wisdom should not know God, it was because God wanted to save those who have faith through the foolishness of the message that we preach. And so, while the Jews demand miracles and the Greeks look for wisdom, here are we preaching a crucified Christ; to the Jews an obstacle that they cannot get over, to the pagans madness, but to those who have been called, whether they are Jews or Greeks, a Christ who is the power and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

   Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 116(117):1-2

 R/ Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News.

or

R/ Alleluia!

O praise the Lord, all you nations,

 acclaim him all you peoples!

R/ Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News.

or

R/ Alleluia!

Strong is his love for us;

 he is faithful for ever.

R/ Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News.

or

R/ Alleluia!

    Gospel Acclamation

Matthew 5:6

Alleluia, alleluia!

Happy those who hunger and thirst for what is right:

they shall be satisfied.

Alleluia!

    Gospel

Matthew 16:24-27

Anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it. What, then, will a man gain if he wins the whole world and ruins his life? Or what has a man to offer in exchange for his life?

‘For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and, when he does, he will reward each one according to his behaviour.’

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

[yourgodmoments]

The True Christmas Story

In approximately 7 B.C. during the reign of King Herod (also referred to as ‘Herod the Great’) who ruled over Judea, Zacharias, (a priest – also translated as Zachariah or Zechariah) was visited by an angel by the name of 'Gabriel.'

Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth (she happens to be a cousin of Mary, the mother of Jesus) were very old and childless. Still, they were righteous and faithful, and never gave up hope that God would bring them a child.

Gabriel tells the priest that he and his wife's prayers are answered, and that the child would be a son. He told Zacharias to name him 'John.' (The name means 'God has shown favor.')  And, John would be special:

"For he will be great in the sight of the Lord...He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.  And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." Lk. 1:15 - 17. NKJV

Thus, John (to be known as 'John the Baptist' in adulthood) would be driven by the Spirit of God Himself, and he would preach powerfully in the manner of Elijah, the Old Testament prophet.

John the Baptist reconciled many people, turning them to pursue righteous behavior and positioned them to receive Christ – fulfilling yet another Messianic prophecy.

When Elizabeth reached her sixth month of pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, to reveal His will to Mary – a woman engaged to a man named Joseph. Gabriel speaks:

"Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!" Lk. 1:28 NKJV

Indeed, Mary was chosen to be the carrier of the Salvation of the Earth. What this scripture does not mean, is that she should be worshiped in any way. That would violate the first and the second of the Ten Commandments.

Mary was beside herself but Gabriel assuaged her fears; and then he makes a phenomenal earth-shaking declaration:

"Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.

He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end." Lk. 1:30 - 33. NKJV

The name 'Jesus' finds its roots in the Hebrew word Yhowshuwa, translated as Jehoshua or Joshua, and from the Greek word Iesous, meaning 'The Lord is salvation.'

So, Jesus is revealed as the Son of God, who will reign over God's children eternally.

Mary protests, thinking it impossible in her virgin state. She was thinking small:

And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you, therefore the child to be born will be called holy - the Son of God." Lk. 1:35 ESV

This is a one-time only event in all of history – a Holy Spirit-facilitated conception, whereby the Spirit of the Son of God is transferred into flesh.

(The Koran refutes this scripture, as it interprets this event to mean that God was involved in some carnal act, but it was nothing of the kind. It was a transformation.)

Gabriel went on to tell Mary that God had rendered her cousin Elizabeth and her husband Zacharias fertile so that they were now bearing a child. How did God do that, knowing that the couple was so advanced in age? Gabriel reminds us:

"For with God nothing will be impossible." Lk. 1:37 NKJV

After Mary's encounter with Gabriel, she rushed over to Elizabeth's house. As soon as she entered it, the unborn John the Baptist leaps in his mother’s womb and Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit – who reveals to her the miraculous transformation of her cousin. Elizabeth shouts:

"Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" Lk. 1:42, 43. NKJV

The answer was that Elizabeth was being rewarded for her faith.

Mary stayed with Elizabeth until just before John was born. When he is born, Zacharias is filled with the Holy Spirit, and he bursts forth with prophecy concerning his son:

"And you child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways; to give His people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. Because of the tender mercy of our God, with which the Sunrise from on high will visit us, to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." Lk. 1:76 - 79. NASB

At that time, Mary was three months' pregnant. Joseph knows that the child isn't his, so he is considering not marrying her. But in his dreams, God sent Him an angel who enlightened him:

"Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." Mt. 1:20, 21. ESV

This is yet another fulfillment of Messianic prophecy – one where Isaiah told of the virgin birth of Christ 400 years before it happened.

Joseph married Mary, but he did not have marital relations with her until after the birth of Jesus.

Near the time of Jesus' birth, Caesar Augustus was the emperor of Rome, and he ordered a census be taken so that everyone would be registered for the purpose of taxation.

Everyone had to register in the city where his or her ancestral records were kept. For Joseph and Mary, that meant a trip to Bethlehem. When they got there, there was no available lodging, so they had to stay in a manger (translated from the Greek word phatne, meaning 'stall’).

And that's where our Lord was born.

Simultaneously, an angel appeared to a group of shepherds who were tending their sheep at night in a nearby field, declaring:

"Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." Lk. 2:10, 11. NKJV

Immediately after this declaration, the angel was joined by a multitude of other angels, who burst into praise:

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" Lk. 2:14 NKJV

(The fact that the shepherds were in the fields at night would suggest a warmer time of year than that of winter. So, we don't really know the correct date of Christ's birth.

One of the earliest references to December 25th says that in 354 A.D. the Catholic Church picked that date, as both Christ's birth, and for a 'Christmas' to celebrate it.

Christmas has a storied past. It has been denounced as a Catholic invention to give the pagans a 'holy holiday' to celebrate – instead of reveling at winter solstice festivals or at celebrations used to worship a god named Saturn; i.e. 'Christmas was believed to be some form of 'conversion tactic.'

The early American colonists were against it because the holiday was too 'English' for them.

Many of the early Protestants were in opposition to celebrating it as well, because some people used the holiday for drinking and cavorting. Some even went so far as to call 'Christmas' evil, because it wasn't biblical and because the only two examples of 'birthday celebrations' in the Bible were associated with evil outcomes.

Yet to me, that's like saying that if someone died of a poisoned apple in the Bible, that all people should stop eating apples.

I believe that if a true follower of Christ wants to proclaim Christmas for the purpose of exalting the Savior and to celebrate God's gift to us through the earthly incarnation of Christ, then they should be able to follow their own heart.)

Returning to our biblical narrative:

The angels left and the shepherds went to see the baby Jesus; and word began to spread about this Christ child.

On the eighth day, Jesus was circumcised and formally named. After approximately 40 days, He was dedicated to God in the Temple. At that time, there was a man named Simeon, whom God had directed to the Temple by the Holy Spirit (to fulfill an earlier promise that He had made to Simeon – a promise that he would get to see the Messiah before he died). Simeon picked up baby Jesus and said:

"Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, for glory to your people Israel." Lk. 2:29 - 32. ESV

Thus, Christ is the Savior for all of God's children around the world – Jews and Gentiles alike.

Simeon (still filled with the Holy Spirit) turned to Mary and said:

"Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed - and a sword will pierce even your own soul - to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed." Lk. 2:34, 35. NASB

So, Christ will be the eternal Savior of those who follow Him but He will be the harbinger of death to those who stand in opposition. And Mary's heart will be pierced at the crucifixion of her Son, as the full impact of who He is and what He's done, is acutely felt...

News of the birth of the Messiah traveled fast and far – even reaching the 'East' (a term generally used in the Bible to refer to Arab lands). And so it was, that 'wise men' (which can also be translated as philosophers or astrologers) from the East came to Jerusalem to find the Messiah. (The Bible never says that there were three of them by the way.)

The wise men inquired:

“Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” Mt. 2:2 AMP

King Herod got wind of this, and he began to worry about his rule being usurped. He gathered together his priests, who, in answer to his demand, tell him that the Old Testament says that the birthplace of the Messiah-King will be in Bethlehem.

Subsequently, the king gathered the wise men of the East to him and asked them to return to him after they find the Messiah, to tell him of His whereabouts so that he can worship him as well. (In reality, Herod wanted to kill this 'Christ.')

The wise men followed a star to where Jesus lay, and worshiped Him and presented Him with gifts. Afterwards, God sent the wise men a vision in their dreams – warning them against returning to Herod. Wisely, (pardon the pun) they returned to the East by another route.

Immediately after the wise men left, an angel came to Joseph in a dream and presented him with an urgent task:

"Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him." Mt. 2:13 NKJV

Joseph obeyed.

After the wise men fail to return to King Herod, he figures out that he's been duped. Using the approximate time of Jesus' birth, (as was relayed to him by the wise men, before they found Jesus), Herod retaliated by having every male child in Bethlehem, aged two and under, slaughtered. His act is commonly referred to as the 'Massacre of the Innocents.'

When Herod died, (approximately 4 B.C.) God sent another angel to Joseph – this time instructing him to bring his family back to Israel.

They returned to find Herod's eldest son Archelaus ruling over Judea. Archelaus' rule was oppressive, so Joseph takes his family to live in the region of Galilee (which was under the rule of Archelaus' half-brother, Herod Antipas – who apparently ruled with a softer glove). Within that region, they settled in the city of Nazareth.

And the Bible tells us:

And the Child continued to grow and become strong [in spirit], filled with wisdom; and the grace (favor and spiritual blessing) of God was upon Him. Lk. 2:40 AMP

That's the true Christmas story. Tell a friend…

[christsbride]

The Watchtower's New World Translation of the Bible

There are many bible translations but none that contradict each other except for the New World Translation.  This translation translates words and ideas differently causing conflict with the other translations.  Both can not be true so is the New World Translation a true biblical translation?  This article will look a a few areas of the translation where words are changed or added and explore the true meaning found in the Alexandrian, Byzantine, and Old Testament ancient texts. Cross or Stake? The New World Translation renders the Greek term word staurós ("cross") as "torture stake" because Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that Jesus was crucified on a cross.  The English word for "cross" comes from the latin word "crux".  Whether "stake" or "cross" is used; this still does not negate the detailed history of the use of the thing.  Roman historian Tacitus describes such events.  Criminals, with their crossbeams are then mounted on the fixed pole for the purpose of slow painful deaths.  Jewish historian Josephus (born only a few years after Jesus was killed) records people caught by Romans, being nailed to them.  Roman politician Cicero, who wrote around 30BC, recorded the gruesome nature of this kind of execution.   Seneca the Younger, a Roman philosopher who lived during Jesus' time, described the method as means to humiliate.  Jehovah's Witnesses argue that Jesus was crucified on a crux simplex, and that the crux immissa was an invention of Emperor Constantine round the 4th century in defense of Christianity; but a graffito found in a taberna in Puteoli, dating to the time of Trajan or Hadrian (late 1st century to early 2nd century CE) shows a T shaped crucifixion.  The New Testament writings about the crucifixion of Jesus do not specifically describe the shape of the cross, but the early writings that do speak of its shape, from about the year 100 CE on, describe it as shaped like the letter T (the Greek letter tau) or as composed of an upright and a transverse beam, sometimes with a small projection in the upright.  When considering actual Roman history we can conclude that simply calling it a 'stake' is an insufficient word choice.   An example of poor choice words in translations that can negatively impact the understanding is this:  The concept of our desperate need for Jesus.  If I was to say in greek, "I moved to Jesus".  That is a good thing.  But if I was to have actually said in greek "I sprinted to Jesus"; notice the big difference.  Yes, sprinting is moving, but sprinting illuminates the desperation.  The New World translation would have used the word 'move' instead of 'sprint' because of their own theological agendas and would argue that 'moving' is what the greek word means- this is called deceptive truth.  Even though sprinting is moving and can mean moving, the author meant a more specific word to illuminate the truth. Thus, with true historic evidences we can conclude that the 'cross' is best.  Therefore, we can conclude that Jesus was in fact crucified on a "cross".  With this we can already see poor word choices in the New World Translation.  The reasoning for that poor word choice is due to an attempt to morph unbiblical teachings forced by changing the wording in scripture.  Not only does the word choice not fully express the message but it conflicts with actual historical facts. The Place of The Dead- Hell? The New World Translation does not translate the words sheol, hades, and gehenna as "hell” because Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe in hell.  Aside from the theological misunderstandings of God's Justice and Love with Hell; and looking at the actual meanings expressed in the ancient biblical texts in the cultures it was written in we can see the same poor word choice issue.  In Jewish tradition, gehenna, is the place of fire and torment for the wicked (Kiddushin 4.14, Avot 1.5; 5.19, 20, Tosefta t. Bereshith 6.15, and Babylonian Talmud b.Rosh Hashanah 16b:7a; b. Bereshith 28b).  This place is know for this because historically and traditionally this is where children were burned to a pagan god. The same place Jesus states in Matthew 5:22, 29-30, 10:28, 18:9, 23:15, 33; Mark 9:43, 45, 47; Luke 12:5; James 3:6).  Sheol and Hades are cultural words that are synonyms for the same place describing a general sense of the world of the dead.  The context points to the specificity of the truth about this place.  In general, scripture tells us of a literal place where wicked and fallen angels will go for eternal torment.  But if God is Just and Loving, how then can he send anyone there?  Simple.  People choose to go there and because God is ultimately loving, he gives them what they ultimately desire; separation from himself.  It is God's justice that requires payment for sin; thus this place apart from him is their rightful and just payment for their sins.  God remains perfectly Just and Loving by giving people what they ultimately desire with the perfect judged consequences of it.  This place is called Hell in English and the descriptive words are synonyms of that place.  The importance of understanding the culture and synonyms is key.  Misunderstanding this leads to unbiblical ideas which influences incorrect translations.  That is exactly what happened with the New World Translation.  The teachers of the Jehovah's Witness religion failed to properly understand Hell.  They invented an idea about this subject and injected that false idea into how they translate the bible. Already Came or Still Coming?  The NWT gives the translation "presence" instead of “coming” for the Greek word parousia because Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Christ has already returned in the early 1900s.  This translation is soley based on the concept that Jesus already came.  When the authors wrote the word, in context, was in future tense.  Jesus' physical presence was coming.  The translation of this word in the NWT is completely dependent on the idea that Jesus already came.  Did he?  Acts 1:9-11 specifically tells us that he physically ascended into heaven AND will return the same way.  Therefore we know that he will physically descend from heaven in the future.  Jesus discussed this with the Apostles in Matthew 24:3-32.  There are some huge points that need to be made here.  First, Jesus warns the Apostles (and us) about false Christs and false prophets.  "And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you... For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many... Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many... Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him... For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect."  Jehovah's Witnesses aren't the only ones who claim that Jesus already came.  Ann Lee (1736–1784), the founder and leader of the Shakers believed she was the female incarnation of Christ on Earth. William W. Davies (1833–1906), leader of a Latter Day Saint group. He taught his followers that he was the archangel Michael, and also declared that the infant was the reincarnated Jesus Christ. Sun Myung Moon (1920–2012), believed by members of the Unification Church to be the Messiah and the Second Coming of Christ.  Yahweh ben Yahweh (1935–2007), born as Hulon Mitchell, Jr., a black nationalist and separatist who created the Nation of Yahweh in 1979 in Liberty City, Florida. His self-proclaimed name means "God, Son of God". He could have only been deeming himself to be "son of God", not God, but many of his followers clearly deem him to be God Incarnate.  Inri Cristo (1948–), a Brazilian who claims to be the second Jesus reincarnated in 1969.  Apollo Quiboloy (1950–) is the founder and leader of a Philippines-based Restorationist church, the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, The Name Above Every Name, Inc. He has made claims that he is the "Appointed Son of God". Alan John Miller (1962–), more commonly known as A.J. Miller, a former Jehovah's Witness elder and current leader of the Australia-based Divine Truth movement.  Miller claims to be Jesus Christ reincarnated.  This just to name a few throughout history.  The Jehovah Witness claim is nothing new.  How do we know they aren't? We continue reading in Matthew 24:  "So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them... For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be... And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory... For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah... and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be."  And just like that; the entire earth will know.  The entire earth will see him.  "For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will." (Matthew 24:21)  The power and great glory of his coming will be so great and so grand; more grand than the beginning of the World!  Well, the whole world did not see anything.  The power and glory was not that great if the Jehovah's Witnesses are right...  Their claim of him already coming conflicts with what Jesus revealed; therefore he has not come yet.  With that said, the NWT rendering of the word "presence" instead of "coming" is very incorrect because the more accurate word is in fact 'coming'.  There was nothing like the flood, nothing more powerful than creation, no great and grand power or glory, and "ALL" the tribes of the earth did not see anything. All Other Things?  In Colossians 1:16, the NWT inserts the word “other” despite its being completely absent from the original Greek text. It does this to give the view that “all other things” were created by Christ, instead of what the text says, “all things were created by Christ.” This is to go along with their belief that Christ is a created being, which they believe because they deny the Trinity.  The NWT also adds the word other four times to Colossians 1:15-17. This implies that Jesus was first created AND THEN He created other things. There is no word in the Greek text for other. The NWT translators added it in order to put their false doctrine into the text.  The Alexandrian Text Types read "ὅτι ἐν αὐτῷ ἐκτίσθη τὰ πάντα"  which literally states "For by Him all things were created".  They continue to read "καὶ αὐτός ἐστιν πρὸ πάντων" which literally states "He is before all things".  The dishonest insertion of the word "other" attempts to impute something that is NOT stated in scripture. The Word was a god? This is a typical verse JW use in defense of their beliefs; John 1:1. But this defense is solely based on an idea injected into the bible and not originally from the bible.  The original Greek text reads, “and God was The Word.” The NWT renders it as “the word was a god.” This is not just a matter of correct translation, but of reading one's preconceived theology into the text, rather than allowing the text to speak for itself.   The most revealing evidence of the Watchtower's bias is their inconsistent translation technique. Throughout the Gospel of John, the Greek word theon occurs without a definite article. The New World Translation renders none of these as “a god.” Just three verses after John 1:1, the New World Translation translates another case of theos without the indefinite article as "God." Even more inconsistent, in John 1:18, the NWT translates the same term as both "God" and "god" in the very same sentence.   When considering the historical and cultural context of "God" in Israel we see that they were monotheistic. The earliest church teachers also taught monotheism.  Given the time of the writing of scripture, singular "God" is the absolute most correct translation.  The NWT cherry picks how to translate the word based on its own ideas outside of the bible to fit its invented teachings. It is also important to note that if the author wanted to express a plurality of gods, the greek language could.  In other greek writings, when talking about the pantheon of gods, they do.  Therefore, the author could have chosen to express that here; but he didn't.   The odd inconsistent justification is 'Jesus is just a lesser god'  But this then comes into conflict with strict monotheistic verses in the bible. This is also self defeating because he is still a god.  But if there is only one Almighty God, than there can not be other gods, even if to a lesser extent; because by definition of God, there could not be more than one.  Another attempt to justify the existence of 'lesser gods' they will misunderstand Exodus 4:16 and Exodus 7:1.  But this is easy to spot the fallacy in the fact that Moses was only stated to be made "AS God" and not "A God".  Moses was "as God" in the sense that he was given the authority and power to display powerful miracles that decimated much of Egypt.  This does not make him "a god" because his authority and power came from THE monotheistic GOD in the first place.  YHWH Second, Jehovah is not a Biblical word. It was created by combining the original Hebrew name for God YHWH and adonai (word used by Jews who didn’t want to say God’s name). The resulting combined word, “Jehovah” has been used for the name God by many groups but it is not found in the Bible. Nowhere do you find the word Jehovah in the original languages, Hebrew or Greek.  Instead the New Testament uses the words “Lord” [Greek: Kurios] and “God” [Greek: theos] when talking about God. The writers never used Jehovah, even when quoting the Old Testament. The Greek New Testament source for the New World Translation, Westcott and Hort, never used Jehovah. They used kurios for Lord and theos for God. The Kingdom Interlinear confirms Jehovah was never in the original text. This interlinear published by the Watchtower Organization shows how kurios (Lord) and theos (God) were changed to Jehovah in the English translation.  When it comes to this translation we find it almost universally rejected by noted scholars in the field of Biblical translations according to Dr. Ron Rhodes.  British scholar H.H. Rowley asserted, ‘from the beginning to end this volume is a shining example of how the Bible should not be translated.’ Indeed, Rowley said, this translation is ‘an insult to the Word of God.’”  Dr. Julius Manti, author of A Manual Grammar of the Greek New Testament, calls the New World translation “a shocking mistranslation.” Dr. Bruce M. Metzger, professor of New Testament at Princeton University, calls the New World translation “a frightful mistranslation,” “erroneous,” “pernicious,” and “reprehensible.” Dr. William Barclay concluded that “the deliberate distortion of truth by this sect is seen in their New Testament translation. It is abundantly clear that a sect which can translate the New Testament like that is intellectually dishonest.”  Former Jehovah witness David Reed notes, “an unbiased observer will quickly note that such anonymity also shields the translators from any blame for errors or distortions in their renderings. And it prevents scholars from checking their credentials.”  The Watchtower Society must have been utterly embarrassed when the names of the translators of the New World translation were made known to the public. The reason for concern was the translation committee was completely unqualified for the task. Four of the five men in the committee had no Hebrew or Greek training whatsoever (they had only a high school education). The Fifth, Fred W. Franz, claimed to know Hebrew and Greek, but upon examination under oath in a court of law in Edinburg Scotland he failed a basic Hebrew test.  Raymond Victor Franz, Fredrick's nephew, was a member of the divine Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses.  He later left the JW after studying the Bible and comparing it to JW teachings. He later wrote Crisis of Conscience (1983) and In Search of Christian Freedom (1991) that detailed his experiences with the Jehovah's Witnesses and their inner workings and teachings.  Just these two examples prove the fallibility of the Governing Body and exposed it as less than divinely inspired by Almighty God.  Which, also, exposes the fallacies of the NWT. Internal Theological Contradictions There exist theological inconsistencies between the NWT and Watchtower theology.  Isaiah 40-48. By simply reading these eight chapters, or at least select passages from within them, and comparing them to other biblical teachings, major cracks in the foundation of the Watchtower’s primary biblical translation emerge.  Matt. 3:3 uses Isaiah for Jesus.  John 10:14 Jesus as the shepherd as in Isa 40:11.  When reading from the NWT; Matthew 3:3 even validates that Isaiah was speaking about Jesus and John The Baptist and records Jesus claiming to the shepherd as stated in Isaiah 40:11. And announced in just two verses prior is the statement from Isaiah "Here is your God." and "like a shepherd HE will care for HIS flock".  Remember, this verses is talking about Almighty God.  Then in John 10:14, Jesus literally states "I know my sheep and my sheep know me".  These issues come from comparing the NWT with itself.  These are just a few examples, but it is recommended to study Isaiah 40-48 and compare it to what is stated in the synoptic gospels. CONCLUSION If ANY of these issues are true, than it proves the NWT has errors in its translation method.  Aside from translation errors, it is important to see that the translation method itself directly influenced by ideas invented outside of The Bible.  Then, the ideas, injected into the translation.  The source for the Biblical ideas comes from ignorant assumptions and misunderstandings, cherry picked from what the Bible actually declares.  To truly understand scripture one must keep in mind the cultural and historical implications associated with it; and interpret scripture with the totality of scripture and not from one or two selected verses and then jump to conclusions without the whole of scripture being reconciled. Miss translations such as stake, Misunderstandings such as sheol, hades, and gehenna.  Extra-biblical injected theology such as presence instead of coming.  Added words such as "a" and "other".  Extra-biblical created words such as Jehovah.  Self existent contradictions such as in Isaiah compared to Matthew and John.  These examples prove the New World Translation is not a translation of God's Word but rather a translation morphed into The Watchtower's teachings.  The source for the ideas that change the translation methods is from those who attempt to translate without proper education and preconceived extra-biblical beliefs.  The JW argument comes down to this:  The New World Translation is the most correct translation because the Watchtower re-translated the bible based off of Watchtower beliefs found in the New World Translation.  That is the same as saying: A circle is a square because a square is a circle.  This logical fallacy is called Circular Reasoning; and thus, is illogical. Defending the New World Translation is the argument that the NWT is true because it is from the Watchtower, because the Watchtower is in the NWT of which it translated.  As compared to the argument for the NASB for example;  which is based from the Alexandrian Text types and Masoritic Texts simply translated into English using the common understanding of the language, culture, and history of the authors. Also read The Jehovah's Witnesses If you have any questions or comments about this article please contact us or join our discussion forms

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[johnchiarello]

Acts 25

ACTS 25 Acts 25:19 But had certain questions against him of their own superstition, and of one Jesus, which was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be alive. Acts 25- https://youtu.be/GO_EbKzNSpk https://ccoutreach87.com/10-10-17-acts-25/ https://ccoutreach87.com/10-10-17-acts-25-2/

ON VIDEO- .Paul’s appeals .The new governor comes in .festus replaces Felix .The local court out of Jerusalem still had the plot! .From Ceasarea to Jerusalem was about 60 miles- a 2 day trip back then https://www.britannica.com/place/Caesarea .Paul appeals- to Nero! .Why? .Seneca the Stoic .King Agrippa the 2nd- and Bernice the queen .Wait- aren’t they brother ans sister? .Bernice is the oldest daughter of Agrippa the 1st- and Agrippa the 2nd is his son .How they they be King and Queen? .Can you solve this riddle? .Homer- Iliad- Odyssey

NEW- Just a few notes- these past few chapters are simply covering Paul’s appeals thru the local court system [Sanhedrin] and going up the ladder to the top court of the land- Caesar of Rome.

The caesar at this time- is Nero- http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/nero Nero was one of the worst persecutors of the early church- yet Paul took his case to him. Why?

At this stage Nero was not ‘as bad’ as we know him to be later on. He actually will martyr both Paul and Peter later on. Yet at this stage of the game he was influenced by Seneca- a Stoic philosopher- https://dailystoic.com/seneca/

Though the Stoics were not considered Christians- they did indeed have moral elements to their teaching. Self denial- stuff like that.

So it would not be strange for Paul to take his case to him. Another point- Paul has been sitting in the ‘county jail’ for 2 years by now. Governor Felix left office- and festus took his place.

So the case is reviewed by the new governor- And after 2 years- the high priest at Jerusalem [the top judge in the county] still wants to kill Paul! We see a lot of corruption in the system- and how those who hold seats of authority- positions the public should be able to respect- yet these same people are some of the most corrupt of the day.

Yet- we also see Festus- and in his dealings with Paul- he does what is right. The local court out of Jerusalem wants Festus to bring Paul to them- so they could carry out the plot to kill Paul.

Paul is aware of the plot- for 2 years now. And he appeals his case to Rome- and Festus takes the appeal. I’ll add my past teaching below- but wanted to simply give this update- John.

NOTE- The regular PAST POSTS and VERSES section is still below- but I made this short post [below] last night- thinking I might do a daily ‘roll out’- But didn’t want to waist an entire post just for this- so I stuck it here- [More below] I also talked about a strange experience I had- it involved a person who was put to death last night in Texas [2 nights ago now] I talked about it on an upcoming teaching post- KINGS 13- but here’s the news link- http://www.kztv10.com/story/36586596/inmate-executed-for-beeville-prison-guards-death His sister asked me to pray for him a few years ago- I did- Then she asked me to pray for her brother again- because he was on death row- again? Well it will be explained on the KINGS 13 post- I thought maybe his sister was wrong- she wasn’t. Most of my Bluff friends would know his sister- but I won’t mention her name here [If I do a roll out- I might mention it before the kings 13 post- there are a few issues I might want to talk about as well]

ILLEGAL COP STOP- CAUGHT ON CAMERA COP STOP- https://youtu.be/jfdKqg_e8FU

I pulled out of a gas station- as the cop was pulling in- we were right next to each-other. You can see my sticker easily from the highway. He saw it too- but he decided to turn around from the gas station he was pulling into- and followed me for a short distance.

Notice- he already had in his mind what to say- it was basically an excuse to pull me over- Why? I’m wearing sunglasses- have the long hair- and I’m not from his town [Mathis].

Cops profile like this- thought it is illegal. As he came up to me from behind- before even seeing the sticker- he saw my fire dept retirement badges and union sticker on my back window.

That’s when he realized it was not what he was looking for- possibly some drug dealer or whatever. But at least today you get to see it on video. Why make a big thing out of it?

Honestly- this stop was no big deal- but others are. Many unjustified stops have lead to the deaths of people later on- Sandra Bland being one of them. I’m sure they mean well when they profile- but it is illegal.

They did it to the top lawyer from Florida a few weeks ago- I talked about that case. [She is a Black woman- driving an expensive car]

You also see a crime- Huh? Not only is it a crime to profile- but it is also a crime to lie- Howbeit a small one-

But these ‘small ones ‘have lead to the deaths of people in the past- It would be better if they avoided all crimes. Oh I forgot officer- smile- you are indeed on Candid Camera.

One small note- he is a cop from Mathis- where I have caught them before doing wrong- and exposed it. So maybe he knew who I was after all?

Note- I’ll post the picture of the sticker to Facebook- he supposedly couldn’t see it because of the bible on my dashboard. As I uploaded this video to Youtube- once again- someone changed the settings to PRIVATE- This only seems to happen when I talk about cops?

PAST POSTS- https://ccoutreach87.com/overview-of-philosophy/ ACTS- https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/01/18/acts-1/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/01/26/acts-2/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/02/acts-3/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/09/acts-4/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/23/acts-5/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/31/acts-6/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/06/acts-7/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/14/acts-8/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/18/acts-9/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/07/acts-10/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/16/acts-11/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/22/acts-12/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/06/01/acts-13/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/06/14/acts-14/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/07/03/acts-15/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/07/07/acts-16/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/07/27/acts-17/ http://corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com/2017/08/acts-18-acts-1828-for-he-mightily.html https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/08/09/acts-19/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/08/20/acts-20/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/09/04/acts-21/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/09/20/acts-22-2/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/10/04/redo-acts-23-2/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/10/08/acts-24-2/ (765)ACT 25- Festus hears the Jews at Jerusalem, they want him to bring Paul to Jerusalem. Festus goes back to Caesarea and asks Paul ‘why don’t you go back with me’? Paul appeals to Caesar! Of course going to Rome was part of the plan. Now King Agrippa [another one of the many ruling authorities that Rome had over the people!] comes to Caesarea and Festus tells him about Paul. Agrippa will get a strong word in the next chapter. Also the Jews come down from Jerusalem and accuse Paul of many things. I want to make a note here. In the area of apologetics, which we do a lot of, you need to be careful that you don’t jump on the bandwagon of unfounded accusations. There are and have been real doctrinal heresies that needed to be dealt with, but some of the apologists really get personal. Even calling family members degrading names! In Paul’s case he had accusations that were not true. He does defend himself against the false ones, but also admitted that he believes in Christ’s resurrection and that this is considered heresy among certain Jews. Paul’s main message was Christ and the resurrection! As we get ready to close our study in a few more days, I want to recap the importance of seeing Jesus and his fulfillment of the Old Testament prophets as the main message of the Apostles. This early teaching by the Apostles needs to be the ‘tradition’ if you will, once again. We [believers] have a tendency to delve deeply into all sorts of stuff. Paul will warn his spiritual sons ‘don’t get lost in endless genealogies and debates about the law’ and Hebrews says ‘it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace, not with meats [legalistic doctrines] which have been unprofitable to those who have gone that route’. Now, you guys know I believe in correct doctrine, and Paul wasn’t advocating ‘no doctrine’. But it is easy to get lost in endless debates that lead to nowhere. Ultimately our goal is to present every man perfect in Christ. Paul will stick with this message all the way to Rome! MY OLD POSTS- The Iliad and Odyssey [Homer] I want to cover some of the classics of Western Literature- when I do the philosophy and science stuff- the purpose is to show how God- and ‘religion’ are an inescapable thread that we see all thru out history- and in fact- the rise of what we call ‘intellectualism’ did indeed come from the Judaic/Christian tradition [for instance- the modern day university system did come from the Church].

Ok- lets start with what most believe to be the greatest work from antiquity- outside of the bible.

These are 2 poems by Homer- the Iliad and Odyssey.

These poems were written in the 8th century BCE- and cover the Trojan war- which most believe was a real war- that took place in the 12th-13th century BCE.

In Homers works we read about this epic battle.

The war starts with- once again- a ‘woman’ issue.

Prince Paris of Troy steals Helen of Greece- from her husband King Menelaus [king of Sparta].

The Greeks- led by Achilles- lay siege to Troy.

In Homers telling of the event- the Greeks are actually defending the honor of marriage- and are carrying out a just retribution against an unjust act. Sort of the same themes we read in scripture- when the sons of Jacob defended the honor of their sister Dinah- when she was treated unjustly by the pagan nation that took her- forcefully- to be the wife of a kings son.

The brothers meted out justice- by tricking these pagans to get circumcised- then- while recovering ‘from surgery’- the sons went in and wiped out the city- to their fathers dismay!

In the story- Achilles is a warrior- who displays extreme violence- and also the human traits of a man who acts out of selfish motives.

At one point in the war- he removes himself from battle- because he feels his honor was betrayed.

The only thing that brings him back is the killing of his close friend Patroclus- by Hector. Achilles leads the Greeks to victory- and reflects the struggle between living a long life- or dying young- yet dying for a just cause. One of the more famous quotes form Homer’s Poems- attributed to Achilles- is ‘I carry 2 sorts of destiny to the day of my death. Either, if I stay here and fight beside the city of the Trojans, my return home is gone, but my glory shall be everlasting; but if I return home to the beloved land of my fathers, the excellence of my glory is gone, but there will be a long life- left for me, and my end in death will not come to me quickly.’

There has been some debate over the historicity of the war itself.

Some scholars believe it was Myth [I’ll get to this in a moment]. That is- they believe the war itself was not true- but a sort of Oral Tradition- that encompasses the reality of the human condition- and that Homers Poems are simply mythological ways to reveal the true condition of man.

Yet- much like the debate that took place in the 19th century German universities- over the ‘Myth’ of the bible- later on- the rise of what we now call Archaeology [because of the Industrial revolution- a new field arose- men started digging up the ground- for the primary purpose of extracting materials from the earth- and at this time we also discovered ‘lost worlds’- that is we could actually trace cities and lands that were once deemed fake].

So- as with Homers Troy- and bible lands- these archaeologists did indeed find Cities that matched the stories.

In 1870 the German Archaeologist Schliemann discovered remains that seemed to find the city of Troy- the area is known today as modern day Turkey.

This same thing happened with the bible- we did indeed find historical evidence that seemed to back up the historicity of the stories we find in the bible.

As a matter of fact- a famous doubter of the bible embarked on a search- to prove the bible was ‘myth’ yet- after researching carefully the historical names and places we read about in the book of Acts- he came to believe that the book of Acts- written by both an historian and doctor [Luke] was the most historically accurate writing that came from the first century [Acts has lots of names of political figures- court proceedings- stuff like that- and when doing research like this- it is quite easy to debunk the historical reality of a fake work- but- when these names and places were researched- from actual historical records dating back to the first century- it was amazing how the pieces fit].

The Trojan War is found in many works of Greek literature- and art.

But the most comprehensive account comes from Homer’s 2 poems.

Now- in Homer’s poems there are obvious references to Mythology- Goddesses- Golden apples- the Greek gods intervening in the affairs of men.

So yeah- we see that there are obvious mythological aspects to the work. Yet- the ancient Geeks did indeed believe the war itself was a real war that took place at around the 12th century BCE.

Some believe that Homer never actually wrote the poems- but that he told the stories- like Oral Tradition- and they were later written down by others.

Sort of like the classic- Paradise Lost- by John Milton. Milton was blind- and told the story to his daughters [oral tradition] and the actual work was penned by those who heard it.

Jesus himself used this method- he never wrote a book- or letter in the New Testament- yet the gospels were compiled by his men after his death.

We read about this when Luke [who I mentioned above] gives the reason for his documenting stuff in the book of Acts [read Acts chapter one].

Luke also wrote his gospel a few years after the death and resurrection of Christ.

So- some believe the same thing happened with Homer- those who heard him tell the story multiple times- simply put it together later on.

Most scholars believe that Homer did indeed write the poems- and that the famous Trojan War was a real historical event.

Last year- when in North Bergen- my atheist friend Daniel said he watched a PBS show- and he said ‘even a priest said the bible was Myth’.

I explained to Daniel that when the more liberal scholars use this term [like in the writings of Bultman] that they do not mean ‘fake’- like Greek Mythology.

But they mean that some of the stories in the gospels might be a compilation of the many Oral teachings of Jesus- and they were put together as one story [some think the Sermon on the Mount was actually multiple teachings Jesus did- and they were compiled into one event].

Now- when I explained this to Daniel- he said ‘see- even you believe it was Myth’.

I told Daniel that no- I do not hold to this theory [not 100%] but that I was simply telling him that even those who use the term Myth- when talking about Theology- they do not mean Myth- as in fake.

So- I find it interesting that both the New testament- and Homers poems- got the same scrutiny.

In these poems we do indeed see the condition of man- which Homer depicts as one of constant war- not peace.

The letter of James in the New Testament says- James 4:1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? James 4:2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

Homers poems are considered by some to be the beginning of the great works of Western literature- of which there are many.

The great writer C.S. Lewis- who rejected Christianity for many years- later became a believer.

He attributed his conversion to the fact that he could not escape the reality of the Church- or Christian themes- found in all the fields of study.

Whether it was the classics- or history- philosophy.

He said every were he read- studied- he could not escape this scarlet thread that ran thru out all the fields of knowledge.

Yeah- in the end- his thirst for knowledge- his intellectual search- led him to the Cross.

Jesus- in a way- was a 1st century Achilles- he battled the forces of darkness- for the honor of a woman- the Bride- the church.

He- Like Achilles- chose a just death- for a just cause.

There’s a prophecy in the Old Testament- it speaks of Christ ‘the zeal of thine house has eaten me up’.

Jesus was a righteous warrior- a prophet, priest and king- and he had a zeal for the church- that far exceeded anything we find in Homers poems. [parts] The Epicureans and the Stoics.

The Epicureans were an early form of what we call Hedonism today- the idea that pleasure is the principle purpose of man.

The Stoics believed in ‘stoicism’ that man should have no emotional response to pain or pleasure- that’s why we call people today ‘Stoics’- when they seem to not be moved by anything.

Ok- that’s it for now- might make some comments tonight- but I’m getting ready to fly out soon- and trying to wind down before I leave. If I don’t write tonight- I’ll talk again when in North Bergen- God bless you all. [parts]

HERACLITUS- Ok- lets pick up on my philosophy stuff. Heraclitus lived in the 6th/5th century BC. – He was from Ephesus and his key thought was Ever Present Change.

That is he saw everything as being in a state of continual flux- one of his famous sayings was ‘No man ever steps into the same river twice’.

He is called the Weeping Philosopher- sort of like the prophet Jeremiah in the bible- also called the Weeping Prophet.

Heraclitus is known for his concept of the Logos- the Word- or thought/reason.

Now- this aspect of his thought plays a role in the development of the Christian understanding of Christ himself- in our New Testaments [written in Greek] Jesus is indeed referred to as the Logos- or Word of God.

The Greek philosophers understanding of the Logos was not the same as the Christian view- mainly expressed thru the writings of John [The gospel- the 3 epistles- and Revelation]. But- some see the Greek view as a precursor to Christ.

In the work of one of the early church fathers- Hippolytus ‘The Refutation of all Heresies’ he attacks Heraclitus view of the Logos as an early form of heresy.

The apologist Justin Martyr is more gracious- he [Like Ulrich Zwingli- the great Swiss reformer of the 16th century] viewed the early Geek thinkers as ‘pre- Christian’ or ‘Christians before Christ’.

Though many reject this view- yet there is some scripture to back it up. The apostle Paul said in his letter to the Romans that if the Gentiles [non-Jews] do by nature the things contained in the law- then they are justified in God’s sight.

Of course these things are debatable- but I add this to show you that some great Christian thinkers did indeed view the early Greek thinkers- who did live by a moral code- as being right in God’s eyes.

And the bible does teach a theme that we will be judged according to the amount of light [understanding] that we had at the time.

I should note that Plato [one of the 3 titans that arose after Heraclitus- from the city/state of Athens] disagreed with Heraclitus on all things being in a state of constant change.

When [if?] we get to Socrates- Plato and Aristotle- I’ll try and cover the ways they advanced- built upon- the thought of the pre Socratic thinkers.

As a side note- the most famous student of Aristotle- who was the most famous student of Plato- who was the most famous student of Socrates- was Alexander the Great.

This goes to show you how great an influence Greek philosophy had on the ancient world.

A few nuggets from Heraclitus- ‘all things come to pass in accordance with this Logos’ ‘follow the common’ ‘not having their own judgment’.

Recently I covered Acts chapter 2- and we see some of these ideas in the early Christian movement. The first Christians did ‘follow the common’ they sold their goods- and had ‘all things common’ [communal lifestyle].

The apostle Paul teaches the early church to all ‘speak the same thing- that there be no divisions among you’. And the New Testament also says the scripture should not be given to Private Interpretation- meaning- ‘not having your own personal judgment’.

All in all- we do indeed see a sort of pre Christian thought in the pre Socratic thinkers- they did indeed speak of the Divine- God- though there understanding of him was not the same as the Christian church.

In a sense- Heraclitus idea that in life- the only ‘constant’ is the fact that there is no constant- that life itself is made up of an ongoing journey- we live day by day- not ever knowing what ‘the next day will bring forth’- Jesus.

Yeah- the man had some good points- the later Stoics would consider Heraclitus as the father of their movement. And in the study of Philosophy- the Stoics- who had a good run from a few years before the Common Era- were overtaken in the 4th century [as the main influential philosophy of the time] by some new and lasting philosophy- started by a man named Jesus Christ- who his followers claimed rose from the dead. Yeah- this New Way was called Christianity- and this philosophy has endured now for over 2 thousand years.

VERSES- Acts 25:1 Now when Festus was come into the province, after three days he ascended from Caesarea to Jerusalem. Acts 25:2 Then the high priest and the chief of the Jews informed him against Paul, and besought him, Acts 25:3 And desired favour against him, that he would send for him to Jerusalem, laying wait in the way to kill him. Acts 25:4 But Festus answered, that Paul should be kept at Caesarea, and that he himself would depart shortly thither. Acts 25:5 Let them therefore, said he, which among you are able, go down with me, and accuse this man, if there be any wickedness in him. Acts 25:6 And when he had tarried among them more than ten days, he went down unto Caesarea; and the next day sitting on the judgment seat commanded Paul to be brought. Acts 25:7 And when he was come, the Jews which came down from Jerusalem stood round about, and laid many and grievous complaints against Paul, which they could not prove. Acts 25:8 While he answered for himself, Neither against the law of the Jews, neither against the temple, nor yet against Caesar, have I offended any thing at all. Acts 25:9 But Festus, willing to do the Jews a pleasure, answered Paul, and said, Wilt thou go up to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these things before me? Acts 25:10 Then said Paul, I stand at Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged: to the Jews have I done no wrong, as thou very well knowest. Acts 25:11 For if I be an offender, or have committed any thing worthy of death, I refuse not to die: but if there be none of these things whereof these accuse me, no man may deliver me unto them. I appeal unto Caesar. Acts 25:12 Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? unto Caesar shalt thou go. Acts 25:13 And after certain days king Agrippa and Bernice came unto Caesarea to salute Festus. Acts 25:14 And when they had been there many days, Festus declared Paul’s cause unto the king, saying, There is a certain man left in bonds by Felix: Acts 25:15 About whom, when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, desiring to have judgment against him. Acts 25:16 To whom I answered, It is not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to die, before that he which is accused have the accusers face to face, and have licence to answer for himself concerning the crime laid against him. Acts 25:17 Therefore, when they were come hither, without any delay on the morrow I sat on the judgment seat, and commanded the man to be brought forth. Acts 25:18 Against whom when the accusers stood up, they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed: Acts 25:19 But had certain questions against him of their own superstition, and of one Jesus, which was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be alive. Acts 25:20 And because I doubted of such manner of questions, I asked him whether he would go to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these matters. Acts 25:21 But when Paul had appealed to be reserved unto the hearing of Augustus, I commanded him to be kept till I might send him to Caesar. Acts 25:22 Then Agrippa said unto Festus, I would also hear the man myself. To morrow, said he, thou shalt hear him. Acts 25:23 And on the morrow, when Agrippa was come, and Bernice, with great pomp, and was entered into the place of hearing, with the chief captains, and principal men of the city, at Festus’ commandment Paul was brought forth. Acts 25:24 And Festus said, King Agrippa, and all men which are here present with us, ye see this man, about whom all the multitude of the Jews have dealt with me, both at Jerusalem, and also here, crying that he ought not to live any longer. Acts 25:25 But when I found that he had committed nothing worthy of death, and that he himself hath appealed to Augustus, I have determined to send him. Acts 25:26 Of whom I have no certain thing to write unto my lord. Wherefore I have brought him forth before you, and specially before thee, O king Agrippa, that, after examination had, I might have somewhat to write. Acts 25:27 For it seemeth to me unreasonable to send a prisoner, and not withal to signify the crimes laid against him.

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Note- Please do me a favor, those who read/like the posts- re-post them on other sites as well as the site you read them on- Thanks- John.#

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