#joesph (from the bible)

[nightwingsgirlfriend]

When i was like seven i felt really bad for Joseph because like imagine your girl randomly gets pregnant, claims it's god and then the baby is born and starts calling some cloud dad like you aren't there that's so sad. You don't even get to be a virgin you are just the guy who chopped wood or something. No wonder he's a saint

[starboydreamy]

whenever I listen to we become we I’m like ‘me and who’ then I remember it’s abt Mary and Joesph from the Bible 👁️👁️

[numbersbythebook]

Shechem & Revelation 5, the Book of Life

written by Will Schumacher

The Father holds a book in Revelation 5.

Revelation 5:1 And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.

Jesus as the Lion of the tribe of Judah has prevailed to open the book.

Revelation 5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

However Jesus is pictured as a Lamb slain, not as the Kingly Lion when He is described.

Revelation 5:6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.

Jesus then takes possession of the book.

Revelation 5:7 And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.

When Jesus takes possession of the book the 4 beasts and 24 elders fall down and worship Him for their redemption and the realized promise of becoming kings and priests who shall reign with Christ on the earth.

Revelation 5:9-10 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

The focus seems to be on what Christ accomplished through His death and resurrection and what that in turn accomplished for His bride. The book must be the Book of Life.

Revelation 5:7 above where Jesus takes possession of the Book of Life has a gematria of 4966.

The most famous verse in all the Bible and a perfect match to Jesus as the Lamb of God dying on the cross to save sinners and be written in the Book of Life is verse 4966 from the end of the Bible.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Interesting that Revelation 5:7 is verse 316 from the end of the Bible and a match to John 316.

Strong’s G4966 = Shechem.

Shechem is important to the covenant God made with His people.

The only use of Shechem in the New Testament is about Joesph’s bones.

Acts 7:16 And were carried over into Sychem, and laid in the sepulchre that Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Emmor the father of Sychem.

I have written about Joseph’s bones in prior posts. He believed in the promises of God, therefore he commanded them to take his bones when they left Egypt.

Shechem is the place of the first promise of God to Abram that he and his seed would inherit the land.

Genesis 12:6-7 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. 7 And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him.

Shechem is where the covenant was renewed after Joshua led the Israelites into the promised land and gave them their inheritance.

Josh 24:1 And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.

Joshua, at this same time, buries Joseph’s bones in Shechem. Joseph trusted God to keep His promise to Abraham and it was fulfilled as he was buried in Shechem after Israel received their inheritance.

Joshua 24:32 And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.

Joseph is a strong type of Christ at His first coming. He was sold into a pit by his brothers just as Christ was sold into death/pit by His brothers. Joseph then rises out of the pit and becomes the second in command over all Egypt just as Christ rose from the dead and became second in command under the Father. The story of Joseph being sold begins at Shechem. It ends at Shechem when his bones are buried in the Promised Land at Shechem.

Genesis 37:13-14 And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him, Here am I. 14 And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks; and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.

Shechem is not only important in that it is about the covenant of God with His people, but it is also about His faithfulness despite our unfaithfulness.

Shechem is the valley between Mt Ebal and Mt Gerizim. God commanded Israel to speak the blessings on Mt Gerizim and the curses on Mt Ebal when they came into the land. They were thus spoken over Shechem where God first promised the land to Abram.

Deuteronomy 11:29 And it shall come to pass, when the Lord thy God hath brought thee in unto the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt put the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal

Later Jacob comes to Shechem and buys a plot of land. Shechem the son of Hamor defiles Dinah here. The phrase “Shechem son of Hamor” has a gematria of 666.

Genesis 34:2 And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her

The gematria of this verse is 3390 matching the strong’s number H3390 = Jerusalem. Dinah is a picture of Israel/Church. Just as Shechem defiled Dinah, the beast system wants to defile us.

Later in Judges 8, Gideon had a son by a concubine in Shechem and his name was Abimelech.

Judges 8:31 And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, whose name he called Abimelech.

Abimelech kills the 70 sons of Gideon and the Shechemites follow Abimelech.

Judges 9:5-6 And he went unto his father's house at Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, being threescore and ten persons, upon one stone: notwithstanding yet Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left; for he hid himself. 6 And all the men of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and went, and made Abimelech king, by the plain of the pillar that was in Shechem.

Jotham then pronounces a curse over Abimelech and the Shechemites for allowing bramble to reign over them.

Judges 9:14 Then said all the trees unto the bramble, Come thou, and reign over us.

Judges 9:20 But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.

This prophecy is fulfilled. Abimelech’s head is crushed by a woman.

Judges 9:53 And a certain woman cast a piece of a millstone upon Abimelech's head, and all to brake his skull.

This “skull” is Strong’s H1538 = “gulgoleth”. Just as Jesus as the seed of the woman was to bruise the head of the serpent, Jesus bruised the head at Gulgotha.

Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

Matthew 27:33 And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull,

The story of Abimelech is the story of the cross defeating satan.

The message of the cross and the message of Shechem is that God is faithful to His covenant even though we have been unfaithful. We have chosen the bramble to reign over us. We deserve the curses. By God’s grace alone through Jesus, we have been redeemed and written in the Book of Life.

[kinialohaguy]

The Messengers

Aloha Lāpule. Christmas Eve is here. The Chosen second Christmas special is called “The Messengers.” Based on the Gospel of Luke follows the virgin mother Mary and her husband the carpenter Joesph as they travel to Bethlehem. The Messengers refers to many people in the Bible. From the Ancient Prophets to the Apostles, John the Baptist, the Angels that spoke to the Shepards, and Jesus Christ the…

[keeganbooks]

KNOWING YOUR BIBLE

February 12, 2023: Dear Friends, Welcome to this weekly blog on KNOWING YOUR BIBLE. The purpose of this blog is to help anyone who wants to learn and know the Bible obtain important information on learning that will provide knowledge and understanding of the Bible. The more the Bible is read, the more one will acquire knowledge that will help in using and reading the Bible.

This weekly blog was started in 2016 and continues today due to the call placed upon this author through God, the Father, and the Holy Spirit, to teach the Bible. The need for one to know how to use the Bible has been a central theme since the beginning of the blog. The written blog is not to instruct on interpreting the Bible, but to learn the format of the Bible so that knowing how to use and read the Bible can be had. The following topics on learning the Bible is as follows: to teach the names and locations of the Bible books, how to search for and read Bible verses, to realize how the books of the Bible are organized, and how the books of the Bible are related to each other through geographic sites as well as through certain words and ideas that transverse through the Bible books. Refer to the blogs written from April 24 to July 31 of last year by going to keegan books,com to study the topics listed above.

To accomplish the purpose of teaching the Bible, the author has established an organized way to teach so that understanding and learning the Bible can be had. The author has identified important topics (see above, second paragraph) that, as a whole, contributes to the learning process. These topics are organized in “series” that are completely separate from each other, but that together, provide overall knowledge that is very helpful and useful when trying to learn and understand the Bible.

We have recently completed this last series on learning some of the important people and events that are written about in the Bible. We will provide in today’s and next week’s blogs, a review on this series. As many are aware, especially listening to a sermon, either in person, through the media, or through biblical discussions, when there are names of people and/or events discussed where  knowledge is lacking on where in the Bible the information can be found on the subjects being discussed.  Acquiring knowledge about different people or events broadens one’s perception and understanding when hearing about or studying specific subjects that are written about in the Bible.  Being able to locate where in the Bible the person or event is located, allows one to go to that location to read about the person or event, and, therefore, receive a broader understanding on what was being listened to or discussed. 

Instructions on how and where to locate specific people or events will be listed below. Hopefully this review will bring increased understanding and a broadened perspective in learning the Bible. The blog written next week will be the last blog on this series and will continue on listing the location in the Bible of some of the important people and events written in this series. A new series on “LENT” will begin in 2 weeks.

                 MAY GOD BLESS YOUR BIBLE STUDY THIS WEEK! 

Bible Verses: Important people and events written about in the Bible:                    The Creation: Genesis, chapter 1-2.     The life of Adam and Eve: Genesis chapters 3 thru 5, verses 1-5.      Noah and the Ark: Genesis chapter 6, verses 5 thru chapter 7 verse 6.       Abraham: Genesis 11, verse 27 through chapter 25, verse 11.        Isaac and Rebecca: Genesis chapter 24, verses 15-67 and chapter 25.         Jacob and Esau, chapters 27-35.             Jacob’s sons including Joesph, Genesis chapters 37-50.   The life of Moses: The book of Exodus.         The exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and their 40-year journey to the Promised Land (Israel) The book of Exodus,            The 10 Commandments: Exodus, chapter 20, verses 1-17.          The entrance into the Promised land, Joshua, chapter 1-chapter 4;        Ruth, King David’s great grandmother, the book of Ruth.     The life of Samuel, 1st Samuel, chapter 1-12;       King David’s life and reign can be found in !st Samuel,, chapters 16 through the book of 2nd Samuel to 1st King’s, chapter 2, verses 1-4        . King Solomon’s life and reign: 1st Kings, chapter 2, verses 13 through chapters 3-11. 

[foxilayde]

ngl your joesph fic is just a liiiittle bit insulting especially coming during Holy Week and Easter. I’m gonna block you because I know I’ll probably get the whole “if you don’t like it unfollow and block and don’t read it” and you’ll probably think I’m some crazy Christian republican but I’m liberal and a practicing catholic and idk sometimes it feels like people never want to protect my religion but will protect everyone else’s??? Not condoning antisemitism or islamophobia in any way shape or form but it can feel super unfair that it’s okay to write something like this or attack me for my religious beliefs.

Ma'am this is a porn blog.

I'm just following Satan's orders. He told me to write a fic where reader marries Joseph and kisses him a little bit throughout the year. And I was like, 'Satan, baby, are you sure that's what you want?? I could make it nasty, I could give him the sloppy toppy...' And do you know what he said?? Nothing, because he's a tricky little shit.

I don't want you to feel attacked. I really really don't. I grew up in a high-demand Christian religion where I went to church for 16-20 hours a week from the age of 8 to 23. I've read the King James Bible so many times I could barf. Make no mistake: this is my culture.

I know nothing makes that religious boner so fully engorged as persecution. Christianity is built on it! (I've been there myself. Full mast.) Think about it: Jesus' sexy body carrying that cross up the hill, vitriol all around him. Bleeding for days while the Romans and his fellow countrymen did nothing. The whole symbol around the crucifix is 'persecution'. That's not whats happening here. You want persecution? I'm glad you're going somewhere else for it, bc that's a form of pornography that I do not provide.

[a-love-poet-at-heart]

okay im a bit biased but i gotta say Drury Lane Theatre in Illinois’ production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat back in 2018 was the best reimagining of the show ever and this is the hill i die on

Its so Wild, I love it

They change No Lyrics but they reimagined it and set it in Las Vegas at the Luxor hotel, (The pyramid one). Its like multiple minutes of just silence where Joe (not joseph) goes into his hotel and just fucking unpacks and goes to bed. Then the Narrator pops up while Joe is so confused and sings Prologue and people just enter through the bathroom door, window, and the door to the hotel room. Then everyone leaves after the Prologue but Joe so he calls Hotel Security and sings Any Dream Will Do to them explaining what just happened to him (“I closed my eyes, drew back the curtain” he was originally sleeping then opened the window) and the “ah-ahs” in the song are the Security saying them sarcastically. They leave finding nothing but thinking he’s a Drunk and Joe goes back to sleep. But they’re Back, its Joesph’s Dream, and its time for Joseph to sing again. So one of the Brothers hands Joe a bible and points angrily to the lines Joe needs to say. Its like he’s in a hostage situation and he unnervingly says the lines. This is all just like in the first 30 minutes btw. Now after this, Joe gets sold off and he really gets into the role.

Now one of the best things about the show is that they had Christina Bianco as the narrator. You may recognize her name from youtube videos where she sings a song in multiple impressions. And she does impressions of famous singers in this show too, costumes, wigs and all. For the Prologue and the ending she sings normally and is dressed in all black with a triangle headpiece, but outside that? She did Britney Spears (including snake), Cher, Bette Midler, Celine Dion, Liza Minnelli, and Shania Twain. Its Crazy and I loved it. Now during the prologue of the show they did a throwaway joke about a King and Elvis so during the second act instead The Pharaoh being Elvis like normal, its Elton John. He even comments on this, “You were expecting Elvis. Ha!” Now when the Pharaoh explains his dream to Joe, Joe is just as confused as the Pharaoh, but he pulls out his smart phone and frantically googles “pharaoh dream bible meaning” after asking the Pharaoh to repeat it. Now the show continues as normal, Joe becomes high ranking and his brothers come to him and he eventually reveals he’s their brother. At this point Joe is no longer confused and scared but accepting of what's happening. He sings part of Any Dream Will Do and when he says “May I return, to the beginning?” He’s asking about before the show started, back to his hotel room, he yawns, and is tired. He goes back to bed.

Throughout the show he was taking selfies with people on his phone, like with the celebrities Bianco impersonates and Elton John. His phone alarm goes off and he wakes. He checks his phone and all the photos are gone. It was all a dream, but he goes to the closet door and hanging in it is his Coat of Many Colors. 

Now its bows and time for the Joseph Megamix song. Christina Bianco is the centerpiece of this, cycling through her many different impressions, not just ones she used in the show, for example she does Julie Andrews and Kristin Chenoweth.

So yeah, I was nostalgic about theatre and wanted to reminisce about this amazing production. Its such a pity I don’t think any video bootlegs have surfaced from it, only 4 really short clips on the theatre’s official YouTube channel but they really don’t show how crazy the show was. It reveals almost nothing to the changes in blocking. Now the show is not really a good show for someone’s first experience with Joseph, its a reimagining and they really went wild with it. It’s still a really great production. Chris Jones from the Chicago Tribune I will fight you over this.

[biblegossip]

How Gay was Jesus, Ranked from 0-6?

The year is 2020, and we are all equipped with the knowledge of our own gayness. I mean, you might be mostly straight, but you are at least a little bit gay. It’s just science. 

Shame that the Bible wasn’t written in 2020, and therefore assumed Jesus to be a heterosexual. God, people were just so close-minded back then. Can you believe that people assumed Jesus’s sexuality?

Today, we don’t take any major public figure’s sexuality for granted. We’re enlightened enough to have public discourse (via twitter) on the matter. Take, for example, the famous debate: did the colors of Taylor Swift’s wig in her music video You Need to Calm Down mean she was secretly coming out of the closet? I mean, her hair was the color of the bisexual flag: 

Celebrity gossip blogs, of course, reported on this matter. Elle.com’s June 2019 post “Twitter Thinks Taylor Swift May Have Subtly Come Out As Bisexual In 'You Need To Calm Down” inspected the music video’s potential (gay) easter egg.

(Hate to break it to you, heterosexuals, but the Easter Bunny is definitely a gay icon. I mean, look at his outfit. Have you ever seen a straight man wearing a bowtie outside of a wedding and/or formal school dance? On the Kinsey Scale, the Easter Bunny is defiantly a 5. See the chart below).

In this article, I will attempt to correct one of history’s many injustices: popular culture’s assumption of Jesus’s heterosexuality.  We’ve devoted so much time to wonder if Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are gay, isn’t it time we ask ourselves if Jesus was into dick?

We live in a celebrity culture, but what about the Bible’s celebrities? You know, the people God *actually* wants us to read about?

So, let’s get to the question I asked right in the title: just how gay was Jesus?

We’ve already discussed the fact that Jesus was at least a 1. The year is 2020, and no one is totally straight. Like you can at least name one same-gender celebrity that you would bone if given the chance.

Take, for example, me. I’m mostly straight but here’s my personal gay-exception list: 

Taylor Swift (I have a chance! There’s a possibility she might be kind of gay!)

My College Roommate (She was like super hot and yeah we did actually hook up, ka-ching)

Any Woman that is Alive and Into Me and Brushes Her Teeth Regularly

I think I might actually be significantly gay

Who would be on Jesus’ gay exception list? To research this question, I googled “hottest bible characters.” There were about 4,980,000 results. I surveyed the internet’s opinions with a grain of salt and arrived at my own conclusions. They’re listed below:

Guys Jesus Would Bone

1. Joseph 

No one get too mad at me -- remember it’s not his biological dad. And like half the videos on pornhub are titled “Stepmom Bangs her Barely Legal Stepson on Top of His 18th Birthday Cake.” It’s a common fantasy now, and it was probably a common fantasy then.

2. King David 

King David was fit enough to fight off wolves and lions. On a purely animal level, Jesus would be aroused watching Kind David fight off these predators because his survival drive would be like, ding ding ding you found yourself a protector.

3. Samson

Samson ripped out the jawbone of an ass with his bare sexy hands and “slain a thousand men.” (Judges 15: 16). He was James Bond of the Old Testament. Also, he slain a thousand men with his ass? Um, okay -- that’s freaking hot.

4. Probably Lots More Men

Listen, this was before Trojan released its UltraRibbed UltraSmooth Lubricated condoms ™ . If a guy was gonna screw a girl before marriage, he had to rip out the belly of a squirrel and use that as a condom. There was no other way to detach the act of sex from the possibility of pregnancy -- other than to have gay sex. The Greeks were the only ones who talked about it, but everyone must have been doing it. I’m not a historian, but I have common sense.

So given that Jesus was most likely into Joesph, King David, Samson, and probably lots more men, I’d say he’s a 5 on the Kinsey Scale. I reached out to Pope Francis for comment, and in an email he replied that I was “most likely right.”

[jorrmungandr]

Chapter 8: The Pulpit

Let us continue the Theology lessons, here in this, the most churchy run of chapters in Moby-Dick; or, the Whale.

This chapter contains some real meat in that particular vein, as well as appealing to a particular style of Christian aesthetic that I enjoy a great deal. After the doubts raised in The Chapel, it’s time to get a little more sincere, as the chaplain finally makes his appearance.

SUMMARY: Father Mapple, the chaplain, arrives. Having walked through the icy storm, his heartiness and humbleness cannot be doubted. He takes off his hat, coat, and overshoes, and ascends the pulpit to conduct the service.

It’s funny, sometimes, when I condense down what actually happens in a given chapter into a mere three sentences, and then have to go on for a thousand or two words about all the rest of it. Such is the way with novels! Especially the more twisty, philosophical ones like Moby Dick.

It seems to me that there is something of a tonal shift when Father Mapple arrives on the scene. Ishmael has a certain affection for the man, noting his humbleness, his robustness, his true, solemn devotion to his faith, all throughout this chapter and the next. We are assured that Mapple is himself a former seaman, and that he comes by his eccentricities honestly. Even the ropes of the pulpit are the genuine article, donated from a real ship.

Indeed, Ishmael is convinced that all of this is a part of some sort of clever Metaphor or Allegory being subtly employed by Father Mapple. When the chaplain pulls the rope ladder up into the pulpit, rung by rung, Ishmael waxes philosophic again:

I pondered some time without fully comprehending the reason for this. Father Mapple enjoyed such a wide reputation for sincerity and sanctity, that I could not suspect him of courting notoriety by any mere tricks of the stage. No, thought I, there must be some sober reason for this thing; furthermore, it must symbolize something unseen.

Around this time, he also makes a couple of stray references I thought I should chase down. First, the pulpit is Mapple’s own impregnable “little Quebec”. Quebec City is famously a walled town, and indeed is the only north american town that still retains its walls to this very day!

The other is that the pulpit is “ a lofty Ehrenbreitstein, with a perennial well of water within the walls”. Turns out, that’s just a enormous fortress in Germany, near what would at the time have been the border with France, right on the banks of the Rhine river. It was destroyed by the French during the Napoleonic wars, but then rebuilt even stronger afterwards. At the time of this writing, it would be a massive, impressive symbol of military might and safety. It, too, has survived to this very day, and you can go tour it in much the same form as it was in Melville’s day. As far as I can find, there are no legends about it having a replenishing well within its walls.

This is all in service of the Metaphor that Ishmael mentioned, that this heavenly retreat of Father Mapple signifies his withdrawal from petty physical concerns and turning his attention to the spiritual.

Yes, for replenished with the meat and wine of the word, to the faithful man of God, this pulpit, I see, is a self-containing stronghold 

I love this kinda shit. I’m gonna be honest, this sort of... I’m not sure exactly how to describe it, early American naive Christianity. The kind of thing you get from puritans and other wild strands of the faith that were exiled first to Holland and then across the ocean to the New World.

It’s like... people discovering Christianity for the first time and trying to make sense of it on their own. Protestantism flows from the invention of the printing press, and the new availability of the actual text of the Bible to people other than Catholic priests and monks. What must they think of these strange stories, now thrown open for interpretation? Trying to discover the inerrant truths hidden within them, seeking a way of life in a book written thousands of years earlier, for a completely different audience.

It leads to things like Pilgrim’s Progress, a book massively popular in very early New England. Just directly telling people to be good, that greed is bad, and you just have to believe in Jesus. The burden of discovering the truth through the scripture is a heavy one, why not make a cheat sheet? Here’s all the important stuff, laid out in the most bald, easy-to-understand allegory that even the youngest of children or the busiest of farmers could understand it. When you tear down an old idol that was telling you how to run your life, you have to fill that void with something!

This kind of Christianity, with it’s very simple, direct messages trying to convince people not to be so horrible all the time, appeals to me on a deep level. It feels so damn honest compared to its modern American successors, I suppose. Just be good, and not bad, and believe in The Lord and it’ll all be okay.

Of course, the truth is that even back then this kind of ministry was rife with hypocrites and scandal. But that’s more Nathaniel Hawthorne’s territory, we’re reading a Melville book, and though they were close friends, they didn’t exactly speak about the same things all the time.

Speaking of the book that I’m supposed to be talking about, the metaphor is completed by Ishmael saying that the pulpit is like the prow of a ship, but for the whole of the Earth. It is the foremost part, sticking out bravely, leading the way for all the rest of us.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention one other thing: another enormous, portentous oil painting! This time hanging on the wall directly behind the pulpit, above the tragic tablets on the back wall. It depicts a ship in the midst of a storm, but with a ray of sunshine breaking through the clouds above. And in that, an angelic figure beckoning the ship onwards, to safety.

And so the structure of these chapters has gone. First, we were plunged into grief and theological doubt by the tablets, then we climb out of that mire with Father Mapple, to the top of the high pulpit. And finally, next chapter, we shall ascend into hope and light when he finally begins his sermon.

You’ll never guess what book of the bible he’s talking about.

Whew, that one really went some places. I think part of my appreciation for that vein of Christianity comes from the church I grew up in, UCC, which a descendant of Congregationalists, which have their origins among the dissidents of England and the settlers of New England. Also the exceedingly lengthy, yet very good, series of books from Neal Stephenson called The Baroque Cycle, which I highly recommend.

As always, you can follow along for free with the full text of the book from Gutenberg dot org. Next chapter is gonna be realllllll long and even more Theological than this one, as we get into an actual got damb sermon, probably based on one that Melville actually heard at the real church that this scene is set in. We’ll see how it fits in, thematically, with the rest of the book.

Image Credits, in order:

A Sermon From The High Pulpit: The Chancel Behind (1827), Joesph Mallord William Turner.

Photo of Porte St. Louis, Parks Canada.

Festung Ehrenbreitstein viewed from Koblenz (2011), Holger Weinandt.

Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, With Over One Hundred Illustrations Designed by Frederick Barnard and Others, Engraved by Dalziel Borthers (The John C. Winston Company, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Toronto, 1894).

Ships in Distress in a Storm (1720-30), Peter Monamy.

[fawazarts]

$4,500.00 Egyptian art and 24k gold leaf and antique frame from Egypt. Also the story of the young king here is Moses of your Bible. Yes, he had a long face, and was the grandson of Joseph of coat of many colors. The king marry Joesph’ daughter and their first born was killed in the palace, she suspected the priest and maids in the palace. The king decree that if the next baby is a boy, he should be killed and if a girl for her to live. When Tiye got pregnant again, after the baby was born she shipped him down the River Nile to be raised up by her family. When he turn 18 years old he came to stay with his father and mother. He started to educate his father that there is only one God. His Father was not interested, and asked he don’t speak of that again. This is the Exodus of your Bible… “let my people go” #fawazarts #art #acrylicpainting #24kgold #Antique #egyptian #exodus #moses https://www.instagram.com/p/CRpOyXIrtMs/?utm_medium=tumblr

[numbersbythebook]

The Unique List of Revelation 7 & Firstfruits

written by Will Schumacher

Revelation 7 has a unique list of tribes that form the 144,000 sealed:

Revelation 7:4 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.

5 Of the tribe of Judah were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.

6 Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nephthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand.

7 Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand.

8 Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.

Missing is Ephraim and Dan. Included is Levi and Joseph. Joesph’s two sons Manasseh and Ephraim are typically used in place of Joseph.

The gematria of the unusual list in Greek is 8480 in-text as written:

Judah 485

Reuben 630

Gad 8

Asher 309

Naphtali 650

Mannasseh 500

Simeon 1495

Levi 445

Issachar 912

Zebulon 1360

Joseph 1518

Benjamin 168

8480 ft = 2584.7 meters or 2585 if you round it off. Strong’s H2585 = Enoch

Enoch is a type of the Church.

The above is something I have posted on before and have always found interesting. What is next blew my mind away.

Let’s look at the Hebrew gematria then.

I added up the gematria of the 12 tribes camping around the Tabernacle in Numbers 2.

The total gematria is 3390. (Ephraim 331, Manasseh 395, Benjamin 152, Dan 54, Asher 501, Naphtali 570, Judah 30, Issachar 530, Zebulon 95, Reuben 259, Simeon 466, Gad 7)

Strong’s H3390 = Jerusalem.

New Jerusalem in the Bible is the Bride. The Numbers 2 encampment of the tribes around the tabernacle/the place where God dwells is a picture of New Jerusalem.

When you take the Numbers 2 encampment and the gematria of the tribes of 3390 and take out Ephraim and Dan and their gematria of 331 and 54 and add in the gematria of Joseph and Levi of 156 and 46 to reflect the list of Revelation 7 you get 3207.

3390-331-54+156+46 = 3207.

The number 3207 is quite fascinating.

The 144,000 of Revelation 7 are sealed. The 144,000 of Revelation 14 are called “firstfruits”.

The firstfruits are the 7 species of Israel found in Deuteronomy 8:8. The gematria of this verse is 3207:

Deuteronomy 8:8 A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey;

So the 144,000 sealed have a Hebrew Gematria of 3207. The 144,000 are called firstfruits. The firstfruits of Israel are listed once in the bible in a verse with a gematria of 3207. Interesting.

From Wikipedia about the first fruits:

“Shavuot was also the first day on which individuals could bring the Bikkurim (first fruits) to the Temple in Jerusalem (Mishnah Bikkurim 1:3). The Bikkurim were brought from the Seven Species for which the Land of Israel is praised: wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates (Deut. 8:8).

In the largely agrarian society of ancient Israel, Jewish farmers would tie a reed around the first ripening fruits from each of these species in their fields. At the time of harvest, the fruits identified by the reed would be cut and placed in baskets woven of gold and silver. The baskets would then be loaded on oxen whose horns were gilded and laced with garlands of flowers, and who were led in a grand procession to Jerusalem. As the farmer and his entourage passed through cities and towns, they would be accompanied by music and parades.[9]”

Notice from the above story that the firstfruits were marked just like we are marked or sealed with the Spirit and the 144,000 are sealed in the book of Revelation.

We are the firstfruits marked by the Spirit. The 144,000 is the completed Church.

[dailyinsights]

Sandwiches, Rocket Ships, and Money in the Bank

Passage: Genesis 41:33-41, 53-57 Verses: Genesis 41:41 “So Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.’”

Passage Thoughts

1) (v38) “So Pharaoh asked them, ‘Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?’ Every time I read this, I’m surprised to read a Pharaoh refer to the spirit of God with familiarity. I think this isn’t the only time that a foreigner has referred to God in such a way. Whenever I read this, I think how either it is a testament to the fame and reach of God - that those who have discernments know who God is even if they don’t worship him - or it shows how Israel-centric the authors were in assuming (or devising plot points which assume that) everyone knows who the God of Abraham is.

Verse Thoughts

That would be quite a moment - going from a slave to CEO of the whole country.

Devotion Summary

Strategic planning is used by NASA, businesses, and quarterbacks to prepare for the future instead of the present.For example, NASA aims rockets at where the moon will be, not where it is. We do this too in our daily lives - we prepare lunch in the morning before we have an inkling of an appetite for lunch food, anticipating our hunger later in the day.

Strategic planning is the key to good fatherhood as well - provide your children with discipline, tenderness and instruction not only for the present, but also for the future. It is thankless work, but an investment which your children will withdraw on in the future. When we get pushback or don’t know what to do, we should remember Joseph’s words “I cannot do it ... but God will”.

Devotion Thoughts

This is a great example of the kind of father (and husband!) that I want to be. I want to encourage my kids to exemplify the character of Christ (e.g. being givers, not takers) not only now, but int the future as well. Thinking not only selflessly for my kids’ benefit but also thinking long-term instead of short-term is such a feat of maturity that I can only achieve with the help of the Holy Spirit. It’s encouraging to see that it was the same for Joseph as well - with God’s help he had the integrity and foresight to follow through on some great leadership.

Devotion Prayer

Dear Lord,

Please give me the foresight to prepare my kids (and my wife!) for the future. Help me make investments in their character today which they can withdraw on when they need to stand against the storms of the future. Holy Spirit, please use me to train my family to lean on you when times get tough. And train me so that I can be an example to them so that they will know that this is all real. Thank you for the example of Joesph in the Bible. And thank you for giving us access to the same wisdom he had through your word and your spirit

Amen

[dfroza]

the birth of a True King

is what is documented in chapter #2 of the book of Matthew for Today’s reading of the Scriptures that includes a refusal of Herod’s instructions that defied his orders, along with dreams given to Joesph to avoid Herod as well:

Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem, in the province of Judea, at the time when King Herod reigned. Not long after Jesus was born, magi, wise men or seers from the East, made their way from the East to Jerusalem. These wise men made inquiries.

Wise Men: Where is this newborn, who is the King of the Jews? When we were far away in the East we saw His star, and we have followed its glisten and gleam all this way to worship Him.

King Herod began to hear rumors of the wise men’s quest, and he, and all of his followers in Jerusalem, were worried. So Herod called all of the leading Jewish teachers, the chief priests and head scribes, and he asked them where Hebrew tradition claimed the long-awaited Anointed One would be born.

Scribes and Priests: An ancient Hebrew prophet, Micah, said this:

But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are no poor relation—

For from your people will come a Ruler

who will be the shepherd of My people Israel.

Herod called the wise men to him, demanding to know the exact time the special star had appeared to them. Then Herod sent them to Bethlehem.

Herod: Go to Bethlehem and search high and low for this Savior child; and as soon as you know where He is, report it to me so that I may go and worship Him.

The wise men left Herod’s chambers and went on their way. The star they had first seen in the East reappeared—a miracle that, of course, overjoyed and enraptured the wise men. The star led them to the house where Jesus lay; and as soon as the wise men arrived, they saw Him with His mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped Him. They unpacked their satchels and gave Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

And then, just as Joseph did a few months before, the wise men had a dream warning them not to go back to Herod. The wise men heeded the dream. Ignoring Herod’s instructions, they returned to their homes in the East by a different route.

After the wise men left, a messenger of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.

Messenger of the Lord (to Joseph): Get up, take the child and His mother, and head to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you it is safe to leave. For Herod understands that Jesus threatens him and all he stands for. He is planning to search for the child and kill Him. But you will be safe in Egypt.

So Joseph got up in the middle of the night; he bundled up Mary and Jesus, and they left for Egypt.

After a few months had passed, Herod realized he’d been tricked. The wise men were not coming back. Herod, of course, was furious. He simply ordered that all boys who lived in or near Bethlehem and were two years of age and younger be killed. He knew the baby King was this age because of what the wise men told him.

This sad event had long been foretold by the prophet Jeremiah:

A voice will be heard in Ramah,

weeping and wailing and mourning out loud all day and night.

The voice is Rachel’s, weeping for her children,

her children who have been killed;

she weeps, and she will not be comforted.

Joseph, Mary, and Jesus stayed in Egypt until Herod died. This fulfilled yet another prophecy. The prophet Hosea once wrote, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”

And after Herod died, a messenger of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt:

Messenger of the Lord: You may go home now. Take the child and His mother and go back to the land of Israel, for the people who were trying to take the child’s life are now dead.

So Joseph got up and took Mary and Jesus and returned to the land of Israel. Soon he learned that Archelaus, Herod’s oldest and notoriously brutal son, was ruling Judea. Archelaus might not be any friendlier than Herod had been. Joseph was simply afraid. He had another dream, and in this dream, he was warned away from Judea; so Joseph decided to settle up north in a district called Galilee, in a town called Nazareth. And this, too, fulfilled what the prophets have taught, “The Savior will be a Nazarene.”

The Book of Matthew, Chapter 2 (The Voice)

Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments is Numbers 25 where the men of Israel chose to engage in having sex and performing religious rituals apart from the True God our Creator which resulted in harsh judgment of their sin. and the fact is, all sin is punishable by death. and it points to spiritual death and separation from God, which is why Jesus was born, God in the flesh, to become the price of sin for us to redeem us, to invite us into eternal life in the True illumination of the Son.

(An act of grace)

and there are many forms of spiritual idolatry in this world, which means we need to guard the space of the heart from being led astray.

[Numbers 25]

Now it happened that while Israel was biding its time at Shittim, on the edge of the wilderness near Jericho, some of the men got mixed up with Moabite women. They got friendly and had sexual relations. The Moabites invited these Israelites to participate in Moabite religious rituals and worship of their gods, and God’s people bound themselves to the deity Baal of Peor, which made the Eternal One furious at Israel.

Eternal One (to Moses): Grab them! Every wicked leader of this people. Then in broad daylight, in front of the Eternal, string them up on stakes to twist and turn so that My burning rage doesn’t consume the entire population.

Moses (to the Israelite judges): Look to your people, and kill whoever pledged himself to the deity Baal of Peor.

Just then, even as people were dying right and left, one Israelite returned from among the Midianites with a woman whom he planned to make a part of his family. With her in tow, he walked right past Moses and everybody else while they were mourning in front of the congregation tent. When Priest Aaron’s grandson Phinehas (Eleazar’s son) saw them, he took a spear in his hand. He charged into the Israelite’s tent and ran the spear straight through the bellies of the couple. That one act appeased God’s anger and put an end to the death cascading through the Israelite camp. Nevertheless, 24,000 people died before it was all over.

The Eternal One explained to Moses what had happened.

Eternal One: Phinehas (Eleazar’s son and Priest Aaron’s grandson) has done well. He saved the Israelites. Because he was so zealous on My account, tolerating no compromise, I did not consume the people of Israel with My jealousy. So I want you to declare this: “I, your God, do pledge to Phinehas a covenant of peace, not only for him but for his descendants too. I promise they will always be priests because in his jealousy for Me, Phinehas covered the wickedness of the Israelites.”

For the record, the Israelite man killed with the Midianite woman was Zimri (son of Salu, a leader of the Simeonite extended family). The Midianite woman’s name was Cozbi. She was Zur’s daughter, and Zur was the leader of one of the extended families in Midian.

The Eternal One spoke to Moses.

Eternal One: It’s time to go after the Midianites. Frustrate them, and crush them; after all, they frustrated you by luring you into that Peor affair, including the business with Cozbi, who was killed to stop My punishing destruction from the plague, also because of that Peor affair. She was a Midianite leader’s daughter.

The Book of Numbers, Chapter 25 (The Voice)

my personal reading of the Scriptures for Wednesday, june 17 of 2020 with a paired chapter from each Testament along with Today’s Psalms and Proverbs

A set of posts by John Parsons shared yesterday:

We are in the midst of a great spiritual war -- the war for the truth. This has been the battle from the beginning. The very first recorded words of Satan (הַנָּחָשׁ) questioned God's truth: "Did God really say...?" (Gen. 3:1). In the end there will be found two types of people: those who love the truth and those who love the lie; these are children of light (בְּנֵי הָאוֹר) and children of darkness (בְּנֵי הַחשֶׁךְ), respectively. Followers of Yeshua the Messiah are told to "walk as children of light" / ὡς τέκνα φωτὸς περιπατεῖτε (Eph. 5:8). Children of light are called to be am kadosh - a holy people - separate from the evil engendered by the fallen world and its forces, just as the very first creative expression of God was the separation of light from darkness (Gen. 1:3-4). The children of light "hate evil and love the good," and conversely, the children of darkness "hate the good and love evil" (Psalm 34:21, Prov. 8:13, Amos 5:15, John 3:20-21). Yes, we hate sin, because sin separates people from healing; we hate sin but we love others. We are to walk in the peace and love of God; to do acts of justice and lovingkindness (Psalm 97:10). "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other” (Matt. 6:24).

In a sense, the very history of humanity - especially as it has been expressed philosophically and politically throughout the centuries -- has been nothing less than the collusion to redefine reality as something that it isn't. "The kings of the earth station themselves, and the dignitaries (רוֹזְנִים) take counsel together against (lit. "over") the LORD and His Mashiach" (Psalm 2:1-3). Spiritual warfare is therefore the fight for sanity and truth in a world that prefers madness, anarchy, and self-deception... [Hebrew for Christians]

6.16.20 • Facebook

Some people think that "freedom" means lawlessness, or the ability to do what they want to do whenever they want to do it. However, simply doing whatever you want to do is not the Torah’s idea of freedom. Yeshua told us "whoever commits sin is the slave (δουλος) of sin," and went on to say "if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed" (John 8:34-36). True freedom (i.e., cherut: חרוּת) is therefore moral and spiritual rather than merely physical. Real freedom has to do with the power to choose what is right and good, not to simply bully your own way or to practice your lusts... Our deliverance is meant to clothe us with divine power to walk in righteousness and truth (Phil. 2:14-16).

Where it is written, "The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets" (Exod. 32:16), the midrash says do not read “engraved (i.e., charut: חָרוּת) on the tablets” but rather as “freedom (i.e., cherut: חֵרוּת) on tablets,” since only those who obey God’s will may rightly be called “free” people... The worst kind of slavery is to be blind to your own chains -- chains to yourself and your own inner depravity! [Hebrew for Christians]

6.16.20 • Facebook

[papcrback]

awake; nonfiction/ memoir

Here is a piece that I wrote in my nonfiction class this past semester. It is centered around my experience with religion. From a young girl in awe of her Catholic church to a young woman who was forced into a new cult-like church by her mother. 

My family went to church twice a year every year without fail. Every Christmas and Easter we would carpool my entire extended family to the church and attend Mass. There were no questions, no arguments, not a complaint to be heard. This was law. 

My two older sisters and I were always gifted new dresses for the festivities, and we wore our matching gowns with pride as we swayed and sashayed down the aisle and into our pew. Our church was grandiose and beautiful. The marble-like floor sparkled as the kaleidoscope of color rained in through the glass-stained windows near the top of the church, like a vibrant halo sitting perfectly atop the picturesque structure. 

My church was a beautiful castle where priests would rise and tell stories of the Bible with such passion and grace that I always found myself sitting on the edge of the pew, transfixed by the stories of Mary and Joesph and their miracle baby. My favorite part of these services was when he would tell a story of his own choosing—one that always made you think, made you wonder what you would do, how you would choose if you were in their shoes. They always ended with a peaceful resolution because the main character made the righteous choice, always keeping God’s words as their guide through their stories. These church visits brought me peace and shared the wisdom that I hold dear to me, even to this day. 

When I was fifteen this tradition was shattered. 

As my parents sought out religious marriage counselors my mother stumbled upon an online add for Cornerstone Church. She quickly called and explained her uncertainty in her marriage, her suspicion of infidelity, and her desperate need for help. After their first session, my mother made the decision to convert us to the Baptist church.

She quickly found out that biannual church-goers like ourselves were snubbed as “chreasters” (people who attended only on Christmas and Easter) by the members of our new church, and my mother decided from that moment on that we were going to leave our old traditions behind, along with the Catholic church, as we converted to this new Baptist faith. 

On our first visit, my sister and I were pulled to the side and spoken to by the head ladies of the church. We were warned that we were going to hell and that unless we repented, asked God for forgiveness, and turned away from our life of sin, we would be eternally damned to live in the lake of fire and brimstone forever. 

“I don’t understand,” I said to my sister, interlocking our arms as we hid behind a large tree outside of the church. We were waiting for our parents who were speaking to the assistant pastor by the entrance doors. 

“Why is everyone so mean here?” I asked. My sister, Courtney, shook her head as she tightened her grip on me, and after seeing my parents turning toward us, immediately pulled me toward the car. 

That was the last time Courtney went, however, it wasn’t without a fight from my mother, who now passionately believed that Sunday was the Sabbath and it was a sin to not attend church, and an additional sin to work on it. Courtney, who was never particularly religious in the first place, told my mother that she could add it to her now growing “list of sins,” and worked every Sunday from then on. My other sister Brittany, who was away at school, tried to ease tensions but was also noticing the new sinister streak that my mother had inherited since joining this new church. She drank the Kool-Aid and was now Hell bent on erasing the sin from the rest of her family. 

My father had conflicting feelings about the new church. He was trying to repair the marriage that was quickly deteriorating, but after a particularly explosive counseling session at the church, he moved his clothes and books upstairs into the guest bedroom and refused to go back again. My mom kicked him out of the house a month later and blocked him from my cell phone. She claimed that his sin needed to be atoned for and losing his children was just the beginning of it. I was unable to speak to him for four years until I finally moved out of her house. 

After my mother had declared her sentencing of my father, a bold line was drawn. My sisters, although not much older than myself, were old enough to choose their own sides. And after my mother’s blatant mental breakdown consisting of a screaming fit at a graduation, a fist fight in the front yard, and multiple stalking allegations, my mother had officially shattered.

Somehow the family of five had been reduced to two. 

Our twice a year celebration turned into a twice a week responsibility, which now included a three and half hour service every Sunday morning alongside our Wednesday Bible study groups. I was signed up for every group, meeting, and festival that the church held, as my mother was attempting to solidify her position in the church. 

My mother’s sinister streak did not end with the banishment of my father and sister. Instead, it was simply redirected. With every passing month, I could feel myself harden inside. I began to truly listen to the pastor preach every Sunday. I would see how my peers would talk about others. How they would view them as if they were nothing more than dirt and grime. 

They would speak of women who dressed immodestly. Her shirt not to her neck or her dress above her knees. “This is a whore,” they would say, “how could someone treat their bodies so carelessly? How could you tempt men like that? Don’t you care about how men will lust after you? Men cannot control themselves. As a wife you are to serve your husband however and whenever he wants, but not until you are married, or else you are a whore.” I began to pull my sweaters close and hide my body, ashamed of how men looked at me, knowing that it was my fault that their eyes lingered around my covered chest. Knowing that my body was more theirs than my own. 

They would speak of two men kissing. “Sin, sin, sin. They are possessed by demons.” My Pastor would say, “God destroyed an entire city because of them. They are destined for hell. They have chosen evil.” I began to fear those different than me, afraid that I would too become possessed.

I would think of my father and think adulterer-sinner-evil. My mother would preach daily that he was hell-bound, possessed by demons and unworthy of Heaven. He was of the world. And I was cut of the same cloth. 

One Sunday, as we were welcomed into the church and seated alongside our new family, the pastor stood up and called for our attention. “One of our own needs our help today. She needs all of us. Mary would you please stand.” 

A woman who I recognized as a member of my mother’s bible group stood, the man seated next to her rose as well. 

“Mary’s son has fallen to homosexuality. He has been possessed because of the sinful and worldly nature of his lifestyle. He has watched pornography and through this sin, he has opened himself up to the demon of homosexuality.” 

Murmurs of disgust echoed through the room and Mary’s face reddened into a deep purple as her eyes welled. 

“Mary, you have come to me and asked that we all pray for you son.” Mary nodded her head. 

“What is his name?” Mary looked at the man standing next to her. He bent down as she whispered the name into his ear. Women were not permitted to speak during the service. 

“His name is Toby.” The man, Scott, who was a junior Pastor and often came into my youth group meetings, announced. 

The Pastor nodded his head solemnly. “We will be praying for Toby to be awoken to his sin. We will pray for harm to fall unto him. For the devil to attack. For the demons inside of him to swallow him whole. It is only then that he will truly see the light of God and come forward to be saved. He must first see the severity of the sin that he has chosen.” 

I starred at the Pastor for a long moment and was elbowed in the rib by my mother when he began the prayer as I was still staring off idly. This was my moment of clarity. As I listened to a chorus of people pray to God that this young boy would be harmed (for his own good, you see!) I could feel the hypnotic-like haze evaporate from my body. Suddenly, I felt very sick, as the gravity of the situation hit me. 

I wasn’t allowed to stop going to services and bible study, but my awakening led me to see the world differently than I previously had. I no longer saw women as objects to be presented to men. I no longer saw those in other religions as less than or unworthy. I no longer saw myself as better than girls who didn’t attend church on Sundays or read their bibles before bed at night. I was awoken to the color of the world, seeing truly that life was not black or white. Good or evil. Heaven or Hell. I was not just a sinner. I was a human being in a world with more to it than the hate and resentment that this church so vehemently fed off. 

I graduated high school not long after the predatory prayer was introduced into the church. Years later I am ashamed of how twisted and toxic I allowed my thoughts to become. Knowing that I condemned love as hate and freedom as sinful is shameful. I have struggled with the idea of religion ever since and feel most comfortable with the idea of living peacefully with a loving and open heart rather than following any specific ideology. It took me a long time to realize that the church that my mother had brought us to was not really a church, but rather a cult. 

A few months after I moved out of my mother’s house a news article caught my attention. Church Pastor arrested for sexual and physical abuse of children. The mugshot on the front page caught my eye, the familiar deep domineering black holes staring right back at me. His jeer made my stomach churn as I read the article. 

A close friend of the Pastor’s family reports that he made his wife and daughters bleach the garage every Sunday night. From floor to ceiling. Apparently, this is where he would sexually assault his daughters. He believed this bleach ritual has cleansed him of his sins. 

I emailed the article to my mother. She simply replied the World doesn’t understand God’s work.

[wakingeve]

AN INVITATION TO JOIN ME ❤️💙💛 and Thousands of Others - Many of you have been buzzing about FrDonald Calloway ‘s latest book “Consecration to St. Joseph, The WONDERS of Our Spiritual Father.” And I Am One of them! • Never have I ever 💥 read such a powerful and insightful book reflecting on the Scriptural understanding of this truly WONDERFUL Man who was privileged with raising Our Lord and Savior. The Bible indeed tells SO MUCH about Joesph if we only have eyes to see! • Many thousands have already completed this 33-Day journey of faith guided by the Spiritual Wisdom of Our Foster Father through Jesus and concluded on his feast day March 19th. Their testimonies of faith are inspiring and I encourage you to read about them here on the website link below. • In solidarity with them and those who need to hear this message, I will be doing the next 33-Day consecration beginning March 30th and ending on May 1st, the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker and I INVITE YOU TO JOIN ME!!! • Let’s journey together in the wisdom of the Holy Spirit as He reveals to us His WONDERS at work through this great patriarch of our faith. • ☑️ Get the book ☑️ Read the Intro ☑️ then “Join Me” March 30th on FB or Instagram for reflections and commentaries as we embark on this 33-day journey together that should take us through this World Crisis and, having crossed over from our Lenten wilderness, made us stronger to enter into the Ministry of Jesus and transform the world that lies ahead of us for the greater glory of His Kingdom! • 📦 Books are in stock at consecrationtostjoseph.org Type in “Calloway” for 15% off your order. • You may also order them from Target.com or Amazon. • The world needs St Joseph! #saintjosephconsecration #saintjoseph #stjoseph #stjosephconsecration https://www.instagram.com/p/B99aRk0AvhE/?igshid=1rtsk6imxhbdv

[blagi]

the joesph smith fandom has very problematic headcanons and very strange fanfiction.

Their American Jesus AU been accepted as canon by many fans due to the murky history of its orgin, leading to many self-proclaimed Mormon-heads (after the fanfiction.net username of the author mormon1830) telling people not to forget the other books in the bible series.

mormon1830 has gone on record for appropiating native Egyptian culture in his fic "the book of Abraham", wherein he claims that the fic drew inspiration from a biblical text he found posted by the creator l-rdg-d in some old forum, but it was actually a post mourning a moderator who past away.

As well as that, he posted on a forum that according to biblical canon, native Americans actually decend from Jewish people, however dedicated fans have scrowered through the books and found no such reference.

They're also anti-shipping and believe pairings that have been around since the beginning of the fandom such as David/Jonathon and Ruth/Naomi go against the spirit of the books as the creator l-rdg-d has been quoted as saying that there is no homosexual content in his books and that he doesnt tolerate fics with that content, although the original post has been lost.

the joseph smith fandom is dying..... reblog to make it die faster <3