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notmuchtoconceal · 9 months ago

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The first thing to say here is that an earlier generation of scholars actually argued that the development of the evil Demiurge began in Alexandrian Jewish circles. This theory has speculated that Jews at the very periphery of their social, intellectual and philosophical circles -- perhaps those Jews at the very limits, at the adjacent of some of those magickal practices that produced some of the books like Sefer HaRazim -- were ultimately responsible for the development of the evil Demiurge, says this theory.

(It's largely rejected now, but it's the dominant theory you may read in old books.)

Perhaps it was a rebellion against their more emergent orthodox theologians, an outgrowth of Jewish bitheism with the so-called Two Powers in Heaven Hersey (which really frightened the Rabbis, way more than Christianity ever did) the influence of Dualism on their theology, or a response to the historical material reality of Jewish suffering during the Judean-Roman Wars, the violent Alexandrian pogroms, the Kitos War, and finally the genocide that followed in the Bar Kokhba Rebellion, it was a pretty crappy time to be Jewish in the 2nd century, so you might wanna

... dip out.

In other words, when God gives you lemons -- God must be evil.

In fact, something similar actually emerged after the Holocaust with what is now know as Abusive God Theology and that stuff makes... makes H.P. Lovecraft looks like Elmo on MDMA.

*whew* Abusive God Theology.

But there are logical and evidentiary problems with this line of thinking.

First, there's just no evidence of evil Demiurge thinking in any known Jewish text. It seems to fly in the face of every tenet of Judaism that is foundational to it, and Judaism does a pretty good job of preserving... heterodox opinions. And the Jewish writers at the time -- from the earliest Rabbis to Hellenizing Philo and the generations that follow -- they seem to all fall on the exact opposite position of the evil Demiurge idea and they never polemicize against what would seem to be that position. It's just silent in the narrative. That's just to say there's no Jewish evidence -- positive or negative -- of the emergence or even the presence of the evil Jewish Demiurge in their clrcles.

In fact, it only takes place in Christian works. In Christian Works. Primarily those of the second century like the famous Apocryphon of John, the most popular book in this genre.

However, the idea likely has its origins not in Judaism but in the Pagan demonization of the Israelite God Yahweh. At the heart of post-exilic Israelite mythology is the story of the Exodus, that is the accounts of the descendents of Joseph who were allegedly enslaved by Egyptian pharaohs then forced into labor camps for 400 years. Eventually the Egyptians perceived a demographic threat from the fecund Israelite women and engaged in mass infanticide with Moses surviving -- rescued of course -- and then raised in the house of Pharaoh. After beating an Egyptian taskmaster to death, Moses flees into the wilderness of Midian and gets advice from a.... burning bush... and a divine mission to return to Pharoah and liberate the Israelite people from Egyptian bondage.

Pharoah... he's a ... he's a nope on that one and uh, y'know... what follows are a series of horrifying plagues, eventually the Israelite God murdering all the firstborn Egyptians... even the poor animals get killed by the Angel of Death, including Pharaoh's son. After this, the Israelite people are liberated, but not before plundering Egyptian wealth.

They... they go on a looting rampage. Pharoah's despair of course turns to rage in the Sea of Reeds where the Red Sea is split. The Israelites escape and Pharoah and his army are drowned. Oh yeah, and the Israelites, they live happily ever after after that. Everything's fine. For the Israelites and the Jewish people. Nothing bad ever happens again.

Now, the origins of this myth, the Levitical Exodus story might be a good one. Friedman gives an interesting idea of what is called the Leviticus Exodus Theory. Might be a possible historical seed of the Exodus, but this myth has become foundational in the centuries prior to the turn of the Common Era as Judaism is becoming a religion as we might recognize it. And for Judeans living in Judea celebrating this myth in Hebrew, well... that's all fine and good as well as myths go.

But during this period, most Jews didn't live in Judea, they were increasingly spread throughout the world that would become the Roman empire and were especially concentrated in he Egyptian port city of Alexandria. The Egyptian city of Alexandria.

Further, this tale wasn't just in their native language there. It was being translated into the vernacular Greek of the time, and ... worse, it had even been translated into Greek for performance by Ezekiel the Tragedian by the 3rd Century BCE. This Judean Exodus myth was being performed in Egypt in the public vernacular... for all to hear. All during the twilight of the proud Egyptian autonomy. It could have only been salt in the wound of the end of Egyptian civilization as it had existed for thousands of years.

Now as you can well imagine... this myth was not exactly well-perceived by Egyptian people. It paints their empire as defeated by a bunch of slaves who expropriate them in the end. It paints the Egyptians as sorcerers, slavers and psychopathic baby murderers. It paints their traditional gods as helpless against... a single foreign desert god and their divine pharaohs as vicious pawns ultimately drowned, and... that's the worst possible death in the Egyptian religion.

Drowning. Is an awful death for the ancient Egyptians.

Any Egyptian would have found this myth highly offensive at basically every register. In fact, other non-Jews would have found it frankly laughable given the splendor and power of ancient Egypt and the relative backwater that was Judea. If one were to measure the power of the Gods by their relative social success... okay. The Judeans had one rather impressive temple to speak of. One. The Egyptians had hundreds. Thousands. And all of those were of supreme antiquity; ancientness and grandeur both being the prime indicators of the powers of the gods in antiquity. And thus the the Hellenizing Egyptians deployed a powerful religious weapon to counter this scandalous, this offensive Exodus story.

The Judean God was a Donkey Headed Demon.

Yeah, for real. That was the comeback.

Yahweh was a Donkey Headed Demon.

In the indigenous religion of the Egyptians, the demonic god Seth was responsible for chaos, the desert wilderness, violent storms, and the barbaric foreigners that threatened ancient Egypt. He was also the usurper who murdered his brother Osiris, hacking his body into pieces and locked eternally in combat with the symbol of justice, Horus.

He was depicted, at least early on, by a... strange otherwise unknown animal known in scholarship as the Typhonic Beast with a sunken muzzle and floppy ears. Sometimes appearing like a kind of hybrid dog-like, perhaps desert scavenger kind of animal. However, as the centuries went on, the head of this beast became more and more donkey-like. Further, the popular Canaanite storm god Baal also became associated with Seth in the Egyptian imagination. In fact, Baal's name when it's written in the Egyptian language uses this Seth animal determinative, probably indicating his foreignness and desert dwelling character.

This shows they were somehow equivocated in the mind of the average Egyptian scribe, at least. And as Hellenism took hold, so did the interpretatio graeca, whereby the gods of various national pantheons were set in a kind of system of grand correspondences. Thus famously the Greek Hermes was equivalent to the Roman Mercury, the Etruscan Turms, the Egyptian Thoth, the Carthaginian Tautus, the Gaulish Lugus, and most famously in our neck of the woods here, Hermes Trismegistus, sort of a combination of Hermes and Thoth into one mythical Egyptian sage. Of course, this could function in an ecumenical sense. The same Gods worshipped variously in various places acutally went to great lengths to lay the groundwork for the imperial religious tolerance of Roman fame. The Romans were kind of like we all worship the same set of Gods and we can all get a long as long as you pay your taxes.

But this could also be used for polemical ends and that seems to be exactly what the Egyptian answer to the scandal of the Exodus and the Israelite God Yahweh was. To link the demonic Seth of the Egyptian pantheon with the Israelite God Yahweh.

Now such a move would not have been at all theologically difficult for the Egyptians. The first step's already there: the linking of Egyptian Seth with Canaanite Baal. Of course, Judeans would have found this link horrible and offensive. Yahweh and Baal being bitter mythological enemies at least from the Judean perspective.

But from the Egyptian point of view? That would have been just what Freud would have called the narcissism of minor difference.

Both Baal and Yahweh were -- at least as far as the Egyptians cared -- minor Canaanite storm gods worshipped by barbaric foreigners whose only claim to historical fame was actually just trade routes that ran north and south through their lands near the sea down through the Shfela.

Otherwise, they were just desert-dwelling nomads or highlander bandits or both. Seth, the god of storms, chaos, the desert waste and foreigners, as historically linked with Baal... it was an easy slide to link with Yahweh. Yahweh himself was a kind of warrior storm god.

(Thunderstorms, though. Not coastal storms.)

In fact, just reading the Exodus story reveals more Seth-like properties.

He's a causer of pestilences and eclipses and brings darkness and turns the life-giving Nile into blood. Blood was used over the lentils of Israelite homes as a horrifying angel went through, murdering all these children and animals. Even the color red is linked to Seth in the ancient literature and in the Greek magical papyri. Yahweh leads them into the desert of all places to worship in the wilderness of Mt. Sinai at a mountain enshrouded in araphel in Hebrew.

Deep Darkness and fire and lightning abounding.

Even one of the major Greek terms for Yahweh Iao sounds a bit like the indigenous Egyptian word for donkey, : Iō. Or later the Coptic Iohao. literally Donkey-Headed. Iohoa. Yahweh. Eh. Donkey God. The animal at that time most associated with the demonic Seth.

Thus by the first few centuries before the common era, it had become a bit of token slander to suggest that the Jews worshipped a donkey-headed diety despite their claim that no images of their God were allowed, either in their Jerusalem temple of otherwise, for that matter.

Around 200 BCE we hear from the Alexandrian Menaceus that an Idumean -- a Southern person from same stock as Herod, actually -- had torn off the head off the Donkey shrine within the Jerusalem temple. It was a golden donkey head. A narrative that's repeated a century later by Apollonius Mullon and the Stoic philosopher Posidonius where in that story, Antiochus the IV Epiphanes (Hanukkah Antiochus) the Seleucid leader whose outrages would ultimately lead to war, he entered the temple and found a golden statue with a donkey headed deity around 167 BCE. Around the same time, around the turn of the common era, a certain Democritus also recounted Jewish worship of a donkey headed golden deity and likewise did Appion and even the historian Tacitus who should have known better, but he repeats the story anyway.

In the 90s in the common era, the Roman Jewish historian Josephus would actually have to defend Judeans from just these claims in his writings. Indeed the entire Exodus narrative was being inverted. Rather than being saved by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, in the literature -- the pagan literature -- the Israelites were being depicted as lepers actually just expelled en mass from Egypt. Not liberated by any God. In fact, Plutarch even depicts the demon god Seth escaping Egypt on donkey back; a journey taking seven days, precisely to mock the origins of the Jewish sabbath. He's even said to father sons, one named Jerusalem, and one named Judea, literally making the Jews the descendants of the demon god Seth.

Of course, this would have been all the more outrageous and horrifying to the Judeans of the time considering their traditional way of making fun of the Egyptians. They mocked the Egyptian gods by saying they worshipped a bunch of animals -- with bird heads and crocodile heads, now their God -- their God -- now their god Yahweh was the stereotypically stupidest beast of them all: the braying donkey.

I apologize for any donkeys [reading]. I apologize.

Got to be careful this episode. I'm gonna get donkey cancelled.

#to get a feeling #you know this monkey #his name is donkey

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eclecticwhispersruins · 2 years ago

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Introduction

The bright sun was extinguish'd, and the stars

Did wander darkling in the eternal space,

Rayless, and pathless, and the icy earth

Swung blind and blackening in the moonless air...

...And War, which for a moment was no more,

Did glut himself again; a meal was bought

With blood, and each sate sullenly apart

Gorging himself in gloom; no love was left;

All earth was but one thought – and that was death.

-Darkness, Lord Byron (excerpt)

+++++++++

The planet Skarn. A blasted and scarred world in an ailing cosmos where the stars lie dead, casualties in a conflict between a rejected myriad and a mad divinity. Mauled across its surface from sea to tepid sea by cataclysm, madness, and war of apocalyptic scale, its very sun snuffed out by the thrashing death-throes of a fading god, Skarn is a phantom planet adrift in the dark, an isolated atoll in the black ocean of chaos.

Yet even though the universe reels from the devastation, life persists. The hardy survivors of the long ages of calamity – plant, animal, and intelligent being – eke out an existance amid the battered remnants of a world that, in spite of seemingly impossible odds, stubbornly refuses to die. Civilization boils up from ruination, lit by the lantern glow of the Solar Fragments and peopled by those that escaped extermination. From the deepest oceans to the thresholds of empty space, Skarn is a savage planet of survivors and fighters, thriving in a primal wilderness that has begun to heal in defiance of fate itself.

Come what may, there will be a tomorrow on this world.

#creative writing #writeblr #fantasy #worldbuilding #fiction #Skarn #chronicles of skarn #skarn setting #lore #writing

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miajolensdevotion · 2 years ago

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*Struggle in Gethsemane*

_“Then He said to them, ‘My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me’” (Matthew 26:38)._

*In His time of greatest distress, Jesus realized His human weakness and His _need to depend on the Father_.*

As Jesus entered the Garden of Gethsemane with Peter, James, and John, He experienced a more profound anguish over sin and death than ever before. His deep and desolate distress was made more severe when He considered the many personal disappointments that confronted Him. First, there was the betrayal by Judas, one of His own disciples. Then there would be the desertion by the Eleven and Peter’s threefold denial of his Master. Jesus would also be rejected by His own people, Israel, whose leaders would subject Him to all kinds of injustices before His death.

It shouldn’t surprise us, then, that Christ tells His three trusted disciples, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death.” A person can die from such heavy sorrow, which in God’s providence did not happen to Jesus. However, the magnitude of Jesus’ sorrow apparently caused the blood capillaries right under His skin to burst. As more and more capillaries burst from the extreme emotional pressures Jesus endured, blood escaped through His pores, “and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground” (Luke 22:44). Such sweating was just one outward result of what our Lord felt at the excruciating prospect of His having to become sin for us. His holiness was completely repulsed by such a thought.

It was because Jesus did keep watch and look to His Father in prayer that He endured and passed this test in the Garden. Right up to the end, Christ lived His earthly life in total, sinless submission to the Father. *As a believer, you also will face times of severe testing and trial when only direct communion with God will give you the strength to prevail.* And you also have the added encouragement of Jesus’ example in Gethsemane, the climax of His experiences through which He became a High Priest who can fully “sympathize with our weaknesses” (Heb. 4:15).

Suggestions for Prayer

Praise God today that Jesus was divinely enabled to withstand the trials and temptations that assaulted Him at Gethsemane.

For Further Study

Read Matthew 4:1-11.

Write down several key differences between Jesus’ encounter in the wilderness and His experience in Gethsemane.

What similarities do you see in Christ’s response to the two situations?

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oathofkaslana · 2 years ago

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CS 4:

Before returning to Sumeru, Collei had wandered for a long time.

The decisive difference between wandering and traveling, of course, lies in that the former bears no designated destination.

Her wandering started from those charred ruins, or perhaps earlier, when she was afflicted with that disease, and it was long destined to be a never-ending nightmare extending into nothing but total darkness.

Most of the companions with whom she had fled from the ruins either lost their way in the endless waves of sandstorms, or corroded to death by divine remains.

Sick and cursed, they had nowhere to stay, thus turning to uninhabited jungles and wildernesses.

Mother Nature is both merciful and cruel. She would never reject them because of their illness, nor would she offer whatever they need even if they cried out for it.

As more and more of her companions could walk no further, the lessons they left behind helped the rest become better at surviving in the most desperate situations.

And when Collei's last companion could no longer continue, she learned yet another lesson: never to reach out to anyone again.

At that time, the two of them had their backs against the cliff, utterly exhausted. Yet, they could still hear the beast roaring from not too far off.

Perhaps it was because of the narrow passage, if not for other reasons, but her only remaining companion bumped into her, sending her careening off the cliff.

Fortunately, Collei managed to grab a tiny twig in her panic, before stretching out her other hand and shouting for help.

However, that companion merely glanced at her with a complicated look before escaping alone without hesitation.

She did not get far, the beast's howls outpacing her fleeing steps like a raging wind. The beast's pure predatory instinct caused it to overlook the shivering Collei, who was barely hanging onto the cliff.

Collei quietly withdrew her hand and held on tightly to the branch that might break at any moment, until all the sounds above her head died down.

The roar of the beast and the screams of that companion had all disappeared.

She could not hate that companion. If she were in that person's shoes, she could not guarantee that she would have made a different choice.

At that moment, there was only one thought remaining in Collei's mind.

Be it to offer help or to ask for it—

"I will never reach out to anyone again."

CS 5:

Collei once again touched someone's hand during a certain year's Ludi Harpastum in Mondstadt.

The city was elaborately decorated with lights and lanterns. The streets were jam-packed with people. The sky was getting darker, and the stage was in full swing.

A girl in flaming red just grabbed her hand, took her out of that cramped wooden box, and squeezed into the crowd.

People gathered around, cheering and applauding the contestants who were playing hoops or with slingshots.

Collei could not relate to them. No matter how well they could play these most childish games, what use were they in hunting game out in the wild?

Yet, the girl with her was extremely passionate about these little games. She would cheer and whoop at every victory, and hand out the prizes she won to the children.

Collei was even more baffled. If not for the rewards, why would anyone participate in these activities? Was there really any fun in them?

So she sneaked to a corner and picked up a slingshot to try her hand at it — in the end, one of the more than ten shots she fired eventually hit the edge of the target.

"Yay! I hit it!" Collei turned her head excitedly. "Hey! Did you see..."

It was only then that she realized that she had been there for quite a long time and the girl in red had already left.

In the days that followed, Collei had been practicing day in and day out. Gradually, she became more than familiar with the sounds of drawing a bowstring and throwing darts. She practiced for a long time, until she would seldom miss a shot out of ten.

Every time she pulled the bowstring back, Collei remembered the excitement of hitting the target for the first time on that night.

And that when the girl grabbed her hand and ran towards the crowd, her palm was as warm as the sun.

collei's character story 4-5.. EXPLODES.

#OUGH #collei #amber & collei #gi

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paperanddice · 4 years ago

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Degenerate Titan

The degenerate titan plays into the stereotype of fallen empires and the people devolving into primitive and aggressive beings. The idea that civilization was the only thing keeping them from becoming barely intelligent monsters that practice cannibalism and primal magic. It pushes the envelope for me in some ways, but I think it’s salvagable in some ways with good story telling and maybe not making literally all of the titan’s mental ability scores negative.

Mechanically the titan gets two big magical effects that it can use. A massive shockwave along the ground that deals a good amount of force damage and throws the creatures in the area, and an area dispel magic. Good for stripping away character buffs or ongoing effects, and a pair of giants can shout spells like hold monster or slow off of each other.

Degenerate is the term used for those titans who are exiled from the Golden City. Shunned for their political ideas or improper behavior, they fight to survive in the wastelands around the city while fighting deadly monsters. Without the magic academies of the city they struggle to refine their innate magics, augmenting it with geomancy they’ve deciphered from the natural spirits of the waste. While the public perception is that the degenerates are nothing more than monsters a small but growing group are seeking to ally with them to break the control the titan city holds over magical knowledge.

The titan children of most gods are highly honored. They make up the soldiers in divine wars, represent the god among mortals and otherwise are respected and revered. Except for the children of the god of destruction, who hates his children as much as he hates the rest of existence. These titans fight for survival against their own father’s machinations, some escaping to the corners of the material world where they recognize no creature as an ally and destroy everything, just as they were taught to.

A hate filled man wanders alone into the wilderness. Over years he makes pacts with the spirits he finds there, extending his lifespan and gaining strength to survive on in spite of those who rejected him. Decades later the fury in his heart has not abated, but his form has twisted and grown to accommodate it instead. He hunts and kills all who come close to his new home, imagining that they are those who he blames for his fate and devouring their bodies as a final disrespect.

#D&D #DnD #Dungeons and Dragons #5th edition #D&D5e #Tome of Beasts #Kobold Press #monster

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araitsume · 4 years ago

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The Desire of Ages, pp. 685-697: Chapter (74) Gethsemane

This chapter is based on Matthew 26:36-56; Mark 14:32-50; Luke 22:39-53; John 18:1-12.

In company with His disciples, the Saviour slowly made His way to the garden of Gethsemane. The Passover moon, broad and full, shone from a cloudless sky. The city of pilgrims’ tents was hushed into silence.

Jesus had been earnestly conversing with His disciples and instructing them; but as He neared Gethsemane, He became strangely silent. He had often visited this spot for meditation and prayer; but never with a heart so full of sorrow as upon this night of His last agony. Throughout His life on earth He had walked in the light of God's presence. When in conflict with men who were inspired by the very spirit of Satan, He could say, “He that sent Me is with Me: the Father hath not left Me alone; for I do always those things that please Him.” John 8:29. But now He seemed to be shut out from the light of God's sustaining presence. Now He was numbered with the transgressors. The guilt of fallen humanity He must bear. Upon Him who knew no sin must be laid the iniquity of us all. So dreadful does sin appear to Him, so great is the weight of guilt which He must bear, that He is tempted to fear it will shut Him out forever from His Father's love. Feeling how terrible is the wrath of God against transgression, He exclaims, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death.”

As they approached the garden, the disciples had marked the change that came over their Master. Never before had they seen Him so utterly sad and silent. As He proceeded, this strange sadness deepened; yet they dared not question Him as to the cause. His form swayed as if He were about to fall. Upon reaching the garden, the disciples looked anxiously for His usual place of retirement, that their Master might rest. Every step that He now took was with labored effort. He groaned aloud, as if suffering under the pressure of a terrible burden. Twice His companions supported Him, or He would have fallen to the earth.

Near the entrance to the garden, Jesus left all but three of the disciples, bidding them pray for themselves and for Him. With Peter, James, and John, He entered its secluded recesses. These three disciples were Christ's closest companions. They had beheld His glory on the mount of transfiguration; they had seen Moses and Elijah talking with Him; they had heard the voice from heaven; now in His great struggle, Christ desired their presence near Him. Often they had passed the night with Him in this retreat. On these occasions, after a season of watching and prayer, they would sleep undisturbed at a little distance from their Master, until He awoke them in the morning to go forth anew to labor. But now He desired them to spend the night with Him in prayer. Yet He could not bear that even they should witness the agony He was to endure.

“Tarry ye here,” He said, “and watch with Me.”

He went a little distance from them—not so far but that they could both see and hear Him—and fell prostrate upon the ground. He felt that by sin He was being separated from His Father. The gulf was so broad, so black, so deep, that His spirit shuddered before it. This agony He must not exert His divine power to escape. As man He must suffer the consequences of man's sin. As man He must endure the wrath of God against transgression.

Christ was now standing in a different attitude from that in which He had ever stood before. His suffering can best be described in the words of the prophet, “Awake, O sword, against My shepherd, and against the man that is My fellow, saith the Lord of hosts.” Zechariah 13:7. As the substitute and surety for sinful man, Christ was suffering under divine justice. He saw what justice meant. Hitherto He had been as an intercessor for others; now He longed to have an intercessor for Himself.

As Christ felt His unity with the Father broken up, He feared that in His human nature He would be unable to endure the coming conflict with the powers of darkness. In the wilderness of temptation the destiny of the human race had been at stake. Christ was then conqueror. Now the tempter had come for the last fearful struggle. For this he had been preparing during the three years of Christ's ministry. Everything was at stake with him. If he failed here, his hope of mastery was lost; the kingdoms of the world would finally become Christ's; he himself would be overthrown and cast out. But if Christ could be overcome, the earth would become Satan's kingdom, and the human race would be forever in his power. With the issues of the conflict before Him, Christ's soul was filled with dread of separation from God. Satan told Him that if He became the surety for a sinful world, the separation would be eternal. He would be identified with Satan's kingdom, and would nevermore be one with God.

And what was to be gained by this sacrifice? How hopeless appeared the guilt and ingratitude of men! In its hardest features Satan pressed the situation upon the Redeemer: The people who claim to be above all others in temporal and spiritual advantages have rejected You. They are seeking to destroy You, the foundation, the center and seal of the promises made to them as a peculiar people. One of Your own disciples, who has listened to Your instruction, and has been among the foremost in church activities, will betray You. One of Your most zealous followers will deny You. All will forsake You. Christ's whole being abhorred the thought. That those whom He had undertaken to save, those whom He loved so much, should unite in the plots of Satan, this pierced His soul. The conflict was terrible. Its measure was the guilt of His nation, of His accusers and betrayer, the guilt of a world lying in wickedness. The sins of men weighed heavily upon Christ, and the sense of God's wrath against sin was crushing out His life.

Behold Him contemplating the price to be paid for the human soul. In His agony He clings to the cold ground, as if to prevent Himself from being drawn farther from God. The chilling dew of night falls upon His prostrate form, but He heeds it not. From His pale lips comes the bitter cry, “O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me.” Yet even now He adds, “Nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt.”

The human heart longs for sympathy in suffering. This longing Christ felt to the very depths of His being. In the supreme agony of His soul He came to His disciples with a yearning desire to hear some words of comfort from those whom He had so often blessed and comforted, and shielded in sorrow and distress. The One who had always had words of sympathy for them was now suffering superhuman agony, and He longed to know that they were praying for Him and for themselves. How dark seemed the malignity of sin! Terrible was the temptation to let the human race bear the consequences of its own guilt, while He stood innocent before God. If He could only know that His disciples understood and appreciated this, He would be strengthened.

Rising with painful effort, He staggered to the place where He had left His companions. But He “findeth them asleep.” Had He found them praying, He would have been relieved. Had they been seeking refuge in God, that satanic agencies might not prevail over them, He would have been comforted by their steadfast faith. But they had not heeded the repeated warning, “Watch and pray.” At first they had been much troubled to see their Master, usually so calm and dignified, wrestling with a sorrow that was beyond comprehension. They had prayed as they heard the strong cries of the sufferer. They did not intend to forsake their Lord, but they seemed paralyzed by a stupor which they might have shaken off if they had continued pleading with God. They did not realize the necessity of watchfulness and earnest prayer in order to withstand temptation.

Just before He bent His footsteps to the garden, Jesus had said to the disciples, “All ye shall be offended because of Me this night.” They had given Him the strongest assurance that they would go with Him to prison and to death. And poor, self-sufficient Peter had added, “Although all shall be offended, yet will not I.” Mark 14:27, 29. But the disciples trusted to themselves. They did not look to the mighty Helper as Christ had counseled them to do. Thus when the Saviour was most in need of their sympathy and prayers, they were found asleep. Even Peter was sleeping.

And John, the loving disciple who had leaned upon the breast of Jesus, was asleep. Surely, the love of John for his Master should have kept him awake. His earnest prayers should have mingled with those of his loved Saviour in the time of His supreme sorrow. The Redeemer had spent entire nights praying for His disciples, that their faith might not fail. Should Jesus now put to James and John the question He had once asked them, “Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” they would not have ventured to answer, “We are able.” Matthew 20:22.

The disciples awakened at the voice of Jesus, but they hardly knew Him, His face was so changed by anguish. Addressing Peter, Jesus said, “Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour? Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.” The weakness of His disciples awakened the sympathy of Jesus. He feared that they would not be able to endure the test which would come upon them in His betrayal and death. He did not reprove them, but said, “Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.” Even in His great agony, He was seeking to excuse their weakness. “The spirit truly is ready,” He said, “but the flesh is weak.”

Again the Son of God was seized with superhuman agony, and fainting and exhausted, He staggered back to the place of His former struggle. His suffering was even greater than before. As the agony of soul came upon Him, “His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” The cypress and palm trees were the silent witnesses of His anguish. From their leafy branches dropped heavy dew upon His stricken form, as if nature wept over its Author wrestling alone with the powers of darkness.

A short time before, Jesus had stood like a mighty cedar, withstanding the storm of opposition that spent its fury upon Him. Stubborn wills, and hearts filled with malice and subtlety, had striven in vain to confuse and overpower Him. He stood forth in divine majesty as the Son of God. Now He was like a reed beaten and bent by the angry storm. He had approached the consummation of His work a conqueror, having at each step gained the victory over the powers of darkness. As one already glorified, He had claimed oneness with God. In unfaltering accents He had poured out His songs of praise. He had spoken to His disciples in words of courage and tenderness. Now had come the hour of the power of darkness. Now His voice was heard on the still evening air, not in tones of triumph, but full of human anguish. The words of the Saviour were borne to the ears of the drowsy disciples, “O My Father, if this cup may not pass away from Me, except I drink it, Thy will be done.”

The first impulse of the disciples was to go to Him; but He had bidden them tarry there, watching unto prayer. When Jesus came to them, He found them still sleeping. Again He had felt a longing for companionship, for some words from His disciples which would bring relief, and break the spell of darkness that well-nigh overpowered Him. But their eyes were heavy; “neither wist they what to answer Him.” His presence aroused them. They saw His face marked with the bloody sweat of agony, and they were filled with fear. His anguish of mind they could not understand. “His visage was so marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men.” Isaiah 52:14.

Turning away, Jesus sought again His retreat, and fell prostrate, overcome by the horror of a great darkness. The humanity of the Son of God trembled in that trying hour. He prayed not now for His disciples that their faith might not fail, but for His own tempted, agonized soul. The awful moment had come—that moment which was to decide the destiny of the world. The fate of humanity trembled in the balance. Christ might even now refuse to drink the cup apportioned to guilty man. It was not yet too late. He might wipe the bloody sweat from His brow, and leave man to perish in his iniquity. He might say, Let the transgressor receive the penalty of his sin, and I will go back to My Father. Will the Son of God drink the bitter cup of humiliation and agony? Will the innocent suffer the consequences of the curse of sin, to save the guilty? The words fall tremblingly from the pale lips of Jesus, “O My Father, if this cup may not pass away from Me, except I drink it, Thy will be done.”

Three times has He uttered that prayer. Three times has humanity shrunk from the last, crowning sacrifice. But now the history of the human race comes up before the world's Redeemer. He sees that the transgressors of the law, if left to themselves, must perish. He sees the helplessness of man. He sees the power of sin. The woes and lamentations of a doomed world rise before Him. He beholds its impending fate, and His decision is made. He will save man at any cost to Himself. He accepts His baptism of blood, that through Him perishing millions may gain everlasting life. He has left the courts of heaven, where all is purity, happiness, and glory, to save the one lost sheep, the one world that has fallen by transgression. And He will not turn from His mission. He will become the propitiation of a race that has willed to sin. His prayer now breathes only submission: “If this cup may not pass away from Me, except I drink it, Thy will be done.”

Having made the decision, He fell dying to the ground from which He had partially risen. Where now were His disciples, to place their hands tenderly beneath the head of their fainting Master, and bathe that brow, marred indeed more than the sons of men? The Saviour trod the wine press alone, and of the people there was none with Him.

But God suffered with His Son. Angels beheld the Saviour's agony. They saw their Lord enclosed by legions of satanic forces, His nature weighed down with a shuddering, mysterious dread. There was silence in heaven. No harp was touched. Could mortals have viewed the amazement of the angelic host as in silent grief they watched the Father separating His beams of light, love, and glory from His beloved Son, they would better understand how offensive in His sight is sin.

The worlds unfallen and the heavenly angels had watched with intense interest as the conflict drew to its close. Satan and his confederacy of evil, the legions of apostasy, watched intently this great crisis in the work of redemption. The powers of good and evil waited to see what answer would come to Christ's thrice-repeated prayer. Angels had longed to bring relief to the divine sufferer, but this might not be. No way of escape was found for the Son of God. In this awful crisis, when everything was at stake, when the mysterious cup trembled in the hand of the sufferer, the heavens opened, a light shone forth amid the stormy darkness of the crisis hour, and the mighty angel who stands in God's presence, occupying the position from which Satan fell, came to the side of Christ. The angel came not to take the cup from Christ's hand, but to strengthen Him to drink it, with the assurance of the Father's love. He came to give power to the divine-human suppliant. He pointed Him to the open heavens, telling Him of the souls that would be saved as the result of His sufferings. He assured Him that His Father is greater and more powerful than Satan, that His death would result in the utter discomfiture of Satan, and that the kingdom of this world would be given to the saints of the Most High. He told Him that He would see of the travail of His soul, and be satisfied, for He would see a multitude of the human race saved, eternally saved.

Christ's agony did not cease, but His depression and discouragement left Him. The storm had in nowise abated, but He who was its object was strengthened to meet its fury. He came forth calm and serene. A heavenly peace rested upon His bloodstained face. He had borne that which no human being could ever bear; for He had tasted the sufferings of death for every man.

The sleeping disciples had been suddenly awakened by the light surrounding the Saviour. They saw the angel bending over their prostrate Master. They saw him lift the Saviour's head upon his bosom, and point toward heaven. They heard his voice, like sweetest music, speaking words of comfort and hope. The disciples recalled the scene upon the mount of transfiguration. They remembered the glory that in the temple had encircled Jesus, and the voice of God that spoke from the cloud. Now that same glory was again revealed, and they had no further fear for their Master. He was under the care of God; a mighty angel had been sent to protect Him. Again the disciples in their weariness yield to the strange stupor that overpowers them. Again Jesus finds them sleeping.

Looking sorrowfully upon them He says, “Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.”

Even as He spoke these words, He heard the footsteps of the mob in search of Him, and said, “Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray Me.”

No traces of His recent agony were visible as Jesus stepped forth to meet His betrayer. Standing in advance of His disciples He said, “Whom seek ye?” They answered, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus replied, “I am He.” As these words were spoken, the angel who had lately ministered to Jesus moved between Him and the mob. A divine light illuminated the Saviour's face, and a dovelike form overshadowed Him. In the presence of this divine glory, the murderous throng could not stand for a moment. They staggered back. Priests, elders, soldiers, and even Judas, fell as dead men to the ground.

The angel withdrew, and the light faded away. Jesus had opportunity to escape, but He remained, calm and self-possessed. As one glorified He stood in the midst of that hardened band, now prostrate and helpless at His feet. The disciples looked on, silent with wonder and awe.

But quickly the scene changed. The mob started up. The Roman soldiers, the priests and Judas, gathered about Christ. They seemed ashamed of their weakness, and fearful that He would yet escape. Again the question was asked by the Redeemer, “Whom seek ye?” They had had evidence that He who stood before them was the Son of God, but they would not be convinced. To the question, “Whom seek ye?” again they answered, “Jesus of Nazareth.” The Saviour then said, “I have told you that I am He: if therefore ye seek Me, let these go their way”—pointing to the disciples. He knew how weak was their faith, and He sought to shield them from temptation and trial. For them He was ready to sacrifice Himself.

Judas the betrayer did not forget the part he was to act. When the mob entered the garden, he had led the way, closely followed by the high priest. To the pursuers of Jesus he had given a sign, saying, “Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is He: hold Him fast.” Matthew 26:48. Now he pretends to have no part with them. Coming close to Jesus, he takes His hand as a familiar friend. With the words, “Hail, Master,” he kisses Him repeatedly, and appears to weep as if in sympathy with Him in His peril.

Jesus said to him, “Friend, wherefore art thou come?” His voice trembled with sorrow as He added, “Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?” This appeal should have aroused the conscience of the betrayer, and touched his stubborn heart; but honor, fidelity, and human tenderness had forsaken him. He stood bold and defiant, showing no disposition to relent. He had given himself up to Satan, and he had no power to resist him. Jesus did not refuse the traitor's kiss.

The mob grew bold as they saw Judas touch the person of Him who had so recently been glorified before their eyes. They now laid hold of Jesus, and proceeded to bind those precious hands that had ever been employed in doing good.

The disciples had thought that their Master would not suffer Himself to be taken. For the same power that had caused the mob to fall as dead men could keep them helpless, until Jesus and His companions should escape. They were disappointed and indignant as they saw the cords brought forward to bind the hands of Him whom they loved. Peter in his anger rashly drew his sword and tried to defend his Master, but he only cut off an ear of the high priest's servant. When Jesus saw what was done, He released His hands, though held firmly by the Roman soldiers, and saying, “Suffer ye thus far,” He touched the wounded ear, and it was instantly made whole. He then said to Peter, “Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword. Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He shall presently give Me more than twelve legions of angels?”—a legion in place of each one of the disciples. Oh, why, the disciples thought, does He not save Himself and us? Answering their unspoken thought, He added, “But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?” “The cup which My Father hath given Me, shall I not drink it?”

The official dignity of the Jewish leaders had not prevented them from joining in the pursuit of Jesus. His arrest was too important a matter to be trusted to subordinates; the wily priests and elders had joined the temple police and the rabble in following Judas to Gethsemane. What a company for those dignitaries to unite with—a mob that was eager for excitement, and armed with all kinds of implements, as if in pursuit of a wild beast!

Turning to the priests and elders, Christ fixed upon them His searching glance. The words He spoke they would never forget as long as life should last. They were as the sharp arrows of the Almighty. With dignity He said: You come out against Me with swords and staves as you would against a thief or a robber. Day by day I sat teaching in the temple. You had every opportunity of laying hands upon Me, and you did nothing. The night is better suited to your work. “This is your hour, and the power of darkness.”

The disciples were terrified as they saw Jesus permit Himself to be taken and bound. They were offended that He should suffer this humiliation to Himself and them. They could not understand His conduct, and they blamed Him for submitting to the mob. In their indignation and fear, Peter proposed that they save themselves. Following this suggestion, “they all forsook Him, and fled.” But Christ had foretold this desertion, “Behold,” He had said, “the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave Me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.” John 16:32.

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moderately-ok-trash-bin · 5 years ago

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Three OTP Questions

So I just kinda spontaneously decided to write this for my two favourite OCs because if I don’t force myself to talk about them now then I never will. Sooo here’s the first one, my Altmer Dragonborn Aradove.

1) How did they first meet?

‘Must keep going. Must remain vigilant. Dragons, the Thalmor, the Imperials, bandits, beasts... any or all of them could appear at any time. I won’t be truly safe in this land until I can make it so. Rid Skyrim of the dragons and the tyrants, show her people they can trust me, and show my people that peace and coexistence is possible. Then I can go home... then I can rule a land of prosperity and growth, instead of a land of foolish supremacy and cruelty. I’ve been given this power by the Divines, and I’ve been given it for a reason. It is up to me, and me alone, to end the cycle of senseless violence that has plagued Tamriel...’

It was thoughts like this dominating my mind as I rushed through the forests and cliffs of the Rift. While I couldn’t help but feel excitement at the rush of the wind, the smell of the trees and the river, and the sounds of the untouched wilds all around me, the weight of my purpose kept my face unflinching as stone. Ever since I’d fled Summerset and, after narrowly evading execution upon reaching Skyrim, learned that I was the prophesied Dragonborn, things had been different. I was no longer a disillusioned princess with no desire to be the figurehead of a regime that rejected all ways of life but their own, but a destined hero who must bring about a new age. And this was a destiny I knew I must take seriously. It is up to me to herald in a new peace for both those it is my birthright to rule, and those is is my birthright to save. That is all that matters. Nothing less than that would satisfy me.

My head snapped to the side when I heard a faint but deep snarl in some nearby grass. I drew one of my two steel swords, and in my free hand, sent a fire bolt hurtling at the Sabre cat that now charged at me from its hiding spot. The animal screeched with rage as the flame hit the side of its face, but it did not slow, leaping into the air to attack me. I narrowly blocked its huge paws with my blade as it landed, deftly shoving it to the side and drawing my other sword in my free hand. As it dashed in to try and rake me with its claws, I inhaled sharply and, focusing my energy into my voice, I used my Shout. ‘Fus’ echoed slightly around us as the beast staggered, giving me the opening I needed to move in and put my swords through the animal’s chest.

I stepped back, briefly wondering if I’d ever get used to the feeling of using my Shouts. They were unlike anything I’d ever felt, some deep, complex knowledge in my very soul that manifested as power. This was the Divines’ gift to me, the gift that uniquely allows me to deliver this world from calamity... I’d never before imagined that such a power could exist in me...

I suddenly became acutely aware of the reality of my current situation. I’d been careless, lost in thought in the middle of the wilderness after using the most attention-grabbing power at my disposal. I’d let my guard down. I was vulnerable.

Too late.

The second Sabre cat slammed its paws into my chest and nearly knocking the wind out of me as I whirled around, claws digging into my leather armour as I winced and dropped one sword, hastily bringing the other one up toward my face. I heard the clang of bone against metal as I barely managed to put my sword between the animal’s massive teeth and my throat. I tried to push it off of me, but to no avail. It had me pinned and I was in no position to use any of its strength or even my own against it so I could get up and fight on. Magic wouldn’t work either, as I needed to keep both hands on my weapon to keep the creature at bay.

I felt my heart drop in fear. Would this thing tire before me? I was already straining to keep pushing it back at the poor angle I was forced into, would it tire before me? How long would I need to stay here? What if it outlasted me and I died here? A chorus of ‘no’ echoed within me, yet try as I might to Shout again, the power still needed time to recharge. I winced as the pressure on my chest began to register at the same time that I tried to push the Sabre cat off, closing my eyes tightly to try and distract myself from the peril of my situation, instead focusing all of my energy into trying to escape and save myself. I had no idea how long I was there. A second? Two minutes? Didn’t matter. I only snapped back to my senses when I heard a muffled cry of pain from the Sabre cat, followed by the complete removal of the pressure crushing my chest as I opened my eyes to watch the beast slump over, a shining steel greatsword being pulled from its side.

I sat up, and after looking to the Sabre cat that had just nearly ended my life just to make sure it was truly dead, I gazed up to see who it was that had come to my rescue. What I saw triggered a landslide of things within me that I could not begin to understand.

My mysterious saviour was a Nord man with dark brown hair and a short beard. Black war paint framed his eyes like tear-streaked eyeliner. He wore a type of armour I’d never seen before, with more furs and a more brownish tone of metal, and some metal wolf heads adorning the torso. After briefly looking him over, I gazed back up toward his eyes, and I became distinctly aware of both his disdainful expression, and the Imperial woman in studded armour behind him. I tried to find the words to say, but before I could, he addressed me.

“Are you alright? That thing was damned close to ripping your throat out.” Instinct told me to bite back and tell him he had no idea who he was talking to, but I refrained, only just remembering I needed to keep my identity a secret.

“I’m fine. The thing simply caught me the second I dropped my guard,” I replied, attempting to keep my composure despite the strange feelings welling within me. My face felt warm and my heart was beating faster. I glanced to the ground, briefly wondering if I’d contracted a disease from one of the Sabre cats...

“Hmph. You can’t just be complacent out here, elf. Do that, and you’re sure to get torn apart,” he sneered, my face flushing further as I looked at the annoyed expression on his face. I gritted my teeth subtly at the implication that I was just being foolish.

“I’m not a fool, I know that. It was simply bad timing to lose focus. There’s been much on my mind these past few days,” I replied, standing up and sheathing my blades.

“Hah. An off day, hmm? Of course.” I could feel the sarcasm dripping from his words, his disbelief in my abilities clear. I decided it was time to take the focus off of me, before I felt like I needed to give a demonstration.

“Those matters aside... I must thank you for saving me. You have my deepest gratitude. May I ask who you are?” I inquired, attempting to summon up the regal politeness that was drilled into me as I grew up. The man stood with a certain sense of indignance and pride as he introduced himself.

“My name is Vilkas, a member of the Companions in Whiterun. This is my Shield-Sister, Ria. We of the Companions fight for honour, glory and coin. We take the burdens of people who don’t feel up to defending their own honour,” he said confidently. I had heard mention of the Companions before, both rumour and small talk in Whiterun, and the famous Five Hundred Companions of Ysgramor from my history lessons. Things had changed drastically over time, it would seem. Yet this thought’s importance in my mind paled in comparison to the still-rapid beating of my heart. Something about looking at this man gave me such a rush. I had no idea what I was feeling, and at that point I was beginning to fear it. All I knew was that I needed to get away, and quickly.

“I see. Once again, many thanks for coming to my rescue. I must now return to my travel, but know that I will not forget your help.” I turned to leave, Vilkas giving me a nod of acknowledgement as I walked away. Once I had passed through enough forest to be out of his sight, I leaned against a tree, bringing one hand to my chest and the other to my still-red face.

‘What on Nirn is this feeling...?’

2) What did they think of each other at first?

Aradove was immediately attracted to Vilkas, but she had no idea what she was feeling at first, so she was suspicious of him because of the effect he had on her until she figured out what it was. Vilkas, on the other hand, thought Aradove was just some stupid elf too full of herself to be aware of danger.

3) Were they immediately interested/attracted or did that come later?

Aradove yes, definitely. Vilkas though, only began to take a shine to her as she rose through the ranks of the Companions later on in her story and proved herself strong, honourable and level-headed.

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Oh my god I did it. I wrote a whole OC post. And I don’t hate it. Whattt

@hircines-hunting-grounds @curiousartemis

Idk what do you guys think? I hope you liked it :)

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hertrueworth · 5 years ago

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📝 - @speerandarrows ⇠ follow! . Let’s talk about Hagar. . A slave in a land that was not her own. A foreigner, used, rejected and discarded once her usefulness expired. A pawn in Sarah’s attempt to fulfill a divine promise. A runaway bound to a man she did not choose, through circumstances beyond her control. Knocked up, despised and desperate to escape her situation she ran but she could not out run her problems. . Alone in the wilderness, Hagar encounters God at a well. He calls her by name and instructs her to return to her masters but He also offers her a promise “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count” (Genius 16:9, NLT). . In that moment Hagar names the Lord “The God who sees me.” (Genius 16:13, NLT). She is the ONLY person in Bible history to give a name to God. A woman. A slave. An abused runaway. Yet He knew her by name and she gave Him a name, El Roi. . Cast out by Abraham and Sarah, Hagar found herself in the wilderness yet again. Banished into the desert, I imagine her feet scorched by the heat of the sand as beads of sweat drip down her face. Out of options and without hope she laid her son down in a bush to die but that was not the end of their story! . Once again, God intervenes. He saw their desperation and heard their cries for help. “ Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”(Genius 21:18, NIV). . God revealed something she did not see before. Blinded by her grief somehow she missed it! She could not see the well until the water she carried ran dry but God saw her. . How often is that our story? How often do we wait until we’re totally out of options before we look to Him?! . Have you ever found yourself in circumstances beyond your control? Battered, bruised and broken beyond repair? Oppressed? Rejected? Feeling totally defeated? Ready to run? . Our God is the God who sees you. He hears you. He knows you by name! He is El Roi, God who sees. — view on Instagram https://ift.tt/2M2aGxy

#Instagram #IFTTT

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hereticalheraldry · 6 years ago

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Disney Princesses’ trauma types

IE, definitely the darkest take on Disney I have ever done!

(see this post on trauma types)

Lots of Disney characters have had Adverse Childhood Experiences (death of mothers, to start with!) and exhibit signs of traumatic stress. Below are my guesses as to their chosen coping mechanism.

What 4F trauma type is each Disney character below (Fight, Flight, Freeze, Fawn)

Snow White (dead mother, dead father, abusive and neglectful stepmother, stepmother literally tried to have her killed): It’s been a long time since I’ve seen this, but I’d say it’s Fawn-Flight. She is unerringly sweet. Her immediate reaction when in any form of danger (with a strange man, the huntsman, or the dwarves) is to try to appease, appeal, and make friends. She also has a ton of energy (flight), which she channels into obsessive cleaning, though she doesn’t seem to edge far enough into that to call it OCD. She also literally ran away in a segment that makes obvious how her fear drives her to flight.

Cinderella (dead father, abusive and neglectful stepfamily treats her as a slave): another Fawn-Flight. Unfailingly kind and sweet. So desperate for friends that she befriends the MICE. Also an incredibly hard worker (though tbf, her stepfamily forces that on her). When traumatized by stepsisters yanking to pieces her clothing (both a destruction of her hard work and a physical assault) she literally runs away into the garden to cry. She also runs away from the ball at midnight rather than turning back right there and explaining to the prince that she only got to go to the ball through magic because her family is abusive and probably stole her inheritance. Cinderella gets the wish that many with CPTSD have: that somebody would swoop in and rescue them! She gets rescued twice: by her fairy godmother AND by the prince.

Peter Pan (abandoned in Kensington Gardens and brought up by fairies, who are not the most emotionally stable beings out there): Flight. Classic ADHD: response: runs all over the island fighting, flying, and crowing. (Also literally flies.)

Ariel (dead mother, controlling and abusive father): Freeze-Flight. Instead of trying to please her excessively harsh father, like her hard-working singing sisters, Ariel ditches not only practices but CONCERTS in order to get away from her father and lose herself in her collecting hobby. She has a secret place where she hides in order to fantasize about having a different life in an entirely different place, away from her family. Her friends attempt to persuade her that life on land is impracticable for her. But when her father destroys her hidey-hole, she is retraumatized and resorts to flight to someone she thinks can fix her problems for her by making her human and sending her to the surface: she therefore literally runs away, and tries to get both Ursula and Eric to save her and get her away from her father.

Prince Eric: Surprisingly non-traumatized! I mean, as far as I remember.

Belle: non-traumatized? (at least to start with. I mean, we can always suggest Stockholm Syndrome later...) DOES seem to think she’s entirely different from everyone else around her (a common CPTSD symptom). Maybe traumatized by mother’s death? Bullying from the neighbors? Becoming a parentified child to take care of her absent-minded (though affectionate) father? Unaccustomed poverty? In any case, except for the trauma of her father’s near death and her own imprisonment, she is unusually competent and calm. If she edges toward anything, it’s probably Freeze-Flight: she has a pronounced capacity to become absorbed in fiction and ignore everything around her. When irritated by Gaston’s insulting and bullying proposal, she physically retreats entirely from the village in order to sing about how she wants to leave her poor provincial town for the great wide somewhere. She is fixated on escape, either mentally or physically.

Beast (dead parents, raised by servants who deferred to him rather than parenting him): Fight-Freeze. Hides in his castle; when encounters people is an ASSHOLE. Interestingly, Fight-Freeze types are notoriously hard to treat. Belle might have a future in psychotherapy if she can build better boundaries.

Aladdin (dead parents, has to eat to live, has to steal to eat, ostracized by his community, frequently threatened with death or maiming for theft): feels entirely different from the rest of the world. Flight. frequently in a state of frenetic energy, though a lot of that is because he’s stealing food and escaping the cops. His idea of a great date is to get Jasmine away from the palace: to escape and help her to do the same. intense feelings of shame and inferiority (despite his insistence that there’s so much more to him). He tries to hide from Jasmine the truth of his low-rank identity, though he does eventually recognize the need to tell her the truth.

Jasmine: surprisingly untraumatized (mostly just a healthy assertive), considering what she’s been through (dead mother, parentified child of a nice but absent-minded father who, judging from his looks, is closely related to Maurice; isolated from peers and almost everyone but her pet. I mean, there MUST be servants in the palace, but all you ever see are the guards...) She recognizes when people are treating her unfairly and says so, which makes her unusual among Disney heroes and heroines!

Simba (father died, was told it was his fault, was forced to leave home, almost died in the wilderness, subsequently raised by a couple of irresponsible weirdos): Flight. Literally runs away from his problems instead of facing them. Keeps himself busy with Timon and Pumbaa in order to occupy his mind.

Pocahontas: Non-traumatized! (Dead mother, but strong emotional connection with father and strong emotional support system in her community. Not to mention a maternal figure in the shape of a talking tree in whom she can confide.) DOES feel different from everyone else in her community, though. (Are you sensing a theme?)

John Smith (father died when Smith was 16, he left home, went to sea, served as a mercenary, engaged in piracy, fought the Ottomans): Flight. Constantly on the move: seeing new places, meeting new people, and killing them. Overachiever. Can’t sit still in England. However, he does have some healthy assertive skills and is able to stand up to people in power.

Quasimodo (holy emotional abuse, Batman!): Freeze. Taught that the outside world is cruel and wicked and that he can only be safe inside the cathedral. Daydreams to the point where he almost believes the gargoyles come alive and talk to him. Manages to overcome his Freeze instincts to save Esmerelda.

Esmerelda: Not traumatized, despite apparent lack of living parents and her position as an oppressed social minority. Probably the result of loving parenting while they were alive and strong community support from the rest of the Roma of Paris. Another heroine with healthy assertive traits!

Phoebus: Not apparently currently suffering from traumatic stress (though may have had periods of it in the past: he’s a crusader, after all). Surprisingly well-adjusted.

Hercules (kidnapped at a very young age and taken away from a one life to be placed in another, ENTIRELY different life. Despite strong emotional support from adoptive parents, has been rejected and bullied by his community. Feels he is entirely different from everybody else [I mean, he kind of is]): Flight. Yes, that’s right, flight, not fight. Hercules may be a “fighter” but he is a SUPER non-aggressive guy. Gentleness embodied. Feels he has to achieve something huge in order to be worthy of love and affection from the world (and especially from his divine father, who has literally told him that he has to earn his way back to Olypus by becoming a True Hero). Tendency toward despair when the people whose love and affection he thought he had (Phil and Megara) abandon and betray him. Eventually earns everybody’s love and affection--which is not the greatest lesson ever. Shouldn’t Disney be teaching us that we deserve love even if we never become heroes?

Megara (super traumatic history): Fawn-Fight. Puts the good of the people she loves WAY before her own, to an unhealthy level (sacrifices her own soul in order to save a man, who then abandons her). Seems sarcastic and rough, but heart of gold underneath. Acts like she’s superior, but actually feels enormous guilt and shame, with low self-esteem. Won’t say she’s in love.

Mulan (inconsistent expectations from her family and community. Sometimes her family supports who she is, defends her, and puts up with her unusual behavior; at other times they join with her community in criticizing her [lightly if frequently]. They apparently did not teach her society’s gender roles but then expects her to abide by them in public): she feels entirely different from everybody else and that she has to prove herself. Doesn’t know who she is inside. CANNOT behave the way she has been taught she should; is clearly triggered by a criticism from her father. Flight. Seems almost hyperactive, can’t keep silent when her society tells her she should. Driven to act and to succeed in order to prove her worth and bring honor to her family. Again, EARNS everybody’s love and respect in the end.

Shang: Possible inferiority issues from his relationship with her father. Not enough data.

Mushu (constant criticism; scapegoated by the ancestors): Flight. Has channeled this coping mechanism into ADHD (and humor). Feels the need to prove he is worthy of his spot (I mean, the ancestors TOLD him he did...)

Tarzan (storm and fire killed everyone around him in his infancy; parents had to resettle entirely alone in an alien land; parents were brutally killed right in front of him; he was nearly killed and eaten twice by a leopard; adopted by nonhuman animals; rejected by father figure and much of his nonhuman community): Realistically, I WOULD say that Tarzan should not be able to learn to SPEAK, since he doesn’t appear to have acquired language until his mid to late twenties. However, the film makes clear that the gorillas have a complex spoken language that can convey complicated thoughts like, “Jane will stay with Tarzan”. Feels entirely different from the rest of his community (he is). Scapegoated and constantly criticized for being different. I genuinely don’t know what his style is. lol

The elephant in tarzan: It’s been too long since I’ve seen this film, somebody do this one lol

Cuzco (dead parents, running an empire in his early twenties, nobody has apparently ever taught him limits, appears to have a very emotionally isolated life): Fawn-Fight. Extremely narcissistic, though his character development reveals that he does have a conscience underneath there somewhere. Charming but highly self-centered. Good with words and fast-talking, so may be Flight or gifted. Behavior improves quickly and immensely when provided with the emotional support (and healthy boundaries) of an ersatz family.

Lilo (loss of both parents; being parented by a highly stressed and very young adult who is struggling with poverty and her own trauma): Flight. Gifted, imaginative, ADHD, constantly into everything, constantly in trouble. Sometimes slides into Fight with defiant behavior.

Nani (loss of parents, pressure of having to parent her little sister and provide income for both of them at a very young age): Fight. Her temper gets the better of her when she’s upset, but she’s really trying.

Marlin (loss of his wife and all his children but one): Freeze. Constantly hiding from the perceived dangers of the world and trying to teach his son to do the same. Very nurturing of his child, despite his difficulty overcoming his own trauma. Considering he is a Freeze type, going on a big journey to save his son demonstrates ENORMOUS bravery.

Dori (???): Flight-Freeze. ADHD, constantly on the move, can’t sit still, just keeps swimming, just keeps swimming, swimming, swimming. I include Freeze because her difficulties with her memories may be a dissociative effect of trauma, and dissociation falls under Freeze.

Tiana (loss of beloved father, poverty, traumatizing lifelong experience of systemic racism, somewhat ameliorated by loving and supportive mother): Flight. The classic driven, achievement-obsessed workaholic. Always seems to only be halfway there. Fate helps her overcome these tendencies by forcing her to fail in her quest to become human again (and therefore to open her restaurant), though she actually does succeed soon after anyway. Actually, DID she overcome these tendencies? Like, she toned it down enough to maintain an apparently lasting romantic relationship, but she might still be a workaholic...

Naveen (highly critical parents): Flight. Constantly traveling care-for-nothing that can’t seem to stick to anything. Deep down has low self-esteem about his lack of achievement and how he can’t seem to please his parents. Demonstrates some symptoms of ADD or ADHD. Tiana and Naveen demonstrate how “Flight” behaviors can results in two very different character types!

Rapunzel (holy shit: kidnapped in infancy and raised by a woman who is demonstrably emotionally abusive and negligent and literally is only keeping her alive for her hair. Imprisoned in a tower almost entirely without company her ENTIRE LIFE. Demonstrates painful mood swings between delight and horrific guilt when she finally escapes for the first time. I seriously wonder how long her mental recovery took after Mother Gothel’s death...): Flight-Fawn. Overachiever, constantly doing EVERYTHING, EXTREMELY QUICKLY (cleans the entire place top-to-bottom between 7:00 and 7:15 AM). Literally runs away. Makes friends immediately with almost everybody she meets, including a gang of hardened, violent criminals. Wants desperately to be loved, but believes very quickly that Eugene doesn’t like her after all and has abandoned her. Note that it is not Rapunzel that kills Mother Gothel but Pascal. Rapunzel is so emotionally traumatized that she probably could never bring herself to “betray” Gothel in any real way.

Eugene Fitzherbert (orphaned; raised in an institutional setting, which is notoriously traumatizing. Poverty, social rejection): Flight. Channels his immense energy into complicated and daring heists. Adrenaline junkie. He thinks he wants to rest on a deserted island with an enormous pile of money, but I can guarantee that he would get antsy after a week (at most) and go back to his life of crime in order to distract himself from his pain.

Merida (was in a life-endangering encounter with a bear as a young child; her father was maimed. Has emotional support from her father, but her mother--primary caregiver, especially of a daughter--is highly critical): Flight. Tons of energy, adrenaline junkie, climbs a frickin WATERFALL, overachiever in her chosen hobbies. Greatly dislikes quiet pursuits like embroidery, possibly because they leave too much time for contemplation, and she needs more distraction.

Elsa (almost killed her beloved younger sister by accident, treated by her parents as dangerous and frightening, almost entirely isolated for most of her life): Freeze (HAHA) and Flight. Has been taught to retreat alone from a world that will reject her. Experiences enormous shame and guilt for herself, her gifts, and how dangerous she can be. Classic perfectionist. Attempts to protect herself and others by shutting down all emotions. When she fails, she literally runs away to live entirely alone forever to escape the storm of the rest of the world, because the cold of isolation “never bothered her anyway” (an obvious lie she has taught herself). “Let It Go” sounds like an anthem of freedom, but Elsa is actually literally running from her problems and from any human connection.

Anna (almost died as a small child, which she doesn’t directly remember, but may still cause her traumatic reactions. her beloved older sister SUDDENLY refused even to SEE her, and her parents wouldn’t talk about it, so she probably felt in some obscure way that there was something wrong with HER, that it was all her fault. Then isolated almost entirely in the palace, and certainly isolated from other children, followed by the death of her parents and the CONTINUED isolation from her sister and anybody other than servants): flight-fawn. she seems possibly a little ADD, a little hyperactive (rides her bike around the halls), impulsive. VERY friendly and sweet to almost everybody she meets, desperate to make friends. Dreams of being rescued through marriage to a prince that she loves at first sight. Desperate to be loved.

Moana: probably NOT traumatized, for the most part. She DOES feel entirely different from everybody else (”what is wrong with me?”) because her instinctive love of the ocean has been criticized and squelched by her father and her society. However, despite her father’s clear struggle with his own trauma from the survivor’s guilt of his best friend’s drowning, this is one of the healthier families/societies we see in Disney! The silence around the death of Chief Tui’s best friend is meant to be kind, but I think Tui probably needs to talk it out more, and while I understand why they didn’t tell Moana about it as a young child, I feel like she SHOULD have been told before her father’s reactions to her hurt her own self-image: he’s actually just projecting his own guilt onto the daughter who is so much like him. She is less traumatized than she might otherwise be because she has both her mother, and especially her grandmother, to confide in. If Moana has a trauma style, I would say it’s Flight: she’s an overachiever who is constantly rushing from one task, one way to help, to another. In a deleted song, she also talks about walking around the island so much that she knows exactly how many steps it is to the ocean. She always wants to get away. All of this is classic Flight. Chief Tui is Fight. he’s not aggressive, but he IS controlling.

Maui (Most of the trauma in this film comes from Maui. he was abandoned as a baby, and probably almost died. grew up with the knowledge that he was not wanted by his parents. grew up away from human society): Flight-Fawn. Has spent the rest of his life trying to earn acceptance, love, and gratitude from humans. Constantly does crazy and death-defying tasks to try to win them over., but It never brings him true fulfillment. He clearly DESPERATELY wants to be recognized, celebrated, and loved for his achievements and his gifts, which makes him into a brash show-off.

#disney #long post is long #disney princesses

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crossroadsdiner · 5 years ago

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Dungeons and Dragons Verse

Cas

Half-Elf, Level 12 Paladin of Pelor, Oath of Redemption, Marine background. (Character sheet)

His father is a lower Lord of Waterdeep. At twelve, Cas got a berth on a naval ship. He quickly rose through the ranks and became part of an elite squad. When only fifteen, he was chosen for a mission to rescue a prince blessed by Pelor. He and the prince grew very close and would later get engaged. Cas trained as a Paladin of Pelor under the prince’s guidance, while continuing his work as a marine. The prince was killed during an assault on the palace . Cas blames himself and retired from the marine service. He now spends most of his time at Elise’s tavern taking whatever quest comes his way.

Celia Rae

High Elf, Level 5 Cleric of Eldath, Life Domain, Noble background. (Character sheet)

Comes from a family of Lords. As a child she was murdered by her uncle and her body immediate dumped in a lake where a group of naiads found her. They were able to resurrect her. They trained her to be a cleric of Eldath and helped her with her transition. Celia Rae attempted to return to her family but was rejected. She now works at Elise’s tavern, offering healing services to adventurers.

Elise

Eldarin Elf, Level 10 Druid, Circle of Dreams, Sage background. (Character sheet)

Elise left her home to live with the fae. She spent much of her time in the wilderness, completing small quests in exchange for lessons in magic. During one of these quests, she lost her leg. Her father summoned her home when he learned he was dying. Now Elise runs his tavern. People travel to her for her famed divination skills.

Rowan

Tiefling, Level 3 Barbarian, Path of the Berserker, Level 4 Monk, Way of the Drunken Master, Level 1 Rogue, Criminal background (Character sheet)

After Rowan murdered his father, he was arrested and imprisoned. He was a favourite plaything of the prison torturer. Phaedra befriended the wife of the Open Lord who convinced her husband to ease Rowan's punishment, first to educate him and eventually to free him. However, Phaedra needed to agree to stay in the service of the Open Lord's wife and not see her family again.

Kori

Air Genasi, Level 9 Ranger, Hunter, Outlander background (Character sheet)

At ten years old, Kori and her djinni mother were captured by traders of exotic magic. Kori killed the men and escaped, but not before her mother was killed. Within ten months, Kori’s father remarried and Kori went to live with her brother on an isolated steppe. He was an adventurer who travelled a lot, so Kori taught herself to manage on her own. After her brother was killed, Kori took his eagle and followed in his footsteps.

Webb

High Elf, Level 6 Warlock of the Fiend, Noble background (Character sheet)

Some time after his cousin Celia Rae’s death, Webb learned their uncle was her murderer and that his family had been covering up a murder spree. Webb struggled to find enough evidence to convict their uncle. Webb made a pact with a fiend to help him punish his family.

#D&D verse

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chronicparagon · 5 years ago

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“i won’t get hurt, i promise.” (knight-of-a-lost-world)

@knight-of-a-lost-world

“You better not.” Harmony answers in a low tone. It didn’t seem right, no she’s sure it isn’t. She insisted to face their adversary together, but Raren rejected her pleas. This isn’t a battle against a human being, but it is an enemy who is greater than an army. Harmony turns her head to see the world outside the cave. Spine chilling roars grow in volume. A creature like no other stalks the wilderness, nearing their hideout. A beast bore from the shadows of the underworld hellbent in causing destruction in its path. Though its physique is close to a wolf, it is not a creature from the mortal realm, but a demon, a monster searching for souls to reap. Deep yellow eyes hold lust for fresh blood, its lips curl over sharp teeth. Its coat of fur darker than the abyss brush against bushes and trees. Chunks of wood fly from trees with the swipe of long claws dipped in the essence of past victims. It can smell them and the monster barrels past the dense forest for the cave.

Dread washes over Harmony and her gaze return to Raren. She can stand her ground, at least against mortal men, but she has little chance of survival against ethereal beings with magic in their veins. Someone who holds the gift of wielding magic would have a better chance against the beast. A tired sigh spills from Harmony’s lips with her head lowered as it shakes. “If you don’t come back here in one piece, I swear there will be hell to pay.” Even though she doesn’t hold magic, she would do her damned best to slay whatever is in their way. But guilt grows bigger, heavier in her heart as she watches Raren take his leave to face the monster. She wonders if this makes her dead weight. It’s a shame, but now is not the time to question that. The important objective is to survive and escape the monster that stalked them relentlessly.

May heaven have mercy on the victims. May all divine forces have mercy on Raren.

#knight-of-a-lost-world #answered #thank you!!#the meme was a bit vague #so I decided to create an enemy #specifically a supernatural one #tw blood #hope this is okay #Anonymous

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loveofyhwh · 6 years ago

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October 24: Jeremiah 8–9; 2 Peter 1:1–11; Psalm 106:1–23; Proverbs 26:18–19

New Post has been published on https://loveofyhwh.com/october-24-jeremiah-8-9-2-peter-11-11-psalm-1061-23-proverbs-2618-19/

October 24: Jeremiah 8–9; 2 Peter 1:1–11; Psalm 106:1–23; Proverbs 26:18–19

Old Testament:

Jeremiah 8–9

Jeremiah 8–9 (Listen)

8 “At that time, declares the LORD, the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of its officials, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be brought out of their tombs. 2 And they shall be spread before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which they have loved and served, which they have gone after, and which they have sought and worshiped. And they shall not be gathered or buried. They shall be as dung on the surface of the ground. 3 Death shall be preferred to life by all the remnant that remains of this evil family in all the places where I have driven them, declares the LORD of hosts.

Sin and Treachery

4 “You shall say to them, Thus says the LORD: When men fall, do they not rise again? If one turns away, does he not return? 5 Why then has this people turned away in perpetual backsliding? They hold fast to deceit; they refuse to return. 6 I have paid attention and listened, but they have not spoken rightly; no man relents of his evil, saying, ‘What have I done?’ Everyone turns to his own course, like a horse plunging headlong into battle. 7 Even the stork in the heavens knows her times, and the turtledove, swallow, and craneThe meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain‘>1 keep the time of their coming, but my people know not the rulesOr just decrees‘>2 of the LORD. 8 “How can you say, ‘We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us’? But behold, the lying pen of the scribes has made it into a lie. 9 The wise men shall be put to shame; they shall be dismayed and taken; behold, they have rejected the word of the LORD, so what wisdom is in them? 10 Therefore I will give their wives to others and their fields to conquerors, because from the least to the greatest everyone is greedy for unjust gain; from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely. 11 They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace. 12 Were they ashamed when they committed abomination? No, they were not at all ashamed; they did not know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they shall be overthrown, says the LORD. 13 When I would gather them, declares the LORD, there are no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree; even the leaves are withered, and what I gave them has passed away from them.”The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain‘>3 14 Why do we sit still? Gather together; let us go into the fortified cities and perish there, for the LORD our God has doomed us to perish and has given us poisoned water to drink, because we have sinned against the LORD. 15 We looked for peace, but no good came; for a time of healing, but behold, terror. 16 “The snorting of their horses is heard from Dan; at the sound of the neighing of their stallions the whole land quakes. They come and devour the land and all that fills it, the city and those who dwell in it. 17 For behold, I am sending among you serpents, adders that cannot be charmed, and they shall bite you,” declares the LORD.

Jeremiah Grieves for His People

18 My joy is gone; grief is upon me;Compare Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain‘>4 my heart is sick within me. 19 Behold, the cry of the daughter of my people from the length and breadth of the land: “Is the LORD not in Zion? Is her King not in her?” “Why have they provoked me to anger with their carved images and with their foreign idols?” 20 “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” 21 For the wound of the daughter of my people is my heart wounded; I mourn, and dismay has taken hold on me. 22 Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the health of the daughter of my people not been restored? 9 Ch 8:23 in Hebrew‘>5 Oh that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people! 2 Ch 9:1 in Hebrew‘>6 Oh that I had in the desert a travelers’ lodging place, that I might leave my people and go away from them! For they are all adulterers, a company of treacherous men. 3 They bend their tongue like a bow; falsehood and not truth has grown strongSeptuagint; Hebrew and not for truth they have grown strong‘>7 in the land; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know me, declares the LORD. 4 Let everyone beware of his neighbor, and put no trust in any brother, for every brother is a deceiver, and every neighbor goes about as a slanderer. 5 Everyone deceives his neighbor, and no one speaks the truth; they have taught their tongue to speak lies; they weary themselves committing iniquity. 6 Heaping oppression upon oppression, and deceit upon deceit, they refuse to know me, declares the LORD. 7 Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, I will refine them and test them, for what else can I do, because of my people? 8 Their tongue is a deadly arrow; it speaks deceitfully; with his mouth each speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he plans an ambush for him. 9 Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD, and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this? 10 “I will take up weeping and wailing for the mountains, and a lamentation for the pastures of the wilderness, because they are laid waste so that no one passes through, and the lowing of cattle is not heard; both the birds of the air and the beasts have fled and are gone. 11 I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, a lair of jackals, and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.”

12 Who is the man so wise that he can understand this? To whom has the mouth of the LORD spoken, that he may declare it? Why is the land ruined and laid waste like a wilderness, so that no one passes through? 13 And the LORD says: “Because they have forsaken my law that I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice or walked in accord with it, 14 but have stubbornly followed their own hearts and have gone after the Baals, as their fathers taught them. 15 Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will feed this people with bitter food, and give them poisonous water to drink. 16 I will scatter them among the nations whom neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them.”

17 Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Consider, and call for the mourning women to come; send for the skillful women to come; 18 let them make haste and raise a wailing over us, that our eyes may run down with tears and our eyelids flow with water. 19 For a sound of wailing is heard from Zion: ‘How we are ruined! We are utterly shamed, because we have left the land, because they have cast down our dwellings.’” 20 Hear, O women, the word of the LORD, and let your ear receive the word of his mouth; teach to your daughters a lament, and each to her neighbor a dirge. 21 For death has come up into our windows; it has entered our palaces, cutting off the children from the streets and the young men from the squares. 22 Speak: “Thus declares the LORD, ‘The dead bodies of men shall fall like dung upon the open field, like sheaves after the reaper, and none shall gather them.’”

23 Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, 24 but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”

25 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will punish all those who are circumcised merely in the flesh—26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, the sons of Ammon, Moab, and all who dwell in the desert who cut the corners of their hair, for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in heart.”

Footnotes

[1] 8:7 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain [2] 8:7 Or just decrees [3] 8:13 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain [4] 8:18 Compare Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain [5] 9:1 Ch 8:23 in Hebrew [6] 9:2 Ch 9:1 in Hebrew [7] 9:3 Septuagint; Hebrew and not for truth they have grown strong

(ESV)

New Testament:

2 Peter 1:1–11

2 Peter 1:1–11 (Listen)

Greeting

1 SimeonSome manuscripts Simon‘>1 Peter, a servantFor the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface‘>2 and apostle of Jesus Christ,

To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:

2 May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

Confirm Your Calling and Election

3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us toOr by‘>3 his own glory and excellence,Or virtue‘>4 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue,Or excellence; twice in this verse‘>5 and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualitiesGreek these things; also verses 9, 10, 12‘>6 are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers,Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters‘>7 be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Footnotes

[1] 1:1 Some manuscripts Simon [2] 1:1 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface [3] 1:3 Or by [4] 1:3 Or virtue [5] 1:5 Or excellence; twice in this verse [6] 1:8 Greek these things; also verses 9, 10, 12 [7] 1:10 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters

(ESV)

Psalm:

Psalm 106:1–23

Psalm 106:1–23 (Listen)

Give Thanks to the Lord, for He Is Good

106 Praise the LORD! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! 2 Who can utter the mighty deeds of the LORD, or declare all his praise? 3 Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times! 4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people; help me when you save them,Or Remember me, O Lord, with the favor you show to your people; help me with your salvation‘>1 5 that I may look upon the prosperity of your chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation, that I may glory with your inheritance. 6 Both we and our fathers have sinned; we have committed iniquity; we have done wickedness. 7 Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wondrous works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea. 8 Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make known his mighty power. 9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it became dry, and he led them through the deep as through a desert. 10 So he saved them from the hand of the foe and redeemed them from the power of the enemy. 11 And the waters covered their adversaries; not one of them was left. 12 Then they believed his words; they sang his praise. 13 But they soon forgot his works; they did not wait for his counsel. 14 But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness, and put God to the test in the desert; 15 he gave them what they asked, but sent a wasting disease among them. 16 When men in the camp were jealous of Moses and Aaron, the holy one of the LORD, 17 the earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, and covered the company of Abiram. 18 Fire also broke out in their company; the flame burned up the wicked. 19 They made a calf in Horeb and worshiped a metal image. 20 They exchanged the glory of GodHebrew exchanged their glory‘>2 for the image of an ox that eats grass. 21 They forgot God, their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt, 22 wondrous works in the land of Ham, and awesome deeds by the Red Sea. 23 Therefore he said he would destroy them— had not Moses, his chosen one, stood in the breach before him, to turn away his wrath from destroying them.

Footnotes

[1] 106:4 Or Remember me, O Lord, with the favor you show to your people; help me with your salvation [2] 106:20 Hebrew exchanged their glory

(ESV)

Proverb:

Proverbs 26:18–19

Proverbs 26:18–19 (Listen)

18 Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death 19 is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, “I am only joking!”

(ESV)

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boythirteen · 3 years ago

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This is my sermon. It’s called No Shame.

Hello everyone. I was just here, standing here, about a month ago. I’m filling in for someone today and so am here again so soon. I’m not sure that I’ve grown much since the last sermon or had new insights. I pray for new insights. I believe that insights are among God’s greatest blessings. Especially when paired with an expressive means of sharing them. I pray for that, too. Let me say that writing a sermon is an arduous blessing. So thank you to Rev. Pat for inviting me to preach again, I think.

This is the gospel reading from Mark:

Jesus went on with the disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way asked the disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” Jesus asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” And Jesus sternly ordered them not to tell anyone. Then Jesus began to teach them that the Child of Humanity must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. Jesus said all this quite openly. And Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at the disciples, Jesus rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” Jesus called the crowd with the disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.”

So this is about Peter realizing Jesus’s true identity and then misunderstanding who Jesus is altogether. It’s also about shame and maybe how human shame isn’t shameful to God.

But first about Jesus’s identity. I recently came across a song called Think About Things by a band in Iceland with a singer named Dadi Freyr. The band and Dadi Freyr are amazingly unique—you just have to see and listen for yourself. I’m mentioning them because I like them and the song reminds me of these first verses about Jesus in a simple way of Jesus loving his disciples and wondering if they love him back, or if they know him in a way of the stars aligning and things being meant to be. The song has a refrain “What do you think about things?” which is what Jesus wants to know, or more specifically, Jesus wants to know what they, the disciples, think about him and if they can see his true being. Because he needs to be sure that he’s known and loved deeply enough by them that he can trust them with the next phase of his purpose, the shockingly difficult phase— if they’ll stay with him and support him when public opinion turns against him in the darkest way. He wants to know, generally, how he’s perceived overall in the world, but especially by them. “But who do you say that I am?” and Peter answer[s] him, “You are the Messiah,” which is the correct answer and one Jesus wants the disciples to hold in secret, perhaps because this is his most intimate identity that is revelatory and even vulnerable, having now begun to unfold and offer up its raw truth.

And having entrusted this truth to them, he will further share the foreknowledge of his suffering and death and resurrection, which Peter can’t understand or accept. Peter, who has rightly identified Jesus as Messiah, doesn’t understand the essence of it all. The reading says that Peter “rebukes” Jesus, as if his acknowledgment of Jesus as Messiah gives him a right to determine how Jesus the Messiah must comport himself as someone to be exalted, not debased. Which makes Jesus rebuke Peter back, telling him to “Get behind me, Satan!“ because Peter is acting out Satan’s temptation of Jesus in the wilderness: when Satan told Jesus to cast himself down from a pinnacle to prove that God would send angels to bear him up and not let him dash his holy foot against a stone. Peter wants Jesus to be the super-human figure who has angelic guards and can’t be brought low by base men. He thinks of this as Jesus’s divinity that must make itself known and be intimidating and dramatic, but Peter has a human idea of divinity that is like a Hollywood idea of ultimate power to dictate and control and rule over all. (Satan had this type of idea, too.) Jesus’s divinity is different, though, and is God’s idea. Jesus will endure the suffering and death, will be able to endure it, because even if God won’t be sending angels to rescue him, God will be with him through the suffering and shame, or what is meant to be shameful. And after three days Jesus will rise again, but even his rising won’t be a spectacle and won’t even be readily or widely known.

What I’ve learned at MCC—what I need to fully believe to even consider Jesus’s suffering and death— is that God doesn’t make it happen. God doesn’t require that Jesus’s life be sacrificed in order for humanity to be ransomed in some ancient way of appeasing an angry God. Men are the ones who crucify Jesus, not God. Jesus tells the disciples that he will be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, not by God. His awareness of this as what is certain to befall him—while seeming to show God’s intent and even approval of it or insistence upon it as the fulfilling of prophecy, feels, to me, instead, like a predictive understanding of human behavior, of what will naturally follow when men in positions of worldly power and privilege are confronted by a surge of solidarity among the marginalized, who now are beginning to embrace their worthiness and claim their seats at a table no longer reserved for the few.

Has anyone read Foundation by Isaac Asimov? It’s a Science Fiction trilogy about a galactic empire of the future. It has a whole grand adventure story about trying to re-align the course of a failing society to fend off an inevitable dark age. The story centers around a theory called psychohistory, which is a mathematical way of predicting impactful future events based on social, behavioral norms of large groups of people. The theory predicts societal futures, not individual ones. It applies massive statistical data and other kinds of collective information to ascertain how a society will move through time. This is what I’m thinking about: God’s awareness being like an immense collection of data concerning every norm and variant of human behavior and how the behaviors fit together or clash or veer off or compliment each other to create subsequent behaviors, cumulative behaviors marching into a prophetic future.

So those in power in Jesus’s day, the religious leaders, the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, are predictably threatened by Jesus’s doctrine of inclusion that would upend their means of societal control. They want to delegitimize him, to cast him in a shameful light and turn the people against him. Maybe even more than killing Jesus, the crucifixion is meant to publicly shame him to such a degree that all of society will shun him and sneer at his teachings about living beyond society’s rules and loving our neighbor and welcoming the stranger and embracing those the world has deemed untouchable—the ostracized, unsightly ones the world has turned against and tried to sever from access to loving community and even from access to God. The crucifixion is meant to make of Jesus this same outcast figure who is unworthy of human kindness or basic concern. The cross is his ultimate, banishing shame.

But Jesus tells those who would follow him to deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. To take up their shame. I think what he’s telling them is to deny whatever status or privilege they may have in the world, to resist using it as their way of escaping the crushing shame that those in power will try to heap on them for their subversive ways of love and inclusion. It means to take up this shame and move forward with it in the same way that Jesus will do. To not succumb to Satan’s temptation of calling upon his powerful parent to intervene. And, most importantly, it means that this shame isn’t shameful to God.

I need to think more about shame. It’s a big theme in the bible beginning with Adam and Eve. It can take many forms and have degrees and mixtures of the different forms. It can be a privately tortuous experience but also one that is greatly intensified when publicly exposed. It deeply hurts. It portends exclusion and is to be feared. It can even become literally unbearable. People can take their own lives in the throes of it. There’s a consequential kind of shame resulting from legitimately shameful acts. Or the manufactured kind the authorities try to foist on Jesus that is a silencing tactic meant to overpower his courage of conviction. There’s also an innate kind, that kind we try to trace to Adam and Eve that is the original sin sort of hot shame that feels intrinsic to our carnal beings. This is the kind of shame that some Christian theologies want to say is the reason for Jesus’s crucifixion, our built-in shame that requires the sacrifice of Jesus to redeem us from it. Which is the theology I vehemently disagree with although I have fully experienced the internal, wincing shame of my earthy nature that is its focus. It’s interesting to me that shame is also called mortification, which, as a religious term, is a spiritual discipline in Catholicism that means to put to death the desires of the flesh. As if our natural beings are inherently shameful and in conflict with anything divine.

I’m thinking about Rev. Miller’s sermon from a few weeks ago when he, contrarily, talked about fully becoming our distasteful fleshy selves as a spiritual practice. Embracing our grossness. Something I often consider, when feeling overwhelmed and even repulsed by organic fleshiness that is overly juicy or aromatic or pulpy or bulbous or otherwise horribly much, is what this would look like if viewed from a molecular perspective. If I could see the atoms of it and how wonderfully they fit and move together to shape it. How beautiful it is in its most fundamental structure.

Maybe there’s a way of viewing shame in this way, a zoomed-in view equivalent to the atomic level view of organic matter.

Something that has happened to me when someone close to me has died, including my animal companions, is that sometimes I can almost sense them reading my thoughts. Or maybe they’re reading my heart. The barriers of flesh are fallen away from them and they can move through me. I feel them knowing me from the inside. They see everything, all the layers of thought and emotion. The subconscious parts, even. All the tenderness and care mingled with annoyance and harsh judgment, uncharitable dismissal, vanity, self-condemnation, doubt, glimmers of confidence, hidden hopes and fears, unexpressed desire, immeasurable yearning for love. They know me better than I know myself.

Have you ever worried that if someone you loved could read your thoughts they would find the stray thoughts that weren’t loving toward them? But what if they stayed, if they abided with your thoughts, and they would know better the context of your dark ones and how love infused those, too. I think this is what God does—abides with us so deeply and completely that all of the context, even to the atomic level, is compassionately known. Not just the layers of thought and emotion but all of the tangential parts and parallel parts, inherited parts, psychological bents, choices made (whether misguided or informed with wisdom relative to experience), the scars and healings and marks of systemic injustice. All of the data that is predictive of human behavior at any given point. That God has an absolute understanding of every most minuscule factor leading to this point. That this is what allows for our ultimate acceptance as God’s beloved children. God understands.

Which isn’t to say that all of human behavior is a harmonious blend of the myriad factors, or that harmful behavior, being thus understood, doesn’t have consequences or require accountability. But maybe that the behavior doesn’t need to be steeped in shame. It doesn’t need to result in exile from loving community. It can be looked at and learned from. An opportunity for authentic repentance can open up. Redemption can happen. Forgiveness can happen. I think this is the intent of what is called restorative justice—to halt the heaping on of shame, the threat of banishment and isolation (which, at its extreme, is a death sentence—the locking up and throwing away the key), and instead to make room for both compassionate understanding and accountability. But a right-sized accountability that doesn’t remove all nurturance and support but abides with a person and allows them to grow.

The idea of abiding with people is taking on added significance for me.

I’m almost finished writing this sermon but need to revisit part of it first. The part about Peter wanting Jesus to be the super-human Messiah. And about Satan’s temptation of Jesus and having God send angels to the rescue to pluck Jesus from the cross. I need to think more about why this didn’t happen, or what would have happened, what it would have meant, if God had sent angels to rescue Jesus and pluck him from the cross. If it had been a glorious spectacle with majestic angels swooping in and nails popping out of Jesus’s hands & feet and Jesus borne up into the sky with radiance and trumpets and absolute proof of his divinity and of the almighty power of God. Wouldn’t this have definitively caused everyone to believe? Wasn’t that the point?

But why would everyone believe? Would it be because they were awed by a spectacular display or because they could feel Jesus’s abiding love surging through them, pounding in their hearts?

And who would they be believing in? Would Jesus be the Child of Humanity or the favored, one-and-only Child of God—a supreme, hierarchical God with the human idea of power that controls and dictates. This would be a God who chooses Jesus over us, a dominating God who is outside of us, ruling over us, a God on a throne. This isn’t the God who abides with us, the one who permeates every atom of us and knows and accepts us absolutely. God is with us. Nothing can separate us from the Love of God. This is what we hear again and again when we listen at church. I think I can hear it a little bit better now.

Amen

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seekfirstme · 4 years ago

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Meditation: Do you know the healing power of Christ's redeeming love and victory which he won for us on the cross? The Old Testament prophets never ceased to speak of God's faithfulness and compassion towards those who would turn away from sin and return to God with repentant hearts, trust, and obedience (2 Chronicles 36:15). When Jesus spoke to Nicodemus he prophesied that his death on the cross would bring healing and forgiveness and a "new birth in the Spirit" (John 3:3) and eternal life (John 3:15).

The "lifting up" of the Son of Man

Jesus explained to Nicodemus that the "Son of Man" must be "lifted up" to bring the power and authority of God's kingdom to bear on the earth. The title, "Son of Man," came from the prophet Daniel who describes a vision he received of the Anointed Messiah King who was sent from heaven to rule over the earth (Daniel 7:13-14). Traditionally when kings began to reign they were literally "lifted up" and enthroned above the people. Jesus explains to Nicodemus that he will be recognized as the Anointed King when he is "lifted up" on the cross at Calvary. Jesus died for his claim to be the only begotten Son sent by the Father in heaven to redeem, heal, and reconcile his people with God.

Jesus points to a key prophetic sign which Moses performed in the wilderness right after the people of Israel were afflicted with poisonous serpents. Scripture tells us that many people died in the wilderness because of their sin of rebellion towards Moses and God. Through Moses' intervention, God showed mercy to the people and instructed Moses to "make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and every one who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live"(Numbers 21:8). This miraculous sign was meant to foreshadow and point to the saving work which Jesus would perform to bring healing and salvation to the world.

Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD), an early church father, explains the spiritual meaning of the bronze serpent and how it points to the saving work of Jesus Christ:

"This story is a type of the whole mystery of the incarnation. For the serpent signifies bitter and deadly sin, which was devouring the whole race on the earth... biting the Soul of man and infusing it with the venom of wickedness. And there is no way that we could have escaped being conquered by it, except by the relief that comes only from heaven. The Word of God then was made in the likeness of sinful flesh, 'that he might condemn sin in the flesh' [Romans 8:3], as it is written. In this way, he becomes the Giver of unending salvation to those who comprehend the divine doctrines and gaze on him with steadfast faith. But the serpent, being fixed upon a lofty base, signifies that Christ was clearly manifested by his passion on the cross, so that none could fail to see him." (COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 2.1)

The cross defeats sin and death

The bronze serpent which Moses lifted up in the wilderness points to the cross of Christ which defeats sin and death and obtains everlasting life for those who believe in Jesus Christ. The result of Jesus "being lifted up on the cross" and his rising from the dead, and his exaltation and ascension to the Father's right hand in heaven, is our "new birth in the Spirit" and adoption as sons and daughters of God. God not only frees us from our sins and pardons us, he also fills us with his own divine life through the gift and working of his Spirit who dwells within us.

The Holy Spirit gives us spiritual power and gifts, especially the seven-fold gifts of wisdom and understanding, right judgment and courage, knowledge and reverence for God and his ways, and a holy fear in God's presence (see Isaiah 11), to enable us to live in his strength as sons and daughters of God. Do you thirst for the new life which God offers you through the transforming power of his Holy Spirit?

The proof of God's love for us

How do we know, beyond a doubt, that God truly loves us and wants us to be united with him forever? For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). God proved his love for us by giving us the best he had to offer - his only begotten Son who freely gave himself as an offering to God for our sake and as the atoning sacrifice for our sin and the sin of the world.

This passage tells us of the great breadth and width of God's love. Not an excluding love for just a few or for a single nation, but a redemptive love that embraces the whole world, and a personal love for each and every individual whom God has created. God is a loving Father who cannot rest until his wandering children have returned home to him. Saint Augustine says, God loves each one of us as if there were only one of us to love. God gives us the freedom to choose whom and what we will love.

Jesus shows us the paradox of love and judgment. We can love the darkness of sin and unbelief or we can love the light of God's truth, beauty, and goodness. If our love is guided by what is true, and good and beautiful then we will choose for God and love him above all else. What we love shows what we prefer. Do you love God above all else? Do you give him first place in your life, in your thoughts, decisions and actions?

"Lord Jesus Christ, your death brought life for us. May your love consume and transform my life that I may desire you above all else. Help me to love what you love, to desire what you desire, and to reject what you reject."

ALL WORKED UP?

“We are truly His handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to lead the life of good deeds.” —Ephesians 2:10

On Ash Wednesday, we began Lent, and the Lord commanded us to keep our works of mercy secret (Mt 6:4). At Easter Vigil, we begin the Easter season, and the Lord through the Church will ask us whether we reject all of Satan’s works.

Works are important although we are not saved because of them (Eph 2:8-9). “Faith without works is dead” (Jas 2:26). We will accept or hate the light of Christ depending on our works, for those doing good works will want the light to manifest them while those doing bad works will not want them exposed to the light (Jn 3:19-21).

We not only do good works; we are God’s good work (Eph 2:10). We have been created anew “in Christ Jesus for the good works” (Eph 2:10, RNAB). Our good works are so important that God Himself has prepared them even before He created us (Eph 2:10). We are not only to do good works but to live in them (Eph 2:10). Good works are the very atmosphere in which we live.

If we die in Christ, our good works will accompany us (Rv 14:13). God promises that He will not forget our works and the love shown Him by our service to His people (Heb 6:10). On Judgment Day, the Lord will judge us based on our faith and love, as expressed in our works (Mt 25:31ff). Therefore, “let us not grow weary of doing good; if we do not relax our efforts, in due time we shall reap our harvest. While we have the opportunity, let us do good” works (Gal 6:9-10).

Prayer: Father, reveal to me the works You have planned for me each day. May I do them all for pure love of You.

Promise: “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him may not die but may have eternal life.” —Jn 3:16

Praise: Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory!

Reference:

Rescript: "In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for One Bread, One Body covering the period from February 1, 2021 through March 31, 2021. Most Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Auxiliary Bishop, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio March 31, 2020"

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements

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