Believe it, or what?

 This Sunday's reading from Matthew 14:13-21 tells the miracle of the loaves and fishes.

Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, ‘This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.’ Jesus said to them, ‘They need not go away; you give them something to eat.’ They replied, ‘We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.’ And he said, ‘Bring them here to me.’ Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

A remarkable miracle retold in all four Gospels. I have heard a lot of revisionist preachers challenge the feeding of the thousands saying things like, "Oh, the people probably had food stashed away and brought out the leftovers at the end to put in the baskets" and other such attempts to explain away the miracle. I believe that those preaching the Gospel back in the early days went unchallenged because there were thousands of witnesses to back them up! So the story stuck. 

For a person who professes to be a Christian to deny that God can produce any miracle sounds decidedly unchristian to me.

"We better wake up fast, or we will lose it all"

 Bill Muehlenberg recently posted an excellent summary of Islamic terror plots and the West's inability to expound on the "M.I.T." words (Muslim, Islam, and Terrorist). Even the organizers of the Pride parade in Germany that probably inspired the most recent attacker won't connect the dots. 

Muehlenberg's conclusion is in his title, "Islam and the West Cannot Peacefully Coexist." 

Having studied the Koran (an English translation) after the attacks of 911, I agree. The only peace Islam leads to is peace through bloodshed. 

Compare that to the way of Christ.

Meanwhile, in Paris there was another attack, 

"The suspect subdued after allegedly stabbing three women in Paris on Monday uttered, 'it is Allah who commanded me' to a crowd that appeared to be holding him down after the apparent terror attack..."

"...A 31-year-old man, whose name was not immediately released, was seen on the ground after allegedly stabbing three women, one of whom was reportedly pregnant..."

"...Two victims were listed in 'absolute emergency' condition, while the third was listed in "relative emergency" condition, according to local press." -Fox News

As Muehlenberg wrote, "We better wake up fast, or we will lose it all."

Praying for the persecuted

 This Sundays reading is from Romans 8:26-39, and it reminds me that Christians are dying for the Faith every day somewhere in this world.

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

 We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.

What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,

‘For your sake we are being killed all day long;

   we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.’

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Travels with Päivi

We have followed the ongoing saga of  Päivi Räsänen of Finland for several years now. It seems that she has experienced more complications from writing the truth about God's plan for the sexes.

From Christian Today,

Päivi Räsänen, the Christian politician convicted in Finland for her views on marriage and sexuality, says her electronic travel authorisation (ETA) for the UK has been cancelled. 

The former Finnish Minister of the Interior said her application for an ETA was initially successful but she later received a notification informing her that it had been cancelled. 

ETAs are required for travellers who do not have a visa and need to pass through UK border control upon arrival in the country - including transits if they leave the secure area to change terminals or collect luggage.

Mrs Räsänen said she was not given any explanation for the cancellation of her ETA and that it has thrown into doubt her plans to travel to Northern Ireland next month. The 66 year old is due to visit the country in August to speak at a conference and visit the Parliament. She no longer knows if this trip will be possible. 

The impact of her cancelled ETA is already being felt in other ways - last week, returning from a conference in California, she scrapped plans to transit through Heathrow, choosing instead to fly via Dallas in order to avoid any problems passing through the UK.

The cancellation of her ETA comes just months after the Finnish Supreme Court found Mrs Räsänen guilty of “hate speech” over statements expressing biblical views on marriage and sexuality in a pamphlet she wrote in 2004. 

She was also convicted of "making and keeping available to the public a text that insults a group."

Commenting on the cancellation of her ETA, Mrs Räsänen said, "The Supreme Court’s closely divided ruling has had unexpected consequences. In addition to restricting freedom of expression, it has also created restrictions and difficulties related to travel and participation in meetings and conferences.

"My greatest concern is that this decision has left many people with uncertainty, confusion, and fear about the consequences of exercising their freedom of speech and religion in a peaceful manner, and about where the line lies between lawful and prohibited speech." 

She is not alone in being refused an ETA by the UK - Lutheran Bishop Juhana Pohjola, who was convicted alongside her in the "hate speech" case, has also been denied the travel authorisation.

Bishop Pohjola said a notification informing him of the decision on June 16 stated: "We are satisfied that you have been convicted of a criminal offence in the UK or overseas within the last 12 months."

The notification also said that he cannot appeal this decision or travel to the UK without a visa. 

He said he was "surprised" by the UK's decision, adding that the "hate speech" conviction was having "practical" consequences far beyond Finland.

"Last week I was denied eVisitor application to Australia. This not only causes practical difficulties to serve as bishop in my church body and as chairman of the International Lutheran Council, but it also labels me as a criminal whom many countries want to prevent from entering," he said. 

Christian author Rod Dreher, who was at the California conference with Mrs Räsänen, criticised the UK's actions: "The progressive bureaucratic order in European countries would rather attack faithful Christians as Enemies Of Society than deal with the actual problems they have.

"We can expect more of this. It’s a Finnish Lutheran lawmaker and grandmother today; it could easily be you tomorrow."

The Home Office has been contacted for comment.

Remind me to stay out of the U.K.  

 

For the sake of completeness

This Sunday's reading from Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 left out verses 31-35. For the sake of the Gospel and of completeness I added the missed verses and highlighted them in red.

He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?” He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?” But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn."

 He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.’

 He told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.’

 Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables; without a parable he told them nothing. This was to fulfil what had been spoken through the prophet:

‘I will open my mouth to speak in parables;

   I will proclaim what has been hidden from the foundation of the world.’

 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, ‘Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.’ He answered, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!

Oh Canada: The evil potential of surrogacy

I was left terribly upset after reading the following from Faithwire,  

A homosexual couple in Canada has filed a lawsuit against a surrogate mother who refused to abort the baby after doctors detected a cleft lip and a possible heart defect.

Filed in the Ontario Supreme Court in May, the same-sex pair is claiming the surrogate did not keep them informed of the baby’s health, which, they argue, put the preborn child at risk, caused them emotional distress, and violated their confidentiality, according to a report from the National Post.

The lawsuit came two years after the couple asked the woman to terminate the pregnancy at 22 weeks, a demand she declined.

Both the mother and the surrogacy agency indicated the relationship between the surrogate and the couple deteriorated after the woman refused to abort the child.

“That’s when everything changed,” said Sally Rhoads-Heinrich, owner of Surrogacy in Canada Online. “They wanted a termination. What I find most difficult in this is they are suing the woman who brought their son to them. How is their son going to feel someday if he learns that?”

The surrogate purportedly had a fine relationship with the couple prior to the abortion dispute. The baby was conceived via in vitro fertilization with a donor egg and sperm from each of the intended fathers. The couple, after learning through an ultrasound about a cleft lip and possible cleft palate or minor heart issue, requested an abortion.

“Considering that medical tests indicate that the fetus has, or is likely to have, a genetic, chromosomal or other abnormality or defect, and in accordance with article 8.5 (a) of our surrogacy agreement … we want to inform you of our wish that the pregnancy be terminated,” the gay couple wrote. “Although very difficult, this decision is free and informed.”

The woman said she was “devastated” by the request and admitted she would have considered terminating the pregnancy if the preborn baby was determined by doctors to have no realistic chance of surviving after birth. However, medical personnel at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto later determined the baby was otherwise very healthy with the possible cleft lip as the only significant finding.

Ultimately, the couple accepted the surrogate mother’s suggestion and agreed to move forward with the pregnancy. That, though, was not the end of the friction. The couple wanted a hospital birth over concerns there may be complications from the potential cleft lip. The surrogate, though, moved forward with a home birth monitored by midwives, as stipulated in the original contract.

The newborn did experience difficulty breathing at birth but recovered quickly after midwives administered oxygen and arranged ambulance transportation to the hospital.

After all was said and done, the surrogate mother sought repayment of about $10,000 for out-of-pocket expenses connected to the pregnancy and delivery, including lost income and missed pension contributions. While her complaint was first filed in small-claims court, her contract with the couple stated such disputes must go through arbitration.

At the same time, the couple filed a lawsuit for roughly $600,000 against the mother, a single woman. In their filing, the men claimed the surrogate failed “to follow the direction regarding decisions affecting the fetus’ medical care.” The surrogate said she believes the couple rejected the child for not meeting their expectations.

“You know I’m a single mom, you know I have a daughter, and you’re basically suing me for my house,” she told the Post. “[I]t’s just awful. I just feel used. … They didn’t get the perfect child they wanted and they threw me away.”

What evil men.  

Where is your mind set?

 This Sunday's reading is from Romans 8:1-11,

"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law—indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God."

In other words, you are what you think. 

Which is pretty close to "Lex orandi, lex credendi, lex vivendi" or  "the law of what is prayed is what is believed and is the law of what is lived." 

"But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you."