The Work of John

This Sunday's reading from John contains the densest beginning of any of the Gospels.

John 1:1-18In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
 He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” ’) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

It is believed (by most) that the apostle John was the longest lived of the apostles, this might explain why his Gospel appears to convey a more developed theology rather than being a simple recitation of events. The recurring theme of light versus darkness may have been a part of John's style of preaching in my opinion.

John is also believed to have moved to Ephesus with Mary. The church he led there may have been to whom Paul addressed his letter, or Paul may have been writing to a separate church made up of converted Gentiles. Whatever the case, Paul's tone in his letter seems to indicate that things in Ephesus were going well which also suggests that John's work there was doing well. 

The Clarity of Christmas

Five years ago, Al Mohler gave a commencement address at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. In the following excerpts, I hope you will see the clarity of Christmas and that you will share it with those who still live in darkness.

We live in a day of terminal theological confusion — a day when that confusion comes from far too many pulpits and lecterns and churches. Christmas is the great biblical refutation of that confusion. A simple reading of the gospel accounts of the birth of Jesus presents declarative sentences, undeniable truth claims, unavoidable clarity...

"The celebration of the birth of Christ puts everything on the table. The unswerving directness and crystalizing simplicity of the Christmas message leaves no room for confusion. Reading the gospel texts we know that we either believe or run away. This is either the greatest truth ever declared, or it is the saddest lie ever told. The Christmas story cannot be reduced to a sentimental tale that gives humanity a warm glow. When the heavenly host declares that Jesus is the Savior who is Christ the Lord, they announce the forgiveness of sins to those who repent and believe and they declare war on those who would oppose this child..."

"This is the truth we declare to all today. Unto us was born that day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord. The sunrise has come from on high. And we are saved." - Al Mohler

Merry Christmas to all who stop by this day!

The Virgin Birth

In this Sunday's reading from Matthew 1:18-25, we hear of the virgin birth and the saintly behavior of Joseph.

"Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,   and they shall name him Emmanuel’,which means, ‘God is with us.’ When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus."

Joseph was obedient and saintly in not putting Mary away. His family, friends, and neighbors were probably giving different advice.

In today's lingo we might say that "He took one for the team".

When I was little, we would to take old bricks and build forts and such. We used a lot of these,

From Reef2Reef

Joseph's faith was as strong as those bricks.


The world needs more St. Josephs.

Jesus and his two dads

Cameron Esposito posted the following picture on Twitter of a gay nativity scene,

I am not at all surprised that this kind of thing is displayed, posted, and praised given the drift of society over the past several decades. I can only imagine the outrage that would have occurred if this nativity showed up on my neighbor's yard when I was a child.

Nor was I surprised when I read the comments on Twitter about the picture. One had the nerve to post,

"The Bible says that Jesus had two dads. I see nothing wrong with this."

These people do not realize that they are mocking God, and history tells me that is not a good idea. 

Advent 3: Give us the whole Psalm please!

This Sunday, churches that use the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) will once again get an abbreviated version of the selection from the Psalms. Psalm 146 verses 4-9 will be recited if not sung.

As usual, imprecatory verses get the ax, but not in ACNA churches where the entire Psalm 146 will be read or sung.

So, I have printed the entire thing, and I have highlighted in red the verses that are cut out by the RCL.

1 Hallelujah!
Praise the Lord, O my soul! *
I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

2 Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth, *
for there is no help in them.

3 When they breathe their last, they return to earth, *
and in that day their thoughts perish.

4 Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help! *
whose hope is in the Lord their God;

5 Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them; *
who keeps his promise for ever;

6 Who gives justice to those who are oppressed, *
and food to those who hunger.

7 The Lord sets the prisoners free;
the Lord opens the eyes of the blind; *
the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;

8 The Lord loves the righteous;
the Lord cares for the stranger; *
he sustains the orphan and widow,
but frustrates the way of the wicked.

9 The Lord shall reign for ever, *
your God, O Zion, throughout all generations.
Hallelujah!

10 The LORD cares for the strangers in the land; he defends the fatherless
and widow; *
but the way of the ungodly he makes crooked.

11 The LORD shall be King for evermore, *
even your God, O Zion, throughout all generations. Praise the LORD.

Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina Resolves: No Support for Adoption

One thing I cannot stand about church conventions is that there are always those darned resolutions to vote on.  The Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina met last month, and one resolution that was squashed by the Committee on Resolutions was a plan to financially support non-governmental organizations that facilitate adoption. This of course is completely contrary to the Episcopal Organization USA's official policy of supporting (spiritually) abortion services for unwed mothers.

First read the proposed resolution (or go to the link),

PROPOSED RESOLUTION
The 97th Convention of the Diocese of Upper South Carolina
Christ Church
Greenville, South Carolina November 8-9, 2019
Date: August 8, 2019 Offered by: The Reverend James Neuburger
Name of Church: The Episcopal Church of St. Simon and St. Jude, Irmo, SC 

Subject: Supporting the Youngest Among Us 

Whereas:

As the pinnacle of creation, God created human beings in His image to enjoy Him forever, and at our baptisms God adopts us into Christ’s family as his brothers and sisters; and whereas the National Council for Adoption reports that in 2014 there were 18,329 domestic adoptions in relation to 1.1 million unwanted pregnancies; and whereas U.S. adoption providers estimate there are over 1 million couples currently waiting to adopt in the United States; and whereas adoption is the kind, loving choice for everyone involved in an unwanted pregnancy;

Be it Resolved:

That this Diocese affirms and offers God’s love for each human life by committing, beginning in 2021, to support pregnant mothers who do not wish to care for their unborn children by providing financial support to non-governmental organizations that offer services to pregnant women that facilitate the adoption of their babies. The amount of the financial support committed will be at least 0.7% of EDUSC’s projected annual income. The funding for this support will come from eliminating from the 2021 and all future diocesan Statement of Missions the MDG funding directed in 2005 under the standing resolution adopted by 83rd Convention of the Diocese of Upper South Carolina and reported by the Commission on Mission in the EDUSC Statement of Mission and applying such funding to this support. Such financial support will be provided annually and will continue until either 2030 or until terminated by resolution of a future diocesan convention, whichever comes first.
Further, this Diocese encourages the Commission on Mission, as part of the Statement of Mission request process, to identify the non-governmental organizations that offer adoptive services to pregnant women in South Carolina to whom support will be distributed, and to report annually through its Statement of Mission request submission the amount of such aid and the organization(s) to receive the distribution of such aid.

Recognize that the 0.7% of the projected annual income of  $2,870,508 in 2020 (a decrease from $3,047,294 in 2019) would amount to about $20,000, and this probably infuriated people invested in any of the many programs that were cut from the budget (for a look at the budget itself see this link). Those upset obviously didn't mind that $252,000 was being budgeted to be sent to the pro-abortion radicals at 815.

Anyway, here is the "rationale" from the Committee on Resolutions on why the Convention should reject the resolution (note: SOM means Statement of Mission or budget).

The Episcopal Diocese of Upper South CarolinaThe 97th Diocesan Convention 

Recommendation from the Committee on Resolutions 

A Resolution entitled: Supporting the Youngest Among Us 

Committee on Resolutions Recommendation: Reject this resolution. First, we are concerned by the judgmental and negative presumptions about pregnant women (and pregnant children) in this proposed resolution indicated in the following phrases [emphasis is by the Resolution Committee]: 

 “whereas adoption is the kind, loving choice for everyone involved in an unwanted pregnancy”

I must interrupt at this point. What is negative and judgmental  about that?

 “to support pregnant mothers who do not wish to care for their unborn children”

Maybe that sounded judgmental. If so, the committee could have offered to substitute the word "raise" for the word "care", but that would of course have been judgmental on their part.

Also, these presumptions are not in keeping with the position established by TEC,which is expressed as follows: 

From the TEC website: “In a series of statements over the past decades, the Church has declared that ‘we emphatically oppose abortion as a means of birth control, family planning, sex selection, or any reason of mere convenience.’ At the same time, since 1967, The Episcopal Church has maintained its “unequivocal opposition to any legislation on the part of the national or state governments which would abridge or deny the right of individuals to reach informed decisions [about the termination of pregnancy] and to act upon them.” 

In other words, abortion is the sacred cow to which Episcopalians are obliged to bow down.

Second, we are concerned that funding for this resolution is based on the complete defunding of projects we have supported for many years through the 0.7%Sustainable Development Funds. Supporting this resolution would be an outright rejection of mission projects we have shared with people with whom we have developed relationships over many years in Haiti and Ecuador.  

Why bring Haiti and Ecuador into it? To pull at heart strings of course. Feelings are what sway Episcopalian conventioneers so that they will not realize, as I noted above, that the $20,000 could be skimmed directly from what is being sent to the pro-abortion nuts at 815.

Third, we are concerned that changes to the SOM which so adversely impact historic missions of our diocese are more appropriately made through the SOM process so the appropriate Commission can evaluate all requests at once and determine priorities as appropriate to diocesan goals of making, equipping and sending mature disciples of Christ. 

Since when have Episcopalians been concerned about processes? They only bring up processes when the rules work in favor of a progressive cause, otherwise processes are ignored, re-written, or steamrolled.

Finally, we believe it is inappropriate to direct diocesan funds to un-specified “nongovernmental organizations that offer adoptive services to pregnant women”because some of these organizations in our state withhold services based on prejudicial view about adoptive parents that The Episcopal Church finds completely unacceptable.

Oh my! Money might actually go to Christian charities that support adoption!

All of this should give thinking Episcopalians good reason to stop sending money to EDUSC. 

"Yummy, yummy, yummy, I got bugs in my tummy", sang John the Baptist

or was it "A spoon full of honey helps the locusts go down, the locusts go down, the locusts go down..."?

This Sunday's reading from Matthew 3:1-12 tells the story of John the Baptist's ministry and his unusual diet,

In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’ This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said,‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:“Prepare the way of the Lord,   make his paths straight.” ’Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were going out to him, and all the region along the Jordan, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of repentance. Do not presume to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our ancestor”; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
 ‘I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing-fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing-floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’

I have read several thoughts about John the Baptist's tastes in food floating around the web, and I learned a few things:
1) locusts are kosher.
2) Once all of your crops have been eaten by locusts, what else do you have to eat but bugs?
3) The locusts represent judgement and the honey represents salvation, and this matches John's message.
4) There are a number of good recipes for locusts and honey out there, and here is one,

From Inn at the Crossroads,

This Volantene recipe results in a sweet & spicy, super crunchy snack that is surprisingly good. It takes a bit of psychological adjustment to get over the idea of eating bugs, but the novelty and brag-factor makes it well worth the effort. Underlying the more familiar tastes of honey and spice is the real flavor of the crickets- a sort of smoky nuttiness that takes several bites to savor.
We dared to try it. Do you?

Honey-spiced LocustsIngredients:1/4 cup butterpinch of salt1 cup cleaned insects (we used freeze dried crickets from Amazon)2 Tbs. honey1 tsp. Aleppo pepper, mixed in with the honeyMelt your butter in a pan over medium heat. Add the insects and and salt and stir gently for around 10 minutes, making sure to get them completely covered in butter.When the bugs are suitably crisped, drizzle the spice-honey over them and stir a bit more. Then spread them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and cook for around 10 minutes at 200 F, until the bugs are no longer quite so sticky.

Maybe we should bring some of these for the after-church snack and coffee hour.

I wonder how newcomers would react to that!

R.I.P. St. Louie, Louie, Louie, Louie, Lou-I Crew

This week I got the news that Louie Crew was dead. "Who was he?", you ask. He was one of the powers behind the Episcopal gay revolution that brought down the denomination. The fact that most pewsitters never heard of him was one of the reasons for his success. Bishops, priests, and many deacons knew him as did many General Conventioneers, a modus operandi which was crucial in getting the gay agenda pushed forward legislatively. The people in the pews were not his target because they could be counted on to follow their shepherds off any cliff as long as the parish church lights stayed on and the roof didn't leak too badly.

The Episcopal News has their version of Louie's bio in which they make it clear to this reader that Louie is well on his way to Episcopalian sainthood with reports like this,

"On social media, Crew was remembered as 'a holy troublemaker,' 'a great light,' 'giant of justice' and a 'gift to the church.'”

A gift that revisionist clergy couldn't turn down.

I had but one run in with him when I challenged his take Galatians 3.

"Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian..."

These verses have been used by revisionists to justify Sin and to cast their favorite sins as works of the Holy Spirit. To them, the sexual morality codes found in the Bible are a prison. "We are no longer subject to a disciplinarian" is the perfect excuse to push the gay agenda.

Louie Crew at his site, "Queer Eye for the Lectionary" looked at Galatians 3:25 and fell right into the trap.

"The church violates the Saint’s claim if it requires lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and the transgendered to live under the law no longer required of hetero Christians."

The queer eye reads things the way the queer heart desires things to be.

Maybe the Episcopal church would have gone under the spell of the LGBTQetc movement without a Louie Crew, but since he decided to take on the job of destroying the denomination, he deserves his share of the blame, and all of us in the pews deserve the blame for letting him go unnoticed.

In Days To Come

This Sunday's reading from Isaiah 2:1-5 describes a future that we have yet to see, when there will be peace between nations,

The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
In days to come   the mountain of the Lord’s houseshall be established as the highest of the mountains,   and shall be raised above the hills;all the nations shall stream to it.   Many peoples shall come and say,‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,   to the house of the God of Jacob;that he may teach us his ways   and that we may walk in his paths.’For out of Zion shall go forth instruction,   and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations,   and shall arbitrate for many peoples;they shall beat their swords into ploughshares,   and their spears into pruning-hooks;nation shall not lift up sword against nation,   neither shall they learn war any more.

 O house of Jacob,   come, let us walk   in the light of the Lord!

Some day, there will be peace on Earth and good will towards men.

Some day.

"Man-made denomination change"

Four years ago, Church Growth Modeling extrapolated the attendance data from several denominations and obtained these interesting results,

What the extrapolation predicts is the extinction of the Episcopal organization, the Church in Wales, and the Scottish Episcopalians by 2040. 

I am very familiar with survival curves (very few are linear) of various disease states in humans, and while all will eventually fall to the zero line if given enough time, one often finds a few "long term" survivors of even the most deadly diseases. I suspect this will be true for the denominations shown above. My guess is that survivors will be larger parishes with beautiful buildings in large liberal cities. These islands will remain blissfully ignorant of the death throes of their smaller outlying brothers and sisters. 

These denominations are in decline because of how they have twisted the meaning of scripture to try to keep up with society's innovations. I maintain that any organization that dares to call itself Christian must hold onto the truths contained in the Bible, because once they set up rites and blessings that contradict the very scriptures that they are supposedly founded upon, the whole thing falls apart like the house built on sand. 

There can be no denying the fact that these denominations' decline is real. 

Skeptics will be those who deny that the change is self inflicted or due to "man-made denomination change".

In Paradise

This Sunday's Gospel reading is taken from Luke 23:35-43 and contains this scene from the crucifixion of Jesus,

And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, ‘He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!’ The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine, and saying, ‘If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!’ There was also an inscription over him, ‘This is the King of the Jews.’
One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him and saying, ‘Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!’ But the other rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.’ Then he said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ 

He replied, ‘Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’

Those words should give everyone of us encouragement to endure whatever tortures, diseases, aging, or our many sins throw at us, for we will be with Jesus in Paradise.

That gives us goose bumps.

The word "Christian" in ads banned by You Tube

This was in the news a few months ago and I have been waiting to see if You Tube issued a response. Seeing none, I will go ahead and post it. From premier.org.uk,

"Chad Robichaux, founder of the Mighty Oaks Foundation - a charity providing support and discipleship to those suffering from wartime trauma, was told he could not use the label 'Christian' to boost his advert on the Google owned platform as it violated the site's advertising policy."
"We ran a YouTube ad for our veterans ministry outreach for those in need & it was denied for the word 'Christian'". 

"The YouTube team responded to Mr Robichaux's tweets, maintaining that targeting users based on their religion was in breach of their advertising policy but that adverts can include the term 'Christian' in them and still hope to reach a Christian audience."
"We know that religious beliefs are personal, so we don't allow advertisers to target users on the basis of religion. Beyond that, we don't have policies against advertising that includes religious terms like 'Christian'".

"Mr Robichaux has called out the tech giant for religious discrimination, saying that he posted the same ad with a target label of 'Muslim' and was not asked to take it down."
"We ran the exact same ad with the keyword 'Muslim' it was approved but 'Christian' was not. Additionally, we've ran ads with the keyword 'Christian' for years. This year alone we had 150,000 impressions on that word in our ads. As per your support line this is a new restriction"

I have no doubt that the social media and mainstream media providers are working to promote non-Christian values, and they are actively suppressing any Christian message.

As Marshall McLuhan's book title says, the Medium is the Massage.

How does that rub you?

Endurance

In this Sunday's Gospel reading Luke 21:5-19, Jesus predicts the future calamities that will befall Jerusalem and his followers.

When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, he said, ‘As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.’ They asked him, ‘Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?’ And he said, ‘Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, “I am he!”* and, “The time is near!” Do not go after them.

‘When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately.’ Then he said to them, ‘Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be dreadful portents and great signs from heaven.

‘But before all this occurs, they will arrest you and persecute you; they will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. This will give you an opportunity to testify. So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in advance; for I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your souls.

 All of those words came to pass, and some of them are still happening to Christians around the world. Here in the United States we are seeing milder degrees of persecution by social media, social justice warriors, the courts, and legislation.

Jesus' final recommendation for endurance is what we need to practice and teach to a generation that may have limited attention spans, little patience, and a lack of willingness to stand firm in Faith.

Bless Their Hearts: Episcopalians and Their Problem with the "J" Word

The Episcopal organization used to get its money from its dioceses, but given the decline in membership and the resultant drop in revenue from the cash strapped dioceses, 815 is going directly to the people in its plea for cash. They mailed me a colorful request called "Bless 2019 Annual Appeal" that was full of personal stories on why people feel blessed to be an Episcopalian. Sadly, there is not a single mention of the name "Jesus" anywhere to be found in those pages. I believe this is a common problem for Episcopalians, they just can't make themselves use the "J" word. The word "Christ" made it in there once, but that must have been missed by the editor.

I took a few pictures of the mailing in case you didn't get one.

Instead of sending it back, I chose to recycle their mailing to the birdcage.

Problems With the Revised Common Lectionary: Satan Gets the Ax in 2 Thessalonians, a Wicked Deception Indeed

This Sunday's reading from 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5,13-17 is yet another example of the lectionary editors presenting the slumbering masses in the pews with a less than complete story. The result of their cuts is a lesson that minimizes the very real presence of Satan and his methods. I have shaded the missing verses in red.

"As to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we beg you, brothers and sisters, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as though from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here. Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one is revealed, the one destined for destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God. Do you not remember that I told you these things when I was still with you?"

Paul does not name the "lawless one", but I assume he is referring to the Emperor Nero who set himself up as God around the time of Paul's writing this letter and who possibly was the person who condemned Paul to death.

And now for the missing verses,

 "And you know what is now restraining him, so that he may be revealed when his time comes. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but only until the one who now restrains it is removed. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will destroy with the breath of his mouth, annihilating him by the manifestation of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is apparent in the working of Satan, who uses all power, signs, lying wonders, and every kind of wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion, leading them to believe what is false, so that all who have not believed the truth but took pleasure in unrighteousness will be condemned."

There are two things in those verses that the lectionary editors may have thought to be problematic. First, the notion of Jesus destroying and annihilating anyone goes completely against the modern narrative in which Jesus is seen as something of a sweet and gentle flower child.
Second, the real evil one, Satan, cannot be discussed in front of the typical Sunday pewsitters because he is not something they believe in anymore.

The Sunday lesson concludes with this benign sounding exhortation,

"But we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth. For this purpose he called you through our proclamation of the good news, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by our letter.Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word."

I see the workings of Satan when we get presented with a highly edited version of what the Bible actually says. Satan getting written out of the Sunday lectionary reading is an example of how he infiltrates the Church through wicked deception

More Genders Than Colors In The Rainbow

From the Scottish Sun comes the news that in their next census, "Scots face ‘baffling’ list of 21 sexualities to choose from in 2021 census including gynephilic and skoliosexual". Interestingly, the list does not include "Transexual" or "Lesbian" while both "Heterosexual" and "Straight" appear. This creates more genders than the rainbow flag can possibly represent. Here is the list,

1. ANDROPHILIC Person of any gender who loves men or who is sexually attracted to men
2. ANDROSEXUAL Person who has sexual feelings towards masculinity
3. ASEXUAL Doesn’t experience sexual attraction
4. BICURIOUS Interested in sexual experience with same sex
5. BISEXUAL Attracted to both men and women
6. DEMIROMANTIC Only experiences romantic attraction after developing emotional connection beforehand
7. DEMISEXUAL Doesn’t exper­ience sexual attraction unless they form a strong emotional connection with someone
8. FLUID Person who experiences changes in their sexual orientation
9. GAY Sexually attracted to members of the same sex
10. GYNEPHILIC Person of any gender who is sexually attracted to women or to femininity
11. GYNESEXUAL Attracted to females or female body parts, regardless of whether that person identifies as female
12. HOMOSEXUAL Sexually attracted to members of the same sex
13. HETEROSEXUAL Sexually attracted to the opposite sex
14. LESBIAN Woman who is sexually attracted to other women
15. PANSEXUAL Attracted to all gender identities
16. POLYSEXUAL Sexually and/or rom­antically attracted to many genders
17. QUEER Sexual and gender min­orities who aren’t heterosexual or are not cisgender
18. QUESTIONING Person who may be unsure, still exploring and concern­ed about applying a social label to themselves for various reasons
19. SKOLIOSEXUAL A person who is attracted to people who are transgender or nonbinary
20. STRAIGHT Sexually attracted to members of the opposite sex
21. UNSURE Someone who is not sure of their sexuality

Those crazy Scots...

Only Half?

In this Sunday's reading from Luke 19:1-10 Jesus invites himself to Zacchaeus' house,

He entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax-collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycomore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.’ So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. All who saw it began to grumble and said, ‘He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.’ Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, ‘Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.’

Zacchaeus the chief tax collector promised to give half of his possessions to the poor and salvation came to his house.

Only half?

Remember what was asked of the rich young man in Matthew 19: 21-22,

Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

With the current Democratic party candidates proposing higher tax rates than 50% if elected, and Jesus' greater demand from the rich young man, I think Zacchaeus got off easy.

We Admit That We Are Not Worthy: Did Joe?

This past Sunday former Vice President of the United States and current Presidential hopeful Joe Biden was denied Communion by a brave Roman Catholic priest in Florence South Carolina because of Biden's pro-abortion position. The priest will catch some flak as I heard from one Fox and Friends host Tuesday morning who said in effect that none of us would be worthy to receive Communion if the priest were to be consistent.

Consistent with what? A think the priest would be acting consistently if Biden had not first received the Sacrament of Penance and sacramental confession.

Regarding this, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops says,

"As Catholics, we fully participate in the celebration of the Eucharist when we receive Holy Communion. We are encouraged to receive Communion devoutly and frequently. In order to be properly disposed to receive Communion, participants should not be conscious of grave sin and normally should have fasted for one hour. A person who is conscious of grave sin is not to receive the Body and Blood of the Lord without prior sacramental confession except for a grave reason where there is no opportunity for confession. In this case, the person is to be mindful of the obligation to make an act of perfect contrition, including the intention of confessing as soon as possible (canon 916). A frequent reception of the Sacrament of Penance is encouraged for all."

We Anglicans confess our sins as part of our worship services and are made fully aware of our unworthiness to receive Communion when we pray the prayer of humble access,

The prayer of humble access (Anglican Standard Text):

We do not presume to come to this your table, O merciful Lord,trusting in our own righteousness,but in your abundant and great mercies.We are not worthy so much as to gather upthe crumbs under your table;but you are the same Lordwhose character is always to have mercy.Grant us, therefore, gracious Lord,so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ,and to drink his blood,that our sinful bodies may be made clean by his body,and our souls washed through his most precious blood,and that we may evermore dwell in him, and he in us. Amen. 

Many Roman Catholics also briefly acknowledge their unworthiness depending on which Eucharistic prayer is followed.

Did Joe?

I hope so.

Let us pray that he abandon his support of abortion and join the rest of us unworthy folk at the communion rail.   

More Missing Verses

This Sunday's reading from 2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18 leaves out some negativity as you will see (the red verses),

"As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing."

"Do your best to come to me soon, for Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful in my ministry. I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will pay him back for his deeds. You also must beware of him, for he strongly opposed our message."

"At my first defense no one came to my support, but all deserted me. May it not be counted against them! But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory for ever and ever. Amen."

Imprecatory verses are omitted while things like "may it not be counted against them" are included thus softening the words for the Sunday pewsitters. This is a typical pattern for the lectionary used in many churches.

Soft scripture makes for soft Christians, and this is no time for weakness as Christianity is in decline in America as we documented in the previous post.

The Millennials = The "Nones"

Numbers published at the Pew Forum on the decline of Christianity in America show where we should be focusing our evangelistic efforts,



40% of millennials are "unaffiliated" making them the largest group in need of the Gospel and in need of belonging to the Church. Just think what the next generation will look like if their millennial parents do not raise them in the Church?

I am convinced that the best way to reach this group has to be one on one conversions by a new generation of evangelists and not by holding a Beyonce Mass.

Is your Church making those new evangelists to the millenials?

If not, your extinction is coming.

Itching Ears/Burning Ears

This Sunday's lectionary selection from 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5 presents a potential problem for the revisionist preacher,

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I solemnly urge you: proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favourable or unfavourable; convince, rebuke, and encourage, with the utmost patience in teaching. For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths. As for you, always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully.

You see, the part about "the time... when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires" perfectly describes the congregations who gather each Sunday to listen to the revisionist preacher.

I wonder if those preachers' ears burn when they listen to those words.

I kinda doubt it.

One thing I am certain of is that the true revisionist will ignore those words when picking a theme for his/her/its sermon and instead focus on the Gospel lesson from Luke 18:1-8,

Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, “Grant me justice against my opponent.” For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, “Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.” ’ And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’

Yep, that one will be a lot easier. 

As Predicted: Suicide by Physician For Non-Terminal Conditions

The slippery slope of physician assisted suicide continues as predicted by many.

From Life Site News,

"October 9, 2019 (Euthanasia Prevention Coalition) — On September 11, a Québec court struck down the provision in Canada's euthanasia (MAiD) law requiring that a person be terminally ill to qualify for death by lethal injection."

"The court decided that requiring that a person's 'natural death must be reasonably foreseeable' was unconstitutional and they gave the government 30 days to appeal the decision, knowing that Canada was in the middle of a federal election."

"In a televised debate on French TV network TVA, among political party leaders Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Lib), Andrew Scheer (CPC), Jagmeet Singh (NDP) and Yves-François Blanchet (BQ), Trudeau stated that he would not appeal the Québec court decision that struck down the 'terminal illness' requirement and that he would craft a more permissive MAiD regime in the 6 months period ordered by the Court."

I have a new prediction: In the future, pharmacists will be allowed to dispense a suicide cocktail without a prescription, and if a pharmacist refuses, the pharmacist will be put on trial.

Spiritual Wellness

This Sunday's Gospel reading was from Luke 17:11-19 in which Jesus heals ten lepers,

On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’ When he saw them, he said to them, ‘Go and show yourselves to the priests.’ And as they went, they were made clean. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus asked, ‘Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?’ Then he said to him, ‘Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.’

I was at a cancer survivor gathering the other day, and one of the survivors came up to the microphone and first and foremost gave thanks to God for having lived with cancer for fourteen years. She then thanked her doctors and nurses. I gave her hug and thanked her for keeping the Lord first. The next man who got up praised Jesus for his healing, and then the next did likewise.

I thank God that he placed me where he did. Those people are alive and well, some had been healed physically, and many had been healed in spirit. Those of us who were there left as witnesses to God's power.  

An LGBTQIA2S Hymnal

Over at Anglican Samizdat, you will find a post on "Songs For The Holy Other" which is essentially a hymnal for the "LGBTQIA2S" (don't ask me what all those initials stand for). I thought I would expand it a little bit by giving you a list of the song titles and an example of the text to one of their hymns.

A group called "The Hymn Society" produced this set of songs. Their goals are rather obvious.

To access a PDF copy I had to submit name, church, and e-mail information which will be used by The Hymn Society in order to send e-mails, and that information will be shared with other organizations, groups which most likely have a similar mission to The Hymn Society.

I created a new e-mail address which I quickly deleted.

Here is their introduction to the hymnal,

We who have been labeled as “wholly other” are claiming our holiness, and reclaiming our otherness as a prophetic witness to the church. Hymn writer and theologian Rev. Dr. Carl P. Daw, Jr., FHS writes:“Human otherness (of whatever kind) provides a sacramental reminder of the ultimate otherness of God, and openness to human otherness has the potential to enlarge our perception of and receptivity to divine otherness. It is also an essential element of human maturity to recognize otherness, i.e. to know where the self ends and otherness begins, whether that otherness be other people or non-human objects. From a theological perspective, “otherness” is a necessary dimension of themovement from the disappointments of self-sufficiency to the assurances of trust in God.”The gifts God has given us are not in spite of our otherness, our queerness, our LGBTQIA2S+ identities, but rather our identities are inextricably tied up in our God-given gifts, and are, in and of themselves, a gift to the church, as we reflect the rainbow diversity of God’s creation.This collection emerged from a desire to make queer hymns — hymns by, for, or about the LGBTQIA2S+ community — accessible to a wider range of congregations. While the idea emerged from the membership of the The Hymn Society in the United States and Canada

1. A Hymn for Self-Acceptance 
2. Alchemy of Healing 
3. All Belong Here 
4. All Colors of the Rainbow 
5. As Colors in the Sky 
6. Blest Be the Holy Other 
7. Christ Our Health 
8. Fearfully, Wonderfully Made 
9. For all the Children 
10. For Those Who Suffered 
11. God Calls You Good 
12. God Gave This World 
13. God Loves Us in Mysterious Ways 
14. God of Many Faces
15. God of Queer Trangressive Space
16. God of Queer Transgressive Spaces
17. God’s Limitless Imagination 
18. God’s Love is Boundless 
19. I Know That God Loves Me 
20. I Met a Stranger on the Road 
21. I Shall Not Leave from by Your Side 
22. Impartial, Compassionate God
23. Jesus, You Have Truly Called Us 
24. Like the Weeping Willow 
25. Love Astounding 
26. Love’s Rage and Grief 
27. Lovely, Needy People
28. New Patterns for Living
29. O God, Bestow Your Love and Care 
30. Pour Your Freedom Over Me 
31. Queerly Beloved 
32. Quirky Queer and Wonderful 
33. Rest in Power 
34. Rise Up Kim 
35. Sing a New World into Being 
36. The Dove Will Fly on Mended Wing 
37. The Heart Will Choose the One It Loves 
38. The Kingdom of God is the Queerest of Nations 
39. The Love That Goes Unspoken 
40. Transfigure Me 
41. We Are a Rainbow 
42. We Are The Hidden Slats 
43. We’ll Build a World 
44. Weary Seekers
45. When Comes the Time 
46. Who Is the Alien
47. With Open Hearts

Here is an example of the theo-illogic one can find in this songbook,

"Quirky, Queer and Wonderful" 

(Refrain) Quirky, queer, and wonderful, distinct, unique, and odd... all of our humanity reveals the face of God 

1. No normal can encompass or comprehend the range of all the kinds of people that God created strange! (Refrain)

2. From Jesus we learn riddles he said the last are first He tweaked received religion with roles that he reversed. (Refrain)

3. To Peter God presented untouchable cuisine and said, "Do not call dirty what I declare is clean." (Refrain)

4. In Christ the false divisions of gender, class, and race can never separate us from God's abundant grace. (Refrain)

5. The many parts that form us each serve a different role In Christ we are one body, made holy good and whole. (Refrain) 

God reveals the face of God.

Verse three is a classic example of revisionism. Acts 10:9-16 involves Peter's vision of unclean foods which God commands him to eat. God therefore is the one who decides what is clean and fit to eat. In this hymn, the suggestion is that LGBTQIA2S sexual activity has been declared clean, but by whom? Man has declared that such acts are "clean". God has done nothing of the sort. The dietary laws were cleaned up, but not the sexual morality codes regarding same-sex activity or cross dressing etc.

This song book shows how far some people will go to justify sinful behavior.

I have found that it is far easier to admit my sins, to confess them, and to pray for forgiveness than it is to rationalize them away.

I suggest the LGBTQIA2S do the same.

Teachings About Faith and Humility That We Might Not Like

This Sunday's reading from Luke 17:5-10 contains two lessons, one about faith and the other about humility,

The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’ The Lord replied, ‘If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea”, and it would obey you. 

 ‘Who among you would say to your slave who has just come in from ploughing or tending sheep in the field, “Come here at once and take your place at the table”? Would you not rather say to him, “Prepare supper for me, put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink”? Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, “We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!” ’

 The mustard seed is a tiny thing. When I traveled through India last year, I past acre after acre of mustard plants in bloom, and in the city markets I found large amounts of mustard oil for sale. I wondered how many seeds were needed to make an 8 ounce container of oil and my guide said, "A lot." A jar of our table mustard is made from one thousand seeds. So, faith the size of a mustard seed must be more powerful than enriched uranium. Since most of us need a shovel and manual labor to uproot a mulberry tree and toss it into the sea, our faith must be far less than the size of a mustard seed. In fact, I do not know of one verified instance of someone uprooting a mulberry tree except by manual or mechanical work. None of us likes to hear that our faith is so small.

In the second half of today's reading, Jesus tells us another thing we don't want to hear, that we should remain humble to the point of self deprecation when he recommends us to say, "We are worthless slaves...".

I don't know about you, but Jesus sure put me in my place today.

New Name, Same Mission

Following a ruling by the court, The Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina was forced to change its name to "The Anglican Diocese of South Carolina".  Their new web page can be found here. The mission, "Making Biblical Anglicans for a Global Age" is the same mission we learned about at the Mere Anglicanism conferences that were held in Charleston a few years ago. It is a mission statement that is anathema to many Episcopalians. Let us pray that they too may become Biblical Anglicans someday.

Hell is Real

In this Sunday's Gospel reading from Luke 16:19-31, Jesus reveals some of the harsh realities about Hell.

‘There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.” But Abraham said, “Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.” He said, “Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.” Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.” He said, “No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.” He said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”

As Jesus describes it, Hell is a place of fire and torment. There is no escape from Hell.

Many times I have heard Hell denied by revisionist priests or the concept of damnation whitewashed as "separation from God". I can only imagine what their sermons today will be about. Let's see, maybe they will cast President Trump as the rich man being tormented and burned.

Yeah, that's it. Hell is where you cast your political enemies.

 

Episcopal Decline: Living it Locally

The statistics reported by the Episcopal organization are further confirmation of what we have been witnessing and discussing on these pages for the past decade. Others are reporting on the 2018 data , so this is getting plenty of attention on the web. You can mine the data yourself at 815's official pages.The organization is in decline and will continue to do so as predicted by myself and by many. Like the small Church in Wales we reported on earlier, funerals outnumber baptisms in many dioceses, and at least one diocese reported zero baptisms in 2018.

Here in South Carolina, the Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina has lost nearly 2000 Sunday worshipers over the past decade despite a marked growth in the population of the state. The losses are being felt most painfully in the smaller cities and towns. In my area, which is in one of the most rapidly growing regions of South Carolina in terms of overall population, the declines are seen in every parish, and there are a couple of parishes that reported an average Sunday attendance in the single digits in 2018, and one witness reports that zero cars were seen at one parish for the past 8 Sundays.

In the lower half of the state, cumulative statistics for the Episcopal Diocese in South Carolina (the remnant that did not leave with Bishop Lawrence and The Diocese of South Carolina) can not even be pulled up at 815's web site while individual parish stats are available. I wonder why?

The denomination is dying, but does anyone care?

Does the Devil care? I think he does. After all, part of his plan was to infiltrate the Church and to destroy it from within, planting the seeds of Biblical revisionism and a false gospel narrative, but in so doing, the parasite winds up killing its host and thus killing itself.  A Church cannot survive because it cannot evangelize an interpretation of the Bible that very clearly contradicts God's inspired word. Yes, there are other denominations to feed upon, but at some point they will be gone too. No, the Devil needs to keep the Episcopal organization alive on its deathbed in the vain hope that the revisionist stench emanating from its rotting corpse will attract new converts to his cause, ensuring the continuation of Satan's fiendish plot to undermine the integrity of the Gospel.

Does God care that the denomination is dying?

I believe he does, but like the tree that produces no fruit, he knows that it must be cut down, and it is being cut down.

The Parable of the Shrewd Priest

This Sunday's Gospel reading is from Luke 16:1-13 in which we hear the parable of the shrewd manager. After you study Luke's text, bear with me as I tell the parable of the shrewd priest.

Then Jesus said to the disciples, ‘There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property. So he summoned him and said to him, “What is this that I hear about you? Give me an account of your management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.” Then the manager said to himself, “What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. I have decided what to do so that, when I am dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.” So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he asked the first, “How much do you owe my master?” He answered, “A hundred jugs of olive oil.” He said to him, “Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.” Then he asked another, “And how much do you owe?” He replied, “A hundred containers of wheat.” He said to him, “Take your bill and make it eighty.” And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth* so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.
 ‘Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth,* who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.’

So here is the parable of the shrewd priest.

There was a revisionist priest,and charges of heresy and apostasy had been raised by parishioners who had voted with their feet and left that priest's church. The Bishop learned of the charges and saw the parish rolls and the money pledged to the Diocese declining so he called in that priest. "I am defrocking you for you have led people astray and are costing me money!" The priest then said to himself, "What will I do now? I have no backbone so I cannot work construction, and I have too much education to flip burgers. I know what I'll do. I will go to those who left the church because of me and take back what I said. He went to the first one and asked, "What offended you?" He answered, "You said there was no Devil." The ex-priest said, "I was wrong. I have sinned against God and my neighbor." The ex-parishioner answered, "I forgive you." The former priest asked another, "What offended you?" The ex-parishioner answered him saying, "You said that people weren't meant to stay married for fifty years and that the church got it right when divorce was liberalized." The ex-priest said, "I was wrong. I have sinned against God and my neighbor." The ex-parishioner answered, "I forgive you."And so it went, on and on to countless others. And you know what? One of those people gave him a job!  

What a shrewd priest. I hope he really meant it.

No priest can serve two masters. You cannot serve God and revisionism.

Amazon.com Banning Books on Conversion Therapy, but Books Supporting Pedophilia Are Okay

The mainstream media (MSM) has been trying, and succeeding, in shaping society to fit the LGBTQetc agenda for quite some time. Modern day thought control limits one's exposure to films, books, even blogs that are considered anti-zeitgeist while maximizing exposure to all things pro-LGBTQetc. 

And now the MSM, through its Amazon affiliate, is also promoting perversions that most of us still believe to be perversions while banning Christian books that dare to claim that Jesus can heal unwanted sexual desires and/or behaviors.

From the Christian Post,

"Restored Hope Network Executive Director Anne Paulk and pastoral counselor Joe Dallas both saw their books removed from the retail giant. Amazon told some authors that their books, which detail how Jesus transformed their lives and sexual identities, were in 'violation of our content guidelines.'" 

"Among the books that remain available on the platform is an academic work titled Pedophilia and Adult-Child Sex: A Philosophical Analysis by Stephen Kershnar, which amounts to a defense of the sexual exploitation of children and calls into question its moral status..."

"...Paulk added Thursday: 'It is appalling that Amazon has banned books detailing how one struggling with unwanted same-sex attraction can overcome those feelings and steward his or her sexuality in a biblical fashion, while thinking nothing of selling books that celebrate the kind of deviancy Jeffrey Epstein was accused of.'"

"...Other books that Amazon has recently banned include: Growth into Manhood: Resuming the Journey by Alan Medinger; Achieving Heterosexuality: A Universal, Scientific, and Faith-Based Perspective by Marie Davidson; and Straight Talk about Homosexuality: The Other Side of Tolerance by Richard Cohen."

 Appalling is right.

Think about that the next time you buy anything from Amazon.com.

Luke 15:1-10

Once again Luke 15:1-10 rolls around on the lectionary cycle. I commented on this back in 2012 and I would like to repost my updated version of the parable of the good shepherd after you read Jesus' version,

Now all the tax-collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.’
 So he told them this parable: ‘Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbours, saying to them, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.” Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance. ‘Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbours, saying, “Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.” Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.’

I know that the second sentence of this reading has been misused by revisionist preachers who like to teach their pewsitters that as Jesus loves and dines with sinners, he must not hate the sin as much as we neanderthals claim.

Modern people might have a problem with making an analogy between a lost sheep and "sinner." "Sinner" sounds so judgmental, and "Sin" itself has lost its meaning. You see, nowadays, the concept of "sin" is open to interpretation. The very notion of "Sin" is frequently brushed aside as another relic of the past. Even those who accept that there might be such a thing as generic "Sin" still try to re-classify specific behaviors that were previously held to be sinful into things that can first be considered an acceptable alternative lifestyle and later morph into something deserving of a blessing. With that in mind, let us see how the old parable might be rewritten to live into today's context.

You have in your flock many sheep. When you discover one missing, which one of you does not go out in search of the missing sheep? Which one of you, when you find that the lost sheep has discovered its authentic self as a pig, and is happiest when wallowing in mud, does not say, "Let me bring the rest of the flock here so that they too may wallow in the mud"? And when he has done so, he calls his neighbors, saying to them, "Rejoice with me, for I have found that sheep prefer to be pigs, and are happiest when they can wallow in the mire. Join us." Just so, that which was once considered sinful may now be considered blessed. (UP 7:11/12a)

I don't think my modern parable will hold up very well unless I add a follow up to the inevitable question, "Teacher explain this parable to us."

Do not do as this shepherd has done. For the owner of the sheep will come at sheep shearing time. Noticing that there are but few sheep in His pasture,  He sets out searching for the shepherd. Then the owner will find what appear to be pigs wallowing raucously in another man's sty and the lost shepherd watching over them. "They do look happy," the owner thinks, "But this is not the pure spring of water in which I had intended for them to bathe." And then He calls them, but because of their squeals of pleasure, they can not hear Him, and they can not follow His voice. He will then seek out the remnants of His flock that stayed in His pasture. I tell you, there will be more tears in heaven over the lost sheep and the lost shepherd than all the tears shed by man shed over all of time. (UP 7:11/12b) 

Sigh... this explanation will probably be rejected by various scholars as the work of some later redactor because they will cite modern studies that prove sheep really are happiest when you let them wallow in the mire.

“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves
and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is
faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and
purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we
have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his
word has no place in our lives.” (1 John 1:8-10; NIV)

Justin Welby, CJW (Climate Justice Warrior)

The Rebel Priest has an interesting interview with an Indian climatologist who details the errors of  Archbishop Justin Welby's climate change alarmism. Read the interview at The Rebel Priest's pages.. 

The Rebel Priest adds that the Archbishop is seen as shirking from his duties to "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19),

"Archbishop Welby’s 'climate justice' lecture on September 3 at India’s most leftwing seminary was slammed by Indian Christians who saw it as a cop out from the real issue of widespread persecution facing the Indian church under the current Hindu fundamentalist regime of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and corruption in the Church of South India.
Welby was also lambasted for promoting religious relativism and pluralism by engaging in inter-faith dialogue rather than preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ."

I remember when Justin Welby was considered "evangelical".

If climates change, so can evangelicals I guess. 

Starting With a Solid Foundation

In this Sunday's reading from Luke 14:25-33, Jesus puts some tough demands on the large number of would be followers that he had attracted.

Now large crowds were travelling with him; and he turned and said to them,  ‘Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.  Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.  For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it?  Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him,  saying, “This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.”  Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand?  If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace.  So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.

Jesus had a plan. He had a Church to build. He needed a strong foundation. He demanded a lot out of his disciples.

Does your church have a plan? You had better start with the foundation. We had better expect to give up a lot of our tightly held possessions, preconceived notions, our time, and opinions and get down to the hard work of studying the Bible together in order to be that foundation. 

Denominational Decline: The Picture in Wales

The Church in Wales has bought into the LGBTQ formula for denominational decline. The statistics look eerily similar to those we have witnessed in most Episcopalian dioceses. The tables can be found over at the Ancient Briton blog.

To sum it up, the total number of congregants in Wales is dropping, and funerals outnumber baptisms. I saw this statistic played out in my Episcopal parish years ago. I believe the attrition will continue as long as false teachers occupy the pulpit, the Bishop's chair, the House of Bishops, and in Wales, the "Bench of Bishops".

Cracked Cisterns Hold No Water

This Sunday's reading from Jeremiah 2:4-13 illustrates why he was such a pariah that he was thrown into a pit which some translate as a "cistern".

Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel. Thus says the Lord:What wrong did your ancestors find in me   that they went far from me,and went after worthless things, and became worthless themselves?  They did not say, ‘Where is the Lord   who brought us up from the land of Egypt,who led us in the wilderness,   in a land of deserts and pits,in a land of drought and deep darkness,   in a land that no one passes through,   where no one lives?’  I brought you into a plentiful land   to eat its fruits and its good things.But when you entered you defiled my land,   and made my heritage an abomination.  The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’   Those who handle the law did not know me;the rulers* transgressed against me;   the prophets prophesied by Baal,   and went after things that do not profit.  Therefore once more I accuse you,says the Lord,   and I accuse your children’s children.  Cross to the coasts of Cyprus and look,   send to Kedar and examine with care;   see if there has ever been such a thing.  Has a nation changed its gods,   even though they are no gods?But my people have changed their glory   for something that does not profit.  Be appalled, O heavens, at this,   be shocked, be utterly desolate,says the Lord,  for my people have committed two evils:   they have forsaken me,the fountain of living water,   and dug out cisterns for themselves,cracked cisterns   that can hold no water. 

The imagery of a cracked cistern predates the "waterless clouds" of Jude 1:12 and idioms like "as worthless as a bucket that won't hold water".

Jerimiah would learn that the only thing a cracked cistern will hold is mire.

I would count those who try to silence the voice of Christianity, the proponents of a secular society, as builders of cracked cisterns, waterless clouds, and leaky buckets... worse than worthless.