Friday, January 27, 2012

Reformation Piety

I spent 20 years (from my 20s into my 40s) with the most conservative Greek Orthodox group, the "Old Calendarists." My views will always reflect that influence.  Each age has numerous wicked people a a minority of righteous people. Satan does not use every wicked person as an instrument. But I believe that Satan did use Luther as a powerful instrument to forge a false Christ to beguile and lull people into the complacent belief that their salvation is guaranteed by the simple lip service of once inviting Christ (this false Christ, an angel of light) into their heart as their "personal Savior" and then enjoy an "intimate relationship."  I do not find evidence of such a Reformation piety in the first 800 years of Christianity.  If you feel that I am mistaken then why let the words of a foolish old man bother you?  If you have deep faith in your Reformation piety and your salvation by faith alone, then you should simply ignore my views.  I see Luther as a lusty addictive personality who could not endure his vows of chastity. He even wrote sermons about the voluptuous breasts of the Virgin Mary who nurses the infant Jesus.  Luther KNEW that the Greek Orthodox had always functioned without a Pope. Luther COULD have chosen to life out his monastic vows among the Greeks. Instead he redesigned Christianity and made celibacy something unnatural and evil. Then he married a former nun and sired many children.  Luther ignored verses such as "better never to vow at all then to vow and not pay" and "make your vows and pay them to the Lord."

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

The price you must pay

If you feel that you must be "Godly" at ALL costs, even at the cost of your sexuality, then that is the price you must pay; BUT, if you feel that you must be sexual at ALL costs, even at the cost of being "Godly" (whatever that might mean to you) , then THAT is the price you must pay. But, whichever your choice, do not FOOL yourself into believing that you can have it both ways because then you will wind up with NOTHING.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Behavior

One of the more surprising notions I ever encountered is that if we have a gas in a closed cylinder then, if we examine each molecule, it seems to be totally random, free, even chaotic in its behavior, and yet the volume as a whole obeys very precise laws of temperature and pressure. Instead of molecules we may consider people in a society. Their actions seem free, unpredictable, and yet the society as a whole exhibits a certain collective character or nature.

Test of Toshiba Thrive Tablet

I want to see how much I can do using only this Android tablet. Watching Republican debates.

Obama's Golden Rule Gaffe

Erik:

I’ll be honest. I didn’t notice this until someone else pointed it out. But, now I’m wondering who wrote the President’s recent spontaneous affectations of faith. The speechwriter probably has a fancy diploma, but he sure as heckfire didn’t graduate from Bible school.

William:
Interesting! You got me curious so I googled and found one source (among many) -

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/obama-talks-about-his-faith-2/

By the way, my own personal take is that Cain’s words “am I my brother’s keeper?” do NOT necessarily translate into “I AM my brother’s keeper” although many understand the verse in that fashion. Moses said, somewhere, (paraphrasing) “This day is placed before you good and evil, life and death; CHOOSE therefore LIFE.” So, you see, GOOD is each person’s free-will choice and not something may successfully be imposed upon people.

Excerpt:

“I’m a Christian by choice,” the president said. “My family, frankly, they weren’t folks who went to church every week. My mother was one of the most spiritual people I knew but she didn’t raise me in the church, so I came to my Christian faith later in life and it was because the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life that I would want to lead. Being my brothers and sisters’ keeper, treating others as they would treat me, and I think also understanding that Jesus Christ dying for my sins spoke to the humility we all have to have as human beings, that we’re sinful and we’re flawed and we make mistakes and we achieve salvation through the grace of God.”

Mr. Obama went on: “But what we can do, as flawed as we are, is still see God in other people, and do our best to help them find their own grace. That’s what I strive to do, that’s what I pray to do every day.’’ Yet he said that as president, he also “deeply believes that part of the bedrock strength of this country is that it embraces people of many faiths and of no faith.’’

Erik:
This rule is pure iron pyrite: “the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life that I would want to lead–being my brothers’ and sisters’ keeper, treating others as they would treat me.”

I was not talking about the conflation of New and Old Testament passages. That certainly is a standard reading of Jesus’ own words, in which he states that he accepts everything within the Old Testament.

I was talking about the twisting of the Golden Rule to mean EXACTLY the opposite to what most Christians take it to mean.

To be clear, “treating others as they would treat me” means the exact opposite to ‘doing unto others as you would *have* others do unto you.’ That “have” is a pretty derned important word in that particular sentence. Without it, one rapes rapists, murders murderers, harasses harassers, slaps slappers while turning ones check only to those who would turn theirs first, etc… and so on.

That’s just a gaffe, of course. The President didn’t mean to to get it wrong, even if secretly believes that the Golden Rule is a bunch of hooey.

But, it is a telling gaffe. It’s even more telling since his affected faith credo was obviously first focus grouped, then carefully crafted by a wordsmith, and then rehearsed by the President beforehand. I would not be the least bit surprised if the President hadn’t uttered the words precisely as they had been written.

Like I said, the gaffe is very telling.

William:

Erik admitted that he did not notice the gaffe until someone “brought it to his attention.” I was so preoccupied with the vitriol of the initial post that I too did not notice the gaffe until Erik pointed it out to me.

Jefferson indicated in a letter to someone that he desired to “erect a wall between church and state” and it is unfortunate that those very words did not find their way into the Constitution. Why should every candidate have to do a stump speech tour through the Bible Belt and loudly profess that “they have taken Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior; as the ONLY WAY that leads to heaven?” Why does a candidate like Huckabee have to explain to Newsweek what his understanding of “Biblical In-errancy” is (which, by the way he got ass backwards in light of II Peter 3:16.) Why did Bobby Jindal conveniently choose to convert to Catholicism in high school when is family religion was perfectly good for the likes of Mohandas Gandhi. I feel certain that Jindal would have converted to Islam had his parents moved to Indonesia and he would have become a Theravadin Buddhist had they moved to Sri Lanka.

Why does Jeb Bush marry a Roman Catholic Hispanic wife but then wait YEARS before converting to Roman Catholicism? Did he convert out of a deep spiritual conviction or was it a politically convenient move because of controversies arising in the Episcopal/Anglican communion?

From the point of view of Judaism the Christians got “the golden rule” all wrong. Christians pejoratively call the Jewish analog “the SILVER rule.” The Jewish rule was given by the likes of Hillel and Shamai as follows: “that which is HATEFUL to you DO NOT unto others.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillel_the_Elder

We all know what is hateful to us but it is presumptuous for use to assume that we know what is GOOD for others, and run about the world with our gun-point democracy and our missionaries who create “rice Christians” (converts in India who are starving and will do anything for a bit of rice and some blankets.)

So, Erik, since you are such a good Christian with immaculate Christian values and deep theological insights and since Christian values are absolutely ESSENTIAL for American political leaders, therefore you have a huge problem with what Paul said in Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Based upon what Paul said there is no person who is worthy of the presidency. Whatever are we to do? Would you actually advocate putting A SINNER in the office of the president?

Erik:

“Erik, since you are such a good Christian [...]“

When did I ever say anything like that?

What I was talking about was the clear meaning of the President’s words. Do you disagree with my interpretation of them?

William:
Erik, how can I be sure that you are a person of integrity who is worthy to represent the American government? How can I be certain that you are not some “whited sepulcher” which appears outwardly to be something pure and clean but inwardly is filled with impurity? Of course, Erik, I cannot know with certainty anything about your true nature.

Erik, how can I see you as “a patriotic American” when you seem to be attacking and demeaning your “commander in chief?” Perhaps I may construe your posts as an attempt both to overthrow the existing regime and also to insert into American government a “religious test” which is expressly forbidden by the Constitution?

Didn’t Jesus say something like “with what measure you measure out unto others so shall it be measured out unto you?” In the spirit of that verse I think we should put Erik under the same microscope that Erik uses on Obama to see if Eric measures up and passes the test.

Erik, you advise me to ask Jeb Bush about his beliefs and not discuss it with YOU. But am I not EQUALLY entitled to ask YOU why you do not write your concerns directly to the White House. Is it not your patriotic DUTY to make some formal statement of your serious concerns? Do you mean to say that you do not care enough about America to “do the right thing and write the letter?”

Are you NOT a high principled idealist who would even put his career on the line to speak out for truth and justice. Or are you a “part-line company man” who parrots the party line. I dare say that you would today condemn the McCarthy “witch hunts” BUT if you were living in the McCarthy era would you have the courage of an Edward R. Murrow to risk everything and speak out against what you see as wrong or would you conform and march in goose-step fashion in hopes of your continued employment and your next promotion?

Erik:
+++
‎’But am I not EQUALLY entitled to ask YOU why you do not write your concerns directly to the White House.”

Entitled? Why you sure are. Ask away.

“Is it not your patriotic DUTY to make some formal st…atement of your serious concerns?”

Nope. A FACEBOOK post was sufficient. Perhaps I will write a letter tot the editor!

“Do you mean to say that you do not care enough about America to do the right thing and write the letter?’”

So far, I have courteously answered all of your questions, while noting that you have not bothered to answer mine. perhaps I will answer this question with a question. What does this have to do with Global Warming on Mars?

“Or are you a ‘part-line company man’ who parrots the party line.”

This isn’t even a question. What does this have to do with the plight of the Plataeans during the Peloponnesian War?

“I dare say that you would today condemn the McCarthy ‘witch hunts’”

I suppose you can dare to say that.

“BUT if you were living in the McCarthy era would you have the courage of an Edward R. Murrow to risk everything and speak out against what you see as wrong or would you conform and march in goose-step fashion in hopes of your continued employment and your next promotion?”

How the hell am I supposed to know that? I can say that I would hold the President accountable for his words, since I am doing that right now. But, I can’t really talk about such a counterfactual scenario, since, of course, it is counterfactual.

William:
You see, Erik, the “golden rule” is a two way street. I am attempting to do “to you” exactly what you are attempting to do to Obama, namely, to twist and distort his words and actions in order to make him look bad. Anyone who reads this long thread would most likely come away with the impression that I favor Obama and am willing to overlook an understandable slip of the tongue but that YOU are most anxious to attack any little gap in his “armor.” You say that you stood long hot hours in the sun in order to “show respect” to the president but perhaps what you did was simply self-serving so that you could brag to everyone that you stood long hot hours.

Erik, you say you could care less about what I think of you so does that mean that Obama does not care what you or I or others think about him?

Erik, are you saying that you do not care what I think about you because you ONLY care about people who agree with you and stick to the “party line?”

Jesus said something about “you shall be judged for every word which proceeds from your lips.” We see the truth of Jesus’s words in the public reaction to this GRG (Golden Rule Gaffe.) But we also see the truth in the fact that each of us leaves a “footprint” with everything that we write or post on the Internet. We are all potentially under that same microscope of scrutiny and the only things which spares us is if we are a nobody (such as I am) and therefore no one really cares what we say or think.

Erik:

“I am attempting to do “to you” exactly what you are attempting to do to Obama, namely, to twist and distort his words and actions in order to make him look bad.”

Thanks for explaining. Too bad you failed, I suppose.

“Anyone who reads this lon…g thread would most likely come away with the impression that I favor Obama and am willing to overlook an understandable slip [...]“

Such a brave soul would be entitled to such an opinion.

“You say that you stood long hot hours in the sun in order to ‘show respect’ to the president but perhaps what you did was simply self-serving so that you could brag to everyone that you stood long hot hours.”

I supposed that I would find this offensive if I thought that you had given any thought to your words before you wrote them. My motives were exactly as I said they were. You have already said that you don’t know me well enough to trust me. That’s fine. But, that is another thing altogether from asserting that I might be lying. I request that you take that back. You have no evidence to support your claim, and everyone who does know me knows that what I said is the God’s honest truth.

“Erik, you say you could care less about what I think of you so does that mean that Obama does not care what you or I or others think about him?”

I didn’t say that. That is a product of your imagination. And, as to the rest of the statement, I have no idea what the President thinks, being that I am not a mind-reader.

“Erik, are you saying that you do not care what I think about you because you ONLY care about people who agree with you and stick to the ‘party line?’”

Ditto Ibid.

“We are all potentially under that same microscope of scrutiny [...]“
Not really. Careerist politicians accept greater scrutiny than average citizens only because they have to. There are many things that can be said about public figures which would be inappropriate to say about a private citizen. The President accepted that burden. If he does not like it, too bad for him.

William:

Erik, I will “take back” whatever you like since I actually value your on-line acquaintanceship (although I am not certain that the phrase “take something back” has any real meaning.) But sure, list everything you would like me to “take back” and I will publicly put my name to it.

Erik, I feel that I like your intellect and value YOUR acquaintance far more than you like or value Obama, but then again I might be wrong.

The only REALLY sad thing about this thread will be if no one else finds it interesting enough to participate on either side of it. I think it is interesting and controversial. After all, I am only doing what I was trained to do for 4 years at SJC, namely take an opposing position and give you a good run for your money, which I assume is what you are also doing.

Taking “offense” or umbrage is a good defensive measure (although it is a form of ad hominem) since it ends the entire conversation with an “I am right; you lose; and I am taking my bat and ball and going home.” If Obama were on our friends list and reading all this do you feel he would be offended by you or suspect that you are imputing to him mendacity?

I should think you would be pleased that someone is engaging you and giving you some resistance.

By the way, I never implied that you are lying. I totally believe that you did stand in the long hot sun for hours to appear respectful to the office of the presidency and it is totally possible to respect an office even if one despises the individual who holds the office. I have the right in my own mind to question your MOTIVES for standing long hot hours. If a movie star were scheduled for an appearance and people stood in line overnight with the hope of getting a glimpse or perhaps even an autograph then I would assume that they somehow respect and admire that movie star BUT it might also be the case that they hope to SELL the autograph or a photo or boast to others that they saw someone famous.

Erik:
‎”Taking ‘offense’ or umbrage is a good defensive measure (although it is a form of ad hominem) since it ends the entire conversation with an ‘I am right; you lose; and I am taking my bat and ball and going home’ [...] I never implied that you are lying.”

William, you explicitly questioned my honesty, without any evidence whatsoever to support the implications of the question. That is not an appropriate debate tactic.

You are welcome to question anything I say, especially if you have evidence which contradicts what I say. What you are not welcome to do is to baldly question is my word. My word is something which I hold quite dear.

When I talk about my motives for doing this or that, I am essentially giving my word that what I have said is true (as best as I can recall). When you question my word, you ipso facto imply that you believe that I might be lying.

I accept that you did not intend to do that, but, since we are actually talking about the strict reading of a given public person’s words, perhaps this subject is made that much more apt. Regardless of your intention, your words meant what they meant.

In such cases, a simple clarification afterwards is sufficient for remediation. That is, were I in your position, I would have said something to the effect of, ‘Oooooops, I did not mean to question your integrity, please allow me to withdraw the offending remark,’ and then left it at that.

As to your point about ‘offense as a rhetorical tactic,’ let me just say this. I think that in our entire FACEBOOK friendship you have had a chance to read similar words written by me twice. You could thus infer that even if this were a ‘tactic,’ it is one that I do not use routinely.

And, more to the point, as a matter of manifest fact, there was no need for me to use any sort of debate tactic at all, since you know very well, as I do, that I was quite right about the most important fact under discussion: That the President made a rather illuminating gaffe. That is beyond question, right?

William:
Erik, if you were for example to launch a diatribe against homosexuality and I were to conjecture that in reality it is some form of “Jungian Shadow” (which often it is) I would not be calling you a liar but rather I would be psychoanalyzing your to find motivations which you may not even realize yourself. I am certain that you felt in your heart that those long hot hours in the sun were the right thing to do and done with an admirable motivation. I do not question your honesty in that regard. BUT it might well be that you do not want to face the possibility that your actions are under scrutiny and that if you do not “go the extra mile” (another of Jesus’s expressions) then some people might feel that it reflects upon your character.

Yes Erik, you were totally correct in everything you posted about “the illuminating gaffe.”

I, for my part, fail to see why the American public concerns itself with the religious beliefs/practice of any politician or the lack thereof. Obviously many Americans DO concern themselves (which I see as flying against the spirit of the founding fathers and the Constitution) and in fact a significant percentage of Americans are convinced that Obama IS a Muslim (which you quite correctly pointed out is TRUE since Islamic societies consider the son of a Muslim father to be a father even if he never practices or confesses Islam.)

Some people do not see the gaffe as a big deal or anything more than an impromptu extemporaneous slip of the tongue. Others have an agenda to find it “very revealing” as you have so aptly pointed out. Eric, you seem convinced that these were not Obama’s extemporaneous words but actually the script of some oafish speech writer (in which case the gaffe is very revealing about the speech writer and reveals that the president should hire someone else.)

+++++

I need you on my list more than you need me since you are about 10 times smarter and more accomplished than I am so I shall certainly retract (take back) whatever you ask me to “take back” and will most humbly apologize for giving you or others the notion that I suspect you are a liar.

I just got home from a long trip.

I will point out the following technicality:

This entire thread BEGINS with YOUR WORDS (sic) “I’ll be honest.” which does imply or suggest that sometimes you are NOT honest, which leaves us open to the suggestion that sometimes you are DISHONEST. But I am analyzing YOUR OWN WORDS.

I will post this and then view the Youtube link above.

Of course I have no idea, Erik, whether or not you personally identify as a Christian. I would ASSUME that you must to be so upset over Obama’s GRG (golden rule gaffe). Now, IF you are a Christian then you are supposed to LOVE your enemies (and I am certainly NOT your enemy; on the contrary I greatly admire you) AND ALSO you are supposed to REJOICE AND BE GLAD “when people say all manner of evil things against you falsely.”

This is why I am greatly surprised that you take such serious offense and my words. Also, I believe you stated earlier in the thread that you do not CARE what I think. So, if you do not care what I think then I am puzzled why you would care if I think you are a liar (and I never said that or thought that.)

I shall soon turn 62 and I have 1.) never ONCE asked anyone to “take something back” (not even in early childhood) and 2.) I have never once demanded an apology from anyone. Whenever people have chosen to apologize to me, I always silently feel a certain contempt for then since to me an apology has no real meaning. It is like those people who elbow their way through crowds exclaiming “EXCUSE ME.” Their politeness is false. Once a woman did something very thoughtless and dangerous and then kept apologizing to me until I said “IF you were truly sorry then you would have been careful to begin with.” The danger I see in the “forgive me I am sorry” routine is that it is like James Bond 009 “license to..” do all sorts of things over and over and over.

Anyway, I would not intentionally say something if I knew you would get upset and unfriend me. So let me know if I need to grovel or apologize any further. I did think I was giving you a run for your money on a level playing field and that it is an interesting thread, but obviously I am mistaken.

Sorry!

Erik:

“This entire thread BEGINS with YOUR WORDS (sic) ‘I’ll be honest.’ which does imply or suggest that sometimes you are NOT honest, which leaves us open to the suggestion that sometimes you are DISHONEST. But I am analyzing YOUR OWN WORDS.”

Yes, William. I make no claims regarding my personal perfection. In fact, if you read my words carefully, you would know that I conceded my fallibility a number of times in this very thread. What I also said was that my word was important to me. When I talk about my personal motivations, I am giving my word. Because I value my word, and attempt to keep it valuable for others, I prefer that my word be accepted at face value during bullshit sessions such as this, except when there is evidence that I have either misspoken or dissembled. And, being that I am human, I certainly acknowledge both are possible. But, in this case, no such evidence could possibly have existed, since I said exactly what happened. This seems simple enough to me.

As to your apology, I already accepted the non-apology, but thanks anyway. I was not fishing for a better apology, by the way. I was just trying to explain to you what I meant, since you appeared not to understand.

“Of course I have no idea, Erik, whether or not you personally identify as a Christian.”

That’s because I rarely talk about such things publicly. Yes, I do identify myself as a Christian, but not a good one. I sure as heck don’t proselytize, and I will invariably choose football over church. Like the President, I was not raised a Christian. My father was a lifelong militant atheist and my mother has had an ever-changing array of trendy New Age spiritual belief systems, and accompanying cosmologies, which only intersected with Christianity coincidentally and tangentially. I don’t take communion when I attend Catholic mass, which I do often enough, because I am not a Catholic, but I have nothing against that church. I think it is a force for good. I won’t describe which church I do belong to, since I attend that church even less often than Catholic mass. On the other hand, were I ever to feel the need to explain to everyone at a Bar-B-Que about ‘what a good Christian I am,’ I’d hope that I would get the Golden Rule right. I’m just saying…

“I shall soon turn 62 and I have 1.) never ONCE asked anyone to ‘take something back’ (not even in early childhood) and 2.) I have never once demanded an apology from anyone.”

Well, good for you. Apparently, you aren’t me.

“Whenever people have chosen to apologize to me, I always silently feel a certain contempt for then since to me an apology has no real meaning. It is like those people who elbow their way through crowds exclaiming ‘EXCUSE ME.’ Their politeness is false.”

I don’t live in such a world. I live in a world in which people make all sorts of mistakes (sometimes mistakes which wrong others), regret them, and then seek to remediate them. In such cases such people often apologize to those whom they have wronged. I teach my kids to apologize under such circumstances. I always attempt to force myself to do likewise, though a genuine apology is always a bitter pill to swallow.

“Once a woman did something very thoughtless and dangerous and then kept apologizing to me until I said ‘IF you were truly sorry then you would have been careful to begin with.’”

That speaks volumes.


Sunday, January 22, 2012

Falling In Love With Love

Then too, there is always that old saw about "falling in love with love" , namely, we imagine and fantasize what love might be like for us and we see it romanticized in cinema and fiction countless times. Hemingway loved a nuse in Italy in WWI and she dumped him in real life, but in "A Farewell to Arms" Hemingway rewrites the story so that the nurse is madly in love with Hemingway, gets pregnant, dies in childbirth.

The Inequality of Love

In any relationship it is RARE that two people love each other EQUALLY or for the same reasons. SO, one must choose between someone who loves YOU more than you love them or someone that you love more than they love YOU. After a few years, one grows accustomed and perhaps even bored with anyone, say, Marylin Monroe stepping out of the shower in the altogether, and as the years pass BOTH partners will age and their physical beauty will fade AND one cannot obviously make love 24 / 7 so what is left is all the interpersonal shared moments. It is easier to make a friend into a lover than it is to make a lover into a friend. And even perfect love, if there is such a thing, does not guarantee happiness, if there is such a thing.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Costco acer $499

596022 acer AS5750-6667 15.6" 4hrs battery 4gig DDR3. Windoews 7 home microsoft signature
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Guns Germs and Steel

Pg 157 In order to be happy a marriage must succeed in many different respects: sexual attraction, agreement about money, child discipline, religion, in-laws, and other vital issues. Failure in any one of those essential respects can doom a marriage even if it has all the other ingredients needed for happiness. Hence, Tolstoy writes: Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

What to Blog and How to Blog and Why to Blog

I am age 63. I have been on line every day, blogging since 1998 with AOL dial-up and a free geocities site where I "blogged" by creating html pages (so perhaps I was a blogger before there was the word) ...  I spent years on Yahoo chat, Yahoo Egroups, IRC, various forums. Now I have 2000 friends on Facebook and 300 in G+.  My FB situation is unique BECAUSE I went to St. John's Annapolis '67-'71 and all courses for all 4 years are REQUIRED (no electives) so all my friends from SJC, even those who graduated last year, read all the same so-called 100 great books of the western world.  We all have a lot in common. Sociologists who study social networking claim that no matter how many friends we have, we tend to closely interact with only 20 to 40 and I find that to be true.  I have perhaps 20 real friends where we from time to time privately discuss every imaginable aspect of our personal life. I have only ONE such friend so far here in Google Plus and she is in the far east.  I notice a great many GIFs many of which are amusing, of cats and people jumping through fire or into toilets or out of toilets. Many of the Gifs are amusing. Some are distracting so I mute them.  The point that I want to make is that my years of on line experience consist of simply sharing my thoughts, ideas, ... my life. IF you follow me and read my posts then you get to know me as a person. Many of the people who post dazzling Gifs etc reveal ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about their personal lives.  That is fine. That is their choice. I blog each and every day because it is my main form of human contact. My on line friends are actually CLOSER to me than people I meet and see in real life, and it is precisely because ALL WE HAVE ARE WORDS, so we have to share, express, confide. On-line romances are to a females advantage BECAUSE guys often do not open up... so you might date someone for 5 years, bowling, beach, dinners, movies, but never really share, communicate. On line all the guy has is WORDS.  So these are my thoughts on blogging/posting.

Monday, January 16, 2012

Smelly Hats

I realize I am a heretic. I feel that if there is a God (and I can neither prove nor disprove existence) then surely that God knows each and every thought and therefore God knows my benevolent mood towards your mother and her joints. But even before I had my thought, God knew about your mother, the knee, even before the doctor. Even before she was born, God knew about that knee. So, if it gets all better, only God knows. But I cannot see getting on my knees, squinting my eyes, pursing my lips, like G.W. Bush at a photo op. Jesus said whatever you do, do it in your closet and what God sees in private and secret he/she/it rewards openly.  Every day I am grateful that I belong to no religion that requires a hat. Hats get smelly very fast and then you have to walk around with a smelly hat. Not good!

Smelly Hats

I realize I am a heretic. I feel that if there is a God (and I can neither prove nor disprove existence) then surely that God knows each and every thought and therefore God knows my benevolent mood towards your mother and her joints. But even before I had my thought, God knew about your mother, the knee, even before the doctor. Even before she was born, God knew about that knee. So, if it gets all better, only God knows. But I cannot see getting on my knees, squinting my eyes, pursing my lips, like G.W. Bush at a photo op. Jesus said whatever you do, do it in your closet and what God sees in private and secret he/she/it rewards openly.  Every day I am grateful that I belong to no religion that requires a hat. Hats get smelly very fast and then you have to walk around with a smelly hat. Not good!

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Virtue and Happiness

(8-16-99)

Virtue and Happiness

someone wrote:

Many philosophers have tried to prove that God exists. Some of the various proofs became so famous that they were given names. Likewise, with equal vigour many philosophers have challenged these proofs. In 18th century, Kant suggested that the proof of Gods existence was not provable and that some other aspect of reason must be considered as the source of the idea of God. He postulated that the existence of God was the grounds for the necessary connection between virtue and happiness. Subsequently, Kierkegaard suggests three levels of existence for humanity. The first is his "aesthetic stage", the second his "ethical stage" and the third his "religious" stage. He who lives at the "aesthetic stage" grasps enjoyment. Good is whatever is beautiful, satisfying or pleasant. He is a slave to his desires and moods. "Ethical man" tries to live by the law of morals. Whether he acts correctly or not in a given situation is less important than that he has in fact a view of what is ethical and attempts to act "correctly". (Socrates) Kierkegaard's idea of the "religious man", is postulated from the idea that "ethical man" comes to realise that lack of knowledge of situations from an ethical viewpoint will lead him necessarily to making inaccurate ethical choices. This leads to a sense of guilt and the need to leap by an act of faith into a "religious existence" The idea of faith in the connection between virtuous living and happiness seems to be an important motivator for many Christians in making their leap to a "religious existence". I am interested to know to what extent this statement applies to different religious philosophies.

Sitaram's response:

Excellent post!

So many Religions have a quid-pro-quo aspect (something for something). IF you do these good things, and abstain from these bad things, THEN you will receive and enjoy THESE good things, OTHERWISE, you will be deprived of good things and suffer these BAD things.

In Christianity, we see that the soul has a beginning in time: Psalm 139:6 "Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being imperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them" and Hebrews 9:27 "And it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." So he soul is immortal, but not eternal, for it has a beginning in time. And based on the Judgment, the soul is either contemned to everlasting death (the worm that does not die, the wailing, the gnashing of teeth), or it is rewarded with everlasting life ; Isaiah 64:4 "For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him." And 1 Corinthians 2:9 "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him."

In Hinduism, we read in the Bhagavad-Gita, Lord Krishna telling Arjuna, "There was never a time when you were not or when I was not. You do not remember your births but I remember all my re-births and incarnations." So, in Hinduism, the soul (jiva, atman) has NO BEGINNING in time, it is a spark from the great Light of Brahman. The soul is truly ETERNAL as opposed to the simple IMMORTALITY of Christianity. But, it seems to me that Hinduism goes beyond the QUID-PRO-QUO mentality. Lord Krishna says in the Gita that He receives all worship, offerings and prayers, even from those ignorant of His true nature. And on the walls of the ancient Temple of Sri Vinkanteshera in Tirupati there is an inscription which says "All offerings everywhere, come to Me." In fact, else where in the Gita, Lord Krsna says "Out of THOUSANDS , hardly ONE seeks me, and out of THOUSANDS WHO DO seek Me, hardly ONE comprehends my true nature. So we see here a concept of God who does not expect all mankind to know Him or understand Him or to have correct doctrinal belief concerning Him. How different this picture of God is from the Old Testament verses in which God says "My name is Jealous", Exodus 34:14 "For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God."

Our modern physics understands matter as primordial atoms, made of even more primordial sub-atomic particles, whose origin in time is perhaps the first moment of the Big Bang, but otherwise unknown. And these atoms and sub-atomic particles are RECYCLED in a sort of TRANSMIGRATION, as nebulous gas clouds congeal to form suns, and suns cast out streams which become planets, and planets give off material to become moons, and the atoms which yesterday were in an apple tree, are today a part of my bloodstream, and tomorrow will be in a mosquitoes wing. Also, in modern physics, we see great laws of preservation or conservation of matter and energy in the various laws of thermodynamics and in Einstein's equations. And yet, for Jewish, Christian and Islamic theologies, each soul is created once, and never recycled.

I once heard an Islamic theologian say that, since God (Allah) desired to create the world, He must of necessity create it as OTHER than Himself, and since He is PERFECT, therefore, of necessity, the world that He creates must be OTHER, and therefore IMPERFECT. This NECESSITY which God is under must be POWERFUL INDEED, if it can constrain God's actions!

I read another theologian elsewhere (I cant remember where) saying that since God had nothing but Himself, He created the world OUT OF HIMSELF. Now this notion sounds more Hindu. Consciousness IN ANY FORM, whether a humans, a dogs, or a mosquito's is a spark from that CONSCIOUSNESS which is Brahman.

In Isaiah 55:7,8 we read "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his THOUGHTS: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." In this passage, we see God having THOUGHTS (i.e. CONSCIOUSNESS), albeit not at the same level or quality as HUMAN THOUGHTS (CONSCIOUSNESS), but THOUGHTS nonetheless.

Jesus mentions that a sparrow, which is sold for a few cents, cannot fall from the sky, but the Heavenly Father knows. Most westerners envision God somewhere in Heaven with his Supernatural TELESCOPE watching that sparrow fall from heaven. But from the point of view of the Svetasvatara Upanisad (which describes each being as a tree with two birds, one the individual doer, and the other the Paramatman beholder, God), God does not see the sparrow fall from His Heavenly Telescope, from some distant vantage point, BUT FROM INSIDE THE SPARROW, as the INDWELLING Paramatman.

Western theologies (and I consider Islam western, despite the geography of Mecca) consider the material universe as something which God creates as separate from Himself. He winds it up and sets it running, like the Energizer Bunny of Duracell Battery Fame. God gives the material universe a set of immutable laws, and gives creatures free-will, and then stands back to see what happens, intervening only occasionally to suspend those physical laws in the form of a miracle. Some western theologies even posit that God intentionally limits himself and gives up some of His Omniscience and Omnipotence, and sacrifices His Divine Foreknowledge of all future events, in order to make this Energizer Bunny Universe of ours work properly. And, of course, there is ONLY ONE UNIVERSE, which, in parallel with the western concept of the Soul, was created at a point in time, but which IS NOT IMMORTAL. At some point, as we read in Isaiah 34:4 an Revelation g:14 "And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places." Hence, in the Western view, the TIME-SPACE continuum ceases, much like Stephen Hawkings "A Brief History of Time". And at the End of Time, at the End of Space, we read in the Book of Revelation 7:15-17 "Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes." TIME-SPACE ceases, and it is GOD who becomes their LIGHT, their FOOD, their RAIMENT, their SHELTER. And is not this concept in Revelation, of God being the space, light, food and raiment, IS NOT THIS CONCEPT STRANGELY PANTHEISTIC (namely that God IS all things). One of the words in the Torah for God is MAKOM, which means PLACE or SPACE. Hence, the Talmudic saying, "God is the PLACE of the Universe. God is not IN the Universe." In face the Jewish Mystical Kaballah has a notion of Tsim Tsum (or Zim Zum, which means CONTRACTION or WITHDRAWAL). God is such a FULLNESS, COMPLETENESS, PERFECTION, that He must CONTRACT AND WITHDRAW, to make a PLACE (Makom) for the Universe. Strangely, for western minds, the physical, material universe is somehow dirty and defiling, and it is blasphemous to suggest that God IS the Universe, or that the Universe is somehow MADE out of Godstuff. And yet these theologies insist that God is "everywhere present and fillest all things" (as in the ancient Greek prayer 'O Pantaxou paron kai ta Panta pleiron').

Modern Physics and our friend Stephen Hawkings postulates that there are BLACK HOLES, perhaps COUNTLESS NUMBERS OF BLACK HOLES scattered throughout our universe. Some physicists postulate that our very Universe itself is INSIDE a black hole. The notion is that inside each black hole is ANOTHER BIG BANG, another expanding TIME-SPACE Continuum, a Riemann-Space, finite but unbounded. Now Hinduism sees Creation, Preservation, and Destruction as a continuous cycle. This Black Hole notion extends such a notion to a MULTITUDE OF UNIVERSES (Big Bs) all nicely tucked one inside the other, like N-Dimensional Russian Dolls (where each doll has a smaller doll inside). And each "Universe" might be at a different stage of development, each with its Avatars, its Lord Rams battling Ravanna, its Lord Krishna's playing their flutes, its Buddhas awakening and its Christs resurrecting.

Getting back to our QUID PRO QUO observation about western theologies, we may contrast with a story from the Mahabharat (I would love to know the chapter and verse if someone has it please email). There is a King and Queen who are driven into exile from their kingdom and are forced to live in a simple hut in sight of the majestic Himalaya Mountains. The King is a very religious person and always performs his prayers and offerings, in good times and in bad. One day, the Queen emerges from their impoverished hut and sees the King ardently engaged in prayer and worship. She asks him, "Why do you continue to worship God so ardently, seeing that we have been deprived of all our riches, and live in such poverty?" The King points to the majestic Himalaya Mountains in the distance and says, "See how grand, majestic and beautiful the Himalayas are! Do those mountains bear some guilt for our misfortunes? Should I cease to gaze upon them and admire them and praise them, and spite my eyes and my senses to behold them no more, simply because of my misfortune?"

Only a very few actual writings and prayers have come down to us from Lord Chaitanya , the sixteenth century Vaishnav saint. One of those prayers basically says, "O Lord, I do not ask for money, or pleasures, or even liberation from the cycle of birth and death, but only to serve at Your Lotus Feet life after life, even if your foot should crush me." We see that when Lord Ram shot the wicked Balin, who had usurped his brothers throne, Lord Ram had compassion upon him and offered to heal his wound. But Balin replied, "How many lifetimes might come and go without receiving the honor to die at the hand of the Lords' Avatar." So Balin was seeking Union and Moksha, rather that further life and enjoyments.

Christianity has a curious habit of asking other people for their prayers. "Pray for me because I am sick. Pray for my parents. Pray for my son and daughter. Pray for that nation torn by war, plague and famine." Epictetus made an interesting observation in his Discourses. He wrote, "Why do you pray to Jupiter for the safety of your son before he embarks upon a long journey. Why not ask Jupiter for the Equanimity of an Even-Keeled Spirit, to endure whatever good or bad fortune might result." Lord Krishna's, similarly, says to Arjuna, "It is necessary that Joys and Sorrows should enter each persons life, but he who endures them with Equanimity and a balanced spirit is the True Yogin and master of the Self." The Western, quid pro quo notion of prayer is to ask for something. The Hindu notion is that each good and ill that we suffer is our very own doing; a karmic consequence of some thought or action from this life or a previous life. And furthermore, each good and ill that we suffer is for our benefit. King Solomon basically said (if I may paraphrase his writings) : "Every son whom the Lord loves he chastens every one whom He receives, and places their souls in the fire of adversity, until they reach a seven-fold purity like gold in the furnace." There is a sort of impertinence in the notion of asking God to alter our circumstances, if they are for our own benefit and instruction. Such supplicatory prayer is almost a lack of faith in Divine Wisdom, Mercy and Providence and a sort of insult to God. And the insult is compounded when we do not even offer such prayers ourselves but ask others to do it for us. If we had an important favor to ask of a King, and we sent a relative, to ask on our behalf, what would that King thing. It is for a busy King to dispatch a messenger to us, and we are honored by such a visit but it is our place to petition in person, if we are to even petition at all.

The early Greek theologians told a parable about the three types of devotion of believers; the Slave, the Hired Hand, and the true-born Son. The Slave acts out of fear of punishment. The Hired Hand acts from hope of reward. The true-born Son acts neither from fear of punishment nor from hope of reward but from selfless love of the Father. I am somehow reminded at this moment, as I write these words, of Chaitanya's words concerning "the Lord's CAUSELESS MERCY", and that verse in the Gita where Lord Krishna says (paraphrasing), "What my Devotee has achieved, I preserve from birth to birth, and what my Devotee lacks, I supplement and provide through Grace." In the oddest sort of way, we see that God does not create the physical Universe, or sentient beings as His goal. What God CREATES or RE-CREATES, IS GOD. Even a Greek Bishop, St Athanasius, of the early centuries said, "God became man so that Man might become God."

Atheists and Agnostics might speak about man creating God. Theologians might speak about God creating the Universe and mankind. But there is in Hinduism, I suspect, some talk of God CREATING GOD through the perfection of all beings in His Divine Lila or Pass-Times.

(reply from Siddhartha):

Sitaram,

I read through your post. Interesting. I am reminded of an answer I received for my question regarding creation.

This individual pointed me to a fractal video (those cool iterative pictures). He told me look at it, that is Brahman he said, and then he set the fractal into motion, and the movie went into one of the fractals aspects, and he said, that is you, and the movie kept zooming into the aspect and then after a few zooms, the original fractal came at me again.

I thought this to be a nice analogy of Brahman. The Supreme without a beginning in time nor an end. So the person suggested that the question regarding creation is trivial, because one cannot put a finger on where it all began



(from S. Radhakrishnan's "An Idealist View of Life", pg. 232) 

The human instinct for justice naturally associates the thought of suffering 
and pain with vice and wickedness. 
Suffering is the shadow thrown by the power of evil. Even Kant is inclined to 
look upon God as a sort of "paymaster in chief", working out a compensatory 
system of justice.

For Kant, while Virtue is the supreme good (supremum bonum), it is not the 
complete good (summum bonum. The COMPLETE Good includes Happiness also, as 
well as virtue. 

.......(end of quote)...(my thoughts below)... 


Can we be "good" and also be "happy" in our goodness, our modesty, our 
moderation, our charity, patience and long-suffering? 

Ethical and moral righteousness of behavior is an external, but our happiness 
over such behavior involves an internal transformation. 

There is a curious verse in the bible... "blessed are those who HUNGER AND 
THIRST after righteousness, for they shall be filled". When we first read 
this verse, in our youth, perhaps we imagine some oppressed or persecuted 
people. The "righteousness" they hunger and thirst for is the redress of 
their own grievances, and their deliverance from oppression. 

Lord Krsna in the Gita says 'The self is the best friend (potentially) but 
also (potentially) the worst enemy..." 


Why does that verse say "hunger AND thirst"? Would not one metaphor be 
adequate. 

Food and water are such a deep-seated primordial need. 

When we are older, perhaps we see not the external oppressor and tyrant and 
persecutor, but the INTERNAL tyrant of our own appetites, desire, ego, pride. 

"Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word which proceeds from God". 

"If you drink the water from this well, you will thirst again, but had you 
asked Me, I would give you living waters, and you would thirst no more..." 

"eat this all of you, this is my Body..." 

"drink this all of you, this is my Blood.." 

Certainly a Christian will be pleased to see the importance of eating AND 
drinking as a metaphor of Communion, Eucharist. 

The word Yoga is related to the word yoke, a joining, a union, which is 
similar to "communion". 

Is Christ "happy" in His crucifixion, His suffering? 

Christ speaks of the "travail" of a woman giving birth, but when it is over, 
there is joy over the child which is born, and the pain of travail is 
forgotten. 

The process of "joining" or yoking two entities together, taken to its final 
extreme, is to merge, to become one, to be "non-different". 

In the 4th century, St. Athanasius, a Christian Bishop said "God became man, 
so that man might become God." 

Ahimsa is the highest form of Dharma. 

To become perfect in righteousness, in non-violence, and also to be perfectly 
HAPPY with such a state of being, not grudging or resentful or filled with a 
longing regret; this is the complete good. 

But if we can only achieve one, then to be moral and righteous, and suffering 
is higher than to be happy but unjust. 

To be righteous and suffer is saintly. To be happy and unjust is sinful. To 
be righteous and happy is Divinity. 


Sex in Moderation

It occurs to me that sex is an important "part of life" ... but "part of life" means there are other things in life so if and when it becomes "all of life" then something is out of balance. I know a woman in her late 30s who married a much ...younger man in his early 20s (they later divorced.) She said when he came home each day THAT'S ALL HE WANTED TO DO... and she said she was tired and wanted to do other things and only do that some times, but not ALL the time.

I know what my friend said about her younger husband. I also know many true stories and confessions from my college days. ALSO, there are case studies of certain people who have 500 contacts per week. As Carl Saga used to say "Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence." I was Greek Orthodox for 20 years (from age 23 to age 43) and in a monastery for 13 months. I seriously doubt that Christ had sex but I can feel compassion for those who feel the need to see Christ as a sexual person. Jesus said "Some are born eunuchs' some are made eunuchs by others and some make eunuchs of themselves for the sake of the kingdom of God. This is a hard saying but let those to who that grace has been given take it up." I am paraphrasing from memory. Now lets see what I can google. 

http://bible.cc/matthew/19-12.htm

And we can add to that Paul's statement that "it is better to marry than to burn"

http://bible.cc/1_corinthians/7-9.htm

And I will add to this what was said by Cephas in Book One of Plato's Republic. Socrates and his companions saw the old man, Cephas (whose name literally means HEAD), and said "How is your service of Aphrodite" (i.e. how is your sex life) and Cephas answered that when one reaches old age then one is "freed from many mad masters."

It is wise to read the thread for clues. It is wiser to read scriptures and the classics. 

Sex in Moderation

It occurs to me that sex is an important "part of life" ... but "part of life" means there are other things in life so if and when it becomes "all of life" then something is out of balance. I know a woman in her late 30s who married a much ...younger man in his early 20s (they later divorced.) She said when he came home each day THAT'S ALL HE WANTED TO DO... and she said she was tired and wanted to do other things and only do that some times, but not ALL the time.

I know what my friend said about her younger husband. I also know many true stories and confessions from my college days. ALSO, there are case studies of certain people who have 500 contacts per week. As Carl Saga used to say "Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence." I was Greek Orthodox for 20 years (from age 23 to age 43) and in a monastery for 13 months. I seriously doubt that Christ had sex but I can feel compassion for those who feel the need to see Christ as a sexual person. Jesus said "Some are born eunuchs' some are made eunuchs by others and some make eunuchs of themselves for the sake of the kingdom of God. This is a hard saying but let those to who that grace has been given take it up." I am paraphrasing from memory. Now lets see what I can google. 

http://bible.cc/matthew/19-12.htm

And we can add to that Paul's statement that "it is better to marry than to burn"

http://bible.cc/1_corinthians/7-9.htm

And I will add to this what was said by Cephas in Book One of Plato's Republic. Socrates and his companions saw the old man, Cephas (whose name literally means HEAD), and said "How is your service of Aphrodite" (i.e. how is your sex life) and Cephas answered that when one reaches old age then one is "freed from many mad masters."

It is wise to read the thread for clues. It is wiser to read scriptures and the classics. 

Downsize Government and Cut Costs

When a company falls on difficult times, one of the things that seems to happen is they reduce their staff and workers. The remaining workers must find ways to continue to do a good job or risk that their job would be eliminated as well. 

Wall street and the media normally congratulate the CEO for making this type of "tough decision", and the board of directors gives upper corporate management big bonuses.. 

Our government should not be immune from similar risks. 

Therefore: 

Reduce the House of Representatives from the current 435 members to 218 members. 
Reduce Senate members from 100 to 50 (one per State). Then, reduce their remaining staff by 25%.

Accomplish this over the next 8 years (two steps/two elections) and of course this would require some redistricting.

Some Yearly Monetary Gains Include:

$44,108,400 for elimination of base pay for congress. (267 members X $165,200 pay/member/ yr.)

$437,100,000 for elimination of their staff. (Estimate $1.3 Million in staff per each member of the House, and $3 Million in staff per each member of the Senate every year)

$108,350,000 for the reduction in remaining staff by 25%. 

$7,500,000,000reduction in pork barrel earmarks each year. (Those members whose jobs are gone. Current estimates for total government pork earmarks are at $15 Billion/yr). 

The remaining representatives would need to work smarter and improve efficiencies.. It might even be in their best interests to work together for the good of our country! 

We may also expect that smaller committees might lead to a more efficient resolution of issues as well. It might even be easier to keep track of what your representative is doing.

Congress has more tools available to do their jobs than it had back in 1911 when the current number of representatives was established. (Telephone, computers, cell phones to name a few)

Note:
Congress does not hesitate to head home for extended weekends, holidays and recesses, when what the nation needs is a real fix for economic problems. Also, we had 3 senators who were not doing their jobs for the 18+ months (on the campaign trail) and still they all accepted full pay. Minnesota survived very well with only one senator for the first half of this year. These facts alone support a reduction in senators and congress. 

Summary of opportunity: 

$44,108,400 reduction of congress members.

$282,100,000 for elimination of the reduced house member staff. 

$150,000,000 for elimination of reduced senate member staff. 

$70,850,000 for 25% reduction of staff for remaining house members. 

$37,500,000 for 25% reduction of staff for remaining senate members. 

$7,500,000,000 reduction in pork added to bills by the reduction of congress members. 

$8,084,558,400 per year, estimated total savings. (That's 8-BILLION just to start!)

Corporate America does these types of cuts all the time.
There's even a name for it. 

"Downsizing."
------------------------------
Also, if Congresspersons were required to serve 20, 25 or 30 years (like everyone else) in order to collect retirement benefits, taxpayers could save a bundle. 

Now they get full retirement after serving only ONE term. 

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

IF you are happy with how Washington spends our taxes, delete this message. 
Otherwise, it's time to "downsize" Congress
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please consider forwarding, if you agree. 

I have cleaned this e-mail of all other names, sending it to you in hopes that you will keep it going and keep it clean. This is something I believe in and I hope you all read it all the way through. 

The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months and 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971...before computers, before e-mail, before cell phones, etc.. 

Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7) took 1 year or less to become the law of the land...all because of public pressure. 

I'm asking each addressee to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise. 

In three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one idea that really should be passed around. 

Congressional Reform Act of 2011 

1. Term Limits. 12 years only, one of the possible options below..

A. Two Six-year Senate terms 
B. Six Two-year House terms 
C. One Six-year Senate term and three Two-Year House terms 

2. No Tenure / No Pension. 

A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office. 

3. Congress (past , present and future) participates in Social Security 

All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people. 

4. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do. 

5. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

6. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people. 

7. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people. 

8. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/12. 

The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves. 

Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work. 

If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days for most people (in the U.S. ) to receive the message. Maybe it is time.. 

LET'S FIX CONGRESS!!!!! If you agree, pass it on. If not, just delete. You are one of my contacts. Please keep it going.       Possibly "gridlock" is the best possble scenario we can hope for at the present!  They aren't doing much, and "doing nothing" is better than making it worse!  Even the "new blood" is succoming to the "status quo" at breakneck speed, and caving to current ruler! 

Small problems lead to major problems

My wife started coughing and choking all the time and went to an allergist for a year. The more pills and inhalers he gave her the worse she got. When the only tool you have is a hammer then every problem tends to become a nail. One day I walked into his office and told him she is getting worse and he is doing nothing. We finally found out what the problem was when she went for a routine physical and they saw from her creatinine that her kidneys were almost gone. She had a very rare autoimmune disease called Wegner's Granulomatosa which can attack the kidneys and sinus and lung. IF it had been detected a year earlier, then massive doses of prednisone MIGHT have saved her kidneys. She went on hemodialysis, then to peritoneal dialysis, then back to hemo, then her sister donated a kidney and it died in 12 hours, then she received a cadaverous kidney which just barely works, but it keeps her off of hemodialysis. But it all started with the coughing, choking. And they used a gadolinium contrast dye in an MRI and that caused a second serious autoimmune disease, nephrogenic fibrosine dermapothy which is incurable and very painful. And she has a third autoimmune disease, Graves syndrome (thyroid). When she started in dialysis, they had to insert a shylie access in her neck for 6 months while they built a fistula in her arm. The shylie caused complete occlusion of the SVC (superior vena cava) so that caused all her veins to enlarge to compensate. And they cant insert a stent because they can see what they are doing and more contrast dye would damage the kidney, and she is otherwise asymtomatic for the occlusion, and then nature of the circulatory system is that it would probably occlude again anyway even with the stent.  For the want of a nail the horseshoe was lost, For the want of the horseshoe the horse was lost. For the want of the horse, the soldier was lost. For the want of the soldier, the battle was lost. For the want of the battle, the kingdom was lost. And all for want of the nail. 

Small problems lead to major problems

My wife started coughing and choking all the time and went to an allergist for a year. The more pills and inhalers he gave her the worse she got. When the only tool you have is a hammer then every problem tends to become a nail. One day I walked into his office and told him she is getting worse and he is doing nothing. We finally found out what the problem was when she went for a routine physical and they saw from her creatinine that her kidneys were almost gone. She had a very rare autoimmune disease called Wegner's Granulomatosa which can attack the kidneys and sinus and lung. IF it had been detected a year earlier, then massive doses of prednisone MIGHT have saved her kidneys. She went on hemodialysis, then to peritoneal dialysis, then back to hemo, then her sister donated a kidney and it died in 12 hours, then she received a cadaverous kidney which just barely works, but it keeps her off of hemodialysis. But it all started with the coughing, choking. And they used a gadolinium contrast dye in an MRI and that caused a second serious autoimmune disease, nephrogenic fibrosine dermapothy which is incurable and very painful. And she has a third autoimmune disease, Graves syndrome (thyroid). When she started in dialysis, they had to insert a shylie access in her neck for 6 months while they built a fistula in her arm. The shylie caused complete occlusion of the SVC (superior vena cava) so that caused all her veins to enlarge to compensate. And they cant insert a stent because they can see what they are doing and more contrast dye would damage the kidney, and she is otherwise asymtomatic for the occlusion, and then nature of the circulatory system is that it would probably occlude again anyway even with the stent.  For the want of a nail the horseshoe was lost, For the want of the horseshoe the horse was lost. For the want of the horse, the soldier was lost. For the want of the soldier, the battle was lost. For the want of the battle, the kingdom was lost. And all for want of the nail. 

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Reason, Tradition and the Good

What do you think are the most important things to say about Reason, Tradition, and the Good ?

Tradition produced Scriptures. Scriptures did not produce Tradition. The Book of Job speaks of God as having such power over human reason that it may become foolishness. I will look up that passage. For the Catholic, I should imagine, God i...s synonymous with Goodness BUT God is beyond our human comprehension. Solomon said "there are ways that seem good but the end thereof is death. When Josephs brethern came to him in Egypt to ask forgiveness... Joseph said "You intended evil but G-d transformed your evil into Good" ... I am posting this in hast because FB and browser are unstable... one may simply have faith or hope that all is for the good, but our reason is weak and the true nature of good is beyond our comprehension. Faith is a gift given to some and understand follows from faith, but only enough understanding as is necessary to be salvific - Maximus the Confessor

Bezaleel was the architect of the first temple. One of the early theologians wrote "be, therefore, a spiritual Bezaleel" meaning that Bezaleel took some subjective liberty in following the plan of the temple. So if we interpret or embellish we must remain in the spirit of the tradition.

Aquinas is in error in the Summa stating that understanding comes first and faith follows from understanding. Maximus the Confessor is correct stating that faith comes first as a give and understanding comes from that gift of faith. Saints are sinners for all have sinned and fallen short... and saints are not infallible.

http://williambuell.posterous.com/be-thou-a-spiritual-bezaleel

http://bible.cc/job/12-25.htm

We must reflect that the fall from paradise began with the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. In Hebrew, in Genesis 1:1, "darkness and void" is "Tohu va Bohu" which is already present. The source of all sin is pride and it is difficult to acquire understanding yet avoid pride.

Jaroslav Pelikan takes Paul's passagehttp://bible.cc/1_corinthians/13-13.htm and interprets FAITH as doctrinal creed (e.g. The Nicene Creed - I believe in one God") ... so Pelikan suggests that LOVE is more important than doctrine. I am wondering if love in the Greek is really the word for charity. I must search.

All of the above is the "religious answer" - for the secular age of reason and technology, we do become like gods in the sense that we can alter genetic and molecular structures... but since moral/ethical GOOD is beyond our grasp, therefore... our technology may be our destruction -- perhaps the enduring good was with the Neanderthal who lived in harmony with the environment and was hardy through natural selection, needing no health care.

We are not told that the Tohu Va Bohu was created but rather simply IS

We fell through disobedience which involved questioning which involved reason. Salvation, if there is salvation, comes through unquestioning obedience where one crucifies the self will. Think of Christ in the tomb as the divine kenosis or emptying.

Ptolemy's Almagist is solid reasoning AND is accurate but does not get at the truth of cosmology. Reduction ad absurdum proofs USE what is false to arrive at what is true in the context of some axiomatic system but we know from the work of Kurt Godel and axiomatic systems are relative and not absolute so we feel less certainty today than Socrates and Euclid felt, or Descartes for that matter.

Solomon prayed for wisdom and God promised Solomon that he would be wiser than any man who came before and ALSO wiser than any who would com after. Jesus said "a WISER than a Solomon is in your midst" but Jesus is not simply anthropos but Theos-anthropos.

Hans Kung put it all in a nutshell on page 1 of "On Being Christian" ... WHY do we need Christ.... Why can we not simply lead good lives as rational humanists?

Maimonides states that "Righteousness is not a goal or end but merely a preparation for participation in a future world (of the Tikun Olam / Apokatastasis , I imagine)

Kung is still a priest, still in communion BUT he raised serious questions about the doctrine of Papal infallibility. But still .... IF you believe that REASON and UNDERSTANDING come first and faith follows.... then you are faced with the p...roblem of answering Kung's question....WHY do we need an actual incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, if reason and understanding is sufficient to persuade us to lead a life which saves

You have no choice but to be stuck in the dynamics of your own grand narrative (with all due respect) PLUS your opening post hints you were at a loss as to how to answer.??!!

Luther of the Reformation became trapped in the grand narrative which he constructed... and Charles Stanley is now trapped in Stanley's grand narrative

But if understanding is prior to faith, and you already have Aquinas and Augustine, and the host of others... then what is lacking.... all should follow as a grand syllogism, no?

The five foolish virgins WERE VIRGINS (possessed purity) AND they possessed oil, only not sufficient oil. Where does REASON come into play in any of the parables. I say if you cannot find the role of REASON in the parables then you have failed.

as I see it... for the first 10 years or MORE after the ascension there was NO New Testament, and yet somehow, those Christians, many illiterate , has all that was necessary and sufficient for salvation. So what role does REASON play.... Did Aquinas make any errors. Aquinas was not Pope so you cannot claim papal infallibility. Furthermore, we may assume that in the first 800 years the Church had everything that was necessary and sufficient for those who worked out their salvation. Now "tradition" evolved over the centuries. But as I see it you have a very difficult task to reconcile your notions of "reason" with the history of the early Church.


But, was it "comprehension" that saved people, and do all who comprehend repent and work out their salvation with fear and trembling? We all know that smoking causes serious illnesses and such knowledge or understanding is necessary but, obviously, not sufficient for all to give up smoking.


Rome and Constantinople split PRECISELY because of this difference regarding "reason."  The RC Church states that the Eastern Orthodox Church is merely schismatic which means they have no doctrinal errors (I assume) yet part of E.O. doctrine (up until the 20th century) is that the RC Church is deeply in heresy on many counts. FURTHERMORE, Christ tells the Apostles that no human flesh has taught you these things but God has placed it in your heart and no person comes to the Son unless the Father draws him, so I hardly see Socratic dialectic or Aristotelian syllogisms playing a role. IN FACT, the Greeks who "owned" Plato and Aristotle, never use them in their theology, so if reasoning and understanding are so important than why do the Greeks IGNORE the two Greek sources of dialectic and logic for so many centuries?


Monday, January 09, 2012

The Words of Jesus In Matthew

An interesting discussion arose in Facebook when someone stated that Jesus said many "warm and inclusive" things. I challenged them to list what they can remember but they could not. So I found a website which lists ONLY the words of Jesus.

http://www.rdletter.com/

(the entire words of Jesus from the New Testament would be 162 pages in PDF)

The Gospel According to
Matthew
Chapter 3 
At River Jordan, to John the Baptist
15
Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. 
Then he suffered him.
At the baptism of Jesus, 
after the Holy Ghost descended
The Father spoke
17
This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 
Chapter 4
Alone in the wilderness, to Satan
4
It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that 
proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
7
It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
10
Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy 
God, and him only shalt thou serve. 
Borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim, 
preaching to the people
17
Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 
At the sea of Galilee, to Peter and Andrew
19
Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. 
Chapter 5
On a mountain top, to his disciples
3
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 
4
Blessed 12
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are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 
5
Blessed are the meek: for 
they shall inherit the earth. 
6
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst 
after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 
7
Blessed are the merciful: for 
they shall obtain mercy. 
8
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see 
God. 
9
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of 
God. 
10
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for 
theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 
11
Blessed are ye, when men shall revile 
you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, 
for my sake. 
12
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in 
heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. 
     
13
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith 
shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and 
to be trodden under foot of men. 
14
Ye are the light of the world. A city that 
is set on an hill cannot be hid. 
15
Neither do men light a candle, and put it 
under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are 
in the house. 
16
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your 
good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. 
   
17
Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am 
not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 
18
For verily I say unto you, Till heaven 
and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, 
till all be fulfilled. 
19
Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least 
commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in 
the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same 
shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 
20
For I say unto you, That 
except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes 
and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. 
     
21
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; 
and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: 
22
but I say 
unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall 
be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, 
shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall 
be in danger of hell fire. 
23
Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and 
there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 
24
leave there 
thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, 
and then come and offer thy gift. 
25
Agree with thine adversary quickly, 
                         513                   Mt 
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whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver 
thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast 
into prison. 
26
Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out 
thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing. 
     
27
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not 
commit adultery: 
28
but I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a 
woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his 
heart. 
29
And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from 
thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, 
and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. 
30
And if thy right 
hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for 
thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body 
should be cast into hell. 
31
It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his 
wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: 
32
but I say unto you, That 
whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, 
causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is 
divorced committeth adultery. 
     
33
Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou 
shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: 
34
but 
I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne: 
35
nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the 
city of the great King. 
36
Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou 
canst not make one hair white or black. 
37
But let your communication be, 
Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. 
     
38
Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for 
a tooth: 
39
but I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall 
smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. 
40
And if any man 
will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak 
also. 
41
And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. 
42
Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee 
turn not thou away. 
     
43
Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, 
and hate thine enemy. 
44
But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them 
that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which 
despitefully use you, and persecute you; 
45
that ye may be the children of 
                           514
          Mt 
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your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil 
and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. 
     
46
For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even 
the publicans the same? 
47
And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye 
more than others? Do not even the publicans so? 
48
Be ye therefore perfect, 
even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Chapter 6
         
1
Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: 
otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. 
2
Therefore 
when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the 
hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have 
glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 
3
But when 
thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: 
4
that 
thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself 
shall reward thee openly. 
         
5
And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for 
they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the 
streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have 
their reward. 
6
But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when 
thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father 
which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. 
7
But when ye pray, use not 
vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard 
for their much speaking. 
8
Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your 
Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. 
9
After 
this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed 
be thy name. 
10
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in 
heaven. 
11
Give us this day our daily bread. 
12
And forgive us our debts, as 
we forgive our debtors. 
13
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us 
from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. 
Amen. 
14
For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will 
also forgive you: 
15
but if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will 
your Father forgive your trespasses. 
     
16
Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: 
                         515                   Mt 
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for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily 
I say unto you, They have their reward. 
17
But thou, when thou fastest, 
anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 
18
that thou appear not unto men to 
fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in 
secret, shall reward thee openly. 
     
19
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and 
rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 
20
but lay 
up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth 
corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 
21
for where your 
treasure is, there will your heart be also. 
22
The light of the body is the eye: 
if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. 
23
But 
if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore 
the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! 
     
24
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love 
the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot 
serve God and mammon.
     
25
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall 
eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. 
Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 
26
Behold the 
fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into 
barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than 
they? 
27
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 
28
And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, 
how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 
29
and yet I say unto 
you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 
30
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day is, and 
to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye 
of little faith? 
31
Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? Or, 
What shall we drink? Or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 
32
(For after all 
these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that 
ye have need of all these things. 
33
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, 
and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 
34
Take 
therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for 
the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. 
                           616
          Mt
Chapter 7
     
1
Judge not, that ye be not judged. 
2
For with what judgment ye judge, ye 
shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to 
you again. 
3
And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, 
but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 
4
Or how wilt thou 
say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, 
a beam is in thine own eye? 
5
Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of 
thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of 
thy brother’s eye. 
     
6
Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls 
before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and 
rend you. 
     
7
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it 
shall be opened unto you: 
8
for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that 
seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 
9
Or what man 
is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? 
10
Or if 
he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 
11
If ye then, being evil, know how 
to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father 
which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? 
12
Therefore all 
things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to 
them: for this is the law and the prophets. 
     
13
Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the 
way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 
14
because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, 
and few there be that find it. 
     
15
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but 
inwardly they are ravening wolves. 
16
Ye shall know them by their fruits. 
Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 
17
Even so every good 
tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 
18
good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth 
good fruit. 
19
Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, 
and cast into the fire. 
20
Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. 
     
21
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the 
kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is 
in heaven. 
22
Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not 
                         717                   Mt 
prophesied in thy name? And in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy 
name done many wonderful works? 
23
And then will I profess unto them, I 
never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. 
     
24
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, 
I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 
25
and 
the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat 
upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 
26
And 
every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be 
likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 
27
and the 
rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon 
that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. 
Chapter 8
To a leper
3
I will; be thou clean. 
And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 
4
See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer 
the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. 
In Capernaum, to the centurion
7
I will come and heal him.
To them that followed
10
Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 
11
And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and 
shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of 
heaven. 
12
But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer 
darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
To the centurion
13
Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. 
In Capernaum, to a certain scribe
20
The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of 
man hath not where to lay his head.
In Capernaum, to one of his disciples
22
Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead. 
                           818
          Mt
On a boat, to his disciples
26
Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?
Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; 
and there was a great calm. 
In the country of the Gergesenes, to devils
32
Go. 
And when they were come out, they went 
into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd 
of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters.
Chapter 9
In Bethlehem, to a man sick of the palsy
2
Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.
In Bethlehem, to the scribes
4
Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? 
5
For whether is easier, to say, Thy 
sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 
6
But that ye may know 
that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, 
To the sick of the palsy 
Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. 
In Bethlehem, at the receipt 
of custom, to Matthew 
9
Follow me. 
In Matthew’s house, to the Pharisees
12
They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. 
13
But go 
ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I 
am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
In Bethlehem, to the disciples of John the Baptist
15
Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom 
is with them? But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken 
from them, and then shall they fast. 
16
No man putteth a piece of new cloth 
unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the 
garment, and the rent is made worse. 
17
Neither do men put new wine into 
old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles 
perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.
                         819                   Mt 
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On the streets of Bethlehem, 
to a woman with an issue of blood
22
Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole.
At a ruler’s house, 
to minstrels and people making a noise 
24
Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. 
To two blind men in a house
28
Believe ye that I am able to do this? 
29
According to your faith be it unto you. 
30
See that no man know it. 
In the cities and villages of Israel, to his disciples
37
The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; 
38
pray ye 
therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his 
harvest. 
Chapter 10
To his disciples
5
Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans 
enter ye not: 
6
but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 
7
And as 
ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. 
8
Heal the sick, 
cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, 
freely give. 
9
Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses, 
10
nor 
scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for 
the workman is worthy of his meat. 
11
And into whatsoever city or town ye 
shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence. 
12
And when ye come into an house, salute it. 
13
And if the house be worthy, 
let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to 
you. 
14
And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye 
depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. 
15
Verily I say 
unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in 
the day of judgment, than for that city. 
     
16
Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye 
therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. 
17
But beware of men: 
for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in 
                          1020
          Mt
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their synagogues; 
18
and ye shall be brought before governors and kings for 
my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.
     
19
But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall 
speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. 
20
For 
it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. 
21
And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the 
child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to 
be put to death. 
22
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but 
he that endureth to the end shall be saved. 
23
But when they persecute you 
in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have 
gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come. 
24
The disciple 
is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. 
25
It is enough for 
the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they 
have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they 
call them of his household? 
26
Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing 
covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known. 
27
What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in 
the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops. 
28
And fear not them which kill 
the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able 
to destroy both soul and body in hell. 
29
Are not two sparrows sold for a 
farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. 
30
But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 
     
31
Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. 
32
Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess 
also before my Father which is in heaven. 
33
But whosoever shall deny me 
before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. 
34
Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send 
peace, but a sword. 
35
For I am come to set a man at variance against his 
father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against 
her mother in law. 
36
And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. 
37
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and 
he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 
38
And 
he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. 
39
He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake 
shall find it. 
                        1021                   Mt 
     
40
He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth 
him that sent me. 
41
He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet 
shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in 
the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. 
42
And 
whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold 
water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no 
wise lose his reward. 
Chapter 11
To John the Baptist’s disciples
4
Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: 
5
the blind 
receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the 
deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to 
them. 
6
And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me. 
To the multitude, concerning John the Baptist
7
What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? 
8
But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, 
they that wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. 
9
But what went ye out for 
to see? A prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. 
10
For this 
is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, 
which shall prepare thy way before thee. 
     
11
Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath 
not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least 
in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 
12
And from the days of John 
the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the 
violent take it by force. 
13
For all the prophets and the law prophesied until 
John. 
14
And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come. 
15
He 
that hath ears to hear, let him hear. 
     
16
But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children 
sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows, 
17
and saying, We have 
piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and 
ye have not lamented. 
18
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and 
they say, He hath a devil. 
19
The Son of man came eating and drinking, and 
they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans 
                          1122
          Mt
and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children. 
To the cities
21
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! Woe unto thee, Bethsaida! For if the mighty 
works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they 
would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 
22
But I say unto you, 
It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than 
for you. 
23
And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be 
brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in 
thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 
24
But 
I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the 
day of judgment, than for thee.
Then to his Father
25
I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast 
hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto 
babes. 
26
Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight. 
27
All things 
are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but 
the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to 
whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
To all gathered
28
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you 
rest. 
29
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly 
in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 
30
For my yoke is easy, and 
my burden is light.
Chapter 12
In a cornfield, on the Sabbath, to the Pharisees
3
Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that 
were with him; 
4
how he entered into the house of God, and did eat the 
shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which 
were with him, but only for the priests? 
5
Or have ye not read in the law, 
how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, 
and are blameless? 
6
But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater 
than the temple. 
7
But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy,
                        1123                   Mt 
and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless. 
8
For the Son 
of man is Lord even of the sabbath day. 
In the synagogue, on the Sabbath, 
to the Pharisees
11
What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it 
fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out? 
12
How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to 
do well on the sabbath days.
In the synagogue, to the man with a withered hand
13
Stretch forth thine hand. 
And he stretched it forth; 
and it was restored whole, like as the other. 
To the Pharisees when they said,
24
This fellow doth not cast out devils, 
but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. 
25
Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every 
city or house divided against itself shall not stand: 
26
and if Satan cast out 
Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand? 
27
And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast 
them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. 
28
But if I cast out devils by 
the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. 
29
Or else 
how can one enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except 
he first bind the strong man? And then he will spoil his house. 
30
He that 
is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth 
abroad. 
     
31
Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall 
be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall 
not be forgiven unto men. 
32
And whosoever speaketh a word against the 
Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the 
Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in 
the world to come. 
33
Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else 
make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his 
fruit. 
34
O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? 
For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. 
35
A good man 
out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil 
man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. 
36
But I say unto you, 
                          1224
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That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof 
in the day of judgment. 
37
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by 
thy words thou shalt be condemned.
To the scribes and Pharisees
39
An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall 
no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: 
40
for as Jonas 
was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of 
man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 
41
The men of 
Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn 
it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater 
than Jonas is here. 
42
The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment 
with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost 
parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater 
than Solomon is here. 
43
When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he 
walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. 
44
Then he saith, 
I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, 
he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. 
45
Then goeth he, and taketh with 
himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in 
and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even 
so shall it be also unto this wicked generation. 
In a house, to the people 
47
Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother 
and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee. 
48
Who is my mother? And who are my brethren? 
49
And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, 
Behold my mother and my brethren! 
50
For whosoever shall do the will 
of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and 
mother. 
Chapter 13
On ship by the sea side, to the multitudes
3
And he spake many things unto them in parables, 
Behold, a sower went forth to sow; 
4
and when he sowed, some seeds fell by 
the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: 
5
some fell upon 
stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung 
                        1225                   Mt 
up, because they had no deepness of earth: 
6
and when the sun was up, they 
were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 
7
And 
some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: 
8
but 
other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, 
some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. 
9
Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
To the disciples when they asked,
10
Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 
11
Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of 
heaven, but to them it is not given. 
12
For whosoever hath, to him shall be 
given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from 
him shall be taken away even that he hath. 
13
Therefore speak I to them in 
parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do 
they understand. 
14
And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which 
saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye 
shall see, and shall not perceive: 
15
for this people’s heart is waxed gross, 
and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at 
any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and 
should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should 
heal them. 
16
But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they 
hear. 
17
For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men 
have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and 
to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them. 
     
18
Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. 
19
When any one heareth 
the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked 
one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which 
received seed by the way side. 
20
But he that received the seed into stony 
places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 
21
yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation 
or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. 
22
He 
also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and 
the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and 
he becometh unfruitful. 
23
But he that received seed into the good ground 
is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, 
and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 
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To the multitudes
24
Another parable put he forth unto them, 
The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in 
his field: 
25
but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among 
the wheat, and went his way. 
26
But when the blade was sprung up, and 
brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 
27
So the servants of the 
householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed 
in thy field? From whence then hath it tares? 
28
He said unto them, An 
enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we 
go and gather them up? 
29
But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the 
tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. 
30
Let both grow together until 
the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye 
together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather 
the wheat into my barn. 
To the multitudes
31
Another parable put he forth unto them, 
The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man 
took, and sowed in his field: 
32
which indeed is the least of all seeds: but 
when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so 
that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof. 
To the multitudes
33
Another parable spake he unto them; 
The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid 
in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.
In a house, to his disciples when they asked,
36
Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. 
37
He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 
38
the field is the world; 
the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children 
of the wicked one; 
39
the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is 
the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 
40
As therefore the tares 
are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 
41
The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of 
his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; 
42
and shall 
cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of 
teeth. 
43
Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of 
their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 
                        1327                   Mt 
     
44
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the 
which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and 
selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. 
     
45
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking 
goodly pearls: 
46
who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and 
sold all that he had, and bought it. 
     
47
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the 
sea, and gathered of every kind: 
48
which, when it was full, they drew to 
shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad 
away. 
49
So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, 
and sever the wicked from among the just, 
50
and shall cast them into the 
furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
51
Have ye understood all these things? 
52
Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven 
is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his 
treasure things new and old. 
In and to the people of his own country
57
A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own 
house. 
58
And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief. 
Chapter 14
In a desert place, to his disciples when they said,
15
the time is now past; send the multitude away, 
that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals. 
16
They need not depart; give ye them to eat.
17
And they say unto him,  We have here but five loaves, and two fishes. 
18
Bring them hither to me.
To the disciples when 
they saw him walking on the sea
27
Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. 
To Peter 
29
Come.
                          1428
          Mt
To Peter when he was afraid and began to sink 
O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
Chapter 15
In Gennesaret, 
to the scribes and Pharisees
3
Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? 
4
For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that 
curseth father or mother, let him die the death. 
5
But ye say, Whosoever 
shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest 
be profited by me; 
6
and honour not his father or

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