tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35793367093889681912024-03-12T18:04:33.502-07:00deep profound thoughtsStickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-69467381062077936122011-07-17T14:20:00.000-07:002011-07-17T14:30:18.751-07:00Mere verbal apostasy?<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">I say ‘mere’ when speaking of a verbal apostasy because I want to figure out if one can ‘merely <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">say</i>’ that they deny Christ while sill loving Him in their heart. What I mean is, if we are in a situation where we will be killed unless we deny Christ, is it ok for the Christian to say they deny Him while, in their heart, not denying Him.</p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Martyrs<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">If I took to looking in the Bible for examples of this, the most popular ones I could think of would be A) Meshach, Shadrach and Abednego, and B) Daniel and the lion’s den. In the case of A (Daniel 3), King Nebuchadnezzar II made a large (nine story high) gold statue of himself and ordered that when the instruments were played everyone was to bow down and worship the ‘god’. Of course, the three men didn’t, and in turn were thrown into a furnace so hot that it killed the<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>soldiers bringing the men to the entrance. In the case of B (Daniel 6), Daniel prayed to the true God while the edict was made that ‘any man over the next thirty days may not pray to any god or man besides King Darius.’ He was thrown into a seemingly immanent death; a pit of lions.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">So while these Biblical examples didn’t die (in the case of A and B) it should be noted that indeed they were willing to go to their deaths for their faith. As the men replied to Nebuchadnezzar ‘<i>our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of your hand, O King. But if not, be it known to you, O King, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image you have set up</i>.’</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Furthermore, almost every apostle of Jesus was also martyred for their faith in Christ, and, <a href="http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=10555">recent studies</a> have shown that every five minutes a Christian is killed for their faith. That’s about 105,000 a year. And this is not counting civil wars, or wars between nations, but simply people being put to death because of their faith.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The fact is, people at all times at all locations were and are willing to die for their faith. And why is that? Would they die for something they knew to be a lie? I wager no man dies for something he knows to be false.</p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Suffering</b></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">There are, of course many verses to go along with my contention that we are never to deny Christ to save ourselves.<span> </span>In Matthew 10 Jesus talks of suffering. He says, in verse 28 <i>‘do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">.’ He says that our fear ought to be of God, and not man. He goes on with an essential requirement for the Christian to not be ashamed of His name. In verse 32 Jesus says ‘</span><i>so everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">.’ This, to me at least, means once again that there is no case by which we are to deny Christ lest He deny us to His Father. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Suffering, to different degrees is a guarantee of the Christian walk. The Bible says multiple times we are to expect to suffer for Jesus name. Matthew 24 says ‘<i>you shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake</i>.’ In 1 Peter 4 is says ‘<i>if you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. (…) Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And if the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"> </span><i>Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good</i>.’</p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Paul, in 2 Corinthians talks about his suffering. He says ‘<i>for we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again</i>.’ Paul recognized that in his suffering he found that he must rely on God more, and in turn this built his faith.</p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Requirements</b></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">The task is not easy to follow Christ, indeed Jesus says <span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">‘</span><i>whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.'</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana"> (Luke 9) Moreover, he says in Matthew 10 that whoever does not take up their cross is not worthy of Him. And there ought not to be much debate on what taking up one’s cross means; it is a high requirement! (</span><a href="http://www.acts17-11.com/death.html">See link</a><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana"> for further thoughts.)</span><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Promise</b></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">1 John 4 says ‘<i>for He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">.’ In this we know that God is master over death, indeed He conquered it at the death of Christ. And this should give us great hope. Hope enough to know that in death we loosing nothing, and gain everything. <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">‘</span><i>For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain</i>.’ (Phil 1)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">Romans 14 also promises us that <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">‘</span><i>if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s</i>.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Rewards</b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"></b>In fact, many a time does the Bible talk about those who are ‘<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:black; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"><i>persecuted</i></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana;color:black"><i> for righteousness sake</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">’ (Matt 5) and their blessings and rewards. Further on in Matthew it says </span>‘<i>blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you</i>.’</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:black; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">In Romans 8 it talks about the co-heirs of Christ sharing in his glory, and that our ‘<i>present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us</i>.’ In 2 Corinthians 4 it says that the troubles are momentary, and that they are ‘</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana;color:black"><i>achieving for us an eternal glory</i>’ that will outweigh all of the suffering here on Earth. It tells us to fix our ‘<i>eyes not on what is seen, but what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal</i>.’</span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Thus, as Christians we know that all of our pain is working towards God’s glory, and that in knowing this we should ‘<i>not loose heart</i>’. In Revelation 2 it says ‘<i>do not fear what you are about to suffer</i>’, and 2 Timothy 2 furthers this by saying ‘i<i>f we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful-for he cannot deny himself</i>.’ Our reward is the ‘<i>crown of life</i>’. (Rev 2) Our reward is living with Christ in his glory.</p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana;color:black;mso-themecolor:text1">The Heart/Conclusion</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:10.0pt;mso-pagination:none;tab-stops: 11.0pt 36.0pt;mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana;color:black;mso-themecolor:text1;mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">We cannot escape this conclusion of a required martyrdom (when necessary) by the guise of ‘mere words’. God will judge us according to what we have done. (Rev 20:13) More than that, God knows our motives, and according to Solomon (the wised man ever to live) ‘</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:black; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"><i>motives</i></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana;color:black"><i> are weighed by the Lord</i>.’ Paul also talks of motives on 1 Corinthians saying that God will '<i>bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart</i>.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:10.0pt;mso-pagination:none;tab-stops: 11.0pt 36.0pt;mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:black">So while all of this, to me at least, is obvious and clearly defined throughout scripture time and time again I do not think definitively that ‘anyone who denies Christ will burn forever’. The reason I can’t say is A) I’m not God, therefore I cannot judge a man’s heart and B) I doubt God would sent <i>every</i> person to Hell given the various situations which one would find themselves in; being given the chance to deny Christ to save themselves. (Indeed the same thing can be said for the person who commits suicide as not all cases are the same. One must take into account the mental state of the person, and their life as a whole. Moreover, God will judge fairly in the end.)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:10.0pt;mso-pagination:none;tab-stops: 11.0pt 36.0pt;mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:black">The fact is, our actions, in the end, will show how we truly feel towards God, and if our words were hollow or not. I would not say definitively I would never ever deny Christ; for I cannot know until I am tested. But the odds are that someone like me (and someone in the West for that matter) will never be put in a situation where we will have to die for our faith. At this point, I stand by my belief that we are never to use ‘mere words’ to save ourselves. And I would hope that my faith is strong enough that were I to be in a situation do die for Christ I would. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Side note</b></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Let it not be thought that I am telling the Christian to gain a ‘martyr complex’ and go searching of death for the sake of dying for their faith. The Bible is also specific in that we are to avoid persecution when possible, and as a last resort to be a martyr.</p> <!--EndFragment-->Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-66619766909276991012011-07-07T16:50:00.001-07:002011-07-07T16:57:35.417-07:00JK Rowling.It is strange to me, for Rowling to be a professing Christian, be the 12th richest woman in Great Britain, and not thank Jesus (or at least God) for getting her to <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iD6eNTKQ0k&feature=player_embedded">where she is</a>. How could a Christian not give credit to Christ? I don't know.Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-41288965378052401332011-06-14T21:48:00.000-07:002011-06-16T18:19:23.171-07:00Joel Osteen.<!--StartFragment--> I consider Osteen to be a 'false prophet' and here is why.<br /><p class="MsoNormal">From <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hZDt96Sw7Q">John MacArthur</a> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"></p><blockquote><p class="MsoNormal">He’s a quasi-pantheist; Jesus is a footnote that satisfies his critics and deceives his followers. The idea of his whole thing is men have the power in themselves to change their lives. In his definitive book ‘Your Best Life Now’<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>he says (and that ought to be a dead give away since if this is your best life now you’re going to Hell) he says that ‘anyone can create, by faith and words the dreams he desires. Health, wealth, happiness, and success.' The list is always the same. He’s a quote from his (Osteen’s) book, 'if you develop an image of success, health, abundance, joy, peace, happiness, nothing on Earth will be able to hold those things from you'.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">See, that’s the law of attraction that’s a part of this kind of system. Here’s another quote. 'All of us are born for Earthly greatness. You were born to win.'(Win what?) 'God wants you to live in abundance, you were born to be a champion. He wants to give you the desires of your heart. Before we were formed He prepared us to live abundant lives; to be happy, healthy and whole. But when our thinking becomes contaminated it’s no longer in line with God’s word.'</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">By the way, God’s Word is not the Bible, God’s Word is that which comes to us spiritually, that tells us what we should want. Here’s another quote. 'Get your thinking positive and He will bring your desires to pass. He regards you as a strong, courageous, successful person. Your on your way to a new level of glory.' How do you get there? 'Believe' he says, 'visualize, and speak out loud. Words release your power, words give life to your dreams.' And another. 'Friend, there’s a miracle in your mouth.' I think Isaiah might object to that. He said 'I am a man of unclean<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>lips and I dwell amongst people of unclean lips.' (Isaiah 6:5)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Here’s Joel Osteen’s prayer, “I thank you Father that I have your favor.” (Did he meet the Pharisee in Luke 18 or what?-I thank you that I’m not like other people.) “I know these principle are true because they work for me and my wife. Even finding a perfect parking spot at the mall.” Further on Osteen says “God has already done everything He’s gong to do; the balls in your court. You have to take that part of God which exists in you and create your own reality.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">What is the source of this? Where does this come from? Answer: Satan. This is Satanic. This is not just ‘off center’, it’s Satanic. Why do I say that? Because health, wealth, prosperity, the fulfillment of all your desires; that’s what Satan always offers. That’s called temptation. Based on the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. That’s exactly what corrupt, fallen, unregenerate people want. That’s why it works so well. You can go right into Satan’s system, make everybody feel religious and turn out their desires, their temptations into somehow honorable desires.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">What did Satan say to Jesus? ‘Grab some satisfaction, why are you hungry?’ You need to eat, you need to be healthy; whole. Why would you let yourself be unpopular? Dive off the temple corner and everybody will be wowed. You’ll be the winner, that champion; the messiah. Oh, and by the way, if you just look over the Kingdom of the world I’ll give those to you too.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">And why are these false teachers so successful at what they do? Because they’re in cahoots with the Devil. Why is Satan successful? Because his temptations, although they might appear noble on the outside are in perfect accord with all the fallen, corrupt, selfish, proud evil desires of sinners. This is a false kind of Christianity and a false view of God.</p></blockquote><p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal">As it is, besides the 'God's word is not the Bible' comment (which I'm sure could be explained in a coherent manner which didn't sound as blasphemous) MacArthur is spot on. Osteen preaches a feel good message which, really, counts for naught. Osteen twists the Bible (as Satan does) to use it for his own benefit. The Bible says, in 1 Timothy 6:9 'Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and into a trap and many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.'</p><p class="MsoNormal">The point is, being rich is not a sin, but the motive by which we get rich is. Here's how Mark Driscoll breaks it down. He divides it into four categories.</p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><blockquote><p class="MsoNormal">1)Righteous rich-Work hard, spending wisely etc..</p><p class="MsoNormal">2)Unrighteous rich-Dishonoring God, hoarding, spending frivolously etc...</p><p class="MsoNormal">3)Righteous poor-Honest means, but have little. Give to the needy etc...</p><p class="MsoNormal">4)Unrighteous poor-Casino, spends frivolously etc...</p></blockquote><p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal">And do we think God cares about our wealth? No, He cares only of our eternal destiny. He wants us to love Him first. (Luke 10:27) In Proverbs 22:7 it says the 'borrower is slave to the lender'. But are we not supposed to be slaves to God? 1 Peter 2:16 says 'Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a coverup for evil; live as God's slaves. </p><p class="MsoNormal">I could go on, but the post would be long, and turn towards money rather than focus on Osteen. Let it be known that I cannot say whether or not Osteen is actually saved (that is not my call) but I merely am pointing out the dangers of his message, and how unbiblical it is. </p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-23113984418997919472011-06-14T21:25:00.000-07:002011-06-14T21:47:44.295-07:00Not of this world.I find it difficult in that, the closer I get to God, the more I feel I am not of this world, and moreover, that I have such a more difficult time at dealing with said world. Why is this?<div><br /></div><div>2 Corinthians 5:17 says 'If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come, the old has gone, the new is here! (NIV) In John 15:19 it says 'If you belonged to the world it would love you as it's own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.' </div><div><br /></div><div>We are called as Christians to love, but not in the sense that we are to love 'the world'. As Paul Washer says 'If we are not getting any resistance form the world, then we <i>are</i> of the world'. What this means to me is that if we live as the world does, and people are not seeing the difference in our lives something is wrong. How, as Christians, can we claim to be 'not of this world' and yet do the very things the world considers the 'norm'. </div><div><br /></div><div>1 John 5:19 says that the whole world in under the control of the evil one. We must not be so gullible as to think that this does not included everything. As for me, although I may considered an extremist by some, I think our Orthodox Christianity has been lost in the sea of worldly pleasure. The word 'obedience' and 'discipline' have become nothing more than mere words. Grace has been abused, and we are lost.</div><div><br /></div><div>And this is my whole point. I draw near to God, and I feel less and less as though I cannot relate to anyone. And I wonder how this can be. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-61302731140797087062011-05-29T10:15:00.000-07:002011-05-29T10:16:25.364-07:00Life as a dream.<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Have you ever had a dream that felt real? So real that as you were waking up you were thoroughly confused as to what was happening? And for those brief moments before you were fully aware of ‘real life’ you probably felt one of two things. Either the dream was bad, and deep down arose the most euphoric feeling in that you knew the dream was a dream, and that you were free from it; or the dream was delightful and grand, and deep down you felt a dread coming back into reality knowing you had, still, to deal with ‘life’.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: small; ">In this way I think we will wake up to either Heaven or Hell, and the feeling of this life will be that of a distant dream. The next life, that is the after life, will be the true life, and we will either wake up happy, or regretful.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: small; ">When I reflect on these points (and I do quite often) I always come back to the same thing. Am I spending this time in this life (now) wisely, or am I wasting it? Here’s my question to the Christian. Would you, if you were God, let yourself into Heaven based upon your love for God? Sometimes I come to this grim conclusion that if I were God, I would say to myself ‘truly I say to you, I do not know you’. (Matthew 25:12 and Luke 13:22-31)</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: small; ">Waking up to give account of how I lived my life is a dreadful thought. I waste a lot of time. But lately I’ve been convicted on this more and more, and I think as Christians we ought to watch how we spend our time. The late David Wilkerson, in his book ‘The Vision and Beyond’ wrote this, from Satan’s point of view:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><blockquote>“Look at the last day Christian, the television addict! Look at him-hours and hours for soap operas, comedies, sports-but no time to get alone with God. He turns God off with a dial. He hunts, fishes, travels; plays golf tennis, and basketball. He goes to movies and parties, and has become a gadabout, but he has no time to read his Bible or pray. Is this the last day Christian who is supposed to walk by faith? Is this the one who will overcome the world? Is this the one who is to prepare for a coming day of persecution and world of chaos? Are these the playboy Christians upon whom the ends of the world will fall?”</blockquote> <o:p></o:p></span><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: small; ">My concluding point is merely that our (free) time, that is, our time in which we choose what to do and how to spend it should be spent with Jesus. I am bad at this, and struggle, but I find after a while it’s not so hard to turn off the computer or deny the odd movie just to spend time with God or listen to a sermon. Just something that tells God ‘you are the most important thing in my life’. Who ever has regretted reading their Bible? I never have. But I have regretted many a movie.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-72415348700042832692011-04-20T10:15:00.000-07:002011-04-20T10:19:44.233-07:00Cold cash and colder hearts.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); "><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); ">Lyrics to the song by <a href="http://www.thrice.net/">Thrice</a>.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); "><br /></span></div><blockquote>They are sick, they are poor<br />And they die by the thousands and we look away<br />They are wolves at the door<br />And they're not gonna move us or get in our way<br /><br />'Cause we don't have the time<br />Here at the top of the world<br />Feeling alright<br />Here at the top of the world<br /><br />We hold our own by keeping our hearts cold<br /><br />Different god, darker skin<br />They are just not a burden that we'd like to bear<br />They are living in "sin"<br />There are so many reasons for us not to care<br /><br />But I'm feeling alright<br />Here at the top of the world<br />Doing just fine<br />Here at the top of the world<br /><br />We've learned money matters most<br />So we keep our cards held close<br />Here at the top of the world<br /><br />We hold our own by keeping our hearts cold<br />And we've learned what matters most<br />So we keep our hearts cold<br /><br />They are no one<br />They are nowhere<br />They are not our problem<br />Not worth saving<br />Nonexistent if we keep our hearts cold<br /><br />They are no one<br />They are nowhere</blockquote>How true are these lyrics in relation to us here in the West? </span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); "><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); "></span></div><blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); ">Luke 18:25 </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); ">For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God.</span></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); "></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); "><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial; font-size: 15px; color: rgb(48, 48, 48); ">I would also refer you to <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBhqrtMqrv8">this sermon</a>. </span></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-87883512296582179702011-04-18T16:39:00.000-07:002011-04-18T16:51:52.959-07:00More than you can handle?<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size:16px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Charis SIL', charis, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"> <!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I have heard it more than once over the past couple weeks, and it's something that bothers me. People, that is, Christians often will say something like "don't worry, God doesn't give you more than you can handle". Often we hear this when we are in times of trouble, or give this advice to people in their times of trouble. But does the Bible actually say this? The answers is of course it doesn't. No where can be found that God will only let us endure what 'we can handle'. Moreover, there is plentiful examples throughout the Bible of people having more than they could handle.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So, if you're reading this thinking, 'I know the verse that says God doesn't give us more than we can handle' and are about to quote 1 Corinthians 10:13 then I must interject. Indeed Paul is not talking about hardships but temptations. Let me quote.</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span></span></p><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">"No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it."</span></span></blockquote><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Notice Paul is talking of temptations, and assures us that God will provide a way out in regards to them, but when talking of hardships in 2 Corinthians 1:8 he says</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span></span></p><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"For we were so utterly burdened </span></span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">beyond our strength</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> that we despaired of life itself."</span></span></blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span></span><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">At that point in his life Paul was in fact dealing with something he could not bear. It was beyond his strength. We should not be telling people God will never give them hardships by which they cannot endure, indeed people would not be persecuted if this were true. God will not temp us beyond what we can bear, but our hardships may kill us. That is the truth.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment--> </span></span></div></span></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-69824592212693231302011-01-01T00:21:00.001-08:002011-01-01T00:25:12.140-08:00An invitation.Randomly, I stopped by youtube and had the robot recommend a video, you know, 'since you watched this you might like this'. I watched geek rap, and two things occurred to me at the same time while watching the video.<div><br /></div><div>First of all I noticed how painfully awkward and absolutely stupid the video was, but moreover, I realized that these people must realize how ridiculous they are, and literally invite insults. Of course, youtube is renown for being a haven for wicked and relentless personal insults, but I wonder why people simply spend time making something that is obviously not funny (as they recognize it as such too) and post it. I fail to see what they expect, really.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's a strange world, I think, and it's getting worse. I can only shake my head.</div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-72427049045575981822010-12-29T20:04:00.000-08:002010-12-29T21:23:03.373-08:00"I love myself."<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://images8.cpcache.com/product/vip-very+important+person-v.i.p./276654538v1_225x225_Front.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 225px; height: 225px;" src="http://images8.cpcache.com/product/vip-very+important+person-v.i.p./276654538v1_225x225_Front.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>There is a limit in which one must love themselves, that is, they must not think themselves less than they ought, but see that they are loved by God, and are intrinsically valuable to Him. A man once said "being humble is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less." But where has our generation got to in all of this?<div><br /></div><div>Technology, while being very useful and beneficial in many ways, I fear has hindering our generation not only from gaining knowledge but rendering it narcissistic to a dangerous degree. Think about it. Our generation has more information at it's 'fingertips' than any generation before it, and yet it is dumber still than any generation before it. How can that be? </div><div><br /></div><div>The answer, unfortunate lay in the fact that since information has become so accessible, people have taken less time to learn it. The phones now can conjure up google in a second, and with a couple words the user can have any information they want about any topic within seconds. Thus, they need not memorize it, for what would be the use in putting time and effort into something 'unnecessary'? </div><div><br /></div><div>Moreover, with the invention of twitter/facebook and 'smart' phones one can 'stay up to date in real time as to what any and everyone of their friends is doing at that exact moment'. I recently saw <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwKjEJOAWxg">a video</a> to which rendered me altogether speechless. It shows a phone commercial of a man who utilizes his new phone and which ends up saving him much wasted time and to end, finally, with the near classic observation 'less staring, more clubbing'. How insane is this? Are people really this shallow?</div><div><br /></div><div>You see, the joy that twitter has given us is creating a self worth, and seemingly obvious entitlement to say 'you are important, so important in fact that people care about what you do throughout your day, all day.' Twitter makes people think that everyone else really genuinely cares if they 'ate old ham with rotting sausage' or 'drank 27 beers and puked in the shape of a lion'. People post multiple times a day about their random (and often stupid) thoughts, or facts about their current location. </div><div><br /></div><div>The worst atrocity I can see plaguing the internet is those youtube comments which are, as though children, spewing hate and ignorant rhetoric about things which the poster has little to no actual knowledge about. The comments I read on youtube literally tear away every hope I have of humanity having any redeeming qualities, and show how utterly hopeless our generation is. </div><div><br /></div><div>In conclusion, rarely do I see intelligent conversation displayed over any means of networking site, and it's quite sad to know that people are so, so ignorant. It's a generation of people being told what to believe, like, wear, listen to and eat by the media and politicians. All the while, too, these people are being convinced they are thinking for themselves. It's a shame. </div><div><br /></div><div>(And if you can appreciate this post, you may look at <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/captainsreallog">my twitter</a> account.)</div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-37799280521165423292010-12-29T19:44:00.000-08:002010-12-29T19:58:38.282-08:00Anti-anti-gay.<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">The irony in this video<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TMTrpugT0E&sns=fb"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">2</span></a> is so utterly and painfully obvious I can barley watch. It pains my very soul to sit through. It’s not even the blatant indoctrination (and exploitation) of children, or the vulgar (and wholly unnecessary) language being used simply for shock value(?), but more so the fact that it’s actually using hate to fight hate. This is absurd to the fullest degree! Here, let me tell a story to illustrate.</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">A man awakes in the middle of the night to find his house on fire. He jumps up and immediately goes into his closet. He grabs a canister to extinguish the flames and when he pulls the trigger fire shoots out from the canister. It’s a torch. He begins to yell in confusion as to why the flame is not reducing the fire, and screams as the flame gets larger. After some moments, he realizes the futility of using fire to fight fire, and grabs at the water. But by then it is to ate. The damage is done.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Now, this example, while perhaps not being ideal could serve well to equate to the new campaign called FCKH8. It, essentially, is a campaign which is promoting people to fight hate with hate, and is using hate against those who would supposedly condemn them for being gay. It is a movement which utilizes propaganda and indoctrinated children to support them. It goes beyond showing their vast ignorance of Christianity to the point of sheer ludicrousness, and I find this all to common lately. Here’s something a friend of mine wrote. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"></span></span></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><blockquote>For hate seeks to cause suffering, it revels in arrogance and pride, it is easily provoked, cynical, and intolerant; but love suffers long, endures all things, it refrains from excessive self love and self edification, it is not easily provoked, and it promotes honesty, trust, and toleration.4</blockquote> </span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">We can see that hate is the antithesis of love, and yet the FCKH8 campaign for some reason is hoping to use hate to promote love. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Lately there seems to be an obvious misconception that Christians hate gay people.</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church">1</a>,<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GtNSQdTX_M&NR=1">3</a></span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> Though I’ll admit, this is not unwarranted. One need only watch the news, but, unfortunately, the media likes to focus on the mislead (and slightly crazy) fundamental extremist groups who misrepresent what Christianity actually is. The FCKH8 video is clearly using hate to fight hate. “You've got it all fukin wrong” says a woman from the video complaining about Christians telling them they're wrong. It’s like watching children argue opinion.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">First of all, God loves gay people </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john%203:16&version=ESV">John 3:16</a>)</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">. </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Second, God hates sin </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Zech%208:16-17&version=ESV">Zech 8:16-17</a>)</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">. Third, everyone sins </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Rom%203:23&version=ESV">Rom 3:23</a>)</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">. (No, fourth isn't God hates everyone who sins.) There seems to be a whole movement, thanks to such fundamentalists like WestBro Baptist Church</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church">1</a></span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> (no association with actual real Christianity) that have elevated this one sin in particular, and built their whole belief on one taken-out-of-context verse in the Bible. There's a great deal of sins people who are </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">not</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> gay commit every day, but for some reason </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">this</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> is the one is being pointed out. The reason, I suppose is because it's an obvious sin to point out, it's easy to point the finger, and Christians are good at doing it </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matt%2018:15&version=ESV">Matt 18:15</a>)</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">For the record, yes you can be gay and Christian, but you may not practice homosexuality. It's the exact same sin if a heterosexual lusts after a girl </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matt%205:28&version=ESV">Matt 5:28</a>)</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">. The sin is lust and lust is wrong; as a single male, one would not be aloud to commit sexual acts with girls any more than with men </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Cor%206:9-10&version=ESV">1 Cor 6:9-10</a>)</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">. Jesus Himself said 'if you lust in your heart you have already committed adultery...'. God sees lust, not your sexual preference. However, that being said, the Bible still states that </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">practicing</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> homosexuality is a sin.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">1 Cor 5:12 says </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside.” Paul, when speaking to the people of Corinth is addressing them as a fellow believer, one who follows Jesus. He recognizes that it is up to Christians not to judge those outside the Church, but those inside. (By judge, I do not mean simply pointing out their mistakes, but showing how they are going wrong with love, and offering help.)</span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">The main problem then arises when 1) people don't like to be told they're wrong, and 2) if what they're being told is wrong is something they can't help. The solution is not to go from A to Z. What I mean is if someone doesn't believe in the Bible's truth, then there's no reason for them to believe that being gay is wrong. So the obvious solution would be to start at the beginning; is the Bible true? My problem with Christians is their assuming these people live by the same set of morals, and share the same worldview. And my problem with gay people is that they’re completely missing the point of the gospel and focusing on the few Christians who would condemn them. The reality is that God loves everyone, and to promote hate as though it is something that He consents to is simply wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">There's no reason to shove beliefs down throats, on either side of the ‘debate’; this includes refusing gay marriage. By all means, go hard, but don't get offended when we deny the use of a Church. At least understand </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">why</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> before you assume it's hate driven. If gay people want, they can make their own building and refuse admission to Christians, our feelings won't get hurt. But they must understand why it is we say what we say when we say ‘God did not make us to be joined together as man and man’. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">In conclusion, it's very bothersome and breaks my heart that the whole point of Jesus' ministry is missed now days, and all the energy that should be spent telling people God loves them is spent telling people God hates them. God loves everyone the same, bottom line. This is what Christianity is supposed to be about, but, as we can all see lately it isn't. Should not we love rather than hate?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">1- <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;">W</span></a></span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;">estBro Baptist Church</span></a></span></span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="text-decoration:none;text-underline: none"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style=" text-decoration:none;text-underline:none"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">2- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TMTrpugT0E&sns=fb"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;">Y</span></a></span></span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TMTrpugT0E&sns=fb"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;">outube vid</span></a> (Offensive material)</span></span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="text-decoration:none;text-underline: none"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">3- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GtNSQdTX_M&NR=1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;">Y</span></a></span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GtNSQdTX_M&NR=1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;">outube vid</span></a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">4-See also <a href="http://www.thechristianwatershed.com/Christian_Watershed/Blog/Entries/2010/12/29_facing_up_to_hatred_or_the_sinister_plot_to_%E2%80%9Cf-k_hate%E2%80%9D_or_why_love_is_the_more_excellent_way.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;">this article</span></a>.</span></span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <!--EndFragment-->Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-79227045310568186092010-12-29T18:40:00.001-08:002010-12-29T18:55:49.849-08:00Christ(less)mas.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4bISS3j3XWVeIK0KfO5Ve2X5DwvdC5FppiOmag4x2BxNKVCXV024UzQWVk9NTZnMXevKkIk2EXXt6hB9BBvX4m3YuW_-Yt6EMuMRvIeS9ke-DtMRsY869dbJhw2coS38dUhu38fHHuwSH/s1600/xmas.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 274px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4bISS3j3XWVeIK0KfO5Ve2X5DwvdC5FppiOmag4x2BxNKVCXV024UzQWVk9NTZnMXevKkIk2EXXt6hB9BBvX4m3YuW_-Yt6EMuMRvIeS9ke-DtMRsY869dbJhw2coS38dUhu38fHHuwSH/s320/xmas.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556303604262084530" /></a><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Has Christmas become nothing more than a bunch of rich people buying things for other rich people? Think about it. If you spend ten dollars a day on food you are in the top 20% of the world’s wealthiest people.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><a href="http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats#src1">1</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> There are some </span></span><a href="http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">scary statistics</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> about world poverty that make my heart cringe when I read them, and in turn, make me realize how blessed I really am.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">So what is Christmas to us? Or rather, what should Christmas mean to us? It’s unfortunate that Christians have fallen victim to the world in this area, and succumbed to following what society has deemed acceptable and what is expected. Try not buying gifts for people and see how guilty you feel. It’s gross that we all feel the need to spend money on each other at this particular time of the year as though it’s somehow more significant than any other time. Sure, Christians celebrate ‘Jesus birthday’, but really, why is there trees involved and Santa decorations abundantly interwoven into our mentality.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"></span></span></o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">I’m not saying all of us, but many of us have missed not merely the ‘reason for the season’ but the reason for life it’s self. Every day should be as though Christmas for the Christian. We should always think of others and spend time helping others. It’s not just a temporal state by which we can help someone to rid ourselves of guilt. Consider the following:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><blockquote><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">If we could shrink the earth's population to a village of precisely 100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look something like the following. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">There would be: <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">57 Asians </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">21 Europeans </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">14 from the Western Hemisphere, both north and south <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">8 Africans </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">52 would be female <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">48 would be male <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">70 would be non-white <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">30 would be white <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">70 would be non-Christian <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">30 would be Christian <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">89 would be heterosexual <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">11 would be homosexual <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">6 people would possess 59% of the entire world's wealth and all 6 would be from the United States. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">80 would live in substandard housing <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">70 would be unable to read <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">50 would suffer from malnutrition <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">1 would be near death; 1 would be near birth <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">1 would own a computer <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">When one considers our world from such a compressed perspective, the need for both acceptance, understanding and education becomes glaringly apparent. The following is also something to ponder... </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">If you woke up this morning with more health than illness...you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation ... you are ahead of 500 million people in the world. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"></span></span></o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">If you can attend a place of worship without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death...you are more blessed than three billion people in the world. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep...you are richer than 75% of this world. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace...you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">If your parents are still alive and still married...you are very rare, even in the United States and Canada.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"> If you can read this message, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world that cannot read at all.</span></span></p></blockquote><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"></span></span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">The fact is we in the West have become so enamored with holidays that we fail to realize that there are other people in the world literally dying while we spend money on our friends who are in the top 8% of the richest people in the world. So what is to be done as a Christian?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">There is, of course only so much one person can do, and I think we should be doing what we can to help others who are less fortunate. But at the least, we ought to refreign from buying gifts for family just because society says we should. Just because ‘it’s Christmas’ doesn’t obligate wrapped presents filled with things people don’t need bought for the sake of fulfilling society’s standard. Nay, I say we ought to go against the world. I personally refuse to buy adults gifts, and if I do, it is because I fear they have bought me one and feel that they will think me rotten were I to deny them the same gesture.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Frankly, Christmas is ridiculous, and I’m not sure why people only celebrate Jesus on this one day of the year (minus Easter). Half the world live on less than 2 dollars a day, and we spend more than that buying things for each other we don’t <i>need</i>. Let’s reevaluate what we spending our money on during the ‘holidays’.</span></span></p><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><br /></span></span></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-82980773322941032132010-12-19T12:50:00.001-08:002011-06-12T19:45:11.471-07:00New music, by me.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnoc4S9nqG0A8SEoRq_HFsylLKRlYvjp1huVaFqaOBobZtmXr6AwFixMAE41zAfrq-ZLKq7Ms1M25MGYGABbku6OkLXH2A2ncIwl2JRdoREcJYHDpqrMrixnUs9fmZ4tBNJeAvRBJnlcb4/s1600/Screen+shot+2010-12-19+at+1.49.30+PM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 319px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnoc4S9nqG0A8SEoRq_HFsylLKRlYvjp1huVaFqaOBobZtmXr6AwFixMAE41zAfrq-ZLKq7Ms1M25MGYGABbku6OkLXH2A2ncIwl2JRdoREcJYHDpqrMrixnUs9fmZ4tBNJeAvRBJnlcb4/s320/Screen+shot+2010-12-19+at+1.49.30+PM.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5552498847072203794" /></a><a href="http://soundcloud.com/behold-the-rising-tempest">Behold the Rising Tempest</a> is the new band which I have created. It consists of simply piano and violin with various samples from human history. I hope it will be something more than mere music, but, we shall see. I will have songs up on myspace one day soon here.Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-25735506752776866232010-11-16T21:25:00.000-08:002010-12-29T18:46:59.487-08:00Am I 15 years old?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGw2iB7jOlt7LJOtQiuKKLdKGbnL7U7MWIRC3BoAu6CDwJJu3Ar2_eYuOzH9rSSx6MAunCf8r2Fr9xTjKr1YV0C0LjHQsxfKBXLjvMPb1Wajmh96DEZtyp9st7Olo0I6a2XG8rWGS7dx9N/s1600/Kinski_in___Nobody_the_Idiot___by_Nobody_The_Idiot.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 246px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGw2iB7jOlt7LJOtQiuKKLdKGbnL7U7MWIRC3BoAu6CDwJJu3Ar2_eYuOzH9rSSx6MAunCf8r2Fr9xTjKr1YV0C0LjHQsxfKBXLjvMPb1Wajmh96DEZtyp9st7Olo0I6a2XG8rWGS7dx9N/s320/Kinski_in___Nobody_the_Idiot___by_Nobody_The_Idiot.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540737847535923762" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Nope. You know, people never cease to amaze me, and it's so painfully apparent that age does not necessarily bring wisdom or knowledge. I suppose it's fine for some people to waste their lives, and insult people's beliefs without knowing what those believes actually are; that's up to them. But as for me, I may not agree with you, but I'm not going to make fun of you and call you names*. It's so strange too, when I encounter these people. It's as though I've forgotten they actually exist because I'm used of talking with (somewhat) intelligent people most of the time, or reading (actual) intelligent people's writings/books/essays/whatever. </span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">So that being said, I shake my head once again. This is not a complaint or an attack on anyone in particular, but, these people do exist, and I avoid them at all costs. There's no need for futile talk with fools; it goes nowhere, and I'd rather save my time and energy. Or, I could talk with a wall.<br /></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*Unless you believe in Scientology.</span></span></div></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-57056999239285551612010-11-14T16:16:00.000-08:002011-05-16T19:31:32.873-07:00Let's argue opinion.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Did 90% of the internet population miss the fact that opinions are relative? I think so. </span></span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IvcO2fO3Kw"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">This video</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> comes to mind when I bring this subject up.</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It begins by explaining how he is about to compare two separate genres of music and show how one is inferior to the other. He then proceeds to play one genre, and then the next as if his point is being proven. And there's a plethora of videos like this that circulate youtube. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div> <!--StartFragment--><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"></span></span></div><blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The statement "The poet T'ao Ch'ien lived during the period of the Six dynasties" is a fact. A </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">fact</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> is a statement that can be proved true or false by evidence. The statement "T'ao Ch'ien is China's greatest poet" is an opinion. An </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">opinion</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> is a statement that can be supported by facts but that is not itself a fact. It cannot be proved either true or false. Others, for example, may agree with your estimation of T'ao Ch'ien, and you may be able to cite passages from his poems that support your view, but the statement itself still cannot be proved true or false.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Opinions may be further classified as </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">judgments</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> (personal beliefs or attitudes), </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">predictions</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> (statements about the future), or </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">obligations</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> (statements about action that should or should not be undertaken).</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">1</span></span></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">What is our world coming to when people are throwing out rational arguments for arbitrary onions? It's a sad state of affairs when people think their opinion superior to someone else's. By this person making this video, they are somehow stating that their opinion is fact, when clearly it cannot be. People need to consider these things when throwing around their opinion. It's foolish is what it is.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Update: see </span></span><a href="http://blog.moviefone.com/2010/11/18/twilight-vs-harry-potter-webmaster-debate/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">this video</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> for the most ridiculous debate ever imaginable. My point is made once again. I like vanilla, you like chocolate, neither is inherently superior than the other. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">1)Taken from Eng 12 assignment.</span></span></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-18443160741901807912010-11-09T17:25:00.000-08:002010-11-09T17:59:59.743-08:00Some good art.<span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/26/diego-gravinese-pinturas/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Diego Gravinese</span></span></span></a></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/24/kelly-dyson-ilustraciones/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Kelly Dyson</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/23/james-paick-disenos-e-ilustraciones/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">James Paick</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/29/eric-lafforgue-fotografias-de-la-india/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Eric Lafforgue</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/28/frank-buchwald-lamparas-steampunk/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Frank Buchwald</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/26/ralph-goings-las-pinturas-de-lo-cotidiano/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Ralph Goings</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/21/edward-burtynsky-canteras/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Edward Burtynsky</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/burj_dubai_1009.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Burj Dubai</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/14/stephan-martiniere-premio-hugo-2008/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Stephan Martiniere</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/12/eric-zener-pinturas/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Eric Zener</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://agaudi.wordpress.com/2008/08/11/gran-bretana-desde-arriba/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">BBC</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://daverapoza.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Dave Rapoza</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://jeremygeddesart.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Jeremy Geddes</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.danmilligan.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Dan Milligan</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.androidjones.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Android Jones</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.barontieri.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Baron Tieri</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.muellerart.com/#goto=works"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">J. Mueller</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.williamwhitaker.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">William Whitaker</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.jasonfelix.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Jason Felix</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.dandossantos.com/mock.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Dandos Santos</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.tinfoilgames.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Daniel Dociu</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://howardlyon.com/blog/?page_id=2"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Howard Lyon</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.andyparkart.com/v1/gallery.asp?MainCategoryID=1&CategoryID=3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Andy Park</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://kekai.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Kekai</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">(best)</span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; "><a href="http://www.jmuecke.net/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Johannes Mucke</span></span></span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-17112436882125465252010-11-08T16:44:00.000-08:002010-12-29T18:50:31.319-08:00Bands I'm currently into: Part 3<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A list of various bands that I like, but don't listen to as often anymore. On a side note, I generally only listen to Christian music, or something non-offensive if it's secular.</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{the rest of my likes}</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A Silver Mt. Zion</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Aaron Booth</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Album Leaf</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">All Time Low</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Anniversary</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Band of Horses</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Becoming the Archetype</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Beloved</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Between the Buried and Me</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Bjork</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Blonde Redhead</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Bloodlined Calligraphy</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Boards of Canada</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Brazil</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Burden of a Day</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Burial</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Buried Inside</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Charis</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Chuck Ragan</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">City & Colour</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Civil Wars</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Colour Morale</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Colour Revolt</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Comback Kid</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Converge</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Cult of Luna</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">D.G.B.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Dashboard Confessional (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A Day to Remember</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Destroyer</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">DJ Shadow</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Dntel</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Dogwood</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Dojo Workhorse</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Draft</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Dredg</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Emarosa</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Enter Shikari</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Envy</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Every New Day</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Explosions in the Sky</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Fashion</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Februarys</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Final Fantasy</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Final Fight</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Four Tet</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Four Year Strong</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Fullblast</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Give Up the Ghost</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Godspeed You Black Emperor!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Here I Come Falling</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Hollow Ground</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.hopesfall.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Hot Water Music</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Ignite</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Imogen Heap</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">ISIS</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Jealous Sound</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Joanna Newsom</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Killswitch Engage</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Lagwagon</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Leatherface</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Leonard Cohen</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Life at Last</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Life in Your Way</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A Lily</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">M83</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Matisyahu</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mikoto</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Minus Story</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Misery Signals (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Modest Mouse (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mogwai</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.moneen.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mono</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">More Than Life</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mortal Treason</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">North</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Northcote</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Notwist</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">O' Brother</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Of Sinking Ships</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">On Solid Ground</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Our Last Night</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Owen</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Pedro the Lion</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Pelican</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Poison the Well (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Promise Ring</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Raised Fist</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Red Sparrowes</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Refused</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Reset</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Rise Against</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Russian Circles</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Saosin (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Saves the day (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Season of Fire</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Shai Hulud</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Shins</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Sigur Ros</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Slechtvalk</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Small Brown Bike</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Stretch Armsrtrong</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Sunny Day Real Estate</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Symphony in Peril</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Take it Back!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Taken</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Ten Foot Pole</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">This Will Destroy You</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Thrice (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Thursday</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Tracy Chapman</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Underoath (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Unearth</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Value Pac</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Velvet Teen</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Venia</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">We the Kings</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Weakerthans (old)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A Wilhelm Scream</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Wisecrack</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">With Blood Comes Cleansing</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">With Honor</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">xLookingForewordx</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Yndi Halda </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Zao</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I do like more, but, who cares eh.</span></span></div><div><br /></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-48932074342642368782010-11-06T18:01:00.000-07:002010-12-29T18:50:15.346-08:00Bands I'm currently into: Part 2<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A newer list of good music. I linked all the bands too, so I recommend checking them all out, depending what your into. Also see </span></span><a href="http://deepprofoundthoughts.blogspot.com/2009/06/bands-im-currently-into.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">this</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> for other music I like. And, I put a small * by the ones I think are on </span></span><a href="https://noisetrade.com/index.aspx#"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">noisetrade</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> for free, so go get em.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{heavy stuff}</span></span></span><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/asboldaslions780"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">As Bold as Lions</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/dependencyhc"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Dependency</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/closeyoureyesmusic"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Close Your Eyes</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/missmayi"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Miss May I</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/withlifeinmind"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">With Life in Mind</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/ourlastnight"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Our Last Night</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/ohsleeper"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Oh, Sleeper</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/blindguardian"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Blind Guardian</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/mychildrenmybride"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">MyChildren MyBride</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/warofages"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">War of Ages</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/fortoday"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">For Today</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/itprevails"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It Prevails</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/theghostinside"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Ghost Inside</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/thegunshowofficial"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Gun Show</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/hastetheday"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Haste the Day</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/apleaforpurging"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A Plea for Purging</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/impendingdoom"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Impending Doom</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/sonshc"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Sons</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{electronic/other}</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.thesixtyone.com/kfoxplaylist/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Kfox</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/mattiemontgomery"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mattie Montgomery</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/raptureruckusmusic"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Rapture Ruckus</span></span></span></a></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{mellow}</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/lovelite"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Lovelite</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/bellarive"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Bellarive</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/theemberdays"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Ember Days</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/ascendthehill"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Ascend the Hill</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/wearevoices"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">We Are Voices</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/todayastomorrow"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Today as Tomorrow</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/theineloquent"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Ineloquent</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/echobrokealone"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Echo Broke Alone</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="https://www.noisetrade.com/johnmarkpantana"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">John Mark Pantana</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/wordsinwindows"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Words in Windows</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/thesleepdesign"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Sleep Design</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/caspiantheband"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Caspian</span></span></span></a></div><div><a href="http://www.myspace.com/treesleave"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Trees Leave</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></div><div><br /></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-6573613833827295022010-11-04T01:05:00.000-07:002010-12-29T18:48:45.830-08:00The Trend of Satanism: Part 3&4<div><b><span lang="EN-CA" style="font-family:"ArialMT","sans-serif";mso-fareast-mso-bidi-font-family:ArialMT;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: normal; font-family:Georgia, serif;"><b><span lang="EN-CA" style="font-family:"ArialMT","sans-serif";mso-fareast-mso-bidi-font-family:ArialMT;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">In my last essay I covered Gaahl and King’s views. In this part, I will go over a couple other points I thought interesting, and hopefully complete the essay in the next part. Again, this is here to simply inform and clarify, not to push my belief. I recommend reading </span></span><a href="http://deepprofoundthoughts.blogspot.com/2010/10/trend-of-satanism-part-1.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Part 1&2</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> before this.</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <!--EndFragment--> </span></span></b></span></span></span></b></div><div><b><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: normal; "><b><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><br /></span></span></span></b></span></span></span></b></div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8oS9aG02fvn6s1q0I9Reu4YqeUIMJGPULzWSh3kDZHJEt_EKJck0fp4_-eUeOi0X4ODttqXvO2HavqeqrONsUHik1MZbu8YH_QTN3yEHMWEHSGytpsun1msEoXjq2jKBnNarpsTkk6SN/s320/peter-beste-king-of-gorgoroth.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5535605914807123938" /><div><b><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: normal; "><b><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Part 3: Deicide-Glen</span></span></span></b></span></span></b></div><div><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Satanism}</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">When Glen, the singer from Deicide (death of God), an ordained Satanist talks about what Satanism means to him he echoes Gaahl and King. He says “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">What I believe in is using my mind and not stupidity and ignorance so it's anti God and anti-Christian</span></span></i><a href="http://www.battlehelm.com/interviews/Deicide.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">1</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” I need not expand on what I’ve said in the Part 1&2, but I think it’s noteworthy once again to see that the common goal of the ‘Satanist’ is to not live in ignorance. But Glen has somehow jumped to the unjustified conclusion that believing in God and ignorance are inseparable, as though everyone who does believe is somehow ignorant. Again, it’s clear that there are many people who believe in God who are not only intelligent, but hold many degrees in various specific fields.</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">He says later that “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It's not about killing babies but against the mentality that says 'If you do that, you're gonna go to Hell</span></span></i><a href="http://www.battlehelm.com/interviews/Deicide.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">1</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.'</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">" Here is something that bothers me. From a Christian standpoint, we all are born into sin, therefor it’s not the ‘doing things against God’ which sends us to hell, but the fact is, we are </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">all on </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">our way there no matter what. It’s often misunderstood when people think that ‘God sends people to Hell’. </span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The presupposition is that </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">God</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> sends us, where as in truth, we send ourselves. So, that's where Jesus comes in. Sin, as it is, separates us from God. Hell is literally complete separation from God, and without Jesus, we are cut off from God. Jesus’s death takes that sin away, essentially, and thus when we die, God sees clean sinless souls. There's a quote like this: “In the end we say to God '</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">thy Will be done</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">', or God says to us '</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">thy Will be done</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">'”.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">We sin, we love sin, that's human nature, and if we choose it over Jesus, when we die we get exactly what we want. Love God or love sin, it's simple as that.</span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{The Church}<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">He goes on to talk about Church saying, “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">They need new members to keep their bank accounts full and they need people to believe their lie, but I do as I wilt</span></span></i><a href="http://www.battlehelm.com/interviews/Deicide.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">1</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” As I covered the issue of money briefly in the last paper, I will simply add </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">that the main intent of the Church is to offer help to people. The true Church does not draw forth people because they want something from them, but because of what they offer </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">to</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> them; the message of hope and love. It’s obvious people look for answers in many things, like various religions, booze and sex, or even the occult and witchcraft, and Church is another source of answers for these people. Though it should be noted that the Christian Church does consider themselves to have the only correct answer to the question of why and how we got here. Glen then goes on to talk about how he disapproves of the adolescent attitude of many ‘Satanists’ and is against them “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">getting drunk and burning up a church or spraying Deicide lyrics on the side of a school or killing the neighbour’s dog</span></span></i><a href="http://www.battlehelm.com/interviews/Deicide.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">1</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” He recognizes the futility of such actions, respectfully, and I can admire this.</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">He says elsewhere “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">We're into exposing the negative realities of Christianity but in an intellectual way</span></span></i><a href="http://www.battlehelm.com/interviews/Deicide.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">1</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” And yet I fail to see his ‘intellectual way’. He’s not out burning Churches down or killing dogs, which is good, but his lyrics are by no means an intellectual alternative to Christianity, and speak mostly of blasphemy, death, evil and hate.</span></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> It’s evident in Glenn’s lyrics he’s mad a God (see the song ‘</span></span><a href="http://www.darklyrics.com/lyrics/deicide/scarsofthecrucifix.html#2"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mad at God</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">’) and even more evident that his anger, while being perhaps justified, isn’t warranted. Christians get mad at God all the time, but they have the sense to try to understand God’s nature, instead of writing Him off as dead or useless. There is another song called ‘</span></span><a href="http://www.darklyrics.com/lyrics/deicide/serpentsofthelight.html#3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Blame it on God</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">’, to which Glen echoes the actions of Adam and Eve in the garden. Their first sin (besides eating the fruit) was to blame someone else for their wrong doings. I must say, from the Christian standpoint, these men claiming their ‘search for wisdom’ don’t seem to have a lot of it, and it’s as if I’m hearing children speak when I read Deicide’s lyrics. I’d like to see them explain why, exactly, they think their beliefs more logically valuable to society, and why exactly they’re superior to the Christian worldview. If we compare Jesus teaching to Glen’s, which does the reader think is a better way to live? In a hate </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">filled manner serving only yourself, or a loving manner serving others. Even Einstein said “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Only a life lived for others is worth living</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">” and that’s exactly what the Christian life entails;</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">serving others.</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyDE8PNE0FSNGOfSGpmXFSQvJfwtUBi56w-G6b44ses_j-Q3GNAtxGbqoB5iK5P97a01Ldhm3Jie5I70yl5iV7uMhPxSAwteud_c3PKJmwKrJH_sLds6aUQZUBkGenhbUGMpu7yyfZnZd5/s320/6a00d8341ce4c253ef00e54f1bf7218833-800wi.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5535606084830842674" /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Part 4: Emperor-Ihsahn<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Satanism}<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span lang="EN-CA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Emperor is renown throughout the Black Metal scene not only for their music but for their involvement in Church burning and murder. Ihsahn, a social Darwinist and Satanist</span></span><a href="http://www.esoterra.org/empor.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">3</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> had this to say regarding Christian mission work, “</span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">You have Christian missions going into the jungle and forcing their religion upon tribes </span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">that have been living on a very primitive basis for thousands of years. What do they need Christianity for?</span></span></i><a href="http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~jasen01/warsongs/emperorinterview.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">2</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">" While I agree that forcing beliefs in a hateful manner on anyone is wrong, I do believe a rational discussion is good to have, and I know there were missionaries who did horrible things, but as I have said previously, the actions of the followers hold no barring on truth. Jesus did indeed say “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">go into all the world and preach the good news</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">” (</span></span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+16%3A15&version=NIV"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mark 16:15</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">) but He surely didn’t mean ‘kill people in my name’. He said ‘the good news’ which is ‘God’s love for man’. Nay, it is man who perpetuated the wrongful crimes, merely using God to exonerate themselves and to rid themselves of guilt; to justify what they’d done. But that is not real Christianity. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">And as for Ihsahn wondering what we need Christianity for, it’s merely a matter of figuring out what they (Christians) propose, which is: man has sinned against God, and thus has revoked his ability to be in the same presence. God saw man, and through grace sent His son to die, so that man’s sins may be ‘washed away’ and thus redeeming the person to a stature of quality worthy of being near God. People need Christianity because, if it is true, then it is the only way to meet and know God personally not only in this life, but fully in the next. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Theology}</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">In another interview he says "</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Christianity is practiced by people to weak to control their own lives. The religion represents illogical pity morals that stride against the laws of nature</span></span></i><a href="http://www.esoterra.org/empor.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">3</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” From the view of the Christian this is laughable, and by implying Christians are to weak to control their lives he shows how gross his misconception of Christianity really is. It’s the classic secular mistake of thinking ‘we’ are in control of our own lives. That’s one of the things we must realize in coming to God; knowing that we are in control of nothing, I mean real control. The illusion of the world is that we are in control. Furthermore, Christian morals are built upon God’s law, and to say they are ‘against the laws of nature’ shows ever more of an ignorance on his part, and the ironic thing is he’s right, in a sense. Christianity goes against the world’s view of morals because it goes against selfishness, pride, hate, envy, greed, lust & sexual immorality, jealousy, malice and slander, among others. So it’s not that he’s wrong exactly, but his view on the matter is simply contradictory to the Christian view, and is understandable.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">When asked if he believes in gods Ihsahn says “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Yes, I believe in gods, as personified symbols of forces that are unrecognizable to the physical senses, and therefore must be associated through those channels the human mind is capable of using</span></span></i><a href="http://www.esoterra.org/empor.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">3</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” His views of pantheism are evident, which I think comes from his cultural background. It seems many of these men who live in Norway have a huge connection with their heritage and history, which is good, but at the same time if is built upon a fallacy then it is of little worth. I don’t mean to degrade the Norwegian culture, in fact I find it fascinating and very interesting, but the fact is it is built upon paganism and false gods/pantheism. He goes on to say the he can accept a man named Jesus once lived and was affected by “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">a force that gave him this strange idea</span></span></i><a href="http://www.esoterra.org/empor.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">3</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” Of course he doesn’t believe Jesus is the savior of all people, and regards Heaven and Hell as mere visual symbols on the forces in contrast. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">With all the above being said it’s no surprise that Satanists claim what they do. Christianity is directly contrary to everything I’ve heard these people say. They are the complete opposite; one is about love, and the other hate. Ihsahn shows his lack of love when he says this about the strong over the weak, “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It is the law of nature. The strong survive. That is basically the mentality behind my Satanism-the individual. Strong, intelligent, and powerful</span></span></i><a href="http://www.esoterra.org/empor.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">3</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” In the Christian view, we are to love the weak, and help them. Near the end of an MTV interview he says “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">how can you have respect for something so weak</span></span></i><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8k5P_X5aHps"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">4</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” </span></span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+20%3A35&version=NIV"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Acts 20:35</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> says “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">We must help the </span></span></i><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">weak</span></span></i><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">." It is pride which made the devil fall from grace, and it is the same thing that leads to the mentality of superiority, and self glorification. </span></span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs+1%3A7&version=NIV"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Proverbs 1:7</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> says “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">” The Satanist movement is built upon building ones self up as though God, and following a flawed wisdom wrought by man. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The prevalent theme they all talk about is utter selfishness in every sense of the word. And as I’ve said before, both sides are at am impasse, and the other thinks the other wrong, and neither will agree.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Conclusion}</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Once again I am bothered by that lack of intelligence towards Christianity, but it's more than that. The claim is being made against the world view, and yet these people don't seem to have a correct understanding of it. I cannot spend a life opposed to something to which I am ill informed; it would be silly. But people do. That's all for now. Part 5&6 will come soon I suppose, whenever I get around to it.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">1)http://www.battlehelm.com/interviews/Deicide.htm </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">2)http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~jasen01/warsongs/emperorinterview.htm</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">3)http://www.esoterra.org/empor.htm</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">4)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8k5P_X5aHps</span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"></span></p><p></p><!--StartFragment--><!--EndFragment--> <!--EndFragment--> </div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-21415963704200133262010-11-03T22:46:00.000-07:002011-06-12T20:03:19.844-07:00Some great theologians and philosophers.<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Here is a small list of some highly respected Christian apologists. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">(I do consider Chesterton to be my favorite of the bunch.)</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">{click the name to go to their site}</span></span></div><a href="http://www.reasonablefaith.org/site/PageServer"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">William Lane Crag</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Philosophy of Religion and Time/Natural Theology/Christian Apologetics</span></span><div><a href="http://carm.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Matt Slick</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Christian Apologetics and Research</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.desiringgod.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">John Piper</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Evangelism/Theological Studies</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.ntwrightpage.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">N.T. Wright</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-New Testament Scholar/Theological Studies</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.peterkreeft.com/home.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Peter Kreeft</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Christian Philosophy/Apologetics</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.gty.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">John MacArthur</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Evangelism/Theology</span></span></div><div><a href="http://users.ox.ac.uk/~mcgrath/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Alister McGrath</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Histoical Theology/Religion and Science/Natural Theology</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.biologos.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Francis Collins</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Genetisist/Physician</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.josh.org/site/c.ddKDIMNtEqG/b.4023555/k.BE5B/Home.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Josh McDowell</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Christian Apologetics/Evangelism/Biblical Studies</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.theschaefferfoundation.com/index.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Francis Schaeffer</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Philosophy/Theology</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.cslewis.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">C.S. Lewis</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Christian Apologetics/Novelist</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.leestrobel.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Lee Strobel</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Christian Apologetics/Journalist</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.ccc.uga.edu/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Henry F. Schaefer, III</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Computational Chemistry</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G._K._Chesterton"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">G.K. Chesterton</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Christian and Catholic Apologetics/Novelist/Journalist</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.spurgeongems.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Charles Spurgeon</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Author/Pastor</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Plantinga"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Alvin Plantinga</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Epistemology/Metaphysics/Philosophy of Religion</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.reasons.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Hugh Ross</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Christian Apologetics/Astronomer/Astrophysicist </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://grantjeffrey.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Grant Jeffery</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Biblical Studies in Archaeology, Prophecy and Eschatology</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.malcolmmuggeridge.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Malcolm Muggeridge</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Journalist/Author/Satirist</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.ttf.org/index"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Os Guinness</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Author</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.thechristianwatershed.com/Christian_Watershed/Home.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">The Christian Watershed</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Philosophy of Ethics and Religion/Metaphysics</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.jpmoreland.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">J.P. Moreland</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Philosohpy of Science, Ethics, Metaphysics and Religion/Theology/Christian Apologetics</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Aquinas"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Thomas Aquinas</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Priest/Philosopher/Theologian</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.normangeisler.net/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Norman Geisler</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">-Philosophy of Religion/Christian Apologetics</span></span></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-25050270590177782262010-10-31T17:23:00.000-07:002010-12-29T18:49:14.896-08:00Jesus is God, not a cuss word.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn5zXdw4q-ZTqNC2_TNRjn1JYi8aqbtgInHxNobd8BC3VisDr-9SjmaKDADlyWrDA9lxyI123SQK0_oc0f-mn9sFDDZxy4d4cG7xEgxDGjoySAGSM2fpnFH8ADJrnY94AlmxnfhbdOLnHV/s1600/matrix_punch.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 190px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn5zXdw4q-ZTqNC2_TNRjn1JYi8aqbtgInHxNobd8BC3VisDr-9SjmaKDADlyWrDA9lxyI123SQK0_oc0f-mn9sFDDZxy4d4cG7xEgxDGjoySAGSM2fpnFH8ADJrnY94AlmxnfhbdOLnHV/s320/matrix_punch.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534370734196606818" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 16px; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;font-size:11px;"><p style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Why do people use ‘Jesus’ as a swear word?</span></span></span></p><p style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I now have somewhat of a coherent answer. But to get the answer we must first consider that Christianity might be true. For the sake of argument, let’s say it is. If Christianity is true, then, every man, whether he believes it or not has ‘God’s imprint’ in his heart. This is where the argument of moral value comes from in the case of Christians; they claim it is upon every mans heart, so that he can know what is right and what is wrong; the conscience. Now, for the sake of time, and because I don’t want to, I will avoid a 200 page paper on moral values. The point is, men ought to know what is right and what is wrong. In the book Human Universals by D. Brown he concludes that throughout history, in every culture there are things which they have found ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. </span></span></span></p><p style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"> </p><p style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The name Jesus, according to Christianity is God’s name revealed to man. Thus, if Christianity is true, ever man will not only know in his heart that God exists, but that Jesus is His name. Not only that, if Christianity is true, then everything else is not true. So as it stands, we are left with two facts.</span></span></span></p><p style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "> </p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Fact 1) In his heart, every man knows God exists, even if he denies it.</span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Fact 2) Every man knows Jesus is God’s revealed name.</span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "> </p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Thus when we examine the actual state of society from the standpoint that Christianity is true, we can understand why people use Jesus as a swear word, especially when they claim to have no belief in Him at all. Jesus even said in John 7:7 “The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that what it does is evil.” He knew the world would hate Him, and He also knew the world would hate His followers. 1 John 3:13 says “Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.” And from this we can see why people why people use Jesus as a cuss, because they hate Him. But again, does it seem strange to hate Santa, or Zeus? No one is saying these names in a serious offensive way because no one truly believes in them. Again I say, man knows Jesus is God whether he admits to it or not. </span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"> </p><p face="'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif" style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I make the following comparison:</span></span></span></p><p face="'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif" style=" text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "> </p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"></span></span></span></p><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">There is a man you wish to render unconscious because he is about to kill you, but he is frozen to where he stands by some strange coincidence of glue falling to the floor preventing him from moving. You run up to him and begin to flick his chest your hardest with your finger. But the man about to stab you is confused, and shakes his head. He raised his knife, and is about to strike when a brilliant idea comes to you. You reach in your pocket, grab your brass knuckles, and punch him in the side of the head your hardest. He falls to the ground like a rag doll and you have won.</span></span></span></blockquote><p></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "> </p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Now, consider this. If a person is steaming with putrid rage and volatile hatred towards something, they’re going to go for the most devastating thing they can say or do to express their anger, and damage with the most extreme cause they can. In the case of a swearing Atheist, they often will conjure up Jesus Christ (among others) as a swear word to express their anger. But why? Why is it that they use a name to which they associate with a man who a) didn’t exist, or b) existed, but wasn’t God. </span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "> </p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">My conclusion is that all men, whether they acknowledge it or not know that Jesus is God, and by using His name in vain they know deep down that it is the brass knuckle to the face of God, and the only way which they can express something to the extent of being satisfied with their words. Thus, they know that in doing so they have offended the God of the universe, even though they deny Him, and there is a subtle morbid satisfaction in that for them. </span></span></span></p></span>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-15442234963152198332010-10-24T17:19:00.000-07:002010-12-29T18:50:59.148-08:00On books.<div></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">This list is more for me than you. It's not meant to do much more than catalog my books.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{have read}</span></span></div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narnia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Narnia series</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Problem_of_Pain"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Problem of Pain</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Divorce"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Great Divorce</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Till_We_Have_Faces"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Till We Have Faces</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mere_Christianity"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mere Christianity</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screwtape_Letters"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Screwtape Letters</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screwtape_Proposes_a_Toast#Screwtape_Proposes_a_Toast_sequel"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Screwtape Proposes a Toast</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miracles_(book)"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Miracles</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hobbit"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Hobbit</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Tolkien</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Belgariad"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Belgaraid</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Eddings</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man%27s_Search_for_Meaning"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Man's Search for Meaning</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Frankl</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Love Not the World-Nee</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Language_of_God:_A_Scientist_Presents_Evidence_for_Belief"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Language of God</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Collins</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Reasonable Faith-Craig</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">In the Beginning was Information-Gitt</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Chrysalids-Wyndham</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Hidden Crown-Bruce</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Bible-Miscellaneous</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthodoxy_(book)"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Orthodoxy</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Chesterton</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">God:The Evidence-Glynn</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dawkins_Delusion%3F"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Dawkins Delusion</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-McGrath</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">My Utmost for His Highest-Malcolm Muggeridge</span></span></div><div><a href="https://www.wordsearchbible.com/catalog/The_Kingdom_of_the_Cults_3041.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Kingdom of the Cults</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Martin</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Outsider-Camus</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.5lovelanguages.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Five Love Languages</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Chapman</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{in the middle of reading}</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Truth War-MacArthur</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Evidence Demands a Verdict-McDowell</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Case for Christ-Strobel</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Whatever Happened to Truth?-Mohler Jr, Kostenberger, Moreland, Vanhoozer</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.christendom-awake.org/pages/resurrection/wright_resurrection.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Resurrection of the Son of God</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Wright</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Napoleon of Notting Hill-Chesterton</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{yet to read}</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Four_Loves"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Four Loves</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Lewis</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Normal Christian Life-Nee</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Francis Schaeffer Trilogy-Schaeffer</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Pilgrim's Regress-Lewis</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Christian Reflections-Lewis</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">God in the Dock-Lewis</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Cosmic Codes-Missler</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthropic_principle#The_Anthropic_Cosmological_Principle"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Anthropic Cosmological Principle</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Barrow/Tipler</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Beyond Good and Evil-Nietzsche</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Malloreon-Eddings</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Nicomachean Ethics-Aristotle</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Elenium-Eddings</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Through the Shadowland-Lewis</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Surprised by Joy-Lewis</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{yet to buy and read}</span></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mein_Kampf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mein Kampf</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Hitler</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">God is Good, God is Great-Craig</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.reasonablefaith.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Blackwell_Companion_to_Natural_Theology"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">-Miscellaneous/Craig/Moreland</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">On Guard-Craig</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">What's so great about Christianity?-D'Souza</span></span></div><div></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">There are many others, but it seems there's not enough time in the day. Besides, I read a lot on the internet too. That's all.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Kev</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div><br /></div>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-51680763029964953722010-10-21T15:41:00.000-07:002010-12-29T18:47:51.793-08:00The Trend of Satanism: Part 1&2<img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 228px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibOqXy7Pv_ly3jlg-CD5gukLNFRNLOXnCx4IAnE4RM9HmGGagePwbCMTIlFah1G1NlEPkXhIPUg4UlgyPRKNf53TXC_Yb4cGuQiAp3fG7FY6DlQ6N_CcPxZBN0L461qoNFOsbjgD0yIr_F/s320/blackmetal3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530726806275454514" /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">F</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">irst of all, I want to say that I have a curious fascination with Black Metal. I respect it for the most part, and have found that there's much more to it than a bunch of angry dudes wearing makeup and playing blast beats. I personally consider the whole genre an elite form of art, and one that I think ought to be considered one of the more unique and remarkable of it's kind. Not just that, many of the members of these bands are quite intelligent, and I daresay more than many people I've come across although I have found much of their world view to be erroneous. The problem, which is what I want to address, is the misconception of</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Adobe Caslon Pro';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Christianity that goes along, inherently with the music. This paper is not here to preach or convert, but to simply clarify what I conceive to be wrong.</span></span><p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The trend of Satanism is rampant throughout the Black Metal scene and the goal of this paper is to find out why. Now, I've started this project and it seems there's two things to note before getting started. One is that many bands who are viewed as 'Satanic' are in fact not Satanists, in the true sense of the word; they don't worship Satan. Two, and more importantly, that their view of Christianity is skewed so drastically they've been forced to bear such labels. I want to examine what they think, and believe, and try to rectify and clarify their problems.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Part 1: Gorgoroth-Gaahl</span></span></b></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Oppression/Freedom}</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">L</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">et's look first at Gaahl's view of God to get an understanding on where he, indeed a lot of people are at in their thinking. Gaahl was the singer for the band Gorgoroth, and has since given metal up to pursue other forms of art/music. I don't believe he took part in the actual 'Church burning' which took place in the 90's, but his view on it is by no means opposed.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">He says regarding Church burnings that “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">As long as the church has the power it has and supports oppression, we shouldn’t give the church any sympathy</span></span></i><a href="http://www.metalsucks.net/2010/01/15/coming-out-has-taught-gaahl-nothing/"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">2</span></span></span></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” And also that he “</span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">supports them 100%</span></span></i><a href="http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=66008"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">1</span></span></span></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” So already there's a confusion about words being used. To oppress, according to the dictionary means: to keep (someone) in subservience (to obey others unquestionably) and hardship, especially by the unjust exercise of authority. Now of course, anyone would agree, even among the Christian community that it's wrong to oppress people, and in fact they </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">ought</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> to encourage people to question </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">everything</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">, especially the pastor. The view he holds is that the Church is oppressive. Gaahl makes the broad statement 'the Church supports oppression' as though enough has been said. But let's look further.</span></span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">W</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">e must now ask: W</span></span></span><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">hat is the Christian view on oppression and freedom compared to Gaahl's? Gaahl considers the Church to be oppressive, but Christianity considers Satan to be oppressive. There's a strange dichotomy here. Both views hold that the other is the oppressor, but why? If Gaahl is correct, then the Church is the oppressor, and is trying to control people. But is this the actual case? Or is this argument futile? If we look at the </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">true</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> Church, the one who actually follows the </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">real</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> Jesus, we are hard pressed to find any sort of oppression. In fact, almost all the Churches I know do things to </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">help</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> the less fortunate and are in no way oppressive. The misconception arises when people claiming Christ begin to force their beliefs upon people, and I think that is where the main problem lies.</span></span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">People don't like to be told their wrong and Christians are good at telling people they are. It's all over the media, and is hard to miss. But I think the fundamentals</span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">*</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> are the ones getting most of the attention, while the others are behind the scene shaking their heads with disappointment. The problem is religion. Religion implies rules, and laws. Religion is what tells people they can and cannot do something, but, while Jesus was alive he spent most of His time telling the religious people </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">they</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> were wrong. It's no wonder why the message of Jesus h</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">as been lost, it is because people have brought religion into it.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">S</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">o if we go back to our question about who is the oppressor, let's assume now that Christianity is correct. Christianity says that Satan oppresses, and that true freedom lies in knowing Jesus. So the definition of </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">freedom</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> is also different in both worldviews; while in Gaahl's he believes that doing 'the will of man' is what's natural</span></span></span><a href="http://www.tartareandesire.com/interviews/gorgoroth.html"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">4</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> where as in Christianity freedom is doing what God wants, and the 'will' of man is intrinsically sinful. An analogy in regards to real freedom can go as follows:</span></span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"></span></span></p><blockquote><p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">In a small town there were two fathers, Mr. Jones and Mr. Smith. Both of them had sons who wanted to sow their wild oats.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">When Mr. Jones’ son got in trouble at school for not turning in an assignment, Mr. Jones quickly grounded his son and made his son do his homework. Later on when the </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">son was caught smoking marijuana in the school bathroom and was expelled, Mr. Jones made sure to enroll his son in an alternative school that taught proper discipline. When the son was arrested for theft, Mr. Jones did not bail out his son, but rather let his son sit in jail to learn from his deeds. Eventually the son grew to learn there are consequences for his actions. During this entire time the father did not yell at the son, beat the son, or refuse to accept the son during the son’s times of repentance. Rather, he simply let his son endure the natural consequences for his actions.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mr. Smith, however, took a different approach to parenting. When his son didn’t turn in a grade assignment, Mr. Smith simply affirmed his son’s choice. He figured his son was experimenting with alternative ways to learn. When his son was caught getting high on school grounds, the father went to the defense of his son asking why the school had such strict regulations to begin with. When he was caught for stealing, Mr. Smith posted bail and hired an excellent defense atto</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">rney for his son, because he couldn’t bear to see his son go to jail and suffer.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Which father displayed the greater love? The one who disciplined the son or the one who affirmed the son?</span></span></span><a href="http://thechristianwatershed.com/2010/10/15/the-story-of-two-fathers/"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">3</span></span></span></span></a></p></blockquote><p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><a href="http://thechristianwatershed.com/2010/10/15/the-story-of-two-fathers/"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"></span></span></span></span></a></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">So from this we can gather that discipline is not inherently </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">bad</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">, indeed it is beneficial to our being, and upon reading the analogy one </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">ought</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> to agree that the father who disciplined showed more love; because he cared what happened with his child. Being truly free does not mean doing whatever you want when ever you want. It mustn't. In the case of Christianity, God knows better than us, and we view what he says in such a manner. It is as though a father telling his son not to touch the stove because he knows the child will get hurt. Of course, the child is free to touch the stove, but will it benefit him? The Bible says 'Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible, but not everything is constructive. </span></span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20cor%2010:23&version=NIV"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">(1 Cor 10:23)</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">. A sailor in a boat is free to sail the ocean, but what about his direction and guidance? If he has no direction or guidance, then is he truly free? Or is he hopeless lost i</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">n an ocean, doomed to sail aimlessly sacrificing guidance in the name of being free? The sailor may consider himself to be free, but to an onlooker it's obvious he is not, and, it seems we are at an impasse. Both views do not, and will not agree.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{The Title of Satanist}</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">G</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">aahl has also said, regarding his Satanist title that “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">We use the word ‘Satanist’ because it is Christian world and we have to speak their language. To the world I am a Satanist, which means resistance to everything that holds you down</span></span></i></span><a href="http://www.tartareandesire.com/interviews/gorgoroth.html"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">4</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” He goes on to say “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Yes, I am opposed to everything that denies the individual to grow, so for me Satan is natural in that matter. When I use the word Satan, it means the natural order, the will of a man, the will to grow, the will to become the superman and not to be oppressed by any law such as the church, which is only a way to control the masses and has nothing to do with god. And the word religion also means ‘man made*’. Man made the belief in god and that is basically what it </span></span></i></span><span style="font-style: normal"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">means and in my opinion man cannot create god. God can create a man but the opposite does not work. I am not interested in a group of people that will obey some kind of master or whatever, I want them to grow, I want the individual to grow, and I want people to decide themselves what they want to be</span></span></i></span><a href="http://www.tartareandesire.com/interviews/gorgoroth.html"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">4</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Satan means resistance</span></span></i></span><a href="http://www.faceculture.tv/index.php?cnti_key=11757993"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">5</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” He confirms that God can create man, but man cannot create god. Of course, this lines up exactly with Christianity, only he thinks the Christians have made up god. But, without knowing, we both agree on this point. </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">(*Religion doesn't mean 'manmade'.)</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">These final statements are somewhat ambiguous, but again, we can see his view of 'growth' is completely opposing the Christian view. A Christian considers growth to be producing the 'fruit of the spirit' which is: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Faithfulness, Goodness and Self Control. Growth in this definition comes from God, although the claim is not exclusive in a way that omits non-Christians. Everyone is capable of these things, but, without God the true 'fruit' cannot be produced. In Gaahl's view, growth comes when doing one's will, which, it seems is whatever you want; be held down by no one and nothing. According to Gaahl he doesn't read a lot, and usually sticks with what he writes. It almost seemed as though he were resistant to reading in the one interview</span></span></span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4U33U_UyzQ&feature=channel"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">6</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">, although his music contains many references to Nietzsche, including three albums, according to King, the bassist</span></span></span><a href="http://www.voicesfromthedarkside.de/interviews/gorgoroth.htm"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">7</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">. It's obvious Gaahl has read something in his l</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">ife, to what ends I do not know, but from the way he talks it seems as though his view is abundantly ethnocentric.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Although Gaahl uses the term Satanism, he denies evil's existence, but, he unknowingly is being exactly what he thinks he is not. In the Christian worldview, Satanism is doing exactly what Gaahl does; worship creation and not the creator, be selfish, and elevate yourself to the position of God; pride at it's fullest. He says 'when I use the word Satan, I mean the natural order of things'. To the Christian, this means sin. According to the Bible, the 'natural order' is: we all live in sin </span></span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=rom%203:23&version=NIV"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">(Romans 3:23)</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">. So, despite his lack of knowledge, he's actually confirming the Christian view without realizing it again. When he says 'the will of man' he's considering the will of man to be doing what man wants in able to 'grow'. He goes on to make this evident by stating again that when he says Satan it means “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">the will to grow, the will to become the superman and not to be oppressed by any law such as the church</span></span></i><a href="http://www.tartareandesire.com/interviews/gorgoroth.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">4</span></span></a><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">” He doesn't seem to think there is a black or white (as the Church makes it out to be) either, in regards to 'good' or 'bad', “There's never been right or wrong, it's alw</span></span></span><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">ays been a mixture...there is no absolutes, basically</span></span></span><a href="http://www.faceculture.tv/index.php?cnti_key=11757993"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">5</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.”</span></span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">With no absolutes our civilization would come to utter ruin. Who's to say I can't kill you for your shoes? Who's to say what Stalin did was wrong? The implication of living without moral absolutes brings forth to big of argument to tackle right now but I will address it briefly again, and link to further sources.</span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span style="font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">M</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">oving on, Gaahl seems to think the Church has nothing to do with god, which is fine, but it's important to note </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">his</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> view of god is a </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheism"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">pantheistic</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> view. In an interview he had this to say, “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">God is within yourself, that's the only true god, the within everything...it is the highest spirit of everything, and not this control freak that's telling you 'you are not supposed to do this, you are only supposed to bow down and kneel before what I say'. God is within nature, and nature will always grow. The force of all life, is to grow</span></span></i></span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4U33U_UyzQ&feature=channel"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">6</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” If the Church has nothing to do with god, it is because it has nothing to do with a pantheistic god. The obvious difference being one makes god everything, and the other makes God beyond everything. It's curious that hi</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">s view of Satanism is actually correct, despite his lack of belief in Satan himself. But, his view of Christianity is obviously wrong. Let's look at another example.</span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Money/Conclusion}</span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span style="font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">H</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">e says elsewhere “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Most Christians they are out for money</span></span></i></span><a href="http://www.metalsucks.net/2010/01/15/coming-out-has-taught-gaahl-nothing"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">2</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” This is simply wrong. In fact, were I to do a search on goole for Christian non-profit organizations I could easily find hundreds</span></span></span><a href="http://www.urbanministry.org/org/search"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">8</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">. (That's not to say everyone claiming to be 'non-profit Christian' is helping, we all know there are deceivers out there looking only for money.) But the fact is, despite this misconception, money isn't important to a Christian. That's not to say it's of no value, or useful, but money is by no means </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">everything</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> to the genuine Christian. This is another reason people think Churches just wants your money. They don't realize when we give our money to the Church, it's not because we have to, but to shows money is not our God. We view it entirely differently, because in many cases, people make their god money. </span></span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">G</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">aahl rejects Christianity based on the fact that “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">There's always been a bad taste, to letting others die for your sins</span></span></i></span><a href="http://www.faceculture.tv/index.php?cnti_key=11757993"><span style="font-style: normal"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">5</span></span></span></u></span></a><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” To be honest, I'm not sure what he means by this, but I suppose he figures if sin </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">exists, and he had to make up for it, it would be a pathetic display to let someone else take the fall for you. And I think that's where his pride comes in, and that's where he's missed the mark of God's grace. Somehow he has received the wrong information about Christianity, which becomes obvious with what he says. He is not differentiating between religion and the claims of the true Christian (Christ follower), and the main problem is the way he views freedom. Without coming to terms with these, neither side will understand each other. Both think the other is doing the wrong thing and is oppressed. I suppose the obvious way to tell is to ask a real had-my-life-changed Christian.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">O</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">verall, if we compare what Gaahl says with what Christians say, presuppositions aside, they </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">could</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> agree. They both believe man should grow, and be free. Neither side wants the 'masses' to be controlled as though mindless subjects who never question authority. Nay, I say both sides need to put their notions aside, and examine the case reasonably. Anyone who is foolish enough t</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">o base his perspective upon a worldview by judging it's followers needs to think again. The actions of the followers don't acquaint the truth of their world view. As a brief example I offer the following to conclude.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"></span></span></p><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">You love dogs, and decide to make an organization to protect them, call it Me-For-Dogs. Over time, your organization becomes large, and has many people joining up. Your happy about the progress Me-For-Dogs is making, but are ashamed to find out some people who are devoted to your cause are caught farming puppies and abusing them. Their actions have brought shame to your name, and soon you have people protesting against your other followers; the ones who genuinely care about puppies.</span></span></blockquote><p></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">N</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">ow, is the fact that you love dogs any more fallacious now that some people who claimed to be part of Me-For-Dogs have abused them? No. The truth of the matter is you still love puppies. So if people are judging crazy fundamentals actions and basing it upon the truth of the Bible, doesn't that seem insensible? If people say one thing, and do another that holds no barring on weather the claim they make/their worldview is true or not. So just beca</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">use people use Jesus as a way to spread hate, and lies, the fact is someone who follows the real Jesus most likey won't be this way. But that's not to say people don't make mistakes. Again, the misconception is that since Christians are so good and pointing the finger, they shouldn't mess up either. That's simply </span></span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=rom%203:23&version=NIV"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">not the case</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">. I could write a whole paper on just this (which I will) but for now, let's leave it there.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><b><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 216px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGkMK5Y-cc-ghDqUF9gxsy8fpbxgiFSf1ezJ3HDOoEn7sYjZt1wD-gaRA4alDryAQ9Rt-LwiU8vGKy5Cq8aWaJQLztNLXBEDsAeVr6UJwE6aDQQ9aHsV53qC7G0luB3SVKxnjeZ65ZIXob/s320/ravn.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530727300744431986" /></b></p><p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Part 2: Gorgoroth-King</span></span></b></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Nazism}</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span style="font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">K</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">ing, the bass player for Gorgoroth says </span></span></span><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Well, we (Gorgoroth) aren't linked to Nazism at all, and the reason for that is simple: it's ideology for the flock. It's also birthed out of Christianity; it's something I'm totally against and I could never share any of those ideas</span></span></i><a href="http://www.chroniclesofchaos.com/articles/chats/1-935_gorgoroth.aspx"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">9</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” Unfortunately saying something doesn't make it true and anyone who knows anything about a)Hitler and b)Christianity knows both views two are completely inco</span></span></span><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">mpatible. For one, Hitler </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">killed</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> Christians. For two, Hitler used religion as deception in his speeches. Indeed I don't know how he (King) arrived at the conclusion that Naziism rose out of Christianity, and I </span></span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">would</span></span></i><span style="font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> like to know, but with such a broad statement and no means of conversation, I suppose I never will. Readers can also note the book '</span></span><a href="http://org.law.rutgers.edu/publications/law-religion/nurinst1.shtml"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The Nazi Master Plan</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">: The Persecution of the Christian Churches' by Julie Seltzer Mandel which addresses this exact issue.</span></span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Then he talks more, almost with a stronger vehemence than Gaahl about his roots in Satanism. He says “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Satanism is about a lot more: it's about considering your environment and your situation based on your personal experiences, and it's about the value that you attach to human beings</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.”</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Moral Relativism}</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">K</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">ing says he doesn't believe in evil, and doesn't believe in good either</span></span><a href="http://www.chroniclesofchaos.com/articles/chats/1-935_gorgoroth.aspx"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">9</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">, which to me is strange. One need only look around at what happens in the world to see the amount of evil that goes on. He goes on to say “</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I believe that you decide what's evil and what's good, and that creates a lot of conflict with the rest of the population</span></span></i><a href="http://www.chroniclesofchaos.com/articles/chats/1-935_gorgoroth.aspx"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">9</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">.” What I'm finding hard to believe is that King seems to not even realize what he's implying, which is moral relativism. In further study one will realize that no one is truly, under harsh scrutiny a moral relativist</span></span><a href="http://nascentthinker.org/the-myth-of-moral-relativism/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">10</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.peterkreeft.com/audio/05_relativism/relativism_transcription.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">11</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">. (This subject is to large to cover in one or two blogs, so take from it what you will.)</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Violence}</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">W</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">hen asked about violence King had this to say: "</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I don't think that violence necessarily is a good thing. The problem today is that the flock are trying to keep the ones that are living in an individual way down, by creating flock-laws, flock-values and a flock-society. This has to be fought against at all costs. A person can not find his inner truth by adapting to flock values. Therefore we must use any methods necessary, even if it includes church burning or murder. The stronger individual must be given the power to reach his potential. Most people are trying to sabotage this and must face the consequences</span></span></i><a href="http://www.voicesfromthedarkside.de/interviews/gorgoroth.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">7</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">."</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">As though stunting him from being an individual King poses that anything resembling a 'flock-like' nature is the 'problem of today'. Does he assume that these flocks are getting their laws and values from out of thin air? It bothers me that someone would say this knowing, or </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">hopefully</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> knowing, where people come up with laws and values. From the Christian view, God has set in place laws and value for a reason; so that we may live in harmony and not destroy ourselves. Everyone is supposed to be equal, although this is often not the case. But I think, even were one to approach this in a neutral position, they would be better off choosing Christianity rather than Satanism for the mere fact that Satanism denotes that human value is relative. Human life is of intrinsic value to the Christian, but not the Satanist.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">T</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">o conclude, looking at what we've read, I find it hard to believe such seemingly smart men could be so ignorant towards Christianity. King is so passionately against the 'flock', but for what? Is he so arrogant to think that anyone who has a 'common' worldview contrary to his own superiority is somehow of less value or importance. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It's a shame to see people so ignorant. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I would love to know how he and Gaahl have been influenced in their lives, and why they are the way they are. As it is, I can only use what little I have found on the internet and deduce what I can. </span></span></p><p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">{Conclusion}</span></span></p><p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> realize I avoided certain subjects, but for now felt they would be vain and require me to write a whole book. Part 3&4 will come soon, but this paper is merely here to inform, and nothing else, of the misconception I feel is so widespread throughout the metal scene regarding the Christian worldview. I think Part 3&4 will look at more views of other bands in a more broad sense, and I will try to pick out things that didn't come up during this paper. Despite some of the things I've said towards the two members of Gorgoroth (ignorant, superiority etc.) I should hope that those were not taken as insults, but merely my inevitable reaction to what I thought they were implying. And so, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I implore the onlooker to investigate more into this because I not only feel my mediocre attempt to defend my belief is sub-par, but that I feel it is, in fact, the most important thing one can do.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> As as smart man once said:</span></span></p><p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"></span></span></p><span style="font-family:Adobe Caslon Pro;"><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“If Christianity is true, it is of infinite importance, and if false of no importance. The only thing it can not be is moderately important.” -C.S. Lewis</span></span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></blockquote></span> <p align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Adobe Caslon Pro';"></span></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Adobe Caslon Pro';"><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: justify; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">1)http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=66008</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: justify; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">2)http://www.metalsucks.net/2010/01/15/coming-out-has-taught-gaahl-nothing</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: justify; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">3)http://thechristianwatershed.com/2010/10/15/the-story-of-two-fathers</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: justify; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">4)http://www.tartareandesire.com/interviews/gorgoroth.html</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: justify; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">5)http://www.faceculture.tv/index.php?cnti_key=11757993</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">6)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4U33U_UyzQ&feature=channel (see full documentry.)</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">7)http://www.voicesfromthedarkside.de/interviews/gorgoroth.htm</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span style="font: 19.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">8)</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">http://www.urbanministry.org/org/search</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">9)http://www.chroniclesofchaos.com/articles/chats/1-935_gorgoroth.aspx</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">10)http://nascentthinker.org/the-myth-of-moral-relativism/</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 19.0px 'Adobe Caslon Pro'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">11)http://www.peterkreeft.com/audio/05_relativism/relativism_transcription.htm</span></p></span><p></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span style="font-family:Adobe Caslon Pro;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">*I consider WestBro Baptist Church to be nothing more than extreme hate mongers, and want the reader to know they have nothing in common with real Christianity. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><br /></p> </span></span><p></p></span>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-51156519139762608512010-10-18T23:22:00.000-07:002010-10-18T23:24:12.381-07:00My personal YouTube channel.<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/kevinbrucerules?feature=mhum"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Here</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> it is. Don't blame me if it's rubbish.</span>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-18654575263910326542010-10-15T13:37:00.000-07:002010-11-08T14:38:06.325-08:00Life.<span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;font-size:11px;"><h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" ft="{"type":"msg"}" style="text-align: justify;color: rgb(51, 51, 51); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Life is this, and this is it. -Dojo workhorse</span></span></h3></span>Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579336709388968191.post-76499475129364661982010-10-09T13:43:00.001-07:002010-10-09T13:51:37.053-07:00The Moon Children.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG6947E1T7yhHV4xYgudxOPJcVS4k8XCfVGXi57u9RTdjV-SPeH-H2V40QTJ1OaOYNTluZIxs4ffPfhgu8i9gHbi-XETmMKhLnkJQ5olQ8ymxlg3sz4Ozj5D4AAUARWvtRfyghgtLI5Ihj/s1600/moonchildren.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG6947E1T7yhHV4xYgudxOPJcVS4k8XCfVGXi57u9RTdjV-SPeH-H2V40QTJ1OaOYNTluZIxs4ffPfhgu8i9gHbi-XETmMKhLnkJQ5olQ8ymxlg3sz4Ozj5D4AAUARWvtRfyghgtLI5Ihj/s320/moonchildren.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526150788880707538" /></a><br />Shortly after starting 'The Black Book of Six Fingers' I put it on hiatus. It's been a while since then that I've had a good idea for a book, and now the time has come. That new idea has taken form in a new book called 'The Moon Children'. I have written over 5000 words in two days, and hope to stay on track for the next month or two, until it's complete. I hope it turns out, but we shall see. The plot is yet to be revealed, and I think I most likely won't at all. So there.Stickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18228987938577597998noreply@blogger.com0