Schismatism.

                                         

Thanks to Dante we experience Schismatism in our world.

I say- thanks to Dante - because it is in his Divine Comedy that he depicts the Schismatics in hell.

This has been taken up by Satanists in our modern world who work consciously to divide God's good forces one against the other.

This is particularly obvious in the Culture Wars between Liberals and Conservatives.

Each side is hardened in adversity against the other.
And each side is trying to win.
But evil feeds hatred and fear on both sides.

This results in endless conflict.

The time has come for us to put aside our differences and look for agreement between us.

To do this we must look to the very highest manifestations of both Liberalism and Conservatism.

And we must both look at our negatives.

Liberals must look at drug abuse, promiscuity, and license.....

Conservatives must look at racism, homophobia, and rigidity.....

If each side agrees to curb the negative aspects of their position and stress the highest manifestations then there is hope for us all.


Photo Credit: Mr.TinDC Flickr via Compfight cc

One God.

                            

When people say to me that they don't believe in God they are usually saying that they don't believe in the theistic God of judgement and punishment.

Neither do I!

I believe in a God who is wholly good.
I believe in a God who is wholly benevolent.
I believe in a God who loves us unconditionally.

This is the transcendent God who is beyond our concepts of Dualism and Natural Justice.

This is the Most High God of Abraham.

This is the loving Father of Jesus.

This is the Divinity of Yoga.

This is Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful.

This is the Beloved of Rumi.

This is the One God of Baha'i.

And He is Love.


Photo Credit: Iqbal Osman1 Flickr via Compfight cc

An Equal and Opposite Force.

                            

What is needed to counter the flood of evil emanating from Satanism in our rock music and entertainment is an equal and opposite force.

Blessings from God must be showered on the community from God's Churches, Synagogues, Mosques, and Temples.

To do this God's agents must purge themselves of all negative doctrines and practices and become a pure blessing to humankind.

We must learn how to love.

Satanists curse us.

God's agents must bless us.


Photo Credit: Gazman_AU Flickr via Compfight cc

Deism.

Coral Rose.

Choral Music.

Doves.

Lambs.

Humility.

Tender.

Angels.

Teddy Bears.

Softies.

Gentle.

Kingdom.

Breathing.

Truth.

Light.

Life.

Love.


Photo Credit: Abraxas3d Flickr via Compfight cc

Satanism.

Skull and Cross-Bones.

Heavy Metal.

Snakes.

Spider Webs.

Ego.

Monsters.

Animals.

Beasts.

Dominator.

Punisher.

Nazi.

Smoking.

Lies.

Darkness.

Death.

Hate.


Photo Credit: jense1 Flickr via Compfight cc

The Unseen Hook.

May you turn

from

the darkness of evil.

And be reconciled

to God.

Through

Love

the Unseen Hook.


Photo Credit: Jay Cutler.

Victims.

                            

Our society has an endless capacity for blaming victims.

If anything goes wrong in a person's life it is said to be their own fault.

This is very convenient for most people because it means that you don't have to help.

Hippies and Baby-Boomers are the victims of drugs and Satanism in rock music.

Gay men are victims of AIDS.

Refugees are victims of war and economic oppression.

But we are led to believe that they somehow brought these things on themselves.

Open your eyes and open your hearts!

It is the only way.


Photo Credit: vanbentuml Flickr via Compfight cc

Homophobia.

                            

Homophobia causes suffering.

Not only does it cause open hostility but unconscious homophobia can even lead to torture and damnation.

Homophobia creates poverty.

And homophobia can kill.

So don't insult me with your right to be homophobic.

Your attitude is destructive and harmful to others.

And it should be abandoned at once.


Photo Credit: torbakhopper Flickr via Compfight cc

Prayers.

As you would

from crimes

pardoned be.

So may

these prayers

set you

Free!

A Father's Love.

                            

A child instinctively knows he should be loved.

And although we may receive love from our mothers our father is often distant and cold.

This is compounded for the gay child because his behavior will often not live up to a father's expectations of a masculine child.

A gay child will often lack the manly virtues of physical strength, emotional control, sporting achievement, and self-confidence.

A gay child may be artistic and sensitive, even effeminate.
He may want to dress up (even in his mother's clothes) and wear make-up.  He may be more interested in musicals than sports.

This, of course, is confusing for the father and he may even despise his own child.

Hence when the child reaches puberty he sets out on an unconscious search for his father's love.

While this is a strong motivating factor in gay men I do not believe that it is the cause of homosexual orientation.

Same-sex attraction would appear to be genetic.
It is a physical phenomenon which manifests in puberty.

But the emotional and psychological characteristics of homosexuality exist in childhood and can be recognized.

Many gay men may have a strong feminine component without being overtly effeminate.  Others may feel so strongly feminine that they identify as female.

In the gay scene many aspire so strongly to the desired ideal of masculinity that they adopt a predominantly macho culture.

Anonymous, casual sex is common in the gay scene.

This is a relic from the age when homosexuality was illegal and men had to hide their true nature.

Now, when a young gay man enters the gay scene, he is looking for a relationship that will last and satisfy his yearning for masculine love. 


Photo Credit: Tracy-Williams Flickr via Compfight cc

The Good Things.

                            

Satanists - mostly in rock music - will tell you that all the cool things: ego, fame, success, riches, sex, money, real estate, holidays - belong to Satan.

But I tell you all the good things: humility, peace, compassion, charity, courage, integrity, gratitude, forgiveness, joy, and love - belong to God.


Photo Credit: compassionconnect Flickr via Compfight cc

The End of the Age.

                            

"'Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age.'"  Matthew 13:40 (NRSV)

There was a general belief in the time of Jesus that the end of the age was approaching.  And at that time God would judge between the good and the evil and the good would be vindicated and the evil would be destroyed.

But this is not what happened.

What happened was that the light - the message of Jesus - was persecuted and killed and the powers of the Earth usurped his Church.

"'Blessed are you when people 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 in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.'"  Matthew 5:11 (NRSV)

"'Truly I tell you there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age - houses, brothers, sisters, mothers and children and fields, with persecutions - and in the age to come eternal life.'"  Matthew 10: 29,30 (NRSV)

In these passages Jesus predicts the persecution of the light and the reward of those who adhere to it.

But we would be wrong to think that Jesus' mission was a complete failure.  Some of the light survived the persecution and even the take-over of his religion.

So that now we have a Church which, like the Jewish Temple, is a patchwork of light and darkness.

It is our job to collect the fragments of light.

And make no mistake if we are not diligent the new revelations which are coming now will meet the same fate.


[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.]

Photo Credit: rottnapples Flickr via Compfight cc

Buddha/Jesus.

                            

I dreamt that we visited a Buddhist Temple.

I recalled meditating - observing my thoughts - and realizing that I was not my thoughts but the thinker of my thoughts (I only existed in the present moment).

But where did my thoughts come from?

Some of my thoughts were my own deductions.
But other thoughts were projected across the collective unconscious.

I was free to choose those thoughts which were helpful and reject those thoughts which were not.

Then I became aware of my heart.
I felt love and compassion for the sufferings of humanity.

I recalled Jesus' commandment to love God and love your neighbor.

This was essentially the same as the Buddha.

So if we can control our thoughts and feel compassion and love we are honoring both the Buddha and Jesus of Nazareth.


Photo Credit: fuzzcat Flickr via Compfight cc

Let It Be.

"All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."  Edmund Burke.


Photo Credit: reyesangela Flickr via Compfight cc

Your Heart!

His rapturous

Beauty!

Your urgent need!

Desire overwhelms you!

Love stirs within you!

The ardor of

Your Heart!

The Ways of Love.

                            

When we give love we realize that the source of love within our hearts is infinite.

The more we give love away the more love there is to give.

And so we lose our fear.

Love will not force us.
Love will not judge us.
Love will not ignore us.

There is consideration.
There is realism.
There is common sense.

Secure in the Love of God we become fearless.

And learn the Ways of Love.


Photo Credit: meeekn Flickr via Compfight cc

Quest for Love.

                               

We are born into darkness.

But babies glow with an inner light.

This could be the light of the soul within them.

And yet babies cry.

And not only when they are hungry.

Babies need love.
And they cry until you give it to them.

Thus begins our lifelong quest for love.

But it is not until we learn to give love that we reach the end of our search.

Love God and love your neighbor.

Then you will be safely Home.


Photo Credit: Khanelle Prod' Medias Flickr via Compfight cc

Gay Love Poetry.

You may ask why I continually put gay love poetry and prayers on my blog.

The answer is simple:

Because no one else will.

My Church has a good record of advocating for marginalized people.

But they won't advocate for gay people.

And there are no progressive theologians who will equate same-sex love with the Love of God.

So I will continue to put gay love poetry and prayers on my blog.

I will not be deterred by prejudice.


Photo Credit: Colt Studio.

Dreaming.

Alone

in the Light.

High above

the city.

Dreaming

of Love.


Photo Credit: Joss0177 Flickr via Compfight cc

Living in the Light.

                            

Jesus said, "'Who ever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.'"  John 8:12 (NRSV)

This is to follow the Way of Love.

To love God and love our neighbor.

This is what it means to live in the Light of Life.

God is real.

He requites our love.

And He grants us the gift of Light.

That we may discriminate.

And see clearly.

Never to return.


[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.]

Photo Credit: winecountrymedia Flickr via Compfight cc

A Ray of Light.

Beautiful,

Beloved,

Child of God.

May

A Ray of Light

Pierce the darkness

That surrounds you.

So you see

The evil

That has befallen you.

And lift your eyes

To Heaven,

Hope,

And Salvation.


Photo Credit: Joss0177 Flickr via Compfight cc

Black Magic.

                                     

Aleister Crowley wrote a book on Egyptian magic called The Book of Thoth.

Many modern rock bands and celebrities follow the teachings of Aleister Crowley.

He was a black magician and Satanist.

So don't be surprised if elements of Egyptology appear in our popular culture.

They may have evil intentions.

It is just one aspect of black magic.


Photo Credit: isawnyu Flickr via Compfight cc

Cult Bands.

                   

When I was young and I listened to rock music certain bands were called cult bands.

This was because they had an obsessive underground following.

There were radio shows dedicated exclusively to cult music.

I now realize that the cults referred to were Satanic cults and the hypnotic lure of this dark music was evil.

It cursed and poisoned us.

We were oblivious to its effects and assumed that our dark moods and suicidal thoughts were normal.

When I returned to the Church later in life I came to understand that this was death music.  It encouraged sin and contained a death wish.

But God is Life.

He raised me up from this underworld of death to a new life in the Light.

And He showed me the way of Love.

I no longer listen to rock music.

I listen to classical, choral, and sacred music.

And although my Church is not perfect I enjoy a positive and stimulating life of study and prayer within it.

My life is a miracle of recovered health.

And my relationship with God is filled with gratitude and love.


Photo Credit: Ian D. Keating Flickr via Compfight cc

The Collective Unconscious.

                            

How can I be assailed by evil when I don't believe in the devil or dark powers?

How can I be condemned when my image of God is entirely benevolent?

The answer is that these ideas project across the collective unconscious from people in the society around us.

These ideas are hidden in the unconscious and act on the unconscious mind.

Rock musicians plant evil in the unconscious through their music and videos.

Right-wing Christians believe that God damns gays and their fear surrounds us.

So don't just blame everything on the victims of these crimes.

It's not just their own subconscious.

It's everyone's.

Photo Credit: zaphad1 Flickr via Compfight cc

Love.

To those

Who have sold their souls

For muscle

I say:

Worship is Respect,

Desire is Life,

And Sex is Love.


Photo Credit: Joss0177 Flickr via Compfight cc

Anger.

                                         

Right-wing churchgoers may tell you that God displays righteous anger towards us.

But anger is one of the seven deadly sins.

Why would God tell us not to be angry if He is angry Himself?

God is transcendent - beyond sin and evil.

There is no anger in Him.


Photo Credit: avrene Flickr via Compfight cc

Homophobia and God.

                            

Some people still insist that God is homophobic.

And they cite the Bible as evidence.

Despite the fact that references to homosexuality are scarce in the Bible, and the passages which do exist are disputed, some Christians still insist that this proves God is homophobic.

But I say that homophobia is inconsistent with the spirit of the Bible.

The Bible tells us of a God who is gracious and merciful, forgiving and loving like a Father.

And His son Jesus Christ was humble and loving - an agent of God's mercy and forgiveness.

Homophobes adhere to the letter of the Bible and ignore its spirit.

So don't insult God with your claims of homophobia.

God is harmless and loving towards everyone.

Including homosexuals.


Photo Credit: SDB79 Flickr via Compfight cc

Luke.

The story of The Woman Caught in Adultery appears the Gospel of John Chapter 8 (NRSV) but there is a footnote which says that some sources place it near the end of The Gospel of John or after Luke 21:38.

The most likely placement for this story is in the Gospel of Luke.

I base my assessment on the nature of the story and its relationship to the parables which only appear in Luke: The Good Samaritan and The Prodigal Son.

Luke was a gentile and his Gospel is more inclusive than the other three.

Other differences in Luke make it the most compatible Gospel with our modern progressive values.

The Woman Caught in Adultery is and example of this compatibility.


Photo Credit: TELL others about Christ! Flickr via Compfight cc

Muscle Worship.

Muscle Worship

is Love.

Life calls to Life.

And from your heart

Flows water

Clear as crystal.

Blessing the Beloved

And washing clean

His soul.


Photo Credit: Joss0177 Flickr via Compfight cc