Want.

                            

We think that if we can only get what we want we will be happy.

But gratification of our desires does not bring happiness.

Rather it brings a frenzy of wanting which never ends.

Oscar Wilde said: "The cigarette is the perfect example of the perfect desire - after you've had it you're still not satisfied."

And this is how it is with all our desires.

But this is not to say that pleasure is bad or banned.

Moderation is the key to pleasure.

But pleasure does not guarantee happiness.

Happiness only comes from love.


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The Middle Way.

When we say that the Middle Way - the path of moderation - is the correct path.

I can hear you say that it's too easy.

This is the false assumption that the path has to be difficult - the path of asceticism or self-denial.

This of course means sex.

We have to give up sex in order to be spiritual.

But this is not true.

The way is the way of the heart.

And the heart is closer to sex than self-denial.

We do not have to give up sex in order to be spiritual.

We have to open our hearts.

Love God and love humanity.

Let the rest take care of itself.


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Sex.

                            

By making sex a sin the religious authorities ensured that everyone was in debt.

Machiavelli said in his book The Prince that the way to keep the masses under control was to impose suffering and then to stipulate conditions for the removal of that suffering.

And this is exactly what what the Church has done - impose universal condemnation (for the sin of Adam) linked it to sex and then dictated to everyone how they will behave and what they will do - from what they wear and who they marry to how they vote.

This is thinly disguised as good.

And it is backed up by hell.

But abstinence from sex and negative attitudes to homosexuality have borne bad fruit - as we have seen  from the sex abuse scandals in the Churches.

So be aware that guilt and fear in regard to sex are tools used to control you.

They have nothing to do with God.


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Ruling Elites.

                                         

The religion of judgement and punishment appears wherever there is contact with ruling elites.

Ancient Egypt, Rome, Britain, U.S.A......

These Empires are ruled by powerful elites - religious elites partner them (the God-Kings of Egypt, the Divine Right of Kings.)

It is in the interests of these elites to keep the masses in line.
And they do so by using threats, usually involving eternal torment in hell.

This is the carrot and stick approach of the conservative establishment.

In our modern world it is the Fundamentalist allies of the corporations.

The truth is that God does not punish us at all.

He loves us like a Father.

He forgives our sins.

And He gives us another chance.

And a good thing too.

Because it is inevitable that we will make mistakes.

God's love and forgiveness are eternal.

His mercy is infinite.

He has no need to subjugate us.

So be aware that the religion of judgement and punishment does not derive from God but from the fear and violence of ruling elites.

These ruling elites are aware that they don't deserve their privileged positions and they fear retribution from the masses they exploit.

So they crack down on them - implementing harsh punishments and strict rules and regulations.

This can be seen in the media who are always calling for tougher punishments and screaming "Burn in Hell!"

They promote police action and war to protect their property and privileges.

Be aware that this is what it is for - to keep you in line.

And it was these elites who crucified Jesus.

The sign over the cross "King of the Jews" was a warning to the Israelites to obey their masters.

It's a bit like "You're fired!" today.

And if you are fired you'll work for the dole.

It's designed to keep people in fear so they'll do what they are told.

"Work harder!"

Or else.

The I-Ching calls this bad government.

It is darkness and evil.

And it is opposed to the benevolent Will of Heaven.

It does not come from God.

It is the fear and greed of the ruling elites.

And its days are numbered.


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Heaven.

                            

If there is no hell then what happens to bad people when they die?

To answer this question we must look at what makes people bad.

Most bad behavior is driven by fear.

And this fear is a reaction to abuse.

So perhaps bad people are the most abused.

This would be consistent with God's forgiveness.

And when we get to Heaven and find that bad people are there as well we must practise forgiveness.

God is able to call out their soul - the child within - who was innocent before the abuse.

God's Love will transform them.

They will become the people they were intended to be.

And God will welcome them Home.


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Men of Color.

                  

Recently there has been a reversion to the 1980s fashion of wearing all black.

This has spread through our community like a plague.

Black represents: death, darkness, depression, suicide, and evil.

But we are men of color.

We reject the nullifying influence of black.

And embrace the vibrant spectrum of the rainbow.


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Jubilee.

                            

It was God's Will that after 7 times 7 years - i.e. in the 50th year - everything should be restored to its original fair distribution.

The land should revert to its original owners.

God realized that we would profit from others' misfortunes and some would become rich and others would be disinherited.

But this way of the world is not God's Will.

So He stipulated in the Law that in the 50th year everything would revert to its original state.

What does this tell us about God?

It shows us God's Will - all people are equal - and it shows us His forgiveness and mercy.

He writes off debts.

And He blots out transgressions.

We can give thanks for that.


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A New Approach.

                            

We are seeing the beginnings of a new approach to religion in our world.

What is being called Progressive Religion is first of all a new way of interpreting scripture.

Modern scholarship has revolutionized how we read scripture.

It takes into account the context in which the text was written and also the worldview and understanding of each individual writer.

"The color of the water is that of the container." 14th Century Sufi Al-Junayd.

"Things known are in the knower according to the mode of the knower."  Thomas Aquinas.

Religious experience is molded by the conceptual apparatus of the experiencer.

Jesus said that the world did not know God.

This is because religion has always been closely associated with authority.  And the Machiavellian carrot and stick approach of worldly authorities has infected most of the world's religions.

But the new revelations suggest that God is beyond our worldly understanding of authority.

He is a loving Father.

And a loving Father does not  condemn His children.

So there can be no hell.

Progressive Christianity also returns to the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.

The sophisticated Christology which grew up around the figure of Jesus after his crucifixion has been put to one side as we search for the historical Jesus.

And Jesus' core teachings are to love God, love your neighbor, and love your enemies.

This is vital as we look for common ground between the world's religions.

Any attempt to return to the rigid orthodoxy of the past is doomed to failure.

We must embrace the new approach.   


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Right Problem/Wrong Answer.

                   

During the 1980s right-wing Evangelical Christians told us that all rock music was Satanism.

And while this has turned out to be the truth the answers which they were offering - conservatism, literalism, judgement, and hate - were wrong.

They even preached a kind of materialism.

So they may have had the right problem but they had the wrong answers.

And the fact that they used this information for their own political and material advantage guaranteed its failure.

They did not treat the Hippies and Baby-Boomers as victims but blamed them and all left-wing philosophies for the world's problems.

This is  scapegoating.

It is political abuse.

And that is why their message has failed.


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Pink.

There is a particular shade of pink that is a very spiritual color.


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The Spirit of God.

When you break through the roof.

You encounter the true Spirit of God.


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False God.

                            

Satanists have internalized a false image of God.

The traditional image of God put out by the Churches is of a cold, harsh, distant, punitive super-being.

And this is what Satanists in our music industry and popular culture have internalized.

But this is not a true picture of God.

God is wholly benevolent, wholly good.
He is beautiful, transcendent, sublime.

He does not judge us.
Nor does He punish us.

God is merciful and forgiving.
He loves us like a Father.

So Satanism is built on sand.

Contact with the real God will wash away the very foundations of their beliefs.


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A Matter of the Heart.

Sex is not immoral or sinful or dirty.

Sex is a matter of the heart.

And as a matter of the heart sex is intimately entwined with the Divine.

The Divine is the realm of Love.

And love rules the heart.

So do not believe those who tell you that sex is death.

Sex is Life and Love.

And God is Love.


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Different Strokes.

                            

People are at different stages of their journey.

When you first experience a revelation from God you expect everyone to jump at it.

But many are not ready.
And many will even reject the message outright.

People must find their own way.

We must accept this.

And pray for them in any case.


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Breaking Hearts.

                            

Have you noticed how many popular songs are about leaving love?

This is the business of breaking hearts.

The rock music of the 1960s was all about promiscuous sex - sex without love.

And this is the business of breaking hearts.

Our rock legends and their successors betrayed us.

They have sold their souls to the devil for fame and fortune and a rock star reception.

And Satan is in the business of breaking hearts.

So beware of any rock musicians who sing about leaving love.

The chances are they are breaking your heart.


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Pure in Heart.

                             

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God."  Matthew 5:8 (NRSV)

Jesus said that the world did not know God.

"'Isaiah prophesied rightly about you when he said: "This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me."'"  Matthew 15:*,9 (NRSV)

Only the pure in heart will see God.

For "the Lord looks on the heart."  1 Samuel 16:7 (NRSV)


[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.]

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Sun and Sea.

Under the Sun.

Sailing the Sea.

Your strong body beautiful.

Your vibrant Life free.


Fear not the shadows.

The  ghosts of the night.

The devils of darkness.

Have been put to flight.


Carry the Water.

Give Love for your part.

The Hope of the Future.

Lives in your Heart.


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The Philosophy of Economics.

                            

Economics has spawned the idea that making conditions better for business by deregulation, cutting taxes, cutting red-tape, opposing unions, ignoring corruption, subsidizing corporations, discrediting climate change, and dehumanizing the workplace encourages people to go into business and therefore creates jobs and raises the living standards of everyone.

This may at first seem like the great white hope of Western civilization but there are major flaws in the logic.

It fails to take into account the brutality of the business corporations who now own everything.

The Boards of Directors will say that they are only serving the interests of the shareholders.

But this is a cop-out.

When unregulated by governments the rapacious greed of corporate businessmen will make them try to force wages down and remove benefits and conditions from workers which cost them money.

So the living standards of the young in particular in fact go down.

This creates a two tier system in which the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

The so-called "trickle down effect" is a lie created by the rich to appease angry workers.

Our governments have betrayed us.

They are captives of the corporate plutocrats.

And I can only surmise that they have corrupted themselves.

So when they trot out glib generalizations you would do well to question them.

They may not be as true as they seem.

Australians now work the longest hours in the developed world and have the highest house prices in the world.

The government has cut weekend penalty rates.

And they are subsidizing a huge coal mine which will destroy the Great Barrier Reef forever.

The disparity between rich and poor in our world is at the highest level ever.

And Americans have elected a billionaire as President.
 
Economic Rationalism has gone too far.

The time has come to create some checks and balances which will halt our declining ethics.

But what politician will stand up to the corporate plutocrats?

They own the media and control public opinion.

Good Luck!


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Fear.

                                                  

Because fear is at the root of the greed which drives our corporate masters any threat that triggers their fears will result in violence.

As Jesus discovered.

All violence is driven by fear.

So merely threatening to remove people from power will only result in violence.

We must look beneath the surface, beneath the tough-guy exterior, to find the fear, probably from childhood, which drives their greed.

I have an aunt who grew up during the Great Depression.
She has millions of dollars but says she never feels that she has enough.

This is the fear that drives corporate greed.

It is thinly disguised as working for the shareholders.

So pray for our corporate masters to overcome their fear and provide for the community as God provides.


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No Satan.

There is no devil in reality.

The devil is a conception based on a dualistic view of the universe.

But Dualism is by no means certain.

Not everything comes in twos.

For example the number five is sometimes called the human number because we have five fingers, five toes, five limbs, and five senses.

There are trinities, decimal systems, duodecimal systems, even infinities.....

So why should something as big as God be dual?

There is only one God.

And God is holistic - everything and more.

There is no devil.


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What?

                            

"The devil is everything you want."

"Everyone wants a taste of the dark side."

"I'm no angel."

"Pure evil."

These are things I have heard Generation X say.

They may deny it.

But they "dance with the devil" and "take the devil's advice".

This Satanic evil persists to this day.

And Generation X is responsible.


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Democratic Domination.

                            

We may congratulate ourselves on our enlightened democracies but our freedoms and privileges are maintained by domination.

Huge armies and arsenals of weapons, including nuclear weapons, ensures that the West stays on top.

Anyone who threatens this supremacy is bombed or invaded.

We exploit weaker countries economically.

And we oppress minorities.

But all of this is hidden beneath a veneer of democratic liberalism which admits no fault.

We are like a psychopath who buries his crimes in his unconscious and presents a facade of goodness to the world.

But as the Age of Aquarius dawns we will become more aware of our global responsibilities and many of these issues will have to be addressed.

It is my prayer that this awakening will take place without violence or war. 


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The Biggest Loser.

                                      

If you are alone, rejected, isolated, unsuccessful, or unattractive people will call you a loser.

They will shun you and tell you to "get a life".

But God is with the rejected, the isolated, the marginalized.
He is a friend to the friendless and a father to the fatherless.

In fact God Himself is the biggest loser.


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Free!

                            

Gone are the days when AIDS was a death sentence.

Doctors can now stop HIV developing into AIDS.

So as long as you are tested you are safe.

Gay will no longer be a byword.

We will be free at last.


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Good News.

                            

The Good News is:

1.  God loves us.

2.  God does not judge us.

3.  God does not punish us.

4.  There is no hell.

5. There is no devil.

6.  The Bible is not inerrant.

7. We are all under Original Blessing.


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Wellspring.

                            

When we become firmly established in the Love of God we lose our fear and open our hearts to God and to others.

"We love because God first loved us."  1 John 4:19 (NRSV)

In this way the Church becomes a wellspring of love to the community.


[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.]

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Peace.

                            

If you love only your family members what more are you doing than others?  Even Satanists do that.

If you greet only your friends what more are you doing than others?  Even rock stars do that.

If you espouse virtue but do nothing what more are you doing than others?  Even the mafia do that.

We must love everyone, even our enemies.

And make peace with them.


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Ideals.

                            

Unfortunately when the Baby-Boomer Generation was revived after the blitz of Generation X their rock legends were raised but not their ideals.

Now we watch, shop, and have a good time.
We are addicted to sports and expensive holidays.

After being bashed for 10 years most of us have abandoned any desire to save the world.

But younger generations are becoming active on the Internet.
And we can support their efforts.

It is yet to be seen whether the idealism which is dormant in our generation can be revived.

There is a glimmer of light.

Magnify it.

And renew your efforts.

The world needs you.


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Red Heart!

Giving.

Living.

Breathing.

Lover.


Manly.

Magnanimous.

Massive.

Muscle.


Body Art!

Red Heart!


Photo Credit: Markus Ruhl.

Resurrection.

                            

So what can we do to resurrect the idealism and spirituality of the 1960s and 1970s?

First of all it must be said that this must be done without the rock bands and superstars who betrayed it in the first place.

Rock music is Satanic.
Evil sabotage and cursing is hidden in their music.

So there can be no resurrection until this evil is exposed.

But it can be noted that peace and love - the heart of the Hippie philosophy - are consistent with the teachings of Jesus.

So this can bring a revival of Christian teachings.

There is challenge and change on the Internet.

Activists sites are combining with progressive religious sites to challenge the dominance of the Plutocrats who now rule our world.

But where are the politicians?

They are firmly in the palm of the Plutocrats.

So much of the good displayed on the Internet is blocked.

But keep trying.

People are sick and tired of being dominated and betrayed by their politicians and their Corporate masters.

Change will come.

But it must be done without the involvement of rock bands and celebrities or the Age of Aquarius will meet the same fate as the Hippies.

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