The Polite Assassin.

She'll try to kill you.

But she'll be terribly polite about it.

Photo Credit: Tobi.

Pray for the Powers.

The powers of this world are controlled by evil.

Their corrupt practices are hidden by darkness.

Deception and lies cover their crimes.

They attack their enemies with hate campaigns.

And they conspire with evil in the popular culture.

Pray for them to turn from evil.

Pray for them to see God's Love.

Pray for them to overcome their fears.

Pray for them to open their hearts.

Only then will the world change.

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A Big Step.

When you realize that the worldly approach to adversity - i.e. to defend yourself and to retaliate - leads to endless conflict and at last turn to Jesus' teachings of non-violent resistance you have taken a big step in the right direction.

The world teaches us to be strong, tough, even violent as a response to life's struggles.

But this only leads to more violence and war.

Jesus said: "'You have heard that it was said, "An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth."  But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer.  But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also.'"  Matthew 5:38,39 (NRSV)

And: "'You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy."  But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.'"  Matthew 5:43,44 (NRSV)

This is far from the practices of Fundamentalist and Evangelical Christians who wage Spiritual Warfare and claim that hate is a Biblical imperative.  

You would think that they had never heard of Jesus.

But it is not just Fundamentalists and Evangelicals who ignore Jesus' message.

The Traditional Churches teach a form of Christianity based on guilt and fear.

They teach that humankind is fallen because of the sin of Adam and Eve and needs a redeemer in the person of Jesus Christ to rescue them.

Many preach a Just War which is in direct contradiction of Jesus' teachings.

  

So when we lay down the sword and turn to Jesus' words we enter a new phase where non-violent love guides us onward.

When we follow Jesus' instruction to love God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind, and with all our might and to love our neighbor as ourselves we pass through the door of the sanctuary - which is the human heart - and become Children of God.

[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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(The image has been slightly modified.)

You and Me.

You and me against the world!

Love will win against hate.

Love will overcome prejudice.

Love will banish fear.

Love will triumph in the end!

Photo Credit: Pinterest.

Mind.

Most religions are centered in the mind.

Christianity is a set of beliefs.

Judaism is the practise of the Law.

Islam is a set of spiritual principles.

Buddhism is the development of the mind.

Yoga concentrates on the attainment of pure consciousness.

But any of these mental concepts can harden into rigid rules which can be reinforced with rewards and punishments, heaven and hell,

This approach is not the true path however.

Both Jesus and the Buddha warned against rigidity in religion.

Because the true path is through the heart.

And the heart will make concessions according to love.

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(The image has been slightly modified.)

Uluru.

Uluru is Australia's heart.

It is significant that the Uluru Statement of the Aboriginal people was called a Statement from the Heart.

In this statement the Aboriginal people are appealing to Australians to give them a voice, a treaty, and the truth in an endeavor to heal our nation.  

It is a bit worrying, however, that Uluru is a rock.

Perhaps this is a warning not to harden our hearts.

A rock, however, is also a symbol of steadfast love.

So when people call Uluru Australia's heart they are appealing to our hearts - to show loving kindness to people - not just to Aboriginal people but to everyone.

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The Sins of Sodom.

"This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy,"  Ezekiel 16:49 (NRSV)

No mention of male homosexuality.

Sodom is female here.

And her sins were those of the rich and powerful of our modern world: "pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease" but not aiding the poor and needy.

These increasingly are the sins of the rich corporations and plutocrats who now rule our world.

Jesus said the ways of the world were evil.

And their evil survives today as the injustice and inequality which increasingly pollutes our world.

They exploit the poor.

And they wage war for profit.

They lie to everyone.

And they brainwash the masses.

   

They bathe in luxury while the poor starve.

They persecute minorities.

They incarcerate foreigners.

They push fear and hatred.

And they rule by force.

"Look you serve your own interest.....and you oppress all your workers,"  Isaiah 58:4 (NRSV)

"Is not the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?"  "Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house."  Isaiah 58:6,7 (NRSV)

There are many good people in our world.

But we are ruled by those who are evil.

[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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Love is a Verb.

Love is a verb.

Love God.

Love your neighbor.

Love even your enemies.

Love everyone.

Then you will be Home!

Photo Credit: zastavki.com

Abundance.

Love blossoms

in sheer abundance!

Photo Credit: Michael E. East.

Duplicity.

Because Generation X labelled the Baby-Boomers loose and reinforced the older generation's moral condemnation of their enemies, and because they had one foot in the devil's corner, we were presented with the unlikely phenomenon of a good devil.

Despite the fact that this is a contradiction of terms they persisted and insisted on it.

They were declaring themselves good by default.

And this despite the fact that they called themselves bad.

Sex was bad

A bad attitude was approved of..

So bad was good.

And despite the fact that this made no sense at all it was reinforced by intimidation and violence - verbal, emotional, psychic and spiritual.

But the fact remains that Generation X turned to hatred and the devil to win worldly privilege and power.

History will decide their fate.

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(The image has been slightly modified.)

Evil Music.

Rock music is evil.

Photo Credit: BBC.

Our Tears.

It's so sad

What's happened to the world 

Since 1984:

The Darkness,

The Evil,

The dying of the Light.

Violence.

Horror Movies.

Materialism.

Monsters.

The Beast.

Get Real.

Boxer shorts.

And Black.

Wear your cap backwards.

Make the sign of the horns.

Poke out your tongue.

Corruption.

Vice.

Hate.

And Evil.

Work Harder.

24/7.

No overtime.

No Holidays.

Big Brother.

Fallen Angels.

Broken Hearts.

Betrayal.

Devils in Heaven.

No Angel.

Pure Evil.

And Badass Christians.

Cry out to God!

Answer our Tears!

Hear our Cry!

End this Insanity.

Return our Ideals.

Send us the Light.

That the World might be 

Saved!

Photo Credit: marriagemisions.com

Non-Violence.

At first, when we become aware of the evil hidden in our culture, we instinctively try to battle against it and defeat it.

This formula can be seen in the many manifestations of The Myth of Redemptive Violence*.

From fairy tales to horror movies this myth saturates our culture.

The Myth of Redemptive Violence sets up a scenario in which good battles against evil and wins by violence - killing the evil beings.

But in real life this approach never works.

It only embroils us in more violence.

So methods like Spiritual Warfare are bankrupt.

The only approach that works is to lay down the sword and cry out to God for help.

God will answer.

And rescue us from evil.

Evil will tempt us, corrupt us, and try to kill us.

But we cannot overcome evil with violence.

Jesus' example of non-violent non-cooperation is the only approach that can save us.

So set aside your weapons and pray for those who abuse you.

It is the only way.

(*The term The Myth of Redemptive Violence was coined by Walter Wink in his book Engaging the Powers.)

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Fear.

What drives the inhumanity, the corruption, the evil in our world?

It is fear.

Don't be fooled by the tough-guy exterior.

What lies beneath is fear.

He has to look tough or people will exploit him.

He learns this in the schoolyard.

And he carries it throughout his life.

Get the next guy before he gets you.

Dog eat dog.

Good guys come last.

But God is with the least and the last.

God is with the losers, the outsiders, the marginalized.

And God's Love takes away our fear.

When fear is gone there is love.

Love God and love your neighbor.

Love even your enemies.

And banish fear forever.

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Class War.

Since 1984 employers have been waging a class war against workers.

Insecure economic times have given too much power to employers.

They have forced wages down, removed conditions, cancelled overtime, and destroyed job security.

They have bashed unions, turned education into job training, corrupted governments, and oppressed workers.

This has resulted in a workplace that is like a battlefield.

No one is happy with it.

The time has come to make peace in the workplace.

Workers are not the enemies of employers but their sons and daughters.

Workers are not units of productivity but human beings.

It is time to end the class war.

And give workers the rights they deserve.

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A Night Full of Tears.

I wait in the night,

Awake,

My heart full of love

for you.

Searching, Striving, Reaching out

to you.

My Beloved,

My Hero, My Hope.

I prepare the Wedding Robe -

Pure white

Beneath the flowers.

Christened by my tears,

Devoted to you.

Waiting in the darkness,

Longing for the Light.

To wake

One Fine Day.

Photo Credit: elizabethcaballero.com

A Human Heart.

Aquarius is

A Human Heart.

Photo Credit: Pinterest.

Moderation in All Things.

"Observe due measure; moderation is best in all things."

Greek Poet Hesiod (c. 700 BCE)

Photo Credit: digitltravel.com

God Doesn't Hate You.

The only message that young gay people hear from the Church is that God hates them and they are going to hell.

Some Churches even tell them they are evil.

But they are all wrong.

God loves gay people.

We are His gay sons and daughters.

The men who died of AIDS are in Heaven.

They sit beside the river, dressed in white, happy and at peace.

And we will all go to Heaven when we die.

Every one of us.

So you can ignore the threats of conservative Christians.

They don't know God.

And they don't know us.

They are Pharisees and hypocrites!

Their words betray their fears.

And those who fear cannot love.

Homosexuality is love.

And as such it is part of God.

 

So love with all your heart.

And know that God loves you.

Photo Credit: Knack.