Money for Nothing.

The bad news is that our sporting heroes are heavily into Satanism.

Satanism is physical - "this body of death."  Romans 7:24 (NRSV)

And sports men and women believe that the devil is magic.

But the main reasons are money and sex.

"Money for nothing, and your chicks for free." 

They ally themselves with rock stars and lead us astray.

They distract us and addict us.

Our obsession with sports is no coincidence.

It is quite deliberately induced.

And it is deliberately used to brainwash us.

So don't put your faith in sporting heroes.

Most likely they are evil and want your soul in hell. 

[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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Invisible.

The puppeteers in Japanese Bunraku theater wear black.

Like ninja in the night they are invisible. 

                                             

Photo Credit: The Maneater.

Fallacious Philosophy.

Despite the fact that Fundamentalist and Evangelical Christians claim sanctity by painting their political enemies as agents of Satan their own socio-political philosophy is mired is darkness.

Many preach Prosperity Theology which claims that God blesses wealth and success.

But what could be more worldly than that?

Most preach that God is vengeful and judging.

And they claim that hate is a Biblical imperative.

But violence and hate are aspects of the dark side.

They are not part of God at all.

God is transcendent - beyond our human concepts of sin and evil.

God is Love.

And God is wholly good.

So beware of Christians who preach violence and hate.

Their words are poison and their philosophy is darkness. 

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John Shelby Spong.

I joined a group on Facebook called Fans of John Shelby Spong.

I was impressed with the variety and quality of the videos presented.

Although Spong does not present a developed vision of Progressive Christianity his work on the Bible in particular is the starting point for all who choose to take this journey.

Spong will be remembered as the Founding Father of Progressive Christianity or the new approach to religion by whatever name it comes to be known.

His work on the compilation and context of the Bible and his perspective in relation to outdated worldviews is essential to the survival of religion in the 21st Century.

I am proud to say that I am a fan of John Shelby Spong. 

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Fear.

Fear erects walls around us.

We shut ourselves in a prison of our own making.

We cut ourselves off from others.

And we become alienated and cynical.

Fear tells us we must be tough and hard to survive in this world.

We harden our hearts.

And we become callous and cruel.

Fear tells us we must retaliate against anyone who threatens us.

So we react with violence and war.

Fear tells us we must preserve ourselves against challengers.

And we dominate and oppress others.

Give up your fear.

Trust God.

Open your heart.

And give love. 

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(The image has been slightly modified.)

Fortress.

When we go to school, or even before, we learn to protect ourselves from threats in the outside world.

We bury our real selves, our souls, deep beneath a pile of defenses.

We become a fortress.

The outward appearance of this fortress may be: amiable, friendly, threatening, bad tempered, extroverted, timid, or bold.

But the fact remains: it is a facade.

Our real selves are buried deep within us.

We lose contact with our own souls.

And our dream of love is lost.

What God can do is reconnect us with our souls.

By allaying our fears God frees us from our prison, our fortress, and reconciles us with others.

This is what good religion can do.

Bad religion, on the other hand, increases our fears and separates us further from our souls.

But you have nothing to fear from God.

God will not punish you or judge you.

God will show mercy and forgive our mistakes.

God will love you.

So fear not.

This is Good News. 

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The Gospel of Love.

The Gospel of John is known as the most spiritual of the Gospels.

It is the Gospel of Love.

In John we find a contrast between the ways of the world - which are evil - and the ways of God - which are good.

This is further contrasted as darkness and light.

But the primary insight in the Gospel of John is that the ways of God are the ways of Love.

Jesus aligns himself with God by asserting his love.

"'This is my commandment, that you love on another as I have loved you.'"  John 15:12 (NRSV)

And this is further emphasized in the letter of John.

"God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them." 1 John 4:16 (NRSV)

So do not follow the idols of this world.

But align yourself with God.

And this is to love one another.   

[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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