Money.

Jesus said: "'No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and money (sic).'"  Matthew 6:24 (NRSV)

Many Christians rationalize their love of money by practising what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called "Cheap Grace".

That is accepting the blessings of God and Jesus but not making any changes to their behavior.

They merely behave as everyone around them behaves - and that is to accumulate money and possessions.

This is their security; not the security of trust in the Love 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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Fear.

The bane of Christianity is fear.

All the force and violence and finger-pointing that Christians do is caused by fear.

Fear of God and fear of Satan.

But we have nothing to fear from God.

God loves us.

He does not punish us and He does not judge us.

And in the end perhaps Satan does not exist.

There is enough fear and evil in humanity to explain our experiences; there does not need to be some supernatural being directing it.

And so we can let go of our fear.

And we can express our love.

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Hidden Evil.

We think that we are enlightened and aware.

But evil is present and active in our daily lives.

It is hidden.

It lurks in rock music and videos, in movies, novels, TV, and sports.....

It appears in advertising.

It turns us to darkness, hatred, and evil.

It sells selfishness and hedonism.

It induces addiction, obsession, and indulgence.

These things do not bring happiness.

They serve money and evil.

They invoke the flames of hell.

So open your eyes and your mind.

But most of all open your heart.

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Counterplay.

What then must we do?

To counteract the corrupting and deceiving voices in our popular culture we must cultivate virtues and principles in line with the goodness of God.

These include non-materialistic values like: generosity, charity, compassion, forgiveness, mercy, non-violence, and unconditional love.

We must turn away from death and darkness and seek Light, Life, and Love. 

Rock music is the devil's music.

So listening to sacred classical music will help.

Addictions to sports, gambling, and sex can be countered by volunteering and moderation.

Studying scripture and prayer connect us with the Divine that is the source of Light, Life, and Love.

Sincerity and integrity will lead you to the Living God.

And He will show you His Salvation!

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Satanism.

Satanism is not the insignificant fringe phenomenon that most people think it is.

Satanism saturates our popular culture.

It is based on the concept of death.

This is the death to God of St. Paul.

And its allies: darkness, night, shadows, hate, and evil.

These things dominate modern entertainment: rock music, movies, novels, sports, comedy, reality TV etc..

But because most of this takes place in the subconscious most people are unaware of it.

But it is there!

And it poisons our minds.

So don't just take things at face value.

There may be malice and evil hidden beneath.

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Light.

Light is at the center of the galaxy.

Stars and planets revolve around the Light.

There is no center to the Universe.

The universal center is everywhere.

So we only have the model of the galaxy.

And, as with the Solar System, Light is at the center.

This symbolizes the Reality that God is at the center of everything.

And God is everywhere.

The Light shines and is not diminished.

When stars die new stars are born.

This is the eternal cycle of Life. 

And if gravity is Love then everything is bound by Love.

For God is Love.

And Love leads us to the Light.

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Black.

Remember when everything went black?

Clothing, electrical equipment, sunglasses, cars, humor, movies, novels, science, hearts.....everything!

And the uniform for corporate workers became all black.

And it still is.

This is no accident.

Black is darkness.

And darkness hides things.

What it hides is the corruption and exploitation of corporations.

And the materialism and cupidity of Generation X. 

But that is not all that is hidden.

Right-wing plutocrats and politicians use scapegoating methods devised by the Nazis to boost their support and blame their opposition.

Left-wing liberals and gays and lesbians* are charged with the blame for Satanism in rock music and all the evils of society.

This was popularized by Ronald Reagan who called the Hippie Generation "Unconscious agents of the devil." and demonized his political opponents.

This created what Hitler called "Moral Ease" for the Right.

But this is not all.

Big business and their sporting allies have used black magic and Satanic methods in the hope of boosting their sales and popularity and reversing the blame.

Satanic magic is backwards and upside-down and this is what has happened.

Satan is the Prince of Darkness.

And what the darkness hides is evil indeed.

(*Gays and Lesbians are obvious targets because of the fear and hostility created by AIDS.)

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