The Wrong Side of History.

With the fall of Soviet Communism Western Capitalists declared The End of History.

Their subsequent ideological binge has seen the largest ever disparity between rich and poor.

The dismantling of the Social Safety-Net.

The denigration of the United Nations.

The destruction of the Unions.

The despoiling of Education.

And the waging of Perpetual War (for profit).

Our media is controlled.

Corporate responses are lies.

Governments betray us.

Economic Rationalism has failed us.

The world is not a better place.

But it may surprise the Right-Wing ideologues who designed this disaster that they are on the wrong side of history.

The coming Age is the Age of Aquarius and all the things that they have destroyed will return stronger than ever.

The Plutocrats and their political puppets will not win the day.

The future will see greater equality, increased aid to the poor, sustainable development, dialogue, tolerance, humanitarianism, charity, universal brotherhood, peace, and freedom.

It may not seem that way now.

But people are sick of Corporate lies and political cowardice.

Cynicism and corruption have had their day.

We must return to the world of ideals. 


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Surrender Your Weapons.

When the Light from God comes it shows us the deadly weapons that underpin jealousy and lust for power.

In normal circumstances these weapons are concealed.

But with God's help they become self-evident.

It is as we have always suspected.

The right-wing Plutocrats and Politicians defend their positions of power with deadly weapons.

They will not refrain from torture.

But this is all done in secret.

When their evil actions are revealed they may react differently.

God's Light reveals what is hidden.

And when their deadly weapons are revealed they have the chance to give them up.

God can remove our demons from us.

And He will.

If we are willing.

So surrender your weapons.

And be free at last.


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Principles.

When I mentioned to a Salvation Army Officer whom I met on the tram that I was gay and that the official policy of the Salvation Army was that gay people deserved to die.

He said that they had to stick to their principles.

Meaning that the moral principle involved was more important than any mere human being.

This is the exact opposite of God's attitude.

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

And Jesus criticized the Pharisees for Legalism.

Which is putting the principle before the person.


[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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Hard-Hearted.

With the possible exception of the Uniting Church in Australia and the Episcopalian Church in America the attitude of most Christian Churches to gays and lesbians can only be described as hard-hearted.

No matter what the issue if it relates to gays and lesbians most Churches will close their minds and close their hearts.

They may even close their doors.

This mean-spirited response is a contradiction of everything Jesus Christ stood for,

After the suffering and persecution experienced by gay people in our world you would expect the representatives of Jesus to show compassion and love towards us.

But they would rather treat us as non-persons and even consign us to hell.

It is no wonder the Churches are dying.


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Insanity.

The mentality which has developed in America's Evangelical Christian population is a form of insanity.

They called Obama the Anti-Christ.
They oppose better health care.
They supported a profligate President.
They demonize Socialism.
They sanctify Capitalism.
They believe Fox News.
They scapegoat gays.
They promote gun violence.
They battle Satan.
They vote Republican.
They idolize Jesus.

Anyone who disagrees with them is labelled the devil.

And anything they don't want is lies or it didn't happen at all.

Their mentality is so divorced from reality that it has become a form of insanity.


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The Fathers.

Our world is ruled by corporations.

But there is a greater power than them.

God is real.

And He is at work in our world.

The irony is that the Corporate Plutocrats who dominate our world are in fact the fathers of our world.

So, rather than destroying them, God seeks to open their hearts.

To open their hearts to their children - the workers and employees that they oppress.

The Love of God banishes our fear.

God understands.

God provides.

God knows each one of us.

And He calls us by our name.

And so He knows why the fathers oppress their workers.

It is fear.

Most of them were born during the Great Depression.

Unconscious fear drives them.

But this generation is dying.

A new generation of fathers is ascending.

God can banish this fear forever.

And bring Salvation to the world.


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Church Decline.

We will never be able to reverse the decline of the Church until we realize what is causing it.

There are several factors which affect Church decline.

First of all we are preaching to an educated public.
What we preach must pass the test of logic and not insult our intelligence or our sensibilities.

Secondly the child sexual abuse scandals must be addressed.
It is no use just increasing our fear of sex.  We must face the fact that sex is part of God's good creation and is not the enemy of the spirit.

Thirdly we must address the issue of homosexuality and God.
The vast majority find the hateful attitude of many Churches towards homosexuality offencive.  We must swallow our pride and admit that God does not discriminate.

But a major influence affecting Church attendances is Satanism in our popular culture.  Satanism in rock music, entertainment, and sports poisons and distracts us.  It blames religion and addicts us to pleasure.

So, if we are to address the issue of the decline of the Church, we must first look at these factors.       


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Your Story.

Everyone has their story.

And make no mistake it's a story of abuse and exploitation.

A story of fear and violence.

People wear a mask of self-assurance and strength.

But underneath they are all just as insecure and afraid as we are.

We build a wall of cynicism and indifference to protect the child within.

A child crying out for love.

So be aware that everyone is damaged.

Everyone is hurting.

Everyone is frightened.

And offer the universal panacea which is Love.


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Satanism in Sports.

Have you noticed the flames?

The flames of hell.

Have you noticed the philosophy?

Their philosophy is tough and hard.

Have you noticed the commentary?

The words of violence:

"Put them to the sword!"

"Break their hearts!"

"Go in for the kill!"

"666."

"13."

All these things come from Satanism in sports.

They want you to follow them.

They want your admiration.

They want your money.

So don't follow false gods and heroes.

The chances are they have sold their souls and they want your soul in hell.


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Easter Day!

Resurrection is real.

After the final solution of death.

If we wait in faith.

Mindful of God's steadfast Love.

There will be a Resurrection.

Not to glory, nor to triumph.

But to Life!

Life with God.

Life Eternal.

And if we believe in Jesus.

We will rise with him.

On Easter Day!


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Rock Bottom.

When they told us to sacrifice everything to the bottom line.

And when everyone became bad, sinful, and wicked.

We corrupted ourselves.

We sold out.

And we gave up.

The time has come to regain our lost innocence and return to the ideals which we surrendered.

The world is crying out for leaders with principles.

And I don't mean prejudice and bigotry.

I mean real principles.

Honesty, truthfulness, integrity, courage, commitment to the common good.....

Not just pragmatism and serving the interests of rich corporations.

People are fed up.

They have made the world an evil place.

Full of darkness and violence.

But there is a glimmer of Light.

And we pray for Peace.

We have reached rock bottom.

The only way is up.


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Death Is Not the End.

Most temporal leaders believe that death is the final solution.

Any threat or challenge can be terminated by death.

But death is not the end.

After Jesus was crucified and buried God resurrected him to Eternal Life.

Jesus lives on in Heaven.

And we can appeal to him when we are threatened or attacked.

"'Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.'"  John 11:25,26 (NRSV)

These are the Words of Life.

And I believe in them.


[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 Appointed Time.

Sometimes I think that the people that are left in the Church have given up.

When you make a suggestion or present a new idea they seem apathetic and make excuses not to do it.

To them perhaps it seems a long time of decline and failure.

But "there is still a vision for the appointed time."  Habakkuk 2:3 (NRSV)

And that time is now!

The dawning of the New Age - the Age of Aquarius - has begun.

A new way of interpreting scripture which is based on legitimate modern scholarship is developing now.

And with it is coming a new revelation from God.

This revelation revolutionizes our image of God and His relationship with humanity.

It revises our understanding of Jesus.

And it centers us in love.

"I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh."  Ezekiel 11:19 (NRSV)

Spirituality will no longer be a matter of mental propositions and principles.

Spirituality will be about the development of the human heart.

Open your heart!

Open your heart to God and to humanity.

Open your heart to those around you.

Not just to your family and your friends.

But to everyone!

We are all sons and daughters of God.

Brothers and sisters in the Family of Humanity.

And God is our loving Father.


[Scripture quotation (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 Light.

So what is the Light that is coming from God?

Honesty, truthfulness, charity, mercy.

Affection, forgiveness, acceptance, love.

Keep on caring.

Don't give up.

Challenge the darkness.

Counteract evil.

Maintain your integrity.

Overcome fear.

But most of all:

Open your heart!


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Wake Up!

Pope Francis says that he wants his Priests and Religious to: "Wake up the world!"

This is all very well but to wake up the world you have to be awake yourself.

I was reminded of Jesus warning to the Pharisees: "'Why do you see the speck in neighbor's eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye?  You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor's eye.'"  Matthew 7:3,5 (NRSV)

While I do believe that Pope Francis is an enlightened person that doesn't mean that all of his Priests and Religious are enlightened.

So we have to get the preaching right first.

The quotation above comes within the context of judgement.

Jesus says: "'Do not judge, so that you may not be judged.  For with the judgement you make you will be judged.'"  Matthew 7:1,2 (NRSV)

So all of the Churches that preach judgement are in error.

This is a basic mistake made by authoritarian religious people who have not experienced the real God.

They adhere to the rigid orthodoxy taught in theological colleges.

But God is merciful and forgiving.

He does not judge us.

"'First take the log out of your own eye, then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor's eye.'"  Matthew 7:5 (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 use by permission.  All rights reserved.]

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Palm Sunday.

I must admit I am ambivalent about Palm Sunday.

There is a lot of hosannaring and declaring of Jesus as King.

But many in the crowd, and even the disciples, were expecting a political and military King in the style of David who would liberate them from the Roman occupation.

This may explain why many of them turned against him by Friday after he had ignored the Romans and attacked the Jewish religious leadership.

But why did Jesus go to Jerusalem?

Jerusalem was the center of Jewish religious faith.

It was here that the shepherds of Israel had their Temple. 

I believe that Jesus' attitude to the shepherds was a reflection of the prophets.

"The shepherds also have no understanding; they have all turned to their own gain, one and all."  Isaiah 56:11 (NRSV)

"Ah, you shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves!  Should not the shepherds feed the sheep?  You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the sheep. You have not strengthened the weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the injured, you have not brought back the strayed, you have not sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have ruled them."  Ezekiel 34:2-4 (NRSV)

This explains Jesus' criticism of the Pharisees and his status as a spiritual leader not a temporal one.

It also explains Jesus' mysterious injunction to Peter: "Feed my sheep."  John 21:17 (NRSV)

So I am ambivalent about Palm Sunday.

I am not sure whether to be jubilant or sad.


[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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Jeremiah.

God speaks to the sons of King Josiah:
"Did not your father eat and drink and do justice and righteousness?
Then it was well with him.
He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him.
Is this not to know me?  says the Lord.
But your eyes and heart are only for your dishonest gain, for the shedding of innocent blood, and for practising oppression and violence."  Jeremiah 22:15-17 (NRSV)

This is to displease God and not to know Him.

There are many Christians in this world who do not know God.

They seek dishonest gain, shed innocent blood, and practise oppression and violence.

They do not support the cause of the poor and the needy.

God instructs Jeremiah to invite the Rechabites to the Temple and offer them wine.

But they reply that their ancestors commanded them not to drink wine, build houses, or sow seeds and they had obeyed them to this day. (Jeremiah 35)

God holds up the Rechabites as an example of obedience which the people of Judah could not match.

The Rechabites obeyed the commandment of their ancestors but the Israelites had not obeyed God Himself.

And what has God commanded us to do?

"'"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind."'" Matthew 22:37 (NRSV)

"'"You shall love your neighbor as yourself."'"  Matthew 22:39 (NRSV)

Then He will say "Here I am."  Isaiah 58:9 (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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God Children.

"For thus says the Lord, To the eunuchs* who keep my my sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters, I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off."  Isaiah 56:4.5 (NRSV)

This refers to the practice of God adopting unmarried men to His service.

Everyone was to them like children.

Because God is Father of all.

And His servants foster everyone.


(*Eunuchs referred to any men who did not marry.)

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Immigrants.

"Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.  He said to his people, 'Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we.  Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join with our enemies and fight against us.'"  Exodus 1:8-10 (NRSV)

Thus began the oppression of the Israelites in Egypt.

And yet this sounds strangely familiar.

It could have been said by the leader of any rich Western country today.

Fear of immigrants results in oppression.

Leaders exploit that fear.

But this is not God's attitude.

God says to care for the stranger and the alien.

"You shall not oppress a resident alien, you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt."  Exodus 23:9 (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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Paul's Letters.

"There is no longer Jew nor Greek, there is no longer slave nor free, there is no longer male nor female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus."  Galatians 3:28 (NRSV)

"In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free, but Christ is all in all."  Colossians 3:11 (NRSV)

If we take these inclusive statements by Paul as the genuine spirit of his message then we are free to disregard the intolerant and misogynistic writings in his other letters.

They are also closer to his warm and respectful attitude to women of faith in the early Church.

Most scholars agree that Paul did not write all of the letters attributed to him in the New Testament.

One way of sorting the writings is by the spirit shown in a particular passage.

The spirit of inclusive love is the true spirit of God.

And this is shown in many of Paul's letters.

So, if we apply this method of discrimination there is much in Paul's letters that is of great value to the faith.

1 Corinthians 13 and other such writings are reflective of the spirit of unconditional love which is the true spirit of God.

This is not merely cherry picking but a legitimate method of sorting the true writings of St. Paul from what has been added by later writers in his name.


[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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Temptation 2.

If we look more closely at what devil-worshippers have done to the generations we will see that they push the negatives of each generation's astrological signs.

The Hippies were indulged in pleasure which is a negative aspect of Libra.  They were also encouraged to be selfish ("Do your own thing"*) which is a negative aspect of Leo.

Generation X were tempted to be holier than thou and judgemental which are negative aspects of Virgo.  They were also tempted to use violence, hatred, and evil which are negative aspects of Scorpio.

The religious and political right including Ronald Reagan were tempted to use judgement and demonization as weapons to win.  These are negative aspects of Capricorn.

And the older generation were tempted to be hypocritical and judgemental which are negative aspects of Virgo.

So the answer is not to blame anyone for what devil-worshippers have inspired in them but to look to the positive aspects of each generation's astrological signs

The positive aspects of the Baby-Boomers are: peace, diplomacy, love (Libra) and creativity and enlightenment (Leo).

The positive aspects of Generation X are: discrimination, meticulousness, virtue (Virgo) and loyalty, passion, transformation (Scorpio).

The positive aspects of Capricorn are: discipline, obedience, strength, and practicality.

One last thing:

Aquarius is manifested negatively by Satan worshippers as: drug abuse, promiscuity, insanity.

The positive aspects of Aquarius are: tolerance, genius, freedom, equality, humanitarianism, and vision.


(*This comes from Aleister Crowley's Satanic catch-cry "Do what you will".)

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Temptation 1.

Devil-worshippers are in the business of temptation.

Devil-worshippers in rock music tempted the Baby-Boomers to take drugs and practise Yoga - for which we are condemned.

They tempted Generation X to judge and condemn the Hippies for taking drugs and loose morals.

They tempted the Religious Right to judge and damn the Hippies and the political left for involvement with Satanism in rock music.

They tempted Ronald Reagan to use judgement and demonization as weapons against the political left, and to rely on Satanism and violence in Generation X to win.

They tempted the political right to use judgement and damnation as a weapon against the left.

They tempted Rupert Murdoch to use his media empire as a propaganda machine.

And they tempted the older generation to feel morally superior and practise hypocrisy.

But the Hippies were betrayed by their rock stars.

Generation X were misled by rock stars and politicians.

The Religious Right were led astray by their leaders.

Ronald Reagan and Rupert Murdoch were corrupted by power.

The political right was led astray by Ronald Reagan.

And the older generation were opportunistic and hypocritical.

In the end no one is guilty.

Even the devil-worshippers themselves were reacting to a false image of God.

God condemns no one.

He reveals the truth.

And He forgives. 


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Gay Activism.

My role as a gay activist is to reconcile gay men with God.

And as such I must deal with the Churches.

I am in the unique position of being a sexually active gay man and a confirmed Son of God.

My relationship with God is strong.

It is rooted in Reality.

It cannot be shaken by the naysayers in the Churches.

I am firmly established in the Love of God.

And God does not discriminate.

We are His gay sons.

He loves us as He loves all His children.

We are bound for Heaven.

And we will have Eternal Life!


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Design.

Most religious people will tell you that sex should be restricted to the confines of marriage.

Before marriage we are supposed to control ourselves.

But this is not how sex is designed.

Our sex drive is at its strongest when we are young and this is precisely the time when we are supposed to refrain from sex.

This makes no sense.

Sex is designed to sow your wild oats when you are young and then settle down with one partner and raise a family.

This is how our chemistry is designed.

So moral objections to sex before marriage are not in line with God's plan.

Old fashioned imperatives imposed on women to avoid unwanted pregnancies have been rendered obsolete by the contraceptive pill.

Obviously there is a health risk involved with excessive promiscuity.

But common sense and moderation will help avoid any problems.

So sexual experimentation in youth is not immoral or condemned by God.

We can engage in some sexual activity before settling down with one partner.

And this is precisely what happens in the gay community. 


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Moderation.

When it comes to pleasure the answer is not the extremes of excessive indulgence or fanatical self-denial.

The answer is the recommendation of the Buddha - the middle path of moderation.

It is interesting that the inscription of the Oracle at Delphi - the Temple of Apollo - reads: "All Things in Moderation".

So there is a history behind the practice of moderation.

The temptation, of course, is to eliminate pleasure altogether out of fear.

But this leads to repression which causes perversions.

So do not be afraid of pleasure.

Pleasure in moderation is pleasing to God.


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Aquarius.

"'And if anyone says to you at that time, "Look! Here is the Messiah!"or "Look! There he is!" - do not believe it.  False messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, the elect.'"  Mark 13:21,22 (NRSV)

This was Jesus warning to his disciples at the time of his mission (The Age of Pisces).

But now we are entering the Age of Aquarius and many false prophets are appearing.

Rock stars and celebrities pose as Saviors and Messiahs.

Also many modern Churches claim to be gay-friendly when in fact they are not.

This is to make them look like manifestations of Aquarius when in fact they are false prophets.

This is a lie!

And there is no lie in New Jerusalem.


[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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Saviors and Messiahs.

Rock stars and celebrities are always presenting themselves as Saviors and Messiahs.

But they are false prophets.

The Savior and Messiah is Jesus Christ.

Listen to him.


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Enlightenment.

What do we expect when we seek Enlightenment?

The word itself suggests a state of mind.

Like the halos around the heads of saints.

But true Enlightenment is about the heart.

Where there is Light there is Love.

And the ultimate Enlightenment is to experience the Love of God.

But it does not stop there.

We must learn to give love.

Not to be just passive receivers.

But to be active givers.

To give our love to God and to others.

Then we are truly Enlightened.


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