Misinterpretation.

What we are faced with is a complete misinterpretation of the Bible by the American right-wing Churches and their political allies.

The message of the Bible - both Old Testament and New Testament - is that God is on the side of the poor and the oppressed.

He is not a billionaire out to screw everyone for every penny they've got.

He is not a military strong man who will protect us.

He is not a liar and a cheat.

He is as vulnerable as a lamb led to slaughter.

He is non-violent.

He is gentle and humble of heart.

And He is good.

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Metanoia.

Metanoia is the Greek word for the change of heart that takes place when you become a follower of Jesus.

It has been translated as repentance or conversion and can be symbolized by the act of prostrating yourself before God.

But far too many people grab the benefits of discipleship without actually changing their behavior.

And so their sins remain.

They keep their riches, they indulge in worldly pleasures, they give token gestures to the poor and needy, and they exploit everyone and everything.

And they call themselves Christians.

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Beyond Natural Justice.

Most people think that God practises Natural Justice.

That is: He rewards good behavior and punishes bad behavior.

But there is no evidence that God behaves in this way.

God is merciful.

He forgives sin.

And He refuses to judge.

That is because we all make mistakes and if God did not forgive no one would ever make it to Heaven.

So it becomes a matter of degree.

But as Jesus said: he who is forgiven more will love more.

So do not get stuck in ideas of Natural Justice.

For God is merciful and forgiving.

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The Tough-Guy Defense.

In the company of men many will adopt what I call the tough-guy defense.

He is so afraid of being hurt that he erects a strong facade of toughness.

He is so afraid of humiliation that he will not admit any weaknesses.

He is so afraid of homosexuality that he will not show any affection.

But in doing so he imprisons his soul within an impregnable fortress.

And he identifies with his creation.

His personal ego rules his personality.

And he is unhappy.

This is what the world has taught him.

But we must unlearn this behavior if we are to find ourselves and find true happiness.

Because happiness comes from opening our hearts, from expressing our love to others.

Many men think that sex is the purpose of life and that happiness comes from successful sexual activities. 

But this is not as satisfying as it promised to be.

It can make you feel empty and miserable.

True happiness comes from loving others.

Love is at the center of our being.

And Love is at the center of the universe.

The inmost nature of God is Love.

And Love is our final home.

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God's Plan.

"Ah, you who drag iniquity along with cords of falsehood,

who drag sin along as with cart ropes,

Who say, "Let him make haste,

let him speed his work, 

that we may see it,

let the plan of the Holy One of Israel hasten to fulfillment,

that we may know it!

Ah, you who call evil good and good evil,

who put darkness for light and light for darkness,

who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!

Ah, you who are wise in you own eyes,

and shrewd in your own sight!

Ah, you who are heroes in drinking wine

and valiant in mixing drink,

who acquit the guilty for a bribe,

and deprive the innocent of their rights!"

Isaiah 5:18-23 (NRSV)

Sound familiar?

This passage, written in 500BCE, describes those who hasten us to the Last Judgement, who say: "Bring on the Rapture!"

That God's Plan may reach fulfillment.

They preach evil for good and good for evil.

And they acquit the guilty and deprive the innocent of their rights!

[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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Iniquity.

The greatest sin in this world is the exploitation of Second and Third World peoples by the corporation who reside in the First World.

These corporations, which are run by billionaires, have manufactured a system by which they have all the power and no one can question them.

The banks and the stock exchange implicate all of us in their evil.

If we question them we are told that they can not divulge that information because we are not shareholders.

And if we are shareholders no one will support us.

They vote with their hip pockets.

So land grabs and exploitation of the poor continue unchecked.

And the disparity between rich and poor increases.

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Ego.

Ego is not the same as self-esteem.

Thinking you're good looking is not the same as being good.

Acting like a know-all and pretending that you know all about things that you know little or nothing about is not the same as being a respected life-coach or teacher.

Stealing knowledge or ideas or feelings or energy is not the same as being worthy.

Demanding homage is not the same as being respected.

Taking revenge is not the same as being vindicated.

Intimidation is not the same as respect.

Violence is not the same as justification.

And cheating is not the same as winning.

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Degeneration.

Deregulation opened the door to corruption.

And justification by money entrenched it.

40 years of degeneration and darkness has seen us sink deeper and deeper into moral decay.

And anyone who challenges it is told to get real and grow up.

But nothing lasts forever.

Even now the axe is at the root of the tree.

The reign of the black generation is coming to an end.

And when they fall their ruin will be great.

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The Devil.

Those who obstruct God and turn to the devil do so because they believe that the devil can bring them riches and pleasure.

And that's what they want.

And so they do evil in the world in order to gain favor with the Lord of Evil.

(NB: The devil may not be real but they believe he is real and so the evil they do in his name remains.)

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The Kingdom of God.

Generation X and their allies in the corporations and conservative political parties and Evangelical Christian Churches actively oppose the Will of God.

They do this by demonizing ideals and social activism and promoting pragmatic materialism.

The excuse they use is that these things get in the way of making a living and surviving in this world.

And they wink at corruption because they think you have to be corrupt to have enough.

And so they crucify the Baby-Boomers and left-wing politicians who promote social justice and fairer taxes.

They don't want God interfering with their pursuit of money and pleasure.

And so they actively obstruct the coming of the Kingdom of God on Earth.

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The Unrighteous.

"Seek the Lord while he may be found,

call upon him while he is near;

let the wicked forsake their way,

and the unrighteous their thoughts;

let them return to the Lord,

that he may have mercy on them,

and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon,"

Isaiah 55:6.7 (NRSV) 

This is God's hope for the unrighteous - those who ignore the goodness of God and His Commandments.

These are those of little faith.

Those who do not trust in God and His promise.

Their lives are ruled by existential fears.

And their hopes by worldly desires.

But if they turn to God He will pardon and redeem their souls from the world.

[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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An Evil Generation.

You cannot practise cupidity, greed, vice, violence, and hate and claim to be good people.

You cannot be blasphemous and claim divine favor.

This is the case with those who call themselves bad.

But Narcissism covers their evil and their egos covet goodness.

This is enforced by intimidation and threat.

And a pragmatic hypocrisy that is truly shocking.

But nothing lasts forever.

Their fragile facade will crumble and fall.

And they will be seen for what they are:

An evil generation.

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God's Will.

How can those who purport to represent God on Earth actively oppose God's Will?

The answer to that is that long ago the powers of this world - the rich and elites - manipulated the theology of the Church to suit themselves.

They ignored the "good news to the poor" and made Christianity about obedience to authority - namely them.  

They reinstated Original Sin and Universal Condemnation.

And they imposed Judgement and punishment for sins.

This is the carrot and stick approach of the earthly elites and its purpose is to keep the masses down. 

God's message of glad tidings and forgiveness of sins was lost.

And God's Love was compromise by fear.

But there is no fear in God.

He says: "Fear not!"

And: "Your sins are forgiven."

God's face is Mercy.

And His heart is Love.

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Fear Not!

As with all things scripture is inspired by love or fear.

But God says: "Fear not!"

For there is no fear in God.

And so we are to disregard those passages in the Bible or the Koran which are inspired by fear or inspire fear in the reader.

This is a simple way of approaching scripture.

And it will lead directly to the real God.

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Suffering.

If you follow rock stars and popular culture you will continue to suffer.

This is because covert Satanism and black magic preach sin and death.

They encourage sin in the hope that you will become dead to God and your soul will be damned to hell.

But this is not immediately apparent.

Satanism in pop culture wears a mask of glamour and heroism.

They are dogs* and divas.

But their message is sabotage and their example is subterfuge.

They are false messiahs and false gods.

Leave them behind.

(*Gods backwards.)

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Bad Advice.

Rock music will give you bad advice.

"Rock and roll suicide."

"I am a rock. I am an island."

"Got a good reason for taking the easy away out."

"Stairway to Heaven."

"Money for nothing"

"Sex and drugs and rock and roll."

And this is no coincidence.

Rock musicians have been selling their souls and practising Satanism as taught by Aleister Crowley since the 1960s.

They encourage sin in order to induce spiritual death.

And they want your soul in hell*.

So don't take everything they say at face value.

There is treachery and evil hidden beneath. 

(* Hence the flames.)

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Evil.

Evil in this world may in fact be your favorite rock legends and sporting heroes.

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Pet Hate.

When confronted with evil people will blame their pet hate 

and use it to further their illusions.

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History 2.

Just as the German people were blackened and disgraced forever for supporting Hitler and the Nazis' persecution of the Jews.....

So Generation X and their allies will be eternally blackened and disgraced for their persecution of gay people after the AIDS crisis.

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Injustice.

Since the AIDS crisis gay people have been persecuted and victimized.

This brings to mind the story of Oscar Wilde.

Oscar Wilde was a prominent playwright and author in the late 19th Century.  He was prosecuted for homosexual acts and imprisoned with hard labor.

However, this is not remembered as a just punishment but as a great injustice.

And this period in history that has seen the persecution of gay people will be remembered as a similar injustice.

And those who prosecuted this injustice will be seen as hypocrites and bigots.

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