Affluence.

We live in an affluent society.

Rich Christian congregations ignore the plight of the poor and needy.

They rationalize their wealth with excuses and evasions.

"It would just be a drop in the ocean."

"It's their own fault."

So they do nothing and go away on expensive holidays.

Ocean cruises at $1000 a night.

Holiday houses on the peninsula.

John the Baptist said if you have two coats you should give one to the person who has none.

Jesus said to sell all you own and give the money to the poor.

But they don't.

They keep their wealth and in fact take what is intended for others.

They exploit everyone.

They want all the money and they want all the power.

It's hard to believe.

And it's hard to take.

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T.V.

If you watch T.V. you will think that the poor and the needy are dole-bludgers and drug addicts.

You will be told that Socialism is Satanism.

And all left-wing politicians are dictators.

Your heroes will be billionaires and celebrities.

And your passion will be sports.

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Trinity.

This Sunday in church we had Trinity Sunday.

This is to celebrate the concept of God as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

I personally do not believe in the traditional understanding of the Trinity.

That all three persons are God.  

I believe that the Holy Spirit is God's Breath - the Breath of Life.

And I believe that Jesus was a human being like us who drew close to God through study and prayer and that the title Son means he was loved by God and reflected God's nature.

I believe that God is One.

God is in everything and everything is in God.

And so there are differences in understanding.

But the heart of the matter remains - Love.

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Gay Salvation.

Contrary to the opinion of many religious people gay salvation does not entail correction or cure.

You cannot pray your gay away.

Gay salvation is the defeat of prejudice and bigotry.

When those in positions of religious authority accept that gay men and lesbian women are equally loved by God then we will be free.

This is Gay Salvation.

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Flipping.

Conservatives waging Culture Wars against Liberalism have adopted the tactic of "flipping an argument".

Donald Trump in particular was well known for doing this.

But this is turning things backwards.

And that is the practice of Satanists.

Satanic magic is backwards and upside-down.

It is the reverse of religion.

So by knowingly using this tactic Conservatives are aligning themselves with Satanists.

And therefore they are turning to evil.  

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Gay.

Apart from the Uniting Church in Australia and the Episcopalian Church in America few Churches accept gay and lesbian people as full members and candidates for leadership, ministry, and marriage.

So the gay issue is still very much alive.

The Anglican Church in England and the Catholic Church of Rome still stigmatize and ban gay sexual expression. 

And the Fundamentalist and Evangelical Churches of the United States are still mired in homophobia.

So the persecution of gays and lesbians by religious people is still a vital issue.

God does not hate homosexuals. 

God loves us as a father and mother love their gay sons and daughters.

So there is more work to do to free gay people from oppression and torture.

Several countries in Europe and many states in America are bringing in anti-gay laws.

These are hateful and ignorant incentives to repress and silence homosexuality.

We cannot stand by and allow them to pass.

And so I continue to state that God loves gay men and lesbian women.

And we will be welcomed in Heaven when we die!

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Community.

There are two communities:

There is the community of the Church which is the group of people who attend your church.

And then there is the wider community which is the rest of society.

And it is necessary to make a distinction between the two.

Many people in the Church think that because they are involved in church social groups that they are doing something for the community.

They are not.

They are just enjoying themselves within the church community.

This does do some good.

But it is not helping the wider community.

The Church is too self-absorbed.

We are concerned with our own needs not the needs of the wider community.

We can be concerned with the wellbeing of our fellow Christians but our focus should be on what we can contribute to the wider community.

Only then  will the Church revive.

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