Truth.

God's Light shows us the Truth.

And what are lies but buried fears.

Fear of the truth.

Fear of consequences.

That is why there must be truth before reconciliation.

Truth before forgiveness.

We cannot lie our way out of it.

We cannot lie to God.

Out of fear.

We have nothing to fear from God.

God loves us like a Father.

And God's Truths are self-evident.


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Let Them Live.

What does it mean to love our enemies?

Victory does not mean destroying our enemies.

Nor does it mean sending them to hell.

It does not even mean marginalizing them.

We must let them live.

And pray that their enmity will cease.

So pray for your enemies.

That the Light from God will show them the fear that drives them, and us.

God will not destroy your enemies.

For they are His children also.

So live and let live.

Bury the hatchet.

And make peace at last.


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Obstruction.

The right-wing reactionary forces in our society are blocking any attempts to change the Status Quo.

A Status Quo which now sees the highest disparity between rich and poor in history.

Any incentives on climate change, tax reform, gun control, social welfare, foreign aid, asylum seekers etc. are being deliberately obstructed.

Google Foreign Aid for example and you are inundated with articles telling you that foreign aid is bad for everyone.

Try Gay Rights and you will encounter numerous articles by Fundamentalist Christians telling you that homosexuality is evil.

All these things, plus propaganda in the news media, are obstructing any positive changes.

And it is history now that Republicans have repeatedly blocked legislation on gun control in America.

So be more discriminating if you want things to change.

We are being brainwashed.


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Bravado.

Why do some people appear strong when they are in fact full of fear?

Bravado.

Putting forth a brave exterior is fear itself.

They are full of fears.

But they are afraid of showing their fears for fear of being called weak.

So they project bravado.


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(The image has been slightly modified.)

Listen to Him.

At the Transfiguration the voice from the cloud said, "'This is my son, the Beloved, listen to him.'"  Mark 9:7 (NRSV)

But most Christians ignore what Jesus said and adhere to Tradition.

Jesus said of the Pharisees, "'You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition!'"  Mark 7:9 (NRSV)

Jesus also said, "'For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, "He has a demon"; the Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, "Look. a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!"'"  Luke 7:33-35 (NRSV)

So it is clear that the Traditions of the Church may not reflect the teachings of Jesus.

And where there is a conflict the words of Jesus must always take precedence.


[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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Love.

We fear that we are not worthy of love.

A massive inferiority complex makes us doubt that we are lovable.

But God's Love is constant.

God loves all His children.

To be human is to be worthy of love.

Even animals and trees are worthy of love.

And it is fear that inhibits our love.

Love God and love your neighbor.

Love even your enemies.

Because all are equally worthy of love.


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From Fear to Love.

If I can do one thing in this world it is to change people's motivation from fear to love.

So much of what motivates us is fear:

Fear of poverty.  Fear of rejection.  Fear of ridicule.  Fear of God.

So much of traditional Church doctrine is based on fear:

Fear of judgement.  Fear of damnation.  Fear of hell.

But God does not judge us for our mistakes.

He does not punish us.

So there can be no hell.

Once we realize this we lose our fear.

And we are secure in the Love of God.

God loves us like a Father.

And He requites our love for Him.

"We love because he first loved us."  1 John 4:19 (NRSV)

If we overcome our fear we can show our love for everyone.


[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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