Tag Archives: Making choices

by Guestspeaker | 2018/07/05 · 5:05 pm

Confrontation by people telling lies to force others to avoid the targetted groups

Many times in our life we have to make choices and do we have to be confronted by people willing to force us to make certain choices or to go certain directions. Those who want to re-direct people often are not afraid to use very offensive or intimidating language.

On the internet we do find lots of people who do not mind their way of speech. Some are convinced that their offensive manner of speech can attract more followers (what it seems to do) and shall get people so much afraid that they would not dare to give a negative reaction or would not dare to contradict the web-owner.

Dave Norris picturing Son. H. Spirit. Father. Christadelphians. Unitarians. Created Being. Mere Force. GOD. Jehovah Witnesses.

One such person is Dave Norris who seems to find pleasure in attacking Roman Catholics, Christadelphians and also seems to have a thing (or fling) with Mormons, because all people who dare to give an other reaction than what he expect he calls Morons and Mormons. Because this (seemingly very frustrated) author bombards the net with anti-Christadelphian material and provides several Christadelphian members with hateful or inappropriate language mails, the Belgian Biblestudents, after a lot of patience, did find it time to react on the net and to provide a special website to show people the many lies such people as Mr. Norris are presenting on the net as so called proof that Christadelphians, Jehovah’s Witnesses and other non-Trinitarian Christians are following false prophets, adhering false teachings and are people sent by Satan.

Too many people do forget that this matter about Trinity or not is a very old issue that came into existence after the death of Christ and became a terrible matter long after the death of the apostles, bringing clergy agreeing to a three-headed god for political and power reasons.

The clergy also found an interesting tool to keep people in their power and to please them with offering them all heathen pleasures, being able to have graven images to pray for, to use incense and do all sorts of rites taken from the pagan people and traditions. People also found more pleasing answers in possibilities to have an other life after this life on earth, than the teachings of the Bible could offer them. The mixture of the philosophical writings, of the Greek and Roman cultures could find a nice amalgamation with the many pagan teachings and were blended in the Roman Catholic Church its teachings.

The Belgian Christadelphian Biblestudents (not to confuse with some other Belgian Christadelphian groups) are aware that lots of people do not have enough bible knowledge and therefore they would love to give an incentive to come to read the Bible, so that it can be examined who keeps most to the teachings of the bible, the trinitarians or the non-trinitarians.

Please come to know this website which want to come to the defence of all non-Trinitarians and in the near future also wants to present the different denominations which believe in only One God Who is One and not three.

Unmasking anti Jehovah sites and people

Showing the only One True God and the Way to That God

Have a look at one way of Dave Norris reacting: Reaction to Vragensteller on Christadelphian Hogwash

Find also

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Unitarism [745] – Please take into account that the Belgian Christadelphians have no ties with the JW and that the Belgian Christadelphian Biblestudents may have connections with and have ex-JW members in the Biblestudent movement [those who returned after they first went with the schism group of the JW which was founded by Rutherford and not by Charles Taze Russell, the student of John Thomas (the founder of the Christadelphians)] Mr. Crossroman seems to have a limited view on the Christadelphians in general, but perhaps also thinks all Lutherans are as followers of the woman unfriendly Martin Luther women-haters, though he misses the point that the Christadelphians are not called Thomasians or Thomasists, like we can find Calvinists and Lutherans.
Trinity, Logic, and the Transcendence of Transcendence
What Constitutes a Cult?
Moongazers and Sunflowers
In which I cement my place in hell via Newton
18 May: Alison Patrick of the Unitarian Church in Shrewsbury: Unitarian? What’s that?
Worship
Please don’t call me a Christian
I am an agnostic at heart
Is religious faith madness?
The Conflict that lives on.
A Theology of Doubt
Letter of the Day: Government must probe trial process
When Windows Become Mirrors
All One InTent
Open Minds, Welcome Hearts
The Broken Pastorate
Labyrinth #17: Unitarian Universalist Congregation, Rock Tavern, NY
A Rescued Life from Cult to Freedom: A Rebuttal of JW’s Beliefs
Top Of The Morning: What Do You Know About Jehovah Witnesses
Why Jehovah Witnesss confuse people
Jehovah’s Witnesses
Denomination’s 5..Jehovah’s Witnesses.
August Dickmann-executed without a trial.
10 Things You Should Know about Jehovah’s Witnesses (at that site once again we read the false statement that Charles Taze Russell would have been the first JW.)
Leaked Documents Reveal Jehovah’s Witnesses A Pedophile Cult David Zublick Channel Leaked internal documents from the Jehovah’s Witnesses church reveal a cover-up of a huge pedophile ring operating within the …
How Should We Act In The Face Of A False Teacher?
Was Jesus the Archangel Michael?
Do You Have to Believe in the Trinity to be Saved?
Ep. 4 – Jehovah’s Witnesses
More advice on dealing with Jehovah Witnesses
Why I hate fundamentalist people so much
Is the Watchtower Using (or Creating) Apocryphal Material?
Enduring as a Transgender Christian
OSC’s Watchtower street teach pt 1
YouTube: Who’s Lying Now Stephen Lett?
YouTube: Bigotry & Emotional Manipulation
My Interview with Mick Pillar-A Survivor of the JW Cult
Congratulations to Naomi!
‘Extremist’ Faith: Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses Report Wave Of Police Raids, Detentions
UnBiblical Interpretation Can Cause Havoc To Your Faith

Unitarian group supports BDS nomination for Nobel Peace Prize
Welcome! on a website to promote Unitarian Christianity as the best path to a personal relationship with God.
Dare Not Linger
Weighing Our Choices
The Peace of Wild Things
The End of the World

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Filed under Activism and Peace Work, Announcement, Being and Feeling, Crimes & Atrocities, Educational affairs, Headlines - News, Knowledge & Wisdom, Religious affairs, World affairs

Tagged as Anti-Christadelphianism, Belgian Biblestudents, Belgische Christadelphians, Calvinist Church, Calvinist(s), Charles Taze Russell, Choices, Christadelphians, Dave Norris, Denominations, Exposing Christian Error (website), Internet, Intimidating language, Jehovah's Witnesses, Joseph Franklin Rutherford, Lutheran Church, Lutheran(s), Making choices, Manner of speech, Non-trinitarian Christians, Non-trinitarians, Offensive language, to Contradict, to Make choices, Trinity, Unmasking anti Jehovah people (website)

by Guestspeaker | 2018/07/05 · 12:57 pm

Responsible for what we are

More than one writer and philosopher pointed to the fact that we are all ourselves responsible for what we are, have become or what we shall become.

“We are responsible for what we are, and whatever we wish ourselves to be,
we have the power to make ourselves.
If what we are now has been the result of our own past actions,
it certainly follows that whatever we wish to be in future
can be produced by our present actions;
so we have to know how to act.”
~ Swami Vivekananda …

The Indian Hindu monk Vivekananda sitting in meditative posture in Cossipore 1886

Dr Austin Ejaife *(Ugo1)* also looks at this statement which should be a warning for us all. He writes:

It can be easy for us to lose focus of the incredible potential we possess to make ourselves into anything that we wish ourselves to be. All too often we let the little failures in life get us down, or we lock ourselves up into our current situations in life and our same old routines. But it is true what Swami says here:

today, we are a result of our past actions… and it therefore follows that we can come to be whatever we wish, if we so choose to.

The key is that we must choose to make positive changes… and then act upon those changes now. {Take Action To Bring Yourself Closer To Who And What You Wish To Be}

He too is aware that such changes do not have to happen at once. question is first if we are willing to change ourselves. In which way do we want to grow and mould ourselves when we go along the path of life? Question to be posed is on what do we as a person want to focus?

In this world for many the focus is on material things. Not many are interested in the spiritual richness which can be in front of us. We should be aware were we want to position us in this world and how we want to look at ourselves but also would love others to see us.

Dr Austin Ejaife *(Ugo1)*his advice is

We can make slight changes to our routines that help us to become more positive, more productive, and bring us closer to where we desire to be. {Take Action To Bring Yourself Closer To Who And What You Wish To Be}

But also questions

Why is it easy to get caught up in who we are now and lose sight of who we want to be? {Take Action To Bring Yourself Closer To Who And What You Wish To Be}

So many people fall in the trap of their own ego tripping and selfishness, that they miss the opportunity to become part of a greater unit. Lots of people are also afraid to be confronted with their-self and always postpone to change something essential.

For this reason it is not bad to take in consideration the following thought:

“Never again clutter your days or nights
with so many menial and unimportant things
that you have no time to accept a real challenge when it comes along.
This applies to play as well as work.

A day merely survived is no cause for celebration.
You are not here to fritter away your precious hours
when you have the ability to accomplish so much by making a slight change in your routine.
No more busy work. No more hiding from success.
Leave time, leave space, to grow. Now. Now! Not tomorrow!”
~ Og Mandino

Preceding

Getting up to bring changes into your life

Additional reading

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Filed under Being and Feeling, Lifestyle, Quotations or Citations, Reflection Texts

Tagged as Actions, Austin Ejaife, Bringing changes into your life, Change, Changes in life, Changing yourself, Creating yourself, Desire to be, Ego tripping, Essence of self, Failures, Focus, Making changes, Making choices, Past actions, Present actions, Routines, Self-growth, Selfishness, Swami Vivekananda, to Choose

by Immanuel Verbondskind | 2017/09/14 · 1:21 pm

2017 September – Upcoming Days of Awe

The ten days starting with Rosh Hashanah (Feast of Trumpets), 21 September 2017, 1 Tishrei 5778, and ending with Yom Kippur, 30 September 2017 or 10 Tishrei 5778, are commonly known as the Days of Awe (Yamim Noraim) or the Days of Repentance (High holidays). This is a time for serious introspection, a time to consider the sins of the previous year and repent before Yom Kippur. On Wednesday September we have Erev Rosh Hashanah, followed by the 1st and 2nd Rosh Hashjanah days and the Yamim Nora’im or Days of Awe closing on September 30 with Yom Kippur or Day of Atonement.

Starting the Hebrew Year 5778 we should seriously think about how we want to continue is this particular time where there is so much anxiety and where we can find in so many places religious groups fighting against each other. Jews and Christians are already a few years under fire and now we curiously also find Buddhists fighting Muslim groups.

What was our reaction when we heard all that bad news about terrorism and fighting (so called) religious people? Did we dare to come up or defend those who were attacked for things they did not do or for which their religion was not guilty?

Gary Bowers questions

What is your level of insecurity over menacing events conjectured by some geopolitical and socioeconomic experts? Such as: the dysfunctional disintegration of the European Union that could cause a chain reaction melt-down of the entire European economy; collapse of the financial system in the United States linked to or independent of Europe’s demise; Iran launching a first nuclear strike to make good on its threat to wipe Israel from the face of the earth and the United States along with it; North Korea doing the same thing; Russia’s ominous intrusion into the Middle East, potentially taking on the United States should we do anything to oppose Russia’s real agenda for being there; an all-out conventional attack by a powerful Islamic coalition of nations against Israel; and other harbingers of man-made catastrophes and natural disasters. {Yom Kippur / With Or Without Atonement?}

These days we should take time to search our heart, look for how we want to approach our life but also the life of others, and draw close to God in preparation for the coming Day of Judgement, Rosh Hashanah, and Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur.

We have all different ways of handling ourself and our way of life. We also are eager to look at others and often do not mind judging them or pointing with a finger at them.

According to vain Jewish tradition, God supposedly weighs every man’s work to determine who will be written in His books, who will live and die, who will have a good life or a bad life for the next year. The judgement is based on one’s works during the Days of Awe (e.g., repentance, prayer, obedience, acts of charity). The individual’s fate is then sealed on Yom Kippur.

But we should know that we all are already written in the book of life and death from the beginning of times. Also from the moment we are born we do have our own choice to make the right or the wrong decisions, all the time. Nothing is decided just in one day or in one week or in ten days.

Rabbi Mark Glickman

The Days of Awe encourage us not to get other people to take responsibility for their misdeeds, but rather to get each of us to take responsibility for our own. The emphasis isn’t on what they’ve done wrong; its on what you’ve done wrong. Rabbi Mark Glickman, the spiritual leader of Temple B’nai Tikvah in Calgary, suggests:

During the upcoming Days of Awe, when you feel your finger starting to pop out and point at someone else – and pop out it surely will – then just bend that finger back so that it points at you. Focus your efforts not on what others have done to you, but on the ways you’ve fallen short and can improve in the future.

Check what you have done this last year, which past so fast. I am sure you, probably like me, wanted to do so many things and have to admit lots of things we wanted to have done are not done or we did not succeed to do. Let us do teshuva, to give tzedakah and to reflect on how we may improve ourselves. And let us consider how we can help others on that path to the Most High Elohim.

A Temani (Yemeni Jewish) style shofar made from a horn of the greater kudu. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

With best wishes to you, your family, and all klal Yisroel for a good, sweet, safe and healthy year, full of success spiritually and materially, with much nachas ruach, and a geula shlema for the coming year.

Please come to read:

On the Virtue of a Bent Finger: A Challenge for the Days of Awe

Preceding article

Elul Observances

Additional reading

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Adar 6, Matan Torah remembering the giving of Torah

In the people of God their year 2448 (1313 BCE), on the 6th (or 7th) day of the third month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calendar, Sivan, after Moshe was called up at the mountain of Sinai, God told his chosen one what to tell to the people. With the Shemoth or Exodus from Egypt only three months in the past, the Jews arrive at Mount Sinai to hear a terrible noise and to see flashing lights. They saw a mountain which was been touched and burned with fire and to blackness and to darkness and to tempest.

“Now all of the people were seeing the thunder-sounds, the flashing-torches, the shofar sound, and the mountain smoking; when the people saw, they faltered and stood far off.”
(Exodus 20:15 SB)

“The people stood far off, and Moshe approached the fog where God was.”
(Exodus 20:18 SB)

Moshe having entered into the thick ‘darkness’ of the clouds, came to hear the Voice of God, the Most High Divine Creator. God spoke to Moshe

“… Say thus to the Children of Israel: You yourselves have seen that it was from the heavens that I spoke with you.”
(Exodus 20:19 SB)

V11p133004 Torah (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There God gave to the Children of Israel what is by most Christians known as the “Ten commandments” but would be better referred to as the (literal translation) ““The Ten Sayings” or Decalogue. These Sayings including more than ten actual mitzvahs. Later Jeshua would tell that he has come not to take that Law away, like so many christians think, but to explain it and to fulfil it.

“Do not suppose that I came to tear-down the law or the prophets; I did not come to tear-down, but to fulfil.”
(Matthew 5:17 MLV)

“But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than for one serif of the law to fall short.”
(Luke 16:17 MLV)

“Now I am saying this: the law, which happened four hundred and thirty years afterward, does not invalidate a covenant* validated beforehand by God in reference to Christ so as to do-away-with the promise.”
(Galatians 3:17 MLV)

Many thousand years ago God found it time that what He wanted people would know very well what He expected from them. He wanted to make it clear to them what His expectations were.
He made it clear what He wanted man to keep to.

For those who doubt it, or use graven images in their worship places God made it clear He does not like such things.

“You are not to make beside me gods of silver, gods of gold you are not to make for yourselves!”
(Exodus 20:20 SB)

No body, who wants to be a child of God, may have more than One God before him or may become unequally yoked with unbelievers and take part in pagan rites and pagan festivals (like Halloween, Christmas, Easter, just to call a few).

It was on Sivan 2 that the Almighty God tells Moshe that He not only wants to give the Jews the Torah, but also wants to make them His chosen, set apart or holy nation, who will follow His commandments. The Jews wholeheartedly agree, replying,

“All God wishes we will do.”

On the third day of the month Moses relays the Jews’ answer to God and then returns to the Jews to tell them that he will be the messenger for the Ten Sayings; that what God told him up high on the mountain.

This weekend, Adar 6, 5777, we remember the giving of Torah and this transitional moment in our history — a moment known as Matan Torah (the Giving of the Torah). No longer were we merely the descendants of a great man named Abraham, or simply a Middle-Eastern people known as the Israelites. We had now become God’s people, chosen to learn His Torah and keep its laws. It’s a moment we celebrate every year on the festival of Shavuot, and this year will take place from May 30–June 1.

The Torah and Talmudic sources describe the delivery of the Ten Commandments as a unique experience — complete with thunder, lightning and a smoking mountaintop — and an event of historic significance. Yet the Talmudic account itself actually makes it quite difficult to understand what was so earth-shattering about

“the giving of the Torah.”

It was not that people did not yet know God’s Will. A significant body of legislation and moral lore was already in existence long before the historic event described as “the giving of the Torah.” Indeed, even without the Talmudic tradition it would seem that all of the Ten Commandments given at Sinai are either philosophical axioms (e.g., monotheism), moral imperatives and ideals (e.g., do not murder, do not steal, honour your father and mother, do not covet), or previously received mandates (e.g., the Sabbath). In other words, not the sort of material that would seem to warrant a divine revelation — and certainly not one of such grandeur.

But we should know that it was no simple handing over a book of lore … God gave man the basic rules to live by, the Ten Commandments.

Please do understand, though the name of the event — the Giving of the Torah — implies that the entire Torah was given that day, this is not the case. In fact, only the Ten Commandments were taught to us that day, and even they were only transmitted verbally. The physical luchot—the tablets — were not given for another 40 days.

Nevertheless, the name remains, as it marks the day the Elohim began the process of giving us the Torah. In that light we should remember this weekend which great gift we were given so that it would be much easier for us to know how to keep in line with God’s desires.

First we were taught the Ten Commandments. Then, Moses stayed on Mount Sinai to learn from God, for 40 days. We too can take such 40 days to meditate and wonder about our relationship with the Most High. You can call it a time of reflection. Also Jeshua took such a time to think about what God wanted from him and his followers. He too had gone in the desert for 40 days to contemplate. Jeshua also took time to cogitate and was not afraid to deny the requests from others to denounce God or to test God. Also God’s people had to wait such a long time before they saw Moshe back. Though they proved not to be as strong as Moshe and Jeshua, Jesus Christ, who thought it most important to do the Will of God and not his own will. Though it is clearly impossible for Moshe to have learned ‘all 385 commandments’, he did learn the rules they are based on, and so it is considered as if he actually learned them. On stone tablets the basic 10 sayings cover most rules. The rest of the Torah was communicated in stages throughout the Jews’ 40-year sojourn in the desert.

In short we could say

The Ten Commandments

Believe in Only One God.
Do not believe in other deities.
Do not take God’s name in vain.
Keep Shabbat.
Honour your parents.
Don’t murder.
Don’t commit adultery.
Don’t kidnap.
Don’t give false testimony.
Don’t covet another’s possessions.

The Ten Commandments, In SVG (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This our the basic rules for man to follow. The 4 first ones you could consider laws believers in God should follow, but the 5th until the 10th commandment form the basic rules for all people, who should take care to be able to live with each other in the best and most peaceful conditions. By obeying those given ethic laws for humanity man should be able to live in peace.

Although Matan Torah is known as the time when God gave us His Torah to study and keep, there were a few Israelites who had kept the entire Torah of their own volition before Matan Torah.

Now the moment had come that the Elohim Hashem Jehovah asked man to take the act of making a conscious choice or decision. It had become time man had to show for Whom he wanted to stand. From the beginning of times God had given man freedom to act or judge on one’s own. Now it is time for man to show that he has the ability or power to discern what is responsible or socially appropriate.

Man has to make the choice how he is going to behave in a community. He has to choose the position he is going to take opposite others and how he is going to treat them.

Before Matan Torah, those who observed Torah did so entirely of their own accord. It was their own choice and we can not tell in what way they wanted to do it. We can only guess how they saw it as a matter of having a good relationship with the Divine Creator.

Probably their connection to God, therefore, was only as deep as their understanding and feeling. Like today people who come into the faith cannot know yet all what they have to keep to and have to go on a path of learning to come to know what God really wants from them.

The Title page of Mishnah Torah by Moshe ben Maimon haRambam, published in Venice in 1575 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For us tonight having Matan Torah in our mind, we look at the time the Elohim connected His Essence to the Torah and gave it to mankind and as such also to us. Each of us has the own responsibility now to decide to accept that given Torah or to deny it. Each of us should see how The Law of God is our safeguarding but also our inner set apart (holy) contact with the Most High. When we observe the Torah, therefore, we are connected to God’s essence, no matter who we are and how much we understand or feel. {Likutei Sichot, vol. 28, pp. 11-12.}

Fear may have seized those at the fields before the mountain of Sinai, but we should not be in fear, because “God has visited his people!” and given His instructions so that they could live according to the Wishes of God. We should know that in every place where God’s Name is recorded He will come to us and will bless us.

“Moshe said to the people: Do not be afraid! For it is to test you that God has come, to have awe of him be upon you, so that you do not sin.”
(Exodus 20:17 SB)

“A slaughter-site of soil, you are to make for me, you are to slaughter upon it your offerings-up, your sacrifices of shalom, your sheep and your oxen! At every place where I cause my name to be recalled I will come to you and bless you.”
(Exodus 20:21 SB)

“I will make a great nation of you and will give-you-blessing and will make your name great. Be a blessing!”
(Genesis 12:2 SB)

“So are they to put my name upon the Children of Israel, that I myself may bless them.”
(Numbers 6:27 SB)

Moshe wrote down the Words of God and that way even today we can read what God wants from His creatures.

“Now Moshe wrote down all the words of YHWH. He started-early in the morning, building a slaughter-site beneath the mountain and twelve standing-stones for the twelve tribes of Israel.”
(Exodus 24:4 SB)

Moses repeated the commandments to the people, detail by a Carolingian book illuminator circa 840 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Preceding articles

Our life depending on faith

God’s wisdom for the believer brings peace

Mishmash of a legal code but importance of mitzvah or commandments

Written by inspiration of God for our admonition, to whom it shall be imputed if they believe

Whoopi Goldberg commandments and abortion

29. Laws that Value People

Responsibilities of Parenthood for sharing the Word of God

Luther’s misunderstanding

Additional reading

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January 27, 417, Pope Innocent I condemning Pelagius about Faith and Works

In the past there have been many discussion about the possibility man being good. When we look at the world today it seems not much has changed. Along all sides we can see people who do not want to share the luck they have with others. This has come to a high point with the refugee crisis. It is understandable that people want to protect their own goods and culture, but often they are too much afraid that their way of living would be in danger by others from far away coming to live in their regions.

Several people are convinced that people who are fleeing from war-zones can not be good and trustworthy people. According to several Christians it is even impossible for a human being to be good from himself and as such no one can be reliable.

A17th century Calvinist print depicting Pelagius. The caption says “Accurst Pelagius, with what false pretence Durst thou excuse man’s foul concupiscence, Or cry down Sin Originall, or that The love of God did man predestinate.” (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The controversial British monk Pelagius in the fifth century had taught that man’s nature was essentially good. This was not to the liking of the Catholic Church leaders who found that because of Adam’s sin all men were born with a strong tendency to sin. It is even for that reason that lots of Christians do say it is impossible for Jesus to be a man. Because he was without sin he should be God, according to them. This naturally is not at all true and makes of God a horrible Creator, having created human beings who can not decide for themselves to do good or bad. Worse it would also mean that God gave man commandments He knew they would never be able to follow.

Pelagius rightly said that an individual had the power to do right by choosing to do right and by beating the body into submission through ascetic practices. Traditional Christianity said that men could defeat their tendencies to sin only by the working of God’s grace in their heart. According to the churchleaders Pelagius‘s ideas meant that Christ‘s death on the cross served more as a moral example than as an atonement able to transform the soul from within by divine force, which meant against going their doctrine of sola fide.

Those who think that Old and New Testaments alike teach us that we cannot change ourselves have not very well read the Holy Book of books. In the many books which form the bible we do have many examples of people who have gone from bad to good but also from good to bad and sometimes returning to good.

Saint Augustine from a 19th-century engraving

The Christian philosopher and theologian St. Augustine or Augustine of Hippo (354-430), best known for “The Confessions” and “The City of God” was responsible for the excommunication of Pelagius.

While in Rome, Pelagius first heard of Augustine through his reading of a prayer from Augustine’s Confessions: “Give what Thou commandest and command that Thou wilt.” To Pelagius, the philosophy expressed in this prayer sounded like the total abandonment of human responsibility and a denial of the ethical dimensions of the Christian faith. If all moral action, thought Pelagius, depends solely on God — both the commanding as well as the ability to obey — God is either an arbitrary tyrant or else man is a creature deprived of free will. Pelagius conducted his teaching along these lines while he was in Rome, and it was to this teaching that an able lawyer, Caelestius, responded, leaving his profession of advocacy and becoming Pelagius’s disciple, companion, and the popularizer of his views.

Caelestius’s Pelagian views continued to spread, and soon Augustine was preaching and writing with intense fervour against this what he called a new heresy, arguing that the whole lump of humanity is infected with sin and that only the grace administered in baptism can wash away the guilty stain.

In spite of these admonitions from the Doctor of Grace, the controversy continued, and it was not long before the articulate bishop of Eclanum, Julian, stepped in to argue the Pelagian cause, forcing Augustine, by the clarity of his logic, into positions regarding the doctrines of grace and predestination that have been burdensome to Western Christendom ever since. {Encyclopedia of World Biography | 2004}

Today we still find many who do not want to see that man has a lot in his own hands. Today there are still lots of Christians who think it is impossible for man to live according to God’s Wishes and that he does not have to do any good works to enter the Kingdom of God because it is just impossible for him to do such good works.

According to Augustine it is not possible to lead a sinless life, with (for whatever reason, probably she had to carry the god son according to the Catholic Church) the exception of the Virgin Mary. For Augustine divine grace must precede every virtuous act and today many Christians are also still convinced we are all saved whatever what we have done and whatever we do in our life.

For such Christians who try to put sand in the eyes of searching people, the saying that we need works to enter the Kingdom of God is heresy. For them it is not only possible for man not to sin, they are not able to bring any change in the salvation of themselves.

The caricature of Pelagianism found in many orthodox textbooks and devotional manuals is hardly one that Pelagius would recognize. He never, for instance, denied the need for grace or for infant baptism; he never accepted the position that man can, by his own moral efforts, achieve his salvation. On basic doctrinal issues, Pelagius was certainly orthodox; and on matters of Christian morality his chief concern was to foster among Christian people a right regard for the ethical responsibilities he saw as inherent in the Gospel message. {Encyclopedia of World Biography | 2004}

The Christian attitude is a very important issue which was been tackled by rabbi Jeshua (master teacher Jesus Christ) with a lot of delicacy. The Nazarene Jew, who was not afraid to bring others to see they had no right to judge others, told his listeners many parables in which he tried to get them to understand that we must be very careful not to loose the right to enter the Kingdom of God.

Lots of Christians are mistaken to think they do not have to do any good works to enter Gods Kingdom. It is true that they are saved and have nothing to do to get under the Grace of salvation. But what they forget is that, though they received salvation for nothing, they can loose it when they do not work at themselves. The leaders of the Protestant Reformation, 1,500 years after the last books of the Bible were written wanted their flock to believe that Jesus paid the full prize or penalty for our sins, so that nothing had to be done or paid any more. They added their human doctrine, which is nowhere written in the Bible, saying that

Jesus paid the punishment for our sins, he having fully atoned for our sins and by saying “it is finished” he did what no human could do, make up for their sins and made an end to everything what had to be done.

But it was not finished by having to come to God (a work) or to follow God’s commandments (again demanding works).

It is totally wrong to think once new born and/or being baptised, we are cleared and have a free way to enter into God’s Kingdom, or what some are thinking to go to heaven. In case a person has fund Christ and has come to God several works are needed. First of all before finding Christ work has to be done to come to know him and his God. Once a person believes in Jesus Christ, the son of God, that person has to convert to Christianity which again is a work to be done. But once baptised it is not finished. Than the person has to work at his or her character and try to stay on the right track, following God’s commandments, which shall require again some, not to say ‘lots’ of works.

Every Christian must work to control themselves. Once having become a Christian that person should try not to lie, to steal, to betray, to fornicate, to murder and many other things he or she should avoid doing (which demands work). If none of these works are needed for salvation the person could have sex with as many persons or animals as he or she wanted no matter the gender. If no works have to be done a person could also continue to do fraudulent actions, without having to worry.

It is for the reason having so many Christian preachers trying to convince others they do not need to do any works, and because of the reaction by Grow Pastor, Minister to Men, Ken Miller to us, at his article That’s the Spirit!, that we think it opportune to warn people of the lack of understanding of the given grace.

Christ Jesus died for all people, sinners or not. By the works of faith he has done, we received the Grace of Salvation, but when we ignore his calling or his heavenly Father’s calling than we shall not be allowed to enter the Kingdom of god when we did bad things and did not repent about them. It is not by works of justice that we had done, but, in accord with the mercy of God, Him willing to accept the ransom offering of His son. Through Jesus Christ our Saviour we are been justified by his grace and are we allowed to become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:5-7)

When Saul had become a follower of the Messiah he looked at the work of the master teacher and at the sacraments which were given to those who followed Jesus. The apostle wrote

Romans 3:27-31 The Scriptures 1998+ (27) Where, then, is the boasting? It is shut out. By what Torah? Of works? No, but by the Torah of belief. (28) For we reckon that a man is declared right by belief without works of Torah. (29) Or is He the Elohim of the Yehuḏim only, and not also of the gentiles? Yea, of the gentiles also, (30) since it is one Elohim who shall declare right the circumcised by belief and the uncircumcised through belief. (31) Do we then nullify the Torah through the belief? Let it not be! On the contrary, we establish the Torah.1 Footnote: 1See 7:12.

and gave the Romans to know that they thought or hold that a man is brought into right standing with God by faith and that observance of the law has no connection with it.

Saying that he did not confirm that

“by faith apart from deeds of the law” as meaning, “by faith alone”

but him affirming that we then not through faith make null and void the law; instead, we confirm it. It is by our faith that we shall do certain works according to the faith. Pelagius considered that sacraments are elements believers should keep taking throughout their life. For him it was like it is for us, that faith should be expressed and perfected in works. Submitting to Jehovah His works in the proper disposition, which is that of faith, is an action or a work to be done.

Too many Christians forget the importance of the feeling we should have about what we have done. If we do not feel bad by the wrong things we have done and do not repent for them, for sure the Bible shows us, we shall not receive an entrance in God’s Kingdom. Repentance and teshuvah demands a work. Staying a good person also demands work. All those that say we do not have to do any work of faith, are either forgetting what the Bible tells about it and are insinuating we can do whatever we want and shall still be saved.

On the other hand it is very strange that it are just such preachers who talk so ferociously about salvation and no works needed for salvation, who also preach about damnation in a hell, a place of eternal fire.

Luckily the Bible speaks about the end of our life by death, and that we once we die shall not be able to feel anything any more. No frustrations, no pain, no sorrow any more when we die. Then it shall all be finished, but then it shall also be too late if we did not choose for God and did not work at our own self.

Please do find also to read:

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Swallowed in the Sea but belonging to earth

The response to the refugee crisis so far has also raised profound questions about a failure of European principles, a trembling of the pillars on which the bloc was founded more than 20 years ago.

The European Union’s reputation, and its faith in Brussels, have suffered in the past few months, with sharp and vocal divisions among member states and continuing doubts about Greek economic sustainability.

The migrant crisis “risks bursting the E.U. at its weak seams,” said Stefano Stefanini, a former senior Italian ambassador now based in Brussels.

“It’s more dangerous than the Greek drama and more serious than the euro, because it challenges fundamental European accomplishments and beliefs.”

Refugees enter a registration camp after crossing the Greek-Macedonian border on Nov. 11. (Robert Atanasovski/Agence France-Presse via Getty Images)

A translator by degree, who loves writing, thinks that every day we have a choice but that some others do not have a choice. Talking about the refugees he writes

every single day we have so many decisions and choices to make or take, but not them. {Swallowed in the Sea but belong to Earth}

Water of the mediterranean sea (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

though he forget that they made a very important life changing choice, which was for most of them not so easy to make. though it is true

When they’re in the middle of the sea, where nobody can hear or see them, except for the lord, their choices are, to get lost or get found, to get safe or swallowed by the sea. {Swallowed in the Sea but belong to Earth}

they shall be very limited in their choices, but not without.

Those who might fear those refugees coming to their regions should wonder why those people left their families and their country of birth. for many of them there not only shall be the confrontation with totally different people, a total different culture, but also a grey air, cold and wheat region. How they would not long for their sunny country which nice temperatures?

We should not be angry on them, but should be cross whit those fighters and human smugglers. We should look at the politicians and figures behind the scenes.

Syria is considered the tragedy of the century, and it has been swallowed by the sea of war for the past five years, therefore the Mediterranean Sea will never be an exception. {Swallowed in the Sea but belong to Earth}

Those confronted with an ongoing war had to make the hard choice to leave everything behind what they loved. They made the choice to go to unknown places or to place where they heard from and got some information about. But what were the sources which fed them and what was the reason of those sources to bring them to certain countries, like Germany. Can it not be that they are just used as pawns in a game of ‘Stratego’ or ‘Chess’ to destabilise a part of the world where some states are trying to make one strong Union to be able to stand strong in the stream of the Great Powers, the United States of America and Russia, and to be able to cope with the growing powers of the East, India and China. Could it be that ISIS is a product of American in-action or a product of direct action?

The inhabitants of Europe should realise that they were formed by generations of mixed people coming from one or the other place in Europe and having built a culture over the years which many of them do find in danger,but when they would be strong enough believers they should not fear. The people behind ‘Islamic State‘ are very well aware that those living in Europe have become victims of capitalism and are mostly people who have no strong believes any more. For the ones who want to create a big caliphate it seems best to polarize Western society — to “destroy the grayzone,” as it says in its publications. Islamic State is pushing at an open door to divide Europeans. The group hopes frequent, devastating attacks in its name will provoke overreactions by European governments against innocent Muslims, thereby alienating and radicalising Muslim communities throughout the continent.

The last few years we have seen several attacks by individuals are small groups. Last weekend attack are different in the way that they were very organised and well managed. They are a proof that ISIS is getting better organised in Europe as well as in their battle fields.

Since January, European citizens fighting with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria have provided online and material support to lethal operations in Paris, Copenhagen and near Lyon, France, as well as attempted attacks in London, Barcelona and near Brussels. Islamic State fighters are likely responsible for destroying the Russian airliner over the Sinai. These attacks are not random, nor are they aimed primarily at affecting Western policy in the Middle East. They are, rather, part of a militarily capable organization’s campaign to mobilize extremist actors already in Europe and to recruit new ones. {The Islamic State’s trap for Europe}

Some of those who entered Europe by the Mediterranean sea had also some other goals than the ones who were really hoping to find a better life in Europe. Those are also the ones we do find complaining about not having the right food or doing things which we consider not acceptable, like peeping in women’s shower cells or fighting with Afghans or others. They are in for their own selfishness and for stealing from the others. Their actions undermine the politicians their strategy to bring the refugees into different villages and to get them integrated. Such revolts against the people who are giving them a roof above their head makes the civilians angry and giving them a wrong picture of the Muslims and the refugees in general.

Harleen Gambhir writes in her opinion piece for the Washington Post

Unfortunately, elements of European society are reacting as the Islamic State desires. Far-right parties have gained strength in many European countries. France’s National Front is expected to dominate local elections in northern France this winter; on Saturday, Marine Le Pen, its leader, declared “those who maintain links with Islamism” to be “France’s enemies.” The Danish People’s Party gained 21 percent of the vote in national elections in June on a nationalist, anti-Islamic platform. The anti-foreigner Sweden Democrats is steadily growing in popularity. {The Islamic State’s trap for Europe}

The Syrians had to make a choice and had to bear the sea. Now the Europeans have to be careful not to be swallowed by an equally dangerous sea of treason and hate, by making the wrong choice.

Preceding articles:

Israeli leaders delight in Europe’s cruelty toward refugees

Human tragedy need to be addressed at source

Poster: Please help the refugees

Real progress leaves nobody behind

Additional reading:

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Freedom and amendments, firearms and abortions

In certain countries the debate about abortion and birth control is being enforced with the influx of refugees and having more people to get so poor that they can not afford a family any more.

In the United States lots of people react negatively on any form of giving help for women with questions about having children or in avoiding having children. In the U.S.A. it is harder for a woman to get an abortion than it is for someone to buy an AK-47. Atpoklop with her “we all need feminism” hits the nail on the head and should bring much more American Christians thinking.

Lots of those Pro-Life and Anti-abortion groups have very big words and shout a lot from the roofs, telling the whole world we should protect life and that nobody has the right to take the life from the unborn child. Though they do not seem to have any problem with carrying weapons and are defending the right to shoot at some one even to kill him or her. Suddenly the act of forbidden killing does not count any more.

Many people do seem to forget that the centres for parental planning have a good reason to be there and have a good reason to keep existing, proving a lot of necessary education to avoid the worse and mostly also to avoid people to be placed in front of the awful question to abort or not to have an abortion.

People holding signs at a Planned Parenthood Rally, NYC 2011.

In the States Planned Parenthood has 35 percent of its total activities, like similar organisations in many other countries, revolving around sex education and providing contraception.

Instead what (so-called ‘pro-life’ policies have) succeeded in doing is compromising the health of thousands of women, all while the number of abortions increase. {Bobby Jindal’s Anti-Women Policies in Louisiana: A Case Study}

Lots of people forget a government has to protect its citizens, the one which are already there, but also the unborn or the ones which could come to being. It has to create directives, rules and regulations and provide laws to be a guidance and for being able to react justified when something goes wrong or when there is discussion about a certain event.

Having certain things put in laws does not mean that those laws are providing for moral justice.

To be blunt, the legality of an act is not enough to make it moral. One clear example of this would be antebellum slavery, which was legal for quite some time in the United States. Would those who want to assert that legality is enough to make an act morally permissible agree that slavery, at that time, was moral? If so, that is a tough pill to swallow. {“But it’s Legal” – Does the legality of an act make it moral?}

In history we see that several groups of people tried to find ways to provide their own society only with ‘justified’ beings, totally according their ‘wants’.

About what happened in Germany student member of the Evangelical Philosophical Society and the Evangelical Theological Society J.W. Wartick writes:

By willingly participating in and carrying out genocide and other atrocities, despite having orders to do so and acting within the laws of their land, the Nazis had still violated a higher law, which held them to a moral standard. There remains much debate over the legal basis for the convictions and executions of those who carried out the atrocities, but it seems that if one ultimately wants to argue that the law is all it requires to make something moral, they must side with the Nazis and agree that they should not have been held accountable for their acts. {“But it’s Legal” – Does the legality of an act make it moral?}

Who can be accounted for their acts?

Who is going to decide who is wrong, when was wrong, who is right, when was right?

We can therefore see that the mere appeal to a law to argue something is moral is not enough. Anyone who disagrees must assert that slavery, as it was being conducted in the United States, was at least morally ambiguous if not a moral good, because it was legal. Similarly, they must assert that the genocide the Nazis carried out was itself at least morally ambiguous if not a moral good, because it was legal and they did it under orders. The absurdity of these two conclusions should lead any reasonable person to agree that the legality of an act is not enough to establish its morality. {“But it’s Legal” – Does the legality of an act make it moral?}

Thus, the simple legality of an act does not make it moral. An appeal to an acts legality does not mean it should be dismissed from moral scrutiny. Planned Parenthood should justly remain under intense scrutiny. {“But it’s Legal” – Does the legality of an act make it moral?}

For sure every act, every law, every organisation, people should question and look under the loop to see if it is in accordance to what they belief is ‘just’ or ‘right’. But they must be careful by judging and sincerely look into the matter, balance the pro’s and con’s and compare with other possibilities.

In case there are no centres provided by the state to help girls, young women, young men, to help them in questions those youngsters do not dare to come with by their own parents, is it not better to have professionals guiding them? Is it not better that those who have doubts about carrying a child have some safe haven where they can sincerely discuss all different possibilities and can come in contact with others who had to make such not easy choices.

We may not forget that life is not just black and white but is a very complex matter, where people do have to find solutions which are ‘human-worhty’.

A Catholic family man, raised in a healthy Protestant family, posted a graphic that depicted the number of human deaths from some of the biggest contributors since the American Civil war in a pie chart. The contrast between the human deaths from abortion versus all of the major American wars is dramatic when displayed in a chart like this.

According to him

abortion has taken more lives than all of the other wars in which America has fought. {Abortion and crime rates}

But I wonder where he got those figures from and if he sincerely knows the historical figures of American citizens killed in fights all over the world, let withstand only those finding an end of their life in weapon violence.

Another thought that can be presented in the pro-choice position is to find statistics, which with considerable explanation, attempt to tie a correlation between an increase in abortion, and a drop in crime as being a causal relationship. This is also an irrational untenable position, as seen with just a little rationality applied. {Abortion and crime rates}

It is true that

No one is weaker than a newborn infant, except an unborn infant. An unborn human is different from a born human only in stage of development and location. {Abortion and crime rates}

But that does not justify the carrying of guns when older than three and having the right to shoot one down when an adult or adolescent.

Hypothetically speaking, if you could prove that the crime rate among Jews was lowered during the holocaust, would that justify the death of six million Jews? Absolutely, positively, with all emphasis – no, it would not even be considered. The level of ridiculousness that this proposal achieves is morally less than the justification of killing 50 million humans because it arguably lowers the crime rate. Combating the evil of adult murder by killing a weaker, more vulnerable human population is entirely ridiculous. “Evil” cannot be vanquished by committing another “evil.” {Abortion and crime rates}

When going into a debate about pro-life or pro-abortion people do have to look at both sides of the medal.

And people may not forget abortion in the first instance is not at all about reducing crime rate or avoiding that criminals would come into the making. It is all about figuring out how the person with child can be helped to make the right choice for herself and for what she is carrying.

About the politicians who have to make the choice to allow something to exist, people forget they themselves are also responsible for them being there. In most democratic countries everybody has the right to vote and can have their say about the politics of that country. It is up to each citizen to let hear his or her voice. but they also do have to know that they cannot expect all other citizens to have the same opinion and/or the same faith as they. They too have to respect the freedom of the other person to make other decisions than he or she would take.

For many Americans the government may not touch the freedom to carry a weapon. They are convinced they should have the right to have the easy facility

as simple as point and shoot {Don’t Just Stick to Your Guns. Lock and Load.}

Voice out world which want to create an avenue for people, especially the youths, to speak out against everything around that is morally wrong, also to express your opinions and thoughts, writes

The never-ending debate on racial act of terrorism will not go away neither will the wayward use of fire arms by some citizens of the US. Every time a shooting occurs and people die or get injured the gun control issue comes up just for a little while until another shooting occurs again. This is a cycle that should be stopped.{Charleston shooting: The observation of an onlooker}

But is it not strange that the country which is so afraid of terrorism and spends billions of dollars against religious fundamentalists who not yet present one tenth of the amount of people killed by weapon-violence in the States of America? Whilst such violence seems worth to be protected for the right of mankind. And what about the rights of women who have to live with something or who do not want to live with something?

The fire-arms lobby in the United States is mightier than the president and has lots of so called Christians a smoke screen in front of their eyes. Those who defend the right to carry a weapon and who think they have the right to shoot at some one for sure do not have any right to condemn those females who have to make a terrible life-decision. Those pro-fire-arm people have for sure no say in the abortion matter, wishing the pro-abortion people to hell. They should look at their own heart first.

That is also what Jesus asks his followers. Before judging an other, please do look in your own bosom. How can you know the difficulties an other person is having to make a certain choice? How can we decide over some one else life and over some else his or her choices?

It is true that

“Moral principles do not depend on a majority vote.” {Archbishop Fulton Sheen}

but it is not always to see what is right. Often after words the ‘right’ is on the victor’s site. What is considered wrong by one person can be looked at the right thing to do by an other person, and the opposite. But all created in the image of God have an inborn feeling, a gut-feeling that can tell us what is wrong and what is right. More people should listen carefully to that gut-feeling.

All judging in the end will be up to Jesus and to no other man.

In our society what is important is that we should give a good education on all sort of matters and learn people how to behave. Because we have more people not being aware any more what is written in the Bible more people should make work of it to let others know.

When more people would become aware what is demanded from them by the Creator already less problems would occur. By knowing what is written in the Bible a person has their view of life and death and ethics reoriented back to the way God designed us to see things.

When people would get to know more the Biblical truth and come to love that above human sayings there can grow a life that will be not falling so easily for the traps of worldly life. Out of faith in Jesus people will find fulfilment and purpose, identity and dignity in living in harmony with God, and no longer shall depend on having a drive to find those things within oneself or in the systems of this world.

A true follower of Jesus shall love the master his teachings and shall try to live accordingly. He or she shall also try to be like him, in seeking to live first for God and for others, not for themselves, being aware of the values of life and respecting them.

Please do find also to read:

Republicans’ Love Hate Relationship With Waiting Periods

GOP Takes One Hell of a Swing at Planned Parenthood—and Misses

Bobby Jindal’s Anti-Women Policies in Louisiana: A Case Study

Preceding articles:

Whoopi Goldberg commandments and abortion

My Choice (by Jezabel Jonson)

The Real ‘Choice’

“They Told Me What I Wanted To Hear” – Real Abortion Stories

The Things We Carry, by Penny

Hillary Clinton Says Religious Beliefs About Abortion Have to be Changed

The Things We Carry, by Penny

When we go and look for help we also should look fro the priorities of that organisation by whom we knock at the door.

Having people giving endless lectures from puberty onward about the interests of boys, from a wrong viewpoint does not help either. Catholic institutions often did not help bringing up the children to be strong enough to be themselves and to be able to cope, resist and or communicate with persons of the other sex.

In many extreme religious countries we have seen fundamentalist groups and others terrorising the female sex. Often women were considered as the lower species to bring forth the next generation and to be a puppet ‘spiel’. Many boys who got that education as well used those of the other sex as their toy. They were brought up that way. Who can blame them?

At the beginning of this 21st century the West carries still many scars of the previous century where unwanted children or babies of young girls were considered as the bad in the world which had to be cast out and the girls punished. We would not like to think how many boys or man did got away unpunished, whilst they left an unhappy girl behind.

Shame and intimidation were the easiest tactics which could bring people down. But there were also many girls who came out of it much stronger and being much more aware of this precious life.
Some went looking for their child which was taken away from them at birth. Those who got an abortion had it more difficult facing the dark spot in their life. For many of them it was like an eating cancer making them rot away in grieve.

Several countries hoped to regulate and control abortions and help children who became pregnant. But shamefully we have to conclude that several organisations had other options than the well-care of those girls and looked more at the welfare of the community and politics, nor wanting to present them with some unwanted children or with children without loving parents or not being able to grow up in a stable family.

In certain groups of the community it looks cool when the man knows to dominate the woman. Certain man tiranise their partner and often use the children to set them up against the partner.

There that partner has to make certain choices and can avoid that there do come any more children. But as we can see sometimes the male part can be so dominant and so in control, that the partner still becomes pregnant. Others do find it normal to use the woman and have not the word ‘rape’ in their vocabulary.

For victims of such beings it becomes even more difficult to make certain choices. what we may not forget is that they sometimes also are forced to go to an abortion clinic. Other times they would love an abortion, but have no means or have lots of people who take care she doesn’t.

It is good to hear some witnessing from people who went through different stadia and not only became victim of rapists, wrong sex actions, but also victim of our societies attitude or certain organisations who want to regulate and control too much.

Let us not forget that those who are brought in a situation where they have to make a choice for what is inside them, it will never be an easy choice, and it will demand courage and it will demand perseverance and shall bring a turning point in the life of that person who shall never be able to be the same.

*

To remember:

On the sidewalk, the “antis” look at us

We all have reasons for being there, unique experiences we carry up and down the sidewalk.

bit the hand that assaulted me => scolded by the nuns for “unladylike” behavior + note sent home to parents

endless lectures from puberty onward that “men only want one thing – that’s how they all are, they can’t help it, and so you have to protect yourself.”

in order to receive any affection from men <= to reduce myself to my body + mind irrelevant in any romantic entanglements => took almost the rest of my life to unlearn this.

body only valuable thing > had little control over what happened to it

as sex worker > could pay my bills.

boyfriend “rescued”

went alone to a Planned Parenthood for an abortion

impotent rage of fighting my way through protesters, with no escorts to assist me

gain skills needed to survive in the nine-to-five world

never once doubted my decision, + don’t to this day ====> I do wish that I’d been brave enough then to confide in a friend, and that I’d had escorts to run me through the gamut of shaming

We need to draw a hard line here, because raising girls to believe that they are only their bodies – as blow up dolls, incubators, or punching bags – is dangerous

Make any choice you want, as long as it’s yours.

Stay brave, stay free, and may your pack be light.

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Preceding articles:

Whoopi Goldberg commandments and abortion

My Choice (by Jezabel Jonson)

The Real ‘Choice’

“They Told Me What I Wanted To Hear” – Real Abortion Stories

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Additional reading

Happiness mapping and getting over gender mapping

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands

Eternity depends upon this short time on earth

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Related articles

Infants in the Hands of Planned Parenthood: What is the Duty of Love?

Eight Catholic schools cut ties with Planned Parenthood

LGBT Ally Leaves Catholic School After Coworkers Fired

Should Rapists Write Memoirs?

Why do women need to shout about their abortions?

Fewer US women underwent abortion for unintended pregnancies in pro-life states

Group calls for enforcement of law on rape

#ShoutYourAbortion: Pregnancy termination has transformed women’s lives and should be celebrated

‘Abortion rights an election issue’, says Clare Daly

Rape: NGO, experts seek strict enforcement of law against culprits

Louisville Clinic Escorts

TW: Violence, rape

On the sidewalk, the “antis” look at us, escorts as well as clients, and based on our ages, the vehicles we drive or don’t drive, the clothes we wear, the overheard snippets of friendly conversation, they’ll tailor the harassment to what they believe is the greatest effect.

“Does your mother know you’re here – you may be an outcast!”

“That’s what a real baby is supposed to look like.”

“You are not young, nearing the end of your life – repent now!” and memorably,

“Go home and put some decent clothes on!”

We immediately think through all the counter-arguments, the snappy retorts, the “you-don’t-know-me’s,” and sometimes a client or companion will voice them. Mostly we hope to avoid the added annoyance of them learning our names. I can’t help but cringe when this happens, because any acknowledgement feeds the antis. But it’s hard. It’s so hard not…

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Filed under Being and Feeling, Crimes & Atrocities, Health affairs, Juridical matters, Lifestyle, Re-Blogs and Great Blogs, Social affairs

Tagged as Abortion, Abortion Debate, Anti-abortionist leagues, Children, Choices, Discrimination towards women, Girls, Grieve, Intimidation, Making choices, Partnership, Planned Parenthood, Pro-Life Arguments, Puberty, Rape, Role of women, Sex worker, Sexual assault, Shame, the Other sex, Unwanted children, Women

by Guestspeaker | 2015/10/19 · 4:13 pm

The Real ‘Choice’

In this world were superficially everything seems to be so nice there are lots of people who at first trusted everything and everyone with their huge open heart, but by all they ever wanted was people and the world to love them back, suddenly something went totally wrong in their life.

For some such a day of horror or day of the unexpected may have the direct consequence which gets them facing one of the most uncomfortable and emotionally challenging moments they probably will ever have. For sure their experience will change their life forever.

When after such an incident they become pregnant an other difficult matter bothers their soul. At that time that person has a weight on her head she shall have to carry for her whole life. To make a decision either to carry the baby and to be confronted for the whole life with the horror experienced or to abandon the fruit of the nightmare and remember the lessons she learned along the way, will give her thoughts ‘for ever’.

It is a sad situation and the consequences in both cases are very sad for both parties.

In such instance it is the environment, the people around the victim who play an important and supporting role.
When people have voluntary sex with each other they must be aware of the consequences of their act. Though sometimes it might have happened before the girl and boy really realised what was happening. Being carried away at a young age also can happen.

Afterwards people have to realise that we as human beings have to be responsible for our acts in the past, the present and in the future. Therefore we should think before we act. And even when things which we do not like came over us and have certain consequences we would never would have liked, we should come to make choices we shall not regret later.

That is not easy.

As a wife and a mom the writer of the article calls rightly to start being real and stating what the real choice is. For her it is clear that we should look at the only two possibilities: 1. a choice to raise a kid (or to give up for adoption) or 2. it is a choice to kill.

Much more people should also come to see the second option in the first choice. That part of possibility is much too often overlooked or not looked at at all.
There are so many people hoping to get a child, but not able to get one from their own. For them an adoption would be a good solution and for many it can be a real blessing. So, what is a curse for the one should be made in a blessing for the other.

It must have been not an easy choice for the 11-year-old Paraguayan girl who denied an abortion after allegedly being raped (when 10) by her stepfather and this August gave birth to a healthy baby girl in Asunción, Paraguay, where a fierce debate was brewing over a law banning most abortions.
In that mostly Catholic country, 684 girls between the ages of 10 and 14 gave birth last year.

“The physical and psychological impact of forcing this young girl to continue with an unwanted pregnancy is tantamount to torture,”

Guadalupe Marengo, deputy director for the Americas at Amnesty International said then.

“The Paraguayan authorities cannot sit idly by while this young rape survivor is forced to endure more agony and torment.”

Naturally by abortion sometimes also comes an other terrible choice at the forefront. When the doctors are sure something is wrong with the foetus or that there never shall come out a normal child. What than?

Having to hear the ordeal of the doctors, having to be confronted having to make a choice, does not make life easy.

Others may than easily say you may not abort the foetus and have to make the best out of it. But who is going to turn up to care for years for the handicapped person? Who is going to deal with the many costs to take care? what life is one going to give to that handicapped person, when the mother is not able to take care physiologically, physically or economically?

For the ones standing at the site it may be easy to judge and condemn.

For the one to make the decisions it may be an other nightmare to go through.

Those who call themselves Christian should remember the Nazarene rabbi they should have to follow. Jesus did not judge. He will do later at the authority of his heavenly Father. In the end it is to that Father of Jesus, Who is also our Father, to Whom life belongs, knows the heart and will judge last.

It is in His hands we should leave it.

And the ones who doubt and are in our neighbourhood we should try to help to come to a good decision. we should try to show the beauty of life and how we should try to give everybody the right to live.

*

To remember:

don’t enjoy shaming people for choices they make > haven’t been in their shoes

made choices in life > everyone has

blessed to have not been in the position to make the decision

pregnant with first child => beauty of real life growing inside of me was magical

if I would have miscarried, my mourning and grief would have been real and deep > Because I had life growing inside of me.

couple who has struggled to get pregnant > You can make the decision to try, but it isn’t always that easy

‘choice’ to be a parent > real choice is not whether or not you want to be a parent … but rather a choice to kill your child because you don’t want to be a parent.

raped = tough one

ask myself the option of taking care of the life or ending the life = > consider the ‘choice’

wouldn’t want to live with both pains

always live with the consequences of their ‘choice’

Let’s stop sugarcoating it.

+

Preceding articles:

Whoopi Goldberg commandments and abortion

My Choice (by Jezabel Jonson)

+++

Related articles

Whoopi Goldberg Admits the Purpose of Planned Parenthood is Abortion

Whoopi Goldberg Tries to Defend Planned Parenthood, Ends Up Doing Just the Opposite

LifeNews Pro-Life News Report 9/21/15

‘The View’s’ Whoopi Goldberg Blasts Planned Parenthood Foes: ‘Get Out of My Vagina!’

Whoopi Goldberg Says Bible Doesn’t Condemn Abortion

Liberal Feminist Whoopi Goldberg Admits ‘Purpose of Planned Parenthood is Abortion’

Whoopi Attacks Planned Parenthood Critics: ‘Get Out Of My Vagina!’

Whoopi on Planned Parenthood: ‘Get out of my vagina!’

Whoopi Goldberg Admits the Purpose of Planned Parenthood is Abortion

Through the Stillness

I know where I stand on the issue. Never have I heard a strong argument to make me doubt my stance. Still though, I have a hard time announcing my stance. I don’t enjoy shaming people for choices they make. I haven’t been in their shoes. I have made choices in my life that I regret, everyone has. I am not perfect. I am not taking the ‘high horse’ stance on this. I am no better than anyone. I cannot stress that enough. I know someone will be offended by these words I am about to say. Someone will think I am being insensitive to those faced with the decision. And––I know I have been blessed to have not been in the position to make the decision. But nonetheless, I know what I would ‘choose’. To me, it just isn’t even my choice to make.

I remember Mother’s Day 2009…

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Tagged as Abortion, Abortion Debate, Adoption, Appreciation for life, Choices, Condemnation, Condemning, Handicapped people, Life, Making choices, Making decisions, Miscarriage, Miscarrying, Mothers, Paraguay, Pro-Life Arguments, Raising kids, Rape, Shaming people, to Condemn someone

by Belgian Biblestudents - Belgische Bijbelstudenten | 2015/06/16 · 8:32 am

Your position about materialistic desires having conquered the world

In the previous articles we have spoken about the world clinching to material wealth like velcrostrips hoping to have all luck in the world.

The materialistic desires have conquered the world. Those who know were they come from and Who they should honour do know they should not give their love to material things.

15 Do not love either the world or the things in the world.+ If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him;+ 16 because everything in the world—the desire of the flesh+ and the desire of the eyes+ and the showy display of one’s means of life*—does not originate with the Father, but originates with the world. (1 John 2:15, 16)

In the articles we also could see how many love to be moulded by this system of things. (Romans 12:2) The worldly desires have run high in our society, but at other times people also fell for those distractions and attractions.

It Conquered the World (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The love of money or the desire to amass riches and possess material things can corrupt the heart, leading a Christian to do things that go against God’s will. A few have become dishonest at work, have cheated others, or have even stolen money or objects that do not belong to them.

Lots of people do have many things of which they want to boast of is this. Lots of people also do think man is full of wisdom and that they have ‘most’ wisdom’. They do not want to look into their conscience which might bear witness. They are full of fleshly wisdom.

Material pursuits may bring on anxiety. For example, some complicate their lives by living beyond their means. Others have been enticed by get-rich-quick schemes and risky financial investments. For others, secular education as a means to attain financial success becomes a snare. The Bible warns: “Those who are determined to be rich fall into temptation and a snare and many senseless and hurtful desires, which plunge men into destruction and ruin.”

9 However, those who are determined to be rich fall into temptation+ and a snare and many senseless and hurtful desires,+ which plunge men into destruction and ruin.+ 10 For the love+ of money is a root+ of all sorts of injurious things,*+ and by reaching out for this love some have been led astray from the faith and have stabbed themselves all over with many pains.+ (1 Timothy 6:9, 10).

Essential to not being drawn into a materialistic way of life is cultivating the ability to distinguish between right and wrong when making decisions. This ability is developed by regularly partaking of ‘solid spiritual food belonging to mature people’ and by ‘having our perceptive powers trained through use.’ (Hebrews 5:13, 14) Making sure “of the more important things” when setting priorities will also safeguard us from making wrong choices.

9 And this is what I continue praying, that YOUR love may abound+ yet more and more with accurate knowledge*+ and full discernment;*+ 10 that YOU may make sure of the more important things,+ so that YOU may be flawless+ and not be stumbling+ others up to the day of Christ, 11 and may be filled with righteous fruit,+ which is through Jesus Christ, to God’s glory and praise.+ (Philippians 1:9,10,11).

A materialistic life-style can blind us, leaving little or no time for spiritual pursuits.
How can we examine ourselves and avoid being ensnared by such a life-style?
We need to consider prayerfully how and to what extent we can simplify our life. King Solomon of ancient Israel said:

“Sweet is the sleep of the one serving, regardless of whether it is little or much that he eats; but the plenty belonging to the rich one is not permitting him to sleep.” (Ecclesiastes 5:12)

Does taking care of unnecessary material possessions consume a lot of our time and energy? The more we own, the more we have to maintain, insure, and protect.
Could it be to our advantage to simplify our life by freeing ourselves of certain belongings?

Lennon (right) performing “All You Need Is Love” with The Beatles in 1967 to 400 million viewers of “Our World”. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

We think life can much be easier when not loving the material things and not focusing on the world and its worldly life.

On the other hand, by cultivating a healthy fear of displeasing Jehovah, loving justice, and being determined to hold a good conscience, we show that we love “purity of heart.” That love moves us to continue to “conduct ourselves honestly in all things.” (Hebrews 13:18)

18 Carry on prayer+ for us, for we trust we have an honest conscience, as we wish to conduct ourselves honestly in all things.+ 19 But I exhort YOU more especially to do this, that I may be restored to YOU the sooner.+ (Hebrews 13:18

When we act uprightly, honesty can result in a fine witness.

Emilio, an Italian Witness who works as a driver for a public transport company, found a wallet containing 470 euros ($680, U.S.). To the surprise of his colleagues, he handed the wallet to his supervisor, who later gave the wallet to the person who had lost it. Some of Emilio’s colleagues were so impressed by his conduct that they became interested in the Bible and started to study. As a result, seven people from two families have accepted the truth. Yes, behaving honestly from a pure heart really can move others to praise God.—Titus 2:10.

Materialism may not seem to be an issue of loyalty, but it is. Do we trust in Jehovah’s promise to provide what we really need?

33 “Keep on, then, seeking* first the kingdom and his righteousness,+ and all these [other] things will be added to YOU.+ 34 So, never be anxious about the next day,+ for the next day will have its own anxieties. Sufficient for each day is its own badness. (Matthew 6:33-34)

5 Let [YOUR] manner of life be free of the love of money,+ while YOU are content+ with the present things.+ For he has said: “I will by no means leave you nor by any means forsake you.”+ (Hebrews 13:5)

Rather than striving to obtain at any cost some of the “better” things in life that are presently beyond our reach, can we do without them? (Read Philippians 4:11-13.) Are we tempted to forgo theocratic privileges in order to get what we want now? Does loyal service to Jehovah have first place in our life? Our answers will largely depend on whether we are wholehearted in our service to God or not.

“It is a means of great gain,”

wrote the apostle Paul,

“this godly devotion along with self-sufficiency. For we have brought nothing into the world, and neither can we carry anything out. So, having sustenance and covering, we shall be content with these things.”—1 Timothy 6:6-8.

In a revelation to the apostle John toward the close of the first century, the glorified Jesus Christ delivered a message to the congregation located in Laodicea, Asia Minor. It was a warning message against materialism. Though materially rich, Laodicean Christians were bankrupt spiritually. Instead of continuing to walk by faith, they allowed material possessions to blind their spiritual vision. (Revelation 3:14-18) Materialism has a similar effect today. It weakens our faith and causes us to stop ‘running with endurance the race’ for life. (Hebrews 12:1) If we are not careful, the “pleasures of this life” can smother spiritual activities to the point that they are “completely choked.”

14 As for that which fell among the thorns, these are the ones that have heard, but, by being carried away by anxieties and riches and pleasures+ of this life, they are completely choked and bring nothing to perfection.+ (Luke 8:14).

Time ran out for the world of Noah’s day, and it will run out for the present system of things. The apostle Peter assures us:

“Jehovah’s day will come as a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a hissing noise, but the elements being intensely hot will be dissolved, and earth and the works in it will be discovered.”

Neither the symbolic heavens — wicked governments — nor the symbolic earth — mankind alienated from God — will survive the heat of God’s burning anger. Indicating how we can prove ourselves ready for that day, Peter exclaims:

“Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of persons ought you to be in holy acts of conduct and deeds of godly devotion, awaiting and keeping close in mind the presence of the day of Jehovah!”—2 Peter 3:10-12.

A key to spiritual protection is contentment rather than the use of this world to the full and the enrichment of ourselves materially. (1 Corinthians 7:31; 1 Timothy 6:6-8) We as such do not have to look so much at the world of mankind or the kingdom of mankind but at the world of the Kingdom of God. When we walk by faith and not by sight, we find joy in the present spiritual paradise. As we partake of nourishing spiritual food, are we not moved to “cry out joyfully because of the good condition of the heart”? (Isaiah 65:13, 14) Moreover, we take delight in our association with those who manifest the fruitage of God’s spirit.

22 On the other hand, the fruitage+ of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness,+ faith, 23 mildness, self-control.+ Against such things there is no law.+ 24 Moreover, those who belong to Christ Jesus impaled* the flesh together with its passions and desires.+ (Galatians 5:22, 23)

How vital that we find satisfaction and refreshment in what Jehovah provides in a spiritual way!

Some questions we do well to ask ourselves are:

‘What place do material things occupy in my life? Am I using the material possessions I have to live a life of pleasure or to promote true worship? What brings me the greatest satisfaction? Is it Bible study and fellowship at Christian meetings, or is it weekends away from Christian responsibilities? Do I reserve many weekends for recreation instead of using such time for the field ministry and other activities in connection with pure worship?’

Our regularly attending Christian meetings and sharing in preaching the good news are included among the necessary acts and deeds of godly devotion. May we perform them with heartfelt devotion to God while we wait patiently for Jehovah’s great day. Let us “do [our] utmost to be found finally by [God] spotless and unblemished and in peace.”—2 Peter 3:14.

Walking by faith means that we keep busy in the Kingdom work, with full trust in Jehovah’s promises.

58 Consequently, my beloved brothers, become steadfast,+ unmovable, always having plenty to do in the work of the Lord,+ knowing that YOUR labor is not in vain*+ in connection with [the] Lord. (1 Corinthians 15:58).

Preceding articles:

Material wealth, Submission and Heaven on earth

For The Love of Stuff

Learning that stuff is just stuff

Watch out

Thought of the day: We want more, i want more, but why is that?

Mini-MAX-malism: A Bigger Approach to Less is More

Less… is still enough

Less for more

The Art of Doing Less – Your Time is Finite

Why “Selfishness” Doesn’t Properly Mean Being Shortsighted and Harmful to Others

Looking at a conservative review of Shop Class As Soul Craft

Additional reading:

+++

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