I know that may shock a lot of you who have met me, but I am a Deer Hunter. I have never gone hunting in my life. I have neither held nor fired a pistol, rifle, semi-automatic rifle, etc. You may be wondering ‘How are you a Deer Hunter?’ The answer is simple. I hunt deer with my Cavalier.
That is, my Chevrolet Cavalier.
This story starts in May of 2003. It was around the time of Finals, and my family had gone to Becky’s Drive-In to catch their double feature. I don’t recall what the first movie was, I just remember that the second movie was Matrix Reloaded because we spent the drive home talking about the movie. I was driving, my mom had shotgun, and my brother was in the backseat.
As we were driving down 145, (the part of MacArthur Rd north of the Wal-Mart, for those who want to know specifics, and we had just passed the Sheetz heading south toward the Weis) two deer leaped across the road right in front of our car. The first one got across safely. The second did not. The Cavalier smashed into its hindquarters. As we passed the deer took a moment to look directly into my Mom’s eyes. She was terrified. I was a little shocked myself. I pulled into the Weis parking lot, and took a few moments to calm down. A story was started.
Later, in August 2006, I was working at an Arby’s on Schadt Ave in Whitehall, right next to the Wal-Mart and down the street from the Post Office. One of my co-workers, Helen cut herself, and as I was the only spare team member with a car, everyone at the store at that was either a Manager or used public transportation to get to work, I was volunteered to take Helen to the doctor, and drive her to the drug test center. Well, on our way from the doctor to the test center, we found ourselves at the end of Ceder Crest Boulevard where it meets Lehigh St, or is it Emmaus Ave, I don’t recall exactly. As we are turning onto Ceder Crest Boulevard, three deer jump across the street in front of us. Luckily, I did not hit any of them, but it was still a very weird thing to see. Let me put this into perspective for you. The first deer I saw was in the middle of the night, and on a mostly empty stretch of road surrounded by forest, a prime area to meet (and smash into) a deer. This second encounter was in the afternoon, with the sun shining. On a fairly major thoroughfare, with a lot of traffic. And there were no forests anywhere. I had one question: Where the heck did the deer come from?
The third encounter of note took place in May 2007. Lubov, my friend, had just finished her graduation party, and it was about 2 am. I was driving down Interstate 78, and I was merging onto Rte 309. Suddenly, (are you seeing a pattern, yet) a deer appears in my headlights running along the median. Thankfully, the damage was less than my first encounter. The deer and I barely nicked each other, and he was gone. I have no idea what happened to him.
Why does this keep happening to me? I don’t want to be hitting Deer with my car, and I could really do without the constant ribbing I get from my family. If anyone could explain why deer seem to like jumping in front of automobiles that I am driving, I would really like to know.
Regardless, here I am.
Sean Ireland, Deer Hunter. I hunt deer with a Cavalier.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
Have you ever heard your mother squeal like a little girl?
Have you ever heard you mother squeal like a little girl? That’s what happened this morning when I brought in the mail. There were five letters from my father, and when I handed them to her, she squealed. It was rather amusing. Needless to say, she was very happy to hear from him.
A little background for those who don't know. My father is in Iraq right now. He is not a soldier, he is a civilian contractor working in Iraq. He has been away from home since mid-January and we are hoping that he will return in July, but we don't know for sure.
My parents have been together for over 25 years. This is the first time in that 25 years that they have been this far apart for this long. Thankfully, my Dad is usually able to get access to a phone for about a half-hour and call my Mom.
My mother has spent the last two months writing and sending cards to my Dad just about every single day because she misses him so much. I don't know how many my Dad has recieved yet. I don't know how many letters or cards he has sent.
Today, we got five of them, hence my mother's squealing. Dad, if you read this, Mom really misses you.
(Oh, and if I hear anyone saying that they do not support our troops, I will delete you comment. It doesn't matter to me how you feel about the war, or the President, or McCain, or Hilary, or Obama. In fact, it doesn't matter to me how you feel on just about anything. I am a really understanding guy. I will not stand and let you say anything bad about the men and women who are over there right now serving our country. I am not saying that this is a just or unjust war. That does not matter for what I am talking about. The men and women in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines are risking their lives every day. They have earned your respect. And you will respect them on my Blog, or I will kick you out.)
A little background for those who don't know. My father is in Iraq right now. He is not a soldier, he is a civilian contractor working in Iraq. He has been away from home since mid-January and we are hoping that he will return in July, but we don't know for sure.
My parents have been together for over 25 years. This is the first time in that 25 years that they have been this far apart for this long. Thankfully, my Dad is usually able to get access to a phone for about a half-hour and call my Mom.
My mother has spent the last two months writing and sending cards to my Dad just about every single day because she misses him so much. I don't know how many my Dad has recieved yet. I don't know how many letters or cards he has sent.
Today, we got five of them, hence my mother's squealing. Dad, if you read this, Mom really misses you.
(Oh, and if I hear anyone saying that they do not support our troops, I will delete you comment. It doesn't matter to me how you feel about the war, or the President, or McCain, or Hilary, or Obama. In fact, it doesn't matter to me how you feel on just about anything. I am a really understanding guy. I will not stand and let you say anything bad about the men and women who are over there right now serving our country. I am not saying that this is a just or unjust war. That does not matter for what I am talking about. The men and women in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines are risking their lives every day. They have earned your respect. And you will respect them on my Blog, or I will kick you out.)
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Response to Holy Blood, Holy Grail and the Magdelene/Merovingian Dynasty
I wrote this at the end of January with the intention of sharing it with people. Then I forgot about it. I found it this morning, and I am sharing it with you.
As I was reading the book Holy Blood, Holy Grail, I was impressed by the amount of information and research that had been done by Leigh, Baigent, and Lincoln. However, I did not like their conclusions, and I had already known what their conclusion having heard about the book from my mother, and I had watched the DaVinci Code starring Tom Hanks. I, being a Bible-believing Protestant Christian, did not find their conclusions to be the only conclusion. I fact I believed that another scenario was equally likely. Given the knowledge that Kings in Europe believed in what was called ‘The Divine Right of Kings’, is it not likely that one or more of those monarchs may have chosen to claim the lineage of Jesus as their birthright. According to Baigent (I will refer to the collective trio using Baigent’s name for sake of brevity and because his is the first name on the book) and the source the Dossiers secrets, the Priory of Sion (Prieure de Sion) gave that claim to the Merovingian Kings of France of the 4th through 8th centuries. They claimed that the Merovingian line was still extant through the son of Dagobert II and presently Pierre Plantard. Baigent felt that the claim was genuine given the connections made by the Priory’s documents, and Baigent tied together several threads that got woven into the idea that Jesus, married to Mary Magdalene, had children who intermarried with the Frank Kings and led to the Merovingian bloodline.
I feel that the more likely story is that the Merovingians and the Priory, in order to establish their own means claimed, and created a forgery, that through this spurious bloodline, they could put one of their “Merovingians” on the throne. Baigent even goes so far as to say the Pierre Plantard has a rightful claim to the throne given his Merovingian ancestry; an ancestry that can only be confirmed through the Priory Documents.
Tell me, is it not possible that the Priory of Sion is nothing more than a group of people trying to bring about their own political goals, the establishment of their own King, a head of state that can do their bidding and legitimize their own belief structure. Can you think of a better way to do this than by claiming descent from Christ Jesus, the “King of the Jews”?
I can understand the standpoint of Beigent and the others when they “dissect” the Gospels and point out the “inconsistancies”. I can even buy their argument about Jesus and his marriage to Mary Magdalene, who they equate with the “woman who was a sinner” and Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus. Their argument that Jesus would have crucified because of crimes against Rome, and that the Gospels are playing nice for Rome is also plausible. However, consider a few things.
Pontius Pilate is known to have been a cruel man who was also corrupt. Why would he be portrayed in the Gospels as a “nice guy”? The answer is simple, fear. Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea from 26-36 AD. In 31 AD, the Commander of the Praetorian Guard, Lucius Aelius Sejanus, tried to depose Tiberius Caesar Augustus. Sejanus and all of his followers, were executed by Tiberius. It is possible that Pilate may have been someone who supported Sejanus. Pilate, if he had been found to be a supporter, would have been killed immediately like all of the others. It is possible that Pilate was not a supporter of Sejanus. However, whether or not he was, Pilate knew that the Emperor Tiberius did not like trouble. It is known that Tiberius had had to intervene in Pilate’s actions before, and if the Jews had been unhappy with Pilate’s decision, they may have taken their claim to the Emperor, and Tiberius would have had no problem removing Pilate and then crucifying Jesus.
The idea that Mary Magdalene can be identified with the other two women comes from a Catholic Pope who decided to equate these women himself. In Protestant belief, the three women are separate. This is a possibility, but it is based on highly questionable evidence. The idea that Jesus was married to Magdalene is one of great mystery and the debate will probably never be resolved adequately.
On January 31, 2008, I also found an article on Wikipedia stating that the Priory of Sion was a hoax perpetuated by Pierre Plantard in order to legitimize his own claim to the throne, and that all of the documents in the Dossiers Secrets were in fact a fraud and a hoax. Needless to say, I am not surprised.
As I was reading the book Holy Blood, Holy Grail, I was impressed by the amount of information and research that had been done by Leigh, Baigent, and Lincoln. However, I did not like their conclusions, and I had already known what their conclusion having heard about the book from my mother, and I had watched the DaVinci Code starring Tom Hanks. I, being a Bible-believing Protestant Christian, did not find their conclusions to be the only conclusion. I fact I believed that another scenario was equally likely. Given the knowledge that Kings in Europe believed in what was called ‘The Divine Right of Kings’, is it not likely that one or more of those monarchs may have chosen to claim the lineage of Jesus as their birthright. According to Baigent (I will refer to the collective trio using Baigent’s name for sake of brevity and because his is the first name on the book) and the source the Dossiers secrets, the Priory of Sion (Prieure de Sion) gave that claim to the Merovingian Kings of France of the 4th through 8th centuries. They claimed that the Merovingian line was still extant through the son of Dagobert II and presently Pierre Plantard. Baigent felt that the claim was genuine given the connections made by the Priory’s documents, and Baigent tied together several threads that got woven into the idea that Jesus, married to Mary Magdalene, had children who intermarried with the Frank Kings and led to the Merovingian bloodline.
I feel that the more likely story is that the Merovingians and the Priory, in order to establish their own means claimed, and created a forgery, that through this spurious bloodline, they could put one of their “Merovingians” on the throne. Baigent even goes so far as to say the Pierre Plantard has a rightful claim to the throne given his Merovingian ancestry; an ancestry that can only be confirmed through the Priory Documents.
Tell me, is it not possible that the Priory of Sion is nothing more than a group of people trying to bring about their own political goals, the establishment of their own King, a head of state that can do their bidding and legitimize their own belief structure. Can you think of a better way to do this than by claiming descent from Christ Jesus, the “King of the Jews”?
I can understand the standpoint of Beigent and the others when they “dissect” the Gospels and point out the “inconsistancies”. I can even buy their argument about Jesus and his marriage to Mary Magdalene, who they equate with the “woman who was a sinner” and Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus. Their argument that Jesus would have crucified because of crimes against Rome, and that the Gospels are playing nice for Rome is also plausible. However, consider a few things.
Pontius Pilate is known to have been a cruel man who was also corrupt. Why would he be portrayed in the Gospels as a “nice guy”? The answer is simple, fear. Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea from 26-36 AD. In 31 AD, the Commander of the Praetorian Guard, Lucius Aelius Sejanus, tried to depose Tiberius Caesar Augustus. Sejanus and all of his followers, were executed by Tiberius. It is possible that Pilate may have been someone who supported Sejanus. Pilate, if he had been found to be a supporter, would have been killed immediately like all of the others. It is possible that Pilate was not a supporter of Sejanus. However, whether or not he was, Pilate knew that the Emperor Tiberius did not like trouble. It is known that Tiberius had had to intervene in Pilate’s actions before, and if the Jews had been unhappy with Pilate’s decision, they may have taken their claim to the Emperor, and Tiberius would have had no problem removing Pilate and then crucifying Jesus.
The idea that Mary Magdalene can be identified with the other two women comes from a Catholic Pope who decided to equate these women himself. In Protestant belief, the three women are separate. This is a possibility, but it is based on highly questionable evidence. The idea that Jesus was married to Magdalene is one of great mystery and the debate will probably never be resolved adequately.
On January 31, 2008, I also found an article on Wikipedia stating that the Priory of Sion was a hoax perpetuated by Pierre Plantard in order to legitimize his own claim to the throne, and that all of the documents in the Dossiers Secrets were in fact a fraud and a hoax. Needless to say, I am not surprised.
Friday, February 29, 2008
The Three Loves
(Parts of this blog may gross you out or be offensive. You have been warned. I am giving you fair warning. Read at your risk.)
Wednesday night, I had the pleasure of doing the A/V for David Coleman when he came to Moravian. For those who don’t know who David Coleman is, he is the Dating Doctor aka “America’s Real Life Hitch”. I really enjoyed his presentation, and believe me, I was not the only one. Everyone had a blast. At least, that is how it seemed to me. And he was a really great and nice guy. Completely friendly and personable.
For part of the presentation, he spoke about the three types of love. I found this a very good subject to talk about. However, he went through it too quickly, and I decided to expand upon it. I do not claim to be a “Dating Doctor”. Anyone who knows me knows that I do not have, nor have I ever really had, a girlfriend. So, I don’t really go out on dates. However, I do know a few things about love, and the different kinds of love that exist. With my parents, you can’t avoid lessons in love, all three types of love.
So, what are the three types of love? The answer is Eros, Phileo, Agape (David used Philio, I use Phileo, they are the same thing). These three names come from the Greek. The Greeks believed that they were the only kinds of love around, and that everyone had circles of lovers depending on which type, or combination of types, of love they felt for the person.
Eros love is the simplest to feel and the simplest to explain. Eros love is the raw physical attraction that one feels for another human being. It is the root of the word erotic. Eros, for the Greeks, was the god of physical attraction, and also lust. Eros is the shallowest part of the ocean of love. If you feel Eros love for someone, you love them for their body. They are pleasing to the eyes. Ladies, Eros love is what most men start with. The reason, and I say this as a guy, is that we tend to think with our penises when it come to relations of any kind with a woman. I know that I am saying something most people don’t want to discuss, but it is the truth, like it or not. However, Eros love will not sustain a lasting relationship. For that, you need something deeper. Eros love is not a bad thing, though, it helps people want to break the ice with others or the opposite (or same) sex. I also want to crystal clear on one thing. Eros love is not sex. Sex, and sex alone, is sex. Too many people equate Eros love with sex. Even the Greeks did. It is not. Lust is not sex. I know that in the Gospels (I am a Christian, remember) Jesus tells us that men who look at a woman or man with lust has commited adultery in his heart. This is the Truth. However, if I look at you with lust, it means I want to have sex with you, not that I am having sex with you.
Oh, and please note: EVERYONE FEELS THIS AT SOME TIME IN THEIR LIVES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (enough exclamation points?)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is perfectly normal for a human being to feel lust and be physically attracted to someone. Hollywood has made a lot of money because of this. Ladies and Gentlemen, you may wish to deny it, but everyone has a Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Jude Law, Natalie Portman, Angelina Jolie (bleck!), Milla Jovovich, Lacey Chabert, etc that they have found physically attractive in a movie. I know it is true. You know it is true.
Phileo is the next level of love. It the friendly or brotherly love, this is the word which gave us the name of the City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia. Phileo usually comes after you have met someone and gotten to know them. Phileo is what you feel for a friend. It is the underlying base for the relationships built between two friends. The more love there is, the deeper the friendship. Where Eros is defined by the passions, Phileo is more about trust and respect. It is also about Intimacy. I really liked that David Coleman made a point to distinguish between Intimacy and Passion. Passion is physical desire. Intimacy is the non-physical and it is tied to the faith you have in the other individual. Phileo is actually the most difficult love for me to explain. So, I will sum up with an example. Take your best friend, the one you trust most, the one to whom you can tell anything. How do you feel about them? That is Phileo. (If this is your spouse, then you are truly a blessed individual.)
The deepest level of love is the Agape love. This is the love of the romantics strive for. This is the deep heartfelt love. “I love you with all my heart”-type love. This is the love that you feel and you just want to let everyone know about it. It is usually Agape love that leads the way to commitment. In a way, Agape is a combination of Eros and Phileo. It takes both the passion and the intimacy and the trust, mixes it all together, and it makes you want to commit to the other human being. If you are married, this is love you need to feel, because it the commitment, not the feeling, that counts with Agape. I want to repeat that, Agape is about the commitment, not the feeling, of love. As I stated before, I am a Christian. Since I have provided examples for both Eros and Phileo, I will be consistent and show you an example of Agape love. God’s gift to us of Jesus’s sacrifice is Agape love. He’d loved us so much that he committed his life to us. When Jesus says that “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” (John 15:13), he is speaking of Agape love.
You do not need to go through a linear progression from Eros to Phileo to Agape. You can start with either Eros or Phileo. You could start with Agape but this is rare, but this is the usual starting between parents and children in their relationships. Eros does not need to precede Phileo or Agape. I will admit that it helps, but it is not necessary. I also want to say that Phileo can be the starting point and it can lead to Eros. I guess Agape could lead to Eros, but it strikes me as counter-intuitive.
I hope that everyone who read this enjoyed the experience. However, if in some way you have been offended, I will apologize. However, I did warn you at the beginning.
Wednesday night, I had the pleasure of doing the A/V for David Coleman when he came to Moravian. For those who don’t know who David Coleman is, he is the Dating Doctor aka “America’s Real Life Hitch”. I really enjoyed his presentation, and believe me, I was not the only one. Everyone had a blast. At least, that is how it seemed to me. And he was a really great and nice guy. Completely friendly and personable.
For part of the presentation, he spoke about the three types of love. I found this a very good subject to talk about. However, he went through it too quickly, and I decided to expand upon it. I do not claim to be a “Dating Doctor”. Anyone who knows me knows that I do not have, nor have I ever really had, a girlfriend. So, I don’t really go out on dates. However, I do know a few things about love, and the different kinds of love that exist. With my parents, you can’t avoid lessons in love, all three types of love.
So, what are the three types of love? The answer is Eros, Phileo, Agape (David used Philio, I use Phileo, they are the same thing). These three names come from the Greek. The Greeks believed that they were the only kinds of love around, and that everyone had circles of lovers depending on which type, or combination of types, of love they felt for the person.
Eros love is the simplest to feel and the simplest to explain. Eros love is the raw physical attraction that one feels for another human being. It is the root of the word erotic. Eros, for the Greeks, was the god of physical attraction, and also lust. Eros is the shallowest part of the ocean of love. If you feel Eros love for someone, you love them for their body. They are pleasing to the eyes. Ladies, Eros love is what most men start with. The reason, and I say this as a guy, is that we tend to think with our penises when it come to relations of any kind with a woman. I know that I am saying something most people don’t want to discuss, but it is the truth, like it or not. However, Eros love will not sustain a lasting relationship. For that, you need something deeper. Eros love is not a bad thing, though, it helps people want to break the ice with others or the opposite (or same) sex. I also want to crystal clear on one thing. Eros love is not sex. Sex, and sex alone, is sex. Too many people equate Eros love with sex. Even the Greeks did. It is not. Lust is not sex. I know that in the Gospels (I am a Christian, remember) Jesus tells us that men who look at a woman or man with lust has commited adultery in his heart. This is the Truth. However, if I look at you with lust, it means I want to have sex with you, not that I am having sex with you.
Oh, and please note: EVERYONE FEELS THIS AT SOME TIME IN THEIR LIVES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (enough exclamation points?)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is perfectly normal for a human being to feel lust and be physically attracted to someone. Hollywood has made a lot of money because of this. Ladies and Gentlemen, you may wish to deny it, but everyone has a Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Jude Law, Natalie Portman, Angelina Jolie (bleck!), Milla Jovovich, Lacey Chabert, etc that they have found physically attractive in a movie. I know it is true. You know it is true.
Phileo is the next level of love. It the friendly or brotherly love, this is the word which gave us the name of the City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia. Phileo usually comes after you have met someone and gotten to know them. Phileo is what you feel for a friend. It is the underlying base for the relationships built between two friends. The more love there is, the deeper the friendship. Where Eros is defined by the passions, Phileo is more about trust and respect. It is also about Intimacy. I really liked that David Coleman made a point to distinguish between Intimacy and Passion. Passion is physical desire. Intimacy is the non-physical and it is tied to the faith you have in the other individual. Phileo is actually the most difficult love for me to explain. So, I will sum up with an example. Take your best friend, the one you trust most, the one to whom you can tell anything. How do you feel about them? That is Phileo. (If this is your spouse, then you are truly a blessed individual.)
The deepest level of love is the Agape love. This is the love of the romantics strive for. This is the deep heartfelt love. “I love you with all my heart”-type love. This is the love that you feel and you just want to let everyone know about it. It is usually Agape love that leads the way to commitment. In a way, Agape is a combination of Eros and Phileo. It takes both the passion and the intimacy and the trust, mixes it all together, and it makes you want to commit to the other human being. If you are married, this is love you need to feel, because it the commitment, not the feeling, that counts with Agape. I want to repeat that, Agape is about the commitment, not the feeling, of love. As I stated before, I am a Christian. Since I have provided examples for both Eros and Phileo, I will be consistent and show you an example of Agape love. God’s gift to us of Jesus’s sacrifice is Agape love. He’d loved us so much that he committed his life to us. When Jesus says that “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” (John 15:13), he is speaking of Agape love.
You do not need to go through a linear progression from Eros to Phileo to Agape. You can start with either Eros or Phileo. You could start with Agape but this is rare, but this is the usual starting between parents and children in their relationships. Eros does not need to precede Phileo or Agape. I will admit that it helps, but it is not necessary. I also want to say that Phileo can be the starting point and it can lead to Eros. I guess Agape could lead to Eros, but it strikes me as counter-intuitive.
I hope that everyone who read this enjoyed the experience. However, if in some way you have been offended, I will apologize. However, I did warn you at the beginning.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
An "essay" The Stones of John
Hey People,
I just wanted to share this with you all. I wrote this about a year and a half ago. I know that it is very raw, so I ask that you forgive me for that. I simply found this and felt the need to share it with you all.
Have a great day.
The Stones of John
One of the problems that I have with the Bible teachers and Theologians of today is the business with the book of Revelation. Most people have a problem with the final book of the Bible. Quite a few people usually hide behind the thoughtless belief that John, the man who wrote the book, wrote using code so that the Romans would not know what he was writing about. They say that John didn’t want the Romans to read his Revelation for fear that they would misinterpret the images as politically inciting.
My answer for this is that John is commonly believed to be the same as John the Apostle, the Discipline. This is the same John who was brother to James and a son of Zebedee. James and John were the two disciples whom Jesus called the “Sons of Thunder”. These were the two men who went to their mother and got her to ask Jesus if they could sit on his right and his left in the Kingdom. Are you trying to tell me that the same man who had balls enough to ask God, “Can I sit next to you in Heaven?” In other words, “Can I be your Number One guy?” This is JOHN. You mean to tell me that this guy was worried about what the Romans thought of his ideas.
We have Paul, who wrote all his letters in Greek, a language understood by many at the time, and he wrote about the same things. He wrote several letters while in Jail. A Roman jail, no less. Peter, also, wrote without care of what Nero thought. There is a story that Peter, while being nailed to a cross was still preaching the gospel. How can you think that John, cut from the same cloth as Peter and Paul would try to hide his message. Why?
Another thing, John was part of the group given the Great Commission by Jesus. Go out, and make disciples of the World. Why would he try to hide anything from a group of people. That would have gone against the Commission. And as much trouble John could cause and cook up, he would not have betrayed his commission. He was made of sterner stuff than we are.
I am sorry, people. John would not have worried about what the Romans thought. John used plain language. He spoke about what his saw. And what he saw was horrific. We know that God used symbols in his revelations to men. Read Daniel, who interpreted dreams and had visions that needed to be interpreted by no less a figure than Gabriel. John told us what he saw. He saw symbols that were used by God, and these symbols have been misinterpreted for centuries.
Another point I want to make is this. Revelation is not a book for solitary study. It should studied in groups because of the images that God showed John, and the ease with which we can misinterpret the message.
Revelation is the book describing the End of THIS World. It is the end of the Bible. And John was not being cryptic in his relating the Revelation. John didn’t need to be.
I just wanted to share this with you all. I wrote this about a year and a half ago. I know that it is very raw, so I ask that you forgive me for that. I simply found this and felt the need to share it with you all.
Have a great day.
The Stones of John
One of the problems that I have with the Bible teachers and Theologians of today is the business with the book of Revelation. Most people have a problem with the final book of the Bible. Quite a few people usually hide behind the thoughtless belief that John, the man who wrote the book, wrote using code so that the Romans would not know what he was writing about. They say that John didn’t want the Romans to read his Revelation for fear that they would misinterpret the images as politically inciting.
My answer for this is that John is commonly believed to be the same as John the Apostle, the Discipline. This is the same John who was brother to James and a son of Zebedee. James and John were the two disciples whom Jesus called the “Sons of Thunder”. These were the two men who went to their mother and got her to ask Jesus if they could sit on his right and his left in the Kingdom. Are you trying to tell me that the same man who had balls enough to ask God, “Can I sit next to you in Heaven?” In other words, “Can I be your Number One guy?” This is JOHN. You mean to tell me that this guy was worried about what the Romans thought of his ideas.
We have Paul, who wrote all his letters in Greek, a language understood by many at the time, and he wrote about the same things. He wrote several letters while in Jail. A Roman jail, no less. Peter, also, wrote without care of what Nero thought. There is a story that Peter, while being nailed to a cross was still preaching the gospel. How can you think that John, cut from the same cloth as Peter and Paul would try to hide his message. Why?
Another thing, John was part of the group given the Great Commission by Jesus. Go out, and make disciples of the World. Why would he try to hide anything from a group of people. That would have gone against the Commission. And as much trouble John could cause and cook up, he would not have betrayed his commission. He was made of sterner stuff than we are.
I am sorry, people. John would not have worried about what the Romans thought. John used plain language. He spoke about what his saw. And what he saw was horrific. We know that God used symbols in his revelations to men. Read Daniel, who interpreted dreams and had visions that needed to be interpreted by no less a figure than Gabriel. John told us what he saw. He saw symbols that were used by God, and these symbols have been misinterpreted for centuries.
Another point I want to make is this. Revelation is not a book for solitary study. It should studied in groups because of the images that God showed John, and the ease with which we can misinterpret the message.
Revelation is the book describing the End of THIS World. It is the end of the Bible. And John was not being cryptic in his relating the Revelation. John didn’t need to be.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
A Short Story I Wrote
A Conversation with Lunch
John walked into the diner. He saw Tory sitting already with her back to him.
‘Damn,’ he thought, ‘Late again.’
He quickly indicated to the greeter that he was sitting with her and he rushed to the table. He was glad when she smiled as he sat down.
“Sorry, got held up in traffic,” he said. The waitress stopped, and he told her he’d take a Coke.
“Don’t worry.” She said with the smile that warmed his soul. “I just got here myself."
She quickly filled him in on all of the things she had going on. Work was tough, and her roommate was out of town for two weeks.
He quickly told her about the crazy things going on at work.
The small talk went on until their food arrived. He had ordered a ham sandwich with fries, and she had tuna salad wrap with chips. He was able to wrangle the pickle from her.
Halfway through the food, he decided to end the tension and broach the subject he was most uncomfortable with.
“How is Steve?” Steve was Tory’s boyfriend. John didn’t like him, but never told her so. They had only met once four years earlier. John and Tory had just met and she had brought Steve to see their college. Steve had been cold meeting John, as if meeting a competitor not a friend. John, on the other hand, had disliked how possessive Steve seemed with Tory. In the years since, John and Tory had graduated, Steve and Tory had been engaged, and John had been worried, for reasons he was unsure of.
John did not like talking about Steve, but the man was part of Tory’s life, and he had to get used to it.
“We broke up.” Tory said quietly.
To say that John was stunned would be saying the Atlantic was a puddle.
Part of him was overjoyed. He wanted to celebrate. To jump up and down. Scream his joy from mountaintops kind of joy. He didn’t.
The thing that stopped him wasn’t his modesty. Or his reserve. No, nor his nature.
It was her eyes. The hurt and pain behind her eyes stopped him cold. It was something unnatural.
Her eyes were supposed to be joyous and full of laughter, even if she wasn’t laughing.
The hurt in her eyes told him volumes. She had not been dumped by Steve. She had been the one to “kick him out”. Steve had done something to hurt her, and she had left him. John could tell. And it had happened recently. The pain was fresh.
John was filled with anger. How could someone do this to Tory?
John forced himself to calm down. “Sorry I brought it up. Is there anything I can do?”
“Not right now.” She said. She was still quiet, the subject obviously hitting a very sensitive nerve.
John decided to change the subject. “How is your family?”
Tory told him. Her parents were fine. Her brother was seeing someone, but he was trying, and failing, to keep it from their parents. John chuckled at that.
Soon, they were finished with the food, and John grabbed the check before Tory could. The last time they had gone out for lunch, she had grabbed it and paid for her part of the bill. He didn’t mind, but he felt that this time, he should pay the whole thing. If only to apologize for bringing up the touchy subject.
He stood up, and she stood up. He grabbed her and gave her a hug. He wanted to say something, but he didn’t tell her. He never did. Instead he said, “Always glad to see you. Hope you feel better.”
“Thanks,” she said, “you are a great friend.”
“I do my best.” He replied. He pays the bill, and leaves two dollars for the tip.
He escorted her to the door, opened it for her, walked her to her car, and let her go. She drove away, and he mentally kicked himself once again.
I love you. He always thinks it, but he never says it. I love you.
John walked into the diner. He saw Tory sitting already with her back to him.
‘Damn,’ he thought, ‘Late again.’
He quickly indicated to the greeter that he was sitting with her and he rushed to the table. He was glad when she smiled as he sat down.
“Sorry, got held up in traffic,” he said. The waitress stopped, and he told her he’d take a Coke.
“Don’t worry.” She said with the smile that warmed his soul. “I just got here myself."
She quickly filled him in on all of the things she had going on. Work was tough, and her roommate was out of town for two weeks.
He quickly told her about the crazy things going on at work.
The small talk went on until their food arrived. He had ordered a ham sandwich with fries, and she had tuna salad wrap with chips. He was able to wrangle the pickle from her.
Halfway through the food, he decided to end the tension and broach the subject he was most uncomfortable with.
“How is Steve?” Steve was Tory’s boyfriend. John didn’t like him, but never told her so. They had only met once four years earlier. John and Tory had just met and she had brought Steve to see their college. Steve had been cold meeting John, as if meeting a competitor not a friend. John, on the other hand, had disliked how possessive Steve seemed with Tory. In the years since, John and Tory had graduated, Steve and Tory had been engaged, and John had been worried, for reasons he was unsure of.
John did not like talking about Steve, but the man was part of Tory’s life, and he had to get used to it.
“We broke up.” Tory said quietly.
To say that John was stunned would be saying the Atlantic was a puddle.
Part of him was overjoyed. He wanted to celebrate. To jump up and down. Scream his joy from mountaintops kind of joy. He didn’t.
The thing that stopped him wasn’t his modesty. Or his reserve. No, nor his nature.
It was her eyes. The hurt and pain behind her eyes stopped him cold. It was something unnatural.
Her eyes were supposed to be joyous and full of laughter, even if she wasn’t laughing.
The hurt in her eyes told him volumes. She had not been dumped by Steve. She had been the one to “kick him out”. Steve had done something to hurt her, and she had left him. John could tell. And it had happened recently. The pain was fresh.
John was filled with anger. How could someone do this to Tory?
John forced himself to calm down. “Sorry I brought it up. Is there anything I can do?”
“Not right now.” She said. She was still quiet, the subject obviously hitting a very sensitive nerve.
John decided to change the subject. “How is your family?”
Tory told him. Her parents were fine. Her brother was seeing someone, but he was trying, and failing, to keep it from their parents. John chuckled at that.
Soon, they were finished with the food, and John grabbed the check before Tory could. The last time they had gone out for lunch, she had grabbed it and paid for her part of the bill. He didn’t mind, but he felt that this time, he should pay the whole thing. If only to apologize for bringing up the touchy subject.
He stood up, and she stood up. He grabbed her and gave her a hug. He wanted to say something, but he didn’t tell her. He never did. Instead he said, “Always glad to see you. Hope you feel better.”
“Thanks,” she said, “you are a great friend.”
“I do my best.” He replied. He pays the bill, and leaves two dollars for the tip.
He escorted her to the door, opened it for her, walked her to her car, and let her go. She drove away, and he mentally kicked himself once again.
I love you. He always thinks it, but he never says it. I love you.
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