The confederate flag is allegedly a symbol of "southern pride". (Fun note: "pride" is one of the seven deadly sins.) The complaint is that people perceive the confederate flag as a sign of racism, when it's actually allegedly a symbol of southern "pride".
Since southern culture consists of more things than red rectangles and giant blue X's, there are many possibilities for symbols that could be chosen to represent the south.
Nobody is forcing you to use the one that's associated with slavery.
Monday, June 22, 2015
Thursday, June 18, 2015
Relentlessly Gay - Here's Whimsy If I've Ever Seen It
I don't know if the world is truly entering more of a slump lately or if it's just me, but I am definitely not in the happier frame of mind I was a few months ago.
Well, anyway.
We have a news story today. I don't like talking about the news, buthey, it brings in a couple extra views I wanted to talk about this anyway. We have a Christian person whose neighbor had colored jars outside arranged in a row like a rainbow (solar lights). The Christian person left a note on the neighbor's door insinuating that the neighbor's yard was becoming "relentlessly gay" and that there were children in the neighborhood.
Let's first make something perfectly clear here. It's a common complaint that children don't need to be exposed to homosexuality; well - they don't, but we tend to forget that young children don't really need to be exposed to heterosexuality, either. Mind you, it's a little harder to hide, but I think heterosexuals could safely tone it down a bit, too. We have a tendency of getting caught up in "grown-up" stuff like work, and forgetting what the world is like through a child's eyes, and how confusing the topic is even when talking about heterosexuality.
Second, no matter how much a subjective social movement may try, the objective meaning of a rainbow can't be changed, something the Christian neighbor clearly forgot. Before rainbows were perceived in people's thoughts as a symbol of LGBT stuff, the rainbow was already established to be a symbol of God's covenant with us that He won't destroy the world with a giant flood again. Rainbows still mean this today. We can attempt to distort the meaning of something, but God's objective truth will remain, regardless.
We're already on paragraph five and I haven't even gotten to the main point of this. Who is going to read this?! Anyway, the main point of why I wrote this is the response the letter got. Normally I might complain more about the letter itself, but being someone whose own words are regularly thrown aside and intentionally misunderstood when people don't want to accept the truth (the Truth) in a situation, I have no choice but to sympathize a bit here.
The neighbor who had the solar lights claims that, quote, "I WILL NOT Relent to Hatred. Instead, I will battle it with whimsy and beauty and laughter and love, wrapped around my home, yard and family!!!" (source: gofundme.com) How would one respond to this situation with "beauty", "love", being "wrapped around" one's "family"? Well, one might decide to have a talk with one's neighbor about the note, and explain the situation. You know, calmly explain that the rainbow is a symbol of a covenant God made with mankind and that there was a simple misunderstanding.
No, the neighbor started a gofundme page mocking the phrase "relentlessly gay", for the purpose of mocking the original note. Let's take a quick look at the, quote, "beauty" and "love" on display:
This is something that's personally been endlessly frustrating me lately. In fact, I made a post about this very topic last time, except last time it was in the context of rude people wanting to go to a place in a children's cartoon show (please note I was not talking about the whole fandom). Here, we have yet another rude person with a mocking attitude attempting to talk about "beauty" and "love". How can this person possibly talk about not relenting to hatred, when they're so full of it themselves? I'm legitimately confused by this (how can this possibly be construed as "love"?) and frustrated that hateful attitudes like this continue to be an influence in our world.
They're clearly just rubbing this in the note writer's face. A rainbow roof? "[M]y invisible relentlessly gay rainbow dragon"?
People, I've had a lot of difficulty getting simple points across to people sometimes, but can we all please agree that this is not beautiful or loving? I don't know how it became so common in the world for people to claim to seek out love, peace, and kindness while being so hateful and intolerant, but this is a problem that needs to be addressed. This isn't limited to a specific side of a fandom or a neighbor with jars in their front yard, this is a problem everywhere. This is absolutely crazy. Hypocrisy is abounding everywhere, and not only is it driving me insane on a personal level, it's objectively wrong. We can't have things like this happening. I completely understand that anger gets the better of me, too, and I still have a knack for sarcasm (which I'd like to overcome, and have to a small, small degree) but guys, I'm trying. I understand that some of the aforementioned angry people are trying, too, but we've got to try a little more here.
And I'm NOT talking about changing our behaviors. I'm talking about changing what's in our hearts, which will in turn change our behaviors. You can train a rude, angry person to behave politely, but they will still be hateful in their heart. We need to get to the source of the problem.
God bless you all and guide you according to His perfect will. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Well, anyway.
We have a news story today. I don't like talking about the news, but
Let's first make something perfectly clear here. It's a common complaint that children don't need to be exposed to homosexuality; well - they don't, but we tend to forget that young children don't really need to be exposed to heterosexuality, either. Mind you, it's a little harder to hide, but I think heterosexuals could safely tone it down a bit, too. We have a tendency of getting caught up in "grown-up" stuff like work, and forgetting what the world is like through a child's eyes, and how confusing the topic is even when talking about heterosexuality.
Second, no matter how much a subjective social movement may try, the objective meaning of a rainbow can't be changed, something the Christian neighbor clearly forgot. Before rainbows were perceived in people's thoughts as a symbol of LGBT stuff, the rainbow was already established to be a symbol of God's covenant with us that He won't destroy the world with a giant flood again. Rainbows still mean this today. We can attempt to distort the meaning of something, but God's objective truth will remain, regardless.
We're already on paragraph five and I haven't even gotten to the main point of this. Who is going to read this?! Anyway, the main point of why I wrote this is the response the letter got. Normally I might complain more about the letter itself, but being someone whose own words are regularly thrown aside and intentionally misunderstood when people don't want to accept the truth (the Truth) in a situation, I have no choice but to sympathize a bit here.
The neighbor who had the solar lights claims that, quote, "I WILL NOT Relent to Hatred. Instead, I will battle it with whimsy and beauty and laughter and love, wrapped around my home, yard and family!!!" (source: gofundme.com) How would one respond to this situation with "beauty", "love", being "wrapped around" one's "family"? Well, one might decide to have a talk with one's neighbor about the note, and explain the situation. You know, calmly explain that the rainbow is a symbol of a covenant God made with mankind and that there was a simple misunderstanding.
No, the neighbor started a gofundme page mocking the phrase "relentlessly gay", for the purpose of mocking the original note. Let's take a quick look at the, quote, "beauty" and "love" on display:
Needless to say... I need more rainbows... Many, many more rainbows….
So, I am starting this fundraiser so I can work to make my Home even More "relentlessly gay" If we go high enough, I will see if I can get a Rainbow Roof!
Because my invisible relentlessly gay rainbow dragon should live up there in style!
Put simply, I am a widow and the mother of four children, my youngest in high school and I WILL NOT Relent to Hatred. Instead, I will battle it with whimsy and beauty and laughter and love, wrapped around my home, yard and family!!!
Thanks for your relentlessly gay support!
Relentlessly!!! (source: gofundme.com)
This is something that's personally been endlessly frustrating me lately. In fact, I made a post about this very topic last time, except last time it was in the context of rude people wanting to go to a place in a children's cartoon show (please note I was not talking about the whole fandom). Here, we have yet another rude person with a mocking attitude attempting to talk about "beauty" and "love". How can this person possibly talk about not relenting to hatred, when they're so full of it themselves? I'm legitimately confused by this (how can this possibly be construed as "love"?) and frustrated that hateful attitudes like this continue to be an influence in our world.
They're clearly just rubbing this in the note writer's face. A rainbow roof? "[M]y invisible relentlessly gay rainbow dragon"?
People, I've had a lot of difficulty getting simple points across to people sometimes, but can we all please agree that this is not beautiful or loving? I don't know how it became so common in the world for people to claim to seek out love, peace, and kindness while being so hateful and intolerant, but this is a problem that needs to be addressed. This isn't limited to a specific side of a fandom or a neighbor with jars in their front yard, this is a problem everywhere. This is absolutely crazy. Hypocrisy is abounding everywhere, and not only is it driving me insane on a personal level, it's objectively wrong. We can't have things like this happening. I completely understand that anger gets the better of me, too, and I still have a knack for sarcasm (which I'd like to overcome, and have to a small, small degree) but guys, I'm trying. I understand that some of the aforementioned angry people are trying, too, but we've got to try a little more here.
And I'm NOT talking about changing our behaviors. I'm talking about changing what's in our hearts, which will in turn change our behaviors. You can train a rude, angry person to behave politely, but they will still be hateful in their heart. We need to get to the source of the problem.
God bless you all and guide you according to His perfect will. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Saturday, June 13, 2015
I Want to Go to Equestria!
I used to dislike associating with most of the general public because I was so bitter. Now I dislike associating with most of the general public because they're bitter.
When I finally learned how to let go of the anger that caused me to almost literally hate everyone around me whenever I went somewhere, I saw this freedom of course as guidance from God's hand, a sign of my allowing God to work in my messed-up mind and life. But I also saw it as a sign of social improvement; "Hey, I can finally catch up with the rest of the world!" I said. The world I hated for so long! Now I can begin living life on friendly terms with other people. Now I can open up to these people, rather than shutting them out.
Well, that hasn't quite gone as expected. Jesus said this would happen, but I didn't expect it to happen so fast. Heck, I don't even have to be speaking about Christianity, though that tends to anger people as well, no doubt about it. But some people are just bitter about everything. From where I was before, I saw the world as comparatively loving (because, well, it was) but now that I understand what love for others is actually about, I see how hateful the world still is. I understand that this doesn't apply to everybody, but it applies to FAR too many people for my comfort.
Which brings me to the title of this post. It's a frequent wish among bronies to go to the fictional universe of Equestria (it's where most of the new series of My Little Pony takes place, you uncultured outsider!) and most of them are actually talking about Ponyville. But here's the question: what exactly do people expect to find there? Surely something better than Earth, but how? Not "how" as in "how do they expect to get there", I think we're all aware that it's a fictional universe developed for a cartoon series, but rather, "how do they expect to make it work?" Sure there are still some bad characters like Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon walking around, but for the most part, "bad guys" are anything but tolerated in Ponyville. (I'd say Equestria as a whole, but let's be honest, some of the people in Canterlot are extremely shallow and uptight.) Seeing the overall community, I do not doubt at all that some of us would "belong" in Ponyville. I don't doubt that some of us would be better suited to a place like that, than the place where we live now. (Some of us are even being prepared for somewhere else even as we speak.) But for a lot of people, let's think for a minute. A lot of people are more like the villains on that show than the protagonists. Easily-provoked, intolerant, unloving, power-hungry trolls. This is of particular note in terms of My Little Pony because of how the villains are handled on it. Villains are defeated in one of two ways: 1) reforming them, or 2) overpowering and defeating them in order to remove a threat. Discord was put into stone, Chrysalis was thrown out so far we don't know where she ended up (comic canon isn't show canon!), Sombra was just destroyed completely... Yet so many people in this world behave much more like these same characters than the protagonists they claim to adore.
Read any of the dialogue the aforementioned villains have and then compare it to things the mane six say. Which one more closely resembles real-world dialogue in today's society? The cheesiness and fluff of what the protagonists say, or the cynicism and indifference of the villains?
My concern isn't that people are dissatisfied with Earth, my concern is that some people are in no way ready for even a place like Equestria. I say "even" Equestria, because think about this. If Equestria were real, and if we could go there, our stay would be entirely dependent on our actions. The kind of temper tantrums we all apparently love to anonymously throw in internet comment sections wouldn't be very welcomed there. Profanity wouldn't be welcomed there. Alcoholism wouldn't be welcomed there. If your principles cause you to not love and tolerate something, you'd better have a good justification for it. (ie "I oppose drug use because it's dangerous and I don't want anypony to get hurt", as opposed to something like "I oppose druggies because they're retarded, and drugs are for faggots.") Our actions there would determine our stay. But most people aren't even ready for Heaven, a place accessed so easily that a person can live their entire life as a murderous psychopath, and in their very last breaths, decide to turn to Jesus and be forgiven, and just by spending their very last seconds accepting Jesus, go there. (For those of us who aren't on our deathbeds, God also calls believers to repent; some say that repentance is a result of salvation rather than a requirement to obtain it) The basic point is Jesus is the only way to Heaven. But compared to what I said above, this isn't that far of a stretch for us. A relationship with God; an acceptance that Jesus is God's begotten son, that Jesus was crucified to save us from our sins, would naturally lead us to the repentance God wants from us. It all begins with a simple belief. No "sinner's prayer" or anything of the sort is required, and baptism is NOT required to go to Heaven. It begins with the simple matter of believing and accepting one simple teaching. Think about how many people are still very unfortunately going to end up in Hell because they didn't want to let go, and turn to God. (God does not enjoy doing this.) It's only one simple requirement, and they didn't fulfill it. Some still won't today.
So how can these people possibly talk about a place that requires even more of us? This is even disregarding God's call to us on top of everything else. My problem isn't that people want to go to Equestria; I'd say it's honestly a pretty good sign if you find yourself wanting a place like that over a place like Earth... (as long as we remember that it's a daydream and not an actual world. Please don't get into the weird end of spiritual stuff; it's bad news.) My problem is that people want this perfect place, but one that isn't accessible through simple grace, and thus they're barely in a place to step foot in it. And all the while, they're still polluting the real world with their angry, hateful attitude. This unwillingness to admit our own inner wickedness creates a serious problem. If you're anything like what I've been describing, you don't belong in Equestria.
Repent and believe! God loves you and wants you to go to Heaven one day, which will be even better than Equestria.
When I finally learned how to let go of the anger that caused me to almost literally hate everyone around me whenever I went somewhere, I saw this freedom of course as guidance from God's hand, a sign of my allowing God to work in my messed-up mind and life. But I also saw it as a sign of social improvement; "Hey, I can finally catch up with the rest of the world!" I said. The world I hated for so long! Now I can begin living life on friendly terms with other people. Now I can open up to these people, rather than shutting them out.
Well, that hasn't quite gone as expected. Jesus said this would happen, but I didn't expect it to happen so fast. Heck, I don't even have to be speaking about Christianity, though that tends to anger people as well, no doubt about it. But some people are just bitter about everything. From where I was before, I saw the world as comparatively loving (because, well, it was) but now that I understand what love for others is actually about, I see how hateful the world still is. I understand that this doesn't apply to everybody, but it applies to FAR too many people for my comfort.
Which brings me to the title of this post. It's a frequent wish among bronies to go to the fictional universe of Equestria (it's where most of the new series of My Little Pony takes place, you uncultured outsider!) and most of them are actually talking about Ponyville. But here's the question: what exactly do people expect to find there? Surely something better than Earth, but how? Not "how" as in "how do they expect to get there", I think we're all aware that it's a fictional universe developed for a cartoon series, but rather, "how do they expect to make it work?" Sure there are still some bad characters like Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon walking around, but for the most part, "bad guys" are anything but tolerated in Ponyville. (I'd say Equestria as a whole, but let's be honest, some of the people in Canterlot are extremely shallow and uptight.) Seeing the overall community, I do not doubt at all that some of us would "belong" in Ponyville. I don't doubt that some of us would be better suited to a place like that, than the place where we live now. (Some of us are even being prepared for somewhere else even as we speak.) But for a lot of people, let's think for a minute. A lot of people are more like the villains on that show than the protagonists. Easily-provoked, intolerant, unloving, power-hungry trolls. This is of particular note in terms of My Little Pony because of how the villains are handled on it. Villains are defeated in one of two ways: 1) reforming them, or 2) overpowering and defeating them in order to remove a threat. Discord was put into stone, Chrysalis was thrown out so far we don't know where she ended up (comic canon isn't show canon!), Sombra was just destroyed completely... Yet so many people in this world behave much more like these same characters than the protagonists they claim to adore.
Read any of the dialogue the aforementioned villains have and then compare it to things the mane six say. Which one more closely resembles real-world dialogue in today's society? The cheesiness and fluff of what the protagonists say, or the cynicism and indifference of the villains?
My concern isn't that people are dissatisfied with Earth, my concern is that some people are in no way ready for even a place like Equestria. I say "even" Equestria, because think about this. If Equestria were real, and if we could go there, our stay would be entirely dependent on our actions. The kind of temper tantrums we all apparently love to anonymously throw in internet comment sections wouldn't be very welcomed there. Profanity wouldn't be welcomed there. Alcoholism wouldn't be welcomed there. If your principles cause you to not love and tolerate something, you'd better have a good justification for it. (ie "I oppose drug use because it's dangerous and I don't want anypony to get hurt", as opposed to something like "I oppose druggies because they're retarded, and drugs are for faggots.") Our actions there would determine our stay. But most people aren't even ready for Heaven, a place accessed so easily that a person can live their entire life as a murderous psychopath, and in their very last breaths, decide to turn to Jesus and be forgiven, and just by spending their very last seconds accepting Jesus, go there. (For those of us who aren't on our deathbeds, God also calls believers to repent; some say that repentance is a result of salvation rather than a requirement to obtain it) The basic point is Jesus is the only way to Heaven. But compared to what I said above, this isn't that far of a stretch for us. A relationship with God; an acceptance that Jesus is God's begotten son, that Jesus was crucified to save us from our sins, would naturally lead us to the repentance God wants from us. It all begins with a simple belief. No "sinner's prayer" or anything of the sort is required, and baptism is NOT required to go to Heaven. It begins with the simple matter of believing and accepting one simple teaching. Think about how many people are still very unfortunately going to end up in Hell because they didn't want to let go, and turn to God. (God does not enjoy doing this.) It's only one simple requirement, and they didn't fulfill it. Some still won't today.
So how can these people possibly talk about a place that requires even more of us? This is even disregarding God's call to us on top of everything else. My problem isn't that people want to go to Equestria; I'd say it's honestly a pretty good sign if you find yourself wanting a place like that over a place like Earth... (as long as we remember that it's a daydream and not an actual world. Please don't get into the weird end of spiritual stuff; it's bad news.) My problem is that people want this perfect place, but one that isn't accessible through simple grace, and thus they're barely in a place to step foot in it. And all the while, they're still polluting the real world with their angry, hateful attitude. This unwillingness to admit our own inner wickedness creates a serious problem. If you're anything like what I've been describing, you don't belong in Equestria.
Repent and believe! God loves you and wants you to go to Heaven one day, which will be even better than Equestria.
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Insects Have Four Legs?
[SOURCE for the following text]
There are several verses that are translated in our English Bibles to imply that insects have four legs. In reality, the Hebrew word sherets, translated as "insect" is not nearly as specific as the term "insect" would imply. The word really refers to crawling or swimming creatures that tend to swarm together. For example, in Genesis, sherets refers to swarming sea creatures,27 in the flood account (Genesis 7) sherets refers to rodents,28 and in Leviticus, sherets refers to crustaceans,29 insects,30 rodents,31 and reptiles.32 The term sherets was never intended as a biological classification system, so to say that it specifically refers to "insects" is deceptive.
What is common among all the creatures mentioned is that they have short legs and often travel together in groups. In fact, the Bible defines sherets as "crawling on its belly" and "whatever walks on all fours."33 What is common in this group of crustaceans, insects, rodents, and reptiles is that they all crawl on "all four" legs. Some from this group actually have more than four legs. However, the Hebrew idiom "on all fours" refers to any creature that crawls low to the ground on at least four legs. Were the writers of the Bible unaware that insects have six legs? This statement would seem rather silly, but atheists actually make this claim. However, one of the verses clearly indicates that these "four-legged" insects have six legs:
There are several verses that are translated in our English Bibles to imply that insects have four legs. In reality, the Hebrew word sherets, translated as "insect" is not nearly as specific as the term "insect" would imply. The word really refers to crawling or swimming creatures that tend to swarm together. For example, in Genesis, sherets refers to swarming sea creatures,27 in the flood account (Genesis 7) sherets refers to rodents,28 and in Leviticus, sherets refers to crustaceans,29 insects,30 rodents,31 and reptiles.32 The term sherets was never intended as a biological classification system, so to say that it specifically refers to "insects" is deceptive.
What is common among all the creatures mentioned is that they have short legs and often travel together in groups. In fact, the Bible defines sherets as "crawling on its belly" and "whatever walks on all fours."33 What is common in this group of crustaceans, insects, rodents, and reptiles is that they all crawl on "all four" legs. Some from this group actually have more than four legs. However, the Hebrew idiom "on all fours" refers to any creature that crawls low to the ground on at least four legs. Were the writers of the Bible unaware that insects have six legs? This statement would seem rather silly, but atheists actually make this claim. However, one of the verses clearly indicates that these "four-legged" insects have six legs:
'Yet these you may eat among all the winged insects [sherets] which walk on all fours: those which have above their feet jointed legs with which to jump on the earth. (Leviticus 11:21)
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