Guest Voices

Another Way of Living

While many Christians have long celebrated Easter, this year Orthodox Easter takes place on Sunday, April 27 – much later than normally, as a result of ancient calendar calculations and regulations requiring the prior celebration of the Jewish Passover, in accordance with their traditional interpretation of scriptural record. Thus, at midnight on Saturday April 26, the night that is said to be brighter than any sunlit day, some 300 million Orthodox Christians will crowd churches to hear the words: “Come, receive the light!” Throughout the world, entire congregations, previously waiting in darkness and anticipation, will light up in splendor and people’s faces will shine with joy and hope. All of them will chant the familiar hymn of triumph: “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling death by death, and granting life to those in the tombs.” For Orthodox faithful, Easter is the feast of feasts. As one Orthodox Easter hymn says, the feast of the Resurrection proposes “another way of seeing” and “another way of living.” Yet, the secret of that new life is already foreshadowed in the previous day, when the Orthodox Church recalls the harsh reality of the Cross.

Faced with the seeming inevitability and impasse of global suffering, it is so easy to be cynical; it is tempting to dismiss issues like climate change or global conflict or world hunger, criticizing those who transform these into political flags or else who transmit messages of love. Yet, while people have become insensitive to sermons about the gloom and doom of our world, the reality of evil transcends any act of war or terrorism and every expression of violence or suffering. These are but symptoms of a deeper reality, which is overcome on the Cross on Good Friday [or Holy and Great Friday, as Orthodox Christians prefer to call it] through the radical power of forgiveness, tolerance, and compassion.

The truth is that the Gospel message is as simple as it is radical. We are called to stand for love where there is hatred, to preach compassion where there is injustice, and to insist on dialogue where there is division. This at least, as we have been assured, is how people should recognize that those who call themselves Christians. (John 13.35) In fact, however, as uncomplicated as this may sound, it is a much harder Gospel to live by. It is far easier to proclaim a Gospel of power and might. It seems far less challenging to be dismissive of efforts to sustain conversation among unlikely partners from radically different religious or cultural backgrounds (even among the great monotheistic traditions, such as Christians, Muslims, and Jews) and conservation of natural resources (whether fundamental to our survival as human beings, or responsive to developing nations that experience poverty or hunger, or else supportive of our lifestyles). It is certainly far less intrusive in our personal lives to resist changes to our habits. People have far too much at stake.

Hoping for change invites challenge in our worldview and lifestyle. But how willing are we to pay a price for our selfish consumption, our wasteful pollution, and our prideful discrimination, both racial and religious? When will we stop and be silent long enough to notice the direct impact of our way of life on the poor among us and on the poor of the world? Do we even recognize the wounds we have wrought upon the flesh of our brother and sister, as well as upon the body of the world? Is it that difficult to discern the arrogance of our behavior, conveniently and complacently overlooking the damage that results from our silence or ignorance?

When Orthodox Christians recall the Resurrection, they are not primarily concerned intellectually with how that miracle actually took place. In fact, they think less of an empty grave and more of an open tomb, which remains an open invitation to those who believe. The miracle of Resurrection calls for an openness to confess the reality of the darkness within us and around us, admitting our role and responsibility in refusing to eradicate the suffering in our world. Then, when we stand honestly before the reality of our evil – in earnest recognition and prayerful confession of the hurt we inflict upon our neighbor within society and within the global community, and the abuse with we treat the earth’s resources – at that very moment of realization are we also able to perceive the hope and light of the Resurrection. Only then are we able to apprehend the relationship between the Resurrection and the presence of war, racism, global warming and terrorism in our world. For then, we shall also be able to discern the light of the Resurrection in our hearts and in our world.

This is why for forty days after the bright night of that Easter vigil, Orthodox Christians will continue to greet one another with the words: “Christ is Risen! Truly, He is Risen!”

His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is the spiritual leader of 300 million Orthodox Christians. He is author of the new book "Encountering the Mystery."

By Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew |  April 25, 2008; 8:46 AM ET
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With all due respect to Patriarch Bartholomew, he is not, repeat NOT, the "spiritual leader of 300 million Orthodox Christians." He represents only the three thousand Greek Orthodox living in Turkey. His message above is clearly intended for consumption by secular Americans. It is not the message of the Holy Orthodox Christian Church, which constantly calls us to repentance, telling us to live in Christ and to become like Him to the exclusion of all other concerns.

Posted by: Gareth Barnard | August 9, 2008 6:48 PM
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Eis polla eti despota!

Posted by: John R. | July 6, 2008 3:09 PM
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This message of reconciliation and hope during the Easter season is very well thought out and written. Yet, I am left with the question of what kind of efforts can non-Orthodox Christians take to partner with their Orthodox brothers and sisters around the world. Often it seems that there are strong biases and preconceptions from both sides that results in the Orthodox and Evangelicals for instance not working together or even seeing each other as Christians. What can be done to heal these wounds and regain trust, particularly in places like the former Soviet Union where the Church was persecuted for years?

Posted by: Kevin | July 3, 2008 7:06 AM
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This message of reconciliation and hope during the Easter season is very well thought out and written. Yet, I am left with the question of what kind of efforts can non-Orthodox Christians take to partner with their Orthodox brothers and sisters around the world. Often it seems that there are strong biases and preconceptions from both sides that results in the Orthodox and Evangelicals for instance not working together or even seeing each other as Christians. What can be done to heal these wounds and regain trust, particularly in places like the former Soviet Union where the Church was persecuted for years?

Posted by: Kevin | July 3, 2008 7:05 AM
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siz kime laf ediyonuz lan ibneler ali kul neyinize kursun soktu

Posted by: cemali | June 24, 2008 8:54 AM
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Pope Benedictus shall not die. and thanks for Arnavutluk Halic Authorities visited Byzantine KAyseri.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 8, 2008 9:55 AM
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sayin PAtriark, Rahmi Koc'u arayin lutfen.

Posted by: alkan.levent@windowslive.com | June 6, 2008 7:21 AM
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sapka, marangoz, ilac, kitap, okumak, efes, didim, side, misir, eskisehir, uludag, adalar, ankara, istanbul, antalya,

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 7:17 AM
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St JAmes the Less,
St JAmes the Just

St MArkus, St Paul, St John, ST MAtthias, St Matthew, Molla Fenari, Uftade, Somuncu Baba

Portekiz, Bibiana, Fatima
Port of Jesus, Port of Gal, Mother MAry appeared

1991-2008 Bibiana Araujo, Finland IYS St Nicholas Bursa Nicaea.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 7:11 AM
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bir de ordu. bir de Israil tabi, Ankara ve Masonlar. oyle dehset birsey ki, ne ozur dileyebiliyor ne de diletebiliyor. Guney Kore'de Tapinak ve SAfranbolu benim bildiklerim. kim kime para verdiyse.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 7:01 AM
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22/7 hakkinda konustuk mu sayin PAtriark? iki kisinin birlikte olmasi? Efes'teki Yedi Uyurlardan? di-thymuse 2PiR?

psikologum.com/komiqoku.asp?ID=1003
psikologum.com/komiqoku.asp?ID=1196

sanirim Ingiltere'deki Efes Tapinagi buraya gelecek.

sonra ne oldu biliyor musunuz sayin Patriark, Osmanlilar, Nurcular, Ataturkculer, Ingilizler Sabanci, Rahmi Koc, Universiteliler, komunist ataturkcu turkler, Ittihat Terakkiciler, Vatikan Adiyamanlilar, Hukumet cember olduk. onlar bana gecirdi ben yaziya gecirdim sagolsunlar.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 6:55 AM
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Didim'de kalmistik,

Bati Anadolu'da,
havarilerin yurdu ve okulu,

bir masa basinda toplanip yemek yedikleri yer
bir masaya tum kitaplarin konup sallanmasi gibi.

evrim, komunizm
ve logaritmada,

ve Side'de.
evet.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 5:57 AM
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sayin Geminin Ogretmeni

Dunya Ticaret Merkezi, Churchill, Inonu, Adana, Amerikan Ic Savasi ve PAmuk

Tesla'dan soz ediyordum ben bir zamanlar, degil mi? Nikola Tesla. elindeki bir kumanda ile bir oyuncak gemiyi yuzduren adam. kablosuz iletisim, elektromanyetik alan kullanimi ve cep telefonlarinin muellifi. New York'ta yasamis.

mag magnetics Phi manners

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 5:53 AM
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bir zamanlar sincaplarin agaclardan inmeden bir uctan bir uca dolasabildigi Anadolu'dan konustugumuzu biliyoruz zaten.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 5:24 AM
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AIDS, timus bezinin hormonlarina yuklenmis bir Kuran yorumu ise, Guney Afrika bir Orman Hayvan Ulkesi ise,

AIDS maymunlardan gecti maymunlara yuklendi deniyorsa ve maymunlar da Churchill'in sozluguyle belliyse, ve iliskiler varsa isin icinde,

timus bezine karsi olan Pope Benedictus ne icin Kuran okuyor?

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 5:21 AM
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Scottish way, a child tanned in Africa, represents the Son of God. and Son of God is in Anadolu. i had offered secretes of thymuse gland against hunger in Africa.

in Zimbabwe, policemen and soldiers attacked British American Embassy. USA and Vatican are german wolves.

Zimbabwe is a country reflexive to Ottomans. Army and Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Jewish MAsonry, canceled the Scottish British Didymus scarf case. the government is religious and with wolves. Vatican supports the government and PKK and Iran, against Masonry and Turkish Army.

there are HUN soldiers in Anadolu. and there is HUNGER in Africa. i dont know about the gear of HUNS, but i may say that the Army in Turkey shall always be under the direction of NATO and other foundations.

while there is Pope Benedictus on Earth, while Pope Benedictus has plans and prayers, there is not any god or allah or creator, but just humans on Earth from other civilizations.

and there shall not be any yields any more each year, and this is not harvest. but just a reminder, a deep reminder.

Azerbaycan, you are not aware. Armenia is wounded because of Vatican. and You are with Turkish Government with Vatican. so Azerbaycan, be with Armenia and heal your wounds mutually.

i could not stop Williams Bush and he turned the face of Saddam Hussein to light. and money of Northern Iraq is in Switzerland. but i could stop Putin, Viladimir Putin, and he educated me to do what he would do.

what is the difference between Romanov Family and Vatican Pope Benedictus? there is just 1400 seconds in the city left for Yahoo, Williams Bush.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 6, 2008 1:54 AM
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Uftade'nin Bahcesindeki incirler de kavruk.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 5, 2008 3:26 AM
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simdi o diktirdigin kalenin altinda istanbulu dusurenleri yetistirmis, HAci Bayram'inizin yoldasi sutu ogrenmis Uftade'nin karsisinda oturdugum ev var ya, dehset birsey BAsbakan.

kadikoy'deki mason alevi ermeni st germain bir okuldan mezun olup, gobeginde mehmet akif olan osmanli fransiz mason bir universitede dilbilim ve felsefe calistim. Tufan Oncesi Enoch ve Misir Medeniyeti ogretilen yerlerde yetistim, Shaumbra Forums dahil. Temenyerinin Sag YAmacinda oturanlar yetistirdi, iyilestirdi.

biz Diego GArcia mektuplari diyelim ama kalem birden cokmus, bu hemen solumdaki kelimenin sesli harfleri uzerinde iki nokta yok.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 5, 2008 3:23 AM
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havariler azizler ve timus bezinden bahsetmek ve Nuh Oglu Ermenilerin buraya gelmesi ne demektir? tababet ve astronomi ne demektir? dil alfabe avrupa ne demektir? herkesin dalinda meyve olmasi demektir. once agac dikmek lazim. israil'e selam yola devam.

evimin onundeki incir agacina bagli SULO marka cop tenekesini kutuphane bahcesinin parmakliklarina bagladim, incirden cikarip. oturdugum evde bir toplu mezar var, arada bir gorunuyorlar. etrafta neden nurcular oturuyordu merak ediyorum. ben gelince etraftakiler tasindi cok sukur. beni de cikarmaya calistilar ama neyse.

artik belli oldu, Tayyip Erdogan.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 5, 2008 3:07 AM
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dagdan gelen su icinde yururduk Namazgah mahallesinden arkadaslarla, dizustune kadar pacalari sivanmis, Etlik Saglik Astsubay HAzirlama Okulunda okuyan abimin uniformasi kumasindan, annemin diktigi pantolonun tuzu cikardi da annem yikamazdi.

kavga etmissem uniformami utulemez, yakami kolalamazdi. borcumu verin de bir daha sesimi duymazsiniz bile, kaderimiz Hillary Clinton ile es edilmis. eden belli.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 5, 2008 3:01 AM
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her bir cekirdegi bir gezegen bir yildiz diye bilinen incirden Bursa'da bir tane cikmadi, hepsi kavruk.

MAksem'i bilir misin Tayyip Erdogan? Abdulazizi gectim, Temenyeri VAdisini sag taraftan goren yamactan soz ediyorum. dut var, erik var, kiraz var, defne var. incir yok.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 5, 2008 2:43 AM
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unutma TAyyip Erdogan, Israillileri buradan cikarmak icin Kurani ellerine alanlar var. Hitler Soyu diye geciyor. Israilliler Cennetten Aden BAhcesinden cikarilacaklar mi sence? cahil tutulmazlar mi bu ulkedekiler? meyve ve kurt sebebiyle? kendilerinin yapmadiklarini yapan insanlara izin verirler mi? serbest birakirlar mi?

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 5, 2008 1:58 AM
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sen burada ne goruyorsan onu bil, soylediklerim gordugunu anlatirken cikti. sen gordugune onem ver. baska sekilde de cikardi.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 12:47 PM
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cocuklarda gizli seker var mi diye baktir, timus bezine onem ver. amonyum ve sitrik asidin kullanimini kaldir. senden sonra gelene tembihle. benim dikkat ettigim budur.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 12:36 PM
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findik sut uzum leblebi uretilmesi maliyeti dagitimi dusunulerek, herkese yasina basina gore bir tane vitaminleri (vital minerals) iceren hap verin, kaldiklari yerde herkesin bir tane almalarini saglayin.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 12:18 PM
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tum okullari acin, spor salonlarini acin. geceleri isteyenlerin kalmalarini saglayin. bireysel ozgurlugu kollektif butunluge gecirin,

refleksoloji budur, burada calisirken surayi meclisi gorursunuz, yeni gecilmis CERN Internet YAklasiminda oldugu gibi.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 12:02 PM
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lutfen yemek yemelerini ve gece kalacak yerlerini saglayin. isteyene bir kat temiz elbise verin. pernceresine perde yatagina carsaf uzerine yorgan pijama yatacak kanepe verin. temel ihtiyaclarini karsilayarak bir baslangic saglayin. herkesi parasiz yatili kabul edin.

cep telefonu ve bilgisayar ithalatini durdurun. ikinci el ticaretini durdurun. elde olanlarin herkese ulasmasini saglayin ve isletim sistemini yenileyin. ticaretinizi uretmediginiz mal uzerinden yapmayin.

Orduyu teyakkuza gecirin. Dikimevlerini faaliyete sokun. kadinlara ve erkeklere imece ve guc verin. cocuklara cop toplatmayin, buyuklere birakin. cadir dagitin, uyku tulumu verin.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 11:47 AM
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sayin PAtriark

yapacak birseyi kalmamis insanlarin cildiracagi zamana geldik, enerjilerini donusturebilmeleri icin lutfen kaynaklari acin.

KEY paralarini kredi kartlari borclarini kapatmak icin kullanin. bu miktar bir kisi icin azdir ama bir is icin coktur. dokuz milyon kisiye binucyuz lira bir inisiyasyon degildir, cunku bu hareketi anlamazlar.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 11:37 AM
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karpuz kabugu gorurse "denize girme mevsimi gelmis" derdi. bir hazirandan once denize gidilmez derdi. once karpuzu beklerdi. karpuz kabugunu denizde gormesi icin denize gitmesi gerekirdi! demek sofraya getiriyormus once.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 10:00 AM
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gun be gun, bu ulkedeki memurlugun kalkacagini farkettim, sayin PAtriark, banka gorevlilerinin serbest kalacagini farkettim. artik evlenebiliriz diyenleri sevincleriyle isittim.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 9:53 AM
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tarihe cicek ekilen yer, tarh, ve Buyuklerin Tarihi icin History dedim, Christory dedim. tohum dedim tarihteki her bir olaya, cicek dedim. sanirim bu sehirde oturdum kaldim.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 9:46 AM
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Ermenistan, Rusya ve Turkiye'nin Avrupa Birliginde olmasi icin calisacagiz demistik, sefkatin hitabi kadariyle. baska ifadelerinin ve tezahurlerinin olacagini da biliyorum. her buyuk kucuge kavusur, her kucuk buyuge ulasir.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 9:42 AM
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evet sayin PAtriark

Tayyip Erdogan, Ermenistan'a gitti. ve Anadolu'yu Asya'ya baglayan yol Ermenistan'dan gececek. buna izin veren buyuklere tesekkur ediyorum. teklif ettigimiz yakin bir tarhite buyuklerin sefkatli nazarini henuz kesbetmemistik.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 4, 2008 9:39 AM
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Lev.ent Alk.an (science manners):

aziz MAtthew'den soz ediyorum.

cikis giris gunlerim 14 MAyis 1973 ve 2 Agustos 1972.

June 4, 2008 6:48 AM | Report Offensive Comments

ilkokul numaram 648,

June 4 2008 6:48
6+4 2.+8 6:4+8
10.10 6:12

11

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 6:57 AM
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ve bildigim kadariyla Aziz Matthias, Aziz Matthew'in ogrencisi.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 6:53 AM
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aziz MAtthew'den soz ediyorum.

cikis giris gunlerim 14 MAyis 1973 ve 2 Agustos 1972.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science manners) | June 4, 2008 6:48 AM
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sayin PAtriark BArtholomeos, birisi birseyleri kapadi yine. ben bir dolasayim soyle. maliyeden aradilar, MatematikGorus gel dedi, bir goreyim geleyim.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 5:03 AM
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M harfine bakalim, grek ve roma alfabelerinde.

uc dikine cizgi ve bir yatay cizgi daha, kac eder?

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 4:57 AM
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Tesla ve electromanyetik induksiyon? amerika'daki uclu fisleri goruyoruz!

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 4:55 AM
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Didim'de karsisinda bir tane daha dikilecekken yikilmis goruyoruz. ve hatta bir diapozon goruyoruz, hatta n+n = m burada!

hipofiz bezi.

bu bana bir migferi hatirlatiyor. tepeden cikiyor ve arkaya gidiyor. yele gibi. atin yelesi, zebranin yelesi, esegin yelesi var mi? aslanin yelesi. finikelilerin sapkasi.

ama ne var esasinda? yerleri gokleri denizleri birbirine katan hipofiz bezi epifiz bezi beyin. ve iki karis ilerisi hatta burnunun ucu.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 4:53 AM
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Didim'e bir daha bakiyoruz, iki bacakli bir kopru daha goruyoruz. beynin loblarina epifiz bezi gerek diyoruz, daktiloya serit gerek diyoruz.

Side'de uclusunu goruyoruz.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 4:34 AM
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kopru neydi? timus bezi. timus bezi neydi? guzel koku, uyum merkezi, bagisiklik sistemi, tatli ekmek, T Hormonlari, camin bali, suyun sutu.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 4:30 AM
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Didim Zibidi Aziz John ve Demre Aziz Nikolas. Altin Sehir Patara'dan. ne diye? baba ve ogretmen bulalim diye. basi ortulu kadinlara cocuk ve ilim, evlilik altini da hediye,

tesekkur ederim Gemide Ogretmen Koprude Rehber BArtholomeos. karsidan karsiya geciren kimdi? antitez. evet Misir. sentez kimdi? Didim'de Koruyucu Rahibe Iskandinavya. tez kim? kisinin varolusu. peki.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 4:28 AM
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canak comlek Anadolu'da Burdur Egridir civarinda mi gorulmustu? isa meryem ve havarilerin yeri mekani burasi miydi? benim gordugum vadi orasi mi?

- hey you, what is your profession?
- i make presents, sir

- you, over there, what is your profession?
- i make presents, sir

- spartans! what is your profession?
- HOH HOH HOH!

guzel, simdi Altin Kumsaldan Altin Sehire yol gidelim.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 4:19 AM
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findik yagi da var. caydan yag ciktigi gorulmus mu? gorulmus. edebi ogrenilirse gorulur. ya da sut katarsiniz.

Papanin burada oldugu, evrim komunizm masonluk universiteler DHKPC Ahmet Necdet Sezer'e karsi oldugu ve hukumetce tedbir alindigi belli. bizi de kimin kullandigi ve nerelerde nelerle karsilastigimiz belli.

Ingiltere Papa munasebeti de belli. iyi biz de ilmini calistik. calisiyoruz. calisacagiz. evrim budur, komunizm budur, masonluk budur. logaritma, azizler, havariler, etyopya.

sormuslar bu cocuk seker yiyebilir mi diye de efendi kirk gun sonra gelin demis. kendi yemis, tamam demis yesin.

simdi herkes burada. once Cin'den baslanacak, Havadan Sudan. sonra canak comlek, icine cicek ve icecek sebze meyve yemek. ondan sonra burada olan herkes ailecek devam edecek. nasil, Anadolu kokuyor degil mi? isterseniz gelsinler, isterseniz gidin.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 4:08 AM
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ben yeni yeni ayiliyorum. Anadolu'da Mumsondu Keltler Kopek Kedi ve Domuzdan sozetmistim, hayal meyal hatirliyorum ama yazmistim.

Yeni Zelanda Hukalari, Iskocya uzerinden Turkiye'de Cesitli Gruplarca Toplu Sevisme, Anadolu'da Mumsondu, Avrupa'da toplu sevisme arasindaki farki soyleyeyim.

analar. belki de Anadolu'daki toplantilarin buyuklugu budur, dil bilen icin. edebin yuksekligi kadariyle. anasinin oldugu yerde ne olursa, o mecliste o olmaktadir. baska yerlere edeb aktarilacaktir aktarilmaktadir.

ne demistik, amaneden ananeden. sutu mayalamazsaniz ya bozulur ya da kesilir. muhallebi peynir yogurt tereyagi icin emek vereceksiniz. ben tereyagi yemem diyorsaniz kuyrukyagi var, zeytinyagi var, aycicek yagi, susamyagi var.

http://psikologum.com/komiqoku.asp?ID=1001
mesele bizim icin Binbir Sifa St John Worth KAntaron oldugu icin. azizler Didim'de yetistiler. Aziz John'un yeri mekani okulu Efes'te olabilir. ama yetistikleri okul Didim'de.

biz yine Ortodoks Tutsuleri ve Timus Bezine devam edelim. iceriden baslamak lazim. disaridan tedbirlerle mumkun degil.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 3:53 AM
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buradaki evrim ile ingiltere'deki evrim cok farkli.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 3:08 AM
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bir de mumkunse Adnan Hoca, ingiltere'ye gonderilsin, dil ogrenmeye. agzindan baska ifadeler cikar, baska uygulamalar ve farkli sonuclar gorulur.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 3:07 AM
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Ahmet peygamberin ve torunlarinin kan parasini odemeyenin, helalligini almayanin, agzindan hayirli kelime cikmaz. eger komunizm ise mesele DHKPC PKK ise, ayri onlemler alinsin.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 3:02 AM
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ibrahim peygamberden, yakupogullarindan gelen kadinlar israilli midir? israillidir. Yildirim Byzd Ankara Savasina kadar heryer cemevi iken neden Ali BArdakcioglu tarihimizde cemevi yoktur der ki? Didim'de bir Meryem Ana Evi kurulmasi yonunde calismalar basladigini duydum.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 2:55 AM
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tesekkur ederim PAtriark BArtholomeos, hemen suraciktayim, Thistlethwaite ve JAcoby hanimlardayim musaitseler.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 1:40 AM
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siz daha dinlenmekle mesgulsunuz, ben Robin Williams Askin Gucu What Dreams Come True filminde, karisinin eline aldigi kalemle kagida yazmasi ile ilgileniyorum, Diego Garcia mektuplarinda.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 1:37 AM
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hos, bir diger konuda, baska mucbir sebepler var ve bizim haricimizde insafa ve izana kalmis bir konu. Subay Karisi Zeynep HAnimin hikayesini bilmiyorum mesela. siz ogrendiniz mi?

Ulastirma Bakani komisyon kurup "telefonla konusmayin" demis. guzel ben de bu dosyayi kapatayim o halde. yeri gelince acarsiniz nasil olsa.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 1:35 AM
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ben yine izninizi rica edecektim ama Geminin Ogretmeni BArtholomeos,

sayin Aileden Sorumlu Nimet Cubukcu, anlattiklarimda bir tane sunnete uygun olmayan konu bulabilirsiniz, o da Ahmet peygamberin zamaninda sorun teskil eden konulari yaparak acmasi uzerinden sunnete uygun.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an (science.manners) | June 4, 2008 1:28 AM
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eger altin, firat'in kurumasi ile ortaya ciktiysa, meryem'in altinci sisesi ile,

ve meryem'in bulundugu sehir su an kurumus ise, o zaman Israilli kadinlari izmir'e tasi turlarla.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 10:25 AM
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ikinci adim, ne internettir, ne cep telefonu olmustur, ne bilgisayardir, ne html dilidir ogrenilebilir. hatta feng shui'den once bu enstrumanlar calisilabilir. bu durumda ticaret ve ithalat ihracat ve ekonomi gorusunuz degisir. tum sistem bu iki kati yapi icerisinde isliyor.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 8:49 AM
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hayvanlarin dilini edinin Ingiltere'de. kim dinozordur, kim aslandir, kim orangutandir, kim timsahtir, kim kazdir, kim mamuttur, antropoloji egitimi alanlari getirin. Incil calismak mec-bu-ri-ye-tin-de-si-niz! hap aldiginiz gibi Incil okuyacaksiniz.

Nuh ogreneceksiniz, Musa'yi Muhammed'i birakacaksiniz. bu kolunuz cok gelisti. diger kolunuz ciliz. Misir ogreneceksiniz. Uruguay'da silahlar tank ile imha edilmisse bunu bir ile baglayabileceksiniz.

azizlerin dilini ogreneceksiniz. once hersey gorundugu gibidir, birkac kati daha vardir deyip, en az ikinci kata cikacaksiniz. cikmanin yolunu bulacaksiniz.

cesitli kanallarda yayinlanan cizgi filmler cok aciklayici. ama temele ihtiyac var. komik videolar da bu dille seyrediliyor ama arada kelimeleri isitmek zordur bu seviyenizde. hadi be adam had i be!

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 7:29 AM
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Kuran'in ikinci katina cikabilmeniz icin en azindan FEng Shui ogreniniz, Feng SHui El Yuz Ayak Beden Okuma dersi aliniz.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 7:15 AM
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izninizle sayin PAtriark BArtholomeos

AKP Hukumeti, insanlariniza FEng Shui ve Ikebana ogretiniz. ellerinizle hayatin nasil degistigini tecrube edin. elsanatlarinda herhangi bir degisim olmuyor.

o zaman Londra'da Ataturk karsiti linc edilmis bir memurun torununun Londra belediye baskani olmasina kader ve demokrasi demezsiniz ve Muhsin YAzicioglu'nun Londra'ya gitmesini izlemezsiniz.

Genelkurmay iptal, Ahmet Necedet Sezer iptal, Suleyman Demirel iptal. hukuk ile olacak deniyor ama Ingiltere'deki birlik butunluk yok.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 7:12 AM
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4. Lev.ent'te bir ilkogretim okulu var. bir 23 Nisan gunu, anne babalar buyukler cocuklar neseyle toplanmisken, okulun muduru cikti, bagirdi cagirdi, gelmeyen cocuklari disiplin kuruluna sevkedecegini soyledi, gunun onem ve anlamindan sahsinin bulundugu hal icerisinde bahsetti, indi. simdi bu kisi mudur mu?

Ali Kul denilen Milletvekili Ankara'da kalsaydi keske! Berlusconi'den telgraf gelecek kadar buyuk bir mesele ise biraz dikkat etmek lazim. zamaninda Altinelli Sanatkarlar sitesini kuran Lev.ent Alk.an var ya, o gitti BAlibey Haninda kahve icti. bagirmayin kardesim, bu sehirde bagirmayin. iste once azizler buyukler, o zaman sesiniz baska cikar. milletvekili baska anlam tasir. Hikmet Sahin Bulent Ecevit'e benziyor. zaten onunla gozgoze geldik.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 5:52 AM
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tesekkur eder, esenlikler dilerim.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 4:32 AM
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"hay senin dinine imanina" dediler de soyleyen kimse belli degil!

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 4:28 AM
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ne din ne iman, once huzur once idman. (id : bayram, nese) bira ister misiniz demistim de "esek sidigi icecek degiliz herhalde" dediler.

kim soylediyse helal hos olsun, bize boyle kandan candan insanlar yeter. simdi biraz etrafiniza bakin, bu dille konusanlari isitin. sonra yine gorusuruz. bu isin sarabi da var.

kizina Ali ile Ebubekir talipti de Ebubekir'e "senden yana allah hosnut degil" dedi. ben istemiyorum deseydi, herhalde gumusu kalmazdi. ama gumuslugunden getirdigi asikardi.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 4:23 AM
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ayakta yaparken ustune cis sicratmak kuzey irak'taki amerikan ordusunda ne demek sordunuz mu? hitabette bir damla kanin yayilmamasini ogrettiniz mi Kizilcaham'da? ey Azerbaycan, idman nerede idman!

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 3, 2008 4:06 AM
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Aziz Fransis'in Kilisemi Kur Nidasi ile Soyledigi Duasini Bina HAlinde sundum.

dilerim KEY paralari, Dunya Ticaret Merkezi taslarindan ayrilmistir, Tayyip Erdogan, disler kirilmasin vebali buyuk.

bize Ermenistan yeter. Gurculer nasil olsa harfleri ogrenir.

Posted by: lev.ent alk.an | June 3, 2008 3:28 AM
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sizin arpaniz bu kadar TAyyip Efendi.

Posted by: alkan.levent@windowslive.com | June 3, 2008 1:49 AM
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"yeter soz milletin" menderes gibi avucunu gosterir, gece onume cikar kibrit kutusunu sorar, milletin bilinci ne kadarsa ondan fazlasini sormaz.

Ali Kul derler bir vekil varmis Bursa'da, kul kalmis, butunden habersiz. erenler vardir ama varmaya yuzleri yetersiz. benden olanlarla is yaptilar benden habersiz. bir de ustune laf etti serefsiz oglu serefsiz.

Posted by: alkan.levent@windowslive.com | June 3, 2008 1:44 AM
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www.classicsnetwork.com/uploads/eviolanlarulkesi.gif

"biz bu adama bir gorunelim" "su adama bir gorunun bakalim" gibi bir ifade ile karsilastim bu siirin oncesine ait.

zaten ne olduysa bu siirden sonra oldu, bu sabah hatirladim. su bir yil gozumun onunden gecti, agladim.

kimi millete dayar, kocalara dayamaz, kimi kocalara dayar buyuculere dayamaz. kimi KAdikoy Kusdilli Efes HAn'da bogazina kursun sikar, siktirirlar, kiminin arkasinda kocalar gorunur aldatmazlar.

Posted by: alkan.levent@windowslive.com | June 3, 2008 1:35 AM
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Sayin Geminin BAsi PAtriark BArtholomeos

esenlikler dilerim,

www.classicsnetwork.com/showcreativeprint.asp?IDNo=1266

bu siirimi okumus muydunuz?

korkularindan emin olmak ne guzeldir, nasil taze bir havadir, olumu oldurmek timus bezi iledir.

Posted by: alkan.levent@ewindowslive.com | June 3, 2008 1:27 AM
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verbalizations
in "Courier New"

June 2, 2008 2:09 PM
6+2+2+8 2+9
18 11
9 11

blessings to all in our hearts, minds and in our letters, blessings to all.

Posted by: alkan.levent@windowslive.com | June 2, 2008 2:22 PM
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bir otobus ile geldiler, sabahin seriflerinde
parmaklarinin ucuna basarak yuruduler sehirde

uzerinde tulden sal vardi, kucuktu terlikleri
yayilan ayaklari gur saclari buyuk gozlukleri

kocamandilar sessiz sakin umutlar ile sevdali
acaba baktigimca bakanlar var mi diye merakli

belki guneste belki ruzgarda belki de evlerde
biraz nese biraz huzur biraz da olmak guvende

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 2, 2008 2:09 PM
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fourteen planes on a planeship for King and Queen
Apostels and MAry Jesus

14 Billions of USD
alk an.lev ent@windowslive.com

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 2, 2008 1:47 PM
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Cebel-i Tarik

nedir ogrendim tuzlu su ile tatli su
bir yolun sonundaki dagda olan degil
biri karla pinar suyu biri kaya tuzu
birini icer kanarsin birine susarsin

Posted by: Yerevant Alkan | June 2, 2008 12:34 PM
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bu ulkede bir buyukler meclisi var, soyledikleri zaman yaptigimiz buyukler. taraf tutan degil, hak hukuk gozeten buyukler. soyledikleri sorulmaz, kendileri bilir kendileri gosterir buyukler. korunacak dendi mi, korunacak, anlatilacak dedi mi anlatilacak. taraf tutmak yok, su tarafi dengeye getir, buraya sunu koy, o kadar.

Posted by: yerevant alkan | June 2, 2008 12:15 PM
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we must learn how to ease the Pain of Z, immediately.

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 2, 2008 9:08 AM
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Lorenzo's Oil,
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorenzo%27s_oil

August, France, Vatican
Algeria, St Augustus

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 2, 2008 9:04 AM
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as far as i know "aya bescus", the last two words of a prayer, is similar to "el fatiha", after the farewell of a person. in the morning i heard "who drop us is not from us".

Yves Saint Laurent, from Algeria is dead
chairman of Algerian Council is in Turkey Ankara

Oran is the birth city of YSL in Algeria,
Oran is a district in Ankara

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_of_Rome
a warning to Ahmet Necdet Sezer Government

tailor Andreas Idris Ankara Israel, Tzipi Livni in Mossad, Bathsheba and Uriah the Hittite, electromagnetics, space laboratory, temple of solomon, ankara, david,

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 2, 2008 9:00 AM
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Vartho Luminious

Aya Bescus

bir saat basi alti ya da yedi sabah bir aydinlik
acildi gumus sozler isittim iki satirlik bir dua
beyaz sakali icinden sevgi dolu gozlerle babalik
etraf sakin gorduklerim ailemin fertleri hayatta

Posted by: Lev.ent Alk.an | June 2, 2008 3:22 AM
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There is no such thing as a "soul" or "spiritual" element that survives the death of our bodies because the "soul" (personality, memories) is part of the body, located in the brain, and can be damaged while we are alive to create Memento (50 1st Dates) syndrome or Doctor Strangelove's arm syndrome. All of life is a biological chemical reaction, and those chemicals eventually stop reacting, causing death. There are no Pearly Gates nor Lake of Fire--those are figments of primitive, ignorant superstition. Judeo-Christianity probably started advertising afterlife theology in the Judah Maccabee time period as a way of recruiting (what else?)--suicide bombers!

This world is our life in its entirety, no let's go out and live!

Posted by: Jonathan | April 29, 2008 1:43 PM
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I would be a lot more impressed if is All Holiness was addressing problems in his own purview first. What about an independent American Orthodox Church? How about calling an Ecumenical Coucil to correct and update the numerous failures and corruptions afflicting worldwide Orthodxy today? Then, just maybe, the world would be willing to listen to him pontificate on "affairs of state." Isn't there something in Scripture directing us to deal with the splinter in our own eye first?

Posted by: Ken Tobin | April 29, 2008 1:17 PM
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Patriarch Bartholomew's words are compassionate, healing and inspiring. I'm not a Christian, but I believe that such words are badly needed and sadly lacking in religious discourse today. All the best to His All Holiness Bartholomew and all who pursue peace, understanding and compassion.

Posted by: Jeff | April 28, 2008 8:54 AM
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Jonathan,

As previously noted on this thread:

From the course notes of a large Catholic university's graduate theology class:

"Heaven is a Spirit state (no physical bodies abide there so where are the bodies????).

Christ's and Mary's bodies are not in Heaven. For one thing, Paul in 1 Cor 15 speaks of the body of the dead as transformed into a "spiritual body." No one knows exactly what he meant by this term.

Most believe that it to mean that the personal spiritual self that survives death is in continuity with the self we were while living on earth as an embodied person.

The physical Resurrection (meaning a resuscitated corpse returning to life), Ascension (of Jesus' crucified corpse), and Assumption (Mary's
corpse) into heaven did not take place.

The Ascension symbolizes the end of Jesus' earthly ministry and the beginning of the Church.

Only Luke's Gospel records it. The Assumption ties Jesus' mission to Pentecost and missionary activity of Jesus' followers The Assumption has
multiple layers of symbolism, some are related to Mary's special role as "Christ bearer" (theotokos). It does not seem fitting that Mary, the body of Jesus' Virgin-Mother (another biblically based symbol found in Luke 1) would
be derived by worms upon her death. Mary's assumption also shows God's positive regard, not only for Christ's male body, but also for female
bodies."

Amazing how this agrees with Professor Crossan and many other contemporary NT exegetes' conclusions based on attestations and stratums.

So where are the bodies? Originally in the typical burial places of those who died in the first century CE. Now the molecules/atoms from these now long-decomposed bodies circulate in the natural, recycling processes. Just think some Palestinian or Israeli have molecules/atoms in their bodies that once were in the bodies of Jesus, Mary and/or Joseph i.e. the ultimate in Ecumenism!!

April 26, 2008 9:44 AM |

Posted by: Concerned the Christian Now Liberated | April 28, 2008 7:05 AM
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I have heard the details from Queen Ester to the rolling stone. All that matters is that Jesus is sitting right here with me when I need Him. You can bet that he keeps me on target in an otherwise screwball world.

I get all I need from him only, because my fellow man is filled with
such heartless evil intent that without Christ I dont see how I could stand the onslaught. Its a cold unfriendly world out there fellas. Glory be to God

Posted by: Italian Baptist man | April 28, 2008 5:04 AM
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Paul never wrote about a resurrected Jesus. He wrote about a risen Jesus (in Greek, "risen" and "resurrected" are unalike), as if Jesus' body rotted away while his soul arose to Heaven, just like John Brown. The anonymous author of the "Gospel of Matthew" decided to one-up the spiritual JC by including a bonafide reanimated corpse in his story, and "Luke" and "John" (not really written by those men) followed suit, with John inventing the Doubting Thomas story. (Note I do not discuss Mark's Gospel. That ended with an empty tomb. The JC speech about poisonous snakes was added by someone else 100 years later.)

Posted by: Jonathan | April 28, 2008 3:44 AM
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Ray, you are a pathetic specimen of the human race.You are not only selfish, but you found it necessary to tell more than 300 million humans that they are nuts and you are the wise one. Why don't you creep in your borrow and resurface when your brain is thawed. As for Patriarch Bartoleme, he is truly a pius man, with love for humanity including people like Ray. Xristos Anesti-Alithos Anesti o Kyrios!

Posted by: Stelios | April 28, 2008 2:18 AM
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Ray, you are a pathetic specimen of the human race.You are not only selfish, but you found it necessary to tell more than 300 million humans that they are nuts and you are the wise one. Why don't you creep in your borrow and resurface when your brain is thawed. As for Patriarch Bartoleme, he is truly a pius man, with love for humanity including people like Ray. Xristos Anesti-Alithos Anesti o Kyrios!

Posted by: Stelios | April 28, 2008 2:17 AM
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Ray, you are a pathetic specimen of the human race.You are not only selfish, but you found it necessary to tell more than 300 million humans that they are nuts and you are the wise one. Why don't you creep in your borrow and resurface when your brain is thawed. As for Patriarch Bartoleme, he is truly a pius man, with love for humanity including people like Ray. Xristos Anesti-Alithos Anesti o Kyrios!

Posted by: Stelios | April 28, 2008 2:16 AM
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Ray, you are a pathetic specimen of the human race.You are not only selfish, but you found it necessary to tell more than 300 million humans that they are nuts and you are the wise one. Why don't you creep in your borrow and resurface when your brain is thawed. As for Patriarch Bartoleme, he is truly a pius man, with love for humanity including people like Ray. Xristos Anesti-Alithos Anesti o Kyrios!

Posted by: Stelios | April 28, 2008 2:14 AM
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Ray, you are a pathetic specimen of the human race.You are not only selfish, but you found it necessary to tell more than 300 million humans that they are nuts and you are the wise one. Why don't you creep in your borrow and resurface when your brain is thawed. As for Patriarch Bartoleme, he is truly a pius man, with love for humanity including people like Ray. Xristos Anesti-Alithos Anesti o Kyrios!

Posted by: Stelios | April 28, 2008 2:11 AM
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Well, it's good to see that there is a place on the internet where all the kooks can go to spread their vapid opinions. It's surprising that so many people cling to such ridiculous belief systems just because they lack the imagination to create something better. Folks, just because a tradition is 2000 or 4000 years old doesn't instill it with immediate validity. Hundreds of years after the European Enlightenment, it's distressing to see so many fools, um I mean followers, willing to believe the most absurb 'truths'.

We'd be better off as a species without this drivel.

Posted by: Ray | April 27, 2008 8:50 PM
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Arminius, Arminius, Arminius,

Hmmm, what bothers you now? Not agreeing with what many NT exegetes have concluded about the historic Jesus? What is being taught is some large Catholic university theology classes? The "fems" of Islam and/or Christianity? Limbo? Original sin? Profits instead of prophecies? Pretty wingie, talking, flying, fictional thingies? The demons of the demented? Being Born, Bred, and Brainwashed in Henry VIII's religion?

Posted by: Concerned the Christian Now Liberated | April 27, 2008 8:37 PM
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HAPPY Easter!

Posted by: viki | April 27, 2008 7:51 PM
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Why is it that God needs so many different sects and spokesmen here on Earth? His interpreted thoughts and expectations are the disaster of the species.
When is a spokesman for god just going to give us his cell number and go away to find their own preferably quiet path to enlightenment. If you can't produce him, he does not exist.

Posted by: David Crosby | April 27, 2008 7:32 PM
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... "MODERN-MORALiTY" outcome's & no more "Biblical Morality's" Schism's!???

Posted by: Correction one of many. | April 27, 2008 7:29 PM
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Will the Moderator PLEASE delete JJ's mindless drool from this blog?

Posted by: Arminius | April 27, 2008 5:08 PM
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To CCNL:

Stuff it.

Arminius

Posted by: Arminius | April 27, 2008 4:27 PM
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To Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew:

Thank you, and God bless, for a beautiful essay. You give me hope.

Arminius

Posted by: Arminius | April 27, 2008 4:25 PM
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you are preaching to the choir. the rules of God don't apply to unbelievers,at least not till they stand before the great white throne judgment. we as christians are not here to save the earth,we are here to spread the gospel of salvation. like Jesus said"let the dead bury the dead,you follow me". if you were not paying attention,the crowd who has taken up the global warming hoax has us believers in their gunsights.

Posted by: gary | April 27, 2008 4:08 PM
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You know Padre, I have often referred to the District of Columbia as the Altered State of the Union. Luckily I was advised, "If your leaders say to you, the Kingdom is in the sky..." tell them they are full of hogwash.

If people are in fact practicing Christianity in D.C., they had better take a real hard look at Corinthians 4:4. Or they may consider the basis of all humility, "I myself am nothing".

The other day the electricity feeding my home was off for a short duration. Entering the bathroom, I flipped the light switch and the light did not come on, stupid me.

Posted by: Mark W. | April 27, 2008 3:26 PM
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The resurection myth was Paul's way to win over the Greeks. Prior to Paul's Jesus hero, half-god Greeks, half human, half God such as Achilles, were mortal. But Paul, who was familiar with Homer and Greek mythology, added the twist that Jesus - half-man, half-god that he was - returned from the dead and was therefore one of the immortals.

That's all it was, the resurection myth, a way for Paul to win Greek minds. And it worked. His best work was in Greek cities. Notice the Jews, who did not share Paul's training in Homer (Paul was educated in Tarsus, a Greek City)rejected the resurection myth.

Resurection, today, is a weakness in the Christian syllabus. It is for weak minds who cannot grasp the full beauty of Christ's teachings without some sort of superhero aspect. As if Christ was not good enough unless he was immortal.

Christ WAS good enough. His teachings stand on their own as beautiful and worthy of following. So please just consider this - resurection is an insult to Jesus. If you love Jesus then you don't need resurection to follow his teaching.

Posted by: martiniano | April 27, 2008 3:21 PM
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thanks for your interesting review of the resurrection, and what it means for orthodox Christians. But when I read the comments, I fear for America. Pope Benedict was happy to so much religion in America. But the question is this. What is the quality of that religion? Where is its depth? What kind of thinking underlies it? It's no wonder we have people like Dawkins whose critique is as irrational as that of the religious manifestations he abhors.

Posted by: patrick | April 27, 2008 2:44 PM
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To Losing Hope,

God Bless You. We all are afraid - of something, perhaps everything. Fear nothing but God, man is condemned to his own selfishness - war, global warming, pride, arrogance, hatred, fear, every chain and bond of rebellion that Christ died to break and in so doing, He brought us life eternal, a spiritual freedom from fear. And after fear? It is replaced by love, for love is God. Forget books, dogma, righteousness - the dividers of the World - simply love God with all your mind and being, without condition, with the sweetness of your own self, and the Love of God with flow back into you, that same Love of the Risen Christ.

Fear not, for God loves you as he loves His Son, Christ Jesus.

Posted by: David James | April 27, 2008 1:33 PM
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To Losing Hope,

God Bless You. We all are afraid - of something, perhaps everything. Fear nothing but God, man is condemned to his own selfishness - war, global warming, pride, arrogance, hatred, fear, every chain and bond of rebellion that Christ died to break and in so doing, He brought us life eternal, a spiritual freedom from fear. And after fear? It is replaced by love, for love is God. Forget books, dogma, righteousness - the dividers of the World - simply love God with all your mind and being, without condition, with the sweetness of your own self, and the Love of God with flow back into you, that same Love of the Risen Christ.

Fear not, for God loves you as he loves His Son, Christ Jesus.

Posted by: David James | April 27, 2008 1:18 PM
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To the previous poster: please clean up your spelling and grammar so we can understand you at all.

Posted by: Jonathan | April 27, 2008 1:14 PM
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harold - YOU NEED TO TAKE YOUR MEDS AND SEE YOUR DOCTOR REAL SOON.

Posted by: Anonymous | April 27, 2008 1:00 PM
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and exactly what is that to do with global warming? NOTHING AT ALL.

Posted by: Anonymous | April 27, 2008 12:54 PM
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i think you said it correctly unless a person a people a religion a race or a people can first see and understand the truth about themselves even those truths that were inadvertantant or unitended and how those relate to others then they lack the understanding to truely solve the problems of the world. many of these problems merely ask for the acknowledgement of truth rather than an actual changing of reality. reality is percieved differently by different people of different experiences.... but always while seeing the same thing from different perpectives they may indeed all be seeing it quite correctly .. its kind of like thinking of all the different places an artist can start a painting from perspective wise. it makes a difference in what it looks like but all angles are true.. maybe the answer is to let people express the truth as they see it and others to understand the legitamacy of diffent experiences... but please check 4 truth i'm just a dyslexic artist

Posted by: artistkvip | April 27, 2008 11:51 AM
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Patriarch Bartholemew and all orthodox christians everywhere

Christ is risen!

Posted by: Chris | April 27, 2008 10:44 AM
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From the course notes of a large Catholic university's graduate theology class:

"Heaven is a Spirit state (no physical bodies abide there so where are the bodies????).

Christ's and Mary's bodies are not in Heaven. For one thing, Paul in 1 Cor 15 speaks of the body of the dead as transformed into a "spiritual body." No one knows exactly what he meant by this term.

Most believe that it to mean that the personal spiritual self that survives death is in continuity with the self we were while living on earth as an embodied person.

The physical Resurrection (meaning a resuscitated corpse returning to life), Ascension (of Jesus' crucified corpse), and Assumption (Mary's
corpse) into heaven did not take place.

The Ascension symbolizes the end of Jesus' earthly ministry and the beginning of the Church.

Only Luke's Gospel records it. The Assumption ties Jesus' mission to Pentecost and missionary activity of Jesus' followers The Assumption has
multiple layers of symbolism, some are related to Mary's special role as "Christ bearer" (theotokos). It does not seem fitting that Mary, the body of Jesus' Virgin-Mother (another biblically based symbol found in Luke 1) would
be derived by worms upon her death. Mary's assumption also shows God's positive regard, not only for Christ's male body, but also for female
bodies."

Amazing how this agrees with Professor Crossan and many other contemporary NT exegetes' conclusions based on attestations and stratums.

So where are the bodies? Originally in typical burial places of those who died in the first century CE. Now the molecules/atoms from these now long-decomposed bodies circulate in the natural, recycling processes. Just think some Palestinian or Israeli have molecules/atoms in their bodies that once were in the bodies of Jesus, Mary and/or Joseph i.e. the ultimate in Ecumenism!!

Posted by: Concerned the Christian Now Liberated | April 26, 2008 9:44 AM
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And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick.

And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other”

And he said O Lord God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.

“Lord God of my master Abraham”
“I pray thee”
“send me good speed this day”
“shew kindness unto my master Abraham”

And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither.
And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.

“Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian”
“the house of his master the Egyptian.”

If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

“If there come any unto you”
“bring not this doctrine”
“No man can serve two masters”
“receive him not into your house”
“for either he will hate the one, and love the other”
“shew kindness unto my master Abraham”
“Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian”
“the house of his master the Egyptian.”


There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.
But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?
For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.
When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.
For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.
For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.
Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.

“There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.”

“Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.”

Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!
But wisdom is justified of all her children.
And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him. And he went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to meat.
And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment,
And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.
Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.
And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on.
There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty.
And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?
Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged.
And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head.
Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet.
My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.
Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.
And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves, Who is this that forgiveth sins also?
And he said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.

“My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.”

“And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.”

This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,
His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.
Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.
Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.
This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.
Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.
And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them All. Thou art this head of gold.
And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.
And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

“Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.
And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them All. Thou art this head of gold.”

“There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.”

“he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them All”
“Thou art this head of gold.”
“a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head”

And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.

“third kingdom of brass”
“shall bear rule over all the earth”
“and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.”

“the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things”

“Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;”

“The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

“But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.
And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.”

“the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron”
“iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things”
“nailing it to his cross;”
“his hands the print of the nails”
“he shall rule them with a rod of iron”

Then Esther the queen, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew, wrote with all authority, to confirm this second letter of Purim.

This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:

“Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.”

“Esther the queen” “and Mordecai the Jew”
“wrote with all authority”
“to confirm this second letter of Purim”
“This second epistle”

“he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them All”
“Thou art this head of gold.”
“a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head”
“be told for a memorial of her.”

Esther=Easter

“I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance”

Posted by: harold | April 26, 2008 1:44 AM
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Dear Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew

Thank you for your beautiful and insightful thoughts on Easter, and the need for us as Christians to examine and purify our own hearts in order to be authentic and effective as Christians.

I thank you also for the great work you do not only for your own Church but also to bring about unity among all Christians and enter into meaningful dialogue with members of all religions.

Being born into an orthodox Christian tradition myself, the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in Kerala, India, I feel a special bond with Orthodox Christians and appreciate its non-Latin traditions. Being a part of the Roman Catholic Church, I feel doubly blessed for I enjoy the beauty and majesty of the Latin tradition anywhere in the world.

Wishing you and all the others who celebrate at the same time as you do, a wonderful Easter! May the Risen Lord Jesus Christ remain alive in our hearts everyday and unite all Christians in love!

Soja John Thaikattil
Sydney, Australia

PS: The first Indian woman, Sr Alphonsa, to be canonised by Pope Benedict XVI on 12 October 2008, is a member of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church.

Posted by: Soja John Thaikattil, Sydney, Australia | April 26, 2008 12:26 AM
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I am afraid.

Posted by: losing hope | April 25, 2008 5:27 PM
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A bible thumper and crazy JJ all at once. Blog masters, please, please clean up the mess.

Posted by: Concerned the Christian Now Liberated | April 25, 2008 2:11 PM
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Thank-you for making this post. I look forward to "On Faith" continuing discussing Orthodox Christianity.

Posted by: Steve R. | April 25, 2008 2:07 PM
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In Judah is God known: his name is great in Israel.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.

The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of man, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.
They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread, and call not upon the Lord.
There were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the righteous.
Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his refuge.
Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! when the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.

The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it.

Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass:
Because I will publish the name of the Lord: ascribe ye greatness unto our God.
He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.

For thus saith the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.
Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.
Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem; and say, Blow ye the trumpet in the land: cry, gather together, and say, Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the defenced cities.
Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction.
The lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant.

In Judah is God known
his name is great in Israel
great was the company of those that published it
Because I will publish the name of the Lord
Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem
the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way

the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.

the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter:

Passover, Purim, Hanukkah, Easter

Posted by: harold | April 25, 2008 10:38 AM
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all the people from every quarter

“the day when the Son of man is revealed”

Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.

“day of judgment”

And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

“which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell”

But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.
Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.

“the day when the Son of man is revealed”

And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground;
And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night.
And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.
But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter:
And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.

bake unleavened bread
all the people from every quarter

The four quarters of the world,
Passover, Purim, Hanukkah, Easter

Posted by: harold | April 25, 2008 10:19 AM
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Do you know why Jews celebrate Passover, Purim, Hanukkah
This is what the celabration of Easter really is, “to confirm this second letter of Purim”
It is a feast of Esther.
“the Jews should be ready against that day to avenge themselves on their enemies.”

Upon one day in all the provinces of king Ahasuerus, namely, upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar.
The copy of the writing for a commandment to be given in every province was published unto all people, and that the Jews should be ready against that day to avenge themselves on their enemies.
And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a good day. And many of the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them.

Then Esther the queen, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew, wrote with all authority, to confirm this second letter of Purim.
And he sent the letters unto all the Jews, to the hundred twenty and seven provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, with words of peace and truth,
To confirm these days of Purim in their times appointed, according as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had enjoined them, and as they had decreed for themselves and for their seed, the matters of the fastings and their cry.
And the decree of Esther confirmed these matters of Purim; and it was written in the book.

And the king Ahasuerus laid a tribute upon the land, and upon the isles of the sea.
And all the acts of his power and of his might, and the declaration of the greatness of Mordecai, whereunto the king advanced him, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia?
For Mordecai the Jew was next unto king Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the wealth of his people, and speaking peace to all his seed.

The four sides of the world,
Passover, Purim, Hanukkah, Easter

Posted by: harold | April 25, 2008 10:00 AM
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