#christians — Public Fediverse posts

Pope Leo XIV gets India. Rome shouldn’t listen to India only when Christians are threatened

At Vatican audiences, gifts are usually the most visible and least consequential part of the encounter. Those presented…
#Italy #Europe #Europa #EU #Rome #'popeleoxiv' #Christians
https://www.europesays.com/italy/44986/

Celui qui veut garder sa vie, la perdra. Celui qui perd sa vie à cause du Fils de Dieu, la retrouvera.

#russie #russia #ukraine #chretiens #christians #france #franceinfo #cnews #bfmtv #Dieu #Christ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 | 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑| 𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐘𝐀𝐇| 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐀…

https://youtube.com/live/fCw4NLksQTs?si=PSuuzJr9YW4ng3LJ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 | 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑| 𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐘𝐀𝐇| 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐀…

https://youtube.com/live/fCw4NLksQTs?si=PSuuzJr9YW4ng3LJ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 | 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑| 𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐘𝐀𝐇| 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐀…

https://youtube.com/live/fCw4NLksQTs?si=PSuuzJr9YW4ng3LJ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 | 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑| 𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐘𝐀𝐇| 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐀…

https://youtube.com/live/fCw4NLksQTs?si=PSuuzJr9YW4ng3LJ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 | 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑| 𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐘𝐀𝐇| 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐀…

https://youtube.com/live/fCw4NLksQTs?si=PSuuzJr9YW4ng3LJ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 | 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑| 𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐘𝐀𝐇| 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐀…

https://youtube.com/live/fCw4NLksQTs?si=PSuuzJr9YW4ng3LJ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 | 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑| 𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐘𝐀𝐇| 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐀…

https://youtube.com/live/fCw4NLksQTs?si=PSuuzJr9YW4ng3LJ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 | 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐢𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑| 𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐘𝐀𝐇| 𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐀…

https://youtube.com/live/fCw4NLksQTs?si=PSuuzJr9YW4ng3LJ

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT 𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌 | 𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐖

https://youtube.com/live/quQ86niTqhA?si=sEkBjVBB7tzPK5do

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT 𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌 | 𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐖

https://youtube.com/live/quQ86niTqhA?si=sEkBjVBB7tzPK5do

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT 𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌 | 𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐖

https://youtube.com/live/quQ86niTqhA?si=sEkBjVBB7tzPK5do

𝐘𝐀𝐇 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐕 100 𝐁𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐎𝐋𝐃 𝐓𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌|𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐖

https://youtube.com/live/YrFJwbMSrC0?is=QTEXwBG0asNNznPr

YAH ONLY TV 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT LIVE STREAM|CLICK THE LINK BELOW

https://youtube.com/live/Zh5zPLnfdrc?si=qU8wb6e1qp8o-iHy

YAH ONLY TV 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT LIVE STREAM|CLICK THE LINK BELOW

https://youtube.com/live/Zh5zPLnfdrc?si=qU8wb6e1qp8o-iHy

YAH ONLY TV 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT LIVE STREAM|CLICK THE LINK BELOW

https://youtube.com/live/aMJfu_JQ8J8?is=OYZUBdEZbw4ytXKo

YAH ONLY TV 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT LIVE STREAM|CLICK THE LINK BELOW

https://youtube.com/live/aMJfu_JQ8J8?is=OYZUBdEZbw4ytXKo

YAH ONLY TV 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT LIVE STREAM|CLICK THE LINK BELOW

https://youtube.com/live/aMJfu_JQ8J8?is=OYZUBdEZbw4ytXKo

YAH ONLY TV 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT LIVE STREAM|CLICK THE LINK BELOW

https://youtube.com/live/aMJfu_JQ8J8?is=OYZUBdEZbw4ytXKo

YAH ONLY TV 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT LIVE STREAM|CLICK THE LINK BELOW

https://youtube.com/live/aMJfu_JQ8J8?is=OYZUBdEZbw4ytXKo

Sending someone #deaththreats is ever okay. However, I also believe that telling someone that they deserve #god 's wrath and that they will experience #eternal #torture by said god just for existing, I think that is also a kind of death threat. If nothing else it's a form of #dehumanization. But this is just how most #Christians talk to and about the #LGBT community. How can we have productive dialogue when one side believes the other side to be subhuman and wholly worthy of eternal #damnation?

YAH ONLY TV 100 BIBLE OLD TESTAMENT & BIBLE RADIO LIVE STREAM |CLICK THE LINK BELOW

https://youtube.com/live/sNACle2yNes?si=sWTWkyw5ZK7Bo2-P

For my Christian Friends:

https://fineartamerica.com/featured/christian-strength-art-bible-verse-philippians-4-13-gift-sharon-cummings.html

#christian #christianart #christians #christiangifts #fedigiftshop #bible #bibleverse #bibleverses #christianity #scripture #biblestudy #newtestament #church #strength #hope #faith

Love Is...

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/love-1-corinthians-13-bible-verse-christian-art-wedding-gift-sharon-cummings.html

#love #bibleverse #bibleverses #bible #faith #hope #wedding #weddings #weddinggifts #weddinginspiration #marriage #engagement #savethedate #romance #romantic #christian #christianart #christians #christianity #gifts #fedigiftshop #SharonCummingsArt

Love Never Fails...

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/love-never-fails-1-corinthians-13-christian-bible-verse-sharon-cummings.html

#love #bibleverse #bibleverses #bible #faith #hope #wedding #weddings #weddinggifts #weddinginspiration #marriage #engagement #savethedate #romance #romantic #christian #christianart #christians #christianity #gifts #fedigiftshop #SharonCummingsArt

Samaritanism

Samaritanism is an Abrahamic monotheistic, ethnic religion. It comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, & legal traditions of the Samaritan people.

Often preferring to be called Israelite Samaritans, who originated from the Hebrews & Israelites. They began to emerge as a relatively distinct group after the Kingdom of Israel was conquered by the Neo-Assyrian Empire during the Iron Age. The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the 4th, & penultimate, stage of ancient Assyrian history.

Central to their continuity as an Indigenous Heritage in the Holy Land is keeping the Patriarchal & Mosaic covenant as specified in the Samaritan Torah. Samaritans believe this is the original & unchanged version of the Pentateuch (which is the first 5 books of the Hebrew & Christian bible) since Moses & the Israelites at Mount Sinai.

The Abisha Scroll is traditionally held by the community to be the oldest existing scroll written by Abisha, son of Aaron the priest, around 3,000 years ago based on living tradition. However, Jewish & Christian theologians have made attempts to dispute this claim which proved unsatisfactory.

Judaism claims Samaritanism developed right alongside their own religion. Samaritanism asserts itself as the true preserved form of the monotheistic faith that the Israelites kept under Moses. Samaritan belief also holds that the Israelites’ original holy site was Mount Gerizim, near Nablus, the State of Palestine (West Bank).

They also believe that Jerusalem only attained importance under Israelite dissenters who had followed Eli (In the Book of Samuel, Eli was a priest & judge of the Israelites in the city of Shiloh) to the city of Shiloh.

The Israelites who remained at Mount Gerizim would become the Samaritans in the Kingdom of Judah. Mount Gerizim is revered by Samaritans as the location where the Binding of Isaac occurred. In comparison to the Jewish belief that it occurred at Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.

Today there are only about 900 registered communal members. This puts Samaritanism as 1 of the smallest ethnoreligious groups globally in the Abrahamic faiths. Samaritans believe that this is a prophecy fulfilled from the scriptures: “You’ll be left few in number.”

Though they hope for a future time when a prophet like Moses known as the “Taheb” (Restorer) will perform 3 signs, namely the jar of manna, the staff of Moses, & Cherubim, or the Golden Candlestick.

This time period they believe is when an era of Divine Favor would return, & the hidden tabernacle of Moses would miraculously be revealed for the Israelite people & Mount Gerizim is restored to its former glory.

Samaritans trace their history, as a separate entity, to a period soon after the Israelites’ arrival into the “Promised Land.” Samaritan historiography traces the schism to High Priest Eli leaving Mount Gerizim, where stood the 1st Israelite altar in Canaan, & building a competing altar in nearby Shiloh.

The dissenting group of Israelites who followed Eli to Shiloh would be the ones who, in later years, would head south to settle in Jerusalem (the Jews). Whereas the Israelites who stayed on Mount Gerizim, in Samaria, would become known as the Samaritans.

Genetic studies in 2004 suggest that Samaritans’ lineages trace back to a common ancestor with Jews in the paternally-inherited Jewish high priesthood (Cohanim) temporally near to the period of the Assyrian conquest of the Kingdom of Israel. They’re probably descendants of the historical Israelite population. The Cohanim refers to the Jewish priestly class, male descendants of Aaron the priest.

The Hasmonean king, John Hyrcanus, destroyed the Mount Gerizim Temple & brought Samaria under his control around 120 BCE. This led to a long-lasting sense of mutual hostility between the Jews & Samaritans.

From this point, the Samaritans likely sought to consciously distance themselves from their Judean brethren. Both peoples came to see the Samaritan faith as a religion distinct from Judaism. By the time of Jesus, Samaritans & Jews deeply disparaged one another, as shown by Jesus’ Parable of the Good Samaritan.

The main beliefs of Samaritanism are:

• There’s 1 God, Yahweh, the same God recognized by the Jewish prophets.
• The Torah is the only true holy book & was given by God to Moses. The Torah was created before the creation of the world & whoever believes in it is assured a part in the world to come. The Torah’s status in Samaritanism as the only holy book causes them to reject the Oral Torah, the Talmud, & all the prophets & scriptures, except for a version of the Book of Joshua (which they don’t hold as Scripture), whose book in the Samaritan community is significantly different from the Book of Joshua in the Jewish “Bible.” Moses is considered to be the last of the line of prophets.
• Mount Gerizim, not Jerusalem, is the 1 true sanctuary chosen by God. The Samaritans don’t recognize the sanctity of Jerusalem & don’t recognize the Temple Mount, claiming instead that Mount Gerizim was the place where the Binding of Isaac took place.
• The Apocalypse, called “the day of vengeance,” will be the end of days. When an entity called the Taheb (basically the Jewish Messiah equal) that comes from the tribe of Joseph will come, be a prophet like Moses for 40 years & bring about the return of all the Israelites, following which the dead will be resurrected. The Tahib will then discover the tent of Moses’ Tabernacle on Mount Gerizim, & will be buried next to Joseph when he dies.

The Samaritans have retained the institution of a high priesthood & the practice of slaughtering & eating lambs on Passover Eve. They celebrated Pesach, Shavuot, & Sukkot. But they use a different method from that used in mainstream Judaism in order to determine the dates annually.

For example, Yom Teru’ah (the biblical name for Rosh Hashanah), at the beginning of Tishrei (This is the 1st month of the civil year & the 7th month of the ecclesiastical year in the Hebrew calendar.), isn’t considered a New Year as it is in Rabbinic Judaism.

Their Sabbath is observed weekly by the Samaritan community every week from Friday to Saturday, beginning & ending at sundown. For 24 hours, the families gather together to celebrate the rest day: all electricity with the exception of minimal lighting (kept on the entire day) in the house is disconnected, no work is done, & neither cooking nor driving is allowed.

The time is devoted to worship which consists of 7 prayer services, reading the weekly Torah portion, spending quality time with family, taking meals, rest & sleep, & visiting other members of the community.

Passover is particularly important in the Samaritan community, climaxing with the sacrifice of up to 40 sheep.

The Counting of the Omar remains relatively unchanged. The Counting of the Omar is a ritual in Judaism that consists of a verbal counting of each of the 49 days between the holidays of Passover & Shavuot. However, the week before Shavuot is a unique festival celebrating the continued commitment Samaritanism has maintained since the time of Moses.

During Sukkot, the Sukkah (the temporary hut built for use during Sukkot) is built INSIDE of houses, instead of OUTSIDE like mainstream Judaism. This Samaritan tradition is traced back to the persecution of the Samaritans during the Byzantine Empire.

The roof of the Samaritan Sukkah is decorated with citrus fruits & branches of palm, myrtle, & willow trees. This is in accordance with the Samaritan interpretation of the 4 species designated in the Torah for the holiday. The 4 species are 4 plants (the etrog, lulav, hadass, & aravah) mentioned in the Torah as being relevant to the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.

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#120BCE #4Species #Aaron #Abisha #AbishaScroll #AbrahamicFaiths #AncientAssyria #Apoclypse #Aravah #BindingOfIsaac #BookOfJoshua #BookOfSamuel #ByzantineEmpire #Canaan #Cherubim #Christians #CitrusFruits #Cohanim #CountingOfTheOmar #Eli #Etrog #GoldenCandlestick #Hadass #Hasmonean #HebrewCalendar #Hebrews #HighPriestEli #HighPriesthood #IndigenousPeoples #IronAge #IsraeliteSamaritans #Israelites #Jerusalem #Jesus #Jewish #JewishProphets #Jews #Joseph #Judah #KingJohnHyrcanus #KingdomOfIsrael #Lulav #Manna #Messiah #MosaicCovenant #Moses #MountGerizim #MountSinai #Myrtle #Nablus #NeoAssyrianEmpire #OralTorah #Palestine #ParableOfTheGoodSamaritan #Passover #PatriarchalCovenant #Pentateuch #Priest #PromisedLand #RabbinicJudaism #RoshHashanah #Sabbath #SamaritanTorah #Samaritanism #Shavuot #Shiloh #StaffOfMoses #Sukkah #Sukkot #Tabernacle #Taheb #Talmud #TempleMount #Tishrei #Torah #WestBank #Willow #Yahweh #YomTeruAh

A quotation from The Bible

And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common. […] Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them down at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
 
[Τοῦ δὲ πλήθους τῶν πιστευσάντων ἦν καρδία καὶ ψυχὴ μία, καὶ οὐδὲ εἷς τι τῶν ὑπαρχόντων αὐτῷ ἔλεγεν ἴδιον εἶναι ἀλλ᾽ ἦν αὐτοῖς ἅπαντα κοινά. […] οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐνδεής τις ἦν ἐν αὐτοῖς· ὅσοι γὰρ κτήτορες χωρίων ἢ οἰκιῶν ὑπῆρχον, πωλοῦντες ἔφερον τὰς τιμὰς τῶν πιπρασκομένων καὶ ἐτίθουν παρὰ τοὺς πόδας τῶν ἀποστόλων, διεδίδετο δὲ ἑκάστῳ καθότι ἄν τις χρείαν εἶχεν.]

The Bible (The New Testament) (AD 1st - 2nd C) Christian sacred scripture
Acts 4: 32, 34-35 [KJV (1611)]

More info about (and translations of) this quote: wist.info/bible-nt/79660/

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #bible #newtestament #actsoftheapostles #apostles #charity #Christianity #Christians #commongood #commune #community #donation #incommon #need #property #redistribution #sharethewealth #sharing

A quotation from The Bible

The faithful all lived together and owned everything in common; they sold their goods and possessions and shared out the proceeds among themselves according to what each one needed.
 
[πάντες δὲ οἱ πιστεύοντες ἦσαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ καὶ εἶχον ἅπαντα κοινὰ καὶ τὰ κτήματα καὶ τὰς ὑπάρξεις ἐπίπρασκον καὶ διεμέριζον αὐτὰ πᾶσιν καθότι ἄν τις χρείαν εἶχεν·]

The Bible (The New Testament) (AD 1st - 2nd C) Christian sacred scripture
Acts 2:44-45 [JB (1966)]

More info about (and translations of) this quote: wist.info/bible-nt/79533/

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #bible #newtestament #acts #actsoftheapostles #Christians #commune #community #faithful #money #ownership #property #sharing #togetherness

#Missionaries accused of #illegally giving #gadgets to isolated #Amazontribe

https://www.popsci.com/technology/missionary-gadget-amazon-tribe-contact/

#breakingtheLAW #christians #brazil #BRASIL

On "real Christians."

This is a lightly edited version of a post I first made several years ago on Facebook. Sadly, it never seems to stop being relevant.

===

Every time I hear #Christians saying "they're not real Christians" or "this isn't real #Christianity," about other Christians doing something that brings discredit on the ##religion, my skin crawls.

Because if they're not Christians ... well, neither was Constantine. Neither were the generations of #monarchs who followed, invoking the divine right of kings. Neither were the #popes and #bishops and #priests—and note that I'm not just talking about #Catholics here—who almost universally supported and legitimized the idea that #God had put our leaders in place, and to oppose them was #blasphemy.

Neither were the #Crusaders, the #Inquisitors, the #witch-burners. Neither were the soldiers who fought generations of #religious #wars within #Christendom, including the Thirty Years' War that wrought devastation equal to both World Wars. Neither for that matter were the politicians who gave us what we *call* the First World War, in which most of the major combatants on both sides proudly claimed the Christian label, and in several cases were still official theocracies.

Neither were the Christians who rounded up their #Jewish neighbors in the Second for delivery to the camps—and if you claim that was the work of a #neopagan cult that maybe a few thousand people total ever took seriously, I'll laugh in your face before cutting you out of my life. (But I'll remember who and what you are, believe me.) Neither were the people who used Christianity to justify #conquest and #slavery and #genocide and #segregation, for centuries, and in many cases still do.

In short, if you say these people aren't Christians, you're saying most Christians throughout the *entire history of the religion* weren't Christians. You can die on that hill if you really want to. But you'll die alone, and most likely at the hands of your fellow believers.

Christians are, as a rule, no worse than other people. But you're no better, either. Do you *want* to be better? Great, that's what everyone else wants too.

So prove it. Stop making excuses. Own these people, and *then* confront them. Admit that they're yours, and then expunge them. Scourge the heretics with fire and sword, and send them wailing into the outer darkness tearing their hair and gnashing their teeth. Cast them into the lake of fire.

If you do this, if you have first the moral and then the physical courage to face this monstrosity in your midst unflinchingly and with full knowledge of what it is, then you'll have plenty of help. #Jews and #Muslims and #Hindus and #Wiccans and #atheists and all the rest won't just cheer you on. We'll be right there by your side.

And while there are in the US still more Christians than all of us put together, there aren't more of *this kind* of Christian than all decent human beings put together. We can't fight them alone. Neither can you. Together we can—as long as you're honest about what that means.

If you don't? We'll be right back to #Torquemada, with a high-tech gloss. You might live a little longer than the rest of us, but not by much, and you'll go to the rack and the stake and the oven with the words of your own holy writ shouted in your ears.

Those are the only two options. Your choice.

===

Addendum:

I have a great many friends who grew up Christian, and left the religion at some point. Despite having made the choice to walk away from their childhood faith, they often feel the reflexive need to defend the people they were, and in most cases their families still are.

Those who are still Christians, of whom I trust I also have a fair number left, may feel the same impulse—although interestingly, it seems to me they're less reflexive on the whole than the former believers.

We're all made of our #history. The people we were are still the people we are, in some corner of our brains. And there are complexities about being on the inside of any group that outsiders can never quite grasp. It's similar to the way I am about the #military, which is practically a religion in its own right.

Okay. Stipulated, as lawyers say on TV and maybe in real life too. I get it. Now please get this:

Unless you *grew up* as a member of a religious minority, you will most likely never understand, on a gut level, the terror the majority religion inflicts by its very existence.

This isn't unique to Christianity, to be clear. Every majority religion, in every time and place, has unconsciously (and often consciously as well, to be sure) been casually brutal to infidels and heretics. Nature of the beast. But here in the US, that beast invariably carries a cross, so there's the focus of my attention.

You don't have to understand it. Just accept that it exists, and it leaves scars. I can live with those scars, and so can nearly everyone else who bears them. That *stigma*, if you will.

But if you cut us, we still bleed. We'll heal from those wounds too, and add new scars to the old. Long after the bleeding stops, we'll remember who gave them to us.

Here I stand; I can do no other. How about you?

In #reformed and #evangelical circles we really lack an important element in #faith #formation - the ability to look to those #Christians who have gone before us and offer a particularly faithful exhibition of conformity to #Christ.

I’ve been attempting to fix this by introducing the congregation I serve to some of our great brethren from the past.

#Prav started working as a #cooperative since #PravConf (two weeks already). We were working on the bye-laws and looking for people willing to join as members for over 2 years already.

Now we have https://prav.app/coop/ which lists the Office bearers, Board of Directors and Members.

Board is elected by members for a two year term. So far we have #Dalits, #OBCs and #Christians in the board. Inviting #underrepresented to join as members and serve on the board.

#XMPP #FreeSoftware #democracy

All Is In His Hands...For my Christian friends.

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/all-is-in-his-hands-with-words-sharon-cummings.html

#christian #christians #christianart #christianity #universal #spiritual #spirituality #god #jesus #bible #bibleverse #bibleverses #scripture #scriptures #church #faith #hope by #SharonCummingsArt

#God #Forgives #Rapists & #Murderers… But Not This?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ULU27JMtOk

#Christians claim that God is all-forgiving—so why does the #Bible say there's one sin He can’t #forgive? In this video, I break down the doctrine of #blasphemy against the #HolySpirit, examining the verses, #contradictions, and #theological confusion surrounding it. We also expose how #Christian #pastors and #apologists can’t even agree on what this sin actually is or if it can be committed today.

#SUNDAYSCHOOL

Happy Sunday to my Christian Friends.

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/truly-blessed-christian-art-sharon-cummings.html

#faith #faithful #christian #christians #christianity #bible #bibleverse #bibleverses #scripture #scriptures #jesus #jesuschrist #christ #hope #garden #gardening #gardens #gardener #homedecor #homedecoration #SharonCummingsArt #flowers #floral #flower

For my Christian Friends on Sunday.

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/he-cares-for-you-christian-hope-art-sharon-cummings.html

#faith #faithful #christian #christians #christianity #bible #bibleverse #bibleverses #scripture #scriptures #jesus #jesuschrist #christ #hope #garden #gardening #gardens #gardener #homedecor #homedecoration #SharonCummingsArt #daisy #daisies

A Well Watered Garden for my Christian friends!

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/a-well-watered-garden-christian-art-sharon-cummings.html

#faith #faithful #christian #christians #christianity #bible #bibleverse #bibleverses #scripture #scriptures #jesus #jesuschrist #christ #hope #garden #gardening #gardens #gardener #homedecor #homedecoration #SharonCummingsArt

For my Christian friends. He Cares About You.

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/he-cares-about-you-christian-art-sharon-cummings.html

#christ #christian #christians #christianity #christianart #jesus #bible #bibleverses #bibleverse #scripture #scriptures #gospel #gospels #newtestament #faith #jesuschrist #hope

For my Christian friends.

dry land travelers
pilgrimage into the deep
find God's creation

#dailyhaikuprompt pilgrimage

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/god-is-the-creator-of-all-things-sharon-cummings.html

#faith #hope #whale #whales #sea #ocean #oceanlife #faithhopeandlove #jesus #art #artwork #christian #christians #christianity #bible #bibleverse #bibleverses #scripture #church #homedecor #homedecorating #buyintoart by #SharonCummingsArt #corinthians #words #wordsofwisdom #wisdom #handmade #poetry #haiku #smallpoems #smallpoem #shortpoems

For my Christian friends...

with faith hope and love
things that will last forever
love is the greatest

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/faith-hope-love-last-forever-sharon-cummings.html

#faith #hope #love #faithhopeandlove #jesus #art #artwork #christian #christians #christianity #bible #bibleverse #bibleverses #scripture #church #homedecor #homedecorating #buyintoart by #SharonCummingsArt #corinthians #words #wordsofwisdom #wisdom #handmade #poetry #haiku #smallpoems #smallpoem #shortpoems #shortpoem

For my Christian friends...comfort in the Word.

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/sleep-in-peace-christian-art-sharon-cummings.html

#art #artwork #colorful #colorfulart #christ #jesus #jesuschrist #bible #bibleverses #bibleverse #scripture #psalms #christian #christians #christianity #church #sunday #handmade #flowers #flower #floral #floralart #hummingbirds #hummingbird #garden #gardens #gardening #SharonCummingsArt #handmade #handmadeart #handmadeartwork

My garden got a bit frozen yesterday morning...but waiting for the Spring!! I know it will all come back. :)

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/rejoice-in-this-day-christian-art-sharon-cummings.html

#rejoice #art #artwork #colorful #colorfulart #christ #jesus #jesuschrist #bible #bibleverses #bibleverse #scripture #psalms #christian #christians #christianity #church #sunday #handmade #flowers #flower #floral #floralart #hummingbirds #hummingbird #garden #gardens #gardening #SharonCummingsArt #handmade #handmadeart #handmadeartwork

Real Christians LOVE God, others and themselves...May you be blessed...

ART
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/christian-home-blessing-spiritual-cross-art-sharon-cummings.html

#cross #faith #faithhopeandlove #hope #blessing #blessings #christian #christians #christianity #bible #bibleverses #bibleverse #jesus #christianart #prayer #prayers #praying #family #SharonCummingsArt

I knew this was coming. Now that the #SupremeCourt is packed with #Christofascist #zealots with no respect for established precedent, and who have demonstrated an eagerness to rewrite #Constitution in their ideological image, #Christians are filing #lawsuits challenging the #JohnsonAmendment—the #IRS rule that prevents #religiousOrganizations from engaging in #politics, and influencing #legislation. This is another step towards merging #Christianity with the #government.

https://www.christianpost.com/news/unconstitutional-churches-file-lawsuit-against-johnson-amendment.html

#Ohio #Restaurateur who #boycotted “anti-#Christian” #Olympics #arrested for #rape, #kidnapping & #attemptedmurder

#BobbyGeorge made #headlines after calling the #OpeningCeremony "#insulting" to #Christians. Now he's #accused of brutally #assaulting a young #woman.

#Women #Transgender #LGBTQ #LGBTQIA #Conservatives #Extremism #Fascism #Religion #RepublicanParty #Hate #Bigotry #Violence #Misogyny #SexualAssault #Rape #ThePartyOfHate #EmptyThePews

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2024/08/restaurateur-who-boycotted-anti-christian-olympics-arrested-for-rape-kidnapping-murder/

@thejapantimes
"Christians are not known as a big voting group. They don’t vote." - #TheMangoMoron (BTW: Note the *THEY*.) #ImNotChristian

#Evangelicals *dominate* the #GOP. And the #DeepSouth is Red almost entirely due to #Christians voting #Republican. "#FamilyValues" is their theme song.

#TrumpIsAnIdiot

(BTW: #Ingraham tried & failed to give him an Out the same way #Hannity did with his #DictatorOnDayOne remark.)

'#TheOffice' #actress says she objected to '#superjudgy' #Christian #joke about #gay #character.

She didn't believe it #accurately #portrayed #Christians or the #love of #Christ.

#Women #Transgender #LGBTQ #LGBTQIA #Spirituality #Religion #Entertainment #TV #Hate #Bigotry #Homophobia

https://www.christianpost.com/news/office-actress-says-she-refused-super-judgy-christian-joke.html

Hurrah for modern computers! Today I needed the 350th root of a number. It took me longer to type the command than for it to calculate it for me.

Someone on a #podcast was all astounded that after 350 years there were 6 million #Christians. That's a growth rate of only about 4% per year. And when you consider the really high growth rate early years documented in the #ActsOfTheApostles, the growth rate after that was *way* lower than 4%.

New Posts:

#Separationofchurchandstate is a #fundamental requirement

#Democrats to #Minnesotans: #Government trumps your #religion

A new survey provides a snapshot of #ChristianNationalism in #America

#France moves to enshrine #abortionrights in its #constitution

#Chaplains don’t belong in #publicschools

#Scripture-quoting #Alabama judge in #IVF case bridges natural law and #Christian #nationalism

What #Fundamentalist #Christians See in #Trump

https://flipboard.com/@dustcircle/church-state-separation-g5hp0m0uy
#SOCAS