Archive for the ‘Religion’ Category

Nothing crystallizes a Christian’s mind like Easter. Easter morning is the day when Christ’s victory over the grave ends. As glorious as that day was for Christ’s closest followers, the days leading up to it were far from glorious. On Good Friday, the day Christ was crucified, Christ was separated from His Heavenly Father:

Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

To most people, the thought of Christ being separated from His Father is difficult to imagine. Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth provides the explanation:

21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Right before He died, Christ, the Man who never sinned, had all of humankind’s sins placed on His shoulders. At that moment, theologians think that God the Father couldn’t look at His Son because of our sins.

God didn’t owe us a pathway to eternal life, far from it. In his letter to the church in Rome, the apostle Paul wrote “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Later in that same letter, Paul wrote “For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life.”

We deserved eternal separation from Christ’s love. God chose to not give us what we deserve. That’s called mercy. Instead, thanks to Christ’s death on that cruel Cross at Calvary, Christ gave us a pathway to eternal life in God’s presence. Christ gives us the opportunity that we don’t deserve. That’s called grace and it’s a magnificent thing.

For me, the most emotional part of the salvation story is the story of 2 thieves who were crucified with Christ. Here’s that story:

39 Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.” 40 But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” 43 And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

Let this picture remind you that you, like the second criminal, can be with Christ in Paradise if you trust in Christ as your Savior:

Happy Easter, everyone. If you haven’t invited Christ to be your Savior, I pray that you’ll invite Jesus into your heart to be your Savior. There’s no time like the present.

If you’ve already accepted Christ as your Savior, Halleluiah. Today is the best day for celebrating.

Kirsten Powers was once a level-headed journalist/pundit. Then she went over to CNN. The rest is history. She’s now just another wild voice of the left. This article is mostly about Gillette’s ad on toxic masculinity:

Powers’ article starts by saying “The razor maker Gillette is taking on toxic masculinity. Based on the furious reaction to this effort in some quarters, the message is more needed than perhaps we even realized.” At the risk of getting criticized, that’s a pile of BS. The Urban Dictionary defines toxic masculinity this way:

Any male action that doesn’t conform to liberal ideals of what a man SHOULD be in today’s society. If he isn’t sensitive, emotional and docile, he is accused of toxic masculinity.

That sounds like the definition of a sissy to me but that’s another matter. Here’s the heart of Powers’ argument:

Gutfeld asserted that Gillette failed to recognize that “most men” condemn bad behavior “whenever they see it.” How anyone can even utter a thought like this in light of the Catholic Church’s ongoing sex abuse crisis is a mystery. In society at large, we have story after story, case after case, of women who were sexually harassed and even assaulted and who were completely ignored and often demonized when they complained. The legal system turned a deaf ear to them or re-traumatized them when they filed complaints.

That’s a wimpy argument, mathematically speaking. According to Wikipedia, the number of Catholic priests has remained the same:

Worldwide, the number of priests in 1970 was 419,728.[2] In 2012, there were a total of 414,313 priests.[2] While the total number of priests worldwide has therefore remained about the same since 1970, the Catholic population has nearly doubled, growing from 653.6 million in 1970 to 1.229 billion in 2012.[2] In 2012 the global number of candidates for the priesthood also showed its first decline in recent years.[3] The number of parishes with no resident priest pastor has grown from 39,431 in 1970 to 49,153 in 2012.[2] The number of parishes without a priest does not include the thousands of parishes that have closed or merged for lack of priests.

In other words, the number of priests per parishioner has decreased dramatically. How can a person insist that Gutfeld’s argument lacks merit? The numbers state the opposite.

The ad is mostly about virtue-signaling. It’s also giving Gillette’s rivals the upper hand in the marketplace. Once men leave Gillette, they won’t return.

It’s apparent that Sherrod Brown’s understanding of Christianity is limited. In this op-ed, Sen. Brown quotes from the 25th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew:

As usual, President Donald Trump and far too many in Congress, self-professed Christians all, ignore the wisdom of Matthew 25: When did we ever see you hungry and not feed you? When did we ever see you sick and not help? The Lord answered, whenever you failed to do one of these things to someone who was being overlooked or ignored, that was me, you failed to do it for me.

Sen. Brown then continued to attempt to make his point, saying “This government shutdown is the latest example of how President Donald Trump has overlooked, ignored and betrayed American workers. Nearly 800,000 federal employees are going without a paycheck. President Trump said his shutdown has a “higher purpose than next week’s pay.” Tell that to the Transportation Security Administration agents I met in Cleveland, with children to feed and rent coming due.”

First, these workers are well-compensated. These families aren’t living paycheck-to-paycheck. Next, shame on politicians who use Scripture to win political fights. It’s time for Democrat politicians to stop misusing the Bible. The Bible was written to instruct us how to live Godly lives. It wasn’t written to help politicians win political fights.

They’re paid too little to begin with, often $12 or $15 an hour. Now thousands of these workers can’t work and aren’t getting paid, thanks to President Trump, and unlike direct government employees, they have no way of making up those lost hours and lost wages. Unless Congress acts, many of these workers won’t receive back pay when the government finally reopens. I’m working with my colleagues on legislation to fix that.

Sen. Brown knows that these workers will get back pay. President Trump, along with Republican senators like Lindsey Graham and Ted Cruz, have stated that federal employees will get backpay. Sen. Brown is intentionally being deceptive.

Based on this article, it’s apparent that Democrat senators haven’t read Article VI, Clause 3 of the US Constitution. That clause prohibits religious tests, saying “but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.”

Sen. Hirono, (D-HI), and Sen. Harris, (D-Calif.) recently sent questions “to District Court judge nominee Brian Buescher, [challenging] his suitability for the bench because he belongs to” the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic organization:

Sens. Mazie Hirono and Kamala Harris, in written questions to District Court judge nominee Brian Buescher, challenged his suitability for the bench because he belongs to this charitable Catholic group. Hirono claimed that the Knights have taken “extreme positions” such as affirming Catholic belief in traditional marriage and even asked Buescher, “If confirmed, do you intend to end your membership with this organization to avoid any appearance of bias?” In today’s Democratic Party, the new McCarthyism asks, “Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of the Knights of Columbus?”

It isn’t difficult to make the case that Sen. Hirono hates men. This video uses Sen. Hirono’s own words to make the case that she hates men:

This isn’t the first time Democrats have used a religious test:

Last year, during confirmation hearings, Sen. Dianne Feinstein noted the devotion of Judge Amy Coney Barrett and her family to the Catholic Church and admonished that “the dogma lives loudly within you, and that’s a concern.” Sen. Feinstein’s devotion to ignoring the Constitution speaks loudly about what’s her highest priority.

Christ has been called many things, including the Messiah, the Word, the Alpha and Omega and Lord of lords. Each Christmas, I read the Christmas story from Luke Ch. 2. I always pick the King James Version of the Bible for that reading because of its royal language:

1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. 2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) 3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. 6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. 8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

If ever there was a night when people beheld God’s majesty, it’s the night of Christ’s birth. This is the only time in history when people saw the Heavenly host. If ever there was a night when people felt excited and in the presence of God, that was the night. That’s the reason why He’s rightly called “the King of kings.”

While Jesus is worthy of endless praise, that isn’t the example he set. It’s that He entered time and space not as a majestic ruler but as a little baby reliant on His mother. The Hebrew nation was expecting a militaristic king like David. The Bible says that David was “a man after God’s own heart.” Jesus didn’t come to win military battles. Jesus came to transform hearts and minds.

Finally, the Heavenly host appeared to shepherds tending their flocks out in the countryside. They didn’t appear to the Sanhedrin or the priests who were of Aaron’s lineage. The Sanhedrin, Pharisees and the priests were considered the holy people of the nation of Israel.

Thank God that He cared about all people, not just the exalted people in society.

Christmas banned
Rambin’ Rose

PC = Plain Crazy
Over several decades, leftists have worked unceasingly to remove Christ from Christmas. What is –mas? There is no Christmas without Christ. (-mas comes from “mass” and that is also unacceptable to non-Christians.) Even atheists and members of non-Christian beliefs have happily celebrated the season for whatever personal pleasure that affirms their creed.

The majority of public schools (preschool through postsecondary) have banned “Christmas” from their annual concerts and programs for the last four or five decades. That has meant the name, the content, and the message. The majority of the parents and teachers may not have agreed but did nothing to oppose those authoritarian decisions.

This year the attacks have multiplied and reached a new level of insanity. Now even the symbolic colors of Christmas are vilified. White is racist, and red and green are “Christmas colors.” Principal Jennifer Sinclair of Manchester Elementary School in the Elkhorn Public Schools District near Omaha, Nebraska, imposed her personal hatred for everything Christmas by banning anything red or green, the carols, trees, reindeer, Santa, candy canes, Elf on the Shelf, all books with the Christmas theme…some of the items she prohibited by administrative mandate. Those items that were not banned by this grinch were hot chocolate, polar bears, penguins, yetis (bigfoots), Olaf, gifts, snowmen and gingerbread people.

Sinclair declared that candy canes were “Historically, the shape is a ‘J’ for Jesus. The red is for the blood of Christ and the white is a symbol of his resurrection.”
With the intervention from Liberty Counsel, the First Amendment was again clarified as not a requirement to eliminate Christmas symbols in an injudicious attempt to eliminate the traditional aspects of a federally- and state-recognized holiday. The act was labeled Orwellian—as it should have been. Liberty Counsel explained that it is completely legal to have a mix of sacred and secular in school programs and decorations. It further interpreted the rights of parents who object to the inclusion of the Christmas traditions to allow their children to opt out of the Christmas activities without denying the opportunity for others to participate in the Christmas traditions.

Liberty Counsel reported that the Elkhorn Public Schools reversed the principal’s unconstitutional directive following an investigation. The First Amendment prohibits censorship, not the elimination of religious practices.

Christmas favorites are under attack. Even Rudolph was claimed to demonstrate bullying, social misfits, shallow relationships, parental abuse, mental health issues, etc. Critics state that children who have bad childhoods will feel even more negative about themselves. On the other hand, commentators who admit to troublesome childhoods declared that this Christmas classic provided a Christmas escape.

Just a moment, was not the point of the Rudolph movie to celebrate diversity (a hallmark of the left)? Rudolph is different and marginalized until he gains his confidence and becomes “the leader of the pack.” He is a role model for those who are different (aren’t we all?). Should that not be celebrated instead of attacked? Even by the left? Oh, yes, he has another defect—he works for a white, Christian male. Yes, Santa is SAINT Nick.

A recent monthly columnist in the Times attacked the Hallmark Christmas classics as unrealistic. That may be true, but who does not enjoy a novel or a movie for a fancy-filled escape and does not assume that the plot is based on reality that should be attainable by all? The writer did not attack Star Wars. How many times has that movie had a sequel and great success at the box office? Who has seen Darth Vader at Crossroads or Tech HS lately?

The left seems out to destroy the entire cultural base of this country while embracing cultural practices such as female genital mutilation and sharia law of more recent arrivals that contradict our Constitution and identity.

Being a Minnesotan, I think I am familiar with snow—it’s white as it falls from the sky and a blanket of pure brilliance as it covers the ground. It turns yellow and brown after animals and vehicles contaminate it. NO, not according to the left—it’s racist. Let’s examine a list (found on FB without a listed source) of the rejected and forbidden carols of the season.

So far in this year’s War on Christmas, I have not heard/read that Frosty the Snowman will be banned for any reason than his gender. But I fear that someone soon will complain that he wears only a hat and smokes a pipe. But yet gender does not seem to be an issue in sports, public restrooms or even our schools.

The media have reported on community nativity scenes with two Josephs and another in Massachusetts with the Baby Jesus in a cage to protest the conflict on our Southern border (immigration). There is also a fence between the Magi and the Holy Family (deportation).

In both the Illinois Rotunda and the Cesar Chavez Park in San Jose, California, there are satanic displays in an attempt to legitimize the satanic-themed invasion of a Holy Christian celebration. They hope to minimize or even deny Christ’s birth and victory over Satan.

Christ is and will be eternally triumphant. But the war and its ugly battles will continue until the Return of Christ. Until then, the world will endure attacks from the left.
PC = Progressive Chaos

Reading ISAIAH’s recent email survey certainly makes me question whether they’ve violated the IRS’s prohibitions on 501(c)(3) organizations with regard to political campaigns. In their email, Laura Johnson, ISAIAH’s Lead Organizer, wrote “As we think about 2020, we want to dig in on the things that work and that make honest connections with voters, and stop doing the ones that people hate or that don’t get people engaged.”

Based on this information, it certainly sounds like they’ve overstepped their boundaries:

Some activities that the IRS has found to violate the prohibition on political campaigning include:

1. inviting a political candidate to make a campaign speech at an event hosted by the organization
2. using the organization’s funds to publish materials that support (or oppose) a candidate
3. donating money from the organization to a political candidate
4. any statements by the organization’s executive director, in his or her official capacity, that support a candidate
5. criticizing or supporting a candidate on the organization’s website
6. inviting one candidate to speak at a well-publicized and well-attended event, and inviting the other candidate to speak at a lesser function
7. inviting all candidates to speak at an event, but arranging the speaking event or choosing the questions in such a way that it is obvious that the organization favors one candidate over the others
8. conducting a “get out the vote” telephone drive in a partisan manner by selecting caller responses for further follow-up based on candidate preference, and
9. using the organization’s website to link to only one candidate’s profile.

“Making connections with voters certainly sounds like they’re “conducting a ‘get out the vote’ drive, doesn’t it? It certainly doesn’t sound like they’re conducting a voter registration drive, which is allowed. This confirms my suspicions:

Indigenous, Black, Hispanic and Muslim Minnesotans Partner in GOTV for Day of Action

This is a picture from ISAIAH’s blog. They aren’t trying to hide the fact that they’re engaging in a GOTV operation. As I highlighted earlier, the IRS has long found that GOTV operations as violating 501(c)(3) rules. I don’t know how a case could be more open-and-shut than that.

Saying that Dr. Eric Sprankle is a totally sick puppy is understatement. Dr. Sprankle is an associate professor at Minnesota State, Mankato. He’s also the subject of this article, which highlights Dr. Sprankle’s tweet that God didn’t get Mary’s consent when He impregnated her. Here’s Dr. Sprankle’s tweet:

The virgin birth story is about an all-knowing, all-powerful deity impregnating a human teen. There is no definition of consent that would include that scenario. Happy Holidays.

— Eric Sprankle, PsyD (@DrSprankle) December 3, 2018

A brief scan of Dr. Sprankle’s Twitter feed shows that he’s quite interested in Satanism. In my estimation, that makes his accusations about God more than a little questionable. Consider this passage in the Gospel of Luke:

26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; [e]blessed are you among women!”
29 But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” 34 Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”
35 And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
36 Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. 37 For with God nothing will be impossible.”
38 Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Nowhere in this passage does Mary object. Mary asked a simple question. The angel Gabriel answered Mary’s question. Once the angel answered Mary’s question, Mary replied “Let it be to me according to your word.”

Further, though it’s difficult to explain, Mary gave birth to Jesus as a virgin. I fully admit that I can’t explain it. That doesn’t mean it isn’t the truth. It simply means I can’t biologically explain how Mary got pregnant. It’s something I accept as an article of faith.

If Dr. Sprankle wants to say it’s crazy for me to accept things I can’t see as an article of faith, I have this simple reply: I’ve never seen Dr. Sprankle’s brain. Does that mean that trusting he has a brain mean I’m crazy? I rest my case.

Tim Walz just couldn’t resist the opportunity to play politics after the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting. After the shooting, Walz took to Twitter to say “As we learn more about what’s happened in Pittsburgh, my heart goes out to the victims, loved ones, first responders, and Jewish community at large. This is a pain that is all too familiar in America. We can and must take action to reduce gun violence in our communities.”

Does anyone seriously think he cares about the people killed by this gunman? I certainly don’t. This is just another attempt by Walz to curry favor with the gun grabber fringe in the DFL.

As we learn more about what’s happened in Pittsburgh, my heart goes out to the victims, loved ones, first responders, and Jewish community at large. This is a pain that is all too familiar in America. We can and must take action to reduce gun violence in our communities.

— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) October 27, 2018

It’s clear that Tim Walz has gone from being a reliable vote for the NRA to being a reliable vote for Michael Bloomberg. He’s no longer a centrist. He’s a leftist. On Nov. 6, it’s time to retire Tim Walz, Tina Smith and Keith Ellison.

KNSI’s Matt Demczyk’s article is great news for people who think the State Department’s refugee resettlement program needs to be slowed to a trickle. According to the article, “Catholic Charities of St. Paul and Minneapolis announced this week that it will shift its focus to programs that combat homelessness and help at-risk children.” The article also said that “The Trump administration increased security screening requirements and decreased the annual refugee arrival ceiling. Fewer than 950 refugees arrived in Minnesota last year, compared with more than 3,000 in 2016.”

Volunteer agencies (like Catholic Charities and Lutheran Social Services), aka Volags, have used the resettlement program as a cash cow. The State Department pays Catholic Charities and LSS $3,300 to resettle refugees. The Volags are required to spend $2,300 on the refugees. Once the Volags have found the refugees a place to live, they get to keep $1,000 for their services.

Based on this information, Catholic Charities’ refugee resettlement revenue dropped from $3,000,000 in 2016 to $950,000 in 2017. A $2,000,000 drop in revenues will require Volags to rethink their business model.