marechols

So what if parallel universes really do exist?

rotflol

There are insanities being tolerated all over the place. I tell people: Currently one in every 33 people you encounter is bipolar. I guess because I was raised by one I have a tendency to more fully understand the impact of that statement. Bipolar people are pathological liars. Bipolar people will go out of thier way to manipulate the situation to fit their reality, including murder. Bipolar people, when angered, have the strength of 4-6 grown men. People who are in ignorance of the powers of persuasion that bipolar people have tend to go along with them, until they realize, "This is nuts!" Bipolar people use fear and intimidation, and if they are in a position of power, they have people do their diry work for them. Which is why I had to include my dad and youngest brother in the protective order I had to obtain against my mother. In and of themselves, they were harmless, but she could make them do her bidding because they would not reason for themselves, and they didn't dare cross her for fear of the consequences. And that is just part of the reason why prejudice is getting worse instead of better in this supposedly enlightened age... Have a blessed day!

Just so you know--there are places in the bible that refer to other books...and the bible is not the only book on the earth that refers to God. It was translated under the authority of King James: "James gave the translators instructions intended to guarantee that the new version would conform to the ecclesiology and reflect the episcopal structure of the Church of England and its beliefs about an ordained clergy."and also please note: "The Authorized King James Version is an English translation of the Christian Holy Bible begun in 1604 and completed in 1611 by the Church of England.[3] Printed by the King's Printer, Robert Barker,[4] the first edition included schedules unique to the Church of England; for example, a lectionary for morning and evening prayer.[5] This was the third such official translation into English; the first having been the Great Bible commissioned by the Church of England in the reign of King Henry VIII, and the second having been the Bishop's Bible of 1568.[6] In January 1604, King James I of England convened the Hampton Court Conference where a new English version was conceived in response to the perceived problems of the earlier translations as detected by the Puritans,[7] a faction within the Church of England." But the original is not even the one in use today: "The Revised Version (or English Revised Version) of the Bible is a late 19th-century British revision of the King James Version of 1611. It was the first and remains the only officially authorized and recognized revision of the King James Bible. The work was entrusted to over 50 scholars from various denominations in Britain. American scholars were invited to cooperate, by correspondence.[1] The New Testament was published in 1881, the Old Testament in 1885, and the Apocrypha in 1895.[1] The best known of the translation committee members were Brooke Foss Westcott and Fenton John Anthony Hort; their fiercest critic of that period was John William Burgon." And where is the Apocrypha now? (all these numbers correspond to the works cited for the research posted on wikipedia--if you are interested in checking any of this out) So, you see, this book has only been around for a little over a hundred years, not since Jesus time. It was created by translating a bunch of different texts from several different languages. It has been revised, edited, had books omitted, and "tweaked" to fit the beliefs in place at the time of the editing. This is why it reads like a patchwork collection of stories, because that is what it is. It has also been used to keep people in fear and under subjugation. As I stated, God IS a Spirit. If you want to worship God, you have to do it in Spirit and in Truth. Its that simple. Have you ever considered the possibility that the God who created all of this wonderful diversity also created messages and messengers for each of the different cultures to understand? Many of the large religions have pretty much the same story thread running through them. I can attest to this, having read them myself. I would think that a God who is Wise enough to create everything that is would be wise enough to reach all of His creations in unique ways... And before anyone gets in a huff and says "Well, don't you think God inspired them to put it together like that?" I will go ahead and say, "Yes. It was all they could understand of Him at the time. However, we are supposed to have matured as a society. Ergo, God inspired me to write THIS, too!" Does HE inspire you and do you listen to HIM? Now, back to the origninal subject: The woman in question has been made "an offender for a word," Pure and simple. She is in jail for having the audacity to think differently than her peers. This IS the 21st century, btw... (Isiah 29:20-21 For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: That make a man an offender for a word and lay a snare for him that reproves in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of nought.) That is a truth if ever I heard one--I don't care what the source is.

I have not read anything or heard anything that convinces me that we don't worship the same God, regardless of what we call Him/Her/It... I guess I am just trying to light a fire under fatalists who shrug and say that is the way it is. Of course it is if we sit and let it happen. My best friend is a Wiccan Priestess. We discuss our beliefs openly with each other and respect each other's 'religious' affiliations. It just makes us part of who we are. She was sent to me by the Almighty, of that I have no doubt. Not for me to try and 'convert' her, but to understand and respect her beliefs as being as equally important as my own. You CAN'T tell me that the God of ALL creation, the One who made us and everything around us out of the same 4 DNA molecules, the One who created ALL this diversity of cultures only made ONE way to Him. Why on earth would He do that?! If we all became just alike, we would surely bore Him senseless!! How can anyone even think that? That has to originate from a control freak (and we all know a few of those, dont we?). I do not disrespect God like that... *stepping down off of my soapbox, brushing it off and tucking it back under my arm* Thank you all for your input and especially for your prayers!

Thank you, but please remember that the effective fervent prayer of a righteous [man] avails much!