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The world is as full of wonders as it is wide, and we’ve rounded up some of our most astonishing geography facts to show you just how many wonders there are. From the world’s tallest waterfall being underwater to there being four North Poles, these facts may help you see the globe in a new light — a light possibly even brighter than Las Vegas, the brightest city on Earth. Read on for 25 of our most mind-blowing geography facts from around the website.

The Entire World Population Could Fit Inside Los Angeles​

Credit: Marek Masik/ Shutterstock

The world population grows larger every year, but we aren’t exactly running out of physical space. In fact, all 7.8 billion of us could easily fit inside Los Angeles. Research has shown that you can fit about 10 people into a square meter, crowded-elevator style; Los Angeles is about 1.2 billion square meters, which means that if we all squeezed together, the city could theoretically fit around 12 billion people. However, we couldn’t do much more than pose for a quick photo before going our separate ways, since there isn’t enough space in L.A. for everyone to actually live in such close quarters.

Asia Is Bigger Than the Moon​

Credit: Viacheslav Lopatin/ Shutterstock

The moon isn't as big as it looks. It’s around 27% of the size of Earth and has 14.6 million square miles of surface area. Although this seems like a lot, it’s significantly less than the total surface area of Asia, which is 17.2 million square miles — making Earth's biggest continent larger than the moon.

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Hi I was diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Disease when I was 9 caused by Vesicoureteral Reflux which is a birth defect. Since it was not caught in time I lost both my kidneys by the time I was 16 and had to go on Peritoneal Dialysis until I got my first kidney transplant which lasted 11 years. Then I was back on Peritoneal Dialysis until I ended up with a very bad case of Peritonitis and had to switch to Hemo Dialysis. Then I got my 2nd kidney transplant (forgot to mention I had to have both my native kidneys removed at the age of 16 as they were badly infected from the VR) it lasted 10 years until I got my 9th case of pneumonia but was so bad I ended up in Septic Shock and intubated for 3 days. The Septic Shock caused that kidney to die from lack of oxygen carrying blood. I ended up back on Hemo Dialysis until I got my 3rd and final (due to too much scar tissue and extremely high antibody count) kidney transplant and I am not even 50 yet. I really hope this kidney will last longer than the first 2 or I will be spending a LOT of time on dialysis in the 2nd half of my life.

Does anyone else here have Kidney Disease. I believe that praying to God has helped me remain uplifted and encouraged to keep moving forward and that any bad things in my health just give me an opportunity to humble me and make me more understanding to better serve others through Christ our Lord.

Started a new job 3 days ago and my health is making almost impossible, please Lord give me health and strength to do this job.

Thank you for prayers.

Hello! I was told to make a simple introduction since I had not been here much since I joined in 2018. Frankly, I lost the link and couldn't find it again until today, when I was searching for Christian prayers for Sleep Apnea patients. My password manager said I already had an account, so I logged in. I am so glad I found this again! As I am heading to bed now, I bookmarked the threads of most interest to me and plan to post some things that relate to me tomorrow or the next day. A lot going on, and I am all over the place, so it is easy for me to go MIA online for a bit, but I had been searching for this forum again for years. I guess I just was not looking for the right search terms?

Anyway, I am Angie IRL and am Roman Catholic and live in Canada. I am just about 50, have health issues and am on disability but go to Church every Sunday and some additional masses with my mother who has led me closer to Christ after an experience that proved to me the existence of God in Jan 2009 I will talk about in one of the appropriate sections.

God bless you all and I am glad this forum still exists! Thank you! - AwkwardAngel.

50% of the population is female yet not a single female had any visions from God? And a whole denomination is founded on a woman's apparent visions? I respect the Sabbath as the SDA's do and can't understand why most Christians don't respect it more. But why would they herald this woman in such high esteem when almost no one of any prominence in the Bible was female.

Here's a page summarizing everyone in the Bible who had a vision. Every one was male.

I'm not saying women have nothing to contribute in the Christian world. I've read much written by women that drew me closer to God. But we are warned about placing women in positions of authority in the church. In that I think the Bible is quite clear. This is not someone trying to seek revenge on the sex that first capitulated to Satan in the Garden of Eden. Because right after she ate the forbidden fruit it says she gave to him and he ate it. So it's not as if Adam was some tower of willpower. Would he have capitulated if she wasn't around? We don't know. But as Satan is very smart it's likely he chose the more vulnerable of the two. If Adam wilted so fast it's highly likely he would have wilted over time if alone.

Most of SDA ministry is very closely aligned to the Bible which makes their reverence of White utterly perplexing. If you read her writings it's pretty clear, though she no doubt had good intentions, she was a little delusional. She fictionalizes many Biblical events filling in things she couldn't possibly know. Oh wait...that must be from the visions. Right.

It seems some SDA are distancing themselves from White. That is commendable. Whenever a denomination holds an unquestionable leader in such high regard, watch out. Trouble is usually close by. The only leaders we need to hold up high are God, His Son Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Everyone else is a sinner and prone to error. So let's not expect perfection from any of them.

Who should be pardoned?

I was a fresh Christian in my mid-twenties when the following happened. I went to bed and fell asleep and experienced paralysis. I was lying on my bed and could not move a muscle. I tried and tried but could not move at all. I tried to call out the name of Jesus but no sound came out.

Then from the perspective of the ceiling, I (my spirit) saw my body lying on my bed. A big hook was placed into my head between the eyes. Some demon whose form I could not see was dragging the hook and pulling. I saw my soul coming out of my head. It was a strange image. I saw my head coming out of my head, two heads. I called out the name of Jesus and this time the sound came out. Then I woke up.

It was strange.

On the other hand, Ezekiel 8:

3 He stretched out what looked like a hand and took me by the hair of my head. The Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and in visions of God he took me to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the north gate of the inner court, where the idol that provokes to jealousy stood.

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2 Timothy 1:6, "for this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God..."

How do we fan into flame God's gift that is within us?

E.g., 1 Peter 3:

21The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: 22 Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.

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If Jesus was God, wouldn't the angels be subject unto him already? Why make them subject unto him all over again?

If Jesus was the creator, how could he die in his own creation?

If Christ exists with God before time, should not It be Spirit? How can It die?

If Jesus is God why didn’t Jesus know the hour?

Muslims often say that Jesus was a prophet and therefore cannot be God.

James 1:13 said God cannot be tempted. But Jesus was tempted, how are these not contradictions?

There exists an infinite number of questions of this form: If Jesus was God, why/how ___?

All of them could be answered by saying that Jesus was also a human when he was born of flesh from Mary.

When Jesus said don't pray with vain repetition what did he mean? All of the examples of prayer we have in the Bible are long repetitive prayers. Like the Lord's Prayer for example. It asks God for his will and not our will to be done like 50 times.

Or David's prayers in the Psalms. They're long and repetitive. So, what exactly was Jesus saying when he said not to be long and repetitive in your prayers?

This is a focused thread on one aspect of a critical text in the Sabbath discussion. Colossians 2:16 is an oft-cited Scripture in the Sabbath debate. It is a complicated text in a number of ways, but this thread is looking at one element--proposed parallel old testament lists.

To illustrate the issue this thread is examining I will re-post a quote from an article that was cited in a recent Sabbath discussion on the forum.


Moreover, it is important to note how Paul uses the same division of “festivals” (annual holy days), “new moons” (monthly holy days), and “Sabbaths” (the weekly holy days) that the Old Testament uses in 1 Chronicles 23:31; 2 Chronicles 2:4, 8:12-13, 31:3; and elsewhere, when referencing Jewish holy days. Clearly, along with the yearly and monthly holy days—which no Christian today claims is binding upon believers in Christ—the Sabbath is included in what Paul calls a mere shadow.

The article notes that holy days are mentioned in 1 Chronicles, and 2 Chronicles, and "elsewhere." The general thrust of the argument is that previous scripture listings could help clarify the nature of the holy times discussed.

One of the key questions from an Adventist perspective is whether the sabbath term has reference to the "weekly" sabbath. Some Adventists indicate that it is talking about "yearly" sabbaths.

Examples of yearly sabbaths would be the Day of Atonement, Trumpets, etc.

This focused thread will examine the following questions:

- what OT texts list holy times?
- Are there key differences between the Col. 2 list and the OT lists which indicate Paul does not have these lists in mind?
- Do these OT texts have any clear reference to weekly or yearly sabbaths?

This is an issue that Adventists have examined at various times. The majority of Adventist commentators do not think that the text refers to the weekly Sabbaths.

The Catholic article already cited takes issue with this, noting a progression from Yearly (festival) to monthly (new moon) to weekly (sabbath)

One Adventist commentator spelled out a position similar to the quote from the Catholic article above. Samuele Bacchiocchi, in "From Sabbath to Sunday: A Historical Investigation of the Rise of Sunday Observance in Early Christianity" said the following:

The Sabbath in Colossians 2:16. The sacred times prescribed by the false teachers are referred to as “a festival or a new moon or a sabbath–eortes he neomenia he sabbaton” (2:16). The unanimous consensus of commentators is that these three words represent a logical and progressive sequence (annual, monthly and weekly) as well as an exhaustive enumeration of the sacred times. This view is validated by the occurrence of these terms, in similar or reverse sequence, five times in the Septuagint and
several times in other literature. There is, however, an exceptional occurrence in Isaiah 1:13-14 where the “new moon” is found at the beginning of the enumeration rather than in the middle, but an exception does not invalidate a common usage.

The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary interprets the “sabbaton–sabbath days” as a reference to the annual ceremonial sabbaths Appendix: Paul and the Law 339 and not to the weekly Sabbath (Lev. 23-6-8, 15, 16, 21, 24, 25, 27, 28, 37,38). It is a fact that both the Sabbath and the Day of Atonement in Hebrew are designated by the compound expression shabbath shabbathon, meaning “a sabbath of solemn rest” (Ex. 31:15; 35:2; Lev. 23:3,32; 16:31). But this phrase is rendered in the Septuagint by the compound Greek expression “sabbata sabbaton” which is different from the simple “sabbaton” found in Colossians 2:16. It is therefore linguistically impossible to interpret the latter as a reference to the Day of Atonement or to any other ceremonial sabbaths, since these are never designated simply as “sabbata.”

The cited commentary rests its interpretation, however, not on the grammatical and linguistic use of the word “sabbaton” but rather on a theological interpretation of the Sabbath as related to ‘‘shadow in Colossians 2:17. It is argued that “the weekly Sabbath is a memorial of an event at the beginning of earth’s history... hence the “sabbath days” Paul declares to be shadows pointing to Christ cannot refer to the weekly Sabbath.., but must indicate the ceremonial rest days that reach their realization in Christ and
His Kingdom.” To determine the meaning of a word exclusively by theological as-sumptions, rather than by linguistic or contextual evidences, is against the canons of Biblical hermeneutics. Moreover even the theological interpretation which the Adventist commentary gives to the Sabbath is hard to justify, since we have seen that the Sabbath can legitimately be regarded as the “shadow” or fitting symbol of the present and future blessing of salvation.

Meanwhile, two other Adventists responded (apparently independently, but with similar arguments), to the above yearly, monthly, weekly point. These were David Conklin on his website (David is a member of these forums, or at least was, though I can't seem to link his profile here for some reason), and Ron du Preez in his book Putting the Sabbath to Rest: A Scriptural Study of Colossians 2:16 . du Preez has been an Adventist professor and scholar, and a member of the Biblical Research Institute.

They argued that the weekly sabbath was not in view, and that the progression is not regarding yearly, monthly, weekly, but instead, based on OT parallel passages, referred to three categories of holy times:

-Feasts
-New Moons
-Sabbaths

They note that the term "feast" is in reference to the pilgrim feasts, correlating with the word "chag" in Hebrew. Some of the yearly appointed times were not feasts but solemn assemblies, so they would not be included here, but in the Sabbaths. This would include the trumpets, Day of Atonement, etc. They are appointed times, but not "chag" or feasts.

As such in their argument you would have a listing of (yearly) feasts, (monthly) new moons, and (yearly) solemn assemblies/sabbaths.

In other words, they argue that instead of imposing a notion on the text, of yearly, monthly, weekly, that instead these are divisions of types of appointed times.

The following Old Testament passages have been proposed as parallels:


1 Chronicles 23:25 For David said, “The Lord God of Israel has given rest to His people, that they may dwell in Jerusalem forever”; 26 and also to the Levites, “They shall no longer carry the tabernacle, or any of the articles for its service.” 27 For by the last words of David the Levites were numbered from twenty years old and above; 28 because their duty was to help the sons of Aaron in the service of the house of the Lord, in the courts and in the chambers, in the purifying of all holy things and the work of the service of the house of God, 29 both with the showbread and the fine flour for the grain offering, with the unleavened cakes and what is baked in the pan, with what is mixed and with all kinds of measures and sizes; 30 to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord, and likewise at evening; 31 and at every presentation of a burnt offering to the Lord on the Sabbaths and on the New Moons and on the set feasts, by number according to the ordinance governing them, regularly before the Lord; 32 and that they should attend to the needs of the tabernacle of meeting, the needs of the holy place, and the needs of the sons of Aaron their brethren in the work of the house of the Lord.


2 Chronicles 2:4 Behold, I am building a temple for the name of the Lord my God, to dedicate it to Him, to burn before Him sweet incense, for the continual showbread, for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, on the New Moons, and on the set feasts of the Lord our God. This is an ordinance forever to Israel.

2 Chronicles 8:13 according to the daily rate, offering according to the commandment of Moses, for the Sabbaths, the New Moons, and the three appointed yearly feasts—the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles.

2 Chronciles 31:2 And Hezekiah appointed the divisions of the priests and the Levites according to their divisions, each man according to his service, the priests and Levites for burnt offerings and peace offerings, to serve, to give thanks, and to praise in the gates of the camp of the Lord. 3 The king also appointed a portion of his possessions[ for the burnt offerings: for the morning and evening burnt offerings, the burnt offerings for the Sabbaths and the New Moons and the set feasts, as it is written in the Law of the Lord.

Nehemiah 10:32 Also we made ordinances for ourselves, to exact from ourselves yearly one-third of a shekel for the service of the house of our God: 33 for the showbread, for the regular grain offering, for the regular burnt offering of the Sabbaths, the New Moons, and the set feasts; for the holy things, for the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and all the work of the house of our God.

Ezekiel 45:17 Then it shall be the prince’s part to give burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings, at the feasts, the New Moons, the Sabbaths, and at all the appointed seasons of the house of Israel. He shall prepare the sin offering, the grain offering, the burnt offering, and the peace offerings to make atonement for the house of Israel.”

Hosea 2:11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, Her feast days, Her New Moons,Her Sabbaths—All her appointed times.

Additionally, two longer passages have been suggested as parallels:
a. Numbers chapters 28-29
b. Leviticus chapter 23

With the above in mind, do you think Paul had these texts in mind when speaking of a feast, a new moon and a sabbath? And do you think Paul's understanding included the weekly sabbath?

Amazing how the Jan 6th committee kept the info below silent, it took Tucker Carlson to go main stream with the story, as the world watched

The democratic claimed leader of the so called coup (Shaman) was escorted through the capitol by armed police, they opened the senate door for him, and hung around for the prayer meeting, Big Smiles!

Tucker: This video tells a different story of Jan 6

"Shipping migrants to these Blue State 'sanctuary city' blowhards was the best thing that ever happened. ‘No, see, we meant YOU guys down south were supposed to shut up and enjoy the vibrant diversity of unlimited migration...’," journalist John Hayward mocked.
They really nailed the all too common hypocrisy of the left.

You got a good job offer in a place where everyone else is a Muslim, would you accept this job?

I really hope the moderators do not delete this thread because i really NEED some guidance right now. So those past years I've avoided getting vaccinated, not necessarily because i was convinced it was the mark but rather i was just distrustful of it because it was being so pushed heavily by the government however i did end up contracting covid and subsequently got self swab Pcr-tested a year ago, I didn't really think much of the test, it simply didn't seem viable however after stumbling across videos like these:


(removes spaces in link)

Since watching them i just haven't been in a good place mentally, spiritually like i really feel like the gates of heaven been sealed off from me and keep thinking back to the day lasty years when i swabbed myself and its painful that something so simple as a swab could put me in jepordy, please if these videos are wrong then please thoroughly explain it to me because i sure can't debunk them.

Genesis 1:

3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness He called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.

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The first day is the beginning of light and physical time. The last day is the end of physical space-time as we know it.

The Bible talks about "last days" (plural) with multiple meanings:

Gen 49:

1 And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.

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Isa 2:

2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.

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Act 2:

17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:

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2Pe 3:

3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts

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The Bible speaks of a future last day (singular) with only one meaning.

Jhn 11:

24 Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day

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John 12:

48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.

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The last day is the day of resurrection and the end of physical time.

John 5:

28 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned.

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Jesus was serious about the last day, John 6:

39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

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44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.

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54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.

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The last day is the end of physical time and the beginning of a new experience of eternal time.

See Great tribulation, then rapture and follow up there.

All is lost…..

If Christ is not being formed in one, all is lost that was meant to be gained, for at the very moment of one’s departure the only thing of any value will be how much of Christ has been formed in one….

For this is the purpose of one’s salvation, to have Christ formed in one, if this is not being done, it’s like a child dying in the womb…. Though life did come into existence and is a real life and can not be undone, the purpose of that life was not fulfilled…. That being, the carnal believer, the one that is still controlled by self-will is saved, but the purpose of that new life is not seeing its fulfillment…. For Christ being formed in one is the new birth being brought to a effectual life, for the denial of self being man’s part, which makes way for the workings of God’s part; which is the actual growing of the new creation….

For if self is not being denied, the new birth is not growing, for the latter lives only to the degree the former dies…. For faith is that that can choose not to be controlled by the life of self by simply believing what God said He did on the cross for one and that is taking it to death with Him, and than to be willing to let Him live His life of righteousness through one…. For Christ or self are the two lives set before one, one can have whichever one one has the will towards….

For the denial of self is a looking away from self, for all is self but the new birth…. For self is the antithesis of Christ, it is that life that can only be denied by looking away from itself to the Savior of its very life…. For since all of one’s life in this world is the life of self, (that which was born at the time of one’s birth into this world), the denial of this life is the giving up or the looking away from the all of this life to another Life by faith as a constant thing…..

This is the workings of the denying of one’s self, a constant looking away from oneself to Christ… For the all of one’s life must be given up if the all of Christ would be had, for in the willingness to deny self will one see the growing of the new creation….. For only in the time of this life can the more of Christ be had for the expressing of the more of Christ for all eternity…. For the life of Christ is the ability to love the other the more, for love is the greatest of all attributes in Heaven, he that loves the more shines brighter then he that loves the less…

For Jesus did die and the believing one with Him, for the one that will constantly look away from self to Christ will see into the realness of both their death and resurrection with Christ, which is seeing into the mystery of one’s salvation, which is; ‘Christ one’s life’….. For righteousness does exist, and the expression of that is the expression of His life…..

Oh to the seeing into this mystery and to the growing of the expressing of this mystery the more, may our hearts be fixed upon…..


A fellow follower after, Not me

See The Son is the FIRSTBORN over all creation

New King James Version, John 3:

16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son [G3439], that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

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Jesus is God's only begotten son. What does "begotten" mean applying to Jesus?

G3439 (μονογενής, monogenés) occurs 9 times.

HELPS Word-studies:

3439 monogenḗs (from 3411 /misthōtós, "one-and-only" and 1085 /génos, "offspring, stock") – properly, one-and-only; "one of a kind" – literally, "one (monos) of a class, genos" (the only of its kind).

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Thayer's Greek Lexicon:

single of its kind ... used of Christ, denotes the only son of God or one who in the sense in which he himself is the son of God has no brethren.

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Monogenés means "one and only of its kind". It identifies uniqueness.

BDAG μονογενής:

① pert. to being the only one of its kind within a specific relationship, one and only, only (so mostly, incl. Judg 11:34; Tob 3:15; 8:17) of children: of Isaac, Abraham’s only son (Jos., Ant. 1, 222) Hb 11:17. Of an only son (PsSol 18:4; TestSol 20:2; ParJer 7:26; Plut., Lycurgus 59 [31, 8]; Jos., Ant. 20, 20) Lk 7:12; 9:38. Of a daughter (Diod S 4, 73, 2) of Jairus 8:42. (On the motif of a child’s death before that of a parent s. EpigrAnat 13, ’89, 128f, no. 2; 18, ’91, 94 no. 4 [244/45 a.d.]; GVI nos. 1663–69.)

② pert. to being the only one of its kind or class, unique (in kind) of someth. that is the only example of its category

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The birthing process is not necessarily part of its meaning.

English Standard Version didn't think the word "begotten" here is helpful:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

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Jesus is the unique-monogenḗs Son of God. He is the only one of his kind. Jesus was not begotten in the sense that most people use the word "begotten". It is better to say that Jesus is the monogenes Son of God.

A fourth-century bishop and theologian defended receiving Communion in the hand. Or did he?​

A perennial source of debate, and occasionally of conflict, is the way we receive Holy Communion. In this article I would like to examine one of the sources often cited in this debate and place the issue into some historical context.

Up until the time of the Second Vatican Council, lay Catholics received Holy Communion under the species of bread alone, kneeling, and on the tongue. They had done so for many centuries. Reception on the tongue was mandated by a local council, at Rouen, in 878, and St. Thomas Aquinas explains that only the consecrated fingers of a priest should touch the host (Summa Theologiae IIIa, Q82, a3). In the East, leavened bread is consecrated, and soaked in the Precious Blood, and Holy Communion is distributed directly into the mouth with a spoon.

The details of earlier liturgical practice—that is to say, what Catholics did in the early centuries of the Church’s life—can be difficult to pin down. In the fourth century, St. Cyril of Jerusalem described the practice of his own time and place in a famous passage (Mystagogicae catecheses 5,21):

Coming up to receive, therefore, do not approach with your wrists extended or your fingers splayed, but making your left hand a throne for the right (for it is about to receive a King) and cupping your palm, so receive the body of Christ, and answer, “Amen.” Carefully hallow your eyes by the touch of the sacred body, and then partake, taking care to lose no part of it. Such a loss would be like a mutilation of your own body. Why, if you had been given gold dust, would you not take the utmost care to hold it fast, not letting a grain slip through your fingers, lest you be by so much the poorer? How much more carefully, then, will you guard against losing so much as a crumb of that which is more precious than gold and precious stones!

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This passage is often cited to support the modernpractice of receiving Holy Communion in the hand, with adherents insisting that Cyril’s testimony roots the practice in antiquity—and thus even makes it more respectable than Communion on the tongue.

But Cyril’s description differs from the way Holy Communion is received in the hand today. Today, those who receive in the hand have the right hand under the left. The priest puts the host in the communicant’s left hand, and the communicant, with his right hand, transfers the host from his left hand to his mouth. In the practice described by Cyril, the host is placed directly into the right hand, which is lifted up to the mouth. There is no picking up the host with the fingers—nor is there the curious practice, as Cyril notes, of the communicant touching his eyes with the host.

And so, all in all, there are notable differences between the ancient practice and the modern one.

The purpose here is not to express an opinion on whether the modern practice of receiving Communion in the hand is acceptable, or even whether the practice does indeed have its origin, in whatever form, in the early Church. Rather, the point is to show that anyone who wants to establish an ancient pedigree for Communion in the hand will have to make his case elsewhere from St. Cyril of Jerusalem, whose exhortation on how to receive the Blessed Sacrament (a) differs significantly from how the faithful receive today and (b) shows no evidence that the practice he describes was widespread even in his time.

Continued below.

Isaiah 57:14-15 ESV


I read a Facebook meme today, apparently written by a pastor, but it is hard to tell the originators of these memes. But this was mocking the whole idea that women should need to dress modestly so that they do not lure men to look at them lustfully. And so it presented a satire in which it flipflopped the male and female roles and tried to make them fit to make a point. And so it also mocked the Scripture that taught, “If your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away” (Matthew 5:29) by satirically stating, “If your eye causes you to stumble, blame it on how the other person was dressed!!”

So, basically the premise of this meme was to support a woman’s right to dress however she wants even if she dresses in a particular way in which she knows will lead men to lust after her. And it alleviates her of full responsibility for how her actions may be received by others. So, this is giving her permission to knowingly and deliberately put stumbling blocks in the way of others and to do what she knows will lead others into sin.

But is it true that we are all responsible for our own decisions in life? Yes! So, truly we cannot blame other people if we choose to sin, even if they deliberately did what they knew would lead us into sin. But they are at fault for what they do, and we are at fault, too, for what we do. So, both the one who tempts another to sin and the one who sins are guilty of sinning against the Lord, according to the Scriptures. So, even if someone else knowingly tempts us to sin, we are responsible to resist that temptation.

So, what does this Scripture in Isaiah teach us? We are to remove all obstructions or obstacles in the way of God’s people following after the Lord. So this does not grant us permission to do what we know is going to tempt others to sin out of some selfish desire to be able to do what we believe is our right to be able to do, as human beings. Yet, I know that there are going to be people who are offended by what we do no matter what we do, and so we are not being called here to conform our lives to the whims and legalistic requirements of traditions of man, but only to follow the Lord’s commands.

For we read in 1 Timothy 2:9 that Christian women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control… with what is proper for women who profess godliness – with good works.

And then we read in Matthew 18:6-8 that whoever causes those who are the Lord’s to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. For, “Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes!” So God takes seriously the matter of us, in our pride, thinking we have the right to live however we want regardless if what we do causes another to be led into sin.

Therefore, we are to be the people of God who love God and who love our neighbors and the people of God, and who do not deliberately put stumbling blocks in the way of those especially who are endeavoring to live pure and holy lives, by God’s grace, and in his power. But we shouldn’t be doing what we know will even lead the ungodly to sin, because that is still us tempting others to sin out of our own selfishness and out of our own desire to live however we want, regardless of how our actions affect others.

Therefore, we are to be people of God who go before others and who remove any and all obstructions we are capable of removing, in the strength of the Lord, in order to clear a path for others to walk in the ways of the Lord. So for us this might and will include us teaching the truth of what the Scriptures teach and us rebuking the lies which are leading people into sin. And this will involve us calling others to repentance and to obedient walks of faith, and us warning of divine judgment should we choose not to obey the Lord, and should we choose to continue in our sinful ways.

And part of that, for me, is rebuking the lies in many of these memes on social media which are leading Christians (or professers only of faith in Jesus Christ) down a wrong path, and then sharing with them the truth of the Scriptures in opposition to those lies so that, hopefully, they also will reject the lies and they will follow after the truth. For this is one of the ways in which God is leading me to remove the obstacles out of the way which are leading others to sin against the Lord.

And to “build up” is to speak the truth in love to the body of Christ so that we are not taken captive by the deceitfulness of man in their craftiness and cunning and deceitful scheming. And it is to exhort one another daily so that none of us is hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. And it is to gather together daily with other Christians here or in your home or out for a meal or wherever to encourage one another daily, for many professing Christians are falling away from the true faith and they are following after the idols of man.

And we are to humble ourselves before God and be willing to be hated, persecuted, and mocked for our walks of faith in Jesus Christ in order to remove those obstacles out of the way and to clear the path so that others who have trusted in Christ may walk in the ways of holiness unhindered. And we do this by speaking the truth of the gospel and by exposing the lies and by not doing what we know is going to lead others into sin out of selfish motives and desires to do whatever we want regardless of how others are being impacted by what we do. For we are commanded to love one another.

Body of Christ, life in the Spirit: [Acts 2:42-47; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-8; Rom 15:14; 1 Co 12:1-31; Gal 6:1-5; Eph 1:22; Eph 2:19-22; Eph 4:1-16; Eph 5:17-30; Php 2:1-8; Col 1:18; Col 2:19; Col 3:16; Heb 3:13; Heb 10:23-25; Jas 5:20; 1 Pet 2:4-6; Jude 1:22-23]

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897
Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,
Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,
Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,
Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,
Holy and harmless, patient and brave;
Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,
Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,
Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;
Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,
Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

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Isaiah 57:2-5 ESV


There are two kinds of people in this world – the righteous and the unrighteous, i.e. those who walk (in conduct, in practice) in holiness and in righteousness and in obedience to the Lord, and those who make sin their practice and who do not walk (in conduct, in practice) in righteousness and in obedience to the Lord. So, the dividing factor is not what people often term as the “saved” and the “unsaved,” especially since it appears, at least here in America, that the “saved” is a loosely defined grouping of people who at least once in their lives made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ.

So, there are those who are the genuine “saved,” and there are those who have given lip service to God only, who have made professions of faith in Jesus Christ, and who have even made a performance of being followers of Christ, but who are not living the Christian life. For they are those who are living in spiritual adultery against God, professing faith in him while they walk in sin and in wickedness. So they don’t really know the Lord. For they are liars and deceivers and adulterers and the morally impure who habitually and deliberately engage in sensual pleasures and in sexual immorality.

And so they mock those who are of true faith in Jesus Christ, who are walking in faithful obedience to the Lord, in practice, and they mock God by their professions of faith in Christ while they deliberately and habitually continue in their sins of idolatry and adultery and in the lusts of the flesh. And they are leading their children to do likewise, for by example and by their words they are leading their children to follow a gospel of man, which is of the dead, which permits them to continue in their sinful practices unhindered, and which allows them to live worldly and ungodly lives.

Isaiah 57:8 ESV


Many people professing faith in Jesus Christ today are believing in a false faith which coddles them in their sins and which makes no demands of them for walks of obedience to the Lord, for true repentance, and for walks of holiness and righteousness. They prefer the lies because the lies do not confront them in their sins and make them feel guilty when they habitually and deliberately keep on repeating the same sins over again, often without conscience. The lies tell them they are forgiven and they are “good to go” even though they habitually deny the Lord by their sinful practices.

So, although they profess faith in Jesus Christ with their lips, they are dishonest, deceitful, and corrupt people who are underhanded and misleading in their actions towards the Lord and towards other people, especially towards those who are living righteously. And this is huge, the number of people here in America who profess faith in Jesus Christ but who are following after the lies, instead. For they are the vain and worthless and the self-indulgent who are lovers of intoxication to sin who are following after a gospel of man and not of God.

And so many of them outwardly, in front of other people, are giving off an appearance of being followers of Christ while behind closed doors they are living in moral impurity, lying, cheating, manipulating, and devising evil. And some of them are devising evil against those who are the genuinely saved, who are making righteousness their practice, and not sin. For like Cain, they hate those who are living righteously, because their own deeds are evil. And so they “murder” the righteous in their hearts and by how they treat them in contrast to how they treat the unrighteous.

Isaiah 57:11-13 ESV


So God is chastising them for their false righteousness and for their evil deeds and for following after and even creating the lies which permit them to continue living in sin and not in righteousness and holiness. Even though they profess him as Lord with their lips, their hearts are far from him, for they follow the gods of this world, instead. So, when they profess to know God and to serve God and to be in fellowship with God, they are liars. And even though God has been patient with them for a very long time, still they persist in their fakery and in their ungodly behaviors. They do not fear God!

So, when they cry out to God in any given situation, perhaps for some type of aid or help, he will not help them, for they have helped themselves to what is not of God and they have denied the Lord by their actions.

But those who take refuge in the Lord, who believe his word, and who follow him in obedience to his commands (New Covenant), they are the Lord’s, and they are the ones who will enter into God’s eternal home. For they are the righteous who follow in the ways of the Lord and not in the ways of the world and the ways of sinful practices. This does not make them perfect people, but they are those God calls the righteous who, in practice, are following the Lord in obedience and who are no longer walking in sin. And they will inherit the kingdom of heaven because they obeyed the Lord.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

He is Lord

Unknown

He is Lord; He is Lord.
He has risen from the dead,
And He is Lord.
Every knee shall bow,
Every tongue confess
That Jesus Christ is Lord.

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When I first started it was just out of the blue. The pope was on Christmas Eve and there it went. Inside a very nasty thing came out about the pope.

For the next 3 months, it was on. My mind would just blurt out nasty things about God and Jesus. I felt so bad. I remember just crying for hours because i did not know what was happening and how to handle it. I fought this for about 17 years before i said a word to anybody about it.

Fast forward to today. I can not go ten minutes without saying something disrespectful about God, Jesus,Heaven,other religious figures and my family. I dont even want to say what comes out. You get the idea. I also do not mean or want to say the disrespectful stuff at all. So now, I am apologizing to God and Jesus and during the apology i either splurge out more bad thoughts, images, bad numbers, comments etc and i have to start over. Man, some days I can do it basically the whole day. Rarely getting a break. If i dont apologize i kinda get the bad stomach feeling and my nerves goes through my body making me a nervous wreck. Only saying the apology right will stop that. My brain knows this and it goes all out to stop me from doing the apology right.

For example, about 10 years ago there was a hockey player named mirslov satan. At the time i was a big hockey fan but not even a saber fan in which he played for. Im from the philly subrubs and like the flyers. Point is it got to the point where it evolved to were I was apologizing and could not get through it bcuz the picture of this guy and uniform would not leave my head. Ohh some long days here apologizing over n over. Then it evolved to i had to say another players name when i was done apologizing to prevent that player to come into my head.

Fast forward to now and this is a mess bcuz now i have all these hockey players in my head that i am no longer allowed to use. For ex, if a players has played or play for the nj devils is elimnated for obvious reasons. A team like the Calgary flames players past or present elimnated for obvious reasons. Anyone who wore number 66 elimnated. Etc. Through the years this began as a way to avoid that first players name and has evolved to almost no nhl player can be used bcuz if i go down the line i find something wrong. Its weird, i have a horrible memory but if i see this negative stuff once I suddenly become a genius remembering what were now against the rules. I do this with nfl players. If a wr ever had a 6 catch for 66 yards i will remember it at some point out of the blue diring apologizing. Songs, i remember i had that song i think its called chop suey, where they say angels must die or something close to that. It was always on the mainstream radio. Also, the ac/dc songs and I don't know who sings it but the songs called running with devil. Now the songs got to the point where i have to play a positive song just so these wont come into my head during apologizing. It helps but its still a battle. As funny as this sounds the song i use alot is who let the dogs out. I need something catchy.


As you can imagine after I blurt out disrespectful things inside like i have turret syndrome, i immediately apologize and something from this post will constantly come into my head making me start over and having a long day. There is even more things that i battle with. I can write a book there so many.


Lastly, and im skipping alot of things, my head is messing with me in a weird way. Whatever I think, it takes the opposite view. The big one is if theres God, Jesus and Heaven and I believe in that but if something bad is on the news my head will start with theres no God. Then, i have to go to google and write why do bad things happen. Eventually, ill get a good answer and can close the case. Then, I see scientists say some things on how the universe was made and im like theres no way the universe could of had all these laws and things randomly happening like I believe an electron and a neutron are the exact weight to make stars and if its a bit more or less there would be nothing in the universe. Dont quote me on that. But my head starts playing with me and says " this is how it started and not from God." More research to do until i find a good answer that convinces me. I also been through it with the multiverse, simulation theory and hawkings saying theres no God. My head has a field day. Now, im researching until i get the right answers that convince me. You cant really find info on hawkings bcuz that was his belief. What scares me with him was i know he was pretty smart. My head has a field day. Theres more but you get the idea. Funny thing is, these things repeat. I have looked up all of this stuff so many times to sooth my mind. What happens is after i find convincing evidence a few months down the road ill see something again about what i looked up and the whole process starts over. Never ending story.


I dont know how i forgot to put this in but any religious pictures, bibles, tv shows about religion and any religious item is an absolute field day for my head. I go off again for no reason whatsoever and i have to stand st the picture and apologize to it. Problem is with all these things i already mentioned and even more that I haven't, one of them goes through my head at the time. This is tough bcuz you have to hide it from the people you live with.


What do you think. Do you consider my scrupulosity really bad. Its really debilitating. Im at the point in life were all my happiness has been drained with this battle. I also suffer from other stuff like noticing every breath you take and your afraid your gonna mess it up, back when the mayans supposedly predicted the end of the world (that was a tough 6 years thinking theres no future left) plus other end of the world stuff too, and I also suffer from other stuff. I have been diagnosed with ocd, anxiety and depression. I go to therapy but this stuff is so hard to talk about face to face that i dont even bring up the scrupulosity but now it has a name and i can bring it up next time. I doubt they can do anything for me. I think im way too far gone. Putting all this stuff together in this last paragraph i think at times i suffer from something like miltary ps and i forget the rest. My body is in constant shock and nervousness. I was scared to death so many times that im jumpy and nervous.


Thats my depressing story. I haven't told but a couple people. Any suggestions to get better. Thanks. Joe