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The Liturgist · Oct 16, 2025

prodromos said:
It was never implied that he did.

That said, amusingly the full, formal title of the Greek Orthodox Pope of Alexandria is "His Most Divine Beatitude the Pope and Patriarch of the Great City of Alexandria, Libya, Pentapolis, Ethiopia, all the land of Egypt, and all Africa, Father of Fathers, Shepherd of Shepherds, Prelate of Prelates, thirteenth of the Apostles, and Judge of the Œcumene" which as titles go is probably the most impressive of any bishop.

I would also note that the Pope of Alexandria is the only Eastern Orthodox bishop who is the primus inter pares of the only canonical church whose jurisdiction is an entire continent, although in terms of the total size of the areas under their canonical jurisdiction, the Patriarchs of Antioch and Moscow likely come close, and indeed prior to the 1920s most Orthodox churches regarded the Russian Orthodox Church as the only canonical church in North America, so for a brief period prior to his arrest, St. Tikhon of Moscow was the Patriarch of a continent and a continent-sized area of Europe and Asia (which to this day includes Japan and China).

DaisyDay · Oct 16, 2025

Aldebaran said:
Yep, keep the government shut down! Makes it easier to expose which employees are non-essential so they can be relieved of their jobs. So far, things are going just fine.

Non-essential does not mean unneeded. It will just mean a slow breaking down of governmental functions. For instance, accountants are generally considered non-essential for day to day functioning, but necessary long term. File clerks are non-essential, but necessary because the work still needs doing. Maintenance work is non-essential - for a while, but if not done will lead to catastrophic and expensive failure. Most jobs fall into to this category.

Oompa Loompa · Oct 16, 2025

iluvatar5150 said:
It'll be interesting to see how this one shakes out. How do you use a real name with a "fake background" to get employment authorization?

How do you use a real name with a fake background? Lie on your resume. You act like that has never been done before.

The Liturgist · Oct 16, 2025

prodromos said:
To which I pointed out the the Patriarch of Alexandria is also called "Pope", and has been for longer than the Patriarch of Rome, so the expression, "solely reserved for the Bishop of Rome" was inaccurate as the title was also being used in Alexandria prior to the schism. One can argue that since the schism, within the Catholic Church it is solely reserved for the Bishop of Rome, but that isn't what was claimed. That is all I was pointing out. I was not claiming that Alexandria also has a "papacy".

And that should have been the end of it, but some people like to pick fights.

No one else in the Church claims the title in either the Eastern Orthodox Church or the Oriental Orthodox Church, however, both the Coptic and the Greek Patriarchs of Alexandria are termed "Pope" in their respective Churches.

The Coptic Orthodox Church has a lovely anecdote, where the Pope was to concelebrate a liturgy with the Bishop of a diocese, but the bishop was unavoidably detained by the Muslim officials of the Khedive. Thus the Pope, in violation of the Apostolic Canons (which are the same for them as for us) began the liturgy without waiting for him, which as you probably know, since I would expect you’ve either read The Rudder of St. Nicodemus the Hagiorite, or are familiar with the Apostolic Canons and those of the Ecumenical Synods, is a severe violation, one which can lead to a bishop being deposed. Thus when the diocesan bishop arrived, he was naturally aggrieved, but rather than cause the Coptic Orthodox Pope to be deposed by his Holy Synod, instead merely stomped the Pope’s mitre (which at the time was presumably an Emma, the mitre commonly worn by Coptic bishops, which is a white turban with icons on it, as you can see worn below by the bishop on the right:

The Pope, who was not His Holiness Pope Theodore II*, to be clear, for this occurred a very long time ago, accepted the rebuke.

However perhaps this also explains why for some time now Coptic Orthodox Popes such as Pope Theodore II, depicted on the left of the above image, have worn the solid reinforced mitres also used by their Eastern Orthodox counterparts.

* The Greek Orthodox Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, His Beatitude Theodore II, has the same regnal name as his Coptic counterpart, albeit usually the Coptic form of the latter’s name is used, His Holiness Tawadros II, but I find this coincidence charming. Also His Beatitude the Greek Pope wears a mitre which is slightly different from that worn by other Eastern Orthodox bishops, just as the mitre of the Coptic Orthodox Pope was distinct from those worn by his Armenian Apostolic and Syriac Orthodox colleagues, however, the Ethiopian and Eritrean Patriarchs have taken to wearing the same Byzantine-style headgear in several liturgical contexts, although the Ethiopian abune continues to wear a large white turban as part of his choir dress.

Vambram · Oct 16, 2025

FBI director: Operation Summer Heat posts nation's best crime-fighting numbers

FBI Director Kash Patel said the first seven months of the Trump administration's Operation Summer Heat have posted the nation's best crime-fighting numbers.

ca.news.yahoo.com

The FBI is also having great success in fighting the war against illegal drugs.

Vambram · Oct 16, 2025

Aldebaran said:
Yep, keep the government shut down! Makes it easier to expose which employees are non-essential so they can be relieved of their jobs. So far, things are going just fine.

The Secretary of Education chimes in on that very same topic, brother.

Secretary of Education points out that the government shutdown shows her department is unneeded

Amid the ongoing partial government shutdown, Education Secretary Linda McMahon pointed out that the shutdown proves that her department is not needed.

www.foxnews.com

Hentenza · Oct 16, 2025

Light of the East said:
I find it somewhat bizarre to hear those in Orthodox carry on about how important Holy Tradition is, yet they jettisoned a massive tradition called "Universal Restoration" which had been the majority belief of Christians for the first 500 years of Christendom until Augustine began his attack on it. Seems a tad hypocritical to me.

There were many that did not agree with UR like Ignatius and Irenaeus just to name a couple off the top of my head. You make it seem that the majority of the early church was for UR but while it certainly had some adherents many were against it.

RileyG · Oct 16, 2025

RamiC said:
Personally universalism does not make sense to me, but knowing God's judgement is always faultless does. However, when you say "traditional" regarding the afterlife, I believe hell is a state of separation from God, not unending life in a literal burning fire.

The key is never to underestimate how poor human perceptions and judgements are by comparison to the Lord's.

Yes. I agree. Literal fire and brimstone makes God look like a monster and he is NOT.

jim456c · Oct 16, 2025

in 2026 the psalm 83 events will start. Its already started but...This war isn't over. Israel will come under heavy and deadly rocket fire from Hezbollah and Iran and others and they will be forced to use nukes against Damascus and Jordon in order to stop it.But some Arabs who hate Iran will support them. Then they will take over administration of those lands and a newer more secular liberal admin will start running Israel.Then Gog Magog/Turkey has a go at them because of economic turmoil and food shortages, and they fail miserably. Then the liberals fall for the antichrist absurd 7 year lie agreement so the world won't hate them so much...Then all hell breaks loose after 3 years. Hope you don't have to be around for that.

The Liturgist · Oct 16, 2025

Always in His Presence said:
The Orthodox has pages that you are missing and your opinion is:

The Catholics have all the pages we Eastern Orthodox have, in the Bibles of the sui juris Eastern Catholics, also historically known as Uniates (although this term is now regarded as offensive by many Eastern Catholics), for example the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the Italo-Albanian Greek Catholic Church, the Hungarian Greek Catholic Church, the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church, and several others, thus, as i said before; thus this line of argument is entirely flawed, because it ignores the existence of these large, historically important churches that are under the authority of the Pope of Rome but worship using the same liturgical rite as the Eastern Orthodox and use the same Bibles, in many cases literally the same editions.

keras · Oct 16, 2025

Interesting thread.
The sticking point as I see it is: The widespread teaching of the redemption and conversion of Jewish Israel. Just as Jesus Returns and after they have experienced the Great Tribulation.
This wrong and unbiblical doctrine, is a vital part of the 'rapture to heaven' of the Church. A theory from the pit of hell, which has fooled many. Jesus said many will be deceived,,, Either the believers in the rapture are deceived , or those who refute it are. But as the Bible never actually states that we Christians will go to live in heaven, therefore the proof of a rapture remains those who grip onto it.
In fact, the proof verses which say the faithful Christian peoples remain on earth during the GT are: Daniel 7:25 and Revelation 13:7

Also the proof verses which say how the House of Judah now faces Judgment and punishment and only a small remnant will survive, are many, In the OT and the NT. Luke 19:27, Zephaniah 1:1-18
The truth is that the Jewish State of Israel and all the evil neighbors, will soon be no more. Jeremiah 12:14, Ezekiel 7:14

Hentenza · Oct 16, 2025

Light of the East said:
This is why I have a loss of respect for Bible thumpers. They insist that every word must appear in order for them to believe in something, rather than looking at what the meaning of the word is, the analogy, the metaphor, etc.

Sir, the Greek word here is "KAMINOS!" A kaminos is SPECIFICALLY A SMELTING FURNACE!!! It is used for nothing else than purifying gold or other precious metals. Honestly! (*shaking my head).

This is why I lost respect for those that assume what words mean without further study.

Strong’s Definitions
κάμινος káminos, kam'-ee-nos; probably from G2545; a furnace:—furnace.

KJV Translation Count — Total: 4x
The KJV translates Strong's G2575 in the following manner: furnace (4x).
Outline of Biblical Usage

a furnace
1. for smelting
2. for burning earthen ware
3. for baking bread

No, kaminos can be a different type of furnance and the actual meaning is gleaned by the context. And here there is no context of the furnace being used with metals. My brother, you continue to grasp at straws to defend your unorthodox belief. (*Shaking my head)

Light of the East said:
Again, you are not looking at the chronology of the events that take place. The invitation to drink if you are thirsty comes AFTER the Lake of Fire. Hellists state that this is the end of the world and the beginning of all eternity. This simply cannot be, because those who are saved do not thirst for God. Only the lost have that thirst within them. There can only be one class of people after the Lake of Fire who are thirsting - those who are in the fire.

Once again, assumption. Even the grammar of the verse works against your interpretation.

Light of the East said:
The invitation is open to all because the gates are always open and never shut. You don't know ancient history either. The gates of a city/kingdom would be shut at night to keep out the unwanted and enemies. That these gates are not shut shows that there is a general invitation for anyone who wishes to enter into the city of God. This city, the New Jerusalem, is the Church. The congregation of God's people. All eternity is the invitation and coming of millions from sin into holiness by the cleansing fire of the Lake of Fire.

Again, the ONLY ones that are free to partake of the tree of life and the ONLY ones invited in are those that washed their robes.

“Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral persons, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying.”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭22‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

Revelation 22:14-15 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral persons, th | New American Standard Bible

Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral persons, th

bible.com

I doubt that the wicked outside washed their robes. You continue to grasp at straws.

Light of the East said:
BTW - the Lake of Fire is said to have sulphur in it. Sulphur was a CLEANSING AGENT, used in the olden times for purification. So once again, if you understand the cultural context, you understand the the Lake of Fire is for cleansing, not destruction.

Another assumption.

Light of the East said:
No, wrong yet again. He doesn't WANT everyone saved. 1 Timothy 2:4 says that He WILLS that all men be saved. There is a vast difference between wanting something and sitting there saying "Awwwww . . . I didn't get what I wanted." and being the all-powerful, all-wise God who WILLS that all be saved and will make it come to pass because He is love and love does not torture its creation forever.

You are the second universalist today to make the same absurd argument. This is a fallacy called reductio ad absurdum. Read about it.

Light of the East said:
I don't have the room to post this, so I will put up a link, but the Christian philosopher Thomas Talbot has written about the free-will theodicies of eternal conscious torment and the idea that some will use their will to turn from God. Here is the link:

Free-will Theodicies of Hell | Thomas Talbott

Christians have traditionally viewed hell as a form of eschatological punishment, a divinely imposed retribution for sins freely committed during an earthly life. But during the 20th Century in particular, some Christian thinkers began revising this traditional understanding by replacing the...

www.mercyonall.org

The problem with his argument, in short, is that it assumes two outcomes, either free will or determinism. But I will argue that there is a third option that our finite minds cannot fathom or understand. Talbot is trying to rationalize an infinite, supernatural being but our understanding or his will never reach the capacity to do so. God says that His ways are His ways. Who are we to argue with that?

Dan Perez · Oct 16, 2025

Ed Parenteau said:
Then I don't know how much clearer it can be than to say "He will appear a second time" as the second coming unless you're arguing He didn't come the first time. This is a direct play off of the first appearance/coming. He literally gave His word to those who were eagerly waiting for Him, as He did to the apostles in Matthew 16 and 24 and as He did to the churches in Revelation when He told them to "hold fast to what you have until I come"
Hebrews 9: 25Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, 26for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

As to "coming down physically": Since God is Spirit and no one has seen Him at any time, so He did not come down physically, rather He, like the angels can manifest as a man. God doesn't literally "come down" as He is everywhere, He is omnipresent. It's a figure of speech.
Psalm 139:

7Where can I go to escape Your Spirit?
Where can I flee from Your presence?
8If I ascend to the heavens, You are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.
9If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle by the farthest sea,
10even there Your hand will guide me;
Your right hand will hold me fast.
11If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light become night around me”—
12even the darkness is not dark to You,
but the night shines like the day,
for darkness is as light to You.

And just what. I . read here , PRETERISM. is not for me as. I CAN. explain. DISPENSATION. and what it means in. the

column called DISPENATION. , SEE YOU. !!

dan p

Leaf473 · Oct 16, 2025

(Staff edit)
Get into God's rest, I'll say Amen to that

I asked chatGPT what God's rest was. It gave a super long answer

Closing with a scripture
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need - Hebrews 4

fhansen · Oct 16, 2025

Abraham1st said:
ARBITER01 said:
You're not obeying Jesus if you're obeying moses. In fact, a person obeying moses does not know Jesus, and He does not know them.

Lets see exactly who Jesus instructed, what He instructed and why.

The context in Matthew 19, is already about being of the kingdom of Heaven, and of Jesus saying to His disciples t allow the little children to come unto Him, FOR OF SUCH IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, the same as in Luke 18 which I have included below for better context.... Whosoever shall not receive the KINGDOM OF GOD AS A LITTLE CHILD SHALL IN NO WISE ENTER THEREIN.

Now this time look in Luke 18, for EVEN more context, of a Pharisee who as those in the law who trust in their own righteousness, ( Romans 10:3-4.) think the works they do, such as the fasting, the giving of tithes, to not do extortion, to not be unjust, to not be an adulterer, all the keeping of the law as this same parable represents, just before how to really enter the Kingdom of God ( by faith/conversion/receiving of the Holy Ghost, which is as a little child.) is told in the example Jesus gives of the little children.

Then a certain RULER asks Jesus, like tempting Him, as this we see is what those rulers did often to Christ, and also we see Luke 23:35, it is the rulers who derided Christ and who delivered Him to be crucified, and the ruler is already comparable to the very same Parable in this chapter of Luke 18, of the Pharisee who TRUSTS IN HIS OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS.

The rich rulers list of trust in his own righteousness was to not kill, to not do adultery, to not steal, to not bear false witness, to honour your mother and father, and in Matthew 19 to love your neighbour as yourself.

( REMEMBER JESUS HAS AREADY TESTIFIED TO THE WORLD THAT TO BE JUSTIFIED YOUHAVE TO HUMBLE YOURSELF, WHICH IS DONE AS THE OTHER END OF THE SAME PARABLE, TO BE LOWLY AND TO BEG GOD TO BE MERCIFUL=BELIEVING IN HIS GRACE OF CHRIST.)

So now I can reveal all this for us on the Christian forum, it is easy to see the total direction where this HAS to go, the ruler is not an example of the law and how it is right in any way whatsoever, but the very opposite, of how it is WRONG in every way instead.

To an exalted rich ruler, who also according to the parable in the same chapter of Luke 18, trusts in himself that he is righteous, how is he going to be able to hear ( he that has ears let him hear/faith.) that he must drop all law, and all exaltation, to now be enabled to trust ONLY IN THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF OUR LOIRD JESUS CHRIST, to have to do as the Apostles of the Lord were chosen and anointed to do, to forsake all they have to follow Christ, and that, that can be the only same possible answer of what it meant for the young man and for all men, to take up their cross and to follow Christ...

Matthew 19:13 Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them.
14 But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.
15 And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.

Luke 18:9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

Luke 18:15 And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
16 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.
17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.

Luke 18:18 And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.
20 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.
21 And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.
24 And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!

Mark 10:21 Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: AND COME, TAKE UP THE CROSS, AND FOLLOW ME.

Luke 23:35 And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God.

Luke 24:20 And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him.

Matthew 19:25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?
26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, WITH MEN THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE; but WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE.
27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, WE HAVE FORSAKEN ALL, AND FOLLOWED THEE; what shall we have therefore?

Mark 9:23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

You know, Jesus didn't come to make righteousness a bad thing, or to make sin ok.

And He wasn't fooling the young man when He told Him the commandments must be obeyed in order to enter life any more than He was fooling the Pharisees in Matt 23 when he told them the inside must be cleaned first of all in order for the outside to be truly clean, or when He told us in Matt 5 that our hearts must be right before our actions will be authentically right-or any more than Paul was fooling anyone about the need to obey the commandments in Rom 2:13.

It's not a matter of whether or not to obey them, but a matter of whether or not we obey them with Him, or apart from Him. Apart from Him is all about pride, myself doing the obeying, by the Letter, while with Him is all about humility, my need for Him in order to obey, the right way, without even needing to hear the Law: God’s way, by the Spirit, now under grace, by the love poured out into our hearts (Rom 5:5). The New Covenant is not only about the forgiveness of sin but also about the overcoming of it, of becoming the righteousness of Christ that we were meant for from the beginning.

1Tonne · Oct 16, 2025

rachelrising said:
Consider now if to return, Jesus said clearly do not return to where you are not wanted-take yourself and go somewhere else. You have to consider where you are going. In Matthew 10:14, Jesus instructed his disciples that if a town did not welcome them, they should "leave there and shake the dust off your feet".

Yes we should eveluate if we are wanted. But we also should not run from the fight simply becuase of a few people.
I share the Gospel at market and things like this and I have had some people go off their rocker. And yes, I did not feel as though I was wanted by those people. But then there were others who would listen and we could have good dicussions.
So, if everybody in that society does not want to listen, then wipe the dust off of your feet. But if there are some who listen, then stay and be ready for some persicution.

mark46 · Oct 16, 2025

I want to spend MORE money on safety need programs for the poor, and much less on the administration of those programs. I want revenue sharing not federal rules and controls.

One of the very best ways to do that is for decision-making to be moved to state and local governments (including school boards). The feds would spend less and up giving more. The administration costs would be the savings.

The idea of federal government programs should be transfer of monies from rich states to poor states, perhaps in categories such as education. By their nature, social welfare programs should be state and local

If we want a federal program to fund education and welfare programs, then fine. Negotiate the amount to be spent and the allocations by state. Very little federal administration is needed. I know that Republicans won't accept this, but here goes. Social Security is very, very efficient in the distribution of monies with a very small percentage of admin costs. That should be a model for education and welfare programs. LET THE STATES decide what specific needs are to be met with these federal funds.

No, this isn't fair in that citizens of one state will spend more than others. But it cannot be the role of the federal government to have equal social services for every citizen.

===============
TO BE CLEAR
1) Homeland Security and The Department of Defense need an administration efficiency overhaul, a technology overhaul, and a general modernization of weapons systems (both for defense and offense). The savings might be in the trillions over the next decade or two.
2) There are many responsibilities that should be that of the federal government, even if not specified in the 1700's. Examples include regulations in many fields including environment, agriculture, health, and weather mitigation efforts. We absolutely need a new focus on food, water and energy.
================

Aryeh Jay · Oct 16, 2025

iluvatar5150 said:
It'll be interesting to see how this one shakes out. How do you use a real name with a "fake background" to get employment authorization?

There's most likely hundreds of legal citizens named Radule Bojovic. He probably switched identies with one of them.

BPPLEE · Oct 16, 2025

rjs330 said:
I think you should focus on your own country instead of ours.

Australia Passes Harsh New Anti-Migration Laws

Just think how much better it would be if those workers were documented and we were able to make sure the rapists and murderers and gang members and cartels were not coming with the normals.

They wouldnt have to hunker down at all. That would be better for them and us.

80,000 in Australia is equivalent to 1 million in the USA

Dan Perez · Oct 16, 2025

keras said:
He who is not with Me, is against Me….. Matthew 12:30

But, all the nations and people groups currently occupying the Holy Land, are not with Jesus. Only a very small percentage of individual Christian people are there. Isaiah 29:1-4 describes how a small Jewish Christian group will survive.
The Jewish State of Israel continues in its rejection of Jesus and all the Muslim entities worship Allah, the satanic moon god, represented by the crescent symbol.

Matthew 12:26 If it is Satan who fights Satan, he is divided against himself - how can his kingdom stand?

Todays kind of situation is nothing new; the Sunni sect of Islam hates the Shi-ite sect and even Christian peoples fight each other. The original example is when the Northern ten tribes of the House of Israel opposed the Jewish House of Judah; Israel is in rebellion against Judah unto this day. 1 Kings 12:19

God is in control and He allowed the Jewish State of Israel to be established by a group of Zionist atheists under communistic principles. Most do not acknowledge their Creator God and they arrogantly rely on their own strength. The criteria for citizenship is not ethnicity, but mainly the practice of Judaism.

The reason God has tolerated their existence is that the Jews are the symbolic face of ancient Israel, while God, thru the Holy Spirit, works with the real Israelites of God - those grafted into the olive tree, Jew and Gentile. It is the faithful Christian peoples who display the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-25, Matthew 21:43

Many Bible Prophesies say that the Lord will clear and cleanse the Holy Land and will then gather His peoples to live there. It is our destiny and great privilege to be alive at this pivotal point in human history.
Be ready to stand firm in your faith and trust the Lord, as we pass through all that must take place until the glorious Return of Jesus as Lord of Lords and King of Kings.

And looked at. your verse Isa 29:1-4 and the word CHRISTIAN. // CHRISTIANOS was not THERE so why. did you included. it. as there NO CHRISTIANS at THAT. time PERIOD !!

dan p

Ed Parenteau · Oct 16, 2025

Daniel Martinovich said:
So when he sat down to dinner with Abraham and then had a discussion about Sodom and Gomorrah- I don’t know how much more physical it can get.

All those past examples I listed in that article of his coming imply a physical appearance. I don’t think it matters if his coming can be seen with people’s material eyes or only perceived spiritually. The Bible does not seem to make that distinction as far as ITS doctrine of the coming of the Lord. It just prophetically says he is coming, often giving dates or events that demonstrate his coming. Then, listing them historically if it was history.

Then I don't know how much clearer it can be than to say "He will appear a second time" as the second coming unless you're arguing He didn't come the first time. This is a direct play off of the first appearance/coming. He literally gave His word to those who were eagerly waiting for Him, as He did to the apostles in Matthew 16 and 24 and as He did to the churches in Revelation when He told them to "hold fast to what you have until I come"
Hebrews 9: 25Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, 26for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

As to "coming down physically": Since God is Spirit and no one has seen Him at any time, so He did not come down physically, rather He, like the angels can manifest as a man. God doesn't literally "come down" as He is everywhere, He is omnipresent. It's a figure of speech.
Psalm 139:

7Where can I go to escape Your Spirit?
Where can I flee from Your presence?
8If I ascend to the heavens, You are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.
9If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle by the farthest sea,
10even there Your hand will guide me;
Your right hand will hold me fast.
11If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light become night around me”—
12even the darkness is not dark to You,
but the night shines like the day,
for darkness is as light to You.

iluvatar5150 · Oct 16, 2025

It'll be interesting to see how this one shakes out. How do you use a real name with a "fake background" to get employment authorization?

timothyu · Oct 16, 2025

bèlla said:
The technology works by delivering the vaccine via dissolvable microneedles attached to the skin on a patch-like device.

The same way N Korea assassinates?

DaisyDay · Oct 16, 2025

This seems like the right way to do it rather than just murdering everyone aboard as the Navy did.

Kudos Coast Guard!

fhansen · Oct 16, 2025

Clare73 said:
"Tradition" there refers to apostolic teaching, which is what we have in the Scriptures.

"Tradtion" there refers to teachings which are not necessarily recorded in Scripture.

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Should states take more responsibility for the Costs and decisions regarding social welfare programs?