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Hawkins · Sep 9, 2025

Xeno.of.athens said:
Some Christian are elected to high office or appointed to it. How should they exercise the power that they receive?

In a nutshell, that's the field of Caesar. Humans can make a living through serving Caesar. You serve both to the same extent though. God should be above all. Christians are the citizens of God's kingdom on earth (the one in the midst of us). Your citizenship to a country (belongs to a Caesar) is virtual.

rambot · Sep 9, 2025

Vambram said:
I'm amazed that you appear to be labeling the rioters as demonstrators.

Well, some people label ICE as a legally behaving police force....

Hentenza · Sep 9, 2025

What a crock. This person is not a criminal and is here legally. So much for deporting only hardened, illegal immigrant criminals. :doh:

Yarddog · Sep 9, 2025

Desk trauma said:
They won’t.

They are already reacting to it

rambot · Sep 9, 2025

IF anyone thinks Trump is going to be able to negotiate a peace deal with this situation, they would be wrong.

It's hard to act as an impartial third party when you're not.

Richard T · Sep 9, 2025

1Tonne said:
I understand why you might feel that way. But there’s a big difference between fearmongering and giving a loving warning. Fearmongering is about manipulation, but warning people of real danger is about care and responsibility.
Even Jesus gave strong warnings that were not fearmongering. He said, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28). He also said, “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out” (Mark 9:43).

So yes, these words are sobering, but they’re meant to wake us up, not to manipulate us. If my post caused reflection, then that was its purpose.

You raise a really good point, Ephesians 2:10 does show that God has prepared unique works for each of us, and Paul is clear that the body of Christ has many different gifts. Not everyone is called to preach from a pulpit or be a missionary.
But at the same time, Jesus’ command in Mark 16:15. “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation”, was given to all believers, not just to those with a specific gift. Evangelism may look different depending on our gifts: some are bold street preachers, some share one-on-one, some show Christ through hospitality or acts of service that open the door to conversations. But at some point, the gospel message has to be shared in words, because “faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).

We are all different parts of the body of Christ, and we don’t all have the same giftings, but we have all been called to tell as many people the Gospel as possible.
-If you are an ear, listen to people’s problems; then tell them the Gospel.
-If you are a hand, serve others practically; then tell them the Gospel.
-If you are a mouth, teach; then tell the Gospel.
-If you are feet, go out into the streets or parks; and tell the Gospel.

Our gifts are not an excuse to avoid sharing Christ; they are tools to bring Him glory. Personally, I’m often a “foot”, going into the parks to share the Gospel. Sometimes I serve like a hand, or listen like an ear. But whatever role I’m in, the end goal is the same: to make Christ known - the spoken message.
We are not all called to be street preachers, but we should all have the desire to share the Gospel with as many people as possible.

I do want to be clear, though: hospitality or good deeds are not the Gospel. The Gospel is always a spoken message, the good news about Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Acts of service and hospitality give us opportunities to share that message, and they can strengthen our witness by showing that our lives line up with what we say. But without the spoken word, people won’t know the saving truth, because “faith comes by hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).

Great post! I agree that hospitality or good deeds are not the gospel. However, they do sometimes set the table for the gospel to be shared sometimes in the future, and I think you will agree are very important in some cases.

johnnypapa · Sep 9, 2025

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Hawkins · Sep 9, 2025

Humans often lost the big picture, it's for a reason. The final Heaven is a place with angels interacting with humans. Eden, which lies within God's dwelling realm, is so modeled that the high intelligence angels (crafty snake) interacting with the relatively low intelligence humans. Humans are utterly beat. Earth, which lies outside of God's realm, is also so modeled that the fallen angels interacting with humans. Humans are futile in front of the fallen angels with their intelligence and capability, and are captive as a whole (Isaiah 14:17). The set of Law reserved for the Final Judgment is applicable to angels and humans alike. Humans are fully captive under this Law and are all dead. That is, the fallen angels have all the ability to keep all mankind under Law to be dead. Earth, as enforced by Law, shall be destroyed with a flood (at Noah's days).

If so God is defeated as He failed to bring humankind into the Final Heaven. Jesus comes in, with Jesus' self-sacrifice at a certain point of humanity making it possible that the judgment standard can be lawful altered such that humans can be judged by Covenant instead of Law. Mosaic Law is under one of these covenants which cover different scope of humans. The Mosaic Covenant is a covenant between God and the Jews (from Moses and afterward). Jewish covenants are signified by a male circumcision. The purpose of Mosaic Law to humans possesses a fold of meaning of demonstrating how strict God's Law (the set applicable to angels and humans alike) could be, as Law only practically effective on the angels and thus not demonstratable to humankind. Only when humans have a grasp of what Law could mean, they can possibly understand what God's Grace is. They have a grasp of Law through the demonstrative Mosaic Law which is under a Jewish covenant. God makes use of His chosen people to do the demonstration.

Most of the 10 commandments are still valid in the New Covenant which is intended for all mankind, not just the Jews though these comandments are no longer enforced as laws (i.e., you are not dead by violating them, you are given the chance to repent). Sabbath however is excluded from the New Covenant. It's meaningless as we all know today that no one actually keep it as how the ancient Jews kept it. God knows 2000 years ago about today's human weakness, and made it obsolete. Gentile Christians attend Sunday services in the place of Sabbath. A jew, if he declares himself so, needs both to keep the Sabbath and to attend Sunday services. That's what the New Covenant is, and since it's no longer a Jew only covenant it's no longer signified by a circumcision, it's signified by a baptism instead.

Humans often lost the big picture in our earthly environment under the manipulation of the fallen angels. You can never beat them by intelligence, they'll beat humans for certain. Humans don't stand a chance except that humans can beat the angels in terms of Faith. Humans are doomed to fail if they choose to rely on their low intelligence (the day they choose to eat of it the same day they shall surely die). Humans can only win through Faith.

God sees this long ago, that's why the New Covenant is all about Faith. While Jesus is the only way, as all mankind are dead under Law (the set applicable to angels). They can only rely on a covenant to have a chance to live, and a covenant is granted by the blood of Jesus Christ.

Richard T · Sep 9, 2025

angeltrue said:
It is obvious that Christian kindness has been exploited by those who have an agenda, and it is critical in these times to exercise discernment. Remember, we are warned that satan "appears as an angel of light."

As Christians, we want to be kind and assist noble causes, but at the same time, we need to exercise discernment about what cause our assistance is actually furthering, and if we are being used as an ATM by those who either wish us harm, or merely want to exploit our system for gain, and allow others to support them instead of working.

The following is an excerpt of an article that shows how believers have been manipulated through the selective quoting of scripture, even by self-admitted atheists. Specific verses are used, in an attempt to shame believers into doing the bidding of these pied pipers. The article warns about Soros and Rubio.

In Florida, Rubio's state, the rate of fraud among Cubans who abused the "wet foot/ dry foot" policy is astronomical. The Sun Sentinel ran a blockbuster article on the millions of Cubans on welfare, food stamps, medicaid, and free housing, who are able-bodied, yet are committing fraud, thereby fleecing US taxpayers. Many apply for benefits, then return to Cuba to live, and access their account in the US where they are given thousands every month, through welfare programs. Some admit openly that they retire to Florida to access the free handouts that they never paid into, because they get more money and can live a more comfortable life in the US, meanwhile US citizens are being forced to work past retirement age to survive, and going without critical health care, and other necessities.

With Congress considering tapping into our retirement savings, and the massive debt our country is in which will enslave our children, everyone should be insisting that these criminals in Florida have their entitlements immediately stopped, and made to repay what they stole. Why isn't Rubio acting on that? Taxpayers should insist on a review of who is receiving these entitlements. Those healthy men, who overstayed their visas and set a bomb off in Massachusetts were receiving free government assistance. Why? How can this happen? Remember, it is not just your future that is being stolen, it is your family members.

The next time someone attempts to play on your heart strings to get you to open your purse strings, we should all think twice.

Excerpt:

Through the Evangelical Immigration Table (EIT), a project of the Soros-funded National Immigration Forum (NIF), progressive activists such as Sojourners founder, Jim Wallis, are well-funded to lobby for the Gang of 8 legislation that would almost immediately legalize about 11 million immigrants first, with promises of better law enforcement later.

Another 20 million immigrants, mostly family members, are likely to follow within ten years. A $250,000 national radio campaign by the Table features several evangelical leaders reading from Matthew 25, "I was a stranger, and you welcomed me ..."

We should take notice when self-professed atheist billionaire and globalist profiteer, George Soros, is the quiet funder of a curious "Evangelical Immigration Table" campaign to promote yet another massive and mysterious piece of legislation in Congress. This time it is the "Gang of 8" Schumer-Rubio immigration bill (S. 744).

God loves the citizen and the sojourner. He is a God of love and of order, peace, freedom from debt, wise boundaries, and of nations. In some contexts Scripture teaches us to welcome. In other contexts it teaches us to be distinct, set apart, and, at times, to build walls.

Read more at Bait and Switch: 'Evangelicals' funded by George Soros Endorse 'Gang of 8' Immigration Bill
~~~~~~~
Phyllis Schlafly wrote an article stating that "The Gang of Eight Betrays Americans." Gang of Eight Betrays Americans - Eagle Forum

She states: Remember that the Boston Marathon bomber, Tamarlan, and his family, who were all admitted to the U.S. legally, raked in $100,000 in welfare cash and benefits.

She goes on to say: ~Any government program managed by the liberals always includes a “follow the money” segment. The Gang of Eight’s claim to promote “immigrant integration” is a ruse to give taxpayers’ money to leftwing and Islamist activist groups such as CASA, La Raza, MALDEF, and CAIR.

The Gang of Eight is just as unfair and discriminatory to college-educated American citizens as to entry-level job seekers. S.744 creates four new unlimited green-card preferences for aliens: (1) those with a Ph.D. in any field, (2) foreign physicians, (3) foreign students who graduate from a U.S. college with an advanced degree in a STEM (science, technology, engineering or math) subject, and (4) spouses and minor children of the above.

The lobbyists lied to us by reciting the slogan that the “best and the brightest” are foreigners, rather than Americans, and must be imported so we can benefit from their brains and labor. The notion that the best and the brightest are foreigners is false and contemptible, since most of the world’s great inventions and innovations are American.

Senators Charles Grassley (R-IA), Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Ted Cruz (R-TX), and Mike Lee (R-UT) wrote a joint letter to all Senators about the Gang of Eight bill, identifying the following key flaws. S.744 —

provides immediate legalization without securing the border.

rewards criminal aliens, absconders, and deportees and undermines the law.

contains extremely dangerous national security loopholes.

facilitates fraud in our immigration system.

creates no real penalties for illegal immigration and rewards illegals with entitlements.

delays for years the implementation of E-Verify.

does not fix our legal immigration system.

rewards those who have broken our laws with a path to citizenship.

~~~~~~~

This issue must be looked into, because there is evidence that there is fraud within the student DACA programs, which Rep. Grassley brought out a few years ago: Help Save Maryland – DACA Ready Illegals Rape Child in Rockville High School – 2 Suspects Deportable Central Americans

DACA "Dreamers" raped a 13-year old in MD, and another raped a 3-year old.

As Christians who want to hold out the olive branch of kindness to those we feel may be less fortunate, we need to ensure that those who are the recipient of our kindness are those who truly deserve our kindness, and won't turn around and "tear us or our children to pieces." Hasn't this already been done?

"Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. Matthew 7:6

I will address one issue in your post, that concerning the benefits and costs of Cuban immigrants. The article you refer to from the Sun Sentinel, I believe is here. Welfare abuse by Cuban immigrants demands action

It is one from 2016, and though dated it is an editorial and one that should be noticed. However, this is not hard data. Cubans contribute greatly to the Florida economy. Also, new refugees often need welfare. That was certainly the case with E. Germany. In a few years though the economy boomed from their unification. So to discern correctly, you would need the approximate figures for the OVERALL lifetime contributions to Florida, minus the handouts. Instead, you quote anecdotal evidence of a some getting food stamps or welfare payments in Cuba from the US taxpayers.

If I may kindly point out some shortcomings and suggest it is wrong to judge prematurely with really little evidence of the total issue.

Also, we can target lots of other more important fraud in the USA. For instance, the businesses that abused PPI during covid for instance is in the hundreds of billions for fraud. PPP Fraud: Big Numbers, Bigger Numbers to Go

This is not to say that Cubans should not be prosecuted for fraud, just as anyone else, such as those that claim multiple primary residences or overstate net worth to get more favorable loans.

Admittedly, I will go out of my way to show that the Trump Administration is also lacking. First, notice Trump instructed the DOJ to NOT prosecute new cases of the Foreign Corrupt Bribery Act.

Pause on Enforcement of Foreign Anti-Bribery Law Threatens a Dangerous Race to the Bottom - Transparency International

us.transparency.org

So how much will this cost the U.S. taxpayer to simply ignore an important law? Some years it is a billion plus, other years just tens of millions of dollars. I admit the enforcement is rare, but the monetary damages the USA has collected in the past is not chicken feed. Full enforcement of companies paying fines can be found here. SEC.gov | SEC Enforcement Actions: FCPA Cases
(Disclaimer all amounts should be double checked and fines may or may not be necessarily evidence of guilt.) I am not responsible for errors though i strive to be as accurate as possible. Some major fines are listed below.

My point is that anyone can target something and make a case where the USA taxpayer is getting shafted. But again you did not fully make that case against Cuban refugees over their lifetimes. You probably have never lived in South Florida where many of the tradespeople are skillful Cubans that do everything from plumbing to electrical work and everything else. That you offer no idea of the economic contributions they and their families make to the Florida and USA economy. Many too are professionals, or agricultural workers that pick your fruits and vegatables among other things. One of the best M.D.'s I have ever seen was a Cuban American who offered services far below the standard cost. This does not mean that all of them are not guilty, but by all means discern the whole picture. Also, if fraud is an issue then it is up to Congress and the agencies to combat it. One way they do this is that cash assistance for some programs can only be received up to 12 months. https://acf.gov/sites/default/files/documents/orr/Benefits-for-Cuban-Haitian-Entrants.pdf

Now I admit that the companies listed below do much good for America too. Still, I am not sure how Trump justifies that the FCBA be taken off the table and that companies can go ahead and basically bribe at will (Though in some instances they may break another nation's laws).

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Monies taken in to the USA government from select companies. (Just a sample).

2025 to 2028- 0/Zilch if Trump DOJ does not enforce FCPA. I will note too that often foriegn governments are cheated. That these bribes to their officials will often increase the price that nation pays because the company may bribe officials to accept that higher price.

2024
RTX Corporation 224 million paid.
John Deere 10 million
SAP SE 98 million - 59 million going to some African nations that were damaged by their breaking the law.

2023 Albemarle 103 million

2022 Honeywell 81 million
ABB 147 million

2020
Goldman Sachs 1 billion
Novartis 340 million

GoldenBoy89 · Sep 9, 2025

“But I think what really ticked me off and got me going,” Paul continued, referring to Vance, “was for someone to glorify the idea of killing people without any due process and saying he just didn’t give a ____ what anybody who was going criticize him was going to say. That to me was a disdain for human life and a disdain for processes.”

Yeah that coming from a so called “pro life” catholic. DT isn’t the only one who should be thinking about the fate of his eternal soul.

Maria Billingsley · Sep 9, 2025

FutureAndAHope said:
But the Bible is quite clear, there were things even God did not know about human choices.

Consider divine pedagogy, God's method of patiently teaching humanity. He reveals His way on the first pages of Genesis with Adam and Eve, like parents with a child.

Genesis 3:8
"And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. "But the Lord God called to the man, 'Where are you?'"And he said, 'I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.'"

This interaction shapes our understanding of God's Character for the rest of scripture.

Did God really not know where Adam and Eve were hiding?

Blessings

Amo2 · Sep 9, 2025

boughtwithaprice said:
That is the narrative, but the facts differ.

Hard to be capable of figuring it out when a large portion of the population was illiterate.

Translations were being written deliberately to deny established dogma which had served the Church for over a millennia and still serve the Church today.
The translators were not making intellectual objections to be examined, that would be the humble path
Instead the translators deliberately wrote to provoke rebellion. They used an appeal to human nature to entice an illiterate generation unable to defend itself. Start a rumor that the Chruch is hiding things and deceiving people and the adage is demonstrated where a lie circles the globe seven times before the truth has time to tie its shoes.
It is human nature to rebel and difficult to remain humble. We have only to look at the counterculture of the 1960s to see how easily children can be convinced to rebel against their parents, and the rebellion is ongoing toward society. This is not godly behavior
God behaves according to the principle of Sabbath. God creates, then He rests. God builds the house and they labor in vain that claim to build another or reform by human hands what God has wrought
We have had 500 years to see the errors of the reformers. Their ideas have not resulted in a golden age of the Church, rather chaos of competition and abandonment of Christian truth because they know better and are able to reform God’s work. This just in…. They can’t
Sure they make a big show of it on the internet, but when examined, the teachings do not remain consistent. Just because someone cannot be convinced, does not make them automatically convincing
We see the abandonment of chastity as Christian teaching. The abandonment of development of virtue aka training in righteousness in favor of a mantra of “you can’t lose your salvation”, which results in abandonment of penance and removal of the horror of sin aka denial of the fear of the Lord
Some even say that evil will not be punished and evil does not result in eternal separation from God. They say punishment is temporary and evil will be annihilated which is reward of the peaceful sleep of death rather than the eternal fire warned against
Some say it is no longer sufficient to deny themselves and rest in Christ and Him crucified, the works of the old law must be added to avoid annihilation. They say you can’t be free from sin but are required to do these works to achieve God’s favor

They say you can never be free, don’t worry about sin in this life, don’t even think of doing penance out of love for God. Don’t try to follow the New Covenant, just keep the works of the Old
And stop worrying about sin and offending God. God will save you if you do these small works

Does this sound like the Gospel at all? Jesus said that He came that we might have life and that more abundantly, not that we would remain in the death of sin unable to break free. He said follow me, whom the Son sets free is free indeed. If you are dead to sin, how can you live any longer there in? He also said hell is eternal where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched.

Who do we believe? Christ who would set us free from sin? Or those that say we remain in the bondage of sin and must continue works of the law to maybe set free in an undetermined time in the future?

I know who I believe

Your above argument is built upon a false narrative. As is obvious, illiterate people did make translations of the bible into the common language of the people. Highly educated people who could read and understand scripture in the original languages, were convicted they they needed to translate bible truth in to the common languages of the people, and educate them to be able to read the scriptures for themselves. One of the main reasons they did this, was because they noticed that what the state established church taught and practiced did not line up with what they read in holy scripture, therefore the need for reform and education among the masses.

We most definitely did see all kinds of advances in education, knowledge, development, science, industry, wealth, and opportunity for countless more people than the papal system and feudalism of Europe provided for any but the elites. Namely clergy and royalty. Who quite apparently kept the larger portion of those they subjugated illiterate and uneducated. Which problem the translating of holy scripture immediately began to address with widespread interest in reading them, encouraging more people to learn to read, and more people wanting to teach others to read for this very purpose.

The apostasies or rebellion you speak of above are not due to people having the holy scriptures to read for themselves, or their freedom to do so and choose how to believe for themselves, but rather their abandonment of what the scriptures actually teach. Even within the history of Israel and the church we see the cycle of apostasy, reformation or revival, and the slide back again repeated over and over. The conditions of apostasy become unbearable, abuse runs wild, reformation and revival occur at great sacrifice, people begin to prosper accordingly again, later generations then take this for granted and slide right back into apostasy to repeat the cycle over and over. This is the history recorded in holy scripture even among God's people, let alone the history of the rest of this world.

As far as the development of political forms of atheism and secular humanism go, they were birthed into the modern world via unbridled Roman Catholic rule in France. After Protestantism was successfully ousted from France the disparity between the rich and poor under direct Catholic rule, became so great that the people of France rose up in rebellion and rejected the authority of the Roman Catholic church and God as well altogether. Establishing the supposed god of reason in His place, giving rise to the political entity of secular humanism we must deal with today. Protestantism did not create this beast, unbridled Catholic rule did. Meanwhile Protestant nations became increasingly prosperous and filled with literate and educated peoples.

Apart from all of the above, the price of educated freedom is and always has been high. Allowing for people to decide issues for themselves, and even be wrong if they so choose. God has not called upon His people or any other to subjugate others with mandated religious teaching or practice. It is the personal job of every professed Christian to provide moral guidance, teaching, example and influence, to those around them. If our light goes out, the world is certain to follow. Nevertheless, it has not ever been, it is not now, and it never will be the place of authentic Christianity, to establish their beliefs and way of life by way of civil mandates upon all. This is the spirit of antichrist, not our Lord Jesus Christ, who never did and or called for such a thing. Nor did any of His apostles. This was the problem that highly educated reformers addressed concerning abusive power wielded by the Roman Catholic church, in calling for the freedom of all to be able to read the scriptures for themselves. Enabling adults to decide for themselves what they will believe regarding it, or even if they will believe it at all. Which is the God given right of every person. which is why an overwhelmingly Protestant population of peoples DECLARED -

The Declaration of Independence

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness......................

This is exactly what Protestants and later what we consider Secular Humanists today did, in casting off the unbearable yoke of Roman Catholic intrusive and abusive rule. All of the above by the way, began to do so as Roman Catholics themselves, who were sick and tired of the Church and Royalty washing each others hands of the abuses they both committed against their own people. Not the least of which, was mandating their freedoms and liberties away. This is a no brainer for all and any who care to see the simple truth of the matter. So be it.

wing2000 · Sep 9, 2025

At least one Republican Senator comes to the defense of due process:

Sen Rand Paul responded to VP Vance on X (warning: expletive).

After Vance said the strike on a small Venezuelan boat was the “highest and best use of our military,” Paul lashed out Saturday night: “What a despicable and thoughtless sentiment it is to glorify killing someone without a trial,” he wrote on X.

“Maybe [the boat] was coming here. Maybe it wasn’t. But nobody’s even asking whether we need to prove that. We just blow them up,” he said, adding: “I got no love lost for these people. But at the same time, is this the new Coast Guard policy? ... Almost none of the boats we’ve interdicted does it end up with us blowing up the boat.”

“But I think what really ticked me off and got me going,” Paul continued, referring to Vance, “was for someone to glorify the idea of killing people without any due process and saying he just didn’t give a ____ what anybody who was going criticize him was going to say. That to me was a disdain for human life and a disdain for processes.”

https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/09/08/congress/rand-paul-jd-vance-boat-strike-00551368

GoldenBoy89 · Sep 9, 2025

A New Dawn said:
Y’all are just so anxious to make this a democracy so you can get rid of things that keep your people from holding onto power, like the electoral college.

Who’s y’all? We are a democracy. You call it a republic? That’s a democracy. We don’t need to change anything to be a democracy. We already are one.

A New Dawn said:
How many times have I heard “But he didn’t win the popular vote so he is an illegitimate president”?

That’s got nothing to do with whether a republic is a form of democracy or not. First, that doesn’t make him illegitimate, it makes him unpopular. Second, an electoral college doesn’t mean our system isn’t democratic. That’s just an extra step within the democratic process of this country. The power of the state is still vested in We the People. That’s what makes this republic a democracy.

We the People rule ourselves. That’s what makes this a democracy.

A New Dawn said:
Taking away the electoral college would go a long way towards making this a democracy.

No, it wouldn’t because we’re already there. If we change nothing this is already a democratic system of governance.

A New Dawn said:
However, again, the difference between a democracy and a republic is that one of the hallmarks of a republic is individual rights while a democracy is just focused on the majority rule, hence the hyperfocus on the popular vote.

I don’t know where you got this idea that only a majority rule is the definition of democratic government. The definition of democratic governance is that the people in charge only rule by the consent of the governed.

The Barbarian · Sep 9, 2025

o_mlly said:
As this is a Christian only forum, may I assume you accept that God had some role in bringing about the diversity of life, but that mankind merely evolved from other animals, that abstract thinking evolved, that there were no first and only homo sapiens created directly by God?

The Bible says that the first humans were not produced ex nihilo. Only our souls are given directly by God. Why not just accept it the way He says He did it?

Yarddog · Sep 9, 2025

Desk trauma said:
He’s immune, and no one’s going to stop him, words are wind.

He does have limited immunity. That doesn't absolve him or the US, from retribution. How will the world respond to these murders?

The Barbarian · Sep 9, 2025

. non-human apes are capable of language. But there it is.

o_mlly said:
Nope.

Yep. They can converse with humans, once they learn the language. Why would wild apes use human communication?

o_mlly said:
You mean why would apes use language.

No. Apes use language to communicate with humans. They become proficient in signing because they have ability tu use and understand language.

Anatomically modern humans have gone through many millions of mutations (micro events), but we are still a single species.

o_mlly said:
There's that multi-purpose "species" word again.

Yes, that's a huge problem for creationists. If creationism were true you'd see nice, precise species. But the reality shows all sorts of intermediate cases. Reproductive isolation, however, is very perceptible.

o_mlly said:
So what? My wife and I reproduced human beings isolated from our parents.

River Jordan said:
I'm sorry but that is soooooo funny!

Sometimes people ask me what it's like to interact with fundamentalist creationists and my usual answer is "You have to prepare yourself for weapons-grade Dunning-Kruger". And here it is.

Well said. This is not typical of many creationists, BTW. I've argued with some who were very aware of biology.

o_mlly said:
Are you not a Christian?

First, I'm not a creationist. And second, even if I was, I could still also be a Christian.

The Barbarian said:
Why would it anger you, if God chose to use nature to create living things? He specifically says that He did so in Genesis. Even Darwin supposed that God did it.

o_mlly said:
Who's angry?

You seem to be. Why does it bother you so much that God used nature in His creation of living things? Why not just let it be His way?

I don't think you're AI, unless they've managed to include anger as a feature. And even if you are AI, you're still serving a very useful purpose here.

Landon Caeli · Sep 9, 2025

GoldenBoy89 said:
What are we as a country doing to help these victims on our end? Of course, you can blow up all the dinghies in the Caribbean but that’s not going to put addicts in the US into the rehab and mental health programs they desperately need to kick their addictions. I would more believe your sincerity on this matter if I saw we were actually doing something to help these people directly and not just blowing up random boats way out off the coasts of Venezuela.

The only thing we can do is protect our most vulnerable from these money hungry monsters. It's what we have to do.. it's all we can do.

...You know who else is vulnerable from the monsters? Artistic people. We need artistic people. And we need to protect our most vulnerable.

We have to fight!

ralliann · Sep 9, 2025

1Tonne said:
This video only came up about 5 hours ago, and it is appropriate for this thread.
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How much does division of the Church hurt the Gospel?

johnnypapa · Sep 9, 2025

Joe Heshmeyer replies to "THE ROSARY || The SHOCKING TRUTH that most people don't know..." by DLM Christian Lifestyle. He unpacks how a misreading a Scripture can lead to misunderstandings about the rosary.

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Dave Watchman · Sep 9, 2025

Douggg said:
Soon to happen:
Gog/Magog event

The one from Ezekiel was cancelled due to poor ratings, the sequel to it will take place after the thousand years of Revelation 20 are completed.

Douggg said:
the 7 years of Daniel 9:27,

It just happened. We are just past the heptad. But you are correct, verse 9:27 is a seven year span of time in our end times. Verse 9:27 is not the same "week" as verse 9:26.

Douggg said:
the Antichrist's emergence

He has already been here for some time. He has already emerged. He's just not been revealed to the population for who and what he is.

Douggg said:
the great tribulation

Would have just happened.

Douggg said:
Jesus's return

It must be very close, very soon. Sooner than is expected. At the door. It has to be happening now.

wing2000 · Sep 9, 2025

RDKirk said:
I remember in the years between DESERT STORM and OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM, we regularly bombed wedding parties, Bedouin convoys, et cetera.

I remember one of my troops who had identified one day an "unknown convoy" of trucks at an oasis and the next day seeing that convoy as a smoking rubble, having been hit by an A-10. He looked at me and asked, "Why did we hit them? We didn't even know what they were."

It's not like this is the first time the US has been doing this kind of thing.

Indeed.

But it is the first time in the context of a counter-narcotic operation.

wing2000 · Sep 9, 2025

Always in His Presence said:
link requested -

You want a link to my opinion?

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