Prasad, an oncologist and a professor of epidemiology, biostatistics and medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, had previously criticized the FDA.

He was a fierce critic of US Covid-19 vaccine and mask mandates and, in the second Trump administration, he was controversially appointed as the director of the FDA’s center for biologics evaluation and research in May.

The government gave no details about the reason for his departure but he had fierce critics on both sides of the political aisle and the Washington Post reported, citing unnamed sources, that he had been ousted amid protests by conservative voices, with no response from Prasad to requests for comment.

[joking about having a Donald Trump 'voodoo doll' may have contributed to his exit, according to reports in the US media.]

His exit came after a number of unusual regulatory actions, including those taken recently by the agency on Sarepta Therapeutics’ gene therapy, Elevidys.

[And declining to approve some other drugs and downplaying COVID vaccination.]

The regulator’s decisions under Prasad raised concerns that he was anti-patient choice, Jefferies analyst Roger Song said, adding that investors will see his departure as a positive for gene therapy and vaccine makers.

RileyG said:

Glory to God in all things!

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Exactly! I said "i told you God was in control amd that this would work out." He didnt say anything but it was like "I told you so!" When he told me the news lol. I was also like "im really glad man. Good for you." Glory to God though thank God it all worked out and hes okay now. Im really, really glad.

DamianWarS said:

Ezekiel and Jeremiah are exilic texts and certainly there was earlier instruction to release slaves at a 7 year mark but the year of Jubilee itself ia not so well rooted. You can say these texts alluded to but it seems odd not to mention Jubliee, especially given the detail in Jeremiah.

maybe it's that the concept was developing and that's why there so few references to kubliee and why these other references seem to fit so well, Jubliee could have been later developed and retrofitted into the existing system.

One thing is for sure it would be hard to count these years when they are never mentioned and biblical date counting can be problematic as the dates often don't have a high degree of resolution.

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Ezekiel is most definitely an exilic text. The very first verse begins in the fifth year of the formal captivity that began under Jehoiachin in Adar of 597 BCE. But the bulk of Jeremiah's interaction began during the reigns of Josiah and Jehoiakim, and the passage referring to the redemption of land in the reign of Zedekiah was before the final overthrow of Jerusalem in 587 BCE. Although Jeremiah does have material that also includes his time in exile, a great majority of it is pre-exilic. Unless there is proof that Jeremiah was written during or post exile, the internal evidence suggests that it is pre-exilic. Jeremiah may not mention the Jubilee, but the topic of the passage is not the Jubilee. It's the redemption of land, which is a statute particular to the Jubilee. How much you paid for a parcel of land was all dependent upon the amount of time that remained until the Jubilee, because it had to revert to its original owner at the Jubilee. In which case, a man couldn't be expected to pay a full fifty shekels for the use of a plot of land if he would only get to use it for thirty years. The statutes of the Jubilee provide for an appropriate compensation scheme to adjust for this.

I haven't spent too much time just yet trying to work out the specifics of why the amount was seventeen shekels, but I feel confident that when I figure out the specific formula, the price will end up confirming that a number of years consistent with the cycle extrapolated from Ezekiel will show that Jeremiah was redeeming the land in a specific year of the cycle. We know, for example, that a parcel of usable land was worth fifty shekels of silver (Lev. 27:16). By Ezekiel's count, the Jubilee should have fallen in Tishri of 575 BCE. If Jeremiah was redeeming the land according to a shekel per year for the remainder of the cycle, this transaction should have been during the Tishri year beginning in 591 BCE, which would have been the thirty-fourth year of the Jubilee cycle according the Ezekiel's enumeration. However, this would have been in the seventh and eighth years of Zedekiah, whereas Jeremiah 32:1 says this redemption occurred in the tenth year of Zedekiah, which is off by about two or three years. Arguments in the Talmud then discuss the actual cost per year, which can't be an exact shekel per year because the purchaser isn't actually purchasing the land, but the use of the land. And since the land is not usable in Sabbatical years, these are to be deducted from the fifty year total, making fifty years only forty-three in practical application. In which case, each usable year amounts to something like 1.16 shekels per usable year. From Zedekiah's tenth year, there are two Sabbatical years before the Jubilee, making the seventeen shekels the valuation for approximately 14.65 years worth of usable time for the land. But, again, from here I haven't taken a bunch of time to work out the math. There are about thirteen usable years on the land from the tenth year of Zedekiah to the Jubilee by Ezekiel's count.

In any case, there is a formula in the Talmud. I just have to spend some time with it. What I can say is that a land redemption to the tune of seventeen shekels in the tenth year of Zedekiah is extremely close, even by rudimentary math. I'm confident that Jeremiah will ultimately end up corroborating Ezekiel. I just need to work out the details, objectively, of course. If the numbers don't end up matching, then so be it. But, again, it's too close to ignore.

As I pointed out, the Jubilee years are counted. Evidence of it is seen in Ezekiel 1:1–2. The "thirtieth" year has no corresponding contemporary association. 594 BCE was the fourth year of Zedekiah and the twelfth year of Nebuchadnezzar. There is no reign or dating convention that would correspond to a thirtieth year in that particular year, with the exception of the Jubilee cycle.

I don't find there to be much difficulty in Biblical date counting. The only reign parallels I've had any difficulty with are Hezekiah, Manasseh, Azariah, and Jeroboam. All the remaining kings chart just fine and present a smooth timeline that can be corroborated by Assyrian and Babylonian chronicles. But, those four kings that present difficulties don't interrupt the timeline sequence. We can conclusively date Hoshea's final year to 723 BCE via the chronicle of Shalmaneser V, and we can conclusively date the reign of Josiah and his successors by the chronicle of Nabopolassar. Ahaz can be dated off of Hoshea, as can Pekah and Jotham. From Jehu beginning his reign in 841 BCE, we can also easily chronicle the kings through Amaziah of Judah and Joash of Israel. All the events of significance are also datable, including the fall of Samaria under Hoshea in 723 BCE and the fall of Jerusalem under Nebuchadnezzar II in 587 BCE.

So, we have a gap from the end of Ahaz to the beginning of Amon where the specifics are unclear for Hezekiah and Manasseh, though we can date Ahaz and Amon, redering that gap a nonpoint issue in terms of the timeline. The other gap is from the end of Joash of Israel to Hoshea. We know where Joash ends, and we know where Hoshea begins and ends. So the uncertainty of Azariah and Jeroboam is also a nonpoint issue. They don't disrupt the timeline. The specifics just need to be worked out to determine precisely where they both fall. And they are only made complicated by the reign of Menahem, whom we know paid tribute to Tiglath-pileser III, which is not consistent with the parallel of Azariah to the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam.

Nevertheless, the timelines in general are intact and corroboratable.

An Edit Update:

Redemption is counted at one sela and one pondion per year, which is one shekel plus a 1/20th denomination (bArak. 25a). This is forty-nine years of a cycle minus the seven Sabbatical years, equaling forty-two usable years in a cycle (50 shekels ÷ 42 = 1.19 shekels, or one shekel and a fifth). So each year up to the Jubilee equates to 1.2 shekels. Counting from the first half of Zedekiah's tenth year of reign, the cumulative total owed to redeem the land with fourteen years remaining through the forty-ninth year prior to the Jubilee would amount to 16.8 shekels. So, the seventeen shekels looks pretty accurate.

While it's off by a pondion, I would say it's close enough to count it as corroboration that Ezekiel is giving us the year of the Jubilee cycle in Ezek. 1:1–2.

Hoping2 said:

"Interesting", was such an understatement.

Not sure what ISTM means, but can anything be impossible for/with God ?

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It Seems To Me ….

Catholics are called to be at the forefront of defending human life–let’s stand together to protect this vulnerable population.

recent article in The New York Times (NYT) titled “A Push for More Organ Transplants Is Putting Donors at Risk” uncovered that 55 medical workers in 19 states “had witnessed at least one disturbing case of donation” using an organ harvesting technique called “donation after circulatory death” (DCD).

The article highlighted multiple cases of organ retrieval either beginning or nearly beginning on living patients, one of whom recalled feeling afraid while in the hospital.

The NYT quoted Dr. Wade Smith, a neurologist at the University of California, San Francisco, as stating: “I think these types of problems are happening much more than we know.”

In addition, the Health Resources and Services Administration, a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), reported in its recent article “HHS Finds Systemic Disregard for Sanctity of Life in Organ Transplant System” that in 351 cases where organ donation was authorized but ultimately not completed:

• 103 cases (29.3%) “showed concerning features, including 73 patients with neurological signs incompatible with organ donation.”
• At least 28 patients (7.9%) may not have been dead at the time organ harvesting was initiated.

This disregard for patient safety was characterized as “clear negligence.”

Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. posted on X “There have been massive ethical breaches in many organ transplant cases….” He wrote that some “dead” donors had blood pressure and heart rate elevation at the time of organ harvesting, indicating they could feel pain.

Continued below.

The word “Psalm” comes from the Greek word for a “song” (psalmos), which is itself a translation of the Hebrew word for a song or melody. In Jewish tradition, however, the book of Psalms is known simply as the “Praises.” Here we’ll explore ten different facets of this extraordinary collection of hymns and prayers.



1) The Psalms are split into five books. In their book A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament, Scripture scholars John Bergsma and Brant Pitre offer the following breakdown:

• Book 1: Introduction and Laments of David (Ps 1-41)
• Book 2: The Rise of the Davidic Kingdom (Ps 42-72)
• Book 3: Fall of the Davidic Kingdom (Ps 73-89)
• Book 4: Reflections on the Fall of the Kingdom and Exile(Ps 90-106)
• Book 5: Rejoicing and Restoration of the Temple (Ps 107-150)

2) The Psalms have multiple authors. While King David wrote the largest number of psalms, many were written by other authors such as King Solomon, a figure named Asaph, or a group known as the Sons of Korah. Even Moses is credited with having written one of the Psalms (Psalm 90).



3) The Psalms frequently use parallelisms. The Psalms are works of Hebrew poetry, but they don’t rhyme in the way that English poetry does. The metrical patterns in the Psalms are also unclear to modern scholars. But what we do find repeatedly in the Psalms is the literary technique of parallelism. Very frequently the Psalms are organized so that two or more verses are supposed to be read either as complements or as contrasts.

Continued below.

Michie said:

On July 26, 2025, a meeting took place at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican between Metropolitan Antony of Volokolamsk, Chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations, and Pope Leo XIV.


During the meeting, Metropolitan Antony conveyed greetings from His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’ and congratulations on Pope Leo XIV’s election as the head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Pope Leo XIV expressed gratitude to Patriarch Kirill for his good wishes and emphasized the importance of strengthening relations with the Russian Orthodox Church.

The discussion touched on numerous issues, including the state of Orthodox-Catholic dialogue and ongoing global conflicts, particularly in Ukraine and the Middle East.

Continued below.

Metropolitan of Volokolamsk meets with Pope Leo XIV | Orthodox Times (en)

On July 26, 2025, a meeting took place at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican between Metropolitan Antony of Volokolamsk, Chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations, and Pope Leo XIV. During the meeting, Metropolitan Antony conveyed greetings from His Holiness...

orthodoxtimes.com

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Is this more than a formality? Hoping.

chevyontheriver said:

Pope Francis. He all but officially canonized Martin Luther in 2017 for the 500th anniversary 'celebration' of the nailing of Luther's 95 theses to the door of the Wittenburg church.

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Ah! I recall that now. That was very confusing to many. He was very difficult to figure out.

Michie said:

A: First of all, it’s not known whether Job was a literal historical figure. Many Scripture scholars believe that the Book of Job in the Old Testament is essentially a sort of fable — that is, it was not necessarily recording events that actually occurred, but rather telling us a story to illustrate some deeper truth.

This would make the book of Job similar to the parables that Jesus was so fond of telling later on in the New Testament (e.g., we don’t need to believe that the Good Samaritan or the Prodigal Son were real people in order to understand and appreciate the point Jesus was trying to make).

On that literary level, the entire Book of Job is a consideration of the meaning of suffering in the life of the faithful, and in that sense it’s actually asking the same question you are!

For those unfamiliar with the story of Job, his namesake book opens by introducing Job as an “upright man” who “feared God and avoided evil” (Job 1:1). Job was also very prosperous: “Seven sons and three daughters were born to him; and he had seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred she-donkeys, and a very large household, so that he was greater than anyone in the East” (Job 1:2-3).

Continued below.

Why would God allow Satan to torture Job?

The Book of Job doesn't give us easy answers, but it does give us glimpses of the purpose of suffering and the nature of our loving God.

www.oursundayvisitor.com

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Dear beloved in Christ,

Thank you for such a thoughtful and reflective comment. I appreciate the care you've taken in laying out your thoughts it shows a genuine desire to understand the Word of God more deeply, especially on such a profound question: “Why would God allow Satan to torture Job?”

Now, regarding the historicity of Job yes, some scholars do interpret the Book of Job as poetic or allegorical literature, much like a parable. However, it’s important to note that the Bible itself refers to Job as a real person, not merely a character in a story. For example, in Ezekiel 14:14, the Lord speaks of “Noah, Daniel, and Job” as righteous men placing Job in the company of clearly historical figures. Also, James 5:11 in the New Testament says, “You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.” This suggests Job’s experience was not just symbolic but also instructive and real.

That being said, I also agree with you in this: whether or not Job is taken literally, the spiritual truth of the book remains powerful and undeniable. Just as Jesus' parables while not historical narratives revealed deep divine wisdom, the story of Job carries enduring truths about faith, suffering, and God's sovereignty.

Your insight is right on point: the Book of Job does not offer an "easy" answer to suffering, but rather invites us into a sacred mystery. Job’s trials pull back the curtain and let us glimpse the heavenly courtroom, where God is not absent but actively engaged. And even though Job doesn’t get a neat explanation for his suffering, he encounters the living God and that, more than any answer, becomes his restoration.

It’s also crucial to remember that Job was not punished. He was tested, and ultimately honored. Satan sought to destroy him, but God set boundaries, proving that even in suffering, God remains sovereign. The lesson isn’t about why bad things happen, but about how faith can remain unshaken even when we don’t understand the “why.”

So, whether we view Job as a literal man or a literary symbol, the message is the same: God is just, God is loving, and our suffering is never wasted when we trust Him. And the ending of the book reminds us that restoration and double blessings await those who endure with faith (Job 42:10).

Thank you again for sparking such a meaningful discussion. May the Holy Spirit continue to guide us into all truth and comfort all who suffer, just as He did with Job.

In Christ’s grace and peace,
Pastor Waris Arif

There's a Celtic rule conference at St. Patrick's Anglican Church in Parkersburg, WV this weekend. I think the church also hosts some sort of Celtic rule monastic community, probably all third order.

Dear Lord,
I pray for Your provision for Dorothieya. You own the cattle on a thousand hills, so I pray that you would bring some to her doorstep. Help her to find productive employment and a kindly Christian landlord who can rent a room to her. Help her to find her way back to college.

I pray for healing for Dorothieya's body and mind, that she may be able to keep a job. Help her to work as unto You, to bring You glory and honor.
In Christ's Name,
Amen

(Maybe try applying for fafsa anyway and see what government financial aid will give you. I found a reenrollment scholarship with my college that allowed me to finish college and do the last two classes to get over the college finish line. I hope that is there for you. )

Late last night the Lord began preparing me for this passage today. He was giving me a picture in my mind of someone who is egocentric, full of pride, morally unclean, a liar, a deceiver, malicious, a manipulator, not trustworthy, and someone who fakes their Christianity to appear good when they are really evil of heart and practice. They know the truth of the gospel, and they can even recite the gospel truth to others. But in their pride they are not submitting to the gospel but they are continuing in their sexual immorality.

Rather than submitting to God, humbling themselves, turning from their sins, and walking in obedience to the Lord, they hold on to their pride and to their sin. And they continue to drift, to descend, to go under, and to worsen. The feeling was also that they continued on this course because they were feeling sorry for themselves, moping, perhaps blaming others for their predicament, rather than to take responsibility for their own actions. This is someone who is resisting God and a heart transformation of the Spirit.

Then I had this image of someone scattering the seed of the gospel of Christ to this person, but they kept resisting and resisting the witness for Christ who was spreading the message of the gospel which would set them free if only they would be humble, repent, and obey God and die to their old lives of living in sin and for self. But truly it was God who kept giving the witness the message of the gospel, with the intent to bring down the adulterous from their prideful position so that they would die to sin and obey God.

And all this was going through my mind even before I knew what passage of Scripture the Lord would lead me to write on this morning. And then I read this passage of Scripture, and it fit with what I was seeing in my mind. For adultery is not just having sexual intercourse with someone not your spouse. Adultery is looking with lust for another. And this reminds me of pornography addiction, which a high number of people are being controlled by today, even a high number of people who profess faith in Jesus Christ, even pastors.

But the only way anyone is going to be free from addiction to sexual immorality is if they are willing to humble themselves, to forsake their pride, and to surrender their lives to God to do his will. And this may mean giving up some things which habitually serve as tempters to draw them right back into sin. For there is a need to throw off all that leads you to sin, as well as the sin itself, if you are serious with God about being totally free from all addiction to sin. But sadly, not everyone will yield to God. And God will have to be good to his promise, and he will send them to hell. Breaks my heart!

So, don’t be someone who plays with sin assuming that because you made a confession of faith in Jesus Christ that you can keep on in your sin and that God will give you a free pass to heaven. The Scriptures make it very clear that if sin is our practice, and not obedience to God, regardless of what we profess with our lips, we will not inherit eternal life with God. But many people are gambling that that is not the truth, and that the truth is that they will still go to heaven because they “prayed the prayer to receive Christ.” So, please don’t gamble with your destiny. God will keep his word!

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]

My Sheep

Based off John 10:1-30 NIV
An Original Work / June 24, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

My sheep hear me. They know me.
They listen to my voice and obey.
I call them and lead them.
They know my voice, so they follow me.
They will never follow strangers.
They will run away from them.
The voice of a stranger they know not;
They do not follow him.

So, I tell you the truth that
I am the gate, so you enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find forgiveness and will be saved.
Nonetheless whoever enters
Not by the gate; other way,
He is the thief and a robber.
Listen not, the sheep to him.

Oh, I am the Good Shepherd,
Who laid his own life down for the sheep.
I know them. They know me.
They will live with me eternally.
The thief only comes to steal and
Kill and to destroy the church.
I have come to give you life that
You may have it to the full…

They know my voice, so they follow me.

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Adultery in Your Heart
An Original Work / July 30, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Gracious heavenly Father and Lord Jesus,
I pray for healing for Carmen's bladder and relief from pain. Help her to get some cranberry juice and get to a doctor if needed. Lead and guide her as to what to do.
In Christ's Name,
Amen

Final episode of the Goren- Eams L&O, C.I.

They say they are "born this way", but as Christians we are called to be "born again". Dying to self and accepting our cross.

7 In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.
(Jude 7)

LizaMarie said:

This is tough. What I have done is unfollow certain people on FB(usually friends or family members) without unfriending them.
This way I can't see their posts.
When you unfollow someone, their posts will no longer show up in your feed, but they are still on your friends list, and they can still see your posts(unless they unfollow you) If you want to see their posts you have to go to their profile directly.
This is what I have done in the case of a family member whose posts were offensive to me, but I didn't want to unfriend them.

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Thanks for the information!

Michie said:

You think? I mean, how obvious can you get? I’d like to hear @Chrystal-J ‘s thoughts on this. She lives in the area.

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I heard that the bishop was very against the traditional Latin mass and forbade it's practice in the diocese. But, that's all I've heard at that level in the Church. I mainly just go to Mass and do the rosary, read the bible and pray at home.

We who believe in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives were not put here on the earth to live for ourselves, to go our own way, to chart our own course, and to choose our own path. And we are not saved from our sins and promised eternal life with God so that we may go on living in sin and not in walks of obedience to our Lord, living to please the flesh and not God. God did not draw us to himself so we would continue to live for self and not for God. But he called us to holy living and to walks of obedience to God.

For God created us for a purpose, and that purpose is that we might honor God with our lives, that we might follow our Lord in obedience to his commands, and that we might accept his commission (calling) for our individual lives to go where he sends us, and to do and to say what he commands. But the only way we will know the will of God is if we are students of the Scriptures, and if our ears and hearts are in tune to hearing the Spirit of God speak truth to us in our hearts, willing to obey him.

But being students of the Scriptures is not to be just an intellectual exercise, to just gain knowledge. There are people who know the Scriptures, who have even memorized much of the Scriptures, and who have even taught, or are still teaching the Scriptures. But it is all head knowledge. For it is not being applied to their lives. They know how to speak it, but they don’t live it. They can preach it to others, but they don’t put it into practice in their own lives. They know how to sound spiritual, but they are still walking in sin.

So if we are those who are letting the word of Christ richly dwell within us, then we are those who are taking God’s words to heart, and who are putting the Word into practice in our daily lives, by the Spirit. And this is not to say that we will do it perfectly, but that we are walking the walk and not just talking it, and sin is not our practice, but obedience to God is our practice. And so we are those who are teaching and admonishing one another with all wisdom so that we might all live for the Lord, doing his will, for his glory.

And when this speaks of us teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, this is not about us all attending a “worship service” where we all sing in unison the songs preselected for us to sing, usually by one person, and usually more about praising God, which is good, but which is not directed at ministering to one another, but which so many of the old hymns actually do. This is about each of us having a song or a poem to share with the rest which will help one another to walk with Jesus.

So, when this says that whatever we do, in word or in deed, we are to do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, the “whatever” does not include sinning against God, and disobeying his commands, and ignoring his calling upon our lives so that we can live however we want. The “whatever” needs to be according to the will and purpose of God for our lives, according to his calling upon our lives, and in agreement with the teachings of the Scriptures on how we are to live lives which are pleasing to God, not to please the flesh.

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]

Your Servant Witness

An Original Work / March 13, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Humbly I bow, Lord, before You,
Bringing my requests to You.
May I listen; hear You speaking.
May I follow You in truth.
Gently lead me in Your service.
Guide my steps and strengthen me.
Fill me with Your love and mercy.
May I live for Thee!

Let me be Your servant witness,
Telling others of Your grace.
May I always share the gospel
With those I meet face to face.
May I show the love of Jesus,
Caring for the needs of men;
Be Your servant witness always
For my Lord, Amen!

My desire to be like Jesus,
Living for Him ev’ry day.
May I obey all His teachings
Given me, so I’ll not stray.
Love You, Jesus, Lord, my master.
You are the King of my heart;
Follow You where’er You lead me;
Not from You depart!

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Whatever You Do
An Original Work / July 29, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love