Saturday, December 12, 2020

On the deep meaning of Christmas Carols



Christmas comes around every year. Every year can sometimes become a bit of a repetitive routine. We do the same things such as the decorations, Christmas trees, gifts, and so on. We tend to also hear the same music and carols repeatedly, again and again. Sometimes, we probably do not even focus on the depth and meaning of some of those carols. A perfect example of this is probably in the words of Edmund Hamilton Sears from 1849 in one of those carols which read as follows:


It came upon the midnight clear,

that glorious song of old,

from angels bending near the earth

to touch their harps of gold:

"Peace on the earth, good will to men,

from heaven's all-gracious King."

The world in solemn stillness lay,

to hear the angels sing.

 

Still through the cloven skies they come

with peaceful wings unfurled,

and still their heavenly music floats

o'er all the weary world;

above its sad and lowly plains,

they bend on hovering wing,

and ever o'er its Babel sounds

the blessed angels sing.

 

And ye, beneath life's crushing load,

whose forms are bending low,

who toil along the climbing way

with painful steps and slow,

look now! for glad and golden hours

come swiftly on the wing.

O rest beside the weary road,

and hear the angels sing!

 

For lo! the days are hastening on,

by prophet seen of old,

when with the ever-circling years

shall come the time foretold

when peace shall over all the earth

its ancient splendors fling,

and the whole world send back the song

which now the angels sing.

 

 

Hope you understood my point…lol. Merry Christmas!






 

 

References:

https://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/it_came_upon_the_midnight_clear.htm

https://hymnary.org/person/Sears_EH

 

Words: Edmund Hamilton Sears, in the Christian Register (Boston, Massachusetts: December 29, 1849), Vol. 28, #52, p. 206.

Afterwards published in Sermons and Songs, 1875, 5 stanzas of 8 lines.

Source: Edmund H. Sears, Sermons and Songs of the Christian Life (Boston: Noyes, Holmes, and Company, 1875), pp. 17-18.

Saturday, November 7, 2020

Higher power intervention?

Higher power: a spirit or being (such as God) that has great power, strength, knowledge, etc., and that can affect nature and the lives of people belief in a higher power (Merriam-Webster).

 

When I studied theology, I recall that some of the first readings we had before Old Testament Studies were from the Ancient Near East. For examples, Sumerian and Babylonian texts. Sure enough, Sumerian texts (Cuneiform) predate Old Testament (Hebrew Scripture) texts, so it should not be unusual as a precursor. Indeed, Sumerian is the oldest known written language. I am sure Irving Finkel at the British Museum could fill us in on this stuff way better than I could. An extremely important note, however, is that only ten percent of the Sumerian tablets found have been translated. This post title may seem vague because there is a question mark after the phrase higher power intervention.

I obviously provided the common definition for higher power at the beginning of this post. The Enuma Elish , the Sumerian Creation Story, does say that gods who looked like humans ruled over Earth and came here from elsewhere. One can say they were a higher power which intervened here on Earth. Similarly, many other ancient texts all around the world such as the Bible are based on the belief in a Higher Power. The reason for the existence of many religions all over the world is also simply based on this belief. In the present day we do not see with physical eyes any gods that look human which we could call a Higher Power. Moreover, we cannot prove that they exist in an invisible form either. However, the fact that a Higher Power can intervene and affect nature and the lives of people also cannot be disproved. The foregoing raises many questions which probably cannot be answered easily.

I am not going to sit here and ask hundreds of relevant questions which I cannot answer. I will say that I would not be surprised if a Higher Power did manifest itself on our planet anytime soon. Why would I not be surprised? With so many ancient texts making claims to their existence, there obviously must be something there. Jesus spoke of the coming of the Son of Man. The Gospel according to Luke 21:25-27 reads as follows:

‘” There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory (NRSV).”’

Many people believe the foregoing text. To conclude, do not be surprised if one day a Higher Power like Jesus himself shows up on our planet and intervenes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References:

Bible, New Revised Standard Version

www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/higher%20power

Monday, October 26, 2020

On pride

Pride goeth before destruction,

And a haughty spirit before a fall.


- Proverbs 16: 18, JPS Tanakh 1917

Sunday, October 18, 2020

On securing one's life

Those who try to make their life secure will lose it, but those who lose their life will keep it.


- Jesus





Source:
Gospel of Luke 17:33, New Revised Standard Version

Saturday, October 10, 2020

Real empathy

On social media these days just about anything may be found. Social media is great for keeping us in touch with many all around the world. Just about any type of information may also be found there. Lately, many on there seem to think they are empaths. Wow! That is a loaded word. But many out there do seem to think they are empaths and seem to believe that they have more empathy than anyone. Somehow, I do not think people are really understanding what an empath really is, however. An empath is really a word more relevant to science fiction. In sci-fi an empath is a person that experiences or can strongly perceive the emotional and mental state of others. Of course, this is in a paranormal sort of way. Truthfully, many are confusing it for something completely different. The thing is many seem to think they are beyond good, and this might be a little concerning. Even Jesus said only God is good when someone called him good. I will try to explain my argument.

Many love to say that Jesus quote "love your neighbor.” Some might say something like, oh, you do not love your neighbor, for example. The reality is that love your neighbor is only half the quote. The full quote is about loving your neighbor as yourself. The thing is that it seems many want to follow about 1% of things Jesus may have said and ignore the other 99%. For instance, Jesus said take up your cross and follow me. Jesus even told one rich young man to sell all his possessions and give the money to poor, and he would have treasure in heaven (Matthew 19:16-30). By the way, the young man walked away realizing he probably had little empathy. When one sees empathy with a different lens, the number of those who have real empathy seems to diminish. However, there are and have been real empaths throughout history, many who gave themselves for others selflessly.

Do you want to know who was a person with great empathy? Well, Mother Teresa was highly likely one. If you do not know her biography, I recommend that you pick up a copy of it. I am without a doubt convinced that you would agree with me.

Do you think you have great empathy? If you do, I recommend you do something about that calling. Serving others may be what you should be doing. Now, if you are judging others that you feel do not love their neighbor more than you, it is possible that you are just judgmental. Moreover, I hope you have not confused being judgmental for being an empath (a predominantly sci-fi term). If the shoe fits wear it, but please do not assume I am the one being judgmental for writing this piece. I just wanted to clarify what seems to be an error in our current society by explaining my view from a theological perspective. Also, I am done here. Peace, love, and blessings!

Saturday, September 19, 2020

Can one chapter from a letter be insightful enough?

Imagine that you were someone who grew up on an island somewhere isolated from much of the world most of your life. You could read because you had been taught. You had heard Christianity was a religion but knew nothing about it. You just knew that Christianity was old. If you were able to read the first chapter of what is perhaps one of the oldest text from the New Testament, do you think that it alone might give you a good understanding of Christianity? Personally, I think it would certainly give one plenty of insight; however, it may also leave one with a whole lot of questions. Why don’t you give it a try using the same perspective I introduced in my opening? The text is the following.

 

1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,

To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

Grace to you and peace.

The Thessalonians’ Faith and Example

2 We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers and sisters[a] beloved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has become known, so that we have no need to speak about it. 9 For the people of those regions[b] report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath that is coming.

Footnotes

1 Thessalonians 1:4 Gk brothers

1 Thessalonians 1:9 Gk For they

            New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

 

 







Reference:

Holy Bible, First Epistle to the Thessalonians (NRSV)

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Some history about this blog


Hello! I hope everyone reading this is doing well and enjoying their summer. In some places in the northern hemisphere summer probably feels as if it passes by very quickly, the further north one lives. Technically, it really ends in about four weeks, but here in South Florida it feels as if it lasts all year, or at least until about November, since we are much closer to the tropics than the arctic. In this post, I simply want to share some thoughts on apologetics and this blog.

I am sure that some who do not know the meaning of the word apologetics probably think it is related to the word apologize. The two words are in fact not similar. Apologizing is when one expresses regret for a wrongdoing. On the other hand, I will share the definition of apologetics from Merriam-Webster to provide a more accurate understanding. According to Merriam-Webster the definition of apologetics is the following, and there are two which I apply in this blog.

1: systematic argumentative discourse (see DISCOURSE entry 1 sense 2a) in defense (as of a doctrine) 2: a branch of theology devoted to the defense of the divine origin and authority of Christianity (merriam-webster.com).

As you can see, this definition is clearly different to apologize, even if many who already knew found this amusing, it is always good to be clear. This blog is about apologetics, mainly for Christianity.
This coming November, when the weather usually normalizes a little here where I live, this blog will turn twelve years old. I try to post something on the blog, at least once every month although sometimes more. If some of the material I have covered was to be published as a book, one might get to read more than one average book’s worth of text. The original intent or idea, and how the blog perhaps evolved probably changed over time, but probably not much.

Originally, I had read a lot of material on apologetics and enjoyed it, so I thought it would probably be a good hobby to do the blog. It’s a bit funny that recently I shared an article by someone who does apologetics as a profession, and also has a blog. He mentioned the fact that as a blogger, he is not just a guy who read a book or two on the subject and decided to do a blog. The foregoing is true, he is a seasoned apologist with advanced theological degrees, and many books under his belt. Well, I am not near his level, but I do have a graduate degree in theology, which I did not have back in 2008 when I started. I also try to do enough research on the subject to keep this audience informed. Anyhow, along with the word Apologetics, this blog also contains my last name and the word page in its title. The reason for my last name being in it was simply to identify that I write it. The reason for the word page in the title was because my initial idea was to keep posts limited to around one page long. Some posts are probably under a page, and some probably go beyond. Anyhow, I will try to stay true to the original idea, although I have already gone over a page in this post. I will stop here. I just wanted to share some thoughts on this blog. Blessings and I hope you enjoyed reading.








Reference:



Saturday, July 25, 2020

Apologetics vs Faith?

There seems to be some erroneous — sometimes almost obsessive — thought around in certain circles (roughly speaking: liberal Catholic ones) that apologetics is supposedly about the obtaining of absolute certainty through reason alone, as if faith has little or nothing to do with it. This is flat-out absurd and is a glaring falsehood (I carefully refrained from using the word “lie” because people get all on their ear).



The foregoing excerpt is from an article whose title asks a question. The title and question are as follows: Apologetics = Anti-Faith or Absolute “Certainty”? The article is by Dave Armstrong. Read the full article below to see how he answers the question, and what he concludes. Blessings!


Apologetics = Anti-Faith or Absolute “Certainty”? | Dave Armstrong 












Reference:


Saturday, June 13, 2020

A Science Based Apologetics Video


In this post I am sharing a video from vaticancatholic.com. The video uses apologetics based on science. The video claims to be scientific evidence for God. Although, perhaps, the best evidence for God even if we can not prove it is probably our own life. Anyhow, watch it and decide for yourself. Maybe you will have more questions than answers after viewing; however, I think it is worth watching. Enjoy!
















References and sources:









Friday, May 1, 2020

The Fountains of the Great Deep




"...on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst forth"
- Genesis 7: 11



I know many have read the story of Noah and how he built the Ark. I have a remarkably simple post about the Ark on this blog from years ago that is still quite popular today. Of course, the story of the flood predates the Bible and exists in many cultures all around the planet. The Epic of Gilgamesh from ancient Mesopotamia written in Sumerian (Cuneiform) deals with the story of the flood, for example. If the story of the flood fascinates you, Irving Finkel has a book you might enjoy reading that is titled: The Ark Before Noah: Decoding the Story of the Flood. I do not want to stray away from what I wanted to focus on in this post which is the fountains of the great deep. I really do not know what the original language translation exactly says for the cited text; however, it is interesting that it says the fountains of the great deep burst forth. The implication is that all the flooding was not caused by rain alone, some water from below came up, apparently. This implication is a little mind boggling because where can so much water come from that would flood the entire planet? Well, this is puzzling indeed. The text does not mention anything about polar ice caps melting. I really have no answer, but I did read an article recently which says we have a reservoir of water trapped beneath our planet that is enough to fill our oceans three times. The following excerpt is from the mentioned article.


After decades of searching scientists have discovered that a vast reservoir of water, enough to fill the Earth’s oceans three times over, may be trapped hundreds of miles beneath the surface, potentially transforming our understanding of how the planet was formed. The water is locked up in a mineral called ringwoodite about 660km (400 miles) beneath the crust of the Earth, researchers say (geologypage.com).



Read the full article at the link below.


Earth may have underground 'ocean' three times that on surface | Geology Page


To close: I do not know if the fountains described in the Book of Genesis are relevant to this ocean 400 miles beneath, but it sure makes one wonder. Hope you enjoyed reading. Blessings!










References:



The Holy Bible


Sunday, April 19, 2020

Christos Anesti

Christos Anesti (Christ is risen). Happy Orthodox Easter to those using the Julian Calendar.

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Why the tomb was supposedly guarded for three days

The Guard at the Tomb

62 The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember what that impostor said while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 Therefore command the tomb to be made secure until the third day; otherwise his disciples may go and steal him away, and tell the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead,’ and the last deception would be worse than the first.” 65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard[a] of soldiers; go, make it as secure as you can.”[b]

Footnotes:

Matthew 27:65 Or Take a guard

Matthew 27:65 Gk you know how

New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.





Source:

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+27%3A61-65&version=NRSV


The Gospel According to Matthew 27: 62-65

Sunday, April 12, 2020

Underlying

Whomever you are right now, can you put yourself in another person's shoes?
Can you imagine what someone else feels? If you are getting food late at night at a drive-through window, can you imagine being the person serving you the food on the other side of the window? If you are straight, can you imagine being gay and vice versa? If you are young, can you imagine being old? If you are a man, can you imagine being a woman, and vice versa? Can you imagine the reality? Can you imagine the fears and joys of another?

Every 24 hours we experience both night and day. Every year at the opposite side of winter there is summer, and at the opposite side of fall there is spring. Some days are rainy and some are dry. All is normal, common, and typical.

We are all on the same planet, and connected. Human, we all are! Underlying there is much. Underlying we are all a different world and unique. Regardless of what underlies and how different we may think we are, our planet is a sphere, and it should make us aware of something. On this sphere if we go far enough to the north, we eventually end up going south. And, if we go far enough to the west, we will eventually end up in the east. One day we will easily travel to other planets, and eventually other galaxies. For now, however, we are all here, so let's make the best of it. Do unto others as we would have others do unto us is a good thought to always have underlying.

Saturday, April 11, 2020

What St. Paul Seems to have Basically Believed


St. Paul believed Jesus appeared to him, at least, that is what is written in I Corinthians 15: 8, by himself, supposedly. The story of St. Paul's experience or conversion is written in the Book of Acts of the Apostles 9: 1-19. Briefly, the Scriptures say the following about St. Paul (formerly known as Saul of Tarsus).

3 Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” 5 He asked, “Who are you, Lord?” The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 6 But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” 7 The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one (NRSV).

Basically, it wasn’t only St. Paul who had the experience. It says, "the men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one." In I Corinthians 15, St. Paul also said Jesus after his resurrection also “appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters[c] at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died.” As I stated at first, St. Paul believed Jesus appeared to him.

St. Paul wrote about 13 books of the New Testament canon. The New Testament only contains 27 books; therefore, St. Paul wrote almost half. St. Paul went from being someone who persecuted Christians of his day to someone who was one of the most influential persons in the spread of Christianity until the present day. He also became a martyr for what he believed. Ultimately, it seems he was convinced without a doubt that Jesus indeed resurrected. Volumes have been written about St. Paul, but understanding why he did what he did, and believed what he believed is not complicated to understand.





References:

NRSV Bible

Wednesday, April 8, 2020

Sunday, April 5, 2020

Palm Sunday!


Happy Palm Sunday to all! Perhaps today we are not able to coalesce in a building; however, in thought, in meditation, and in prayer we can always be one in spirit. 

Sunday, March 22, 2020

Seeing God in this Crisis

I received an article via email from Aish.com. The article is titled: God is Not in Quarantine. It is written by Rabbi Efrem Goldberg who is the rabbi of the Boca Raton Synagogue, not far from where I live here in South Florida. Anyhow, I think it is one of the best articles I have read with relevance to this Covid-!9 pandemic from a stance point of faith. In fact, I think it shows an approach that one should have in any crisis from a faith-based approach. Below is an excerpt from the article.

However, while we are distancing, God is breaking quarantine everywhere. In difficult moments and crises like these, we have a choice to make. We can focus on this horrific virus, those it has struck, and wonder, “Where is God?” or we can look at how we are collectively responding, keep an eye on the extraordinary things that are happening, and find Him everywhere. Seeing God everywhere, even during this crisis (aish.com).


Read the full article at the link below.


God is Not in Quarantine








Reference:



Monday, March 9, 2020

Where did the Canaanites Go?


In the Hebrew Bible, the Canaanites are described as inhabitants of Canaan before the arrival of the Israelites (e.g., Genesis 15:18–21, Exodus 13:11). Little of the Canaanites’ textual records remain, perhaps because they used papyrus instead of the more durable clay for writing. Much of the Canaanites’ history is reconstructed through the writings of contemporary peoples in addition to archaeological examinations of the material record.


The previous excerpt is taken from an article from the Biblical Archaeology Society titled: What Happened to the Canaanites? DNA study links ancient Canaanites to their modern descendants. I believe I have said enough, read the full article at the link below if you want to know more.


What Happened to the Canaanites? - Biblical Archaeology Society









Reference:


Sunday, March 1, 2020

Is the New Testament Text Trustworthy?


Do we have enough evidence to reconstruct the New Testament text? Or did early scribes corrupt it beyond repair? Dr. Bart D. Ehrman and CSNTM's Executive Director, Dr. Daniel B. Wallace debate the issue of if we can trust the text of the New Testament at Southern Methodist University on October 1, 2011. At the time, this was the largest attended debate on the text of the NT ever (youtu.be).



The foregoing excerpt is from Dr. Ehrman on YouTube. This post is a video of the debate back in 2011. Ehrman vs Wallace - Can We Trust the Text of the NT? Hope you enjoy watching.















Saturday, February 15, 2020

Genesis 28: 17

‘How full of awe is this place! this is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.’

- Genesis 28:17 (JPS Tanakh 1917)

Monday, February 3, 2020

Tom Holland and NT Wright on St. Paul


An agnostic in terms of his religious commitments, Tom Holland has nevertheless described the way that the birth of Christianity has shaped much of what we value in Western society in terms of human rights, culture and rule of law. He engages with NT Wright on the way that Paul and the early Christian movement stood in stark contrast to the prevailing Roman culture of its day (www.premierchristianradio.com).

The foregoing excerpt is from the post of a video on YouTube from Premier Christian Radio. I am sharing this great discussion between Tom Holland and NT Wright on how St. Paul shaped Western society, and not others one may assume. Anyhow, enjoy the video, and blessings!


























Reference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlf_ULB26cU

http://www.premier.org.uk/unbelievabl...

Wednesday, January 22, 2020

Dr. Gary Habermas on the Resurrection of Jesus


I hope everyone is doing well. I want to wish all a happy new year once again. This is an apologetics blog, so I wanted to start the year with some good apologetics. In this post, I am sharing a video from Capturing Christianity on YouTube. The video is titled: The Historical Facts Argument for the Resurrection - Dr. Gary Habermas. The following excerpt briefly describes the video:

‘“In this clip, historian and philosopher Gary Habermas provides an overview of the evidence for the Resurrection in about 5 minutes. His approach is called the "Minimal Facts" approach.”'


Press play on the screen below and enjoy watching.


















Reference and source:

Capturing Christianity

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8fKZ9QyHH4&feature=youtu.be




Wednesday, January 15, 2020

The Status of Christianity, Where I Think it is Today


Judging from the title, it would seem I am being given a great deal of weight by the author, who is also me. Anyhow, I will try to focus on the subject in this opinion editorial type deal. Considering that there are over 2 billion Christians worldwide, I am pretty sure that each individually would possibly have a different opinion than myself which shouldn’t be underestimated, as well. However, this is my blog and I have taken the time to express, so I would be grateful if you spent a little time reading it. Here we go!

St Paul said: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28, NRSV).” Today, that foregoing list could be easily expanded, if one was being politically correct, although generally the idea seems to be clear.

The first place where the name Christians was used was in Antioch in ancient Syria. Antioch, however, is no longer. Today that city is Antakya in Turkey. Christianity pretty much grew in Asia Minor, which is mostly Turkey today. North Africa was also another cradle for Christianity. Many of the places Christianity grew are mostly Islamic today. But Christianity has spread into most of the world and continues to grow at different rates depending on which place or region, or continent. I suppose many Christians, in one way or another, believe they are Christians based on what is understood that it is from the New Testament. Of course, many of us today probably have very little understanding of what it meant to be a Roman or a Thessalonian, a Colossian, or an Ephesian. We can research the history of all those regions with which St. Paul corresponded; however, I really doubt we will ever really know and understand those times and places, just as they would probably have never understood living in our time regardless of how well we described it. Anyhow, St. Paul perhaps wrote almost 14 of the total 27 books of the NT, and I am pretty sure he may have been influential in the works by Mark and Luke. Basically, all those writings became canonized. In Easter of AD 367, Athanasius’ Festal letter pretty much summed up it will only be the 27. I will let you do the research on that if you want to know why? Moreover, the subject questions where is Christianity today?

Christianity today is a hybrid of all the versions of Christianity which have existed because obviously we can’t be the same as in the first century. The message I am probably attempting to convey is that maybe we should be asking the question, why we are Christians? Is it because we like joining that sometimes social club, the church, or do we really know our history, why we exist, and why we think we know who we are? I think one of the bigger questions I have is if Christianity was the strong faith, we think it is today, why didn’t it survive to the same intensity in its original status in places like Turkey and North Africa. I think that just based on some of the rhetoric one hears from some Christian communities today, it is very evident that we have a hybrid or different hybrids of the Christian faith. For instance, many in the evangelical community will tell you “we are more than conquerors.” Obviously, that more than conquerors mentality may have been helpful to some in the past, it seems. Unless, maybe besides using the sword to conquer, Islam did provide an alternate faith and support to many of our brothers in the past. Of course, Islam is an Abrahamic faith and Christianity is a branch of Judaism. The forgoing simply depends on how one interprets. Also, I might have more to say about all 3, and their relationships as to where Christianity is today, and conclusions might not be so different in the end, regardless.

Perhaps, Christianity has just simply evolved into many other forms, especially in this post-reformation era. Even during the Crusades, many Western Christians were already unable to recognize Eastern Christians mistaking them for Muslims. Move forward in time to the present-day in which we have so many groups and denominations. Many Christians sometimes do not even think other Christians are Christians since there are so many differences. Bottom line: what I see is a jumbled-up mess. Of course, everyone thinks their form of Christianity, or the one to which they belong is the correct one, or at least the best one based on their induvial understanding. So basically, it is what it is. It is better to have all the different denominations and groups than to not have any Christianity at all. Hope you enjoyed reading and blessings!

Wednesday, January 1, 2020