I am a Christian. What does that mean? I ache over the fact that the Church is not one body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. Estimates of the number of Christian sects or denominations range from a few thousand into the tens of thousands, mostly divided on what Paul called “disputable matters.” (Romans14:1) Or non-essential differences of belief. Such as pre-, mid-, or post-tribulation Rapture of the Saints. Sincere and well-intentioned Christians feel this subject is important to faith and worth creating divisions. Me? I lose patience with what I see as unnecessary squabbling. We will know when we will know. The future is not to concern us. People are. And Now is.

What distinguishes a Christian? Love! Love of neighbor and our enemy. My fifty years of experience says that most Christians (those in authority positions mostly) will moue, pause a second or two, and then get smarmy about the (greater?) importance of Scripture.

For me, Christ is a spirit of action and not a system of belief. That is not to say that doctrine in unessential. But, again for me, the whole purpose of any and all doctrines or dogma is to realize love of neighbor and our enemy. Put love first, and the Gospel follows.

I have seen miraculous transformations happen with the simple grace of just being kind, generous, and caring—without a single mention of God or the Bible. “...As for me, I desire this privilege from the Lord, that never may I have any privilege from man, except to do reverence to all, and to convert the world by obedience to the Holy Rule rather by example than by word.” That is from St. Francis, and so is this: “Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.
For it is in giving that we receive. Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words."

Everybody knows, if you're white you're a recipient of 'white privilege'. You don't see it or even feel it, it's just there, helping you along in the journey called life. So how is your white privilege? Is it working out OK for you?

I was messing with Siri earlier, entertaining myself by asking really stupid questions and seeing how she responds. Anyway, I said something about 'white privilege' and she spits out "this quiz was made at MG, so it's not a professional quiz, so don't take the results to heart. This is just to give you an idea on how you perceive yourself and such". That tweaked my interest so I hit the link and found myself here:

http://www.gotoquiz.com/white_privilege_quiz

Oh. My. God. I had no idea the world had fallen this far. So I took the quiz (of course I did), answering each question with the 'Never' option at the bottom. Interesting how I got the '100% Privileged' designation.

Yes... Very interesting. Next I took the quiz answering each question with the top option for each question. That designated me as being '0% Privileged'.

There was one question that I just had to laugh at:

"As a child how often were you given safety instructions on how to walk through a department store or public establishment in a way that did not foster suspicion or attract attention?" Consider that for a second. 'Safety instructions' ensuring that you 'did not foster suspicion or attract attention'. I could rephrase that to ask 'As a child, how often did your parents give you lessons on how to shoplift'?

Anyway, here's the scores:

Almost all of these killings were the result of Government Officials not following existing law. Each incident was different. The guy in Texas had mental problems which were known, as were his crimes, and yet he bought firearms, I believe 3 different times. Actually the guy should not have been walking around free because he had a criminal record and had made verbal threats beforehand.

The Muslim terrorist in New York primarily used a truck. In Paris terrorists obtained automatic weapons and easily mowed down the unarmed victims. The Las Vegas shooter was a rich guy who took a lot of time getting his weapons and planning his crime. That guy would have been almost impossible to stop.

My contention is that bad guys will always get weapons and almost always they will go where they think no one else will have a gun. I know a lot of people who are now buying their first pistols and taking them to Church. The scariest place on Earth is a gun free zone. If you show up with a gun there, you are a God for at least 10 minutes. The safest place you can be is at a gun show. Somebody starts shooting there, how long before they are killed ?

Thank you I needed that

uote=MtnMamma]I am a Christian. What does that mean? I ache over the fact that the Church is not one body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. Estimates of the number of Christian sects or denominations range from a few thousand into the tens of thousands, mostly divided on what Paul called “disputable matters.” (Romans14:1) Or non-essential differences of belief. Such as pre-, mid-, or post-tribulation Rapture of the Saints. Sincere and well-intentioned Christians feel this subject is important to faith and worth creating divisions. Me? I lose patience with what I see as unnecessary squabbling. We will know when we will know. The future is not to concern us. People are. And Now is.

What distinguishes a Christian? Love! Love of neighbor and our enemy. My fifty years of experience says that most Christians (those in authority positions mostly) will moue, pause a second or two, and then get smarmy about the (greater?) importance of Scripture.

For me, Christ is a spirit of action and not a system of belief. That is not to say that doctrine in unessential. But, again for me, the whole purpose of any and all doctrines or dogma is to realize love of neighbor and our enemy. Put love first, and the Gospel follows.

I have seen miraculous transformations happen with the simple grace of just being kind, generous, and caring—without a single mention of God or the Bible. “...As for me, I desire this privilege from the Lord, that never may I have any privilege from man, except to do reverence to all, and to convert the world by obedience to the Holy Rule rather by example than by word.” That is from St. Francis, and so is this: “Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.
For it is in giving that we receive. Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words."

It isn't often that I'm at a loss for words, but last Tuesday when the President answered a question I was speechless.
The question was: "Would you prefer a Democrat or a child molester elected to the Senate?" The answer was illuminating ... "we need the vote in order to pass our priorities, and he said he didn't do it." This from the same president that believes the words of Vladimir Putin when he says that Russia didn't interfere in the presidential election last year. "We report, you decide."
We have to remember some facts about this race for Senate in Alabama.
First, this is the heart of the old Confederacy. Outside of the metropolitan areas, the War of Northern Aggression was never won by the Union ... they just kindof called a ceasefire. This is 'bubba' country where the term 'redneck' is a badge of honor to be worn with pride. Trying to take down a Confederate monument would come close to causing a modern day lynching. This is KKK country and the home of many white supremacist groups and militias.
Couple this with high percentage of evangelical Christians, and it becomes a volatile mix of 'relitics' which has become the basis of Roy Moores support. It's here that the Bible's 'law' becomes supreme and no "Washington liberal" is going to tell us what to do.
It's like a medieval castle that has deepened the moral moat and pulled up the intellectual drawbridge. It bristles with the 'slings and arrows of outraged fortune' and unleashes them whenever challenged. "My mind is made up, don't confuse me with the facts."
These are people who wear their morality on their sleeves. They proudly profess to be "God-fearing, church-going people" of high moral character. I have to wonder if they still sacrifice livestock at the altar, eat shellfish or pork, or work on the Sabbath ... all of which are required or prohibited if they are going to claim this moral high ground.
The last time I checked, having this temperment would preclude having anything to do with someone who had sexual proclivities for young children. But somehow, they are willing to overlook nine women and numerous Gadsden law enforcement retirees who had first-hand encounters with the judge, or were told to not let him anywhere close to teenage girls. They're willing to support someone that they wouldn't let within hollering distance of their own teenage daughters.
If I were to try to make this moral connection, I would have to tie my mental processes into a giant Gordian Knot. It would require such a disconnect of competing thought streams that I would probably be considered legally schizophrenic.
And yet it persists. And it isn't just rural Alabama. If you scratch the surface of the rural countryside anywhere from east Texas to Georgia and Mississippi to Appalachia and the Ozarks, you'll find varying degrees of the same sentiments. This is the countryside of 'Easy Rider' and 'Deliverance'. Time has warped or stopped for many of the communities.
Change isn't going to come easy to this area. Those moral precepts that they take from the Bible, even with all the contradictions and convolutions, will continue to reign supreme and conflict with tolerant liberal social views for the foreseeable future.
But some of those conflicts I just can't wrap my brain around. How can it be that there is a 'sacred' marriage, but the man (or woman) has an affair or long-term relationship outside that marriage and people just wink and grin and look the other way. But you talk about a same-sex marriage and it's as though the lightning was going to strike from a clear sky and the earth open up and swallow you to hell.
"Oh well, we just hate the sin but love the sinner." This is the countryside of Jim Baaker, who defrauded his flock of millions of dollars, went to prison, and now still claims a televangelistic flock of thousands. This is the countryside of Jimmy Swaggert who was caught with prostitutes in Louisiana and still commands the loyalty of thousands through his own satellite television channel. This is the countryside of Huey Long, the 'Kingfish' of Louisiana, who ran one of the most corrupt state governments in the country for a generation. This is the countryside of George Wallace, who proclaimed from the steps of the University of Alabama: "Segregation then, segregation now, segregation forever", as federal troops accompanied the first black student to enroll at that school. This is the countryside of 'Bull' Connor, the sheriff who confronted the marchers at the Edmond Pettis bridge at Selma with dogs and firehoses.
Given the history of this part of the country, it logically follows that these sentiments still simmer below the surface of 'southern hospitality' and 'genteel appearance.' If you don't believe this, just look at the number of Confederate flag decals on NASCAR race cars and highway vehicles on southern roads. Roy Moore is just the symbol of that sentiment and ideology that the president pulled the scab from and is scratching the underlying wound.

whienbrat, Welcome!! We could all use some civil debate. I hope and pray that ,many of us regulars on this site, self included, will be able to tone it down a bit and make it easier for all of us to stomach others opinions. We, as Americans, could only benefit if we could drop the need to always be the one that's correct, and instead, strive to be"one nation,under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice FOR ALL. It makes no sense for us, no matter what side of the political aisle we stand on, to tear each other down. We have enough enemies, wouldn't it make more sense for us to build our country and fellow Americans up, not tear each other down.We ALL need to remember that 'united we stand, divided we fall".. We have a choice, we can stand together or we'll surely fall apart, Let's choose wisely. GOD BLESS AMERICA!!

The Clinton's, The New Democrats (ie: Obama & Alinsky Types) Are 100% Evil, Just Like The Old National SOCIALIST (NAZIS) & COMMUNIST, Yes Just Pure EVIL... Don D.

This ‘Earthquake’ Will End The Clintons

The Horn News ~ Nov 26, 2017 ~ By Walter W. Murray

The Clinton Era might finally be over.

Steve Bannon, the architect of President Donald Trump’s stunning electoral victory last year and head of Breitbart News, said one Democrat’s remarks last week is shaking the very foundation of the Democratic Party.

“Kirsten Gillibrand’s comment about Bill Clinton I think is an earthquake in the Democratic Party, because the Wall Street-Clinton junta that controls the Democratic Party has really been bulletproof,” Bannon told radio host John Catsimatidis.

Gillibrand – who now holds the Senate seat once occupied by Hillary Clinton – last week said Clinton should’ve resigned over the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Further, she said the former president’s sexual harassment would never be tolerated today.

Bannon said Gillibrand’s move to distance herself from the Clintons shows which way the party is heading.

And it’s AWAY from Bill and Hill.

“I think you saw the first opening shot of the 2020 primary with Gillibrand, who clearly has presidential aspirations,” Bannon said. “She put a shot right across the bow of the Clintons.”

Gillibrand likely will run for president as Bannon predicts. (Spoiler alert: As Northeast liberal who can’t appeal to the heartland, she’ll still lose.)

But there may be another far more cynical interpretation for what she said.

Democrats are having a hard time attacking Republicans over accusations of sexual harassment given Bill Clinton’s sordid past.

So they’re engaging in one of their favorite activities: revisionist history.

In the past, Gillibrand spoke glowingly of how she was “truly honored that President Bill Clinton campaigned for me” in 2006, and has said Hillary Clinton “inspired me to get off the sidelines and truly make a difference.”

By changing her tune… by acting against Bill Clinton in hindsight and pretending she believes he should have resigned 20 years ago… she THINKS the left can gain the moral high ground over Trump and others.

Gillibrand practically admitted as much.

“Things have changed today, and I think under those circumstances there should be a very different reaction,” she told the New York Times. “And I think in light of this conversation, we should have a very different conversation about President Trump, and a very different conversation about allegations against him.”

That’s right. It was fine for Bill Clinton because it was a “different time” and hey, we’re all against it NOW. And that means they’re free to attack Trump and others over it, too.

In other words, like so many Democrats, Gillibrand’s stand against the Clintons isn’t one of courage and conviction.

It’s another “c” word altogether: convenience.

— Walter W. Murray Is a Reporter For The Horn News.

http://thehornnews.com/earthquake-will-end-clintons/