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The 1904 book "The Worship of the Dead, Or The Origin And Nature Of Pagan Idolatry And It's Bearing Upon The Early History Of Egypt And Babylonia", by John Garnier (London: Chapman & Hall), makes an interesting connection between the holiday Halloween and the Great Flood of Noah’s day.

In Chapter One of his book, pages 3-11, Garnier maintains that the modern-day celebrations for the dead, around November 1, go all the way back to the flood and are meant to memorialize the people who died in the Deluge brought by God on a wicked world.

Garnier prefaces his reasoning by mentioning the ubiquity of flood accounts from traditions around the world ...

I suppose that in growing up as children, most of us were exposed to, and influenced by the basic teachings of some religion, most likely that of our parents or significant others. For healthy emotional and psychological development, a child needs to feel that it is loved; this gives the child a sense of security. Usually, the first and foremost providers of such love to a child are its parents or significant others. This love may be manifested in the attitude and behaviour of these persons towards the child in terms of fulfilling its needs such as feeding it when it is hungry and changing its diaper when it has soiled itself.

However, as the child grows up, it may come to realize that there are limitations to the efforts of others to carry out certain actions. It is usually at such a point that the child may be taught that there is some higher being or God who has control of everything, and furthermore that this being loves it and that it should be “good”, as expressed in the basic teachings of religion. This knowledge may provide the child with a deeper sense of security, which may extend into adult life and may persist even until death.

Of course, some persons may move away from and even abandon those teachings altogether in later life.

This refers to all religions including Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and others.


If you have children, did you give them, or are you giving them, such a grounding?

Were you given such a grounding; if you were, what was the religion?

Do you think that it is a good idea to give young children such a grounding in the basic teachings of some religion?
Why, or Why not?

Thanks for your comments!
Open discussion welcome!

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. John 5:24 KJV

By David Berg and The Family Missions

"WHAT IS LIFE ALL ABOUT?--WHAT AM I HERE FOR? IS THERE A PURPOSE, A PLAN FOR ME?--AND IF SO, WHAT IS IT?"

Questions such as these have stirred the soul and imagination of Man throughout the ages. Regardless of our country, color or creed, our hearts all hunger for the same things--for lasting love, genuine happiness and peace of mind, truth and beauty, meaning and purpose.

ALL men, from the most primitive tribes in the jungles to members of the most modern and technologically-advanced societies, seem to instinctively sense that life is more than an evolutionary coincidence or accident. Although increasing numbers of people today look to modern SCIENCE and its continually changing and often contradictory theories to try to understand our origins and the true nature of life, for thousands of years the main source of solace Man has turned to has been his various FAITHS.--Faiths in which he gives recognition or worship to the unseen supernatural forces he feels must exist.

In his quest for Truth, enlightenment and inner peace, for the Ultimate Reality, Man's many religions have offered him a wide variety of beliefs and practices. By means of those religions, Man reaches out for supernatural assistance, hoping to obtain the favor and blessing of the unseen Power or powers he worships.

BUT HOW CAN I BE BOTHERED WITH SOMETHING AS OLD-FASHIONED AS RELIGION WHEN I'M SO BUSY TRYING TO "GET AHEAD"?

In today's ever-changing and increasingly complex and computerized World, more and more people find themselves so caught up in the frenzied rush to become successful financially, they often have little time to ponder such seemingly "abstract" matters as the meaning of life, peace of mind, love for their fellowman, or even the eternal welfare of their own souls!--After all, such concerns could be quite distracting or actually detrimental to their pursuit of the most POPULAR "god" of this World; a god that commands most of the World's worship and devotion--MONEY and material wealth!

From the time they are very young children, many people have it ingrained in them that the only way to attain happiness in life is to:

1) Get a good education, preferably with a degree from a prestigious university.

2) Land a "promising" job with a successful company or corporation.

3) Make enough money to purchase a new automobile, a nice house or two, and furnish and equip it with all of the various luxury items and hi-tech electronic gadgets that are equated with "success". Although this route to riches usually requires a lifetime of blood, sweat, tears and toil, most of the folks who follow it do so without serious doubts or reservations, for they are convinced that once they attain the wealth they desire, they will at last find true happiness and contentment.

But sad to say, such people usually discover that despite their arduous efforts to attain happiness, it somehow eludes them. As the years pass they often find that company or social pressures have filled them with stress and anxiety, not peace or satisfaction. Their private lives frequently suffer as a result, as they're unable to even find time to spend with their own families and loved ones.

Then, to their dismay, they eventually and ultimately reach a very sad realization: This World and all of its treasures and pleasures can never truly satisfy the HEART of Man! Material things may temporarily satisfy the BODY, but they can never satisfy the SOUL or the SPIRIT of Man which longs for a joy, peace and lasting fulfillment that can never be met or fulfilled by mere material gain.





DeepTruths TFI

God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. John 4:24 KJV

A compilation FEBRUARY 3, 2015

You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.—John 8:321

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For the Christian, the ultimate expression of truth is found in the Bible, in Jesus, who said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life...”2 Of course, most philosophers and skeptics will dismiss His claim, but for the Christian, He is the mainstay of hope, security, and guidance. Jesus, who walked on water, claimed to be divine, rose from the dead, and said that He was the truth and the originator of truth. The eyewitnesses wrote what they saw. They were with Him.—Matt Slick

What is truth?

Almost 2,000 years ago, a Roman governor chose to ask a profound question of a man who was about to be executed.

“What is truth?” he asked.

Most people ponder that question at some time in their lives, especially at critical points when they are struggling with the question of the meaning of life. After all, the need for meaning is a basic human need, and there can be no meaning without some ultimate truth. We seem to know instinctively that ultimate truth is somehow related to the existence of God. In fact, it is interesting that those who deny the existence of God are the same ones who say there is no absolute truth and that everything is relative. But something deep within us says this is not so—something tells us that God exists and that He holds the key to truth. …

Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor who, almost 2,000 years ago, looked into the eyes of Jesus and asked, “What is truth?”

Jesus didn’t just talk about being the Messiah, He demonstrated the power of God—His power—through many “signs and wonders.” He revealed His authority over creation by turning water into wine, and by commanding storms to cease—and cease they did. He revealed His compassion for people by healing multitudes, restoring sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and health to the sick. He raised people from the dead. Finally, after Jesus was crucified and buried, He physically arose from the dead and appeared afterward to more than 500 people. In every phase of His life—from His conception to His resurrection—Jesus fulfilled prophecies made hundreds of years beforehand, convincing those around Him who knew and believed the Scriptures that He was the Messiah.—Author unknown3

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Christ became human flesh and lived among us. We saw His shining-greatness. This greatness is given only to a much-loved Son from His Father. He was full of loving-favor and truth.—John 1:144

True for you but not for me…

Christian philosopher J. P. Moreland has written about an illuminating encounter with a student at the University of Vermont. Moreland was speaking in a dorm, and a relativistic student who lived there told him, “Whatever is true for you is true for you and whatever is true for me is true for me. If something works for you because you believe it, that’s great. But no one should force his or her views on other people since everything is relative.”

As Moreland left, he unplugged the student’s stereo and started out the door with it. The student protested: “Hey, what are you doing? … You can’t do that.” Moreland replied, “You’re not going to force on me the belief that it is wrong to steal your stereo, are you?” He then went on to point out to the student that, when it’s convenient, people say they don’t care about s*xual morality or cheating on exams. But they become moral absolutists in a hurry when someone steals their things or violates their rights. That is, they are selective moral relativist—Paul Copan

1 ESV.
2 John 14:6.
3 From cbn.com.
4 NLV.




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THE MOST EXTENSIVE COLLECTION OF QUOTES ON THE SUBJECT OF HEAVEN!

Compiled by PowerPointParadise

Cartoonist Arthur Brisbane once pictured a crowd of grieving caterpillars carrying the corpse of a cocoon to its final resting place. The poor, distressed caterpillars, clad in black raiment, were weeping, and all the while the beautiful butterfly fluttered happily above the muck and the mire of Earth, forever freed from its earthly shell.

Needless to say, Brisbane had the average funeral in mind and sought to convey the idea that when our loved ones pass, it is foolish to remember only the cocoon and concentrate our attention on the remains, while forgetting the bright butterfly.

Dr. Werner von Braun, well-known for his part in pioneering the U.S. space program, said that he had "essentially scientific" reasons for believing in life after death. He explained: "Science has found that nothing can disappear without a trace. Nature does not know extinction. All it knows is transformation. If God applies the fundamental principle to the most minute and insignificant parts of the universe, doesn't it make sense to assume that He applies it to the masterpiece of His creation--the human soul? I think it does."

The English scientist Michael Faraday (1791-1867) is considered to have been one of the greatest experimental physicists. When Faraday was questioned on his speculations of a life after death, he replied:
"Speculations? I know nothing about speculations. I'm resting on certainties. I know that my Redeemer lives, and because He lives, I shall live also."

"We shall not rest from our work but from our labors. There will be no toil, no pain in the work. --Anonymous

"Heaven is not all rest. On the door is inscribed: 'No admission except on business.'--Anonymous

"You grow to heaven. You don't go to heaven. "--Edgar Cayce

"Heaven would be a very hell to a wicked person."--David Berg

"I'm not afraid of death. It's just that I don't want to be there when it happens."-- Woody Allen

"To fear death is nothing other than to think oneself wise when one is not. For it is to think one knows what one does not know. No one knows whether death may not even turn out to be the greatest blessing of human beings. And yet people fear it as if they knew for certain it is the greatest evil."--Socrates

"The best way to get to heaven is to take it with you. " --Henry Drummond

"Your religion is where your love is." --Henry David Thoreau

"No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in it today." -- Fra Giovanni

"Heaven-- the treasury of everlasting life.--William Shakespeare

"Love rules the camp, the court, the grove -- for love is Heaven, and Heaven is love.--Lord Byron

"Be assured that just as an hour is only part of a day, so life on Earth is only part of eternity.--C.L. Allen

"Surely it is not wrong for us to think and talk about Heaven. I like to find out all I can about it. I expect to live there through all eternity. If I were going to dwell in any place in this country, if I were going to make it my home, I would inquire about its climate, about the neighbors I would have -- about everything, in fact, that I could learn concerning it. If soon you were going to emigrate, that is the way you would feel. Well, we are all going to emigrate in a very little while. We are going to spend eternity in another world. Is it not natural that we should look and listen and try to find out who is already there and what is the route to take?--Dwight L. Moody

"It certainly seems like a good idea to talk about Heaven, meditate about Heaven and read about Heaven, because, after all, that's where we're going to spend eternity. It's an important place -- our eternal home. So it's only natural to want to know what it's like and what we're going to be like when we get there.--David Berg





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Recently, I had a shock of my life. I have been working at the same place for more than 30 years. During those 30 years I had never seen nor experienced the presence of the unseen. Heard many stories about the wondering spirits from my colleagues.

Recently , I experienced 2 occasions where I felt their presence and seen one.

Experience 1 : This particular day, I had to enter an abandoned storeroom to check on something. My colleagues told me not to go in alone, asked someone to accompany me. One of my colleagues who has third eye, told me she once saw a woman stood at the storeroom door. Being stubborn, I peeped inside and went in. Out of a sudden I felt my whole body shivering. I remembered what my colleagues told me. Quickly , I came out of the storeroom. Told the whole office about my experience and had an earful.

Experience 2: Happened last week.. Never crossed my mind that the toilet I had been using for more than 30 years has a wondering spirit. There are 3 cubicles. When I came out from the 1st cubicle, out of the corner of my eyes I saw someone walked into the 3rd cubicle. I thought it was my colleague. After washing my hands, I turned to look who it was. All three cubicles were empty.

I still use the same toilet.

The electromagnetic spectrum is the distribution of electromagnetic radiation according to frequency or wavelength, and energy.
Frequency is defined as the number of cycles per second (Hertz)
Wavelength is the length of a single wave or cycle.

The energy of a frequency is proportional to its magnitude, i.e.,
low frequencies have low energies and high frequencies have high energies.

All these frequencies can be present together and occupy the same space simultaneously. This is demonstrated by the presence of frequencies from the various radio and television stations being present in space. We can select a particular station by tuning in our radio or television receiver to its frequency which enables us to receive its broadcast only.

A band of frequencies constitute a dimension or universe.
There are a multiple number of dimensions, meaning that there are multiple universes.

Your consciousness is tuned to the 3D wavelength, which determines what you physically see and how you interact with objects. The 4th dimension has a different set of properties, hence you cannot see anything from the 4D reality, unless you change the frequency of your body to correspond to the frequency of the 4th dimension. Each dimension has its own specific frequencies and wavelengths. Life in the universe is not limited to the 3rd dimension; it is just that we cannot see the other realities that exist, because those realities have different frequencies and wavelengths that do not correspond to our 3D senses. Therefore, our physical existence on Earth is simply one of many infinite realities in the “Multidimensional Universe.”

I believe that when we die, our consciousness, soul, spirit or whatever, enters into a different dimension with a different frequency or vibration from that which we can normally feel or sense in ordinary day-to-day life. If someone is able to tune in to that frequency range, they may receive messages or signals from that dimension. This is similar to the reception of broadcasts from various radio stations or television channels, where we need to tune in to the operating frequency of a particular station or channel.

Signals from these different dimensions or frequencies are always present around us. I think that certain people like a “medium” in a séance, or a shaman, may be able to tune in to those other frequencies or dimensions and to communicate with others who exist in those dimensions. However, I prefer to confine such interactions with those dimensions to different frequencies, within the electromagnetic spectrum, which can be experienced right here on Earth. I cannot quite grasp the idea of an individual, or part of an individual actually travelling in outer space to some distant planet, star or galaxy as some persons claim.

However, I can see how the idea could have originated. Shamanism was first practised thousands of years ago among aboriginal or indigenous peoples, who had no knowledge of science regarding frequencies and dimensions. In fact, such science was not even developed at that time in the Western world where it originated,(I think). Such an experience certainly must have felt like an "out of this world" experience, (which, in fact, it is, if one considers it involved a frequency dimension that is different from that of ordinary day-to-day experience). It seems natural to me that those shamans would have associated those experiences with the distant planets, stars and galaxies that are literally out of this world, i.e., planet Earth.

Paranormal experiences, such as ESP, probably occur when there is an interaction of the reality of some other dimension with that of our ordinary day-to-day world.

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We are taught in school that civilization began with Sumer and later the Bronze Age. Before that was the ice age when vast sheets of ice over a mile thick in some places covered the Earth..

There was no civilization before that, or so we are taught.

Consider then this map. "Nova et Aucta Orbis Terrae Descriptio ad Usum Navigantium Emendate Accommodata" It was released by Gerardus Mercator in the year 1569. Allegedly he made it using the accounts of sailors and fragments of much older maps from the Mid East.



Most humans today do not notice two improbable features about this map.

In 1541 there emerged a printing of a map drawn in the second century by Ptolemy. Ptolemy maintained it was a copy of a much older map that had been rescued from the ashes of the library at Alexandria.

Here is that map. Again, features exist most did not realize until fairly recently although one should be immediately obvious.

The 1569 map of Mercator, look in the lower left corner. Do you recognize that continent? Antarctica. When was Antarctica discovered and mapped?

Would you believe not until1819? It is true.

Note the land masses near between Australia and Asia on the Mercator map. Note also the shape of the Mediterranean. Until about 50 hyears ago those were believed to be mere map errors. Today however we know those were accurate representations of those areas, back around 30,000 years ago or so. Before the last ice age began. When the miles thick ice melted those areas flooded as the sea rose.

Now look at the Ptolemey map. Again, two things. The same land masses now known to be accurate pre-ice age representations of the coast lines drawn in a time we had no mariners and no civilization, or so we are taught.

Something else on Ptolemey's map. Something that won't be seen again on a map for decades and decades. Latitude and Longitude marks. Calculating latitude is easy. The angle of the sun (or certain agreed upon stars such as Polaris) can be used to detemine that. However calculating Longitude requires something which durn sure (supposedly) did not exist in the time before the ice age, nor in the time of the Library at Alexandria, nor in Ptolemey's time either. Indeed it did not even exist in 1541 when Ptolemy's map was re-printed.

To calculate Longitude you need a chronometer (i.e., an accurate clock) able to measure exactly how many minutes away you are from an agreed upon central reference point (today we use Greenwich, England). The problem with Ptolemy's map is simple. His map set the zero lattitude at the equator, something he should not have known of yet and he copied longitude marks onto his 2nd century copy almost 1,100 years before longitude was again recalculated in 1350 or so.

So what does this give us? Amazingly accurate pre ice age maps showing yet to be discovered continents with a grid coordinate system from a time in which supposedly there was no civilization, no commerce, no need for maps and no technology to use or make them with anyway.

Everyone in this world wants love but why is then "There's not enough love to go round"? 'Sympathy' Rare Bird.
The way I see it is, what we do with the light of our love, where does it go? We tend to focus this light on just one person - a partner or lover, or we just focus it on our family. And if we don't have either we focus it on ourselves but this doesn't make us feel loved. For love to be activated and felt, there must be more than one person, just as with music there must be a listener for it to be appreciated.
What we should do is shine this 'light of love' on all we come into contact with, and even those we don't. Our love should not be a single beam of light but like a lantern which shines all around. But how to create that amount of love? Well, you just have to feel it, want it and want the world to be a better place for all, then visualise this inside your own being. You have to create the energy within yourself. The love you have is just the polarity of your energy and how you focus your attention on it, how you think of it and how you see it. We are all co-creators with the creative force of life.

Actually there is enough love to round, just like there is enough daylight to go round but in the middle of the night we don't see it.

John 12:20-33

Jesus Predicts His Death

20 Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. 21 They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.

23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

27 “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify Your Name!”

Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to Him.

30 Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. 31 Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show the kind of death He was going to die.

Thank you in advance for reading and commenting