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Balloon-ey!: Vatican takes wrong lesson from dove attack
The Shinbone: The Frontier of the Free Press ^ | January 31, 2015 | Daniel Clark

Posted on 01/31/2015 6:40:14 PM PST by Daniel Clark

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1 posted on 01/31/2015 6:40:14 PM PST by Daniel Clark
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To: Daniel Clark

The Crow represents Socialism and the Seagull, Islam.


2 posted on 01/31/2015 6:43:39 PM PST by Paladin2
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To: Daniel Clark

Confessing my ignorance:

I did not know that dolphins even had blow holes, so I looked it up and sure enough, they do.


3 posted on 01/31/2015 6:46:06 PM PST by Graybeard58 ( For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.)
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To: Daniel Clark

can you say omen


4 posted on 01/31/2015 6:59:01 PM PST by Sacajaweau
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To: Daniel Clark

Jesus blows up balloons all day
Sits on the porch swing, watching them fly


5 posted on 01/31/2015 6:59:35 PM PST by tumblindice (America's founding fathers: all armed conservatives.)
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To: Daniel Clark

You have to wonder if the attack on the doves last year says anything about the Pope who released them.


6 posted on 01/31/2015 7:05:20 PM PST by Cicero (Marcus Tullius)
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To: Daniel Clark

“balloons of peace from St. Peter’s Square”

Right...

Who would have known he was anti-dolphin?

Last week he was against squirrels.


7 posted on 01/31/2015 7:41:45 PM PST by aMorePerfectUnion ( "Forward lies the crown, and onward is the goal.")
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To: Daniel Clark

I always thought balloons represented war - that’s the way it was when I was growing up - and balloons were filled with hydrogen...


8 posted on 01/31/2015 7:55:50 PM PST by Redbob (W.W.J.B.D.: "What Would Jack Bauer Do)
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To: Daniel Clark

You and I in a little toy shop
Buy a bag of balloons with the money we’ve got.
Set them free at the break of dawn
‘Til one by one, they were gone.
Back at base, bugs in the software
Flash the message, Something’s out there.
Floating in the summer sky.
99 red balloons go by.

99 red balloons.
floating in the summer sky.
Panic bells, it’s red alert.
There’s something here from somewhere else.
The war machine springs to life.
Opens up one eager eye.
Focusing it on the sky.
Where 99 red balloons go by.

99 Decision Street.
99 ministers meet.
To worry, worry, super-scurry.
Call the troops out in a hurry.
This is what we’ve waited for.
This is it boys, this is war.
The president is on the line
As 99 red balloons go by.


9 posted on 01/31/2015 8:05:12 PM PST by Hegemony Cricket (The emperor < still > has no pedigree.)
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To: Daniel Clark
The Pope still has a lot of catastrophic dove releases to catch up with the 1988 Olympics when a part of the released flock decided the cauldron would be a great spot to perch... until the torch lighting ceremony.
10 posted on 01/31/2015 8:05:58 PM PST by KarlInOhio (Darth Obama on 529 plans: I am altering the deal. Pray I don't alter it any further.)
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To: Graybeard58
I did not know that dolphins even had blow holes, so I looked it up and sure enough, they do.

I was once out on a charter boat, fishing, when some dolphins came in close to the fantail...a very low fantail.

Touchy-feely birkenstocker leans over to "pet" the nice dolphin, just as he blows.

Dolphin snot all over a liberal tree hugger is funny, particularly when said liberal tree-hugger threatens to kill the poor dolphin and all his family tree and close acquaintances.

(I really don't think dolphins blow snot, but whatever the liberal douch had to wipe off his face and chest was still funny as hell.)

11 posted on 01/31/2015 8:20:19 PM PST by OldSmaj (obama is a worthless mohametan. Impeach his ass now!)
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To: Daniel Clark

Dove => balloon => Peace.

OK

So what happens when a crow and seagull pop the balloon?
wouldn’t that still have the same meaning? peace is popped?
oh, wait, we don’t care what happens to the balloon as long as it went up up and awayyyyyy.

It’s a shame the Pope did not see the warning God sent.
God uses animals to warn and teach.

We need to send this Pope a Bible.


12 posted on 01/31/2015 9:28:03 PM PST by 1_Rain_Drop
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To: Graybeard58

Your tagline is one of my favorite verses.


13 posted on 01/31/2015 9:47:44 PM PST by ShasheMac (Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10)
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To: Daniel Clark
reason enough to demand a ban on helium balloons.

Oh great. Now how are we going to talk like Mickey Mouse?

14 posted on 01/31/2015 9:49:26 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Doctrine doesn't change. The trick is to find a way around it.)
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To: Hegemony Cricket
As 99 red balloons go by.

It was better in the original German.

15 posted on 01/31/2015 9:50:00 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Doctrine doesn't change. The trick is to find a way around it.)
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To: 1_Rain_Drop

I don’’t think he’d read it. This Pope sucks.


16 posted on 01/31/2015 11:20:19 PM PST by jospehm20
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To: Graybeard58

Dude, it’s a marine mammal!


17 posted on 02/01/2015 12:09:11 AM PST by Axenolith (Government blows, and that which governs least, blows least...)
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To: Daniel Clark; tumblindice; Cicero; aMorePerfectUnion; Paladin2; Graybeard58; Sacajaweau; Redbob; ...


Balloon-ey!: Vatican takes wrong lesson from dove attack
The Shinbone: The Frontier of the Free Press ^ | January 31, 2015 | Daniel Clark


That's a jazzy, eye-catching title, yet missing in your blog article is exactly why you zeroed in on the Pope's use of balloons. Your article makes it sound as if the Pope using balloons was some new liberal, anti-Conservative, anti-American conspiracy, a new and terrible concept solely invented by the Pope or someone in the Vatican. Yet Google search shows that many Christian churches and many different denominations of Christian churches have also used balloons for years.

The first time I saw a balloon used in a religious way was around 1998, when a neighbor's Father sent prayers and scripture aloft on a balloon in hopes that whomever later found the balloon "will also be inspired to find Jesus Christ and be saved." My neighbor's Father inflated the balloon with helium and let it loose in their backyard and away it flew. My neighbors are members of a local non-denominational mega-church.




Southern Baptists recommend the use of prayer balloons in children's ministry:



Southern Baptists and Prayer Balloons
New Year’s Idea: Prayer Balloons

If I believed in magic, (which I don’t) I would have to say that balloons have a magical quality. No matter where you put them in a room, children will unavoidably be drawn to them. Even uninflated balloons are full of potential for kids. Don’t believe me? Place a basket full of balloons in the center of your classroom table. You’ll have to move them! If you’re like me, you have probably used balloons in your children’s ministry class. These handy, inexpensive items are perfect for illustrating many different bible topics, like dealing with anger before you pop or how the Holy Spirit lives inside us.

And other cool way to use a balloon is as an object lesson for prayer. Teaching kids that prayers are more than words, they are powerful messages to God who hears every single word. It’s an important lesson to teach if building a strong foundation of faith is a priority for you. When we talk to God, these special messages travel quickly to God’s ears. For this New Year’s object lesson, you need latex balloons, string, scissors, small pieces of paper and pens. It’s a good idea to teach a lesson on prayer before this activity. Use prayer balloons at the beginning of the year so kids can start the year with an emphasis on prayer.

Encourage the kids to write their prayers on a piece of paper. (They can leave them unsigned for privacy.) You may need to give them several minutes to collect their thoughts and write their prayer request. Each child should then roll up his prayer like a scroll, then cinch it closed with a string. Tie the string to the balloon string and head outdoors. Lead the kids in a prayer and release the balloons!

A sea of balloons rising up to the heavens is a powerful demonstration to kids about prayer. This is also a terrific object lesson for teens too!





Disciples of Christ recommend the use of balloons in youth ministry:

Prayer Balloons

So how might you help your youth explore the themes of Pentecost and metaphors for the movement of the Spirit? Here are a few simple ideas to get you thinking:

Balloons - Invite youth to blow up red balloons, but don't tie them. Use sharpies to write prayers on the balloons or perhaps gifts of the Spirit that they possess or that they see in the group. On cue, have everyone release their balloons and enjoy the moment of mayhem as they fly all over the room. Invite them to reflect on how this might be like the movement of God's Spirit.





A Lutheran couple created:

Gospel Balloons

This is a site dedicated to teaching, sharing and promoting Gospel balloon ministries. Take a little time and check out the various sections. Let me know which sections are (or will be in time) the most useful. Send me any ideas that you have that may help this site further aid you in your ministry.

Gospel Balloons





The non-denominational mega-church The Rock, founded by Myles McPherson in 2000 has
Balloon Art Ministry





The Pentecostals magazine Charisma News had this supportive article about using balloons to send forbidden Christian literature into North Korea.

Scriptures Float Into North Korea Via 'Balloon Offensive'

Scriptures Float Into North Korea Via 'Balloon Offensive'
4:37PM EDT 10/6/2011 George Thomas/CBN News

Bibles in balloons


One human rights group is taking action to spread the gospel in North Korea via balloons. (CBN News)

When it comes to human rights and religious freedom, North Korea is the worst of the worst.

For Christians, the price of belief in God could mean death.

One human rights group is taking action with an unusual aerial offensive to encourage the country's secret believers.

Target: North Korea

Just before sunset, a vanload of undercover Christians from Seoul heads north. For their protection, CBN News concealed both their faces and names.

"What we are doing could get us into trouble," one Christian named "Peter" said.

"We are going here some four miles from the North Korean border and close to the Demilitarized Zone," he told CBN News.

The Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ, is one of the most heavily fortified and potentially dangerous places on earth.

One million armed North Korean troops stand ready on their side of the DMZ; the South has just as many.

One factor that could ruin the whole excursion—the weather.

"One slight change in the wind direction could mess up the mission," Peter said.

Operation Dandelion

Peter dubbed the mission Operation Dandelion. "We started this project back in 1991, and just as a dandelion needs the wind to spread its seeds, we need the wind to spread the message," Peter explained.

That message is the Word of God printed in the Korean language on thousands of bright orange balloons.

"It's almost impossible to get Bibles into North Korea, so using balloons is one of the most effective ways to share the gospel," Peter said.

A tank in the back of the van pumps helium into the balloons. The team works quickly, all the time keeping tabs on the wind direction.

Prayers are whispered—then the release. A few minutes later the balloons begin their slow drift across North Korean airspace.

"By sending these balloons, we let our North Korean brothers and sisters know that we are praying for them and the Scriptures on the balloons are meant to encourage them," one undercover believer said.

How it All Began

The earnest prayers began at an undisclosed location in Seoul.

Every week since 1991, 78-year-old Oh Mo Duk, along with a handful of other believers, has been preparing each balloon for the flight into North Korea.

"I was born in North Korea. This is my way of helping to get the gospel back to my countrymen," she told CBN News.

This is how the balloon Bible smuggling works: A hole in the balloon is filled with helium. A strip of tape is placed around it and then of it goes into the skies of North Korea.

"The helium will leak out of the balloon and eventually fall to the ground," Duk explained. "And when someone picks it up, they'll be able to read all 16 chapters of the book of Mark."





Many more articles about the use of balloons in Christian ministry


18 posted on 02/01/2015 1:27:42 AM PST by bd476
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To: Axenolith
Dude, it’s a marine mammal!

I confessed my ignorance in the matter, at the beginning of my reply. I knew that dolphins, like whales, were air breathing mammals, it just never occurred to me that, like whales, they too had blow holes.

Unlike some FReepers, (not talking about you friend), I do not think I know everything about everything and I'm willing to learn, so I looked it up

19 posted on 02/01/2015 4:49:16 AM PST by Graybeard58 ( For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.)
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To: ShasheMac
Your tagline is one of my favorite verses.

On the religion forum, an atheist had made the comment, that he had "read the bible three times, cover to cover" and knew it better than most Christians.

I replied to him that I had read both testaments more than 50 times, "cover to cover" and that I claimed to know nothing except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Then I gave the full quote from Paul's letter to the Corinthians: "For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified".

He didn't reply further but I hope that I gave him something to think about.

I want to meet him in heaven some day and I won't get to, unless he accepts Jesus as Lord and Savior.

20 posted on 02/01/2015 5:07:18 AM PST by Graybeard58 ( For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.)
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