Posted on 06/08/2018 8:54:57 AM PDT by Salvation
Christian songs that tell us a story or relate passages from The Word of God are what I appreciate at my age.
Pardon me for rewording this, but do yu not think that is even more fitting, eh?
Catholicism thrives on superstition.
But that Org and its apologists would never admit that as they finger the beads and chant the mantras and feel secret pride in their fealty to the rituals.
Thanks for that insight, Mark. I have heard that in the Caribbean, Central, and South America culture-related superstition is just tacked on to that which already exists. Voodoo, etc.
I used to live in Del Rio, Tx. It is right on the border. We used to go to Mexico too. Mexico is the same way. Catholic on the surface, but VERY superstitious. Here in the Philippines, I heard my mother in law say, you better watch out, or you will get pinched by a dwarf. After years of hearing this, I finally found out the truth about it.
With learning and troubleshooting, whenever possible I like to do a good/bad comparison to see what and how things are different. It helps me to better understand what Im looking at.
Do you have any specific examples of vain repetitions that the actual heathens were doing so I can compare? I need more data.
Another thing? In human law, we recognize the concept of intent.
I wonder, is it possible whether repetition is vain or not depends upon ones intent, as much as it does the material one is repeating?
From what little I know of meditation, the intention is to tame self by quieting ones internal dialogue and all of its static and noise.
Seriously, how can God get in a word edgewise, especially in His still, small voice, if our mind(s) never stops talking, right?
The repetition works to silence ones inner dialogue by willing it to focus on something specific.
Meditation using Scripture or prayers or even His Name alone are all focusing attention on God or something, aspect, trait, whatever, of God.
To me, using the Rosary as intended, purposes-wise, seems, at minimum, to be an exercise to tame and strengthen ones will, and the Rosary beads are kinda like using an abacus to count reps, same as while lifting weights or counting laps while running around the track.
So, as someone with a fair amount of gym and dojo time doing various forms of strength and physical training, l tend to understand these repetitive things, not as vain repetitions as the heathens do, whatever that is, but are repetitive exercises for spiritual strength training.
I really dont know. Honestly, I dont, but thats how it appears to me, based upon study, observation and personal experience.
Ymmv...
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/06/hillarys_intent__what_james_comey_missed.html
In human law, we recognize the concept of intent.
X
With your post on confirmation bias and this about one face of evil that owns US, you have done everyone who reads your posts a great service.
I have a friend, one of those truly good hearted people youre lucky to meet, who is hard core liberal in his mind. He and his wife believe the liberals are the good guys in the war for the nation. He loves everyone in the demonrat party, especially obama and Hillary, as his sides champions against evil.
Otoh, he absolutely hates all TV preachers, mostly because they all ask for donations at some point during the broadcast and one of his dearly departed used to send donations to someone, I forget which, maybe Jim and Tammy. I dunno, but it was in that timeframe.
His bottom line is, money and preaching just dont mix and getting old people to give you their money is wrong.
So I ask him about how so many of his favorite politicians go into DC as paupers and come out millionares and multimillionaires, some with mega rich foundations.
What are they selling to get so rich? I ask, but get no answer.
At some level, I think he knows. Its just like the author says: Hillary sold us. The Clintons have become rich selling US, the U.S. of us.
But that cant be, the data is wrong. Snopes is right. The majority mass of media is right and the one and only dissenting voice of republican Fox fake News is wrong.
He will look at whatever is shown to him, gotta give him that, but his trusted sources, the ones hes known and trusted through everything big and small since childhood, they say its all lies, political lies by those evil republicans and the biggest, most hated, evil liar thats ever been: TRUMP!!!
The spiritual war is real and Satan is the master trickster, just like the Bible says. And based upon my data, we must be close to something major.
Everywhere I look at the world I used to understand, I see how evil has in some way purchased good, and then used the credibility of that good to further itself.
Wolves in sheeps clothing, indeed. And next on the demonrat democracys itinerary?
The wolves and their sheep will be voting on what to have for lunch.
For their sakes and ours, its a very good thing that their dinner party was interrupted before dinner could be served!
And those wolves are hungry, too! No wonder theyre so angry now, and their anger is going to get a lot worse before the summer is over.
Backed into their self-created coffin corner, the intensity of their warfare against their enemy will hit new levels of insanity, here and abroad.
Its not over yet, but the Trump card has been dealt against them in an end game thats been very well played.
Fwiw, with everything, so much depends upon the perspective of the beholder and vain repetition seems to be one of those.
Does that mean that the act itself that is in vain or is it the repetition itself that is in vain?
Or, does it mean that the act is okay, but the heathens were doing it wrong. The act is being done is cool, but was in vain because it was being done incorrectly? Not from the heart, or was done with the wrong motive or whatever. I dont know.
Or is it the act itself the heathens were doing was in vain, period, no matter how many times or perfectly they or anyone else did it? What makes a sinner a heathen sinner?
To me, most of what I have are questions and theories. Other than a few Laws that govern the world, to me, everything else is theory. Everything.
One Law, or maybe its a rule, not sure, is the Hierarchy.
Everywhere I look I see examples of the hierarchy, especially so with knowledge. And, just as in every hierarchy, the higher the level, the higher the power, so to speak.
As such, it takes energy/power to go up to the next level and you give up energy/power when you go down levels.
One can only see the view/understand things from the level of the hierarchy youre on, as well as those lower than you, but never any level higher. In fact, generally, our awareness can only see that there is a next level beyond the one were on. What it is or whats above that are beyond our comprehension.
So, we can be a low info or high info whatever, but its the power of the info itself that is most important. Seek quality first, then quantity.
Regarding the supernatural aspects of this world and the next that the accepted Sciptures speak of and speak to, the Catholics seem to have a better spiritual library or knowledge than the Protestants do, generally speaking, and the knowledge is the more powerful first or second hand level info.
So far, to me, Protestants tend to dismiss all such data out of hand, generally as heresies and false prophecies from Satan.
Ultimately, their belief wont go into those libraries to see for itself, nor will it allow others to go in, either. A scriptural curiosity for which I have several working theories.
To me, I tend to see the commonality between the martial arts for combat in the physical world and those for combat in the spiritual world.
In both cases, the practitioner is taught to master self and train both the will and physical body.
In the martial arts, the student learns various forms and repeatedly practices them as an excercise to master the inner self and the physical self in the process of learning the movements of that art.
I see praying the Rosary as being like a spiritual workout on a cosmic Universal machine. Its something a peaceful warrior, a spiritual martial artist, uses to train, the same as the various katas are physical workouts that a phyical world martial artist uses to train.
And, just as there are many forms and styles of martial arts for physical mastery and combat, I see the same is true for the spiritual arts.
We have many forms and styles, if you will, in the three major branches of Christianity, from which many more have branched out.
In both martial and spiritual arts, the forms and styles have their own organizations and practices, differentiating themselves in their personal understanding, focus and practices.
A common conversation regarding each, especially among the practicitioners themselves, is which form is best, with everyone favoring their own form and style as being the best of the rest. Exactly the same.
However, in the martial arts, organizations the MMA put those arguments to the test in the ring for all to see. In actual practice, it turns out that no one is better than another, but that better depends upon both situation and practitioner.
Generally speaking, the best fighter is the most well rounded, the one who is the master of many forms and styles.
Bruce Lee more or less told us that a more open minded, not specialized, approach to the martial arts was correct and the MMAs more realistic testing eventually made us see that he was right.
My theory, as almost everything is a theory to me, is the same is also true for the spiritual arts, that no one style is best for everything.
The MMA parallel suggests to me that the most well rounded peaceful warrior would be a master of Unity, respectful and knowledgeable of all forms and styles within the JudeoChristian spiritual arts.
The ‘ground’ must be plowed with mysticism in order for the advent of Chrislam to succeed ... unless The Holy Spirit in believers leaves this planet with the born again. The Holy Spirit will still be transporting an uncountable number to Heaven for the Marriage Feast of The Lamb, but He will not be indwelling as He is during this Age of Grace. ‘All foods are lawful but not all foods build up the body of believers.
In fact, thats one area where I sometimes wonder/worry that I might be doing things wrong.
I tend to use the same words and phrases to say thanks for the same things day after day.
I hope those dont become just a form of rote repetition without thought or feeling.
I have to watch out for that one, as sometimes my mind wanders if/when things become habitual.
I finally figured out that its more about the relationship we each have with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit than what any of us do, right or wrong.
Its all on us. We either want it or we dont and that truth Is revealed by what we do. Cant fake that.
Thanks again!
I now know for sure that the best food and drink comes directly from the source, or as close as you can get. Probably a universal kind of principle.
Speaking of, I like how the Protestants chose to go around the middle men to seek their own understanding.
Otoh, they eventually came up with their own forms of middle men, so to speak, that are different, but every bit the equal of what they left.
Buckaroo Banzai wasnt the first to say it, but he was right: No matter where you go, there you are.
Whatever the reason(s) for leaving, no matter where you go, there you are...eventually. Been there, done that a few times, too.
Stringless sugar snap peas ... blanched they are candy from God’s Garden.
Im kicking myself for not planting a garden this year.
Snap peas are one of those God-given wonders that for some reason never seem to complete the journey from the garden to the kitchen.
They just disappear somehow along the way. Its like...a mystery, or something. I dunno...cant explain it.
They sure are good, though, I do know that!
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