Paradise is an English word of Persian roots. It is usually identified with describing any place of complete bliss, delight and peace. Historically it particularly denotes the biblical Garden of Eden, the place where the first man, Adam, and his wife, lived after they had been created by God until the Fall, or perhaps some imagined place of total tranquility, someplace besides the Earth, or even a new state of Earth without heavy labor, strife, war and death.
In the Book of Genesis, God shapes Adam from the dust of the Earth then causes Adam to go into a deep sleep and as he is sleeping He forms Eve from Adam's side. He then places them in this seemingly perfect garden, called Eden, where they then live. Unfortunately, Eve listened to the Serpent rather than God and her husband Adam, did too. Disobeying God's word to them, taking the bad advice of the serpent and eating the very fruit God told them not to eat, they were now destined to die.
Gen 3:17-19" And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. "
Disobeying God, judgment was pronounced for the serpent as well as Adam and Eve. Expelled from the paradise of Eden, they knew that they should have never listened to the serpent who beguiled them into eating the fruit God told them not to eat.
However, they were comforted that when God expelled them, he gave them a promise. God promised that one day there will be a seed produced of the woman, a redeemer, who would crush the head of the serpent.
Gen 3:14-15 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."
By believing the promise of God, they would one day see redemption.
In Luke 23:43, Jesus told the thief on the cross who believed that he was God, “Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
And Then, There's Technology
The English word technology comes from the Greek “technologia.’ It is a term that can be applied to material objects of use to humanity, such as machines or utensils, but it can also encompass the broader definition of organizational systems. It describes any human innovation that involves the generation of knowledge and to solve problems, particularly those problems that modify the natural environment in order to satisfy perceived human needs and wants.
When the average person think about technology, they often think of the most highly sophisticated tools. Machines of all sorts, and of course, computers are generally the first things that come to mind. But in the simplest form of the definition, “technology” would also include the simple tools, thing like levers, pulleys, hammers, and weapons too. Things like spears and even rocks, when used to satisfy a need or get what one wants, are forms of man’s “technology.”
School children are often taught that technology has gone through dramatic changes as mankind developed through the ages. Perhaps you remember learning that the Stone Age came first and then the Bronze Age and then the Iron Age? I do. But it has since come to my attention that this information is totally inaccurate. This is not the way it really happened. Not only that, the scientists and experts who write this stuff for our digestion, know it is not true. yet they teach it.
I wonder, "Why?" (You may be wondering that too.)
I think it's because once the pupil, usually a child, understands the concept of technological advancement through human history over the span of time like this, they will "better understand" another prominent teaching, this one about the origin of mankind. Understanding man's technological advancement, is counterpart to the idea that man gradually evolved over long periods of time from lower life forms in order to become who and what he is today. Both concepts are best understood on a time line.
Imagine a time line that starts back at the beginning of time and moves forward to today. At the beginning, would be the first of these “technological ages,” the Stone Age, which occurred sometime after man was no longer whatever he was before he evolved into ‘man,” (and woman.) Apparently man came down out of the trees and began working with stone and wood... and this without metals, for that age had not occurred yet.
Next on the timeline would be the Bronze Age. (During the Bronze Age tools and weapons began to appear in use and they were made of bronze. Then comes the Iron Age, which is the time when man not only discovered but also began to work with… (take a guess,) … you probably guessed it: iron.
Over the next few spans of time on the timeline, mankind enters into the Industrial Revolution, (with the invention of the cotton gin, and then the glorious Technological Age of the 20th century, followed by the Information or Computer/Space Age which we are in now.
Once you have clearly seen this progression, and how things have gotten better and better over time, and understood how man has been becoming more advanced and smarter, as he is working with more and more complex substances through the passage of time, you will better understand the basic principle of evolution.
It's simplistic, easy to understand, but it is not complete. In fact new discoveries have been made and this “three age system,” (Stone, Bronze, Iron) originally developed by Danish archaeologist Christian Thomsen, has had to be modified by giving subdivisions to the ages. For example the Stone age has been come two parts, The Old Stone (now called Paleolithic,) and New Stone (Neolithic) age. Most importantly, it's notable that within these “ages,” “technological developments” have appeared in different societies at vastly differing times, some with no relation at all to Thomsen's "ages.” Therefore, they are not accurate.
An example of this inaccuracy, would be the Maya people of South America. They were essentially still living in the Paleolithic “(old) Stone Age” when the exploring Spanish conquistadors of the 1400’s discovered them. Learned explorers of the day may have assumed these people were not very bright, they may have appeared technologically challenged, but those assumptions would be wrong as it is widely recognized that these same people had an incredible knowledge of mathematics. In fact, much of the Mayan culture, like the Egyptian past, remains an enigma to the “wise” scientists of today who cannot fit them into the three-age schema they were taught.
Another example not fitting into this technological age model presented in most textbooks would be the Japanese culture. The Japanese people mastered that art of fine pottery and glass long before they were developed in farming. This being the case, they too do not fit into Thompsen’s three system model of technological development either.
Anything that man has created that increases his ability to get what he needs or wants, by definition, is technology. It can refer to something like a hoe, that makes the world of tilling the soil a little easier or to weapons, like swords and spears. Since the beginning of time, men have used various forms of technology to get what they want, to gain dominance over other men.
No mater the weapon, be it rocks and stones, bows and arrows, or cannons that shoot balls of iron over land and sea, technology will be used by the most aggressive in order to secure for themselves the things they want. After all, he who creates the greatest tool, (be it rock or bomb, nuclear, chemical or biological warfare of the Atomic or Technological Age) rules and shapes the world.
Technology is power.
Technology, you might say, began long ago somewhere near the beginning of time, when a man, looked at a rock, considered it a weapon and used it to dominate another human being. Take Cain for example, of Cain and Able. Cain used technology ( a rock) to get what he wanted. He wanted to get rid of his brother and it worked. He killed him. He didn't use his bare hands. He used technology.
Mankind today, may seem much more “technologically sophisticated,” than Cain was We now have better more efficient ways of ensuring that we get what we want. There are swords, catapults, grenades. semi-automatic machine guns, and even laboratories that build nuclear bombs and biological weapons. Like Cain, people today can easily succumb to thinking that technology is the solution to anything that ails us, but like Cain we need to learn that the solution to our problems isn't technology, it's obeying God.
Technology has solved a lot of, what we humans consider to be, problems. It helps us do a lot of thing, but it's not the answer to everything in the world. Jesus is. After all, Jesus conquered death when he rose from the grave. Death and destruction are some of the heavier weighted problems humanity and all of creation faces... and yet the hand of God renews things day by day. Meanwhile we try to solve problems, particularly those problems that modify the natural environment in order to satisfy perceived human needs and wants with technology.
When the average person think about technology, they often think of the most highly sophisticated tools. Machines of all sorts, and of course, computers are generally the first things that come to mind. But in the simplest form of the definition, “technology” would also include the simple tools, thing like levers, pulleys, hammers, and weapons too. Things like spears and even rocks, when used to satisfy a need or get what one wants, are forms of man’s “technology.”
School children are often taught that technology has gone through dramatic changes as mankind developed through the ages. Perhaps you remember learning that the Stone Age came first and then the Bronze Age and then the Iron Age? I do. But it has since come to my attention that this information is totally inaccurate. This is not the way it really happened. Not only that, the scientists and experts who write this stuff for our digestion, know it is not true. yet they teach it.
I wonder, "Why?" (You may be wondering that too.)
I think it's because once the pupil, usually a child, understands the concept of technological advancement through human history over the span of time like this, they will "better understand" another prominent teaching, this one about the origin of mankind. Understanding man's technological advancement, is counterpart to the idea that man gradually evolved over long periods of time from lower life forms in order to become who and what he is today. Both concepts are best understood on a time line.
Imagine a time line that starts back at the beginning of time and moves forward to today. At the beginning, would be the first of these “technological ages,” the Stone Age, which occurred sometime after man was no longer whatever he was before he evolved into ‘man,” (and woman.) Apparently man came down out of the trees and began working with stone and wood... and this without metals, for that age had not occurred yet.
Next on the timeline would be the Bronze Age. (During the Bronze Age tools and weapons began to appear in use and they were made of bronze. Then comes the Iron Age, which is the time when man not only discovered but also began to work with… (take a guess,) … you probably guessed it: iron.
Over the next few spans of time on the timeline, mankind enters into the Industrial Revolution, (with the invention of the cotton gin, and then the glorious Technological Age of the 20th century, followed by the Information or Computer/Space Age which we are in now.
Once you have clearly seen this progression, and how things have gotten better and better over time, and understood how man has been becoming more advanced and smarter, as he is working with more and more complex substances through the passage of time, you will better understand the basic principle of evolution.
It's simplistic, easy to understand, but it is not complete. In fact new discoveries have been made and this “three age system,” (Stone, Bronze, Iron) originally developed by Danish archaeologist Christian Thomsen, has had to be modified by giving subdivisions to the ages. For example the Stone age has been come two parts, The Old Stone (now called Paleolithic,) and New Stone (Neolithic) age. Most importantly, it's notable that within these “ages,” “technological developments” have appeared in different societies at vastly differing times, some with no relation at all to Thomsen's "ages.” Therefore, they are not accurate.
An example of this inaccuracy, would be the Maya people of South America. They were essentially still living in the Paleolithic “(old) Stone Age” when the exploring Spanish conquistadors of the 1400’s discovered them. Learned explorers of the day may have assumed these people were not very bright, they may have appeared technologically challenged, but those assumptions would be wrong as it is widely recognized that these same people had an incredible knowledge of mathematics. In fact, much of the Mayan culture, like the Egyptian past, remains an enigma to the “wise” scientists of today who cannot fit them into the three-age schema they were taught.
Another example not fitting into this technological age model presented in most textbooks would be the Japanese culture. The Japanese people mastered that art of fine pottery and glass long before they were developed in farming. This being the case, they too do not fit into Thompsen’s three system model of technological development either.
Anything that man has created that increases his ability to get what he needs or wants, by definition, is technology. It can refer to something like a hoe, that makes the world of tilling the soil a little easier or to weapons, like swords and spears. Since the beginning of time, men have used various forms of technology to get what they want, to gain dominance over other men.
No mater the weapon, be it rocks and stones, bows and arrows, or cannons that shoot balls of iron over land and sea, technology will be used by the most aggressive in order to secure for themselves the things they want. After all, he who creates the greatest tool, (be it rock or bomb, nuclear, chemical or biological warfare of the Atomic or Technological Age) rules and shapes the world.
Technology is power.
Technology, you might say, began long ago somewhere near the beginning of time, when a man, looked at a rock, considered it a weapon and used it to dominate another human being. Take Cain for example, of Cain and Able. Cain used technology ( a rock) to get what he wanted. He wanted to get rid of his brother and it worked. He killed him. He didn't use his bare hands. He used technology.
Mankind today, may seem much more “technologically sophisticated,” than Cain was We now have better more efficient ways of ensuring that we get what we want. There are swords, catapults, grenades. semi-automatic machine guns, and even laboratories that build nuclear bombs and biological weapons. Like Cain, people today can easily succumb to thinking that technology is the solution to anything that ails us, but like Cain we need to learn that the solution to our problems isn't technology, it's obeying God.
Technology has solved a lot of, what we humans consider to be, problems. It helps us do a lot of thing, but it's not the answer to everything in the world. Jesus is. After all, Jesus conquered death when he rose from the grave. Death and destruction are some of the heavier weighted problems humanity and all of creation faces... and yet the hand of God renews things day by day. Meanwhile we try to solve problems, particularly those problems that modify the natural environment in order to satisfy perceived human needs and wants with technology.
Bond... James Bond
James Bond is an adventurous, sensual, crime-fighting spy hero and commander in the British Secret Service. well, not actually, it's only in someone's imagination, well, not actually only in the imagination of his creator, but also in the imaginations of millions of people. James Bond is not a real person, but rather a fictional character created by British author Ian Fleming in 1952.
Agent “Double-O-Seven,” as he is called, introduces himself to his contemporaries as "Bond… James Bond,” and he has intrigued audiences for decades. He has been "seen" in over 20 feature films, a television series and of course his well-known syndicated cartoon where he made his first public debut. He's known for his cutting-edge technological equipment, thrilling suspense-filled spy adventures, exotic romances, and high-tech vehicle chases which all have, no doubt, captured the imagination of the public.
But more than an imaginary figure, Bond is a moneymaking machine. People not only devour every word of the comics, and flock to the films, but they enthusiastically spend their paychecks purchasing all kinds of James Bond paraphernalia. There are video games, toys, and gadgets, posters and DVDs to further fuel the imagination of kids and adults alike.
People are fascinated with danger, but obviously they prefer to do so vicariously rather than in real life. They would rather live out their fantasies through someone like Bond. Bond, of course, can do things they themselves would never “really” do, and besides they know he's ficticious. Through Bond, they get all the thrill with none of the kill, at least not for real.
That’s the magic of the media. It's like a whole different world of emotion and action, one you can attain without ever really being real. Even when it's real people, they are only acting, and that under the direction of movie creators, or shall we say, illusionists who make believe and help their audiences believe that what they see on the big screen is real, or at least, indicative of the way life could be. You might say, imagined.
Whether, film or digital, or simply the power of suggestion via the scribbling of a pen, people love to be transported to another world, or another place in time, even another life. And the saucy world of James Bond is no exception. At the movies, in their imaginations, you can be sure that they virtually experience scenes and moments they will not soon forget.
Most Bond films are rated PG-13, which means that they are considered fairly tame bu most standards. They are not intended for little kids due to the intense sequences of violent action, torture scenes, bad language, sexuality and nudity that we are warned of on the label, but anyone thirteen and over can fill their imagination with all this for the mere price of a movie ticket or DVD.
Agent “Double-O-Seven,” as he is called, introduces himself to his contemporaries as "Bond… James Bond,” and he has intrigued audiences for decades. He has been "seen" in over 20 feature films, a television series and of course his well-known syndicated cartoon where he made his first public debut. He's known for his cutting-edge technological equipment, thrilling suspense-filled spy adventures, exotic romances, and high-tech vehicle chases which all have, no doubt, captured the imagination of the public.
But more than an imaginary figure, Bond is a moneymaking machine. People not only devour every word of the comics, and flock to the films, but they enthusiastically spend their paychecks purchasing all kinds of James Bond paraphernalia. There are video games, toys, and gadgets, posters and DVDs to further fuel the imagination of kids and adults alike.
People are fascinated with danger, but obviously they prefer to do so vicariously rather than in real life. They would rather live out their fantasies through someone like Bond. Bond, of course, can do things they themselves would never “really” do, and besides they know he's ficticious. Through Bond, they get all the thrill with none of the kill, at least not for real.
That’s the magic of the media. It's like a whole different world of emotion and action, one you can attain without ever really being real. Even when it's real people, they are only acting, and that under the direction of movie creators, or shall we say, illusionists who make believe and help their audiences believe that what they see on the big screen is real, or at least, indicative of the way life could be. You might say, imagined.
Whether, film or digital, or simply the power of suggestion via the scribbling of a pen, people love to be transported to another world, or another place in time, even another life. And the saucy world of James Bond is no exception. At the movies, in their imaginations, you can be sure that they virtually experience scenes and moments they will not soon forget.
Most Bond films are rated PG-13, which means that they are considered fairly tame bu most standards. They are not intended for little kids due to the intense sequences of violent action, torture scenes, bad language, sexuality and nudity that we are warned of on the label, but anyone thirteen and over can fill their imagination with all this for the mere price of a movie ticket or DVD.
Rocket Man
One thing man has imagined is the possibility of soaring through the air like a bird or bumble bee and in his mind he has even created a wearable device called a jetpack that uses rocket power to propel the wearer through the air. Comic strips and movies such as Buck Rogers in the 1920’s, and King of the Rocket Men in 1949 first popularized the concept, but it has been the more recent box office legends like Star Wars, (1977) and the The Rocketeer, (1991) that have truly ignited human imaginations with the idea.
The desire to break away from gravity and the limitations of man’s earth-bound nature is nothing new. Historical records show that Leonardo DaVinci who lived from 1452-1519 dreamed of flying and he drew many concepts of flying machines even conceptualizing a device resembling a modern jetpack device. For men like DaVinci, flying with a backpack rocket remained nothing more than a dream, but if DaVinci would have lived in the 1900’s he may have seen his dream come true.
In June 1960, a man named Wendell Moore filed a patent on a real jetpack device, known as the Bell Rocket Belt. The original test pilots to take to the sky with this wearable rocket were Bill Suiter and Gordon Yeager. They flew Moore’s device in movies and in aeronautical exhibitions around the world, most notably the opening ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Las Angeles CA, USA. Bill launched at one end of the stadium, flew through the air and landed in the center of the field for over a billion spectators that day. Moore’s device was impressive and it was American made, but it was not the first. Before the Bell Rocket there was a jet pack developed in Germany during WWII, a device they called the Skystormer.
The Skystormer was developed with the intention of troops being able to cross the waterways when bridges were unavailable, or to cross potential minefields safely without having to cross on foot. But like Moore’s Bell Rocket Belt, the Skystormer had a lack of maneuverability and like the belt, it used hydrogen peroxide, an expensive fuel. Safety issues and expense of operation have constrained its practicality and use, but this has not stopped other inventors from test piloting “experimental” jetpacks. In 1980, the United States space program tested something called the Manned Maneuvering Unit, which has since been used in many NASA space missions.
So, you see, safety issues, as well as cost that has kept such devices from being marketed to the general public and they are expensive. One jetpack was offered in 2008 at a cost of $250,000.00 with a promise to keep its wearer aloft for 30 seconds. A less expensive jetpack was offered however, for only $155,000.00.
At the price of a museum painting, Leonardo DaVinci would be amazed.
The desire to break away from gravity and the limitations of man’s earth-bound nature is nothing new. Historical records show that Leonardo DaVinci who lived from 1452-1519 dreamed of flying and he drew many concepts of flying machines even conceptualizing a device resembling a modern jetpack device. For men like DaVinci, flying with a backpack rocket remained nothing more than a dream, but if DaVinci would have lived in the 1900’s he may have seen his dream come true.
In June 1960, a man named Wendell Moore filed a patent on a real jetpack device, known as the Bell Rocket Belt. The original test pilots to take to the sky with this wearable rocket were Bill Suiter and Gordon Yeager. They flew Moore’s device in movies and in aeronautical exhibitions around the world, most notably the opening ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Las Angeles CA, USA. Bill launched at one end of the stadium, flew through the air and landed in the center of the field for over a billion spectators that day. Moore’s device was impressive and it was American made, but it was not the first. Before the Bell Rocket there was a jet pack developed in Germany during WWII, a device they called the Skystormer.
The Skystormer was developed with the intention of troops being able to cross the waterways when bridges were unavailable, or to cross potential minefields safely without having to cross on foot. But like Moore’s Bell Rocket Belt, the Skystormer had a lack of maneuverability and like the belt, it used hydrogen peroxide, an expensive fuel. Safety issues and expense of operation have constrained its practicality and use, but this has not stopped other inventors from test piloting “experimental” jetpacks. In 1980, the United States space program tested something called the Manned Maneuvering Unit, which has since been used in many NASA space missions.
So, you see, safety issues, as well as cost that has kept such devices from being marketed to the general public and they are expensive. One jetpack was offered in 2008 at a cost of $250,000.00 with a promise to keep its wearer aloft for 30 seconds. A less expensive jetpack was offered however, for only $155,000.00.
At the price of a museum painting, Leonardo DaVinci would be amazed.
The Beatles
The Beatles, John, Paul, George and Ringo, with their rock and roll music had a lasting impact on the world, one that is evident even though the four are no longer a band and some are dead. They were so spiritually oriented in their presentations, so influencial over youth and popular in the world that John Lennon announced to the world in 1966, that the Beatles were "more popular than Jesus." It was evident not only to John, but to the world that behind the messages of the music was a spiritual force that was almost becoming a religion.
This post is not so much about the Beatles as it is their spiritual legacy in the world. It's about Jesus the savior and about John, Gensis and Peter. It' s about John, John Lennon; it's about Genesis, not the book, but the band; and itt's about Peter, that is, not the apostle Peter, not St. Peter standing at the gates of heaven, but Peter Gabriel, and it's about the 2006 Winter Olympics.
The opening ceremony for the 2006 Winter Olympics which featured a song by John Lennon was a spectacular production. you can view it at several youtube sites. Called "Sparks of Passion" it began with a voice telling the audience: PASSION LIVES HERE.
It was quite a show!
I found the passion of it all interesting right away, since it seemed to me that there had recently been a lot of books and movies about "passion" (and purpose, and having passion for your purpose) marketed en mass to consumers in America around the same time. Even a drive past one of the local universities, a Jesuit University called Gonzaga, has flags along the road that read, "find your passion." It's a common and familiar theme, in other words. This too is interesting...
Passion, besides meaning "intense emotion, or enthusiasm," refers often to the suffering of Jesus upon the cross when he was crucified, (particularly in catholic circles.) The word comes from a Latin root word that means "to suffer" or to endure."
With the Olympic stage set for "passion" the opening ceremony began.
A large silver anvil with two horns, one on either side stood before the crowd, as did a masked muscular man dressed in red. The anvil was hit with an enormous hammer held by the man. As it was hit flames poured out of it into the air. Then the anvil changed colors from silver to gold.
The man with the hammer was referred to as "Lord of the Rings" by the commentators because as an Italian gymnast, he was a gold medalist, (you know, the men perform on the "rings"...) and then he was further described by the commentators as wearing the costume of a "metropolitan shaman." A "shaman," they continued, " is a member of a tribal society who acts as a medium between the visible world and the invisible world."
There were obvious religious and spiritual overtones here... of many flavors non-the-less.
The anvil was then described as representing "the industrial past," in particular, of the local area. Then as a gong sounded, the golden box with horns was hit again and again with the maul-like hammer. Flames flew upwards each time it was hit, and hordes of dancers dressed in red moved from behind the stage to dance across the floor. In their dances they danced and moved like flames themselves to the sound of gong and drum.
From the built in circles on the floor, choreographed flames of fire rose up over 3 meters high and then ice skaters joined the dancers in entertaining the crowd with their fire dance. It was after all the Winter Olympics, and it was a stage of ice.
In minutes the stage of ice became a pounding, swirling mass of movement and fire until the announcers told us that the dancers, in their red costumes, represented blood. The blood red dancers then formed a heart shaped figure at the center of the stage by gathering together and by moving in unison as the drums played, they simulated the beating of a heart.
The pounding of the drums became a heartbeat, then the heart (dancers) dispersed. They were then replaced on the stage by six fast skaters with flame throwing devices on their heads. These circled the stage until dancing trees and cow statues on wheels appeared and the stage was full of people dancing. You can imagine the spectacle of it all as anthems were playing, skaters carried flags, and skaters dressed like cow, trees and snowflakes. There were 50 snowflake skaters each with a huge 3-foot diameter balloon upon their head and all skated around until at last, they all dispersed. Then, like magic, the floor of the arena became a television screen and we were watching a downhill skier.
But it was really only an animated skier, animated by the collective bodies of hundreds of people that took to the stadium floor. Each was dressed so as to make up a pixel of the colorful choreographic presentation of the skier. The giant animated skier made from human bodies did a downhill run, and even appeared to soar through air as if going off a jump, and landed gracefully upon his skies to the uncontrolled cheers of the crowd.
Then the Flame throwing skaters returned to the scene and another elaborate "Spiderman" like presentation took to the floor. Bodies climbed up the poles that displayed the Olympic rings and then they were unveiled and illuminated as fireworks exploded in the sky. Then it was the Parade of Nations where the teams from every country were announced and celebrated.
Italian officials gave their blessings and their welcome to the crowd, and then the Olympic Flag was flown. Next, about two dozen acrobats took the stage, suspended by ropes or wires they climbed into the air on nearly invisible vertical wires above the stage and there they performed choreographed acrobatics to music. In finale they joined bodies together to made the shape of a dove, the universally recognized symbol of peace, on the highly suspended net. The audience broke into cheers, and then Yoko Ono, John Lennon’s wife, stood on stage.
From the stage she read a free verse poem from a prepared script calling for peace in the world. He performance concluded with her shouting to the entire Olympics watching world, “Imagine Peace.”
(It's a nice sentiment, but really, one must do more than simply IMAGINE it. One must live it.)
Anyhow, ... then the event announcer commented that she was “Yoko Ono, spreading the word.”
(Spreading the word?)
Again, take note that "Peter," was a prominent apostle, and "Gabriel" is the name of an angel, specifically the angel who announced the birth of Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the savior of the world. And Yoko Ono is here, we are told, "spreading the word." The message is not about salvation. It's not even about how to have peace with God and one another through the Word made flesh, Jesus. It's really about blatantly dismissing the very foundational truths of the worlds salvation. Masking themselves as spiritual by their names, it's a new religion they sing about, one void of heaven hell, sin, death, bible or Jesus Christ who died for you and me.
Who would have even imagined?
No doubt, like the rest of the Olympic opening ceremony it was a heavenly sight and sound as lights flashed around the room like the stars of heaven and all the people sang along. It was remarkable to say the least to see people of every tongue and tribe and nation on earth lifting up their voices with Peter Gabriel and sang about how they much preferred a world without religion, without the promise of a place called heaven, a world where everyone just lived for today, and dispense with the concept of hell. It would appear that the entire world seemed enamored with Lennon's dream.
As the song goes, he is "not the only one."
However, such a world is imaginary. Worse than that it circumvents the truth of God. As a Christian I can say that one day God will make all things new and there will be peace forever, but without God... it's a whole different story. Jesus is a real hope for a problem world, and he is the one who promises to give us peace, not only hear on hearth and with one another, but with God. Instead the world imagines God away, or imagine that they can. The ironic thing is it that they did it with Peter Gabriel of the band Genesis and this because John himself couldn't be there.
John Lennon didn’t get to be the one to sing his song for the world. He didn’t even get see his song performed. He was not there to thank his wife for her support, nor to see North and South Korea lay aside their stark political differences for the sake of participation as one country in the 2006 Olympic games. John Lennon was not there, because he had long been dead. The world was forced to celebrate without him because his life tragically had ended one day in December 1980, when a man by the name of Mark Chapman, a supposed fan of John Lennon and his music, walked up to him on a busy New York City street and shot him with a gun.
The day John Lennon died, was a sad day that will be long remembered in human history. One minute, a vibrant, wonderfully creative man, was full of life, and the next he was gone; his life, poured out all at once, in what seemed but the blinking of an eye. With one act of violence, the man John Lennon was gone from Earth, void of life, dead...tragically lost in the meaningless madness of destruction and death that exists in the world, a madness that seems to never be satisfied.
There are a lot of speculative ideas about why Chapman shot and killed John Lennon., but no one really knows. Whatever the excuse, whatever the rational, whatever reason or suspicion you might imagine this act of violence might be, or not be, the facts remain; it was premeditated murder. Chapman did it. He not only admitted that he did it, but there were witnesses. One minute John was walking down a New York City street, a loving, funny, energetic and imaginative human being and the next, his life was snuffed out without any warning. His life came to an end when Mr. Chapman willingly pointed and fired the gun he held in his hand. Why did he do this?
Millions of people wonder.......
When Chapman was asked why he would do such a thing, (being a supposed “great fan” of John Lennon and all,) Chapman said it was because he “wanted to make a name for himself.”
That is exactly what happened. Chapman was instantly famous when the news hit the press that he shot John Lennon in front of his New York apartment.
Chapman was arrested and tried for his crime. The reports say that four out of five bullets fired from Chapman’s gun at close range hit John Lennon. Chapman was only sentenced ‘20 years to life.”
It's been over twenty years now, and would you believe, Chapman says he’s sorry and ashamed for what he did. He insists that he has gained a deeper understanding of the value of human life over all his prison years. He's sorry, but where will he find forgiveness? After all, the deed has been done, there is no turning back the hands of time. Nothing that any man can do will raise the man, John Lennon, back to life. Just what do you do with that?
What exactly does it take to actually forgive the evil that has been done? Twenty years??? Who will have compassion on this very guilty man? Why? Why would they? Should they? And, what about justice?
Justice we understand.
It's mercy, forgiveness, and compassion that we struggle with.
_________________
Jesus Christ was a man like John.
Like John Lennon, Jesus Christ bled and died at the hands of those who wanted to make a name for themselves. Jesus however was also God.
Jesus had a lot Chapman's who wanted to rid the world around them of anything or anyone who is greater than they perceived themselves to be. Even today, there are a lot of people who would prefer to simply IMAGINE God away. But Jesus laid his life down, freely, and he will probably let them Imagine what they will, for God is not a tyrant. Jesus, unlike John Lennon, did not simply die and his life was over. He not only gave his life freely, but he took it up again. Jesus was able to raise his life again from the grave.
You can't keep a good man down.
Jesus was in every way a man like John Lennon was, but as evidenced by his healing of people, miracles and even raising Lazarus from the grave, and his own subsequent resurrection he was obviously in complete control. He was also in complete sinlessness and complete subjection to the father all along. Jesus’ life was real, just like John Lennon's, the pain and suffering was real, the forgiveness was real and so was the resurrection. But Jesus was the Messiah, God himself, and the one who was and is, and is to come. Jesus is the Christ, the son of the Living God, the Lord of heaven.
It is God, our creator who gave us life in the beginning. It is God who established order and purpose in the universe. It is God who given us minds with which to grasp some meaning in this life we live upon the orb called earth. It is God who has given us our imagination wherein we have the freedom to think and dream and do anything we want to. God gives us everything we are and everything we have, hoping all the while we will respond to him, repent of sin and subject our will to his as he holds out His Word and His promises.
I kinda think that is what imagination is for... for understanding God, who is far above our understanding.
Genesis 6:5 "And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. " (KJV)
Deut. 29:19- 20 And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst: The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven. (KJV)
Jeremiah 7:23-24 But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you. But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward. (KJV)
Jeremiah 23:16-17 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD. They say still unto them that despise me, The LORD hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. (KJV)
Let God into your heart. All you have to do is let him in. Let thoughts of him, his words, his ways, his promises fill your mind, touch your life, be your reality and your imagination. Love Him with your heart mind and soul. Love your neighbor, and do not simply "imagine peace," but make peace, with God. The result is a peace that no one can take away, a peace that passes understanding.
There is only one way... (John 14:6) It's not something you would even think up on your own, in fact it's something greater than you'd probably ever even imagine; Jesus.
--------------------
God is love.
He is full of compassion and mercy.
He even sent his only Son into the world knowing that the evil lurking in humanity’s heart would shoot an innocent man to death on the streets of New York city, and even nail a sinless man named Jesus to a wooden cross that had been fashioned from a tree.
But thank God, His mercy triumphs over his justice. In fact, he bore our sins in his body on the cross so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness. (1 Peter 2:24; KJV) "
But it is the power of God that fulfills His Word and saves sinners who will repent. We can imagine that God is but a myth, we can deny the existence of heaven and of hell, even dismiss such absurdities as virgin birth, and resurrection from the dead, but these things are true. Our denial is only our imagination hard at work. These truths stand the test of time, and like a city on a hill that cannot be hidden, only attacked with the intent to destroy, but they are not myths. They are real.
From the beginning to the end, God knows it all, but in the evil imaginations of our human heart we dare to reject God and all his wisdom. Instead of God we believe in myths... and imagine that there is no heaven or hell, when hell is real and it's what Jesus died to save us from. We go about our lives living only for today, believing there is nothing to live or die for, but knowing it's not true. Until we find ourselves seeking to find purpose and meaning in our lives, often without the one who gave us life in the beginning... after all, "It's easy if you try."
but the Apostle Paul did pray...
Eph 3:17 -21 "that Christ will make his home in your hearts through faith. I pray that you may have your roots and foundation in love, so that you, together with all God's people, may have the power to understand how broad and long, how high and deep, is Christ's love. Yes, may you come to know his love---although it can never be fully known---and so be completely filled with the very nature of God. To him who by means of his power working in us is able to do so much more than we can ever ask for, or even think of: to God be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus for all time, forever and ever! Amen. "
We do not have to imagine what he must be like, because he had told us. He has showed us. (Micah 6:8) We do have to submit our will to his and believe him at his word. He is a just and merciful God, a God who loves us, showers us with mercy and grace and forgives all our sin in Christ. If the truth be made known, God is more, much more, than anything we could ever imagine or ask for (Ephesians 3: 20; NIV)... God is more than we can ever imagine, a reality we can believe in.
“Blessed are they that put their trust in Him.” (Psalm 2)
This post is not so much about the Beatles as it is their spiritual legacy in the world. It's about Jesus the savior and about John, Gensis and Peter. It' s about John, John Lennon; it's about Genesis, not the book, but the band; and itt's about Peter, that is, not the apostle Peter, not St. Peter standing at the gates of heaven, but Peter Gabriel, and it's about the 2006 Winter Olympics.
The opening ceremony for the 2006 Winter Olympics which featured a song by John Lennon was a spectacular production. you can view it at several youtube sites. Called "Sparks of Passion" it began with a voice telling the audience: PASSION LIVES HERE.
It was quite a show!
I found the passion of it all interesting right away, since it seemed to me that there had recently been a lot of books and movies about "passion" (and purpose, and having passion for your purpose) marketed en mass to consumers in America around the same time. Even a drive past one of the local universities, a Jesuit University called Gonzaga, has flags along the road that read, "find your passion." It's a common and familiar theme, in other words. This too is interesting...
Passion, besides meaning "intense emotion, or enthusiasm," refers often to the suffering of Jesus upon the cross when he was crucified, (particularly in catholic circles.) The word comes from a Latin root word that means "to suffer" or to endure."
With the Olympic stage set for "passion" the opening ceremony began.
A large silver anvil with two horns, one on either side stood before the crowd, as did a masked muscular man dressed in red. The anvil was hit with an enormous hammer held by the man. As it was hit flames poured out of it into the air. Then the anvil changed colors from silver to gold.
The man with the hammer was referred to as "Lord of the Rings" by the commentators because as an Italian gymnast, he was a gold medalist, (you know, the men perform on the "rings"...) and then he was further described by the commentators as wearing the costume of a "metropolitan shaman." A "shaman," they continued, " is a member of a tribal society who acts as a medium between the visible world and the invisible world."
There were obvious religious and spiritual overtones here... of many flavors non-the-less.
The anvil was then described as representing "the industrial past," in particular, of the local area. Then as a gong sounded, the golden box with horns was hit again and again with the maul-like hammer. Flames flew upwards each time it was hit, and hordes of dancers dressed in red moved from behind the stage to dance across the floor. In their dances they danced and moved like flames themselves to the sound of gong and drum.
From the built in circles on the floor, choreographed flames of fire rose up over 3 meters high and then ice skaters joined the dancers in entertaining the crowd with their fire dance. It was after all the Winter Olympics, and it was a stage of ice.
In minutes the stage of ice became a pounding, swirling mass of movement and fire until the announcers told us that the dancers, in their red costumes, represented blood. The blood red dancers then formed a heart shaped figure at the center of the stage by gathering together and by moving in unison as the drums played, they simulated the beating of a heart.
The pounding of the drums became a heartbeat, then the heart (dancers) dispersed. They were then replaced on the stage by six fast skaters with flame throwing devices on their heads. These circled the stage until dancing trees and cow statues on wheels appeared and the stage was full of people dancing. You can imagine the spectacle of it all as anthems were playing, skaters carried flags, and skaters dressed like cow, trees and snowflakes. There were 50 snowflake skaters each with a huge 3-foot diameter balloon upon their head and all skated around until at last, they all dispersed. Then, like magic, the floor of the arena became a television screen and we were watching a downhill skier.
But it was really only an animated skier, animated by the collective bodies of hundreds of people that took to the stadium floor. Each was dressed so as to make up a pixel of the colorful choreographic presentation of the skier. The giant animated skier made from human bodies did a downhill run, and even appeared to soar through air as if going off a jump, and landed gracefully upon his skies to the uncontrolled cheers of the crowd.
Then the Flame throwing skaters returned to the scene and another elaborate "Spiderman" like presentation took to the floor. Bodies climbed up the poles that displayed the Olympic rings and then they were unveiled and illuminated as fireworks exploded in the sky. Then it was the Parade of Nations where the teams from every country were announced and celebrated.
Italian officials gave their blessings and their welcome to the crowd, and then the Olympic Flag was flown. Next, about two dozen acrobats took the stage, suspended by ropes or wires they climbed into the air on nearly invisible vertical wires above the stage and there they performed choreographed acrobatics to music. In finale they joined bodies together to made the shape of a dove, the universally recognized symbol of peace, on the highly suspended net. The audience broke into cheers, and then Yoko Ono, John Lennon’s wife, stood on stage.
From the stage she read a free verse poem from a prepared script calling for peace in the world. He performance concluded with her shouting to the entire Olympics watching world, “Imagine Peace.”
(It's a nice sentiment, but really, one must do more than simply IMAGINE it. One must live it.)
Anyhow, ... then the event announcer commented that she was “Yoko Ono, spreading the word.”
(Spreading the word?)
Again, take note that "Peter," was a prominent apostle, and "Gabriel" is the name of an angel, specifically the angel who announced the birth of Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the savior of the world. And Yoko Ono is here, we are told, "spreading the word." The message is not about salvation. It's not even about how to have peace with God and one another through the Word made flesh, Jesus. It's really about blatantly dismissing the very foundational truths of the worlds salvation. Masking themselves as spiritual by their names, it's a new religion they sing about, one void of heaven hell, sin, death, bible or Jesus Christ who died for you and me.
Who would have even imagined?
No doubt, like the rest of the Olympic opening ceremony it was a heavenly sight and sound as lights flashed around the room like the stars of heaven and all the people sang along. It was remarkable to say the least to see people of every tongue and tribe and nation on earth lifting up their voices with Peter Gabriel and sang about how they much preferred a world without religion, without the promise of a place called heaven, a world where everyone just lived for today, and dispense with the concept of hell. It would appear that the entire world seemed enamored with Lennon's dream.
As the song goes, he is "not the only one."
However, such a world is imaginary. Worse than that it circumvents the truth of God. As a Christian I can say that one day God will make all things new and there will be peace forever, but without God... it's a whole different story. Jesus is a real hope for a problem world, and he is the one who promises to give us peace, not only hear on hearth and with one another, but with God. Instead the world imagines God away, or imagine that they can. The ironic thing is it that they did it with Peter Gabriel of the band Genesis and this because John himself couldn't be there.
John Lennon didn’t get to be the one to sing his song for the world. He didn’t even get see his song performed. He was not there to thank his wife for her support, nor to see North and South Korea lay aside their stark political differences for the sake of participation as one country in the 2006 Olympic games. John Lennon was not there, because he had long been dead. The world was forced to celebrate without him because his life tragically had ended one day in December 1980, when a man by the name of Mark Chapman, a supposed fan of John Lennon and his music, walked up to him on a busy New York City street and shot him with a gun.
The day John Lennon died, was a sad day that will be long remembered in human history. One minute, a vibrant, wonderfully creative man, was full of life, and the next he was gone; his life, poured out all at once, in what seemed but the blinking of an eye. With one act of violence, the man John Lennon was gone from Earth, void of life, dead...tragically lost in the meaningless madness of destruction and death that exists in the world, a madness that seems to never be satisfied.
There are a lot of speculative ideas about why Chapman shot and killed John Lennon., but no one really knows. Whatever the excuse, whatever the rational, whatever reason or suspicion you might imagine this act of violence might be, or not be, the facts remain; it was premeditated murder. Chapman did it. He not only admitted that he did it, but there were witnesses. One minute John was walking down a New York City street, a loving, funny, energetic and imaginative human being and the next, his life was snuffed out without any warning. His life came to an end when Mr. Chapman willingly pointed and fired the gun he held in his hand. Why did he do this?
Millions of people wonder.......
When Chapman was asked why he would do such a thing, (being a supposed “great fan” of John Lennon and all,) Chapman said it was because he “wanted to make a name for himself.”
That is exactly what happened. Chapman was instantly famous when the news hit the press that he shot John Lennon in front of his New York apartment.
Chapman was arrested and tried for his crime. The reports say that four out of five bullets fired from Chapman’s gun at close range hit John Lennon. Chapman was only sentenced ‘20 years to life.”
It's been over twenty years now, and would you believe, Chapman says he’s sorry and ashamed for what he did. He insists that he has gained a deeper understanding of the value of human life over all his prison years. He's sorry, but where will he find forgiveness? After all, the deed has been done, there is no turning back the hands of time. Nothing that any man can do will raise the man, John Lennon, back to life. Just what do you do with that?
What exactly does it take to actually forgive the evil that has been done? Twenty years??? Who will have compassion on this very guilty man? Why? Why would they? Should they? And, what about justice?
Justice we understand.
It's mercy, forgiveness, and compassion that we struggle with.
_________________
Jesus Christ was a man like John.
Like John Lennon, Jesus Christ bled and died at the hands of those who wanted to make a name for themselves. Jesus however was also God.
Jesus had a lot Chapman's who wanted to rid the world around them of anything or anyone who is greater than they perceived themselves to be. Even today, there are a lot of people who would prefer to simply IMAGINE God away. But Jesus laid his life down, freely, and he will probably let them Imagine what they will, for God is not a tyrant. Jesus, unlike John Lennon, did not simply die and his life was over. He not only gave his life freely, but he took it up again. Jesus was able to raise his life again from the grave.
You can't keep a good man down.
Jesus was in every way a man like John Lennon was, but as evidenced by his healing of people, miracles and even raising Lazarus from the grave, and his own subsequent resurrection he was obviously in complete control. He was also in complete sinlessness and complete subjection to the father all along. Jesus’ life was real, just like John Lennon's, the pain and suffering was real, the forgiveness was real and so was the resurrection. But Jesus was the Messiah, God himself, and the one who was and is, and is to come. Jesus is the Christ, the son of the Living God, the Lord of heaven.
It is God, our creator who gave us life in the beginning. It is God who established order and purpose in the universe. It is God who given us minds with which to grasp some meaning in this life we live upon the orb called earth. It is God who has given us our imagination wherein we have the freedom to think and dream and do anything we want to. God gives us everything we are and everything we have, hoping all the while we will respond to him, repent of sin and subject our will to his as he holds out His Word and His promises.
I kinda think that is what imagination is for... for understanding God, who is far above our understanding.
Genesis 6:5 "And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. " (KJV)
Deut. 29:19- 20 And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst: The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven. (KJV)
Jeremiah 7:23-24 But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you. But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward. (KJV)
Jeremiah 23:16-17 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD. They say still unto them that despise me, The LORD hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. (KJV)
Let God into your heart. All you have to do is let him in. Let thoughts of him, his words, his ways, his promises fill your mind, touch your life, be your reality and your imagination. Love Him with your heart mind and soul. Love your neighbor, and do not simply "imagine peace," but make peace, with God. The result is a peace that no one can take away, a peace that passes understanding.
There is only one way... (John 14:6) It's not something you would even think up on your own, in fact it's something greater than you'd probably ever even imagine; Jesus.
--------------------
God is love.
He is full of compassion and mercy.
He even sent his only Son into the world knowing that the evil lurking in humanity’s heart would shoot an innocent man to death on the streets of New York city, and even nail a sinless man named Jesus to a wooden cross that had been fashioned from a tree.
But thank God, His mercy triumphs over his justice. In fact, he bore our sins in his body on the cross so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness. (1 Peter 2:24; KJV) "
But it is the power of God that fulfills His Word and saves sinners who will repent. We can imagine that God is but a myth, we can deny the existence of heaven and of hell, even dismiss such absurdities as virgin birth, and resurrection from the dead, but these things are true. Our denial is only our imagination hard at work. These truths stand the test of time, and like a city on a hill that cannot be hidden, only attacked with the intent to destroy, but they are not myths. They are real.
From the beginning to the end, God knows it all, but in the evil imaginations of our human heart we dare to reject God and all his wisdom. Instead of God we believe in myths... and imagine that there is no heaven or hell, when hell is real and it's what Jesus died to save us from. We go about our lives living only for today, believing there is nothing to live or die for, but knowing it's not true. Until we find ourselves seeking to find purpose and meaning in our lives, often without the one who gave us life in the beginning... after all, "It's easy if you try."
but the Apostle Paul did pray...
Eph 3:17 -21 "that Christ will make his home in your hearts through faith. I pray that you may have your roots and foundation in love, so that you, together with all God's people, may have the power to understand how broad and long, how high and deep, is Christ's love. Yes, may you come to know his love---although it can never be fully known---and so be completely filled with the very nature of God. To him who by means of his power working in us is able to do so much more than we can ever ask for, or even think of: to God be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus for all time, forever and ever! Amen. "
We do not have to imagine what he must be like, because he had told us. He has showed us. (Micah 6:8) We do have to submit our will to his and believe him at his word. He is a just and merciful God, a God who loves us, showers us with mercy and grace and forgives all our sin in Christ. If the truth be made known, God is more, much more, than anything we could ever imagine or ask for (Ephesians 3: 20; NIV)... God is more than we can ever imagine, a reality we can believe in.
“Blessed are they that put their trust in Him.” (Psalm 2)
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