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I want to say that a Wrathful Deity Practice is a more advanced practice. We did another series on Dancing with the Dakini, which is a wonderful practice of cultivating love, cultivating a sense of opening your heart, and resonance and feeling good, feeling whole.
There’s a lot of positivity in that series of practices and that’s a very important thing, to understand that you do that first. You begin to have a good feeling about life, about yourself. You begin to have a sense of Wholeness, a sense of Communion in Love with Life, with God.
As you do this, things are going to happen because you’re going to start changingso that’s going to change things, and people you’re really close to will come up to you and say, “You’ve changed. I don’t know whether I like you anymore.” And it’s strange, because I’m feeling better about myself, and yet that person who I thought liked me for who I was, when I changed certain qualities, they didn’t find me as appealing anymore, and you know what, I didn’t find them as appealing anymore, either.
But that’s part of this thing, of cultivating a sense of self-love before you start doing this work with the sense of self-love, you actually have this willingness to say, “You know what?”
“I’m worth more.” I don’t have to go down that path that I’ve been going down with you for the last 15 years. I can do something else.” And that’s why we did Dancing with the Dakini and The Everyday Sanyasin book. I really recommend that someone go through those before they begin to try to tackle dealing with the Wrathful Deity.
Then we go to something like the Wrathful Deity practice, and you don’t have to go there. I mean, if you’re working really well with the other practices, and you don’t have the thought, “Well, I really want to do a Maha Kala practice” or something like that, then for goodness sake, don’t do it just to do it; do what you have a resonance with, a connection with.
It is unfortunate that although intended as a symbol of our unity in Jesus Christ, the Lord’s Supper has become a point of division among Christians across the millennia. In addition to distinct understandings surrounding the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper which include (but not limited to) strong beliefs relative to Transubstantiation, Consubstantiation, Memorialism, and Spiritualism; there is also the problem of determining whether or not the Lord’s Supper was or was not a Passover Meal which this article will briefly reflect upon.
John clearly states that the Last Supper took place before the Passover and that Jesus was crucified on the afternoon before the evening that was the traditional time for the Passover celebration. If we accept John’s declaration at face value, then we would have to believe that Jesus did not eat the Passover meal with His disciples since He, Himself was the paschal Lamb and sacrificed about the same time as the Passover lambs.
Then the Jews led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness the Jews did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. John 18:28.
From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jews kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.” When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). It was the day of Preparation of Passover Week, about the sixth hour. “Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews. John 19:12-14.
Matthew, Mark and Luke state that the Last Supper was the Passover meal. Yet both John and the synoptic tradition seem to agree that the day of the crucifixion was on Friday. At this point and time, I lean toward John’s position on the timing of the Last Supper and the crucifixion due to John’s purporting to be based on the recollections of an eyewitness who was present at the time. Furthermore, Mark and Matthew state that the Sanhedrin wanted to get Jesus arrested and executed before the Passover; an intention that was blocked if their timing of the Last Supper and crucifixion is erroneous.
Stein doesn’t really adopt a position. After exploring several related theories attempting to explain the apparent discrepancy between John’s account and the synoptics, Stein confesses that no one explanation is totally convincing at the present time.
Jocz agrees with Stein that the discrepancy cannot really be reconciled if the synoptics and John are thinking of the same Passover. However, he suggest that the dilemma could be solved if the assumption was made that the Last Supper was a paschal meal, but in anticipation of the festival, which would mean that the paschal lamb was missing. This solution, he maintains, makes reconciliation possible. “John was right, for Passover began on Friday night; the synoptics were right, for the Last Supper was a paschal meal though without the lamb.”
Beck examines the difficulty from the features that were typically characteristic of a Passover celebration such as; reclining at the table, eating the broken bread from a dish, and drinking red wine. Yet, other features such as the paschal lamb, bitter herbs, and four cups are not mentioned. Thus, Beck acknowledges the small chance of erasing the contradiction between the synoptic gospels and John.
Others, such as John Hurt, advocate no discrepancy and insist the issue is solved by simply noting that John uses Roman time, while the synoptics use Jewish time.
One of the great values we learn from the Bible and extra-biblical sources is that there is much more to fully understanding the Lord’s Supper than we may have realized. Ultimately of course, it becomes a matter of belief.
Rev. Saundra L. Washington, D.D., is an ordained clergywoman, veteran social worker, and Founder of AMEN Ministries. She is also the author of two coffee table books: Room Beneath the Snow: Poems that Preach and Negative Disturbances: Homilies that Teach which can be reviewed on her site. Her new book, Out of Deep Waters: My Grief Management Workbook, though delayed in publication, is expected to be available early 2006.
You have an open invitation to visit us at AMEN Ministries: Your Soul’s Service Station for reviewing spiritual services being offered, obtain spiritual refreshing and soul edification, get your daily dose of humor, browse our newly expanded Stop & Shop Store (which now include the “Last Supper” and other inspirational home furniture) and to visit our prayer sanctum for quiet time with God.
Blessings to all!
The four Warner Brothers, which included the womanizing Jack,
the conservative Harry, the quiet Albert and the visionary Sam,
had risen from obscurity with The Jazz Singer (1927) the first
famous and financially successful talking movie ever made.
Tragically, Sam Warner, the real brains behind the whole
project, died of a brain tumor two days before The Jazz Singer’s
debut. Jack was thrilled by the film’s success, but crushed by
his brother’s death. He became difficult to deal with for the
rest of his life. His older and more conservative brother Harry
and he fought constantly over money and Jack’s womanizing ways.
One time Harry chased Jack through the studio with a two by four
threatening to kill him. The feud became so bitter that Jack
opted to play tennis rather than attend Harry’s funeral in 1958.
One time Jack met Albert Einstein,” Mr. Einstein, I have my own
theory of relativity. Don’t hire them.”
Warner was fascinated by Einstein especially the physicists
detailed descriptions of stars. After he left Jack told a staff
member,” Sign this Betelgeuse guy to a contract. Einstein think
he has potential.”
Despite or maybe because of his aborted singing career, Jack
Warner seemed to resent similar ambitions in others. One day her
was strolling through the studio lot when he heard a young man
singing with a beautiful voice. It was coming from the security
guard shack. Curious, the mogul walked up to question his
startled employee.
“Young man, was that you singing?” “W-why yes Mr. Warner.”
“Young man you have a beautiful voice.” “Oh thank you Mr.
Warner.” “MM. Tell me, young man, what would you rather be? A
security guard or a singer?” “Oh Mr. Warner, I dreamed of being
a singer.” “Ok young man. You’re fired!”
Jack Warner treated all of his employees with derision, but none
worse than the writers. Many of them although better paid at the
studio than they ever were writing novels, resented the nine to
five routine they were forced to adhere to at the Warner’s
factory. Where the actors were free to leave the studio at lunch
the writers had to be “chained” to their typewriter. One time
Warner called a writer into the studio screening room for his
suggestions on how to fix a weak script.” I’m sorry Mr. Warner.
I have no ideas after five.”
Another time Jack called in a writer to his office. “Look pally,
I got to fire you because I heard you were a communist. ” “Mr.
Warner, please! I’m not a communist, I’m an anti-communist!” “I
don’t care what kind of commie you are! You are out of here!”
Well after The Jazz Singer’s success, Jack remained sensitive to
religious matters. When he hired a stage actor named Jules
Garfield, he told him, “Ok, we have to change your name. How
about James Garfield?” “Mr. Warner I don’t want to change my
name. Anyhow James Garfield was a President. Why don’t you
change my name to Abraham Lincoln?” “Forget it Garfield.
Abraham’s too Jewish. We’re not going to give the wrong
impression.” After much arguing they compromised with John
Garfield.
Warner’s actors gave as well as they got. Humphrey Bogart called
him a creep. Errol Flynn actually threatened to kill him. James
Cagney, after driving down the road and seeing Pat O’Brian’s
name billed above his on a movie marquee sued him for breach of
contract and won. Betty Davis, constantly complaining about the
films she was cast in, fled to England to perform on the stage
only to have Warner track her down and legally compel her to
return. But perhaps the toughest of all his battles was with
actor George Raft. Raft, who hung out with gangsters like Bugsy
Siegel in real life, was loath to be cast as a thug on the
screen. He turned virtually every role he was offered. Finally,
Jack decided to buy George out of his contract. “Will $10,000 do
it?” He asked George wearily. To Jack’s astonishment, George
pulled out his own checkbook, promptly paid his boss $10,000 and
stormed out of the office!
Merry Christmas everybody from Mrs. Fox! What is December 25th all about to you America? I will let you answer that question for yourself. But for me and my house, we will acknowledge our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on that day and everyday of the year. I have raised my children to understand that this was not their birthday. I would explain this to them by saying, “How would you like it; if on your birthday I gave all your gifts to people that was celebrating your birthday?” They would respond by saying “Mother that is not right.” I would agree and then tell them that everyday is Christmas, but on December 25th we are celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I would also tell them that “we” are gifts to God by the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. By raising my children to understand the real reason for Christmas I have saved a lot of money over years.
Don’t get me wrong, I would always say Merry Christmas to them when I brought them their necessities and wants. (smart uh?) America please understand as parents if you fail to inform your own children of the reason for the season while they are growing up; nobody else will. I believe that if adults would just grow up and stop interfering with Christmas, the children of today would have a day of rejoicing and the adults would not have a day of going into debt for things.
Now after Christmas, on January 1st I would go into the stores and shop like crazy for my children and everybody else. Why? Because, I know that businesses count on shoppers during the holidays to be materialistic; and I am a wise steward when it comes to economics. In addition, I would give each one of my children a $100.00 and let them loose in the store. Then they would buy whatever they want. However, the joy they had on their faces was proof enough for me to know how the Lord Jesus Christ felt when he gave me the gift of his Salvation to live for him. You see the $100.00 in the hands of my children to buy what they want is just like the salvation the Lord Jesus Christ gave to me so I can now live for Him. America let us get it straight when it comes to Christmas and why we celebrate it okay.
Mrs. Fox Speaks!
Diane Williams, also known as Mrs. Fox is a unique character based from Nevada York’s novels, Caught Up and Mahogany’s Revelations. [ http://nevadayork.com ] She is an old soul at heart, who loves to tell it like it is! She firmly believes the real war on Earth is a spiritual war: Good vs. Evil. Diane’s goal is to make sure that every person is aware that ones spirituality needs must out-weigh one’s physical and mental desires. She currently resides in Idaho where she strives to “keep it real.” http://nevadayork.com
Is your hope true or false?
Faith Fellowship Church PO Box 1586 Broken Arrow, OK 74013 Terry
Dashner, pastor
Albert P. Stauderman writes in his book, Let Me Illustrate
(Augsburg Publishing House, 1983), an interesting story.
Stauderman writes, “During World War II, the ‘cargo cult’
developed among the primitive and superstitious natives of New
Guinea. As they watched the American soldiers, they observed
that whenever something was needed, a merchant ship or plane
brought it in. They decided that there was some magic about
this, and connected it with the army uniforms. Eagerly they made
off with discarded uniforms and even stole uniforms, expecting
that this would give them the power to obtain valuable
materials, presumably from the white men’s gods. Maybe they are
still waiting.”
This brings me to a topic of discussion–hope. Hope can be true
or false. May I ask you a question? Are you planning for a
bright future? You should. There is nothing wrong in planning,
working, and longing for a prosperous future. With God all
things are possible. God is preparing a grand future for us
(John 14). This is a Biblical fact. Unfortunately the problem
for some is that they are pinning their future on false hopes.
This is dangerous. If your hope is based on some kind of magic
in the sky, you’re magic might disappoint you.
I remember reading this story by the same author who is cited
above. At the World’s Fair in 1939 at San Francisco, one of the
attractions was a pile of money said to total $1,000,000. For 25
cents, visitors were allowed to touch the money. Were they any
richer for it, or were they just 25 cents poorer? Again, false
ideas and false hopes can rob people even of the little they
have.
My prayer for you today is this. I pray that God may bless you
with all spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. Christ is our true
hope. He is our only hope against deception. Jesus is our only
hope for a bright and glorious future.
Keep the faith. Stay the course. Jesus is coming soon. This is
our blessed Hope.
Pastor T.
If just for today, Lord, I’ll keep my eyes and heart in tune to
Your ever-loving presence. I’ll walk with You and glean upon
Your every word … be ready to go, ready to stay, and bask in
the fullness of Your day.
If just for today, Lord, I’ll find joy in whatever comes my
way, give You glory in each situation … smell the roses, pat
the dog, and enjoy the wonder of Your creation.
If just for today, Lord, I’ll check my thoughts, motives, and
ways. I’ll see through Your eyes all You’d have me to see and be
all You’d have me to be. I’ll reach out to my fellow man, give
others a helping hand, and let Christ live in me.
The life of a true servant can only be lived “One Day at A Time”.
© by Joyce C. Lock
http://my.homewithgod.com/blessingsandlessons/ This writing may
be used in its entirety, with credits in tact, for non-profit
ministering purposes.