Did Jesus Really Die on A Cross?

DURING the church ceremony, the two men stand hand in hand before a renowned Episcopal bishop. They make a “covenant . . . before God and the church.” Clothed in ornate gold-and-white vestments, the bishop publicly blesses their union. Afterward the couple hug and kiss and are given a standing ovation. According to this bishop, such homosexual relationships “are holy and deserve to be blessed, . . . deserve to be called what they are: sacred.”

However, other religious leaders voice strong opposition to same-sex unions. “We are so disturbed by this [bishop’s] decision,” stated Cynthia Brust, spokesperson for the American Anglican Council, a group of conservative Episcopalians. “Same-sex blessings contradict the clear teaching on marriage and sexuality from the Bible,” she said, adding that “sexuality . . . is to be confined to a man and woman in holy matrimony.”

The fire storm of controversy over this issue is not restricted to religion. Internationally, heated political debates are raging, since the social, political, and economic implications involving pensions, joint health care, and taxes are great.

Issues involving civil rights and legal recognition are often very complicated and divide public opinion. True Christians are careful to maintain neutrality by avoiding political debates. (John 17:16)* Still, some who respect the Bible find themselves confused regarding the subject of same-sex marriage and homosexuality. How do you view same-sex marriage? What is God’s standard for marriage? What impact does your attitude have on your relationship with God?

Our Creator Sets the Standard

Our Creator established rules governing marriage long before governments began regulating the institution. The opening book of the Bible tells us: “A man will leave his father and his mother and he must stick to his wife and they must become one flesh.” (Genesis 2:24) The Hebrew word “wife,” according to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, “connotes one who is a female human being.” Jesus confirmed that those yoked together in marriage should be “male and female.”—Matthew 19:4.

Thus, God intended marriage to be a permanent and an intimate bond between a man and a woman. Men and women are designed to complement each other so they may be capable of satisfying each other’s emotional, spiritual, and sexual needs and desires.

The well-known Biblical account of Sodom and Gomorrah reveals God’s feelings about homosexuality. God declared: “The cry of complaint about Sodom and Gomorrah, yes, it is loud, and their sin, yes, it is very heavy.” (Genesis 18:20) The extent of their sinful depravity at that time was apparent when two guests visited the righteous man Lot. “The men of Sodom . . . surrounded the house, from boy to old man, all the people in one mob. And they kept calling out to Lot and saying to him: ‘Where are the men who came in to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may have intercourse with them.’” (Genesis 19:4, 5) The Bible says: “The men of Sodom were bad and were gross sinners against Jehovah.”—Genesis 13:13.

The men became “violently inflamed in their lust toward one another, males with males.” (Romans 1:27) They had “gone out after flesh for unnatural use.” (Jude 7) In countries where homosexual rights campaigns are pervasive, some may object to using the word “unnatural” to describe homosexual behavior. However, is not God the final arbiter when it comes to nature? He commanded his ancient people: “You must not lie down with a male the same as you lie down with a woman. It is a detestable thing.”— Leviticus 18:22.

Your Accountability to God

The Bible is clear: God does not approve of or condone homosexual practices. He also disapproves of people who “consent with those practicing them.” (Romans 1:32) And “marriage” cannot give homosexuality a cloak of respectability. God’s direction that “marriage be honorable among all” precludes homosexual unions, which he considers detestable.—Hebrews 13:4.

Still, with God’s help, anyone can learn to “abstain from fornication,” which includes homosexual acts, and “get possession of his own vessel in sanctification and honor.”(1 Thessalonians 4:3, 4) Admittedly, this is not always easy. Nathan^#, who formerly pursued a homosexual life-style, said: “I thought I could never stop.” But he did change with help from “the spirit of our God.”(1 Corinthians 6:11) As Nathan discovered, no problem is too big for Jehovah, who can provide the strength and help needed to meet His standards and receive His blessings.—Psalm 46:1.

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* Even when the laws of the land are in conflict with their Bible-trained conscience, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not engage in protests or any form of political campaigns in order to change such laws.

^# Not his real name.

Is There Only One True GOD?

MOLECH, Ashtoreth, Baal, Dagon, Merodach, Zeus, Hermes, and Artemis are some of the gods and goddesses mentioned by name in the Bible. (Leviticus 18:21; Judges 2:13; 16:23; Jeremiah 50:2; Acts 14:12; 19:24) Yet, only Jehovah is identified in the Scriptures as the Almighty God. In a victory song, Moses led his people in singing: “Who among the gods is like you, O Jehovah?”—Exodus 15:11.

Clearly, the Bible places Jehovah above all other gods. But what role do these lesser gods play? Are they and the countless other gods that have been worshipped through the ages real deities subordinate to the Almighty God, Jehovah?

Figments of the Imagination

The Bible identifies Jehovah as the only true God. (Psalm 83:18; John 17:3) The prophet Isaiah recorded God’s own words when he said: “Before me there was no God formed, and after me there continued to be none. I—I am Jehovah, and besides me there is no savior.”—Isaiah 43:10, 11.

All the other gods are not merely inferior to Jehovah. In most cases they are nonexistent—strictly figments of human imagination. The Bible refers to these gods as “the product of the hands of man . . . , which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.” (Deuteronomy 4:28) The Bible plainly teaches that Jehovah is the only true God.

It is no wonder that the Scriptures sternly warn against worshipping any deity other than Jehovah. For instance, in the first of the Ten Commandments given to Moses, the ancient nation of Israel was told not to worship any other god. (Exodus 20:3) Why?

First, to venerate a god that does not even exist is a great insult to the Creator. The worshippers of these false gods are described in the Bible as having “exchanged the truth of God for the lie and venerated and rendered sacred service to the creation rather than the One who created.” (Romans 1:25) Often these imaginary gods are represented by idols made of materials found in nature, such as metal or wood. Many deities are associated with certain aspects of nature, such as thunder, the oceans, and the wind. Surely, then, the veneration of such pseudo gods is a gross act of disrespect to the Almighty God.

To the Creator, false gods and their idols are repugnant. Yet, God’s words of displeasure are mainly directed to the people who have fabricated these false gods. His sentiments are forcefully expressed in these words: “The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of the hands of earthling man. A mouth they have, but they can speak nothing; eyes they have, but they can see nothing; ears they have, but they can give ear to nothing. Also there exists no spirit in their mouth. Those making them will become just like them, everyone who is trusting in them.”—Psalm 135:15-18.

There is another reason for the Bible’s stern warning against worshipping anyone or anything other than Jehovah God. Such worship would be a monumental waste of time and effort. The prophet Isaiah aptly stated: “Who has formed a god or cast a mere molten image? Of no benefit at all has it been.” (Isaiah 44:10) The Bible also says that “all the gods of the peoples are valueless gods.” (Psalm 96:5) False gods are nothing, and worshipping nothing achieves nothing.

Jesus, the Angels, and the Devil

The Scriptures do at times refer to actual persons as gods. However, a careful examination clearly reveals that the term “god” in these instances is not intended to designate these individuals as deities. Rather, in the original languages in which the Bible was written, the term “god” was also used to describe a mighty person or an individual who is divine or closely associated with the Almighty God.

For example, some Bible verses allude to Jesus Christ as a god. (Isaiah 9:6, 7; John 1:1, 18) Does this mean that Jesus is to be worshipped? Jesus himself said: “It is Jehovah your God you must worship, and it is to him alone you must render sacred service.” (Luke 4:8) Clearly, although Jesus is mighty in power and divine in nature, the Bible does not portray him as an object of worship.

The angels are also referred to as “godlike ones.” (Psalm 8:5; Hebrews 2:7) Still, nowhere in the Scriptures are humans encouraged to venerate the angels. In fact, on a certain occasion, the aged apostle John was so awestruck by the presence of an angel that he prostrated himself to worship the angel. However, the angel responded: “Be careful! Do not do that! . . . Worship God.”—Revelation 19:10.

The apostle Paul described the Devil as “the god of this system of things.” (2 Corinthians 4:4) As “the ruler of this world,” the Devil has promoted countless false gods. (John 12:31) Hence, all worship addressed to man-made gods is, in effect, worship rendered to Satan. But Satan is not a god who merits our worship. He is a self-appointed ruler, a usurper. In time, he himself, as well as all forms of false worship, will be eliminated. When that happens, all humanity—yes, all creation—will forever acknowledge Jehovah as the only true and living God.—Jeremiah 10:10.

Can a Pagan Holiday Be Made Christian?

DURING the winter of 2004, the Christmas season in Italy was marked by a lively debate. Some educators and teachers supported the idea of reducing to a minimum or even completely eliminating any reference to religious Christmas traditions. They advocated this out of respect for the increasing number of schoolchildren who are neither Catholic nor Protestant. However, others in scholastic circles and elsewhere demanded that the traditions be respected and fully preserved.

Aside from this controversy, though, just what are the origins of many of the Christmas traditions? As the debate was reaching a climax, the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano made some interesting observations.

The sun god

Regarding the date when Christmas is celebrated, the Catholic newspaper said: “The real date of Jesus’ birth, from the historical viewpoint, lies concealed beneath a veil of uncertainty as regards Roman history, the imperial census of that time and research in the subsequent centuries. . . . The date of 25 December, as is well known, was chosen by the Church of Rome in the fourth century. This date in pagan Rome was dedicated to the Sun god . . . Although Christianity had already been affirmed in Rome by an Edict of Constantine, the myth of . . . the Sun god was still widespread, especially among soldiers. The above-mentioned festivities, centred on 25 December, were deeply rooted in popular tradition. This gave the Church of Rome the idea of impressing a Christian religious significance on the day by replacing the Sun god with the true Sun of Justice, Jesus Christ, choosing it as the day on which to celebrate his birth.”

What about the Christmas tree, which is now part of the Catholic tradition?

The article in the Catholic newspaper pointed out that back in ancient times, many evergreens, such as “holly, butcher’s broom, laurel and branches of pine or fir were considered to have magical or medicinal powers that would ward off illness.” It went on to say: “On Christmas Eve, 24 December, Adam and Eve would be commemorated with the highly popular episode of the Tree of the earthly Paradise . . . The tree ought to have been an apple tree, but since an apple tree would have been inappropriate in winter, a fir tree was set on the stage and some apples put on its branches or, to symbolize the future coming of Redemption, wafers prepared with crushed biscuits in special moulds that were symbols of the Eucharistic presence of Jesus, as well as sweets and gifts for children.” What about after that time?

Mentioning that the tradition of using a Christmas tree first started in Germany in the 16th century, L’Osservatore Romano noted: “Italy was one of the last countries to accept the Christmas tree, partly because of a rather widespread rumour that the use of Christmas trees was a Protestant practice and should thus be replaced by the crib [the Nativity scene].” Pope Paul VI “began the tradition of setting up [in St. Peter’s Square, Rome] a massive Christmas tree” near the Nativity scene.

Do you find it acceptable that a religious leader would give a seemingly Christian meaning to events and symbols whose roots go back to ancient paganism? As to the proper course, the Scriptures admonish true Christians: “What fellowship do righteousness and lawlessness have? Or what sharing does light have with darkness?”—2 Corinthians 6:14-17.

"They all crossed into forbidden territory. They all tampered with the laws that lay down who should be loved and how. And how much. "The year is 1969. In the state of Kerala, on the southernmost tip of India, a skyblue Plymouth with chrome tailfins is stranded on the highway amid a Marxist workers' demonstration. Inside the car sit two-egg twins Rahel and Esthappen, and so begins their tale. . . .Armed only with the invincible innocence of children, they fashion a childhood for themselves in the shade of the wreck that is their family--their lonely, lovely mother, Ammu (who loves by night the man her children love by day), their blind grandmother, Mammachi (who plays Handel on her violin), their beloved uncle Chacko (Rhodes scholar, pickle baron, radical Marxist, bottom-pincher), their enemy, Baby Kochamma (ex-nun and incumbent grandaunt), and the ghost of an imperial entomologist's moth (with unusually dense dorsal tufts).When their English cousin, Sophie Mol, and her mother, Margaret Kochamma, arrive on a Christmas visit, Esthappen and Rahel learn that Things Can Change in a Day. That lives can twist into new, ugly shapes, even cease forever, beside their river "graygreen." With fish in it. With the sky and trees in it. And at night, the broken yellow moon in it. The brilliantly plotted story uncoils with an agonizing sense of foreboding and inevitability. Yet nothing prepares you for what lies at the heart of it.The God of Small Things takes on the Big Themes--Love. Madness. Hope. Infinite Joy. Here is a writer who dares to break the rules. To dislocate received rhythms and create the language she requires, a language that is at once classical and unprecedented. Arundhati Roy has given us a book that is anchored to anguish, but fueled by wit and magic.

The God of Small Things

The novel The God of Small Things relates a young woman's painful journey of remembrance into her childhood. It is a story about forbidden love in a society where the caste system is deeply imbedded, and it is a story about India.
After twenty-three years, Rahel Kochamma returns to her family home in Ayemenem to find her long lost twin brother. Slowly, she recalls her childhood and the terrible drama that changed their lives. These memories revolve around the incidents that led up to and the consequences of the tragic accidental death of her young cousin, Sophie Kochamma.
The first remembrance is of 1969, in the southern state of Kerala, India, where the young two-egg twins await the arrival of their cousin from England, Sophie. The young twins, Esthappen, the boy, and Rahel, the girl, are inseparable. They have a very special tie between them, and they feel as if they were one and the same person. The twins are nervous and worried that everyone will love Sophie more than them. They are expected to be on their best behavior for Sophie's arrival. They are only seven going on eight and live with their mother Ammu in the Kochamma family home along with their uncle, Chacko, their grandmother, Mammachi, and their grandaunt, Baby Kochamma.
The Kochammas are an upper class Syrian Christian family. Their grandmother, Mammachi, started a pickles and preserve business, run by their Uncle Chacko. Their grandfather, already deceased, was an entomologist and civil servant. The family lived in Delhi until the grandfather's retirement, after which they moved to Ayemenem, a small town in Kerala. Ammu was a young teenager of sixteen at the time of the move. Life in the small town was very boring and limited. At eighteen Ammu still had no marriage proposals, so she went to Calcutta to spend some time with a distant cousin.
In Calcutta, Ammu met Estha and Rahel's father, Bengalese Hindu, who worked on a tea farm in Assam. After a two-week courtship, he proposed to her and was accepted. They went to live on the tea farm, and soon she was mother to twins. Slowly, her husband's true character was revealed. He turned out to be a compulsive liar and an aggressive drunk. When his violence began to turn on the children, she left him, taking her two-year-old twins home to her parents' house.
Ammu's brother, Chacko Kochamma, was a Rhodes scholar with a Marxist tendency. While completing his university studies in England, he met, fell in love with and married Margaret. Just when their baby daughter, Sophie, was born, Margaret left Chacko for another man, an Englishman named Joe. Joe could give her more security. Chacko returned to his home broken-hearted. He took over his mother's small but thriving homemade pickles and preserves business and invested in machinery to expand production to industrial level.
When Margaret's second husband died, Chacko invited her and their daughter Sophie out to India to help her get over her grief. It is Sophie who the twins are waiting for. The family makes much of Sophie's arrival. Sophie is special; she is half English. The twins are a bit shy of her.
One of the hardest workers in the factory is Velutha, the Untouchable, or Paravan. He is a handyman around the Kochamma house and a trusted employee at the factory. His position in the factory is not higher only because of his Untouchable caste. It is a shock to the family to find out that Velutha is a Marxist sympathizer. Velutha lives in a small house on the river with his father and handicapped brother. The twins love him and love playing in the river near his house. One day, the twins find an old boat on the riverbank near Velutha's house, which they fix up and use to cross the river to an abandoned house on the other side, the History House.
Unknown to all, Ammu also loves Velutha. Their love tryst is the same History House that so enchants her children. This affair is socially unheard of because of the difference in caste, class and religion.
When Velutha's father finds out about the love affair, he goes to the Kochamma house and tells Mammachi about the forbidden love. Mammachi is furious and scandalized by this news. Ammu is locked in her room. Ammu, locked in her room in shame, is quick-tempered with her children and sends them away.
Meanwhile, the twins, already feeling insecure in their mother's love, are badly affected by their mother's sharp words. The tragedy occurs when the twins run to the river late at night, together with their cousin Sophie. Innocently, they decide to cross the river to the abandoned house on the other side. The tragedy occurs when their boat is turned over by the current. The twins, who have often swum in the river, survive and reach the other side. Sophie, however, drowns and is found the next morning by a fisherman.
In order to protect the family name, Baby Kochamma goes to the police and accuses Velutha of rape. She insinuates that he has abducted the children. The police set out to find Velutha, the supposed kidnapper and rapist. Coincidentally, he is on the other side of the river in the same place as the twins - the History House, where he and Ammu secretly meet. The police brutally beat him.
When the police talk to the twins, it becomes evident that Velutha is innocent. It is necessary for Baby Kochamma to protect herself from being charged with false accusation and the police from being accused of beating an innocent man. Therefore, she cajoles the twins into falsely accusing Velutha. Ammu tries to tell the police the truth after Sophie's funeral, but it is too late. Velutha is dead. Ammu is shamed and heartbroken.
Chacko, whose mind has been poisoned by Baby, expels Ammu from her home. Sad, sick and alone, she dies at the young age of thirty-one. To complete the cover-up, the twins are separated. Estha is sent away to live with his father and his father's second wife. He becomes a withdrawn and reserved person who doesn't communicate with the rest of the world. He lives in his own silence. After many years, he returns to his old home in Ayemenem when his father goes to live abroad. This is when Rahel returns to see him.
Rahel stays in the family home, but she feels a permanent emptiness. At a young age, she goes to live in Delhi and studies architecture. She marries an American and goes to live in the States. After a few years, the marriage falls apart. Rahel returns to India and to her old home to see her twin brother. Memories of the past come flooding back to her.

Always Available

A little boy was spending his Saturday morning playing in his sandbox. He had with him his box of cars and trucks, his plastic pail, and a shiny, red plastic shovel. In the process of creating roads and tunnels in the soft sand, he discovered a large rock in the middle of the sandbox. The lad dug round the rock, managing to dislodge it from the dirt. With no little bit of struggle, he pushed and nudged the rock across the sandbox by using his feet. (He was a very small boy and the rock was huge.)

When the boy got the rock to the edge of the sandbox, however, he found that he couldn't roll it up and over the little wall. Determined, the little boy shoved, pushed, and pried, but every time he thought he had made some progress, the rock tipped and then fell back into the sandbox.

The little boy grunted, struggled, pushed, shoved -- but his only reward was to have the rock roll back, smashing his chubby fingers. Finally he burst into tears of frustration.

All this time the boy's father watched from his living room window as the drama unfolded. At the moment the tears fell, a large shadow fell across the boy and the sandbox. It was the boy's father. Gently but firmly he said, "Son, why didn't you use all the strength that you had available?"

Defeated, the boy sobbed back, "But I did, Daddy, I did! I used all the strength that I had!"

"No, son," corrected the father kindly. "You didn't use all the strength you had. You didn't ask me."

With that the father reached down, picked up the rock, and removed it from the sandbox.

Do you have "rocks" in your life that need to be removed? Are you discovering that you don't have what it takes to lift them? There is One who is always available to us and willing to give us the strength we need. When we are broken in spirit and our strength is spent, we can turn to our Savior Jesus.

"When we are weak and in despair,
Our mighty Lord is near;
He gives us strength and hope,
With Him, all things we can cope."
--

Women

By the time the Lord made women, he was into his sixth
day of working overtime. An Angel appeared and said,
"Why are you spending so much time on this one?"
And the Lord answered and said, "Have you seen the
spec sheet on her? She has to be completely washable,
but not plastic, have 200 movable parts, all
replaceable, run on black coffee and leftovers, have a
lap that can hold three children at one time , have a
kiss that can cure anything from a scraped knee to a
broken heart, and have six pairs of hands."

The Angel was astounded at the requirements for this
one. "Six pairs of hands! No Way!", "And that's just
on the standard model?" the Angel asked.

The Angel tried to stop the Lord. "This is too much
work for one day. Wait until tomorrow to finish it."
"But I can't!", the Lord protested, "I am so close to
finishing this creation that is so close to my own
Heart. She already heals herself when she is sick AND
can work 18 hr days." The Angel moved closer and
touched the woman,"but you have made her so soft,
Lord."

"She is soft", the Lord agreed, "but I have also made
Her tough. You have no idea what she can endure or
accomplish."

"Will she be able to think?", asked the Angel. The
Lord replied, "Not only will she be able to think, she
will be able to reason, and negotiate."

The Angel then noticed something and reached out and
touched the woman's cheek.

"Oops, it looks like you have a leak with this model.
I told you that you were trying to put too much into
this one." "That's not a leak," the Lord objected,
"that's a tear!"

"What's the tear for?" the Angel asked. The Lord said,
"The tear is her way of expressing her joy, her
sorrow, her pain, her disappointment, her loneliness,
her grief, and her pride."

The Angel was impressed. "You are a genius, Lord. You
thought of everything, for women are truly amazing."

Women have strengths that amaze men. They carry
hardships, they carry burdens but they hold happiness,
love and joy.

They smile when they want to scream. They sing when
they want to cry. They cry when they are happy and
laugh when they are nervous. They fight for what they
believe in. They stand up for injustice. They don't
take "no" for an answer when they believe there is a
better solution.

They go without so their family can have. They go to
the doctor with a frightened friend. They love
unconditionally. They cry when their children excel
and cheer when their friends get awards. They are
happy when they hear about a birth or a new marriage.
Their hearts break when a friend dies. They have sorrow
at the loss of a family member,yet they are strong when
they think there is no strength left. They know that a
hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart.

Women come in all sizes, in all colors and shapes.
They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you to show
how much they care about you. The heart of a woman is
what makes the world spin! They bring joy and hope.
They give compassion and ideals. They give moral
support to their family and friends. Women have a lot
to say and a lot to give.

Pass this along to your women friends to remind them
how amazing they are....... and to your male friends