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Archive for the ‘Spiritual’ Category

A new Canadian study sheds light on why: the vast majority of Americans believe God is directly concerned with their personal affairs, with most assuming a divine reason for everything from job promotions to speeding tickets.

“In American culture — much less so in Canada — there’s a really constant flow of God-talk that references these small, personal interactions. It’s almost like a self-absorbed view of divine will,” says study author Scott Schieman, a professor of sociology at the University of Toronto.

“The extent that it’s so visible, almost saturating the culture at times, makes me think it’s not just metaphor or symbolism; many, many people believe these processes are real.”

Eight in 10 Americans say they depend on God for decision-making guidance.

Seven in 10 believe that when good or bad things happen, the occurrences are part of God’s plan.

And six in 10 believe God has set the course of their lives.

The study, published in the March issue of the journal Sociology of Religion, is generating considerable buzz online — much of it linked to Schieman’s finding that a third of Americans agree with the rather defeatist statement: “There’s no sense in planning a lot because ultimately my fate is in God’s hands.”

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BARTOW — Evelyn Boyd was on a mission to pray — for her husband, her church, her city, the nation and the president.

So on Feb. 7, she locked herself in a bedroom to pray and fast. She brought water and prayer requests and told her husband not to bother her.

“This is what I have to do,” she told him.

For more than three weeks, Boyd, 55, didn’t emerge. Her family could have come to her aid if she needed help, but her husband wanted to respect her wish to be alone. He figured she’d be okay, just like the last four times she fasted.

But on the 26th day, family members forced the door open. They found her dead.

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office says it appears she died because of the fast. Deputies don’t plan to file charges because they believe she fasted willingly and her family said she was mentally sound, Sheriff Grady Judd said.

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An evangelical leader is calling for a boycott of Glenn Beck’s television show and challenging the Fox News personality to a public debate after Beck vilified churches that preach economic and social justice.

The Rev. Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, a network of progressive Christians, says Beck perverted Jesus’ message when he urged Christians last week to leave churches that preach social and economic justice.

Beck told his audience that they should leave churches that preach “economic and social justice.” Wallis says Beck compared those churches to Communists and Nazis.

Wallis says at least a thousand people have already responded to his call to boycott Beck. He says Beck is confusing his personal philosophy with the Bible.

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I’m begging you, your right to religion and freedom to exercise religion and read all of the passages of the Bible as you want to read them and as your church wants to preach them . . . are going to come under the ropes in the next year. If it lasts that long it will be the next year. I beg you, look for the words ’social justice’ or ‘economic justice’ on your church Web site. If you find it, run as fast as you can. Social justice and economic justice, they are code words. Now, am I advising people to leave their church? Yes.

AmericaMagazine.org

At an Ohio Right to Life fundraiser Friday night, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin once again defended the notes she wrote on her hand during last month’s Tea Party Convention. She said she didn’t have a good answer to media criticism at the time, but now she has one: God did it too.

“If what was good enough for God, scribbling on the palm of his hand, it’s good enough for me, for us,” Palin said. “In that passage he says, I wrote your name on the palm of my hand to remember you. And I’m like okay, I’m in good company.”

Link

The pastor says it’s the Lord’s work. Neighbors say it should be done elsewhere.

Residents say the homeless create blight and pose a danger to them, pointing to the case of a homeless felon caught with child pornography in the neighborhood. A complaint prompted city officials to order the year-old breakfast halted, saying it violated zoning laws.

Now, the dispute is in federal court in Phoenix, with the church saying the city is violating its treasured American rights to freedom of religion, as well as a federal law passed in 2000 that protects religious groups from city zoning rules.

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The Bossier Parish sheriff’s office is launching a program called “Operation Exodus,” a policing plan for an end-of-the-world scenario involving a mostly white group of ex-police volunteers and a .50-caliber machine gun, inspired in part from the Book of Exodus in the Bible.

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My longtime readers know that I like to get many perspectives when it comes to things regarding politics and religion.  Well, this post deals with the latter.  I feel that even though I may not agree with a person’s view, I can still learn from them and I can get a better idea of what people think of my views, unfiltered.

I’ve been following former Christian and current atheist Daniel Florien for a while now.  I like how he writes about his history and find insight on his perspective on things regarding the Christian faith.  He does this with a non-confrontational view and provides a lot of substance with his thoughts, well, at least in my opinion.

Anyways, last week he made a post about defending the Bible.  I know many of you will probably not agree with his post because he takes a very liberal view of the Bible, but then again, you don’t read about an atheist defending the Bible everyday either.

So here’s the piece, and I would be interested in your thoughts.

BRISTOL, Va. – Nineteen-year-old Keshia Canter handed three burgers, fries and milkshakes to a car-load of Tuesday afternoon customers at the Hi-Lo Burger’s drive-though window. A lady sitting in the backseat leaned forward, between the two men in front, and handed her a leaflet: “Women & Girls” it said across the top.

“Even though nothing is showing, you’re being ungodly,” Canter recalled the woman telling her. “You make men want to be sinful.”

Canter was wearing boots pulled up over jeans, a pink zebra-print shirt with a black jacket zipped up over it. She has blond hair, dark eye make-up and a little red lip ring. “I just asked if she needed any salt, pepper or ketchup,” Canter said. “I mean, how do I respond to that?”

Minutes later, Canter’s mother, Pam Yates, who owns the restaurant, returned from the bank. Canter handed her “Women & Girls” and Yates started reading.

“You may have been given this leaflet because of the way you are dressed,” it begins. “Have you thought about standing before the true and living God to be judged?”

It continues with one essential theme: The sins of men are, in part, the fault of women, specifically women in tight-fitting clothing. Yates was annoyed. Then she got to a section on page two:

“Scripture tells us that when a man looks on a woman to lust for her he has already committed adultery in his heart. If you are dressed in a way that tempts a men to do this secret (or not so secret) sin, you are a participant in the sin,” the leaflet states. “By the way, some rape victims would not have been raped if they had dressed properly. So can we really say they were innocent victims?”

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Beliefnet.com

In case you ever wondered if you had a demon or not, here’s a handy 21 question test.

Thank you for taking time to take the Demon Test®. This may be the most important spiritual decision you have made. This Test is the result of more than 30 years of research and thousands of hours in personal ministry with troubled souls. Through this vast experience I have been able, with God’s help, to design this test to quickly determine an individual’s spiritual needs.

www.demontest.com

One of my college friends, a mother of three, had cancer several years back and was able to beat it.

Unfortunately I learned the news over the weekend that the cancer has returned.

If you have room for a spare prayer or two, please be sure to keep Allyson and her family in your prayers.

She recently made a post about her ordeal, below is a portion of it that really tugged at my heart, especially the part where she tells her kids.

And yes, that makes two friends from college that I know have cancer, and oddly enough, both are from the Houston area.

Yesterday was the day that we had to tell our children that their mommy has cancer. Again.

I would give up every single one of my good-day memories if it meant that I could have kept yesterday from happening. Forever etched in my mind will be the swollen-from-crying-green eyes of my oldest son as he looked at me and said, “Mommy, please don’t die.”

Tomorrow I will go back to the operating room. The plan is for my oncologist to remove the 2 tumors that are growing in my abdominal cavity and on my colon, to apply intraoperative chemotherapy, and then to insert a port for post-surgery chemo access.

My heart is torn, and my emotions are raw. I am scared. I am angry. I am thankful. I am still blessed.

A lot of things will change for me in the coming days. I will be sick, I will be weak. I will not be able to attend Goliath’s scout meetings or to cheer for my 5-year-old karate kid from the sidelines. I won’t teach preschool, I won’t do much cooking, and I will not take Baby to the library.

But in the midst of my heartache, my God remains the same. He was faithful before, and I believe He will be faithful again. I wish so much that I could understand why I must endure this. Little Middle asked me yesterday, “Mommy, why do you have to have cancer?” The answer could only be, “I don’t know why God lets bad things happen to good people.” But I do know that the God who gave me those three precious boys holds me and my cancer in the palm of His hand.

What is the process for obtaining a beard exception?

A student who wishes to obtain a beard exception must visit a BYU Student Health Center doctor by appointment (422.5156). The doctor will fax his recommendation. The student then needs to come to the Honor Code Office to fill out some paperwork and receive the letter allowing the growth of the beard, if approved. If a yearly beard exception is granted, a new Student ID will be issued after the beard has been fully grown, and must be renewed every year by repeating the process.

If a request is granted for a temporary or more permanent beard exception the student will be notified by the Honor Code Office; at which time the student will come into the office to complete the necessary paperwork. After completion of this process the student may then grow a full beard according the guidelines given.

Brazil’s Catholic Church is suing Hollywood for using unauthorized images of Rio’s famous giant Christ statue in its disaster movie blockbuster 2012, a lawyer involved in the case said on Wednesday.

Rio de Janeiro’s archdiocese is demanding unspecified damages and interest from Columbia Pictures for showing the iconic landmark being destroyed in a worldwide apocalypse in a film that came out last year, the archdiocese’s attorney, Claudine Dutra, said.

The archdiocese manages copyright issues related to the 40-meter (130-foot) high statue erected in 1931, which overlooks Rio with its arms outstretched.

Under Brazilian law, copyright resides in the author of a work until his death, and then is passed on to his heirs or estate or successor entity for another 70 years.