Religious @ MindSay

To: minimichael

Welcome aboard mate.

Not much original about me 'cause I've been here at Mindsay for a while and 'round and 'bout many parts for more 'en half-dozen decades doin' different stuff jes tryin' ta stay alive runnin' from some and some sometins and searchin' for sum others. Ya noe?

Now ya kin find sum answers here I 'spect. But ya shudent doen be ah'sprised at what dey mite be. I mean sum of em. Da questions sumtimes takes a liddle figerrin' to. I learnt a heap here from meny a folk yunger an me. Yunger an you two also teched me a lot here to. Mebbie ya will like here. I thin' ya can and hope ya will.

Now my parts, still in pretty good shape, reside, rest, react, rust and restore in Qingdao on the coast of China while I regularly repulse and rile restive retrograde religious right-wing redneck Republican reprobates rejoice-fully.

If'n ya ever git a good answer to the "juicy factor" item, please let me noe. Still tryin' ta figure dat one two. Sincerely, David, namaste

I have a few excerpts from the bible that I would like to share with you because I know they will inspire those whose hearts are with the Lamb. I hope it makes you feel as warm as it does me.

 

Las Vegas religious weddings

Everyone loves Las Vegas. That is why it is known as the wedding capital of the world. Las Vegas has something for everyone. It is the only place where you can "Go around the world, and never leave the city." You can visit Moscow, NYC, Venice, Paris, go back in time to the days of King Arthur, and you can get married.

So you have decided to get married, in Las Vegas no less. Las Vegas is the wedding capital of the world, with more marriage licenses issued every year than any other city. Seeing that it is the wedding capital of the world, there are many choices of just where to tie the knot. Thankfully, Las Vegas has a chapel for every taste.

Las Vegas religious weddings
When considering Las Vegas religious weddings both parties must be on the same page. Most of the time at least one member of the couple must be a member of the religion.

It will be a good idea to talk with the minister about marriage preparation requirements. You will most likely receive some kind of booklet on "Married Life" according to the teachings of the religion, and be asked to attend private counseling sessions with the minister who will perform your marriage.

Inform your minister of any previous marriages. Although most religions has no official objection to marrying legally divorced people, individual ministers may choose not to perform marriage ceremonies for divorced persons. If your minister cannot preside over your marriage, he/she may recommend a minister who can.

Ask the minister to explain the ceremony and which elements you can modify or customize. You may choose to write your own vows or to incorporate a blend of classical and religious music. Marriage ceremony guidelines vary among different religious congregations, so it is crucial to discuss these issues early in the planning process.

Determine whether you want your wedding to take place in a church/temple or outdoors. Many religious ministers can accommodate an outdoor ceremony. If you have a particular natural setting in mind, your minister will likely agree to perform your ceremony at your desired site.

Most ministers will charge more for the marriage of non-members than for members. Ask your minister for details and discuss the benefits of becoming active members of a congregation before your marriage.

Las Vegas religious weddings can be both fun and rewarding, no matter what your faith.


Bill Skywalker Edwards
To find out more about Las Vegas religious weddings  grand canyon weddings  and all of your wedding options, visit http://www.flagstaffweddings.info

Just when I began to think that there was a viable political female candidate I received the following in my morning email -

Palin's Anti-Pagan Coreligionists

Here I was thinking to myself that the chances of a modern Pagan angle to the Republican VP pick of Alaska's Sarah Palin would be truly minimal. Sure, you had her support of aerial wolf hunting (a cruel method that violates the ethic of "fair chase"), and her drill-happy attitudes towards ANWR, but nothing explicitly anti-Pagan had emerged. But a number of bloggers, most notably Bruce Wilson at Talk2Action, have been digging into Palin's religious background and found some disturbingly anti-Pagan connections.

"Sarah Palin's churches are actively involved in a resurgent movement that was declared heretical by the Assemblies of God in 1949. This is the same 'Spiritual Warfare' movement that was featured in the award winning movie, "Jesus Camp," which showed young children being trained to do battle for the Lord. At least three of four of Palin's churches are involved with major organizations and leaders of this movement, which is referred to as The Third Wave of the Holy Spirit or the New Apostolic Reformation. The movement is training a young "Joel's Army" to take dominion over the United States and the world."

These "Third Wave" Christians believe in supernatural powers, demon possession, curses, and ongoing spiritual warfare. Most of them are loosely grouped around C. Peter Wagner, founder of the World Prayer Center, and coiner of the term "Third Wave". Wagner believes that one of the greatest opponents to Third Wave Christian dominance is The Goddess.

"Several
of their top prophets and generals of intercession spent weeks in intensive prayer to "confront the Queen of Heaven." This queen is considered by them to be one of the most powerful demons over the earth and is the Great Harlot of Mystery Babylon in Revelation ... Wagner and his group also claim that the Queen of Heaven is Diana, the pagan god of the biblical book Ephesians and the god of Mary veneration in the Roman Catholic Church."http://www.wildhunt .org/2008/ 09/palins- anti-pagan- coreligionists. html

I remember watching the documentary on this Jesus Camp and frankly it scared the crap out of me.  Smacked WAY too much on brainwashing, sort of a Neo-Nazi type with religious trappings.  I’ve got that shiver in my bones, that dej’ avu feeling that we’ve been down this trap laden primrose path before - and the resulting witch hunts aren’t pretty.  And while I remind myself that this country was founded on religious freedom I also remember that this sure doesn’t sound like it.

today i'm going to blog about something i don't think i ever have. something a lot deeper than my usual boy drama, although there is a good amount of that i could write about.

baptism.

i'm not sure if anyone who reads this really knows me all that well, but if you didn't know, i'm an agnostic.

i have no idea if there is or isn't a god, and i've never been one to go to church or practice religion in any way.

my mom was raised catholic, and didn't believe it, and didn't like some of the views. i don't think my dad was brought up in a religious family, so i was never spoon-fed a religion by my parents, like a lot of kids are.

 

sometimes i almost wish i was, because now, here i am, i know nothing, have been taught nothing, and the way i see it, it would have been so much easier to be part of a religion as a kid, to at least learn what it is like, and disagree with it later or find out later that it's not right for me. i'm a teenager, in high school, and i have no idea about any of it. now it's getting to the point where i'm curious, and thinking and wondering and wanting to know and believe, but i'm so busy now. if i learn anything, i have to take it out of my own time and find out everything on my own. and i feel bad for saying this, but i am not ready to give up my sunday mornings.

 

lately i've been spending a lot of time in the company of my local mormon friends. i went to their dances, and now i'm singing with them for their state conference. i love the way it all feels, they're so open and welcoming and family-like. i even met this really great guy through their church. my friends ronnie and karena keep inviting me to their church and their youth group, and my mom works with a lady who goes to and they're all so friendly.

 

and then recently, i've been thinking maybe i want to get baptized. the mormons baptize the dead, i'm not sure how, but i was thinking i'd much rather do it while i'm alive and who knows, if i were to die tomorrow, it might influence where i go afterwards. so i asked ronnie about it, he said there was a baptism by water and a baptism by fire, and that's where you join the church of latter day saints, his church. but i don't want to be a member of a church just yet. church sounds like a lot of responsibility. and apparently you can have one baptism without the other. so what do i do? this is something i think i want, but i can't go just halfway. if it can save my soul, or something like that, i owe it to myself to at least try.

 

i just don't know anymore. there's a lot of stuff that makes no sense to me about religion. like christ and the holy ghost and all that. i do believe in a higher power, maybe not the stereotypical god. (like, excuse me, but why does god have to be a male?) i think i'll try to read the bible and the book of mormon and everything, maybe it'll make more sense.

 

so yea. hmm.