Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Consumer advocate says nuclear plant fiasco means financial 'armageddon'



Ivan Penn, Times Staff Writer

Tuesday, March 12, 2013 4:06pm








TALLAHASSEE — A warning to Progress Energy Florida customers about the financial impact of losing the Crystal River nuclear plant: Brace yourselves for "armageddon."

Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow, but soon, says Charles Rehwinkel, deputy state public counsel, who represents consumers before the Public Service Commission.

To date, customers have been spared the impact of Progress Energy Florida's disastrous nuclear energy track record, which includes: breaking the Crystal River plant beyond repair; recovery of costs related to the plant's assets; hundreds of millions in replacement power; planning a new natural gas plant to replace Crystal River; and spending $1.5 billion on the proposed but indefinitely delayed nuclear complex in Levy County.

In fact, a settlement last year between Progress Energy Florida and state regulators has temporarily lowered monthly power bills and put off the financial reckoning until 2017.

But after that, watch out, said Rehwinkel. "There's an armageddon coming in 2017, 2018. This is very scary."

Here's what he's talking about:

Progress Energy Florida, which became part of Duke Energy last year, already wants its 1.6 million customers to fork over $1.6 billion for costs related to Crystal River, another $1.5 billion for the replacement gas plant and another $1.5 billion toward the Levy plant, even if it is never built.

On Tuesday, representatives of Progress Energy Florida, PSC staff members and consumer advocates began laying the groundwork for the hearings on who will ultimately pay for all that.

The PSC currently is scheduling hearings for June, but Rehwinkel and other consumer advocates said that the complexity of the case will likely require the hearings to be put off until next year.

"The closing of this (Crystal River) plant is the biggest disaster in Florida power history," said James Brew, a lawyer who represents the phosphate industry, a large commercial power user. "We need to do it right."

Consumer advocates think that, when it comes to Crystal River, Progress Energy Florida has done little right.

They contend, for instance, that the utility settled for too small a payout from its insurance company.

The insurer, the Nuclear Electric Insurance Limited, paid a total of $835 million for property damages to the plant and to cover replacement power. The policy allowed up to $2.25 billion for property damages and $490 million per covered incident.

A higher payout by the insurer would have lessened the impact on customers.

Who pays for the outstanding — and in some cases still growing — bills related to Crystal River remains the subject of future state regulatory hearings.

Rehwinkel said the public counsel's office has asked to see the agreement between Duke Energy and the insurance company to see whether it might be possible to renegotiate the terms or whether consumer advocates simply will have to press state regulators to require the utility to get money from its shareholders.

Rehwinkel said the potentially overwhelming impact on customer bills from the Crystal River-related costs requires a careful review.

"There's just a lot of work that needs to be done," Rehwinkel said. He offered no details on how much future power bills would rise. Duke customers already pay the highest rates among Florida's three largest investor-owned utilities — Florida Power & Light and TECO (parent of Tampa Electric) being the other two.

In addition, the consumer advocates question whether the utility has made the right decisions in handling repairs and even the decision in February to shutter the broken nuclear plant.

But John Burnett, a lawyer with Progress Energy Florida, argued during Tuesday's meeting that the issues raised by consumer advocates were settled in an agreement reached with the state a year ago. That agreement prohibits the utility from requesting any dollars not already approved for Crystal River until 2017.

Burnett said commissioners should deem the consumer advocates arguments irrelevant because of a "lack of standing." He said the costs incurred have been supported by past commission decisions and arguments against recovering those costs from consumers have no merit, even beyond the end of the settlement agreement in 2017.

"We believe they are improper issues," Burnett said. "All of the issues have been included in the (state) settlement agreement."

Better to abandon nuclear plans, report says

Ratepayers in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina would be better off "eating" $6 billion already invested in unfinished nuclear reactor projects and focusing instead on producing or conserving the same amount of electricity by cheaper means.

So concludes a report scheduled to be released Thursday by economic analyst Mark Cooper of the Vermont Law School Institute for Energy and the Environment.

Cooper, a longstanding critic of the costs of nuclear power, said that by absorbing billions of dollars already committed to nuclear plant development now, ratepayers in all three states will avoid tens of billions of dollars in costs for risky nuclear plant projects.

In all there are five planned nuclear projects among the three states. Duke Energy's Levy County project and Florida Power & Light's proposed two-reactor project in South Florida are still in the planning stages. There are two other similar sized projects in South Carolina and one in Georgia.



Consumer advocate says nuclear plant fiasco means financial 'armageddon' 03/12/13 [Last modified: Tuesday, March 12, 2013 11:34pm]


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The Branch Davidian seige, 20 years later


By Allan Turner, Houston Chronicle
Updated 5:59 pm, Tuesday, March 12, 2013




A monument for the leaders of the Seventh-day Adventist and Branch Davidian movements and the Branch Davidians who died in 1993 shares the site of the New Mount Carmel Center and the Stone Church outside 
Waco. Photo: Photos By Nick De La Torre / Houston Chronicle




WACO — Twenty years after his death, David Koresh still haunts this Bible-conscious town.

At the site of the Branch Davidian compound, where a 51-day standoff between the FBI and Koresh's followers ended in the fiery deaths of 80 people, tourists snap pictures while neo-Davidians debate theology.

In vehement terms, law enforcement officers present at the siege, but now insisting on anonymity, denounce Koresh as a charismatic pied piper in a souped-up Camaro who led his disciples to the grave. Meanwhile, quietly, and generally out of public view, ever-faithful Koreshians await the self-proclaimed messiah's resurrection.

In Waco and the nation, the Branch Davidian tragedy spawned controversies over God and guns that continue to rage and raised concerns over proper government conduct in such crises that not even a congressional investigation could quell.

The group's beliefs, history and legacy again will be scrutinized on April 18 as experts in religion, sociology and law enforcement gather for a symposium sponsored by Baylor University's Institute for Studies of Religions.

Among the speakers will be J. Gordon Melton, a Baylor expert on fringe religions; Gary Noesner, retired chief of the FBI's negotiation unit; and Loyola University religious studies Professor Catherine Wessinger, who assisted Branch Davidian survivor Clive Doyle in writing an autobiography.

Deadly encounter

Koresh's Branch Davidians were an apocalyptic splinter of a splinter sect of the Seventh-day Adventists. Although the pre-Koresh Davidians featured charismatic leaders given to prophetic proclamations, Koresh stretched faith to the limit: He claimed to be the flesh-and-blood embodiment of God.

Koresh was rumored to have child wives; his followers, high-powered illegal firearms.

The siege began on Feb. 28, 1993, when Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents arrived at the cult's Mount Carmel compound about 14 miles east of Waco to search for weapons. A gunfight left four agents and six cult members dead and launched the standoff that ended on April 19 with efforts to inject tear gas into the structure.

Shortly after noon on that day, the building, a makeshift sprawl of scrap lumber, burst into flames in multiple locations. Eighty people, about 20 of them children, perished in the fire or from gunshot or knife wounds. Koresh, 33, was among them.

Historian Philip Jenkins, also a member of the Baptist university's religious studies institute, said the siege helped sow national discord over guns and religion.

“Waco is the gift that keeps on giving,” he said.

Controversial legacy

Reviews of police action at Mount Carmel found that FBI negotiators and tactical commanders sometimes were at odds, and in the tragedy's aftermath, ATF and FBI protocols for such incidents were revised.

“Waco was enormously important,” said Mark Potok, senior fellow at the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks American hate groups. “It was viewed by a huge segment of the American population as evidence of what the government was willing to do to politically heterodox groups. Virtually all the groups on the radical right saw the confrontation as heralding an upcoming battle between the government and its citizens.”

Today, the Mount Carmel site, with its ruined Koresh compound, rebuilt Davidian chapel and commemorative monuments to the dead, has become a tourist attraction. Many residents of Waco, a Baptist stronghold, find the attention disconcerting.

“I think most people want to forget about it,” said county historical commission chairman Van Massirer, who adds that his group passed on the idea of erecting a plaque at the site.

One recent afternoon two Plano women, both in their early 20s, prowled Mount Carmel, cameras at the ready.

“It's like walking in a battleground,” said Linzie Moss, 20. “You know so much happened. You can just feel something.”

Nearby in a small box at the reconstructed chapel, a flier addresses the legacy of “Waco — one of those things that EVERY one remembers seeing on television.”

The lessons of the tragedy, it asserts, are twofold.

“We have a government that has gone awry ... (and) God is here in judgment — to judge the denominations and nations.”

It is tantalizing to ponder how Koresh would respond to his cult's notoriety.

Born Vernon Howell to a 14-year-old unwed Houston woman, the future Koresh moved to Waco in 1981. Soon, he joined the Davidians, playing guitar at the cult's chapel, wooing the group's 77-year-old leader and claiming the gift of prophecy.

Along the way to power, he challenged the leader's son to a corpse-reviving contest, then to a shootout.

Charles Pace, the current president of the Branch Davidian congregation, watched Koresh's rise with alarm.

“Just like Adam and Eve, they were duped,” he said of Koresh's followers. “Lucifer put a spin on God's word ... Adam and Eve made a choice and so did these people. I didn't have to go along with David, and I didn't.”

Survivor's story

Clive Doyle did.

Now 72, Doyle was among the Davidians who escaped from the burning compound. His 18-year-old daughter, one of Koresh's wives, died in the building.

“I still believe he was led by God,” Doyle said. “I didn't join David because of his charisma or because he was a good speaker. I accepted him because I thought he had a message from God.”

He acknowledges that many were repelled by the cult's sex and guns.

But, he said, “Every religion has its horror stories.”

allan.turner@chron.com

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Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Waiting on Smoke?


Now that the Conclave is in session at the Vatican in Rome, many people are waiting for a sign that they have chosen a new Pontifex Maximus.

Are you one of those that are waiting for a smoke signal?

It has only been 8 years since this process was last conducted; Yet, not only Catholics, but, so many others around the world are mesmerized by this event, and are also attracted to the election (or selection) of a new Bishop of Rome.
Not in vain does the Bible state in Revelation 13:3: ..."and all the world wondered after the beast."

Arsenio.
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Rome's Islam




cregen124

Uploaded on Feb 7, 2012


During the Second Vatican Council, Dr. Rivera was taken deep beneath the Vatican to the Secret Archives, where all the history of the world for the past 2000 years is stored. He was ordered to study the methods of infiltration and extermination used by Nero, Diocletian, Constantine, Dominic, Torquemada, and Loyola etc., in preparation for the Last Great Inquisition!! Dr. Rivera read many top secret documents that linked the Vatican to the creation of Islam and Communism etc.,etc.

http://www.remnantofgod.org/books/doc...

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Same-Sex Couples Also Seek Immigration Reform



Monday, 11 Mar 2013 02:40 PM

By Bill Hoffmann


Some 48,000 same-sex couples across the nation have at least one partner who is not an American citizen, a new report by UCLA’s Williams Institute reveals.

In addition, nearly 30 percent of the estimated 900,000 adult immigrants who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender are here illegally, the institute says.

That puts gay and lesbian couples right behind Latinos and Hispanics in pushing for immigration reform.

"We've started calling ourselves 'prisoners of love,'" California resident Judy Rickard — who is wed to a British woman who must periodically leave the U.S. to satisfy customs law — tells the San Jose Mercury News.

"We've been apart probably half as much as we've been together."

The institute also says that many same-sex couples with at least one immigrant, face another issue — they are raising children under the risk of separation.

The Mercury News reports that California Rep. Mike Honda has reintroduced legislation that would allow citizens or legal permanent residents to sponsor a same-sex spouse for a green card. His bill would establish green cards for same-sex "domestic partners if the U.S. Supreme Court fails to strike down the federal ban on same-sex marriage
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Religious time off requires reasonableness




PHILIP WALZER


RELATED

If I were to interview for this column, it might go like ... - Feb. 10, 2013


By Philip Walzer
The Virginian-Pilot
© March 10, 2013

The spring religious holidays fall relatively early this year. Passover will begin on March 25, followed by Good Friday on the 29th and Easter on March 31.

And why should that merit attention in a business column?

Because the holidays sometimes set off not just family anxiety, but also workplace discontent.

You can see the conflict coming. Say you’re a serious practitioner of your faith. You feel you need time off from the job to observe a religious holiday or the Sabbath. OK. Shift your mindset. Now you’re the CEO or office manager who receives the request for time off. You wonder: How will this affect business? You’ve got to make sure that customers are taken care of and the work flow continues unimpeded.

Federal law requires employers to “reasonably accommodate” workers’ religious beliefs – unless that imposes an “undue hardship,” such as a cost that’s beyond minimal. Of course, the interpretation of what’s “reasonable” or “undue” depends on the beholder, and the suits keep coming.

Since January 2012, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced at least five settlements of cases it brought against employers that declined workers’ requests for religious time off. Wal-Mart, for instance, agreed to pay $70,000. It had granted a Mormon employee’s request for Sundays off from 1995 until it changed its policy in 2009, the agency said.

After that, the man, an assistant manager in Washington state, sometimes found someone at his level to swap shifts with. When he couldn’t, he took Sundays off – and was disciplined.

I was unsuccessful in my attempt to survey a handful of companies about their policies. Smithfield Foods, Stihl, Wal-Mart and Kohl’s didn’t respond to my emails. Jill Hornbacher, a spokeswoman for Target in Minneapolis, emailed: “All I can share is that our team is our competitive advantage, and we work hard to keep our team members happy while ensuring our guests have an exceptional shopping experience in our stores.”

Local attorneys were more forthcoming. David Burton, head of the employment law section at Williams Mullen in Virginia Beach, said he gets a steady 10 to 15 calls a year from employers on how to handle requests from workers who want a religious holiday or weekly prayer day off.

“Most employers get it,” said Laura Geringer Gross, a lawyer with Kaufman & Canoles in Norfolk. “If they can accommodate someone’s religious beliefs, they will.”

But not always. A friend of mine who lives in Virginia Beach has had mixed success getting Saturdays off regularly to attend Jewish services, even though he has offered to work Sundays instead. Over the years, he said, it’s depended on the humor of his supervisor. These days, he’s having few problems.

Now the true-confession part: I, too, was involved in a religious-time-off standoff. Mine was with a previous employer, more than 25 years ago. It’s a bit hazy now, but at the time I worked on Saturdays and wanted the mornings off to go to services at a synagogue. All right, my editors said. See if you can trade shifts with somebody.

Burning with the righteousness and anger of a guy in his 20s, I said that wasn’t good enough. The result: I was transferred to another section of the newspaper and got Fridays and Saturdays off. It all worked out, though the incident probably killed my chances for a promotion.

Despite my hot-headed objections, Burton and Gross said employee-initiated trades pose a good solution. The keys, Burton said, are communication and compromise. “For employers, the most important thing is to be engaging and have a give-and-take discussion about it,” he said. “You cannot have a knee-jerk reaction of ‘No.’ ”

A company’s ability – and legal responsibility – to accommodate such requests depends on such factors as the size of its workforce, hours of operation and duties of the worker. Gross pointed to a court ruling in January dismissing an EEOC suit against Rent-A-Center, which had fired a manager who refused to work on Saturdays because he is a Seventh-day Adventist.

D.C. Judge Royce Lamberth said that Saturday was the “most important day of the week” for Rent-A-Center, which is closed on Sundays, and that the store was within its rights to require all managers to work on Saturdays.

Todd McFarland, the associate general counsel for the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in Silver Spring, Md., said he counsels members to be open to a range of solutions, from working Sundays to taking unpaid time off. “They need to be willing to do whatever is necessary to keep the Sabbath,” he said.

Some employers, however, don’t give them the chance, McFarland said. “There does tend to be a viewpoint in certain parts of the country that you should just be happy to have a job. Why should you be asking for anything else?”

Next month: The delicate art of writing self-evaluations. Let me know your tips.

Philip Walzer, 757-222-3864, phil.walzer@pilotonline.com


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Women of Faith decry domestic violence on International Women's Day


BY FIONA STOKES (DAILY NEWS STAFF)
Published: March 9, 2013



ST. CROIX - Women of Faith gathered on Friday at the V.I. Cardiac Center to speak out about ending violence against women the same day the territory observed International Women's Day.

March 8 originally was called International Working Women's Day. In different parts of the world, the focus of the event ranges from general celebrations of respect, appreciation and love toward women to a celebration for women's economic, political and social achievements.

The International Women's Day Forum, sponsored by the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Council, this year focused on plans to coordinate education prevention and response efforts to help reduce the incidence of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and dating violence and to make the crimes socially and culturally unacceptable.

The council's director, Lynn Spencer, said women across the nation have been consistently in the top demographics of victims of violence.

"Victims of abuse are primarily ex-girlfriends, girlfriends, wives, boyfriends and mothers in that order," she said. "We have to take a close look at why this happens and stop this trend."

For many in the community, newly elected senators, the delegate to Congress, newly appointed judges and other women of influence bring a sense of hope that women's issues involving abuse and other victimization will be identified and addressed, but many women still struggle on a daily basis and see no relief coming soon, Spencer said.

"We need to get out and be productive in coordinating an effective community response to this," she said. "The reality of it is, until all of our women and girls are safe, none of our women and girls are safe."

Gerene Joseph, Seventh-day Adventist North Caribbean Conference director of women's and children's ministries, was a guest speaker at the conference. She said the campaign to end violence against woman and girls has to be one that the entire community feels obligated to join.

The Seventh-day Adventist North Caribbean Conference launched its "End It Now" campaign in 2009, which included members representing 10 islands in the region and has been working to continue to broaden the scope of work that they do and the women they reach.

"We all have to see the need and become active," Joseph said. "We are now collecting signatures and have collected hundreds of thousands of signatures from people who feel the same way that we do."


The signatures will be submitted to United Nations leaders in hopes of getting more leadership to make a pledge to put policies and laws in place to protect women from violence, Joseph said.


The event also included a panel discussion and an inspirational reading.

Spencer said the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Council is available to help empower other groups and organization and provides training throughout the territory for professionals about how to deal with domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking.

For more information or to be part of the movement to stop violence against women and girls, call 719-0144 on St. Croix or 776-3966 on St. Thomas.

- Contact reporter Fiona Stokes at 714-9149 or email fstokes@dailynews.vi
We welcome user discussion on our site, under the following guidelines


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Monday, March 11, 2013

DoD Plans to Use Preemptive Deadly Force on Hackers, Cyber Threats


Saturday, March 9, 2013





Freda Art
Eric BlairActivist Post



A new report from the Department of Defense outlines the military's capability to deter cyber threats with some pretty heavy firepower, including nuclear weapons.

The paper written by the Defense Science Board described the best types of bombs to use on hackers to be "Global selective strike systems e.g. penetrating bomber, submarines with long range cruise missiles, Conventional Prompt Global Strike (CPGS), survivable national and combatant command," while "Nuclear weapons would remain the ultimate response and anchor the deterrence ladder" for cyber threats.

"The report ... implies that the United States might have to rely on nuclear weapons to retaliate after a large-scale cyber attack," Foreign Policy writes.

Although it seems that Foreign Policy is reporting shocking revelations, they're actually engaged in subtle misinformation. They claim that this strike capability is only to be used in "retaliation" after a cyber attack as opposed to preemptive strikes to prevent cyber threats, which the military is already authorized to do.

For all the talk of the indefinite detention section of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a little known provision gave President Obama the authority to "conduct offensive operations in cyberspace".


Here's what Section 954 of the 2011 NDAA says:

SEC. 954. MILITARY ACTIVITIES IN CYBERSPACE.
Congress affirms that the Department of Defense has the capability, and upon direction by the President may conduct offensive operations in cyberspace to defend our Nation, Allies and interests, subject to—

(1) the policy principles and legal regimes that the Department follows for kinetic capabilities, including the law of armed conflict; and
(2) the War Powers Resolution (50 U.S.C. 1541 et seq.).Prior to this NDAA provision, in July 2011, the Pentagon announced cyberspace to be their "operational domain" and claimed that the U.S. can "under the laws of armed conflict, respond to serious cyber attacks with a proportional and justified military response at the time and place of our choosing," said Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn during the release of The Department of Defense Strategy for Operating in Cyberspace.

This week we heard Rand Paul speak much about the "law of armed conflict" or "Martial Law" in his talking filibuster of John Brennan over drone strikes on American soil, which is a related concern since the NDAA also officially labeled theU.S. as part of the battlefield.

Paul reiterated that if Americans can be treated the same as an enemy under the law of armed conflict, there is no due process protection, as well as more flexible rules of engagement than those that restrict the police. Just ask the Guantanamo prisoners or Bradley Manning how due process works under the laws of war. Or ask the family of the 16-year-old American murdered by a targeted drone strike about the rules of engagement.

Therefore due process will not be needed to take offensive action against cyber threats under the laws of war. In other words, hackers everywhere may be facing a lethal force if they're suspected of engaging in cyber attacks against the U.S. or its allies and interests.

The report, however, urges US military leaders to develop "cyber escalation scenarios and red lines" that could prompt the use of force. Or simply put, when can they pull the trigger on a cyber threat. Of course, just as the legal justification for drone strikes has remained classified, surely, this will as well.

Here is a nifty illustration they provided to help us visualize how the threat levels are designed for hackers:



It's also important to note that the military has been authorized to conduct a cyberwar with "kinetic capabilities", meaning it can operate wherever the threat is in the world. A borderless war like the war on terror. This eliminates any need for the President to seek an individual declaration of cyber war against China in Congress even though nuclear weapons could potentially be involved.

Does anyone in Congress understand just how dangerous it is to authorize the use of preemptive deadly force against cyber threats without due process?



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Historic Recurrence


The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.   -Ecclesiastes 1:9


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Revelation 13, History Repeats Itself



Have you ever heard the expression, “History repeats itself?” This saying applies in almost everything including matters of politics and religion. We live in a time and age where we are used to these two entities being separate and distant. However, in ancient times, politics and religion often became closely intertwined. This was demonstrated in Egypt, Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Pagan Rome, among other nations.

In Egypt, politics and religion became one when King Akhenaten declared that there are no other gods except for Aten, the sun disc. Babylon combined its civil power with religious authority when King Nebuchadnezzar ordered everyone to bow to the image of gold which he had made. King Darius, of the Medes and Persians, one time made a law requiring that everyone should pray to him for 30 days. In the Pagan Roman Empire, the emperor Caesar was regarded as a god. These are examples of how world governments, at the time, intertwined religion with their rule.

History repeats itself, so we can expect that a world power or government whose influence extends over the world, will eventually intertwine religion along side its civil power. This statement is not made on a mere assumption, or on the philosophical idea that history repeats itself. This statement is declared with the back up of Bible prophecy which predicts that religion will be forced with world wide civil authority. Which religion? Which civil authority? Revelation 13 gives us the answers.

In Revelation 13, there are two main beasts that are discussed. Some people think the beast is Islam, others think it is the Masonries, etc, but Revelation 13 gives specific identifying criteria so that there can be no mistake in identifying each beast.


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Jeremiah laments the misery of her sins




How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! how is she become as a widow! she that was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary!

2 She weepeth sore in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks: among all her lovers she hath none to comfort her: all her friends have dealt treacherously with her, they are become her enemies.

3 Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction, and because of great servitude: she dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no rest: all her persecutors overtook her between the straits.

4 The ways of Zion do mourn, because none come to the solemn feasts: all her gates are desolate: her priests sigh, her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness.

5 Her adversaries are the chief, her enemies prosper; for the Lord hath afflicted her for the multitude of her transgressions: her children are gone into captivity before the enemy.

6 And from the daughter of Zion all her beauty is departed: her princes are become like harts that find no pasture, and they are gone without strength before the pursuer.

7 Jerusalem remembered in the days of her affliction and of her miseries all her pleasant things that she had in the days of old, when her people fell into the hand of the enemy, and none did help her: the adversaries saw her, and did mock at her sabbaths.

8 Jerusalem hath grievously sinned; therefore she is removed: all that honoured her despise her, because they have seen her nakedness: yea, she sigheth, and turneth backward.

9 Her filthiness is in her skirts; she remembereth not her last end; therefore she came down wonderfully: she had no comforter. O Lord, behold my affliction: for the enemy hath magnified himself.

10 The adversary hath spread out his hand upon all her pleasant things: for she hath seen that the heathen entered into her sanctuary, whom thou didst command that they should not enter into thy congregation.

11 All her people sigh, they seek bread; they have given their pleasant things for meat to relieve the soul: see, O Lord, and consider; for I am become vile.

12 Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger.

13 From above hath he sent fire into my bones, and it prevaileth against them: he hath spread a net for my feet, he hath turned me back: he hath made me desolate and faint all the day.

14 The yoke of my transgressions is bound by his hand: they are wreathed, and come up upon my neck: he hath made my strength to fall, the Lord hath delivered me into their hands, from whom I am not able to rise up.

15 The Lord hath trodden under foot all my mighty men in the midst of me: he hath called an assembly against me to crush my young men: the Lord hath trodden the virgin, the daughter of Judah, as in a winepress.

16 For these things I weep; mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water, because the comforter that should relieve my soul is far from me: my children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed.

17 Zion spreadeth forth her hands, and there is none to comfort her: the Lord hath commanded concerning Jacob, that his adversaries should be round about him: Jerusalem is as a menstruous woman among them.

18 The Lord is righteous; for I have rebelled against his commandment: hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my sorrow: my virgins and my young men are gone into captivity.

19 I called for my lovers, but they deceived me: my priests and mine elders gave up the ghost in the city, while they sought their meat to relieve their souls.

20 Behold, O Lord; for I am in distress: my bowels are troubled; mine heart is turned within me; for I have grievously rebelled: abroad the sword bereaveth, at home there is as death.

21 They have heard that I sigh: there is none to comfort me: all mine enemies have heard of my trouble; they are glad that thou hast done it: thou wilt bring the day that thou hast called, and they shall be like unto me.

22 Let all their wickedness come before thee; and do unto them, as thou hast done unto me for all my transgressions: for my sighs are many, and my heart is faint.


Lamentations 1
King James Version (KJV)
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Mega-Mosquitoes Set To Invade Central Florida



ANIMAL BEHAVIOR: Mega-Mosquitoes Set To Invade Central Florida - 20 Times The Size Of Normal Bug?!


Andre Heath

Published on Mar 7, 2013


The CELESTIAL Convergence |http://thecelestialconvergence.blogsp...

March 07, 2013 - UNITED STATES - Mega mosquitoes known as gallinippers could invade Central Florida this summer as flood waters from tropical storms force the larvae to hatch this hurricane season.

Entomologists at the University of Florida say the mosquitoes are 20 times the size of a typical mosquito, about the size of a quarter.

Super-sized: Scientist says mega-mosquitoes also known as gallinippers, left, could be common in central Florida this summer. They can be 20 times bigger than typical Asian tiger mosquitoes.

They also pack a painful bite, according to UF entomologist Phil Kaufman. He calls the species "notoriously aggressive."

The best way to protect against these super-sized mosquitoes is to wear bug spray with DEET and cover up as best as possible.

Gallinippers were spotted last year in Florida after Tropical Storm Debbie doused the state, but scientists predict they'll make an appearance again this summer.

According to Kaufman and his team one good thing about these mosquitoes is that they aren't known to carry any viruses that could be harmful to humans.

Still people who enjoy the outdoors are not looking forward to the insects.

"That kind of makes the summer not that exciting. I'm not looking forward to that anymore," said Stephanie McNatt.




The CELESTIAL Convergence |http://thecelestialconvergence.blogsp...

The CELESTIAL Convergence is a online news magazine featuring Alien Disclosure, the ET/UFO Phenomena, Earth Changes, the Paranormal, and Geological Upheavals.

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Time to Leave the Cities


Leave The Cities



When is it time to leave the cities? This question is on the lips of many of God's people, and it is an important one to consider and pray about. Is it time to leave for the countryside now? Or can we just wait and see what happens? Well, as the people of God we are lucky to have the pen of inspiration to help guide us in this matter. Please prayerfully read the following.

"As the siege of Jerusalem by the Roman armies was the signal for flight to the Judean Christians, so the assumption of power on the part of our nation, in the decree enforcing the papal Sabbath, will be a warning to us. It will then be time to leave the large cities, preparatory to leaving the smaller ones for retired homes in secluded places among the mountains." (Testimonies, vol. 5, pp. 464, 465)

So we have a clear instruction that when the "Papal sabbath" is enforced, this will be the signal for God's people to leave the large cities and to prepare to leave the smaller cities and towns for homes in the countryside. And we know from Revelation 13 that it is the earth beast (America) that causes the world to receive the mark of the beast. So when the Sunday law is enforced in the United States of America, God's people all around the world will have the final signal to leave the cities and move to the countryside.

Now there are some people who relate Ellen White's above statement to the attempt made in 1888 to enforce a Sunday law in America, and they say that this was the signal for God's people to leave the cities. Now I don't have any major issue against this thinking, because I would say that all of God's people should be looking to leave the large cities now. Why? Because the large cities are not the kind of places that God wants His people to dwell. And this is confirmed by inspiration ...

"The cities are filled with temptation. We should plan our work in such a way as to keep our young people as far as possible from this contamination. The cities are to be worked from outposts. Said the messenger of God, 'Shall not the cities be warned? Yes, but not by God's people living in them, but by their visiting them, to warn them of what is coming upon the earth.'"

But going back to this 1888 date as being the signal for God's people to leave the cities. There are certain quotes from Ellen White that suggest contrary to this thinking. Take a look at the following quote that was written in 1906 ...

"More and more, as time advances, our people will have to leave the cities. For years we have been instructed that our brethren and sisters, and especially families with children, should plan to leave the cities as the way opens before them to do so. Many will have to labor earnestly to help open the way. But until it is possible for them to leave, so long as they remain, they should be most active in doing missionary work, however limited their sphere of influence may be." (Review and Herald, September 27, 1906)

So here she is implying that the move out of the cities would be a progressive one, and that many would STILL have a work to do in the cities (where they live). And this is well AFTER 1888.

So when will the definitive time to leave the cities and towns be? When the Sunday law is enforced NATIONWIDE in America. This will be the final signal that persecution is to come upon the people of God, and that destruction is to come upon the cities and towns. When the mark of the beast is enforced, God's people all over the world will then need to leave the large cities and also start preparing to leave the smaller cities and towns.

But should we just wait until the Sunday law is enforced in America to leave the cities? No, we are told by inspiration that the cities should be reached from OUTSIDE them, not by God's people living IN them.

"In harmony with the light given me, I am urging people to come out from the great centers of population. Our cities are increasing in wickedness, and it is becoming more and more evident that those who remain in them unnecessarily do so at the peril of their souls salvation." (Country Living, p. 9)

The wickedness has been increasing in the cities over the past 100 years and they are no longer places that God's people should dwell. We should be thinking also of the influence that temptations in the cities can have over our children and make every effort to protect them from Satan's devices. So if you live in a city, and have no great reason to stay there (in other words, if you are not doing God's work there), then you should start praying and considering leaving for a quieter place to live. And some of us who have the resources to secure a home in the countryside can place ourselves in a position to help someone else who may not have the finances to leave when the Sunday law is enforced.

Think of how you can help your family and how you can help others during this time and when the mark of the beast is enforced. God has really blessed some of us in order that we can be a blessing and help to others. But please, do not rush into this. Instead by prayer and supplication, put this issue before God and ask for His guidance and provision.

"Let everyone take time to consider carefully and not be like the man in the parable who began to build and was not able to finish. Not a move should be made but that movement and all that it portends are carefully considered - everything weighed." (Selected Messages, vol. 2, pp. 362, 363)

The superior benefits of country living are plain to see for any thoughtful Christian. And as far as possible, we should start relocating ourselves away from the cities now and secure for ourselves country homes in places God created for us to live, away from the temptations and wickedness of man made towns and cities. At least start preparing now, so that when the final signal comes (National Sunday law in America), you will be ready to leave.


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Sunday, March 10, 2013

Even if they don’t follow its rules, Catholics stick with their church




Dmitry Lovetsky/AP - The full moon is seen above the St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, early Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013.



By Lisa Miller, Published: March 1


American Catholics are famously indifferent to the directives of their leaders. They don’t follow the rule book on much of anything: birth control, legal abortion, premarital sex, divorce.

They wish, by a wide margin, that their bishops were talking more about social justice issues such as poverty and less about culture-war issues such as abortion. When asked what matters to them most about being Catholic, they overwhelmingly say the resurrection of Jesus, not Vatican authority or celibate, male priests.


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Head of Episcopal Church visits Orlando Diocese


posted by jeff kunerth on March, 3 2013 5:24 PM



Episcopal Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori



Rev. Katharine Jefferts Shori, head of the Episcopal Church in the United States and 15 other countries, is visiting the Central Florida diocese for the first time since she became presiding bishop in 2006.

Shori is scheduled to visit St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church in Titusville this morning, where she will learn about the congregation’s ministry to laid-off Space Coast workers and its youth outreach program.

Lated in the day she will visit the Mary S. Harrell Black Heritage Museum in New Smyrna Beach, which is supported by the St. Peter the Fisherman Church.

From New Smyrna Beach, she will stop at Grace Church in Post Orange, which has a ministry for the homeless and a food pantry. Her tour of Episcopal churches conclued in the afternoon with St. James Episcopal Church in Leesburg, which assists in a medical ministry in Jamaica.

On Sunday, Shori preached the sermon at the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection in Leesburg. In her sermon, Shori spoke on the significance of ash Wednesday and evangelism in the Episcopal church.

“Episcopalians all across this church has been taking ashes on Ash Wednesday out into the streets for the last several years. They’ve gone to the train station or the subway, bearing ashes and offering to share that sign of immortality to all comers,” Shori preached. “More than one person observed that this kind of evangelism makes sense to Episcopalians…Remember that you are dust and to dust you will return.”

She spoke of the parable of Jesus and the fig tree, whose roots needed to be pruned and manure applied to make sure that the tree born fruit and not just grow more branches and leaves.

“This fig tree needs manure — not ashes or fish meal or bone meal, but good old barnyard manure. It’s a reminder that the stuff we try hard to avoid, the messiness of incarnation, is absolutely essential to real life,” Shori said. “We will not bear fruit or find life abundant unless we are willing to encounter the smelly and the dirty and the lowly around us.”

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“Woe, woe to Jerusalem!” “woe, woe to the inhabitants thereof!”


All the predictions given by Christ concerning the destruction of Jerusalem were fulfilled to the letter. The Jews experienced the truth of His words of warning: “With what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.” Matthew 7:2.

Signs and wonders appeared, foreboding disaster and doom. In the midst of the night an unnatural light shone over the temple and the altar. Upon the clouds at sunset were pictured chariots and men of war gathering for battle. The priests ministering by night in the sanctuary were terrified by mysterious sounds; the earth trembled, and a multitude of voices were heard crying: “Let us depart hence.” The great eastern gate, which was so heavy that it could hardly be shut by a score of men, and which was secured by immense bars of iron fastened deep in the pavement of solid stone, opened at midnight, without visible agency.—Milman, The History of the Jews, book 13.

For seven years a man continued to go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, declaring the woes that were to come upon the city. By day and by night he chanted the wild dirge: “A voice from the east! a voice from the west! a voice from the four winds! a voice against Jerusalem and against the temple! a voice against the bridegrooms and the brides! a voice against the whole people!”—Ibid. This strange being was imprisoned and scourged, but no complaint escaped his lips. To insult and abuse he answered only: “Woe, woe to Jerusalem!” “woe, woe to the inhabitants thereof!” His warning cry ceased not until he was slain in the siege he had foretold. 

Not one Christian perished in the destruction of Jerusalem. Christ had given His disciples warning, and all who believed His words watched for the promised sign. “When ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies,” said Jesus, “then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out.” Luke 21:20, 21. After the Romans under Cestius had surrounded the city, they unexpectedly abandoned the siege when everything seemed favorable for an immediate attack. The besieged, despairing of successful resistance, were on the point of surrender, when the Roman general withdrew his forces without the least apparent reason. But God’s merciful providence was directing events for the good of His own people. The promised sign had been given to the waiting Christians, and now an opportunity was offered for all who would, to obey the Saviour’s warning. Events were so overruled that neither Jews nor Romans should hinder the flight of the Christians. Upon the retreat of Cestius, the Jews, sallying from Jerusalem, pursued after his retiring army; and while both forces were thus fully engaged, the Christians had an opportunity to leave the city. At this time the country also had been cleared of enemies who might have endeavored to intercept them. At the time of the siege, the Jews were assembled at Jerusalem to keep the Feast of Tabernacles, and thus the Christians throughout the land were able to make their escape unmolested. Without delay they fled to a place of safety—the city of Pella, in the land of Perea, beyond Jordan. 


The Great Controversy,  pp.29, 30.


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Saturday, March 09, 2013

Consuming Fire - Walter Veith



907 - Consuming Fire - Walter Veith



Published on Oct 12, 2012


What is our duty as Seventh-day Adventist Christians? We are a people living in the end times, called to prepare a people for the Lord. How do we live out that calling?

http://amazingdiscoveries.tv/media/11...


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CITY BANS 'CHRIST' FROM COUNCIL MEETINGS





by WILLIAM BIGELOW 7 Mar 2013 


In Longview, Washington, the City Council will no longer have invocations in which the name of Jesus Christ is used. Longview Mayor Don Jensen said that if the Council persisted in using the name of Jesus, they could be hit with a lawsuit. Jensen explained, “It’s not my choice to stop this, but I don’t know how we can put our citizens at jeopardy and cost our city and our citizens a lot of money.”

The city’s fear of a lawsuit stemmed from Longview resident Dan L. Smith, 69, a self-proclaimed “very comfortable atheist,” who filed a complaint. Smith has been complaining for years in emails to council members, and said he wasn’t looking to file a lawsuit, though confidently asserting he “would undoubtedly win” based on prior court decisions. A March 2012 email from Smith stated:

All I am asking is that you remove … the invocation from the council’s agenda and that you sever any council ties with the (ministerial association’s) responsibilities for the delivery of the invocation. I do fully realize that this may not be a popular thing for you to do, but as an elected public official it is the right thing to do.

President Mark Schmutz, pastor of Northlake Baptist Church, acknowledged that he was sad and disappointed: “If they can’t speak the name Jesus Christ, association ministers will no longer provide the invocation. They’re asking us not to do what we’re (called) to do. This is the one and only true God, and so we’re not trying to be against anybody — we’re just being clear about what we’re for.”

Longview City Council meetings have had Christian invocations for over 50 years. Longview City Attorney James McNamara said the U.S. Supreme Court permits invocations, but there is a disagreement among different courts as to what language is acceptable: “The more unclear answer is whether the prayer can invoke the name of Jesus Christ.”

Smith has no objection to private prayer, but he objects to a designated prayer time at a public building. He said, “Religion should not be a part of government. Who cares what (religion) anyone is. When they’re there to conduct business of government and you have an invocation, then all of a sudden people start to look around to see who’s standing and who’s sitting.”.,091/19

But Mayor Jensen disagreed: “I just think it sets a tone for the meeting that we’ll be more friendly. I guess I really can’t explain it, but it just seems right to me.”


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Alleged blasphemy: Mob burns scores of Christian homes in Lahore


By Web Desk / Rana Tanveer
Published: March 9, 2013




A protester burns belongings from Christian houses in Lahore on Saturday. PHOTO: ABID NAWAZ/ EXPRESS



LAHORE: A highly-charged mob of thousands burnt more than 40 Christian houses in Badami Bagh area of Lahore on Saturday to “take revenge of the blasphemy” allegedly committed by a Christian two days earlier.

Express News had earlier reported that around 100 houses were burnt by the mob.

Eyewitnesses said that the mob broke into the houses, looted them and burnt the remaining belongings on the roads.

SSP Operations Suhail Sukhera and the SHO of Badami Bagh were also reportedly injured when the mob pelted a police party with stones.

Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah told Express News that he saw no reason for the mob’s violence especially after the person accused of blasphemy had been arrested on Friday. He added that cases have been registered against those responsible for Saturday’s vandalism and that they will be prosecuted.

Sanaullah added that all those whose property had been damaged will be compensated within five days.

Shahi Imran, who had filed the blasphemy FIR, told The Express Tribune that he was not responsible for the incident and he had left the area when the mob arrived to burn the houses. He maintained that the accused should be taught a lesson but the other Christian families should not be harmed.

SSP Sukhera, when contacted, denied that the houses were set on fire and said that the police personnel was present in the area.

Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif also took notice of the incident and set up a five member committee to investigate the matter. He also announced Rs0.2 million as compensation for those who lost their household stuff.

President Asif Ali Zardari took notice of the incident and sought a report from authorities, reported Radio Pakistan.

On Friday, a mob of almost 3,000 people forced the Christian community to flee for their lives, leaving behind their houses and possessions unprotected.

The charged group had gathered around Joseph Colony on Noor Road, led by Shafiq Ahmed, who was in search of the accused Savan, alias Bubby. The mob then attacked Savan’s house, setting it on fire and pelting it with stones. Other houses in the locality – home to about 150 Christian families – were also attacked. Many residents, including women and children, hastily fled to save themselves.

Savan was arrested and shifted to an undisclosed location.


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Governments urged to prepare for the worst



Jorn Madslien
BBC
Tue, 08 Jan 2013 09:29 CST




Events trigger events, and responding to crisis means policy makers often do not deal with long-term risks


Governments should learn from companies and appoint dedicated "risk ministers", according to the authors of a World Economic Forum (WEF) report.

The "ministers" should assess a broad range of economic, environmental, geopolitical, societal and technological risks, the Global Risks 2013 report's authors reason.

Companies have long had their own "finance ministers", though they call them chief financial officers, and in recent years it has become common to also have risk management functions in companies, according to Axel Lehmann, himself a chief risk officer at Zurich Insurance and a co-author of the report.

It would be useful, adds Lee Howell, managing director of the WEF's Risk Response Network and editor of the report, if governments were to create similar functions, with a view to "take an interdisciplinary and holistic approach to risk".

"How often do you see a central bank governor talk to a defence minister?" he says. "It doesn't really happen."

Multiple risks

The risks faced by nations - indeed by the world - have always been both complex and interconnected.

But recently, "the changes are in the amplification and the speed of these interconnections", according to David Cole, chief risk officer at the reinsurers Swiss Re and co-author of the report.

The complexity arises partly from the extensive variety of risks. The WEF report identifies the major risks of concern globally:
Health and hubris, the basic idea of which is that the world is complacent about threats to global health, ranging from rising resistance to antibiotics, to the way pandemics could easily spread in a hyperconnected world. In a world where genetic mutation often outpaces human innovation, it is foolhardy to be complacent, the report's authors suggest.

Economy and environment under stress, which focuses on how the economic and the environmental storms are colliding, essentially relating to how - during a period of widespread austerity - it is difficult to mobilise finance and other resources to mitigate risks arising from climate change, such as extreme weather events. The cost of storm and flood damages are huge and growing, and governments are finding it increasingly hard to pay. Other risks relate to socioeconomic or geopolitical fallouts from greater gaps between rich and poor, or from persistent global economic fragility. Violent anti-austerity protests in Athens might be little more than mild examples of such risks.

Digital wildfires are risks relating to how "the democratisation of information can... have volatile and unpredicted consequences, as reflected in the riots provoked by an anti-Islam film on YouTube", the report notes. Confidence in governments and companies, newspapers and markets, can be eroded by fast-spreading information or propaganda.  But these are just three of the 50 risks described by the report, ranging from security risks such as terrorism or the militarisation of space, to more existential risks such as shortages of food and water.

"Some of the risks we see are not acute, but that doesn't mean they're not important - in fact, many of them are chronic," says Mr Cole.

The fact that there are not just so many risks, but also that they are in constant flux - responding to each others by morphing into new risks that in turn change other risks - means responses need to be fluid and flexible too.

Or more to the point, nations should not merely respond to crisis once it has happened, but instead work out how to "build resilience to global or external risks", by dealing with it the way they do with "preventable" risks such as breakdowns in processes, or "strategic risks" that are weighed up against potential rewards, Mr Howell says.

Nations' ability to respond and recover, he reasons, will rely on their ability to set aside excess capacity and back-up systems that kick in during times of crisis. It will rely on their resourcefulness and their robustness. Risks must be assessed in advance, both in terms of how likely it is that events will happen, as well as by looking at the likely impact of such events.

'Profound implications'

The report also describes so-called X Factors, or "unintended consequences of technology or science", according to the chief editor of Nature Magazine, Tim Appenzeller, who lists five such risks:
Runaway climate change, or the uncertainty about the consequences if we have passed the point of no return. "What if we have already triggered a runaway chain reaction that is in the process of rapidly tipping Earth's atmosphere into an inhospitable state?" the report queries.

Significant cognitive enhancements, such as transcranial magnetic stimulation that help boost memory - offering a number of obvious benefits, while at the same time posing risks ranging from unknown side-effects to ethical considerations around the impacts of the pills akin to those associated with doping in sports.

Rogue deployment of geoengineering, such as the creation of sun shades by injecting small particles high into the atmosphere to block some of the incoming solar energy and thus reduce global warming, a process that could inadvertently cause droughts. "The global climate could, in effect, be hijacked by a rogue country or even a wealthy individual, with unpredictable costs to agriculture, infrastructure and global stability," the report notes.

Costs of living longer, which in a sense could be seen as an unintended consequence of developments in medical science, in that "big inroads against common banes such as heart disease, cancer and stroke, may be in the offing". "Are we setting up a future society struggling to come with a mass of arthritic, demented and, above all, expensive elderly who are in need of long-term care and palliative solutions?" the report asks.

Discovery of alien life is the final X Factor risk, with the report suggesting that "it is increasingly conceivable that we may discover the existence of alien life or other planets that could support human life". It talks of "profound implications" of such a discovery and insists it "would fuel speculation about the existence of other intelligent beings and challenge many assumptions which underpin human philosophy and religion".Action is necessary

Identifying risks might well be the easy part, however. Working out what to do about it, and then doing it, might turn out to be much trickier, but there is no way around it, according to Mr Cole.

"Our responsibility as leaders and as communicators in society is to leverage this awareness into action," he says.

"We cannot keep kicking the can down the road.

"By delaying action, we're not avoiding the problems, were just making it more expensive, not just in economic turns but also in terms of lives."

The Global Risks 2013 report was developed from an annual survey of more than 1,000 experts from industry, government, academia and civil society. It was published ahead of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos from 22-27 January
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Adventists and Mennonites in conversation


NEWS




Adventist and Mennonite Leaders meeting in Silver Spring/USA



08.03.2013:




Bern, Switzerland [APD; CD EUDNews]. In 2011 and 2012, representatives of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and of the Mennonite World Conference met together for official conversations. In many respects the meetings proved to be a journey of mutual discovery. Mennonites and Adventists have had frequent contacts during the past forty years, particularly through their participation in the annual meetings of the secretaries of Christian World Communions.

These periodic encounters, along with other contacts, gradually led to the conviction on both sides that an official conversation might be both instructive and valuable. Adventists and Mennonites have distinct identities that are critically important to them. From the outset of discussions leading to the conversation, it was understood that organic union was not the objective. Rather, the dialogue would provide an opportunity for learning about each other's history, beliefs and values, clarifying misunderstandings, and removing stereotypes. Out of the discussion, therefore, might emerge areas where Mennonites and Adventists can join forces in selected areas of mutual concern.

The history of Mennonites stretches back 500 years, that of the Adventists' only about 160 years. Mennonites arose out of the religious ferment of the sixteenth century, Adventists out of the Second Great Awakening in the United States in the 1830s and 1840s. The mennonites come from the anabaptist tradition. The Anabaptists were persecuted by both Catholics and Protestants. Since “Anabaptist” was from the beginning a designation of opprobrium, many adopted the term “Mennonite” after the name of Menno Simons, a Dutch leader and writer, who stressed a renewed vision for the church, including the call for followers of Jesus to reject violence and seek peace.

Over the course of the centuries, Mennonites, along with other branches of the Anabaptists, suffered ongoing persecution, including imprisonment and death, because of their beliefs and practices. They frequently found it necessary to uproot and move on, seeking a more tolerant environment. Many eventually migrated to Canada and the United States where they established communities.



In 1925 European Mennonite churches came together to form the Mennonite World Conference (MWC). Today Mennonites are frequently known as a “peace church.” They are active in building congregations as disciples of Jesus - the Prince of Peace, living and promoting reconciliation, mediation, justice and peace in all aspects of life. As a consequence of active missionary and evangelistic engagement over the last century, MWC is presently made up of 101 national churches, in 53 countries, with 1.3 million members.

The first conversation was held June 28—July 1, 2011, at Seventh-day Adventist world headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA; the second, May 27-31, 2012, at the Study and Conference Center Bienenberg, near Basel, Switzerland. Each day's discussion began and ended with worship, the worship leader alternating between the two communions. The theme, “Living the Christian Life in Today's World,” focused both conversations, which were built on papers prepared on selected topics by representatives from each side. These papers, while theological in nature, endeavoured to show the practical outworking in the life of the community.

During the first round of conversation, each group presented an overview of their communion's history. Papers followed on the topics of peace; non-violence and military service; discipleship and non-conformity; health, healing and ecology; and the nature and mission of the church.

In the second dialogue, major papers were presented from each side on eschatology, nonconformity, and hermeneutics. In addition, shorter discussions took up questions raised by each communion prior to the meeting in Bienenberg. Mennonites responded to issues of pacifism, Sabbath, salvation and obedience, personal lifestyle, hermeneutics, and eschatology. Adventists addressed questions of military service, Sabbath, contextualization, justice and discipleship, the role of women in ministry, church discipline, Ellen White, and eschatology.

Participants in the conversation quickly realized that they have much in common. They share a desire to recover the authenticity and passion of the New Testament church, a similar understanding of Christian history, and a strong commitment to be followers of Jesus in their personal lives and in their corporate witness to the world. Each communion brought to the conversation a deep experience of what it means to live the Christian faith, often as a minority voice in the world, and stressed the importance of discipleship and the practical living out of the Christian life. Together they understand that Christians live “in the world” but are not “of the world.”



pictures: Adventist Leaders meeting Mennonite Leaders (ANN archive)


By: APD; CD EUDNews;



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Catholic Power in Protestant America






mark122west


Published on Mar 25, 2012


A video sermon showing the moves by the Roman Catholic Church to control Protestant America and form the image of the beast.

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2013: is it time to get out of the big city?


2013: Is it Time to Get Out of the Big City, Once and For All?

This post was updated on 01.28.2013 with a special 2 hr video presentation by Joel Skousen on “strategic relocation, definitely worth taking the time to watch. See video at end of post.

Although I did my own personal “final physical relocation for sanity, spirituality and safety’s sake” into the untamed wilds many years ago, for many American city dwellers who are raising kids [ or raising their kids' kids ], 2013 might present the last opportunity to get out of the big city before life in America takes yet another tick downward on the socio-economic and personal safety scale.

If you have been praying on this issue, or just doing alot of deep thought, with calculator in hand, there’s a list at the end of this article that might help you make up your mind. You might not yet be sure where you are going, but you can at least know where NOT to go if you choose to relocate.








Many city dwellers might find themselves feeling financially trapped in the city, as they still have important jobs which tie them to the region. But think long and hard about your real quality of life and how that might change in the twinkling of an eye should a period of civil unrest come to America. Is your prestigious urban career worth dying for? It may come to pass that a change of residence inspires an entire change of lifestyle, career included. You may find that you need to morph from IT professional to professional greenhouse gardener and farmer’s market merchant in order to make a successful transition. If the issue needles you, if you lose sleep wondering if you and your family are in the right place, it’s worth careful consideration to look at new rural career options that would help to support y0ur family outside the big city limits, far outside of them, at least 30 to 50 miles or more. There are any number of possible scenarios which could transform big city life in the United States into a living hell within 3 weeks or less.

Relocation may not be the solution for every family, but it just might be the perfect new lifestyle solution for some. Search out your own heart on this issue and discuss it with your family. If relocation is financially impossible for your family at this point, the next option is to establish a private family retreat or “bug-out” location which is well outside of city limits.

This should be a locale that you can drive to in a day or less. Establish everything in this bug-out location with the thought in mind that if you and your family needed to live there for an extended period of time, you could. Start working on this project NOW, this year, and don’t set it off far into the future just so you can buy a boat that will sit in the driveway 50 weeks out of the year. Begin planning for your private bug-out location now, this winter and spring, if at all possible.

More posts on living in the preparedness mode to come, and in the meantime, be sure to check out one of my other blogs on preparedness, Ready For Anything Store, as there are many good articles there as well. Author Joel Skousen has produced a feature length video report titled “Strategic Relocation” which is a MUST WATCH if you are already thinking of making a move. Below is an excerpt from one of his most recent global intelligence reports:

Did you Know?

The Russians are building tremendous new nuclear/biological and chemical weapons systems–all with the assistance of US technology transfers. They are deploying on average, 3 new Topol-M 6th generation ballistic missiles per month. We built our last MX over 10 years ago, and are disarming unilaterally. Further, the Russians are building huge underground nuclear bunkers and weapons production facilities in the Ural Mountains, clearly intended to function during a nuclear war. The US intelligence community (under both Republican and Democratic administrations) knows this and are actively covering for the Russians, so the American people won’t become alarmed.

Both Republican and Democratic administrations have been supplying the Chinese with high technology weapons systems for years, knowing that they, in turn, are supplying other enemies (Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, North Korea) as well. Both Russia and China continue to protest against any US anti-ballistic missile system, even though such systems are purely defensive. It doesn’t take a genius to understand that ABM systems only threaten someone who intends to launch ballistic missiles someday.

President Clinton directed our military to absorb a nuclear first strike rather than launch on warning (our only true deterrent to a first strike) and to prepare to retaliate afterward. That first strike will take down all command and control, all bombers (since none are on alert), most missiles, and all satellite and submarine communications.

According to the House Armed Services Committee, the following reductions have taken place during the Clinton Administration: Strategic and General Purpose Forces from 1990 to 1997: B-52 Bombers have gone from 220 to 56. B-1 Bombers from 90 to 60; Strategic Defense Interceptor Aircraft from 36 to 0; and Army Divisions (1990 to 1997) have gone from 18 Active down to 10. Reserve divisions have gone from 10 to 8. Army Brigades (1990 to 1997) have declined from 8 Active to 3 and Reserve brigades have gone down from 27 to 18.

Joel Skousen’s World Affairs Brief attempts to track the insider moves underlying the major stories you hear each week. The WAB is not a primary news source–but rather, the best source of news analysis. Joel’s purpose and strong point is to help you see how world and national events are shaping up in accordance with the secret agendas of men and groups who control government. The World Affairs Briefputs together the probable set of intentions and motives of the power elite by inductively cataloging their specific actions over time.

What will you do about it?

What is the risk to you and your family if there is a major terrorist attack on a U.S. city with chemical or biological weapons? What will you do?

Did you know the US, by policy, will not retaliate on warning of a nuclear attack –effectively removing any deterrent? Are you prepared if the “unthinkable” happens –nuclear war?

Have you considered what you will do if an economic crisis threatens your pensions, investments and other so-called “guaranteed” income?

What about a major earthquake or other natural disaster suddenly upsetting the natural social order for months at a time? Could you get out of harm’s way if massive social unrest erupts in the wake of a crisis?

What about your home? Do you have extra tanks of potable water should public water supplies be cut off or contaminated? Would you know how to collect and filter your own water if none was available for a long time?

Joel Skousen is a world-renowned expert in home security and Constitutional law. Joel, who publishes a weekly comprehensive analysis of world affairs, is also the author of books on home security, law, and government. His latest two books, The Secure Home and Strategic Relocation–North American Guide to Safe Places, address the myriad economic, biological, and political threats that face families living in today’s complex world. The books also serve as guides for families wishing to relocate to a more secure area and become self-sufficient. In addition, Joel is available to consult privately with individuals to design high security residences and retreats, or to develop contingency plans for emergency situations.

Watch the entire feature length presentation here:
http://youtu.be/0y3-zBw0MsU


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Friday, March 08, 2013

Happy Sabbath!


Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them.
Ezekiel 20:12
King James Version (KJV)
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How Moral Imbeciles Choose Judges


By Lee Duigon
March 7, 2013
NewsWithViews.com



Down in Mordor-on-the-Potomac, the buzz is that we’re about to get our nation’s very first “openly gay black man” as a federal judge, and, as a bonus, our first “Asian-American lesbian” on the federal bench, too.

So man’s laws will now be administered by unrepentant sinners in open rebellion against God’s laws. Nothing can possibly go wrong with that, can it?

Oh? I’m a “racist” and a “homophobe” for bringing that up? But I didn’t bring it up. It wasn’t I who decided that skin color and sexual practices ought to be key factors in determining who’s fit to be a federal judge. We owe this innovation to our first Voter Fraud president and his merry band of yes-men in the media.

No one will dare to say, in the Senate confirmation hearings, “Since when have such external characteristics become our criteria for appointing federal judges?” It’s a perfectly sensible question, but the media mincing-machine will devour anyone bold enough to ask it. Don’t hold your breath waiting to see that kind of courage and integrity displayed by any Senator.

The Republicans in the Senate are supposed to be the opposition party. When are we going to see some opposition from the opposition party? Jane Fonda or Big Bird could be named to head the National Security Administration, and you wouldn’t hear a peep out of the Republicans.

In recent weeks, in fact, we’ve seen a stampede of Republicans over to the “gay” side. I supposed we might have expected this from Colin Powell, John Huntsman, Christie Whitman, and the rest of the media suck-ups in the GOP. But Clint Eastwood? And Jonah Goldberg, from The National Review? Is there anyone left in the Republican Party who thinks the divinely-ordained institutions of marriage and the family are worth conserving? Is there any big-name “conservative” left who wants to conserve anything?

If the American people truly want homosexuals to sit in judgment over them, then God help us. But surely it doesn’t matter what the people want. We don’t want Obamacare, but we’ve got it. Now that Democrats have mastered the art of drumming up 130 percent voter turnouts in the swing states, no national government needs to listen to the people anymore. Our representatives don’t have to bother to represent us.

Countries, and whole civilizations, can and do fail. Remember the day we woke up one morning, and there was no more Soviet Union? A state whose highest values are taxation, class envy, sodomy, abortion, perpetual and rancorous competition between groups of people arbitrarily and foolishly classified as “races,” radical moral uncertainty, and sophomoric mockery of the living God, is headed down the drain and no two ways about it. It will be forced to give way to something better.

So what do we do about it? If elections will not serve us anymore, what can we do to save our country?

Well, it’s not in our power to save the country. So what should we do, whether it saves the country or not?

Two things spring to mind.

First, and above all, we must pray, repent, seek God, and take shelter under His wings. We aren’t praying hard enough. We aren’t spending enough time in God’s Word. I suspect we aren’t loving one another as we should. Prayer is powerful—but do we really believe in it? Getting our own lives in order, getting our families in order, getting our churches in order, getting it all to line up with what pleases God—can any of us say he or she has done enough?

Turn to God, and He will turn to you.

Second, the single most important action we can take, in practical and worldly terms, the one thing that can actually do us any good—

Get your Christian children out of the anti-Christian public schools and universities.

Tens of millions of Christian children, five days a week, from toddlerhood to adulthood, sit in the kiln of public education until an ideology inimical to Christianity is thoroughly baked into them. But it’s so easy for the Christian parents not to believe this. So easy not to school your kids at home, or in a Christian school.

But one thing’s for sure. If you seek God, you’re not going to find Him in the public schools. All you’ll find there is all the folly and the pride and the secular delusion that brought us to the point where we have to have “openly gay” federal judges.


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