Monday, June 03, 2013

Supreme Court rules police can take DNA samples from arrestees



By Jesse J. Holland / Associated Press /



WASHINGTON (AP) — A sharply divided Supreme Court on Monday said police can routinely take DNA from people they arrest, equating a DNA cheek swab to other common jailhouse procedures like fingerprinting.

‘‘Taking and analyzing a cheek swab of the arrestee DNA is, like fingerprinting and photographing, a legitimate police booking procedure that is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment,’’ Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote for the court’s five-justice majority.

But the four dissenting justices said that the court was allowing a major change in police powers.

‘‘Make no mistake about it: because of today’s decision, your DNA can be taken and entered into a national database if you are ever arrested, rightly or wrongly, and for whatever reason,’’ conservative Justice Antonin Scalia said in a sharp dissent which he read aloud in the courtroom. ‘‘This will solve some extra crimes, to be sure. But so would taking your DNA when you fly on an airplane — surely the TSA must know the ‘identity’ of the flying public. For that matter, so would taking your children’s DNA when they start public school.’’

Twenty-eight states and the federal government now take DNA swabs after arrests. But a Maryland court was one of the first to say that it was illegal for that state to take Alonzo King’s DNA without approval from a judge, saying King had ‘‘a sufficiently weighty and reasonable expectation of privacy against warrantless, suspicionless searches’’ under the Fourth Amendment.

But the high court’s decision reverses that ruling and reinstates King’s rape conviction, which came after police took his DNA during an unrelated arrest. Kennedy wrote the decision, and was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Stephen Breyer. Scalia was joined in his dissent by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan.

Maryland’s DNA collection law only allows police to take DNA from those arrested for serious crimes like murder, rape, assault, burglary and other crimes of violence. In his ruling, Kennedy did not say whether the court’s decision limits DNA only to those crimes, but he did note that other states’ DNA collection laws differ from Maryland's.

Scalia saw that as a flaw. ‘‘If you believe that a DNA search will identify someone arrested for bank robbery, you must believe that it will identify someone arrested for running a red light,’’ he said.

Getting DNA swabs from criminals is common. All 50 states and the federal government take cheek swabs from convicted criminals to check against federal and state databanks, with the court’s blessing. The fight at the Supreme Court was over whether that DNA collection could come before conviction and without a judge issuing a warrant.

According to court documents, the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System or CODIS — a coordinated system of federal, state and local databases of DNA profiles — already contains more than 10 million criminal profiles and 1.1 million profiles of those arrested.

Kennedy called collecting DNA useful for police in identifying individuals.

‘‘The use of DNA for identification is no different than matching an arrestee’s face to a wanted poster of a previously unidentified suspect; or matching tattoos to known gang symbols to reveal a criminal affiliation; or matching the arrestee’s fingerprints to those recovered from a crime scene,’’ Kennedy said. ‘‘DNA is another metric of identification used to connect the arrestee with his or her public persona, as reflected in records of his or her actions that are available to police.’’

In the case before the court, a 53-year-old woman was raped and robbed but no one was arrested. Almost six years later, Alonzo King was arrested and charged with felony second-degree assault. Taking advantage of the Maryland law that allowed warrantless DNA tests following some felony arrests, police took a cheek swab of King’s DNA, which matched a sample from the 2003 Salisbury rape. King was convicted of rape and sentenced to life in prison.

King eventually pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of misdemeanor assault from his arrest, a crime for which Maryland cannot take warrantless DNA samples. The state courts said it violated King’s rights for the state to take his DNA based on an arrest alone. The state Court of Appeals said King had ‘‘a sufficiently weighty and reasonable expectation of privacy against warrantless, suspicionless searches.’’ But the high court’s decision reinstates King’s conviction.

Maryland stopped collecting DNA after that decision, but Roberts allowed police to keep collecting DNA samples pending the high court’s review.


The case is Maryland v. King, 12-207.


Source: http://www.boston.com/news/nation/2013/06/03/supreme-court-rules-police-can-take-dna-samples-from-arrestees/g4ZnVgNF7Y8LJgraj4NuTM/story.html
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Adventist Churches with Easter Events Increasing, Recognized by Official Media



Submitted: Mar 25, 2013

By Adventist Today News Team




A year ago Adventist Today reported the widespread special events in Seventh-day Adventist churches across North America celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ at the traditional Easter time observed in most Christian denominations. Within the living memory of many middle-aged and older Adventists this was not the practice, but it has evidently become common enough that this year the official Email newsletter of the North American Division—NAD NewsPoints—has published a listing of 40 such events in churches large and small, with reports from seven of the nine union conferences in the United States and Canada.

For local congregations that have not planned something recognizing this key date in the traditional Christian year, at least two of the denomination’s media ministries will provide programming that could be projected on a large screen. “The Seven Last Words of Christ” will be live-streamed from the Oakwood University Church on Friday evening (March 29), starting at 7 p.m. Central Time (8 p.m. Eastern, 6 p.m. Mountain and 5 p.m. Pacific). Seven preachers will each take one of the seven phrases that Jesus spoke from the cross as he died with music between the homilies by the university’s four choirs, including the Aeolians, winners of the global choral Olympics. Produced by the Breath of Life television ministry, the event will be live-streamed at www.oucsda.org and more information is available atwww.breathoflife.tv.

Hope Television, the denomination’s official global cable channel, will broadcast “He Is Risen,” a 45-minute special with Pastor Dan Jackson, president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in North America, Connie Vandeman Jeffery from the Adventist Media Center, and the Family Reunion music group. It will be rebroadcast several times throughout the coming weekend. Local times can be found at www.hopetv.org and it will be live-streamed at that same web address.

The listing of events includes passion plays, Tenebrae services, Passover Seders, concerts and preaching services in churches from Baltimore, Maryland, to Alhambra, California. Included are Hispanic, historically African American and suburban and small-town white churches. The White Memorial Seventh-day Adventist Church in Los Angeles, built in memory of denominational cofounder Ellen G. White is among the listings.

“Adventists in many places, but especially in North America, Europe and Australia, are unashamedly identifying themselves as Christians,” a retired theologian told Adventist Today. “That is a good thing. I can remember a time when Protestant friends asked me if Adventists considered themselves Christian. It is a maturing of our faith to be able to joyfully express affirmation for the resurrection and join in that fundamental idea with all other Christians.”


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His Eye is on the Sparrow





sesamonte

Uploaded on Aug 21, 2011


Please click to play all the featured Christian hymns:
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=...

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Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision


VALLEY OF DECISION
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1 For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,

2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

3 And they have cast lots for my people; and have given a boy for an harlot, and sold a girl for wine, that they might drink.

4 Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine? will ye render me a recompence? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence upon your own head;

5 Because ye have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried into your temples my goodly pleasant things:

6 The children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem have ye sold unto the Grecians, that ye might remove them far from their border.

7 Behold, I will raise them out of the place whither ye have sold them, and will return your recompence upon your own head:

8 And I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the children of Judah, and they shall sell them to the Sabeans, to a people far off: for the Lord hath spoken it.

9 Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up:

10 Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.

11 Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O Lord.

12 Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.

13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.

14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.

15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.

16 The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.

17 So shall ye know that I am the Lord your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth out of the house of the Lord, and shall water the valley of Shittim.

19 Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, for the violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land.

20 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.

21 For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed: for the Lord dwelleth in Zion.


Joel 3
King James Version (KJV)
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Sunday, June 02, 2013

Weak U.S. Policy Has Bankrolled China's Rise



By Scott Paul - June 2, 2013




China’s newly installed president, Xi Jinping, will visit California in early June for direct talks with President Obama over how best, the White House says, to “enhance cooperation, while constructively managing our differences.”

There’s certainly a lot to talk about. America’s goods and services trade deficit with China has skyrocketed since 2001, reaching $315 billion in 2012. We’ve lost tremendous manufacturing capacity to China in that time. And most recently comes news that China has hacked into some of our top weapons systems.


Read more: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2013/06/02/weak_us_policy_has_bankrolled_chinas_rise_118645.html#ixzz2V5hEX4R1

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The War You Don't See

WARNING: Obscene language used in the latter part of this video.





Danielkaas94


Published on Mar 21, 2013


The War You Don't See is a 2010 British documentary film written, produced and directed by John Pilger with Alan Lowery, which challenges the media for the role they played in the Iraq, Afghanistan, and Israel/Palestine conflicts.

The film begins with footage of an unreported July 12, 2007 Baghdad airstrike and black and white stills of the victims of the U.S. Occupation of Iraq. In his opening narration Pilger quotes World War I British Prime Minister David Lloyd George's comment to Guardian editor C. P. Scott that, "If the people really knew the truth, the war would be stopped tomorrow." He goes on to state that this film will draw on his own experience as a war correspondent to question the role of the media in conflicts such as Iraq and Afghanistan....

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The Spies Who Fooled the World





AnonymousCIA

Published on Mar 19, 2013


The Top Information post: http://topinfopost.com/

Documentary 2013 - Panorama: On the eve of the tenth anniversary of the Iraq War, Panorama reveals how key aspects of the secret intelligence used to justify the invasion were based on fabrication and lies.


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Nouriel Roubini | After the gold rush



While gold prices may move higher in the next few years, they will trend lower over time as the global economy mends itself

Nouriel Roubini


First Published: Sat, Jun 01 2013. 07 38 PM IST


Photo: Bloomberg


Venice: The run-up in gold prices in recent years—from $800 per ounce in early 2009 to above $1,900 in the fall of 2011—had all the features of a bubble. And now, like all asset-price surges that are divorced from the fundamentals of supply and demand, the gold bubble is deflating.

At the peak, gold bugs—a combination of paranoid investors and others with a fear-based political agenda—were happily predicting gold prices going to $2,000, $3,000, and even to $5,000 in a matter of years. But prices have moved mostly downward since then. In April, gold was selling for close to $1,300 per ounce—and the price is still hovering below $1400, an almost 30% drop from the 2011 high.

There are many reasons why the bubble has burst, and why gold prices are likely to move much lower, toward $1,000 by 2015.

First, gold prices tend to spike when there are serious economic, financial, and geopolitical risks in the global economy. During the global financial crisis, even the safety of bank deposits and government bonds was in doubt for some investors. If you worry about financial Armageddon, it is indeed metaphorically the time to stock your bunker with guns, ammunition, canned food, and gold bars.

But, even in that dire scenario, gold might be a poor investment. Indeed, at the peak of the global financial crisis in 2008 and 2009, gold prices fell sharply a few times. In an extreme credit crunch, leveraged purchases of gold cause forced sales, because any price correction triggers margin calls. As a result, gold can be very volatile—upward and downward—at the peak of a crisis.

Second, gold performs best when there is a risk of high inflation, as its popularity as a store of value increases. But, despite very aggressive monetary policy by many central banks—successive rounds of “quantitative easing” have doubled, or even tripled, the money supply in most advanced economies—global inflation is actually low and falling further.

The reason is simple: while base money is soaring, the velocity of money has collapsed, with banks hoarding the liquidity in the form of excess reserves. Ongoing private and public debt deleveraging has kept global demand growth below that of supply.

Thus, firms have little pricing power, owing to excess capacity, while workers’ bargaining power is low, owing to high unemployment. Moreover, trade unions continue to weaken, while globalization has led to cheap production of labour-intensive goods in China and other emerging markets, depressing the wages and job prospects of unskilled workers in advanced economies.

With little wage inflation, high goods inflation is unlikely. If anything, inflation is now falling further globally as commodity prices adjust downward in response to weak global growth. And gold is following the fall in actual and expected inflation.

Third, unlike other assets, gold does not provide any income. Whereas equities have dividends, bonds have coupons, and homes provide rents, gold is solely a play on capital appreciation. Now that the global economy is recovering, other assets—equities or even revived real estate—thus provide higher returns. Indeed, US and global equities have vastly outperformed gold since the sharp rise in gold prices in early 2009.

Fourth, gold prices rose sharply when real (inflation-adjusted) interest rates became increasingly negative after successive rounds of quantitative easing. The time to buy gold is when the real returns on cash and bonds are negative and falling. But the more positive outlook about the US and the global economy implies that over time the Federal Reserve and other central banks will exit from quantitative easing and zero policy rates, which means that real rates will rise, rather than fall.

Fifth, some argued that highly indebted sovereigns would push investors into gold as government bonds became more risky. But the opposite is happening now. Many of these highly indebted governments have large stocks of gold, which they may decide to dump to reduce their debts. Indeed, a report that Cyprus might sell a small fraction—some €400 million ($520 million)—of its gold reserves triggered a 13% fall in gold prices in April. Countries like Italy, which has massive gold reserves (above $130 billion), could be similarly tempted, driving down prices further.

Sixth, some extreme political conservatives, especially in the US, hyped gold in ways that ended up being counterproductive. For this far-right fringe, gold is the only hedge against the risk posed by the government’s conspiracy to expropriate private wealth. These fanatics also believe that a return to the gold standard is inevitable as hyperinflation ensues from central banks’ “debasement” of paper money. But, given the absence of any conspiracy, falling inflation, and the inability to use gold as a currency, such arguments cannot be sustained.

A currency serves three functions, providing a means of payment, a unit of account, and a store of value. Gold may be a store of value for wealth, but it is not a means of payment; you cannot pay for your groceries with it. Nor is it a unit of account; prices of goods and services, and of financial assets, are not denominated in gold terms.

So gold remains John Maynard Keynes’s “barbarous relic”, with no intrinsic value and used mainly as a hedge against mostly irrational fear and panic. Yes, all investors should have a very modest share of gold in their portfolios as a hedge against extreme tail risks. But other real assets can provide a similar hedge, and those tail risks—while not eliminated—are certainly lower today than at the peak of the global financial crisis.
While gold prices may temporarily move higher in the next few years, they will be very volatile and will trend lower over time as the global economy mends itself. The gold rush is over.


©2013/PROJECT SYNDICATE

Nouriel Roubini is chairman of Roubini Global Economics and professor of economics at the Stern School of Business.

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Navy Football Ends Pentagon's Month of Sexual Assault Woe — Will It Ever Stop?



AP


J.K. TROTTER
MAY 31, 2013


If Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel needed any more evidence for the military's sexual assault crisis, well, here it is. Three midshipmen in the Naval Academy's football program have been accused of sexually assaulting a female classmate, according to a Pentagon spokesman with knowledge of the allegations. A lawyer of the female midshipman provided a statement to The Washington Post, which described the ordeal of simply providing testimony to investigators at the Academy:

The alleged assault occurred in April 2012 at an off-campus house in Annapolis. The women woke up after a night of heavy drinking and later learned from friends and social media that three football players claimed to have had sex with her while she was intoxicated, her attorney Susan Burke said in a statement Friday. She said her client reported the allegations to Navy criminal investigators, but was disciplined instead for drinking.

The investigation remains ongoing, but the allegations in Annapolis throw even more light on the the military's ongoing difficulty with addressing sexual assault in its ranks — and at the Naval Academy in particular, where President Obama delivered a commencement address on May 24, during which he explicitly called upon the graduating officers to fight sexual assault in the military. ("Those who commit sexual assault are not only committing a crime, they threaten the trust and discipline that make our military strong," he said.)

Indeed, this not the only recent case of sexual misconduct at the Maryland service academy. Friday's allegations surfaced three days after jury selection began for the trial of a 43-year-old Marine Corps Major named Mark A. Thompson, who was charged in September 2012 for aggravated sexual assault against a female midshipman, several counts of indecent exposure, and a slew of other charges pertaining to his prominent rank. Thompson, who is being tried in Washington, D.C., stands accused of assaulting the midshipman during a match of strip poker following a croquet match between the Academy and St. John's College staged in downtown Annapolis in 2011.

The timing of Obama's remarks, Friday's allegations, and Thompson's trial has not gone unnoticed. On Wednesday, Thompson's military-appointed chief defense counsel told The Military Times that he was concerned about the effect of Obama's commencement remarks on the jury pool, all of whom are military officers on active duty. "I wonder if that's going to affect the ability of the jury in this case to be fair and impartial," Marine Major Joseph Grimm said, referring to Obama's remarks. (The trial's judge, after polling potential jurors, openly disagreed with Grimm's theory.) The coincidence extends beyond the Naval Academy as well: within the past month, both a cadet and an enlisted instructor, both at West Point, have been accused, respectively, of assaulting and surreptitiously filming female cadets.

In the meantime, these allegations — and the reported reaction from military investigators — may furnish further rationale for far-reaching reform, part of which may include involving civilians in trials involving members of the military. Given Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel's recent language on the issue (in recent speeches, he described sexual assault as a "scourge" and a "profound betrayal"), the picture of systemic injustice portrayed here could be enough to inspire even greater inquiry, and legitimate change, in the armed forces. President Obama has asked Hagel and Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to root out the problem, and the Senate is looking into protocol changes. But it's been a long May for the military: the Air Force's sexual assault prevention chief and his sexual assault arrest, the Army sexual assault prevention chief and his "abusive sexual contact," the Fort Campbell sexual harassment chief and his "stalking," and now more at the Navy. As Jack Nicholson once said in a fake military courtroom: "We use words like honor, code, loyalty. We use these words as the backbone to a life spent defending something. You use 'em as a punchline."

What happens when you become the punchline?


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What did Noah really preach about for 120 years?


Posted on December 14th, by admin in Archives




Have you ever wondered what types of messages Noah might have preached for over 120 years? Are there any parallels to today? Let’s refresh on how the story unfolds:

The Facts:

1. God is saddened by the amount of evil on the earth and He regrets making man. He declares He will destroy the earth in 120 years. Gen 6:3,5,6

2. Noah finds Grace in the Lord’s eyes and the Lord states that He will save Noah and his household due to Noah’s Righteous life. Gen 6:18, Gen 7:1

3. Noah and His family are saved from the flood that destroyed the earth. They are on the ark for over a year until the waters subside and they exit the ark. They are greeted by a rainbow a little while later and it is a sign that God will never again destroy the earth by a flood.

Ok, so what about all of that time while Noah was building the ark? Do we know any details there? Here are a few:

Amid the prevailing corruption, Methuselah, Noah, and many others labored to keep alive the knowledge of the true God and to stay the tide of moral evil. A hundred and twenty years before the Flood, the Lord by a holy angel declared to Noah His purpose, and directed him to build an ark. While building the ark he was to preach that God would bring a flood of water upon the earth to destroy the wicked. Those who would believe the message, and would prepare for that event by repentance and reformation, should find pardon and be saved. Enoch had repeated to his children what God had shown him in regard to the Flood, and Methuselah and his sons, who lived to hear the preaching of Noah, assisted in building the ark. {PP 92.2}

The building of this immense structure was a slow and laborious process. On account of the great size of the trees and the nature of the wood, much more labor was required then than now to prepare timber, even with the greater strength which men then possessed. All that man could do was done to render the work perfect, yet the ark could not of itself have withstood the storm which was to come upon the earth. God alone could preserve His servants upon the tempestuous waters. {PP 92.3}

“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” Hebrews 11:7. While Noah was giving his warning message to the world, his works testified of his sincerity. It was thus that his faith was perfected and made evident. He gave the world an example of believing just what God says. All that he possessed, he invested in the ark. As he began to construct that immense boat on dry ground, multitudes came from every direction to see the strange sight and to hear the earnest, fervent words of the singular preacher. Every blow struck upon the ark was a witness to the people. {PP 95.1}

Many at first appeared to receive the warning; yet they did not turn to God with true repentance. They were unwilling to renounce their sins. During the time that elapsed before the coming of the Flood, their faith was tested, and they failed to endure the trial. Overcome by the prevailing unbelief, they finally joined their former associates in rejecting the solemn message. Some were deeply convicted, and would have heeded the words of warning; but there were so many to jest and ridicule, that they partook of the same spirit, resisted the invitations of mercy, and were soon among the boldest and most defiant scoffers; for none are so reckless and go to such lengths in sin as do those who have once had light, but have resisted the convicting Spirit of God. {PP 95.2}

As sin became general, it appeared less and less sinful, and they finally declared that the divine law was no longer in force; that it was contrary to the character of God to punish transgression; and they denied that His judgments were to be visited upon the earth. Had the men of that generation obeyed the divine law, they would have recognized the voice of God in the warning of His servant; but their minds had become so blinded by rejection of light that they really believed Noah's message to be a delusion. {PP 95.3}

But Noah stood like a rock amid the tempest. Surrounded by popular contempt and ridicule, he distinguished himself by his holy integrity and unwavering faithfulness. A power attended his words, for it was the voice of God to man through His servant. Connection with God made him strong in the strength of infinite power, while for one hundred and twenty years his solemn voice fell upon the ears of that generation in regard to events, which, so far as human wisdom could judge, were impossible. {PP 96.2}

Had the antediluvians believed the warning, and repented of their evil deeds, the Lord would have turned aside His wrath, as He afterward did from Nineveh. But by their obstinate resistance to the reproofs of conscience and the warnings of God's prophet, that generation filled up the measure of their iniquity, and became ripe for destruction. {PP 97.2}

The period of their probation was about to expire. Noah had faithfully followed the instructions which he had received from God. The ark was finished in every part as the Lord had directed, and was stored with food for man and beast. And now the servant of God made his last solemn appeal to the people. With an agony of desire that words cannot express, he entreated them to seek a refuge while it might be found. Again they rejected his words, and raised their voices in jest and scoffing. Suddenly a silence fell upon the mocking throng. Beasts of every description, the fiercest as well as the most gentle, were seen coming from mountain and forest and quietly making their way toward the ark. A noise as of a rushing wind was heard, and lo, birds were flocking from all [BEGIN P.98] directions, their numbers darkening the heavens, and in perfect order they passed to the ark. Animals obeyed the command of God, while men were disobedient.


–There is much more but I think those summarize that Noah was faithful to His calling.

I see a parallel today with the world we live in. There are many that do not wish to speak of a coming crisis. They say that it does not do any good. I wonder if there are elements in this story that God has shown us that we could adapt for today. I believe there is a balance and that we need to be balanced. Noah testified of His belief through not only preaching but building.

May the God who saved Noah, save each one of us who are diligently seeking Him today. - Jared


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Who's on first? What's on second? I don't know is in charge.


1.
Clinton to Send Albright to Mideast in an Effort to Spur Palestinian Talks

President Clinton plans to send his secretary of state to the Middle East to see if she can narrow gaps in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.
Madeleine Albright’s planned trip comes after Clinton and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak met in Lisbon,..

Read more: http://www.jta.org/2000/06/02/archive/clinton-to-send-albright-to-mideast-in-an-effort-to-spur-palestinian-talks#ixzz2V2LM2RUD

Who?

2.
Friction between McCain, Paul underscores divide within Republican Party

But McCain, fresh off a secret trip to Syria, on Friday upped his call for intervention -- telling the Associated Press the opposition needs heavy weapons.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/06/01/friction-between-mccain-paul-underscores-divide-within-republican-party/#ixzz2V2M42VlP

What?


Who's in charge? 

Dennis Rodman?


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Evangelical Lutheran Church elects first openly gay bishop



By Catherine SaillantThis post has been corrected. See note below.

May 31, 2013, 8:42 p.m.



A North Hollywood theology professor ordained just two years ago after the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America dropped its ban on same-sex ministers was elected Friday as the church's first openly gay bishop.


The Rev. R. Guy Erwin won a six-year term to the Southwest California Synod, which encompasses the greater Los Angeles area, according to church officials.

The historic vote came Friday during a three-day assembly of the synod held in Woodland Hills.FOR THE RECORD:

Lutheran bishop: An article in the June 1, 2013, LATextra section about the election of an openly gay bishop in Southern California incorrectly described the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America as the largest denomination in the United States. It is the largest Lutheran denomination in the U.S. It also said the bishop-elect, the Rev. R. Guy Erwin, is a North Hollywood theology professor. He is a resident of Woodland Hills.

Erwin's election marks a welcome turning point for the congregation's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered members, said Emily Eastwood, executive director of Reconciling Works, an arm of the church that worked for decades to lift the ban on gay and lesbian clergy.

"One of our own has been chosen not in spite of being gay, but because he is truly gifted and skilled for the office," she said in a prepared statement. "Once again, today we are proud to be Lutherans."

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is the largest denomination in the United States, the product of a merger of three denominations in 1987. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, founded in 1847, is a separate body.

Lutheran teachings date to Martin Luther, a 16th-century Roman Catholic priest whose objections to elements of Roman Catholic practice began the movement known as the Protestant Reformation.

Since 2000, Erwin has taught theology and Christian history at Cal Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. He is considered a scholar on the life and teachings of Martin Luther.

Erwin was raised in Oklahoma and has Native American roots, according to his biography on the Cal Lutheran website. He was unable to serve in the Lutheran ministry under the church's earlier ban against gay and lesbian pastors.

But the church reversed that policy in 2009, and two years later Erwin was ordained. He and his partner, Rob Flynn, are members of St. Matthew's Lutheran Church in North Hollywood.


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To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your heart

EndrTimes: To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your ...: Psalm 95 1O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. 2Let us come before his presence w...


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Saturday, June 01, 2013

Stephen D. Lewis, Live from Boston: 2 Days Only




ThePresentTruth.org




WHAT & WHEN:

2-day LIVE Worship service from Dorchester, MA, May 31 & June 1 @ 6:30 PM, Central Time

WHERE:

TELL SOMEONE:

Invite others (via Facebook, Twitter, phone) to join you as we worship the Lord in Spirit and in truth.

NEED PRAYER?

How can we pray for and with you? Click here.

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Feast Days Confusion by Pastor Emiliano Richards






Published on Apr 15, 2013


For more studies on this Topic please visit the following links:

Light from the Ancient Sanctuary A
-Understanding its Design and Services
http://understanding-daniel-revelatio...

Light from the Ancient Sanctuary B
-Understanding the Spring Feasts of the Sanctuary
http://understanding-daniel-revelatio...

Light from the Ancient Sanctuary B
-Understanding the Fall Feasts of the Sanctuary
http://understanding-daniel-revelatio...

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Behind the Door - Jim Arrabito



The Jesuit Infiltration of the Seventh-day Adventist Church ~ Behind the Door



MrPioneerlight2011
Published on May 3, 2013


JESUIT/ROMAN CATHOLIC INFILTRATION IN THE SDA CHURCH

James Arrabito interviews ex-Jesuit Alberto Rivera and others who have personally witnessed the infiltration and destruction by the Jesuits of Christian churches.

For more information please see our website: www.Exposingdeceptions.org


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Seventh-day Adventist elected President of the Swiss Bible Society





The EUD Headquarters in Bern

24.05.2013:


Aarau/Switzerland [APD]. On 24 May 2013 the meeting of the delegates of the Swiss Bible Society in Aarau elected unanimously Reto Mayer (Ittigen/BE) as new President and thanked outgoing President Protestant Pastor Jakob Bösch (Eschlikon/TG) who retired on his own accord after ten years of service.

Reto Mayer served as member of the board of directors of the Swiss Bible Society for the past ten years and was its Vice-president when elected. The 52 year-old Reto Mayer, who started his career in the insurance industry has been serving as pastor for many years after theological studies at the Faculté Adventiste de Théologie in Collonges/France and a Masters in Leadership at the Andrews University, Michigan/USA. He currently works at the European headquarters of the Seventh-day Adventist church (Inter-European Division). A native French speaker Mayer is also fluent in German and English.


The Seventh-day Adventists in Switzerland enjoy guest status – in Basel since 1973 - in seven cantonal Working Groups of Christian Churches (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Christlicher Kirchen/AGCK) and on national level since 2012. The Seventh-day Adventist church has become member of the Swiss Bible Society in 1982. Since many member organisations and donors of the Swiss Bible Society belong to independent churches it is a given that the voices of those should be well represented on board level, according to the outgoing president of the Swiss Bible Society, Jakob Bösch.

The Swiss Bible Society was founded in Aarau on 26 November 1955 succeeding the former coalition of Swiss Bible Societies. Today the Swiss Bible Society has 45 members, among others, cantonal evangelical-reformed churches, the old-catholic church, independent evangelical churches, cantonal bible societies and christian societies and working groups in Switzerland which share the society’s charter of bible distribution.

The Swiss Bible Society is the centre of excellence for the bible in Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein supporting and promoting the translation, production and distribution of bibles, bible parts and biblical literature in Switzerland as well as abroad. It is the aim of the Swiss Bible Society together with over 146 national bible societies united as the global United Bible Societies to bring the bible in easy and modern language and form closer to the people.

By: APD;


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The Great Cookie Wafer Hoax!




THE GREAT COOKIE WAFER HOAX! TRANSUBSTANTIATION AND THE CATHOLIC CHURCH!


MYSOULREFUGE


Uploaded on Jun 13, 2011


Is Rome's teaching of Transubstantiation a true BIBLICAL doctrine or is it her greatest hoax? As a former Roman Catholic, I believe that it is their greatest hoax, and a TOTALLY DEMONIC teaching, among many other false (and demonic) teachings. They teach that a Roman Catholic priest can transform the bread and wine into the ACTUAL body and blood of Jesus Christ. The SUBSTANCE inside is what changes into Jesus Christ, while the APPEARANCE is the only thing that remains the same (according to them). It looks like bread, it tastes like bread, because IT IS BREAD! It surely is NOT the real JESUS CHRIST, the eternal Son of God.

Do YOU believe their FALSE teaching about TRANSUBSTANTIATION? If you don't then you are under one of their ANATHEMA'S (CURSES, they have over 100 of them) I am HONORED to say that I am under the Romish curses, along with the REFORMERS who stood against Rome. I HONOR those courageous REFORMERS who stood against that FALSE system, and who pushed to get the SCRIPTURES into the hands of the common people like me and you. Do not ever forget that!

The Roman Catholic teaching of TRANSUBSTANTIATION is a FALSE and WICKED teaching, that reduces the eternal Son of God to a piece of bread on their Catholic altars!

The REAL Jesus Christ is described in the following scriptures:

JESUS IS THE FIRST AND THE LAST!

And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: (Revelation 1:17)

JESUS IS THE ALPHA AND THE OMEGA!

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. (Revelation 1:8)

JESUS IS THE CREATOR OF ALL THINGS!

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. (John 1:1-3)

THERE ARE NO OTHER GODS BESIDE HIM!

Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. (Isaiah 44:6)


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Dallas-area Catholics to answer Pope Francis' call for worldwide Sunday prayer






David Woo/Staff Photographer
The Rev. Stephen Bierschenk of St. Monica Catholic Church will lead a Eucharistic procession for the first time after Mass on Sunday, when Catholics across the globe plan to unite in prayer as part of Pope Francis’ call for an hour of Eucharistic adoration.





By ANDREA GALLO


Staff Writer

agallo@dallasnews.com

Published: 31 May 2013 10:55 PM

Updated: 31 May 2013 11:24 PM



Dallas-area Catholics will unite in prayer with 1 billion other members of their church Sunday as part of Pope Francis’ call for an hour of Eucharistic adoration — worshipping the body of Christ — at the same time all over the world.

This is the first time a pope has assembled the worldwide congregation by asking people to pray in front of the Eucharist, which at each Mass is consecrated into what Catholics believe is the body and physical presence of Jesus Christ.

Many local Catholic churches will participate at various times depending on their Mass schedules. But Pope Francis will hold his hour of prayer at 5 p.m. in Rome — or 10 a.m. Dallas time.

The pontiff declared two prayer intentions for Sunday. One prayer will be for the Catholic Church throughout the world and for the Eucharist as a sign of oneness. The other prayer will be for those who are suffering with a “silent scream” — including slaves, war victims, domestic violence victims, prisoners and the homeless.

“It is unique in the sense that we all come together with one particular intention,” said Bishop Kevin Farrell, who leads the Dallas Diocese. “We’re all part of the same human family, and there has been and is so much suffering. We need to start paying attention to the fact that all of this [suffering] goes on.

“We have to look at the number of people who are suffering from violence,” he said, referring to the large number of women and children who experience domestic violence in North Texas.

Farrell will host adoration after the 3 p.m. Sunday Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe in downtown Dallas.

Catholics approach adoration in many different ways. Some say specific prayers, while others read Bible passages. Many prefer to sit in silence and bask in the stillness of God.

From 11 p.m. to midnight every evening, Margie Giangiulio, a parishioner at St. Monica Catholic Church, has been praying in adoration for 15 years. “You know how some people run every day? Well, doing adoration every day gives me so much more energy,” she said. “It’s my favorite, favorite thing to do. … When we saw the pope’s request to the world, we said, ‘Oh, my gosh. This is really stupendous.’”

Giangiulio plans to attend St. Monica Catholic Church’s all-night vigil starting at 9 p.m. Saturday and ending before the 8 a.m. Sunday Mass. People from the church’s different programs will take turns lighting candles and asking for blessings.

After Mass, the Rev. Stephen Bierschenk will lead a Eucharistic procession for the first time at St. Monica, which is located on Midway Road. He hopes to turn that into a tradition. “It’s more personal, remembering that you have the opportunity to be physically present with the Lord,” he said.

Bierschenk’s procession will mirror one occurring in Rome, as well. Sunday’s hour of prayer has special significance because it will occur on the Church’s Feast of Corpus Christi, which celebrates the belief in Jesus’ real presence in the Eucharist.

Patty Daniel, a member of St. Rita Catholic Church on Inwood Road, said praying in adoration on the feast of Corpus Christi emphasizes Eucharistic miracles, such as the Miracle of Lanciano. That’s when a Catholic parish witnessed the bread and wine transform into flesh and blood around the year 700 in Italy. “It’s just a beautiful feast to be publicly aware of Christ’s presence,” Daniel said.

Holy Trinity Catholic Church, located on Oak Lawn Avenue, will hold its prayer hour at 10 a.m. to coincide with Rome. “It’s all across the world, so you’re talking about a little island in the Pacific to the Basilica in Rome all the way maybe to a Marine station in Afghanistan,” said Benny Ruiz, parish liturgist at Holy Trinity.

Farrell encouraged people to read Chapter 25 of the Bible’s book of Matthew in adoration Sunday — in particular, verses 31-46, when Jesus talks about caring for those most in need. He proclaims: “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.”

“That should be enough for all of us,” Farrell said. “Whether we’re lifelong Catholics or lukewarm Catholics or Catholics on Christmas and Easter, when you read that 25th chapter in St. Matthew’s Gospel, you have to be impressed.”

Source
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World War III APOCALYPSE - Bill Hughes


* You can also view it on Youtube here: http://youtu.be/1qtI5sCk2Tw

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Babylon The Great and Globalism (New World Order)





TRUTHABOUTSUNDAY


Uploaded on Mar 27, 2011


Babylon the Great and Globalism exposes the threat to liberty of all freedom made when an apostate power supplants the word of God for the traditions of men. The Messiah spoke out against the false leaders of his day and we as his followers must do the same.

VATIS' means 'DIVINER' in Latin
'CAN' means 'SERPENT' in Latin
http://www.truthaboutsundayworship.co...
http://www.truthaboutsundayworship.co...

On the Vatican crest is a serpent-dragon with wings. See link:

Vaticanus then is a combination of Vatic + anus which mean "the prophetic hill or mountain", which can be rephrased as the hill or mountain of prophecy. On the back of their coins is the inscription: "CITTÁ DEL VATICANO", which means City of Prophecy.
Source(s):http://www.aloha.net/~mikesch/vatican...
http://gracehead.com/index.php/2008/0...

Revelation Chapter 17
A woman arrayed in purple and scarlet, with a golden cup in her hand, sits on a scarlet beast
1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: 2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. 3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: 5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. 6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. 8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. 9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. 10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. 11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. 12 And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. 13 These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

The victory of the Lamb
14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. 15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. 16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. 17 For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. 18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

Rev 17:1-18 (KJV)

FOR THOSE WITH EYES TO SEE AND EARS TO HEAR. LET HIM HEAR WHAT THE SPIRIT SPEAKETH UNTO THE CHURCH. FLEE FROM BABYLON, COME OUT OF HER MY PEOPLE THAT YOU BE NOT PARTAKERS OF HER SINS AND THAT HE RECEIVE NOT HER PLAGUES.


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Ancient Psalms Found Preserved in Irish Bog


July 26, 2006 4:00 PM


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Detail from the recently discovered book of psalms, which is more than 1,000 years old.National Museum of Ireland

Some people call it the Irish equivalent of the Dead Sea Scrolls: the discovery last week of fragments of an ancient book of psalms that had been buried in a bog for centuries.

Robert Siegel talks with Pat Wallace, director of the National Museum of Ireland, about the recent discovery in the midlands of Ireland. The text, which survived in a peat bog, is thought to have been written more than 1,000 years ago.


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Herb Douglass on QOD at Sacramento Central





garyzw

Published on May 18, 2013


No description available.

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All His Children





BibleUnlimited

Uploaded on Jul 5, 2011


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It Is Well - Sisters





ruppesisters·40 videos



Uploaded on Oct 11, 2009


Sisters sing It Is Well in Lancaster, PA at the American Music Theatre

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