Confronting the Arab Propaganda Machine

I recently came across this in my blogging escapades:

Look Into My Eyes
Look into my eyes
Tell me what ya see
U don't see a damn thing
Cuz u can't relate to me
U blinded by our differences
My life makes no sense to u
I'm the persecuted one
U the red, white and blue

Each day u wake in tranquility
No fears to cross your eyes
Each day I wake in gratitude
Thankin' God He let me rise

Ya worry 'bout your education
And the bills u have to pay
I worry 'bout my vulnerable life
And if I'll survive another day

Ya biggest fear is getting a ticket
As ya cruise your Cadillac
My fear is that the tank that's just left
Will turn around and come back

Yet do u know the truth of where ya money goes
Do u let the media deceive your mind
Is this a truth that nobody knows
Has our world gone all blind

Yet do u know the truth of where ya money goes
Do u let the media deceive your mind
Is this a truth that nobody knows
Some one tell me
Oh let's not cry tonight
I promise you one day it's through

Ohohoh my brothers
Ohohoh my sisters
Oh shine a light for every soul
That ain't with us no more

Ohohoh my brothers
Ohohoh my sisters
See I've known terror for quite some times

57 years so cruel
Terror breathes the air I breathe
It's the check point on my way to school
Terror is the robbery of my land
And the torture of my mother
The imprisonment of my innocent father
The bullet in my baby brother
The bulldozers and the tanks
The gasses and the guns
The bombs that fall outside my door
All due to your funds

You blame me for defending myself
Against the ways of my enemies
I'm terrorized in my own land
And I'm the terrorist

Yet do u know the truth of where ya money goes
Do u let the media deceive your mind
Is this a truth that nobody knows
Has our world gone all blind

Yet do u know the truth of where ya money goes
Do u let the media deceive your mind
Is this a truth that nobody knows
Some one tell me
Oh let's not cry tonight
I promise you one day it's through

Ohohoh my brothers
Ohohoh my sisters
Oh shine a light for every soul
That ain't with us no more
Ohohoh my brothers
Ohohoh my sisters

American do ya realize
That the taxes that u pay
Feed the forces that traumatize
My every living day
So if I won't be here tomorrow
It's written in my fate
May the future bring a brighter day
The end of our wait

Oh let's not cry tonight
I promise you one day it's through
Ohohoh my brothers
Ohohoh my sisters
Oh shine a light for every soul
That ain't with us no more
Ohohoh my brothers
Ohohoh my sisters ...

To which I responded:

This is the product of the Arab Propaganda Machine.

Israel has the right to exist. Israel has the right to defend herself.

It is worth pointing out that there are already two Palestinian states: Israel and Jordan. The whole land of Palestine (that is Israel and Jordan) was set aside as the Jewish Homeland by the League of Nations in 1917.

And then upwards of 3/4 of that land (Jordan) was taken away from the Jews and given to the Arabs. This was the first "two state solution" (though I don't think you can call it a solution).

The idea of there being a separate and distinct people known as Palestinians is a construct that was invented by the Arab propaganda machine. For thousands of years, the who region was known as Palestine. Separating Palestine from Israel is just propaganda. And then separating Jordan from these other Arabs (so called Palestinians) is just more propaganda.

Hundreds of thousands - if not millions - of Muslims are committed to the complete annihilation and destruction of Israel. They have terrorized Israel. In fact, not knowing anything about you (and glossing over the title over the thread initially), it was not until late in the poem that I figured out that you were talking about the so-called Palestinians. In that first part, it looked like the poem of an Israeli who had friends killed by Palestinian terrorist homicide bombers.

Yet, prophecy is being fulfilled. Sad to say, I fear that a second holocaust is coming to the Jewish people. Virtually the whole world is turning their backs on Israel. They are the most persecuted and terrorized people in the world. Terrorist organizations like Islamic Jihad, Hamas, and Hezbollah are committed to Israel's complete destruction, but the UN and the international community say, "Israel is not allowed to defend herself." Meanwhile, more and more land is taken away from Israel, and the terrorists grow more and more bold.

Of course, these so-called Palestinians are people, and my heart goes out to them. But they elected to be governed by a terrorist organization. If the so-called Palestinians were serious about living in peace, then there would be peace. But as long as the so-called Palestinians legitimize these Islamic terrorists keep preaching jihad against Israel and the United States, then there can be no peace. For Israel has the right to exist and the right to defend herself.
I see that "Comment moderation has been enabled." So, I am cutting and pasting and putting this on my blog. I have a strong suspicion that these comments will not be posted.

The real solution to the whole problem is Jesus Christ. In Christ, there is no Jew or Gentile, Israeli or Arab, male or female, but in Christ, we are all family. He loves us. He died on the cross for us. He came and preached peace to us. We must all turn to Him in humility, repentance, and faith - trusting in Him for salvation.

The Religion of Secularism

In a recent debate I've been having with an atheist, we have sparred several rounds on the nature of morality and the definitions of words like secular, sacred, and religion.

This was my last post in that debate.

"You have made secularism – the very absence of religion – out to be a religion itself."
Look. Any clear thinking person can easily see that the lines are extremely blurred when you start talking about morality, philosophy, and religion. Take the concepts of justice and righteousness for example. Are these religious concepts? Certainly. Are they philosohical concepts? Absolutely. Are these moral concepts? Of course. Does science have anthing to say about justice? Not really. Science might cause us to observe that some species appear to practice some forms of altruism, but it says nothing about the inherent "goodness" or "righteousness" or "justice" of altruism. Questions of morality are not answered by science, but by theology and philosophy.

"Science is most certainly worthy of respect, but most importantly, science is worthy of veneration."

I happen to agree with that. But I would point out that you have reached such a conclusion because you have presupposed the exact same thing. The presupposition has nothing to do with science. You can't prove the presupposition via the scientific method. You merely presuppose the truth (in this case) and then assert it.

In point of fact, you also presuppose the rules of logic before you use the rules of logic.
I would also argue that very often, the multiple related definitions of the same word can often be triangulated in a sense. By defining a word several different ways, you get a good sense of how the words are used in society. It is worth noting that the word sacred doesn't have multiple entirely different definitions (like the word "right" does), but multiple related definitions.

In other words, the dictionary people were smart when they decided to make a distinction between words with multiple entirely different definitions and words with various related definitions. There is all kinds of gray area here, and plenty of room for debate.
While we are defining words, why don't we go back to the word religion.
My personal definition of religion is "a set of beliefs, doctrines, creeds, and values that command a certain measure of allegiance and respect." Given that definition, secularism is most certainly a religion. But several people don't particularly care about my definition of religion. While I contend that my defition is a good one, I understand that people don't want me to redefine the English language. Fair enough.

So, let's see what dictionary.com says.

re‧li‧gion –noun 1. a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, esp. when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs. 2. a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects: the Christian religion; the Buddhist religion. 3. the body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices: a world council of religions. 4. the life or state of a monk, nun, etc.: to enter religion. 5. the practice of religious beliefs; ritual observance of faith. 6. something one believes in and follows devotedly; a point or matter of ethics or conscience: to make a religion of fighting prejudice. 7. religions, Archaic. religious rites. 8. Archaic. strict faithfulness; devotion: a religion to one's vow. —Idiom9. get religion, Informal. a. to acquire a deep conviction of the validity of religious beliefs and practices. b. to resolve to mend one's errant ways: The company got religion and stopped making dangerous products. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Origin: 1150–1200; ME religioun (< OF religion) < L religiōn- (s. of religiō) conscientiousness, piety, equiv. to relig(āre) to tie, fasten (re- re- + ligāre to bind, tie; cf. ligament) + -iōn- -ion; cf. rely]

Now, is secularism a religion?

Look again at definition 1. Secularism certainly has ideas about the cause and nature of the universe (some accurate, some inaccurate), and many secular philosophers have ideas about the purpose of the universe. Furthermore, secularists rely on these secular ideas in order to determine a moral code that ought to be used to govern people. It is worth noting that a belief in superhuman agencies is not required - according to this definition of religion - in order for the belief system to qualify as a religion.

So, my definition of religion aside, if we accept the first definition of dictionary.com, then it is clear that secularism is a religion - one that is no doubt full of absurdities and contradictions.
And so, according to definition 1, the government certainly is sponsoring religion.

A similar analysis of definition 2 leads to the same conclusion.

Clearly, according to defintion 6, secularism is a religion.

If we look at definition 8, then it is reasonable to say that people are religiously devoted to the religious ideas of the Constitution and the 1st Amendment.

Depending on how you define "faith," secularism may or may not be a religion according to definition 5.

Definition 7 - Depending on how you define "rites" secularism may or may not be considered a religion. I can see how things like being promoted to the next grade in school is kinda like going through a "rite" as is graduating high school, graduating college, getting married (legally), receiving certain awards on the job, retiring, dying and being given a funeral. Secularism certainly seems to have its gammit of rites. So, once again, we see the religious nature of secularism.

And when we triangulate all of these related definitions together and observe the nature of secularism, it would appear that secularism qualifies as a religion.

Have a good day.

Post-Election Analysis 2006

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." - Jesus of Nazareth (John 3:16-21)

This is a day of mourning, a day of hope, and a day of resolve.

I do not have time at the moment to provide my complete election analysis, but suffice it to say that the American people have shown themselves to disregard the counsel of Scripture.

Colossians 2:8 says, "See to it, that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy which depends on human traditions and the basic principles of this world, rather than on Christ."

And now, the day after the Democrats take control of the House and even up the Senate, Hamas has effectively declared war on America and Israel - calling on Muslims throughout the world to commit themselves to jihad - the destruction of Israel and America. God help us.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,228086,00.html

And I blame the broader evangelical community who has bought into the lie that preaching the gospel while on the job is somehow inappropriate and unprofessional - thus giving up their integrity and living lives of duplicity. It is time for judgment to begin with the house of God. It is time to repent. It is time to start thinking the way the Bible commands us to think.

It is time to tear down the idols of the land. (2 Kings)

It is time to contend for the faith. (Jude)

It is time to confront sin and injustice - as Christ has commanded us. (Matthew 18:15-20, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15-16, 2 Timothy 4:1-8)

It is time to be strong and courageous. (Joshua 1:6-9)

It is time to get wisdom. (Proverbs)

It is time to fight the spiritual war that God has commanded us to fight. (Ephesians 6:10-20)

If you are reading this and you are not a Christian, repent and believe, for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

If you are reading this and you are a Christian, then contend for the faith. Be bold. Tell other people about Jesus. Don't give in to secularism. Fear God alone. Fear no man. Live for the glory of God. Consecrate yourselves completely to His purposes. Make disciples.

We have a cultural mandate. We are to contend for the Shalom of God.

Proverbs 21:22 - "A wise man attacks the city of the mighty and pulls down the stronghold in which they trust."

Money

It is amazing to me how liberals are pro-choice on issues like gay marriage and abortion, yet anti-choice on how people choose to spend their hard earned dollars. Well, maybe they are pro-choice: pro-I'll-decide-how-to-spend-your-hard-earned-money. Liberals apparently think that the government needs to take on a parental role when it comes to the citizens handling money, yet they are so adament about keeping the government out of the personal lives of the citizens on other issues.

Of course, there is some reason (however skewed) behind the madness of liberals. The cold hard truth is that people do not handle their money very well, and very rarely do they choose to give sacrificially to the poor. At this point, I need to humble myself and start looking inwardly.

I'm excited about the series we have just started up in the Sunday morning Bible study about money. The truth is that all the money in the world belongs to God; we are merely stewards. And so, it is necessary to become excellent stewards of all that God has entrusted to us. God help us as we do.

And let us remember the poor and oppressed.