The offices of The Gazette newspaper on Saint Catherine Street, Montreal, Canada. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children—  with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.”        Psalm 103:17-18 NIV1984

Christianity in Transition and Karma (an article written in The Montreal Gazette recently by a friend of mine…..I pray for her daily)

With more than 1,000 people protesting in a demonstration on Sunday against a North Carolina pastor who made anti-gay comments last week, some of his 100 or so congregants applauded him in church, according to a report on msnbc.com. Apparently, though, leaders of other churches are trying to distance themselves from him, feeling that his outrageous statements will hurt their more moderate anti-gay efforts.
Sigh . . .   When will all these folks understand that not everybody believes their Bible is the inspired work of a god and that their interpretations of it are relevant or realistic? Really, where do these folks get off thinking that they can impose their superstitious belief system on everybody else? Of course they have a right to believe what they want, but they simply should not have a right to use their beliefs to spread hate and discrimination.   It’s obvious to me that much of Western society is in transition (there’s that word again). Many people have moved on from the superstitious belief system expounded by people like the North Carolina pastor who preaches fire and brimstone if you don’t believe what he does. But some haven’t moved on.  Still, fundamentalists are not united on these issues — some are far more liberal than others. Those with extreme views are becoming more and more isolated, which is probably why their extreme comments go viral sometimes.   Which is not to say the essential message of Christianity is lost or irrelevant. The bottom line has always been to love thy neighbours, regardless of who they might be. It’s the bottom line in most spiritual schools of thought — and those religious institutions that lose sight of it ultimately lose followers. Which explains why only 100 people are showing up in that North Carolina church while more than 1,000 were protesting against the pastor outside the Justice Center . . . Sounds like karmic justice to me.

Jillian

The great lost chord of modern civilization is forgetfulness of the fact in nature of universal brotherhood, which means not merely a sentimental or political brotherhood; it means that we are all of one common cosmic or spiritual origin, and that what affects one affects all . . . – G. de Purucker (end of article)

Whilst in some respects I understand what Jillian is saying I feel she is missing the point somewhat. Many of us will have heard about the North Carolina pastor who voiced such an unloving sermon and as a result will now thinking his opinions are those of the true Christian Church. They are most emphatically not! In her article Jillian agrees that and indicates that the main anti-gay movement within the Church has been harmed by what this pastor has said and I agree with her on that point. However the Christian message has never been one of hate thy neighbour, whether gay or not. Many Christians think that just because Scripture shows us that homosexuality is a sinful way of life that it gives them the right to judge and condemn participants. It doesn’t! Neither is it appropriate to marginalize people for believing in other things or making a stand against their rights to behave as they wish. A true Christian does not do these things. A true Christian reaches out in love whilst being a faithful witness for Christ Jesus. This means pointing people to what God is saying and what God is commanding from us all. Decisions on lifestyle and belief always should rest with the individual. Being a witness does not mean pushing the faith down the throats of unbelievers but it is a duty and a commandment to explain and deliver the Gospel message to non-believers. From a Christians point of view it should be as an encouragement for sinners to repent, not something to turn them further away!

Jillian mentions (quite correctly) that not everyone believes that The Bible is the inspired Word of God but what she should have said is that non-believers in God think that way. Christians believe it is, or SHOULD do. I read Jillian’s posts quite frequently and I have found her to be very caustic sometimes when writing some of her articles. Firstly, in this article, she appears to accuse all Christians of being ‘fundamentalists’ as if being a fundamentalist was wrong. It isn’t wrong for Christians cannot turn away from the fundamental teachings encompassed in Scripture, they either have to believe it is God’s Word or not. Some conflicts  do arise in interpretation sometimes but the tenet of content is unaffected. Remember, fundamentalism isn’t an invitation nor a free ticket to stir up hatred and discord with non-believers. Secondly, Jillian renders Scripture and belief in the Faith as all superstitious nonsense. This is a personal and direct attack on the Christian faith and ultimately God. Personal opinions should be kept out of good journalism. Present the facts and let the people choose one way or the other. This should be the case in presenting The Gospel too and it would be wiser for all those ‘fundamentalists’ to consider that fact.

Jillian redeemed herself in her concluding remarks though recognising that what has been voiced by an over-zealous pastor is not what the Christian message is all about nor is it the same opinion of all people of the faith or anyone with an inkling of common sense and humanity. Love thy neighbour even if he has six heads four arms and is green-skinned!

The war is not between human beings. It is a spiritual war being waged out of our sight and it is a war for souls, lost souls who need redemption.

“But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children—  with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.”    Psalm 103: 17-18 (NIV 1984). I just wish Christians would remember to obey his precepts and do all things in love as He commands, maybe then the unbeliever will respond to the Gospel.

Shirley Anne

Related articles

• 8 Ways Christian Fundamentalists Make People Convert – to Agnosticism or Atheism (tleonidas.wordpress.com)
• Should Christians be Apolitical? (thecynicalchristian.blogspot.com)
• Put Them Behind an Electrified Fence and Let Them Die Out (nickbabineaux.com)
• ‘Pastor’ Charles Worley Isn’t Christian in Anything But his own Mind (zwingliusredivivus.wordpress.com)

Shirley Anne

Friendship-001 (Photo credit: Ludie Cochrane)

I’ve been feeling quite lonesome lately. I can feel lonely in a room full of people. It is the closeness of another that wards off my loneliness and I don’t necessarily mean a romantic closeness. People who take the time for me and what goes on in my life are those I cherish the most and they are my family and my friends. So it was on Sunday that a friend of mine invited me out to dinner at a restaurant she and I and some of my family have frequented in the past. She wouldn’t let me pay for anything. Now I like to pay my way and I wouldn’t allow her to pay for anything whenever she was my guest but this time she insisted that it was her turn to treat me for a change. We hadn’t seen each other for more than 14 months so we had some catching up to do. My friend arrived on time and we drove the ten or twelve miles to the restaurant. Many folk were sitting outside in the sunshine but we chose to eat indoors where it was much cooler and where there were no flies challenging us for our food! One thing I hate about eating out-of-doors is having to cope with flies. When at home having a barbecue it isn’t quite so bad as the smoke keeps the blighters at bay. We had a lovely meal and a really enjoyable couple of hours together. Later I asked if she would like to visit my local pub, it was her local too until she moved to her present location some fifteen miles or so away. We each had a soft drink and sat inside out of the heat. A guy I’d met on Thursday night came over for a chat and the three of us had a few laughs together. Actually it was he who was making us laugh! My friend wanted to go home to do some laundry and prepare for work in the morning so we didn’t stay there very long. I got home to an empty house, E had gone out for the afternoon, probably to a barbecue although she didn’t tell me that, I just assumed she had. I hadn’t mentioned that my friend, and her friend too, was coming over but she’d gone out before my friend arrived. She probably thought I’d been at home all afternoon but I most probably would have been at the pub had I not made other arrangements with my friend. My friend suggested we get together more often, when we can of course, after all I am not her only friend! As I write this late on Sunday evening I am feeling less lonely and it is all due to the kindness and friendship of a wonderful friend.

Shirley Anne

Heartbreak Hotel Restaurant (Photo credit: Thomas Hawk)

Saturday was another very hot and sunny day. I got up early and went for a run on my treadmill. My treadmill is in one of the rooms in the cellar (basement) but so is the hot water and central heating boiler! As it is now warm every day the central heating is inoperative but the boiler still comes on to maintain a hot water supply to our storage tank upstairs. The room gets warm of course but not as warm as it does in the winter months when the boiler is running for many hours in the day. If it gets too hot I can open the door  leading to the garden and it becomes much cooler. Anyhow I digress. I did my stint on the treadmill and then went out into the garden and sat on the patio to cool off. After returning indoors and getting dressed I had a late breakfast which doubled as my lunch. I had nothing to do in the afternoon so I raised the canopy over the table in the patio and sat there all afternoon drinking red wine and listening to the radio, switching between Radio 2 and Radio 1, later Classic FM. I don’t much listen to pop music these days but I needed cheering up. I quite enjoyed the old songs they had been playing and they brought back to mind some lovely memories of the days when I first heard them many years ago. I felt really happy and relaxed but at the same time a little lonely. The genre began to change from happy-clappy to romantic love songs and it was then that I found myself crying involuntarily in response to the words. I needed to go indoors to visit the toilet and discovered that E had left the house, probably to visit her mother and that left me alone with no-one else at home. It often happens of course and under normal circumstances it means nothing but at this time when I was feeling so lonely with no-one to talk to it made me feel even more so. A song by Brian Ferry was playing when I returned to the garden, a love song and then more love songs by other artists the names of whom escape me now as I write this on Sunday morning. I was now being reminded of the fact that I was a member of Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, a visitor to Heartbreak Hotel, a Lonely Girl (lonely and blue) and all alone in the big wide world. I made a call to one of my friends, Jane, whom I hadn’t seen for a couple of months and who now has moved to another part of the country. I just wanted to know how she was and that all was well with her. She is managing ok it seems which I am so grateful for as she hasn’t had an easy ride lately. It was later in the evening when another friend, Lotte, called to let me know when she will be coming to see me today (Sunday) when we will be driving somewhere for a meal together. We have lots to chat about as we haven’t seen each other for 14 months or so. She had been on an extended tour in the far east for three months and on her return was busy settling in to her old job with some extra responsibilities. She had been busy finding somewhere to live too, thankfully she found somewhere nice. It’s funny how friends and family drift apart sometimes but we all have our lives to live haven’t we? For me, friends are most important and I make every effort to maintain contact with them. Family are a different matter aren’t they? They say you can choose your friends but you cannot choose your family! I love them all though, family and friends alike whether they reciprocate or not. A friend to me is a friend for life, a family member a cherished blood relative I could never reject. As it is though I see very little of any of them and that is why I get lonely sometimes. So here’s to my family and my friends…..I love you all

Shirley Anne

Temperature (Photo credit: lengda)

During this past week we have had some remarkably hot days and I found it somewhat of a struggle staying comfortable. Although for most of the week the temperatures in my location haven’t been quite as high as they have been elsewhere we did match those high temperatures on Saturday and Sunday. Temperatures of 26-28C are definitely not my cup of tea I have to say when I am happier at 16-18C. Even when sitting down and doing nothing I find it so uncomfortable when it is too warm. I have  been working though and that makes it more difficult. Thankfully the temperatures are set to drop a few degrees over the next couple of days and I will be grateful for that. I have been to many hot climates in the past but I have to admit that I often found it unbearable at times. I find my energy gets sapped when it is too warm and I lose interest in doing anything strenuous. The weather over the previous month wasn’t that good and I for one was looking forward to warmer times but never expecting it to go from one extreme to the other. A few weeks ago it was raining and quite cool, then it was warm, even hot, and dry. It gets worse when the humidity is high, as it has been especially overnight. So for the time being I am well out of my comfort zone and cannot wait for cooler times

.

Shirley Anne

Related articles

• 88F Britain is warming up to break sunshine records (express.co.uk)
• Explainer: climate modes and drought (theconversation.edu.au)

List of mills owned by the Lancashire Cotton Corporation Limited (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

On Thursday I had a couple of jobs to do for an old lady but she had requested that I should arrive no earlier than 11 o’clock. For me that is usually a bit of a pain as I would have to sit around doing nothing for a couple of hours unless I was fortunate to have a small job locally to kill the time. People don’t realise the inconvenience that can cause. I could have been earning instead of sitting around but as it turned out I didn’t have any other work scheduled for the day. I had to return to a job I had done on Wednesday to receive payment as the client had been away from home whilst I was working there. Following that I had to get fuel for my vehicle and then visit my supplier to purchase some materials so that left me with a half hour to kill before I could go to the job. When I arrived I was greeted at the front door and then it started. She talked continuously until she realised that I needed to get on with the jobs. Even then she found it difficult not to speak but I found her little talks quite interesting nevertheless. I managed to do three of the four jobs for her but needed to purchase a replacement bathroom heater. I invited her to come along with me and she could select one of her choice and pay for it at the same time. We returned home and I had the new heater fitted in fifteen minutes. I ended up leaving the house after four and a half hours but the actual work only took me about two! All she wanted was somebody to talk to but I didn’t mind too much. I learned a lot about herself, her family and the history of the local area, a subject I am particularly interested in. Whilst driving to and from the supplier I was given the run down of almost every building along the route, what used to be there, who lived there and what businesses were in operation when she was younger. She was 82 years of age so she was describing what life was like in the area in the 1930′s. She could certainly talk a glass eye to sleep or talk the hind legs off a donkey as the sayings go! She was an accomplished keyboard player and had an electric organ at home, she was also an accomplished artist and many of her pictures were dotted around the walls. She also had an old wooden spinning machine on which she spun yarn for her embroidery, knitting and tat work. What was interesting is that she had spun a lot of yarn using dog hair!

Despite her reluctance to refrain from telling me every detail of her life I found her very engaging but by the time I wanted to go home I needed to go home! I took the rest of the afternoon off and went to the pub. I  treated myself to a hearty meal and stayed there for the quiz later in the evening.

Shirley Anne

Topographic map of the United Kingdom. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s funny how life works out sometimes. Once, long ago, I dreamed of living in some hot climate but obviously not in the UK. Admittedly it can get quite hot even here but it doesn’t last for months on end, more like weeks if we are fortunate. All interest in moving away from where I am now left me years ago. I think many people romanticize about living in warmer climes but not everyone actually uproots and moves away. In my case I had thought of moving to Australia just after my ex and I were married. We spoke about it and made tentative enquiries but decided against the idea not long afterward. Basically it was down to family ties and being able to see family members more easily. We just couldn’t tear ourselves away but had we thought about moving to Spain for instance I cannot be certain the same reason would have prevented the move. E and I are too deeply rooted to the area in which we grew up and have lived all our lives. I think most people feel this way and have no real desire to move away except for short periods such as holidays. Even the thought of moving to another county can be something of a pipe-dream. Fairly recently a friend of mine up-sticks as they say and moved to another county in the south-east of the country but that move was driven by personal circumstances and a need to be located nearer to London for person reasons at least for the short-term. Probably the move will be permanent for I see no reason she should think of returning. She will be able to plant roots and become an established member of the local community. I suppose we could all do the same thing if the wish was there. Sometimes we can be tied to a place for so long and then not be in a position to move even if we wanted to. At this moment in my life I have no such desire to move away from my present location. It is a question of being contented and happy living where we do but when we are not and there is a specific need to move away many find they have no other choice but to move. Breaking the ties to a place can be difficult for some but others have no difficulty whatsoever. To be truthful I think we can all grow to like a new place and be quite happy moving elsewhere but I don’t think we ever forget our roots.

Shirley Anne

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Retirement (Photo credit: Tax Credits)

Over the past few months I have written often about retirement. My attitude is one of fear, not having anything to do would drive me nuts so if and when I retire I would need plenty of things to occupy my time. I say ‘if’ I retire, it may be that I end up dying on the job! Well that wouldn’t be so bad but I’d rather go to sleep one night and simply not wake up the following morning. I guess most of us would like it that way, painless and without worry. At this moment in time I have only my work to keep me occupied for the majority of my day but even that is usually kept to the morning only with just the odd days work lasting into the afternoon. The jobs I have planned at home are on hold. Yes I play my guitar to keep myself occupied but that is for pleasure and is limited to between one and two hours each day depending on how I am feeling.  I exercise on my treadmill and go for walks sometimes. I go to the pub to socialize or go out dining once or twice weekly too but these things are not done every day and there is still an enormous amount of time left. If I was to stop working I am not sure how I could fill all the extra hours. I don’t live to work but I do like working and after almost fifty years doing so it will be difficult to simply stop. I had two colleagues die soon after they retired which may have been due to the sudden change of lifestyle but that isn’t what I fear, it’s the possible boredom! I do get bored very easily at times which could be due to my age. I never felt this way when younger. I know people who are retired and their days are spent in a very routine way. They do the same things day in and day out seemingly without much change. Now that would drive me nuts! I like spontaneity and that is why I like my job, it is different each day. I like doing things on the spur of the moment and when I am in the mood. That is how I write my poems and songs, spontaneously. Like everyone else I do have a routine of sorts but it does vary each day. I never get up or go to bed at set times, I never eat at set times either and do things when I need to or want to. The only exception to that is where I have to keep appointments either for my work or to see the doctor or dentist for instance and they usually upset the best of any plans I might have made anyway. So whether I retire or not is partly irrelevant, it is more important that I am kept busy so that I don’t get bored.

Ecclesiastes 2 (NIV)

²⁴ A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work.   This too, I see, is from the hand of God,

In context:

Toil Is Meaningless

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. ¹⁸ I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. ¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool?   Yet he will have control over all the work into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. ²⁰ So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. ²¹ For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. ²² What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? ²³ All his days his work is pain and grief;  even at night his mind does not rest.  This too is meaningless.

²⁴ A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink   and find satisfaction in his work.   This too, I see, is from the hand of God, ²⁵ for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? ²⁶ To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom,  knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth  to hand it over to the one who pleases God.  This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

Shirley Anne

Related articles

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A woman on a treadmill (Original caption: “Wendy Beeler, Palmer chef, runs on the treadmill in the one-room gym at Palmer Station.”) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Tuesday morning I got up quite early dressed and went down into the cellar to do a stint on my treadmill. I have been quite busy on the treadmill lately so it came as no surprise that I found my session fairly easy to get into. I usually spend between 20 and thirty minutes on the machine burning off plenty of calories but it isn’t so much the calorie burn off that is important as getting my heart to work hard for a time. This builds stamina and keeps the heart and circulatory system in good condition. For quite some time after exercise calories are still being burnt off as the metabolic rate has been increased during the exercise routine. It’s like having a breakfast without the calories! After my exercise I returned to my bedroom to cool off before I could bathe. I watched the news on television for half an hour then bathed and got dressed for the day thinking I was going to be working. No sooner I was dressed I received a call to do an electrical job which I did around ten o’clock before returning home to cook the chicken we had in the fridge. It needed to be cooked on the day so I decided to have my main meal for the day once it was cooked at 12.30. After my dinner I got changed out of my working clothes and into something more appropriate for an afternoon at the pub. I just had to do that because I hadn’t been out of the house throughout the weekend and Monday too. I spent a lovely afternoon meeting and speaking with at least five people I’d never met previously and then with a few friends whom I see quite often. I returned home by 8.30 as I had to get my rest and sleep for a busy day on Wednesday. During my stay at the pub I saw many people coming and going, some dining out for the afternoon or evening and some just coming in for a drink or two. I love people watching, it’s a fascinating hobby of mine and I can almost predict what they will do each time they visit the pub. It was a hot and sunny day on Tuesday and many folk sat outdoors to eat and drink but I stayed indoors, preferring to keep out of the sun.

Shirley Anne

The Nazi origins of the Olympic Flame relay was one of the reasons why Barry Larkin protested against it. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Currently we have the Olympic Torch (Flame) being paraded by runners and others throughout the counties and countries that comprise the UK. There is a lot of hype surrounding this event as with everything that has anything to do with this summers games. It seems we, as a nation, don’t need much of an excuse to celebrate and make a song and dance over any event that we can in any way be a part of. This summer also sees the celebrations surrounding the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee (Anniversary), her reign over this and other lands around the world. Many are encouraged to celebrate both events in their own way. Now it isn’t often we can host the Olympic Games and a diamond jubilee happens but once in a lifetime for anyone. However not everybody holds an interest in either one or both of these things. Personally speaking I am not interested in the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and won’t be celebrating it in any way, probably not watching events on television or anywhere else. The Olympic Games on the other hand will be of interest for me as I like watching sport, well most sporting events anyway, What doesn’t interest me is all the hype surrounding it. I cannot see what it is that people see in looking at someone carrying a flame from one place to another but obviously it is of interest for some. I know it is meant as a symbol reminding us of the games in ancient Greece but in those days it simply meant lighting a fire and keeping it alive for the duration of the games. The practice fell out of use but was re-instated in the 1928 games in Amsterdam. However there was no precedence for carrying a lighted torch as we see today, that was introduced at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. So I shall be watching some of the events, God willing. I take no interest in all the surrounding hype and am not following the Torches progress around the country, not because of its Nazi origins but because I find it all irrelevant and boring. I will say though that the Torch Relay is the source of much fund-raising activities for many deserving charitable causes. In that respect it is a good thing although I feel charitable giving shouldn’t have to rely on such things but that is another story.

Shirley Anne