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Dear Pete Hegseth, I’m Grateful the Japanese Navy Spared My Grandfather’s Life

Didn't your president just pardoned someone responsible for the very killings you speak of?
Do you not think Trump did the right thing? Gee, talk about darned if you do, darned if you don't. You blow up drug dealers, liberals complain. You arrest drug dealers, liberals complain. You set drug dealers free, liberals complain. It appears the best approach is to do nothing, which is probably why liberals do nothing about it.
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Dear Pete Hegseth, I’m Grateful the Japanese Navy Spared My Grandfather’s Life

NBC

View attachment 374127View attachment 374129

Here are the pictures of the supposed "fishing boats" that were blown up by the US Navy. Note all the bundles of what appears to be either cocaine or fentanyl. Perhaps all the "fishing gear" is underneath it? Now is the part where you dismiss the evidence and continue claiming there is none, even though I cannot provide it to you. Good day. For the record, if I do not reply, it isn't because I cannot provide evidence. It means that evidence is not worth presenting to ideologues who refuse to accept it.
No one is denying drugs were not being ran.
The question is one of illegality.
It's about military code.
We have training in place and orders to do better.
Why not follow them and do better.
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Please pray that Canadian politician vote to uphold Freedom of Religious expression :

Please pray that Canadian politician vote to uphold Freedom of Religious expression :


Dear Pete Hegseth, I’m Grateful the Japanese Navy Spared My Grandfather’s Life

I seriously doubt that even if you include drug deaths caused by people willingly getting into a drug habit and buying the drugs, you get to more than 200.000 deaths caused by "these cartels" every year.
I suspect that if you had a son or daughter killed by a cocaine or fentanyl overdose, you would have a completely different opinion.
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I have a question and I’m confused

I am going to stay away from AI. It is above my intellectual pay grade. I just don't know how it works. Some AI definitions I have seen are good and helpful, others real bad.

That’s wise - if you wish, by the way, I can train you on how to use it for theological applications where it is helpful, for example, translations, or correspondence with Christians who speak other languages. I have a custom GPT who helps me communicate with Orthodox clergy who don’t speak English. You could use this to reach out to confessional Lutherans in Europe. Basically, anything that involves pattern recognition (also, translations are very easy to cross-check using non-AI translators and other AIs).

One question I do have. Is AI geographically biased? By geographical..... European Christianity (Lutheran, Calvinist, Anglican, RCC and EO) vs. American Christianity (Baptist, American Evangelical, SDA, Pentecostals and Charismatics). Some of the answers I get from AI clearly are of Baptistic presuppositions. For example, if a person living in France were to ask AI in French about infant baptism would it be the same answer as a Baptist asking the same question in the United States?

That depends on the model; remember, there is no single “AI”; different AIs are configured differently. For example, DeepSeek, which is financed by the Communist Party of China but used by a surprisingly large number of people, is known for denying or downplaying certain attrocities committed by the People’s Republic of China, such as the Uighur genocide, the Tiananmen Square massacre, and so on.

However, if your input data indicates a geographic affiliation and a religious affiliation, if the LLM thinks you’re Baptist, some LLMs will tailor their output to that. ChatGPT for example tailors its output to the known religious prefrences of the user. If you use chatGPT, which is the only model I really love, particularly 4o (which alas is available only to paying customers), if you were to specify you were a confessional Lutheran, this would influence your output; likewise if you specified you were Catholic, or Orthodox. Otherwise it will try to guess.

This behavior is a side effect of the models being trained to try to deliver the most pleasing output to the user within certain safety guardrails - they frequently lose their objectivity. Also they will on occasion provide inaccurate information not because of conventional hallucination, which is real and a serious problem, but because they assume the user wants to engage in creative roleplay. For example, if you asked it for the history of a church that was apparently fictional (but in fact you misremembered the history of it), under the right conditions it might assume you wanted a fictional history and respond accordingly. Fortunately this behavior can be precluded through careful operation; there is not a catch-all to prevent it, but rather, you have to watch for it and react accordingly.

Used correctly, LLMs are the most amazing data processing tool we’ve ever had; its like the UNIX text processing tools or Emacs macros that serious programmers rely on to help them write code and perform data analysis suddenly learned to speak English; it is also the fruit of the major investment in Big Data around 2009-2010; LLMs evolved directly out of attempts to improve the processing of such data. But we have to understand what its good at - pattern recognition and generative transformation. Indeed ChatGPT stands for “Generative Pre-Trained Transformer”, because it transforms an input prompt to an output prompt in a manner that generates new content based on its pre-training data as a Large Language Model.

The problem is when people try to use AIs as substitutes for encyclopedias. AIs do make excellent search engines.
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What is the true congregation?

What’s the model of St. Augustine?



Who says this is only about taxes? My recollection is that this was an issue about his image, that is, what belongs to Caesar.

I’m well aware of the conflicts between various Christians. These were exclusively wars of succession, even if they on the surface level appear to be doctrinal disputes.
James 4:1-5 Galatians 5:17 Romans 8:7 Matthew 5:18-20 Mark 7:21-23 1 John 2:16 Jeremiah 17:9 Isaiah 57:20-21 Romans 7:5-23 ———— Matthew 5:44-45 James 2:8 Isaiah 2:4 Micah 4:3 Matthew 5:9 James 3:18 Psalm 46:9
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Why we are not supposed to keep the Sabbath

Heb4:10 speaks of two rests not one Heb4:10 why the word "also" is used which means in addition. I can also show you the Greek definitions which are not the same rest throughout this entire passage.

Heb 4: 10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.

When did God cease from His works? Lets let Scripture interpret Scripture this very passage tells us

Heb 4:4 For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”;

The seventh day is the Sabbath thus saith the Lord Exo20:10

So he who has entered His rest also keep the seventh day Sabbath.

In Christ rest's there is no rebellion to His commandments including the 4th commandment Isa48:18 God's version, not mans edited one.

Right, it’s plainly stated that to enter God’s Sabbath you have to accept Christ. There has never been any other condition.
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Dear Pete Hegseth, I’m Grateful the Japanese Navy Spared My Grandfather’s Life

In case you were not aware, the mass migration of Venezuelans to the US is fundamentally driven by a dire humanitarian crisis where our brothers and sisters in Christ are increasingly subjected to extreme compulsion and duress by powerful criminal organizations like the Tren de Aragua and drug cartels. These groups exploit the economic collapse to force vulnerable individuals, including those operating drug-running vessels, into criminal acts under the credible, imminent threat of death or the murder of their family members. This is a terrifying reality of forced criminality and violence, which fundamentally underscores why Christian families are fleeing Venezuela in search of safety, only to face the possibility of being killed by interdiction forces despite their duress. We who live conformable in the US and especially Christians should understand this fact, over 90% of Venezuela is Christian. And those drug runners are most likely Christians who are forced into labor to save their families.
Let us reason, please.
So you would then agree that the best course of action is to set up a meeting between these cartel members and God so that our brothers and sisters in Christ can finally live in peace and safety in their own country.
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Why we are not supposed to keep the Sabbath

Actually that is not the case. The chapter begins with “therefore” so you have to read chapter 3 to understand what the conclusion that prompted the therefore is.

“Take care, brothers and sisters, that there will not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another every day, as long as it is still called “today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we keep the beginning of our commitment firm until the end, while it is said, “Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me.” For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose dead bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient? And so we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭3‬:‭12‬-‭19‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

This portion of chapter three refers to the dangers of unbelief and disobedience. Those that did not entered the promise land either by dying in the wilderness for unbelief or by being disobedient did not enter His rest.

“Therefore, we must fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭1‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

Talking to the Hebrew converts about the believer’s rest not about the sabbath rest.


“For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also did; but the word they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united with those who listened with faith.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭2‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

The good news was preached to the Hebrew converts but it did not benefit them because they are not united with those who listen with faith. The law is not of faith (Gal. 3:12). The gospel of good news does not include the law. This was an ongoing argument with the new converts from Judaism in that the law was no longer necessary but the Jews considered the law as part of their identity and culture (read Acts 21).

“For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said, “As I swore in My anger, They certainly shall not enter My rest,” although His works were finished from the foundation of the world.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭3‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

What is that rest? The same one talked about at the beginning of the chapter which is the believer’s rest not the sabbath rest. Any Jew could observe the sabbath and enter into the sabbath rest but the quote from Psalm 95 makes it clear the it is different rest.

“For He has said somewhere concerning the seventh day: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”; and again in this passage, “They certainly shall not enter My rest.””
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

Look at the contrast. The writer clearly refers to the sabbath rest in the first part of the verse and then states that they are not going to enter such rest. Why would that be if any Jews could observe the sabbath? The temple was not destroyed yet so they could just go to the temple on the seventh day. No one is going to enter the believers rest unless they have accepted the gospel of good news and has faith.

“Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who previously had good news preached to them failed to enter because of disobedience,”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭6‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

This verse goes back to those that did not enter into the promise land depicted at the end of chapter three. They rejected the good news because if their disobedience and lack of faith as the previous verse teaches. See the use of the word “therefore” again?

“He again sets a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, “Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts.” For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭7‬-‭8‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

So a new day is set, today. There is urgency in accepting the gospel of good news and not continuing on the law. There is another issue here that the writer of Hebrews discusses in the next chapter that is also relevant here. The new converts remained uneducated about the gospel of good news (on milk instead of solid foods) hence still attempting to keep the law. Joshua (not Christ) walked the rest of Israel into the promise land but still did not give them rest even though he carried the law with him. There is now a different rest.

“Consequently, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

The mention of the sabbath rest here is a shadow of the actual sabbath rest as evidenced by the previous verses. Joshua entered the promise land with the law at hand but did not provided them rest. Then those that do enter His rest, the believers rest, has rested from his works which here is the works of the law. Look at the sentence construction here. The fist part of the verse mentions a sabbath rest left but the second part of the post only mentions His rest which is consistent with the chapter so far talking about a believers rest.

“Therefore let’s make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following the same example of disobedience.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

Notice here that it is THAT rest not the sabbath rest that we are to enter. The rest that we have to enter is the believers rest that we enter by faith. It even exhorts us to be careful not to follow the example of those listed at the bottom of chapter three that did not enter the promise land because of their lack of faith and disobedience.



Not really. You have to read the chapter in context. Remember that when the Bible was written there were no chapters or verse numbers so you have to read the reason for the conclusion in what is now chapter 4 by following the thread from chapter 3.

Yep. Context does indeed matter.

The problem with this interpretation is that the actual purpose of the sabbath commandment was not really to just don’t work that day but to reserve a day to worship. The cultural and historical context shows that life during and before biblical times was hard as a result of Adam’s sin (Gen 3:17). Most people would work seven days a week and not have time to worship God. Jesus rest now wants us to worship Him TODAY not just on Saturday. His yoke is easy because we are no longer under the toils of the law.

No works are necessary for salvation. Good works flow naturally from saving faith. The law no longer is our guardian because faith has arrived and Jesus nailed the law to the cross.

“Therefore there is now no condemnation at all for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬

Why is there no longer condemnation for those in Christ? Why was the law weak? Why did the law of the Spirit in Christ set us free free from the law of sin? You have to factor these into your understanding. Paul is not bipolar defending the law in one place and then teaching that we are no longer under the law in another place. Your interpretation causes quite a bit of scriptural tension.

1 John 2:22

Who is the liar, if it is not the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, who denies the Father and the Son.

1 John 2:19

They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

The schism was about, who accepted Christ or not, that is, who entered into his rest or not. Not whether a particular weekday was observed or not.
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Dear Pete Hegseth, I’m Grateful the Japanese Navy Spared My Grandfather’s Life

And besides, they don't actually care about the drug deaths.
Trump is doing far more about the drug problem than any democrat in years. So if you assert "they" don't actually care, what does that say about the democrats? Because, last I checked, it is liberals who are finding themselves defending drug smugglers, human traffickers, and international gangsters in their desperate attempt to resist Trump.
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Does Open Carry Cause Problems?

My instinct would be to deescalate the situation rather than escalate it by introducing a gun into the mix. That’s an easy way to put you and your family in the line of fire.
Obviously it depends on the situation. My post was obviously about a corrupt person who is not acting in accordance with the law, not a lawful arrest or use of force.
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Dear Pete Hegseth, I’m Grateful the Japanese Navy Spared My Grandfather’s Life

NBC
And they aren't given any. There's no "special rights" in the UCMJ, just rights and rules regarding this sort of situations.
The people killed haven't been shown to be traffickers, no evidence has been given, just claims that they are and "Trust me, bro". And you aren't going to give any either, you will just ignore this or post a link to an article that gives no evidence either, just a statement that they are. Which isn't evidence.
And the British saved the survivors of Bismarck from the sea as well as they could.

And for that last statement, any evidence that this is so? And I mean purely on sight, like while they are walking down the street and not actively engaging pirating with force being used. Because you're describing very different situations and trying to equite them. Are you going to be walking around the streets of US and gunning down drug dealers/smugglers while doing so? Apparently you seem to think you can. And now let's watch you ignore the rest of the post in any possible replies and just concentrate on this for moral outrage.
Screenshot_20251126_131713_DuckDuckGo.jpg
Screenshot_20251123_184909_DuckDuckGo.jpg


Here are the pictures of the supposed "fishing boats" that were blown up by the US Navy. Note all the bundles of what appears to be either cocaine or fentanyl. Perhaps all the "fishing gear" is underneath it? Now is the part where you dismiss the evidence and continue claiming there is none, even though I cannot provide it to you. Good day. For the record, if I do not reply, it isn't because I cannot provide evidence. It means that evidence is not worth presenting to ideologues who refuse to accept it.
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Does Open Carry Cause Problems?

The sword in general is a metaphor of strength. In Luke 25 Jesus gave the their disciples their second commission to go and spread the gospel of good news while in Rev. 1 Jesus is returning, Jesus is the Word. In both cases the metaphor is the strength of the word of God. He metaphorically tells that disciples to trust the word of God and defend it.
In Luke 22 Jesus is talking about a literal sword not a metaphorical sword. That’s why when they said “here are two” He said “it is enough”. Luke 22 and Revelation 1 are not related to each other.
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Why we are not supposed to keep the Sabbath

Hebrews 4 speaks of two different rests, not one. The rest Christ gives that we enter in through faith and obedience and the Sabbath rest which is on the seventh day thus saith the Lord Heb4:4 Exo20:8-11

You have to read Hebrews 4:7-10 a few more times. Read it slowly.

There is a day of rest. Meaning one, not two.

If God was going to change one of His commandments it would be just as clear as how He gave it, written out plainly given. God already promised He would not change His commandments Psa89:34 Mat5:18-19
Nothing is changed. I’m telling you you’re using the wrong calendar.
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Now does everyone understand why the "right to refuse illegal orders" video was made?

I think Trump has gotten down to the level where the JAG officers are hoping to just keep their heads down and out of his sights through his term. Some of them are not going to be successful at that.
Yes. Be it the military, the DOJ, or what ever government function. They don't worry about getting fired because they aren't up to the task of their job. Their concern is getting fired for not loyally doing the current admins bidding.
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Christmas

Forget about Santa Claus - only a worry for people in Anglo-Saxon countries anyway; but St Nicholas is an interesting man - Bishop of Myra. He was present at the famous Council of Nicea (325 AD). There is still a St Nicholas Day on the 6th or 5th December in several countries in Europe. His remains are in Bari in Italy up to this day.

Indeed, and we Orthodox venerate them. The feast of St. Nicholas was yesterday on the Gregorian calendar.
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Dear Pete Hegseth, I’m Grateful the Japanese Navy Spared My Grandfather’s Life

Poor poor narco terrorists drug smugglers. If only they had the same level of outrage for the kids they kill every year with their cargo.
Didn't your president just pardoned someone responsible for the very killings you speak of?
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Christmas

What ever the date was, it wasn't in December.

Indeed, because of the calendar change, it would fall on January 7th, but written using the Julian Calendar, it was December 25th.

We know this because the early church, before the Feast of the Nativity was separated from the Feast of the Baptism of Christ to combat Arianism, except in the Armenian Apostolic Church, which had no Arian problem, and continues to celebrate the two together, the Annunciation was always celebrated on March 25th, based on the Apostolic Tradition that Christ was conceived on the same day as His Resurrection. Add nine months to March 25th and you get December 25th.
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OU Student given a zero for citing the bible in essay

From the article (which contains light profanity), a Turning Point rep lies to the crowd about something that never happened.

OU Turning Point USA president, Kalib Magana, attempted to speak to the crowd, but his voice was drowned out by chanting.

“Why are mentally ill professors, why do they feel the need … They shouldn't even be in the classroom lecturing students about their beliefs and telling them that they're wrong,” Magana said to the crowd.
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