I am comforted to read that others are like me with my OCD and doubt of salvation. I just read the post “Constant Thoughts of Condemnation with No Hope” by 333grace, and the responses. This makes me feel better: not that people have problems but that I am not alone in this OCD-Salvation thing. It actually gives me, at least briefly, at the moment, some hope.

I see two arguments, one for my salvation and the other against it. For my salvation: I have dozens or hundreds of times tried to turn to Christ and in sincerity say, “Take me!” That is what a Christian friend of mine (now in heaven) said ONCE, and he was saved from then on. I think I mean it. I think that possibly, in a sincere moment and action such as that, Jesus saves a person. Even if the sinner, like me, turns away from Christ at the very next moment. Even if the sinner’s faith wavers so severely that they can turn to Christ at one moment and away the next. Jesus saves in a moment and He does not waver. Ephesians 1:13 says that those who HAVE trusted Christ, past tense, have been sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise. James 1:17 says that in God there is no variation or shadow of turning.

Against my salvation: I wonder if, in my heart of hearts, I have a death-grip on myself and will not let go. If my self has a death-grip on the throne of my life and will not give it to Jesus for REAL. In this case, all my “turnings to Christ” are pantomimes and I do not REALLY give my heart to Jesus. I just go through the motions and say the words. In this case, even though I know I am heading for hell and even though I really do want eternal life, my SELF has a grip on me that will not let go, no matter what.

One person on the thread I mentioned said that once, God interacted supernaturally with them and gave them assurance. I think it might take that to convince me of my salvation. OTOH, Satan could give someone a supernatural experience to fool them.

Can anyone relate? Please pray for me and I’ll pray for you.

There are many opposing interpretations of the Biblical doctrine of hell. Most Christian denominations, interpret "eternal torment in hell" as "Annihilationism". They teach that Gods Word cannot be taken literally and hell is not eternal, they teach that it's an instantaneous burning up and the person's body, sloe and spirt cease to exist.

This view is a direct contradiction to what Gods Word reveals.

Hell is a place of eternal punishment for the unrepentant, characterized by both separation from God's favour and the presence of his wrath. It is not a place of rehabilitation, but a permanent state of suffering for the wicked, who will experience "weeping and gnashing of teeth" and a fire that is not quenched.

God is present in hell not with kindness, mercy, and grace, but with his "wrathful presence" and just punishment.
Hell is a final, permanent state of punishment. The wicked are not annihilated, nor is there a second chance for salvation after death.

Punishment includes positive pains of body and soul, anguish, and despair, described through biblical metaphors like fire and gnashing of teeth.
The wicked are raised from the dead to be judged and then experience the "second death," which is an unending punishment.

The biblical doctrine of eternal torment in hell, which is understood as everlasting, conscious punishment for the unrighteous.
This view, often termed "Eternal Conscious Torment" is supported by scriptural passages like the parables of Jesus that use imagery of "unquenchable fire" and "undying worms," and phrases like "everlasting punishment". To sin against an eternal God warrants a severe and everlasting penalty.

The punishment for sin is considered unending, a concept supported by passages such as Matthew 25:46, which parallels "everlasting life" with "everlasting punishment".

Hell is a place of conscious torment, not annihilation. The wicked will remain conscious and aware of their suffering for eternity.
Hell is a place of final separation from God's presence and grace, it's not an absence of God. Instead, it is experiencing God's wrathful presence.
The torment is a manifestation of God's wrath, which is a just and righteous response to sin against His holy nature.

Some scriptural examples, are found in

Matthew 25:41, 46 Jesus speaks of sending the cursed "into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels" and says these will go away "into everlasting punishment".

Mark 9:43, 48 Jesus uses the imagery of a "fire that never shall be quenched" and "where their worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched" to describe the place of judgment.

Revelation 14:11 The text says, "the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night".

Hebrews 12:29 God is described as a "consuming fire" in reference to his wrath.

Whether or not the hymn is cliche for the Advent season, it never fails to move me. I love it

Its been a LONG time since i posted here (almost 5 years I think).

I'm in a point in my life where there are a lot of decisions that have to made (and made fairly quickly too). I'm somewhat kind of lost when it comes to making the right decisions right now. Also, I feel like the Lord has led me to do certain things however; I feel as if I'm not equipped to do them.

I know this post may seem vague but overall: How am I supposed to know what God wants me to do? And if there are some things he doesnt want me to do, how do I know to stop praying about them?

So, bit of a weird question, but I am wondering if I am eligible to convert to Messianic Judaism?

I come from a Southern Baptist background, but found out that one side of my family was Jewish. They ended up converting to Christianity to better assimilate and avoid discrimination.

I've been told this makes me ethnically Jewish, but I have no connection to the Jewish culture nor religion. I'm virtually indistinguishable from a Gentile when it comes to culture, lifestyle and worldview.

What do you think? Is it Messianic Judaism for me, or am I better off with what I already am?

This is sickening. Virtually everything connected to Trump is.


Native American actor says she was detained by ICE officers who said tribal ID ‘looked fake’
Elaine Miles of Northern Exposure was stopped by four masked men in Seattle while walking to bus stop
Read in The Guardian: Native American actor says she was detained by ICE officers who said tribal ID ‘looked fake’ — Guardian US

None of my posts are me telling you what you need to believe. They are me giving you my perspective and the 'why' of that said perspective. This post will be different. This post is me still working out what it is I believe about Hell and the why of it. All based within the context of 'my' understanding of the Gospel. This is something I'm sure will continue to develop over time as I continue to discover more of God.

- I see in scripture two ages. The present age, and the age yet to come. The present age is understood as being only a temporary age. This is made evident by the fact that there is yet a second age to come.

- In this present, but temporary age, life is temporary. If life is temporary, then logically, death must also be temporary. Maybe this is why death is often referred to as sleep?

- The age to come is understood to be everlasting. If this age is everlasting then so must life be also. And if life is everlasting then, likewise, death must also be everlasting.

- At the end of the first age we will all be resurrected, believers and unbelievers alike. Now because I understand being created in the image of God to mean that we have three defining parts; body, soul, and spirit, I believe all three are essential for life. We cannot exist without all three. (With regards to spiritual death, I believe that our spirit has gone into a dormant state. It is not actually deceased) For this reason I am leaning towards the idea that both believers and unbelievers will receive new bodies at the time we are resurrected. And that these new bodies will be free of a sinful nature. Why?

- We will all stand before the full presence of God. Any corruption within us would likely be obliterated in the full presence of God. Just an assumption on my part. And this is only going to compound the coming judgment for an unbeliever.

- A new sinless body will most likely mean a clear understanding of one's purpose within creation. And it is for this very reason why I am coming to this particular conclusion of Hell, and what that may actually look like. (Again, this is still something I'm working out)

- Unbelievers will suddenly have full awareness of their purpose while at the same time recognizing where their rejection has led them. All the while standing in the full presence of God, the very purpose for their existence. At that moment nothing else will matter to them. All they will want and desire is standing right before them. But... with the knowledge they will never have it due to their former rejection.

- You will now have an unbeliever who's only desire is to worship and to be in the presence of God, but unable to carry it out. (there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth).

- I believe, that in the very beginning, man was created with physical death being a natural part of his existence. Hence the tree of life. As small a possibility as this may have been, a third option was always available: man could have not sinned, but also could have not eaten from the tree of life. Inevitably resulting in everlasting death. Extreme, I know, but hear me out.

- In the age to come, man again has access to the tree of life. So logically, death must still be possible, and dare I say, an option. However, highly unlikely a choice anyone would make after experiencing the full presence of God. Still, the option being there would align with God's character just as it would have in the beginning. And it's the reality of the possibility of death that now applies to unbelievers in this new age.

- If you were to stand in the full presence of God and then suddenly be taken out of His presence, any amount of time, out of His presence, would feel like hell to you.

- In the first part of Genesis, man lived upward of a thousand years. If we carry that over into the new age, you now have unbelievers with new bodies capable of living that same amount of time. This would be worse than any hell anyone could ever imagine. To an unbeliever, any amount of time is going to feel like an eternity. (the word 'Eternity' is often used as hyperbole in scripture since only God is truly eternal)

- An unbeliever will eventually face everlasting death (the second death/lake of fire). But not until after what felt like an eternity of hell for them. In this scenario, not only is God's justice served (experiencing time outside the presence of God in a sinless state where all you want is to be in His presence), but also His love and grace (He does not leave them there for the rest of eternity). I do not find any mention in scripture of man being sent to hell to spend eternity with Lucifer.

As I said, this understanding is something I am currently working out. So I do not hold dogmatically to it. If you do not agree but feel it necessary that I know you don't agree, then do me the respect of explaining why you don't agree, as it may help me in my understanding.

In the end does it matter if I/we understand what exactly Hell is? Not at all. But, everyone is different and being able to answer an unbelievers concerns or questions more confidently may be the defining point of whether they choose to believe or not.

Kemi Badenoch, leader of the opposition in the UK Parliament, a 'cultural Christian' says spending money on benefits is unchristian.


Earlier this month, Badenoch quoted St Paul’s advice to Timothy in the Bible as she argued that the “responsibility and dignity of work” was a Christian imperative, the Times reports.
She said: “St Paul, we read, in the first Epistle to Timothy proclaims that ‘Anyone who does not provide for his own household … is worse than an unbeliever’.

“This is the Christian recognition that we all have duties … To ourselves, to our families and to the community we are part of. Conservatives believe in making work pay, in rewarding risk, in ensuring effort matches reward.”

She continued: “My message is let’s get people off welfare into work. Let us not leave debt for our children and grandchildren. That is the worst unfairness.”

When she was asked to elaborate on what she meant, Badenoch continued: “In early Christian times there was no state or welfare so I think that you can argue that, actually. The Christian tradition is about communities and families and charity, not about compulsory taxation in order to pay welfare.

Any thoughts?

New here, hope to have some great conversations on religion and on politics. I'm a confessional Lutheran (WELS) and grew up in the church, though around my college years I let Worldly things and doubts and people get in the way and make me question God and his existence, thankfully he brought me back into the Fold by the time I turned 30, with a faith stronger than ever. Looking forward to talking with you all!

Part of the New York Public Library’s Spencer Collection, the Tickhill Psalter is on view throughout Advent and Christmas at The Morgan Library & Museum in its exhibit “Sing a New Song: The Psalms in Medieval Art and Life.” A full-page Jesse Tree introduces the Psalms in the Tickhill Psalter, a 14th-century illuminated manuscript from the Augustinian Worksop Priory in Nottinghamshire, England.


Tree of Jesse (Psalm 1), from the Tickhill Psalter, England, Nottinghamshire, Worksop Priory, 1303-14, New York Public Library, Spencer 26. fol. 6v. The Medieval manuscript is on display in Morgan Library’s Advent exhibit. Credit: Courtesy of the Morgan Library


David appears in the historiated B of Psalm 1, providing a conceptual link to scenes from his life in the Jesse Tree on the facing page. “Beatus vir,” or “Blessed is the man,” the first stanza opens in celebration of the one who delights in God’s law, concluding: “That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither, — what they do prospers.”

Continued below.

I have been struggling with OCD and struggling with the gospel for decades. I ask the question because of what I read in a book on Christians with OCD. The book is called Strivings Within by Mitsy VanCleeve. The author talks about how the author of Pilgrim’s Progress, John Bunyan, centuries ago, apparently had OCD. I have read about him and how he kept doubting his salvation and having other struggles. VanCLeeve said that he eventually gave up trying to seek assurance. He decided that come heaven, come hell, he was for ‘venturing all for the name of Christ.’ She said that only by making this decision was he able to continue ‘serving His Lord.’ This jives with other advice I’ve read which says that OCD people must learn to live with the OCD and its uncertainty.

If all of the above is true, then OCD people can never get assurance of salvation, right?. Yet one author I read said that your spiritual life will never really take off until you have assurance.

"New findings show that some coastal regions will become far more acidic than scientists once thought, with upwelling systems pulling deep, CO2-rich waters to the surface and greatly intensifying acidification. Historic coral chemistry and advanced modeling reveal that these regions are acidifying much faster than expected from atmospheric CO2 alone, raising serious concerns for fisheries, marine ecosystems, and coastal economies."

The emissions of CO2 into our atmosphere is not only about rising sea levels and hungry polar bears. It threatens also directly the food production and income of millions of people living near and from the sea.
The acidification of the oceans by the CO2 is a different consequence of the release of this gas, aside from global warming.

Jesus warned us that the road to salvation is straight and narrow and that only a few of us will find it. Many are traveling down the wrong road, which leads to destruction. This is because many of us have heard about salvation but few of us want to do what is necessary to get salvation (many are called but few are chosen). (Matthew 7:13, 14)

Many contend that Jesus did it all and now all we have to do is have faith. It’s starts off with repentance, that’s one of the first thing Jesus says when he got started in his ministry, Jesus says in Luke 5:32 I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

The Bible contains the truth, and the truth is the Word of God, which is the real life of man. "I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth." (St. John 17:6, 8, &17) And Jesus answered him saying, "It is written, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." (St. Luke4: 4) "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." (St. John 6:63)

So we have to believe the word of God and do it. "Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read". (Isaiah 34:16)

Man disobeyed and brought death into the world; Jesus came and restored life unto man. "For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." (1Corinthians 15:21-22) How did Jesus restore life to man? By coming into the world, living a perfect life before God the Father as an example to this disobedient and sinful man. "Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God. "They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of mine head: they that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away." (Psalm 69:1-4)

The Lord gave all of his commandments, laws, and statues to the children of Israel to live by and to teach all of the other sons of Adam. "Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.” (Exodus 19:5-6)

"Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. Your eyes have seen what the LORD did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed Baalpeor, the LORD thy God hath destroyed them from among you. But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day. Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day? Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons; Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.” (Deuteronomy 4:1-10)

Exodus 12:49 One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.

Numbers 15:16 One law and one manner shall be for you, and for the stranger that sojourneth with you.

"I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost, That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh: Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever.” Amen. (Romans 9:1-5)

God also made this proclamation: "So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)

Peace in Christ.

Jesus is being sought in the man-based churches where He is not.

The man-based churches are places where His manifest life is being denied. The Holy One and the Just is being denied. The Lord of glory who has already been raised from the dead to glory is being crucified among the man-based churches where they are “voting” to crucify Him rather than "release" Him in their own lives so that they may live.

He is not there among the dead man-based churches for He IS RISEN. He is alive now so that we may also live now and not mortally die.

Why seek the Living One among the graves of the dead man-based churches where they have crucified the Lord of glory (and are keeping Him that way)?
They are denying the Holy One in their lives so that His life is never made manifest in their mortal flesh. No flesh is being saved among them. They are instead mortally perishing...and they know not what they are doing as they lack understanding of the gospel of the glory of the Lord Jesus. In ignorance do they do it.

Mat 28:5-6 KJV
(5) And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.
(6) He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

When we number/reckon/estimate/count Him among the man-based churches...the gathering of the transgressors (where He is not), then we are taking part in a "vote" in the crucifying the Lord of glory out of our own lives. We "vote" for their "another jesus"....a jesus the barabbas ... whom they are preaching (the jesus who is the antichrist) instead of Jesus the true Christ.

But to those who shall overcome them, He will give us the hidden manna....the hidden wisdom of God ...that is being hidden from the "princes of this age" who are crucifying the Lord of glory....and persuading a multitude to vote to do the same. They know not what they do.

Our Lord will also give us a stone…a white (LIGHT) stone…to vote with. We choose light instead of darkness We are given a new “name”…that is, a new authority to release Jesus in our lives instead of crucifying the Lord of glory out of it. We vote for the true Jesus who is the Christ and who is innocent.

The word for “stone” here in Revelation 2:17 is the Greek word “psēphos” = From the same as G5584; a pebble (as worn smooth by handling), that is, (by implication of use as a counter or ballot) a verdict (of acquittal) or ticket (of admission); a vote: - stone, voice.

Rev 2:17 KJV
(17) He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

We are given the hidden manna...the hidden wisdom of God...and a white stone to “vote” for the release of Jesus in our own lives…a new authority given by Him to us.

Joh 19:10-11 KJV
(10) Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?
(11) Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.

The “chief priests and the elders” of the man-based churches want you to choose their “another jesus”….their jesus the “Barabbas”….which means “son of the father.” They are persuading a MULTITUDE of people to “vote” for the “jesus” of the church fathers that is being preached. When we choose their “jesus” the son of the church fathers, we are choosing to destroy the Jesus out of our own lives.

Mat 27:20-23 KJV
(20) But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.
(21) The governor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas.

When we vote for their “another jesus,” we are then choosing to crucify the true Jesus which is the Christ out of our own lives. His life is not being made manifest in our mortal flesh. They "vote" with their "voice" and ALL say unto him "let Him be crucified."

(22) Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.
(23) And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified.

Act 26:10 KJV
(10) Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice (Greek: psēphos - pebble for voting) against them.

We are denying the Holy One and the Just when we choose their “jesus” the Barabbas….the “jesus” of the church fathers that is being preached by the church rulers…the chief priests and elders. The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob has ALREADY GLORIFIED HIS SON JESUS....so why crucify the Lord of glory out of our own lives? He is risen.

The true witness of the apostles have been silenced.

Act 3:13-15 KJV
(13) The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go.
(14) But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;
(15) And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.

And yet the false witnesses are persuading MULTITUDES to choose their “another jesus” that is being preached in the man-based churches where His resurrected life is not being found as it is being denied by them in their “vote” against Him. The true witnesses...the true apostles... preached the true Jesus and not "another jesus" and is being currently preached by the false apostles...the falsely sent. Jesus was "silent" during the trial of the false accusers which signified the silence of the true witnesses during this time.

2Co 11:3-5 KJV
(3) But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
(4) For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.
(5) For I suppose I was not a whit behind the very chiefest apostles.

But in ignorance do we do crucify the Lord of glory (who has already been raised to glory)…as do our church rulers who have persuaded us to do so.

Act 3:17 KJV
(17) And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.

The church rulers…the princes of this age…are in ignorance of what they are doing… for if they knew the hidden wisdom (the hidden manna) of God, then they would not crucify the Lord of glory whom God has ALREADY raised from the dead. He has already been raised to glory as He currently sits at the right hand of God. They are keeping Him crucified in their churches.

1Co 2:7-8 KJV
(7) But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
(8) Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

Satan’s seat…His throne…is there where he is presiding over this “trial” that is being conducted….in the man-based churches where they are voting to crucify the Lord of glory rather than release Him in their own lives.

False witness have come forth in this trial to persuade the multitudes to vote against Him (to DENY Him) and the pile of stones used to vote to crucify Him has gotten high. “Pergamos” = height, elevation. Truth has perished and is cut off from their mouths. There is no true witness being heard in this "trial". We are only hearing false witnesses.

Rev 2:12-13 KJV
(12) And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
(13) I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.

Satan's throne ...the false accuser's seat...is presiding over this "trial"

No wonder that Pilate sat down in the judgment seat in a place called the “Pavement”…that is, Lithostrotos which means “stones strewn”.

The stones that are being strewn are the votes to crucify the Lord of glory rather than release Him in our lives and the pile of stones has gotten high (Pergamos = height) from the multitude who are choosing "another jesus" an antichrist rather than Jesus who is the true Christ.

When we vote for their “another jesus” the son of the church fathers, we crucify the true Christ out of our own lives instead of releasing Him so that His life shall be manifest in our mortal flesh so that we may shine His glory.

In Hebrew, it is called “Gabbatha”…which means “elevation, height, knoll” and signifies the mounting elevation of the pile of stones that has been strewn to vote to crucify the Lord of glory. This is what “Pergamos” also means: elevation, height. A MULTITUDE has chosen (in ignorance) to crucify the Lord of glory.

Joh 19:13 KJV
(13) When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha.

To those who overcome, He will give a white stone to vote to release Jesus who is the true Christ and overcome the "vote" for "jesus" the barabbas.

Mat 27:17 KJV
(17) Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ?

When I was preparing my recent article about the Little Vespers of the Byzantine Office, I had a chat with one of the wise men I consult about such things, and we got to talking about the length of the service known as All-night Vigil. As previously noted, the term “all” in “All-night” is something of a rhetorical exaggeration, but in large monasteries such as the great houses on Mt Athos, not by much, and this was his description of the order of services for a patronal feast which he attended at one of them.



“Ninth Hour, Small Vespers, dinner in the refectory with solemn procession from the church and then back afterwards.

Break for confessions

Beginning of All-Night Vigil proper

– Vespers with Artoklasia (4 hours; the troparia at the artoklasia took 30 minutes with the terirems, Psalm 103 took 1.5 hours)

Reading of the Saint’s Life (around midnight)

Orthros

After the Kontakion of the Sixth Ode they passed to a full Akathistos (I went to sleep at that point) (Presumably) First, Third, and Sixth Hours, Divine Liturgy
Then procession with water blessing.

Lunch”

Me: “Terirems?” (This word struck me not only because I had never heard it before, but also because it doesn’t sound Greek at all.)

The wise man explained to me that terirems are nonsense syllables added to the liturgy, which were originally spontaneous expressions of joy added to the texts when sung. Over time, they came to be completely scripted, and it is considered part of Byzantine musical formation to study the codified ones. Not at all surprisingly, theological pseudo-explanations have been created to explain them, e.g., that they are words that the angels sing in heaven, or of a lullaby which the Virgin Mary sang to Christ. There is very little information about them available on the internet, but some of the very few references I was able to find say that they were also used to cover the gaps in the music if the clergy hadn’t finished what they were doing. (The syllables te-, ri-, -rem are not the names of notes, by the way.)

Here are a few of examples. You can find more on YouTube by searching in various languages; in Greek, the word is τεριρεμ, in Slavonic and its derivatives, терирем.

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Look at this spectacular panoramic view of the center of Istanbul. In a square, face to face, stand two of the most important places for Christians and Muslims: Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque.

During his visit to Turkey, the Pope had not planned to go to Hagia Sophia, possibly as a gesture of prudence stemming from its history of being reconverted from a Christian temple to a Muslim one in 2020.

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My brother-in-law is doing witchcraft. I got suspicious, and I googled the signs, and it made sense. I'm feeling nauseous after a good cake and a glass of chocolate milk. This should not be so. Yesterday I denied my dad and felt bad afterwards. I didn't want to tell him because I don't want to scare him. So I need prayers because my other brother might be suspicious of him, too. Basically, I want the truth to come out, and the devil needs to stop hiding. We need the truth, God.

The Academy became the model for what a real university should be: a place of honest inquiry, moral formation, and resistance to every ideology, as thinkers from antiquity to Newman have affirmed.

I begin my Introduction to Philosophy course by reading Socrates’ defense of the philosophical way of life. Democratic Athens had found him guilty of corrupting the youth, of making the weaker argument defeat the stronger, of not believing in the gods of the city. These are serious charges, but as Plato later argued, they were sham charges designed to hide the shame of all those whose errors were revealed by the Socratic art of question and answer.

In our own day, Charlie Kirk inspired the wrath against him because, like Socrates, he challenged conventional wisdom through the power of public debate. (A wise person welcomes correction, but most of us resent it.)

Now at his trial, Socrates foretells that should the powers set against him succeed in killing him, they would only unleash dozens more Socrates. Go ahead and sentence me to death, he said, but in doing so, you won’t silence the philosophical voice of conscience: It will only grow louder and more persuasive.

What happened, however, was even more powerful than Socrates guessed. Whereas Socrates wandered about the marketplace and questioned people, Plato set down roots and established a school, called the “Academy,” which worked out answers — a move that was so significant for Western culture that to this day the name of his school has been equated with the highest enterprise of learning.

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For nearly three hundred years, “The Shepherd of Hermas” gave instruction to the members and catechumens of the early Church. It taught them the Christian virtues and called for repentance. After being left out of the cannon of the New Testament, however, “Hermas” faded in popularity and use.

So when “the Lord of the flocks comes, He may rejoice concerning you. And He will rejoice, if He find all things sound, and none of you shall perish. But if He find any one of these sheep strayed, woe to the shepherds! And if the shepherds themselves have strayed, what answer will they give Him for their flocks? Will they perchance say that they were harassed by their flocks?”[1]

The Shepherd of Hermas is an inspiring combination of instructions for living the Christian life and an apocalyptic vision of the saved and the damned. At the most basic level, it is “an uncomplicated guide for repentance and moral living that will lead mankind to justification in the sight of God.”[2] Using parables and allegories, the author instructs the early Church so that its members may lead lives pleasing to God.

This work had great authority in the early Church. According to Carolyn Osiek, “No other noncanonical writing was as popular before the fourth century as the Shepherd of Hermas. It is the most frequently attested postcanonical text in the surviving Christian manuscripts of Egypt well into the fifth century.”[3] It was greatly admired by several of the early Church fathers. “Eusebius tells us that it was publicly read in the churches, and that while some denied it to be canonical, others ‘considered it most necessary’. Saint Athanasius speaks of it, together with the Didache, in connection with the deuterocanonical books of the Old Testament, as uncanonical yet recommended by the ancients for the reading of catechumens.”[4] Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, about A.D. 185 “proclaimed the book was inspired by divine intercession.”[5] This text was cited, either as scripture or as inspired, by Irenaeus, Tertullian, Clement and Origen.[6] Still, it was not included in the canon due to its lack of apostolic origin.

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Some chilling warnings to the faithful from Caesarius of Heisterbach's hagiographical compendium, including a whispering ghost girl, hellbound jousters, and other tormented souls​

Caesarius of Heisterbach (d. 1240) was one of the most popular hagiographers of the Middle Ages. The prior of the Cistercian Heisterbach Abbey, he’s most famous for his Dialogue on Miracles, which was rivaled only by the Golden Legend in popularity. Over the course of a dozen thematic books, Caesarius tells hundreds of miracle stories categorized by themes like Contrition, Confession, Demons, and so on, but the final chapter is what concerns us today: “Of the Punishment and the Glory of the Dead.”

Some glory. Mostly punishment.

These stories are shaped as exemplum: short anecdotes with a pithy moral to them. The telling varies, with most offering simple pious lessons. For instance:

After a deacon had read the gospel for confessors, that is, “Watch, for ye know not at what hour your Lord will come,” in Aulne, a house of our Order, as he finished those words, a monk in the choir fell down and expired. And all were afraid considering the effect of the Lord’s words. There-fore, brothers, because we know not at what hour our Lord will come, let us watch faithfully, let us watch while working that when he comes and shall afflict us with death, we may at once open to Him. May our Lord Jesus Christ deign to grant us that, who will come to judge the living and the dead and the world by fire. Amen.

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Useful information! As a Deacon I’ll keep in mind to be prepared should I drop dead after proclaiming the word.

Some, however, are remarkably vivid. To wit:

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Advent begins this year on Sunday, Nov. 30. Most Catholics — even those who don’t often go to Mass — know that Advent involves a wreath with candles, possibly a “calendar” of hidden chocolates, and untangling strings of Christmas lights. But Advent is much more than that. Here’s an explainer of what Advent is really about.

What is Advent?​

The people of Israel waited for generations for the promised Messiah to arrive. Their poetry, their songs and stories, and their religious worship focused on an awaited savior who would come to them to set them free from captivity and to lead them to the fulfillment of all that God had promised.

Israel longed for a Messiah, and John the Baptist, who came before Jesus, promised that the Messiah was coming and could be found in Jesus Christ, God’s Son, the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”

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Pope Leo XIV concluded the first half of his six-day apostolic journey to Turkey and Lebanon by praying with Orthodox Christian communities in Istanbul, before departing for Beirut, Lebanon, for the rest of his historic trip.

Watch LIVE the major events of Pope Leo’s apostolic journey Nov. 27 to Dec. 2 at youtube.com/@ewtnnews and follow our live updates of his historic visit:

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Singer, rapper, and songwriter, Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason Bradley DeFord, credited God for his success after receiving three Grammy nominations for 2026.

On Nov. 7, it was announced that Jelly Roll and Christian musician Brandon Lake were nominated for Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song for their collaboration on Lake’s “Hard Fought Hallelujah.” Jelly Roll was also nominated for Best Contemporary Country Album for “Beautifully Broken,” and Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “Amen.”

The nominations came as a shock to Jelly Roll, who shared his excitement in a social media video. He said he first learned of the nominations while in Australia and described the moment as “probably the craziest thing that’s ever happened” in his life.

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Would Christianity still dominate the United States if it were reimagined as a small town of 100 people?

That's the premise of a new report from Pew Research Center, which offered fresh analysis of America's religious landscape through the lens of Pew's sweeping 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study (RLS).

The study, conducted from July 17, 2023, to March 4, 2024, surveyed nearly 37,000 U.S. adults and paints a portrait of a community where belief — or the lack thereof — shapes neighborhoods, generations and daily life.

Noting that the U.S. has a population of roughly 262 million adults, with Christianity claiming about 162 million adherents and 76 million people reporting no religious affiliation, Pew researchers acknowledge that grasping the full scope of faith in America can feel overwhelming.

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