I doubt that.

JimR-OCDS said:

In my 73 years as a Catholic, I've only knew one priest who had some questionable behavior and was once accused of
sexual abuse by a person who was suing him, the order he belong to and the Church. I don't know the end result
and I believe things may have been settled out of court, which usually happens.

I know priests who were falsely accused and their cases dismissed. The damage done by the accusation as it made
the headlines in the local papers, was deep. The acquittal was not printed in the same papers which headlined
the accusation when it came out. The worst case was a Vietnamese monk who spent 23 years in a communist
prison and was released when he was diagnosed with cancer. A local monastery I often attended, took him in.
Eventually a woman who often dressed as a nun, but was not one, accused him of sexual abuse. Eventually the
case was dismissed by the woman's own testimony and confession in court. The priest died not long after
from his cancer.

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Wow. How can someone be so cruel? Lord have mercy!

trophy33 said:

I am not sure why you even want to instruct me to reach him. I reacted to his post clearly and specifically. If he wants to add or clarify something, he can.

And after a day of trying to get simple answers from people here on forum in various places, I was generalizing, not talking specifically about ViaCrucis. It looks like vagueness, non-answers and useless speculating is widespread and I got frustrated after the day.

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Please forgive me as I value and love you as a brother in Christ and don’t wish to frustrate you.

I will, if you wish, try to write a very exact and concise answer of my own to this question, but I need a bit of time since as you know, my habitual style is long winded and meandering and I do not want to add to your frustration with a rushed response.

Very odd. His remains belong in a Catholic Church.

Isn’t she from New York and not California? I’m confused, here.

...But it didn't used to be!

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I'd be more okay if Waters was just an anti-Semite. But when he became a Pro-Palestinian too, he started to seem more like a bandwagon sellout.

The Quiet Radiance - A Story of Strange Grace and Uneasy Welcome


In the quiet town where the church stood, Pastor Sarah was the heart of the community—a beacon of warmth, always ready with a kind word, a helping hand, and an open door. Her gentle presence wove through the congregation, soothing fears, tending needs, and cultivating a culture of welcome. She believed deeply in inclusion, tirelessly organizing events, ensuring no one felt left out. Her church was a sanctuary where everyone could find comfort and belonging.

Then came Grimace—a towering figure cloaked in soft purple fuzz, his broad, rounded form awkwardly ill-suited for the narrow wooden pews. Time and again, he attempted to sit, but his sprawling limbs would not fold neatly, his bulky shape pressing uncomfortably against the polished benches. He quickly abandoned these attempts, standing instead near the side aisle—a quiet sentinel, his fuzzy purple presence glowing faintly in the filtered light of stained glass. He did not speak much, but his very being filled the space, both unsettling and undeniable.

Pastor Sarah met Grimace’s presence with warm smiles and gentle invitations—to sit, to join the circle, to share in fellowship. Yet his refusal to conform to expected patterns unsettled the church’s rhythm. His uncontainable shape and silent steadfastness became a living symbol of all the church had yet to embrace. The softness of his purple fuzz caught the light, casting an otherworldly glow that seemed to hum beneath the familiar hymns and prayers.

One afternoon, alone in the quiet sanctuary after the service, Pastor Sarah found herself drawn to Grimace’s side. Watching the way he stood—vulnerable in his awkwardness—something stirred deep within her. It was a revelation unlike any she had expected.

In that moment, she saw clearly: beneath the unusual exterior, beneath the awkwardness and difference, was the unmistakable imprint of the Divine. Grimace bore the image of God—not despite his strangeness, but through it. The sacred was not confined to the neat, the comfortable, or the familiar; it was alive in the strange and the awkward, the fuzzy and the towering.

This truth unsettled Pastor Sarah as much as it comforted her. The church she had nurtured with such care suddenly felt fragile. The culture of easy welcome, of polished inclusion, had been shown to be wanting.

The congregation, too, felt the shift. Some recoiled, uncertain how to hold the mystery standing beside them. Others clung to familiar comforts, afraid to loosen the walls they had built. Yet the church found, with uneasy grace, a way to make room—carving out a space where Grimace could stand, not just tolerated but quietly honored.

The sanctuary was forever changed. The hymns carried a new weight, the prayers a new longing. And Pastor Sarah, forever marked by the revelation, knew the journey toward true inclusion—toward seeing God’s image in every shape and hue—had only just begun.

Grimace’s purple fuzz, his silent, awkward presence, remained a gentle, persistent reminder: holiness is found not in perfection or ease, but in the courageous embrace of difference, the vulnerable standing tall in the light of God’s love.

Dave Watchman said:

If Newton can be wrong, not I, but my read on the materials, could be wrong as well. As I constantly review them, I can't see where my read is erroneous.

The first I ever heard it mentioned was on this Christian Forums. A member called Interplanner just asked a simple question about it in 2014. Sometimes these forums can be virtual idea factories.

It did happen. There's more than one source of archeological evidence.

I'm still very sure that it did happen. I constantly review the materials.

The end came.

"And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.​

Thanks John. You can shake the dust off your sandals Brother. The end of the Gospel being preached by mankind, to the ends of the earth.. Then another John, John the Apostle, showed up to measure the Inner court. At that point the power was given to the Two Witnesses who stand before the Lord of the whole earth.

Daniel did. He wrote that from the going forth of the decree to restore Jerusalem, it would be 7 and 62 weeks, until Messiah the Prince.

Yes there are. So we must be getting close, or are even closer than we think. If it were to happen even before then, it would not surprise me. It must be happening now. Another guy writes the "weeks" has to do with the feast of weeks, of Shavuot, or Pentecost. That means into 2026? I don't know about that. I doubt it would be on an exact feast day. Pope Gregory switched New Years Day from April to January after our starting point, so it might go to April. I don't know about that. I wouldn't count on it.

I wrote a very long note on another forum last weekend with an update on the empirical. I noticed a new twist on the materials, even Newton had mentioned it as "the compass of a Jubilee". And on another little forum which has gone out of business, I remember a member writing how the prophetic time periods have been reversed in our end times and are a "reverse mirror image" of the originals. I see two reasons why this was done. Because the 69 week interval is already split up for us as 7 and 62 weeks, like Newton suggested, the time frames may be used individually, or interchangeably, with the 7 weeks preceding Messiah's second Visitation. Therefore being the "compass of a Jubilee."

One guy got mad, and among other things, accused me of having a "private interpretation". Lol. I don't think he understands what Paul meant when he wrote the private interpretation verse. Some translations are misleading. Paul wasn't talking about your, or my interpretation as readers of the Bible Prophecy, he was talking about the Bible writers of the prophecy, not having their own interpretation of it. Even the AI on my Brave Browser seems to get it wrong. AI just really is digesting what it sees already written which is popular on the Net. Private interpretation really means of "private origin".

Inn this case, KJV is best:

"Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.​

I mention this as it's a coincidence, Ebed did a fine explanation of "private interpretation" in the thread where Interplanner mentioned our starting point:

Daniel 9

The correct understanding is that the prophecy given in the Bible is not discernable in two ways. Its not mistakable. If you propose a contrary interpretation to another, one of you is wrong, if not both. The rest of what you said is a given.. That is not at all what it says...but if you...

www.christianforums.com

Interplanner Oct. 13, 2014:

Daniel 9

Doug, I know of no futurist comments on Lk 13's 'blessed is he...' that make any sense. It's postiioned half way through the ministry; he cannot and did not mean a distant prophecy moment; he meant what would happen that year. Give it a go.

www.christianforums.com

Peaceful Sabbath.

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And Matt 24:36 and Mark 13:32 says that no one and not even the angels know when Christ is coming back!!
dan p

Update: She's being transferred from a local hospital to a university hospital. Please continue to pray for her to get better.

Always in His Presence said:

Oh, the drama! - Why didn't Biden do one thing about it when the funds were already available?

Biden Admin had the funds for four years - why didn't they do ANYTHING with them?

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The Federal Government provides the funds, the states and the county within those states decide how that money is allocated.
Kern County believed using the money to provide a warning system that had been trying to get for years, was somehow tied to some government conspiracy and told Biden et al to go pound sand. That conspiratorial mindset we see deeply set in conservatives, cost them lives. It's no different then Covid vaccinations and the current rise in measles outbreaks. Again, I quote Forrest Gump's Mother.

Larniavc said:

AI answer

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AI programs normally just reuse old information.

Did any newspapers write the original post idea
before me ?

Maybe I want some candy, like a whole lot of candy?

My aunt does dishes.

DISH

You obviously underestimated rabid emus.

RABID

Whither the “Harmful Spirit?”

There are stories in the Bible whose main plot is given the most attention but missing are the details behind the plots. For example, a lot of people are familiar with the Biblical story of “David and Goliath,” but are they familiar with the events leading up to that famous encounter between the two, which has fostering ideas including the size of a person may not necessarily make him a victor in a fight with a much smaller person? And where does the “Harmful Spirit” fit in? Well, here’s the story behind the story.

It starts in 1 Samuel 15:1 in the OT. In those days, the Philistines were a massive headache to the people of Israel. Do things like this ever change with the people Israel? Anyway, as told in 1 Samuel 15, the Lord says to Samuel to go to Saul and tell him God has anointed Saul King over Israel. Samuel further says to Saul that God wants him to annihilate the Amalekites, who had tormented the Hebrews on their way to Israel in their 40-year journey from Egypt. Samuel says that God wants nothing left, not “man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey,” as it says in 1 Samuel 15:3.

So, Saul defeats the Amalekites, but contrary to God’s command, Saul spares its King and takes alive “the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fattened calves and the lambs, and all that was good,” not destroying them, according to 1 Samuel 15:9.

In Verse 10, God tells Samuel He regrets having made Saul King since Saul, by sparing the animals mentioned above, has disobeyed him. In subsequent Verses Samuel conveys this message to Saul, and he also essentially tells Saul that God has fired him as King of Israel.

What follows in Chapter 16 is a tie-in that eventually leads to David’s fight with Goliath. In 1 Samuel 16:14–17, God sends a “harmful spirit” to torment Saul. Saul’s servants, seeing this, tells Saul that a man who is “skillful in playing the lyre” will make Saul well when he plays it. Saul tells his servants to provide such a man. The man happens to be David. Not only that, but before David appears to Saul, David in 1 Samuel 16:12 is anointed the new King of Israel by God, and Saul doesn’t know this; neither do most of Israel’s people.

So, when David appears before Saul and plays his lyre, Saul is made well and he keeps David by his side, not knowing that he’s keeping by his side his own replacement.

Shortly thereafter, in Chapter 17, Goliath issues his challenge to Saul to send one man alone against Goliath to fight him. David, knowing he has Saul’s ear, convinces Saul to let him fight Goliath. Saul, convinced, says ‘OK, go,’ and the rest is history.

Would David have known of the challenge if he wasn’t in Saul’s company? Who knows? But in Chapter 18, Saul becomes jealous of David who is glorified by the Israelis, to the point where he tries to kill David with a spear. But the Harmful Spirit appears again in 1 Samuel 18:10, causing Saul to rave within his house. With the presence of the Harmful Spirit, though, Saul misses realizes at that point that God is with David and He had departed from Saul.

Too make a long story short, after a number of interceding events including battles involving David, in 2 Samuel 5:1–3 David is anointed King by the people of Israel. All things considered, it seems the “Harmful Spirit” was harmful only to Saul.

The finest diplomacy! Making Autocrats Gleeful Again!
Maybe he can fix everything like he did with North Korea.

Shunned Myanmar leader thrilled at US recognition after Trump tariff letter​

Min Aung Hlaing expresses ‘sincere appreciation’ for letter from US president threatening 40% tariff

Myanmar’s military leader has praised Donald Trump and asked him to lift sanctions, as the junta sought to capitalise on a tariff letter from the US president believed to be Washington’s first public recognition of its rule.

US diplomats do not officially engage with Min Aung Hlaing or the ruling junta, which seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.

RileyG said:

I see. Thank you!

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no problem!

Well, Noah does not curse Ham who did the thing. But Noah curses "Canaan" who was a son of Ham. Plus, Ham had other sons who are not recorded as being cursed.

So, all the ones who come from Ham are not necessarily cursed. Plus, all in sin are cursed.

But God did bless them all, after the flood. So, I can see His blessing could have overruled Noah's cursing, to some extent.

Plus, Jesus on the cross put an end to any curses we have had in sin. We have gotten a new beginning with Jesus. So, even if someone were cursed by Noah, that is ended by trusting Jesus on the cross.

So, what did Ham do? May be, since its effects are canceled by those who join with Jesus at Calvary . . . it is a past thing, and our attention belongs now with Jesus . . . answering to Him, not trying to get Him to answer to us.

Jeff Saunders said:

I do not believe in purgatory, but I also do not believe any man can outlast the love of God, Jesus left the 99 and searched until he found the lost sheep, I believe that its mans arrogance that makes him think he can resist Gods love forever, that is creating a god in our own image. Western Tradition has made God just like the gods of old, just the biggest and baddest, think about it the pagan gods demanded blood and sacrifice, burn your kids to Molach or Baal to appease the gods favor, the gods of old were jealous, doing things they wish they had not done, if you crossed them they got even, torturing forever, no problem. That is not Yahweh, the God of scripture.

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Purgatory is nothing more or less than the refinement or final purification of those whose hearts are not yet fully set on God, so that they can see Him. Hell is for those who don't want to see Him. Freedom is intended for that purpose: of our coming to desire Him, the ultimate Good, first above all else-for our highest good which is always His desire for us.

Does He value that freedom enough to allow us to ultimately and permanently choose against Him? That's the question. But, in that case, it's not about an angry big bad aloof and distant God, but about an incomparably good parent who finally lets His wayward child have their own way.

And I think it's man's humility that makes him think he might be able to resist God's love forever, and man's pride that actually could make that happen. The humble ones are the ones who won't resist, however. Will we all finally be humbled? That's the question.

Tuur said:

Canada is Canada. .... Just because we share a long border doesn't mean we have to be friends, or would even want to be.

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Canada is not Canada.... Canada has fallen into the hands of global communism. It’s not a question about having to be friends with Canada, it’s a question of sharing a long border with a fallen Canada that has become a threat to US national security. America can not share a long border with global communism, nor can they trust global communists and share military intelligence, nor can they tolerate global communists as northern neighbours. So instead of using the power of the US military to change the situation, they’re using the power of trade. China loving communist Canada and the EU are now viewed as a single entity that is posing a threat to US national security, and Trump has just recently taken similar action towards the EU, as he’s taken towards Canada.

Felix

Amo2 said:

The following quote is from the link below. Emphasis is mine.

FOX's Book of Martyrs

Which itself is from this link below

Fox's Book of Martyrs

Fox's Book of Martyrs. A very pertinent read regarding the OP of the topic.

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Fox failed to mention the attrocities committed against Roman Catholics, for example the Martyrs of Gorkum, whose feast was this week, who were the victims of shocking cruelty.

Thus, as a Protestant martyrology his work is acceptable, but reading an account of the period of 1500-1900 without reading the Roman martyrology for the same period results in bias.

The cruelty was made worse by the fact that, as the Roman martyrology states, “agónem suum, adstrictis láqueo fáucibus, consummárunt” - they were hanged with the noose tied around their jaws. Their bodies were also desecrated, in some cases while they were still alive, since hanging in that vicious manner does not produce a quick or painless death.

Thus the message is we should reject all sectarian violence rather than falsely assuming Protestants or indeed Orthodox are incapable of attroticites and preposterously blaming everything on the Roman Catholic Church.

The point of studying the Spanish Inquisition is not that Catholics are uniquely evil, but humans are capable of great evil even when seeking to do good.

Even as of 2020 NPR was one of the most partisan news sources available. The idea that such outlets are "public media" is a farce.