Aryeh Jay said:

Lies and distractions! Anything to put the greatest President of the United States in a negative light. The true American people will not be fooled by this attack by the fake lying liberal media.

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Denial is a poor defense against facts.

As the centenary of the Calles Law, which precipitated the bloodiest wave of religious persecution against Mexican Catholics, approaches in 2026, the Mexican Bishops’ Conference (CEM, by its Spanish acronym) paid tribute to the more than 200,000 martyrs of the Cristero Resistance, recalling that they said “with their lives what they proclaimed with their lips: Christ is King, not the oppressive state; Christ is King, not the dictator of the day who is wrapped up in his pride.”

The Mexican bishops expressed this sentiment in their message to “the people of God,” titled “Church in Mexico: Memory and Prophecy — Pilgrims of Hope Toward the Centenary of Our Martyrs,” released Nov. 13.

The message is a fruit of the 119th plenary assembly of the Mexican Bishops’ Conference held Nov. 10–14, which brought together 121 bishops at Casa Lago in Mexico state.

The bishops recalled that “just a few months after the proclamation of the solemnity of Christ the King, in July 1926, the so-called ‘Calles Law’ came into effect in our country, unleashing the most brutal religious persecution in our history. This is why, in January 1927, the repressed Catholic population began the armed uprising known as the Cristero Resistance.”

Continued below.

Hentenza said:

. Jesus body remained in the tomb for three days but His divine self did not. 1 Peter 3 tells us that He ministered to the spirits in “prison” and that He went to paradise as He told the thief. This has been Christian teaching since the beginning.

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Hentenza since you brought this texts into our conversation and I have not addressed it, I will now post an interpretation that does not put all the other texts on the soul and state of the dead in a state of conflict.

(1 Peter 3:18-20) “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us lot God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also the went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”I

It has been preached that Christ descended into the regions of the earth and preached to lost souls that were in prison in some purgatory or limbo. Let’s look at the text more closely and get the real message . It says, “Christ hath once suffered for sin that He might bring us to God being put to death in the flesh. But quickened by the Spirit by which also He went and preached…” First notice how Christ preached to those spirits in prison. He did it by the Spirit, and that word is capitalized in your Bible. It actually refers to the Holy Spirit. So whatsoever Christ did in preaching during this period of time, Hd did it through or by the Holy Spirit.

With that in mind , let’s ask this, “When was the preaching done?” The answer is plainly given in verse 20: “when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing.” So the preaching was actually done while the ark was being built—during the preaching of Noah to that antediluvian world. Now, one more question: To whom was the preaching done?” The text says , “to the spirits in prison...” Throughout the Bible we find this terminology used in describing those who are bound in the prion house of sin. David prayed “Bring my soul[life] out of prison (Psalm 142:7). What Peter is telling us here is simply that Christ through the Holy Spirit was present while Noah preached; Christ was there through the Holy Spirit to speak conviction to their hearts and appeal to them to come into the ark. There is absolutely nothing here which indicates that Jesus departed from the body during the time He was dead to go to any subterranean place o minister to wicked spirits.

The three questions are clearly answered in the text itself: He preached by the Holy Spirit, He did it while the ark was preparing, and Hd did it to the spirits in prison or to those individuals whose sinful lives were bound in the prisen house of sin.

(1 Peter 4:6) “For this cause was the gospel preached to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh…”, Peter did not imply that the gospel was then being preached to the souls of the dead, as some teach. He said the gospel “was preached” to those who “are [now] dead.” The preaching was done while they were still alive, and they will be judged on the basis of how they lived “according to men in the flesh,” or while they sere still alive.

wing2000 said:

....isn't Purdue Pharma bankrupt?

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Just five years later, and the answer is.... almost?

Judge says he’ll approve opioid settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue and Sackler family​

The deal overseen by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane would require members of the Sackler family who own the company to contribute up to $7 billion over 15 years.

Richard T said:

Leaves me wondering what spiritual training they receive.

Click to expand...

Maybe something about 33 vertebraes and a place of the skull

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday that aims to improve the nation’s foster care system, including the modernization of the current child welfare system, the development of partnerships with private sector organizations, and prioritizing the participation of those with sincerely held religious beliefs.

The executive order issued Nov. 13 states that the Trump administration is “dedicated to empowering mothers and fathers to raise their children in safe and loving homes.”

The order says current problems with the foster care system include overworked caseworkers, antiquated information systems, and policies that “prohibit qualified families from serving children in need as foster and adoptive parents because of their sincerely-held religious beliefs or adherence to basic biological truths.”

The legal group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) has represented Christian families who were barred from serving as foster parents because of their faith, suing on behalf of Brian and Katy Wuoti and Bryan and Rebecca Gantt after the Vermont Department for Children and Families informed the two families that their belief that persons cannot change biological sex and that marriage is only between a man and a woman precluded them from serving as foster parents in the state.

Continued below.

Aryeh Jay said:

Since the government is back open, the House needs to start the impeachment process on these unelected bishops.

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Don't get me started on the Investiture Controversy.

15 November 2025 – Laos​

Much of the population in rural Laos fears evil spiritual forces and feels compelled to placate them. When villagers come to Christ they are seen to be angering these spirits and as a result face persecution. Pray that the light of Christ will shine in this darkness.

14 November 2025 – Eritrea​

Praise God that the gospel continues to have an impact on Eritrean lives despite the Government’s clampdown; at the same time pray that the persecution of Christians would end.

13 November 2025 – Eritrea​

Continue to remember long-term prisoners, some of whom have been behind bars for more than 20 years, and their families. These include Kiflu Gebremeskel, Futsum Gebrenegus, Million Gebreselasie, Tekleab Menghisteab, Haile Naizghe, Rev G. Gebregiorsis, Kidane Weldou and Mussie Ezaz. They covet our prayers.

12 November 2025 – Eritrea​

Pray that, despite missing their families, exiled Eritrean Christians would be able to settle in their new environments and be accepted by the communities.

11 November 2025 – Eritrea​

Pray that the families of Christian prisoners would remain faithful to the Lord in spite of often many years of separation from their loved ones.

10 November 2025 – Eritrea​

Please pray for the protection of Christian workers who are involved in prison ministry in Eritrea. Thank God for their courage and that they have access to the jails; pray that this may continue.

09 November 2025 – Eritrea​

Pray that church leaders in Eritrea would have wisdom and courage as they lead underground cell groups.

Sign up for email prayer alerts:​

info@releaseinternational.org

The Church Under Fire

Chapter Six

Crazy for Jesus

May 27, 2023


When we follow Jesus Christ with our lives, and we do what he has called us to do, as his followers, we are going to be called all sorts of names, and “crazy” may be one of them. For even many professing Christians and even some pastors and elders of church congregations will find us odd and peculiar if we actually take the word of God seriously and we put it into daily practice. For it appears not many people do these days.

But it isn’t just “these days” I was recalling as I recorded the video to go along with this. For I recalled when I was a youth that our youth leader told us that we are to pray for the missionaries. And then he added, “But none of us do.” And so I shyly raised my hand and I said, “I do.” For, you see, I was one of those children and youth who took God seriously. And if I was told that I was to pray for the missionaries, that is what I did.

Now I was not a perfect child, but I also was not a willfully rebellious and defiant child, either. I don’t believe I ever thought of talking back to my parents and I rarely disobeyed them, partly because my father was an abuser, and I feared him greatly, but also because it was wrong, and it would be treating them badly. But that doesn’t mean that I did everything right, either. But generally speaking I was a rule follower, and I took God and his word seriously, and I wanted to obey the Lord.

When I was in college and I was in our college youth group from my local church fellowship, we gathered together at someone’s home some Sunday nights after the evening service, and we had a devotion of some kind and some snacks. And I recall many of them were buying into the whole thing of evolution, and they were questioning, to some extent, the story of creation as it is told us in the Scriptures. And I thought that was just wrong, and so I was regarded as odd. I just didn’t fit in with most people my age.

But the Scriptures teach that we are to be God’s holy people, and that we are to be holy in all our conduct. And to be holy is to be different from the world because we are being conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ. But if we are different, we are regarded as odd, peculiar, religious fanatics, crazy, antiquated and as dinosaurs, i.e. as “a person or thing that is outdated or has become obsolete because of failure to adapt to changing circumstances” (Oxford Languages).

But I think of it this way. Jesus’ family members thought he was crazy, and they wanted to put him away, for he was probably an embarrassment to them. I know Paul was called “crazy” (out of his mind), and so was Jeremiah, I am fairly certain, as probably were some of the other prophets and apostles in the Bible times. So, if they call us crazy, well we are then in good company – the company of Jesus, Paul, Jeremiah and the others who served the Lord faithfully and who did what God said.

The other comfort I find in this is that I know I am speaking the truth of God’s Word, not that I am saying I have everything down perfectly, but that I am a diligent student of the Scriptures who works hard to make certain that I am sharing the truth and not the lies. And I am one who is walking in obedience to the Lord Jesus and who is doing what he called me to do. So, if they call me names, it is okay, for I know that what I am sharing is what is necessary to people’s faith, salvation, and eternal life with God. And so I am at peace. And if people find me odd, well then, praise the Lord!

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897
Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,
Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,
Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,
Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,
Holy and harmless, patient and brave;
Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,
Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,
Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;
Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,
Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

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Crazy for Jesus
Video Talk

An Original Work / May 27, 2023
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

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The burial of a 19-year-old who died in the June bombing at the Mar Elias Church in Damascus, Syria, has come to symbolize the "ethno-religious cleansing" of Syria's Christian indigenous people, says a Swedish investigative journalist who is urging the United States to ensure Syria's religious minorities are protected as the Trump administration embraces the new government of President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Nuri Kino, founder of A Demand for Action, an organization advocating for better protection of minorities in the Middle East, was one of several witnesses who spoke before the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom during a virtual hearing on Thursday.

During the hearing titled "Religious Freedom in Syria's Post-Assad Transition," Kino opened his remarks by reflecting on Maryana, a teenage girl killed in the bombing of the Greek Orthodox church in Damascus five months ago, the deadliest attack on Syria's Christian community since the 1860 Damascus Massacre.

Continued below.

The fragile peace between the government and guerilla groups in Colombia has made limited impact—violence seems to have died down somewhat, but guerrilla groups (often linked to drug gangs) have grown more powerful and control more territory. These groups often target Christians for violent attacks, especially if they perceive that believers are opposing the "business" of the cartels/gangs. Church leaders are particularly at risk because they are seen as competitive influences for the young people that make up much of the guerrilla groups'

Further, in some indigenous communities, Christian preachers and indigenous converts can face hostility because they are seen as traitors who betrayed the tribe or community. These believers live at risk of expulsion from the community, imprisonment, ostracism and other punishements.

And finally, there are signs that Colombia's public sector is less committed to true pluralism; Christians speaking in public about their beliefs are sometimes targeted for supposedly being discriminatory or promotors of hate-speech. For this reason, some choose to self-censor to avoid becoming targets.

Who is most vulnerable to persecution?

Christians who live in areas controlled by guerrilla groups and/or drug gangs (sometimes the same thing) are often pressured or targeted because their faith goes against the aims of the cartels. Church leaders are particularly targeted if they are seen as opposer to the drug trade.

Believers who come from an indigenous faith background may also face pressure in some communities, where they can be targeted because of their conversion.

Meet 'David'

I'm not close to my brother, nor to my sister, and I'm estranged from my brother-in-law. Because you preach the gospel, you are no longer considered part of the family. And because you preach, you also lose the right to work in the community. I no longer have the right to work because, as a Christian, I have lost their trust.

DAVID, AN INDIGENOUS BELIEVER IN COLOMBIA

What has changed this year?

Colombia fell 12 spots on the World Watch List, but this shouldn't be taken as a sign that everything is well. The success of the peace plan between the government and rebel groups has been spotty—some people blame the government's peace with rebel groups for the rise in cartel/gang violence. Whatever happens to the peace process, Christians remain at risk if they live in areas dominated by these guerrilla groups, especially if they are seen as advocating for lifestyle values outside of the cartels' goals. The political instability makes the future uncertain.

What does Open Doors do to help Christians in Colombia?

Open Doors strengthens the persecuted church in Colombia through Bible distribution, training, trauma care, community development projects, emergency relief aid and assistance in legal proceedings.

How can you pray for Colombia?

• The peace between guerrilla groups and the Colombian government remains tenuous at best. Pray that God would work on the hearts of warring parties and that Christians would be peacemakers.
• Praise God for the faith of believers who come to faith in indigenous contexts—even if it means they will experience persecution from their communities who view faith in Jesus as a betrayal.
• Pray for Christians living in areas controlled by cartels. Pray for their protection and and wisdom as they seek to follow Christ.

About a week ago, my family and I watched Bonhoeffer on Angel. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s a kid-friendly account of WWII from inside Germany. One thing that struck me was how Deitrich Bonhoeffer and his family were stunned by Hitler’s rise to power, and the wave of anti-Jewish hatred that spiritually consumed their nation. It was not something they expected.

Previously, they’d written off Hitler as fringe, a vocal minority, and a problem to be ignored until it disappeared on its own.

Americans in 2025 are not more intelligent than the Germans were in 1925. We are not more evolved. We are not more educated. We are not morally superior.

We would be naive to think that someone like Hitler could never take power in America. And I’m not only talking about political power. We live in the age of social media, where dangerous people can influence the minds of millions from a webcam.

We would be wise to study and learn from the German’s mistakes.

Over the past few months it’s become increasingly clear that Charlie Kirk was the North Star of moral clarity and rationality for many conservative influencers. Without him, people like Candace Owens and Tucker Carlson have devolved into ravings about antisemitic conspiracy theories, chemtrails, dream interpretation, and bizarre stories about being physically attacked by demons. It’s as if Kirk were a dam holding back a flood of paranoia, or a tether keeping them dubiously linked to rationality.

Since his murder, Owens and Carlson have increasingly platformed men like Andrew Tate and Nick Fuentes. I am not talking about investigative journalism in which tough questions are asked and lies are contradicted. I’m talking about PR-stunts portraying Tate and Fuentes in a rosy light, spinning them as misunderstood victims of prejudice, and growing their audiences.

Continued below.

DaisyDay said:

Would that be covered by whistleblower protections? This whole thing reeks of corruption.

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The Judiciary Committee did characterize the person as a whistleblower.

Richard T said:

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-aide-homan-accepted-50000-bribery-sting-operation-sources-say-2025-09-21/

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This was proven false.

Dan1988 said:

To suggest that God is love, is another ignorant statement, because we know that God is hate

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Really? “God is hate” really? Yet the Bible says otherwise:

1 John 4:8, in context of 1 John 4:1-12

Then there is John 3:16-21 and what St. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13.

I guess I can claim to know who God “hates” and judges and appoint myself as an assistant prosecutor too. Well maybe not: ( Matthew 7:1-12 etc.).

breeding stock

Seems like that's a core belief of the Druze people, excusing themselves being ... forgot that word.

"Smile", said the emoji.

stevevw said:

Yes that would be a core unifying necessary truth. I agree that we have to be free to choose God or not and this is how God designed it. Otherwise we cannot freely choose to take that step of faith that God and our conscience calls us to do.

That is why I think as Christ said to the disciples and I think as Paul did which was to preach the truth as it was and say no more. Not engage in politics. Just preach a different way which was Gods Kingdom in Christ on earth as it is in heaven and thats it. Take it or leave it.

If the message is rejected then so be it. Walk away and go to the next town where people may be open to the message. Allow those who reject the message to make their choice to do so and allow Gods will to take its course. They may later come to God or the realisation of the truth whatever that may be.

Yes I think as Christians we teeter in and out of the world politics in our everyday relations and its getting harder to express Christian worldview in the wider society. We have to be more tactful. Theres more than one way to skin a cat so to speak and I think God works in mysterious ways lol. That saying never dies.

I too like to get into Apologetics as it does help understanding Christianity especially in that its adaptable to be able to relate Christianity in todays context. Its making real the bible today in how we can live as Christians.

But I also think just like politics has become the personal which brings in religion as belief is personal. Then its easy for these debates and arguements to cross over into politics and religion and ideological beliefs ect. So we have to be careful. I think social media is a big factor that has changed the rules of the game. So much information, fake news and facts, the power or influencers and narratives.

So I think its knowing when things start to become too political or ideological or conflicting that its going beyond truth seeking. The problem is we don't agree to diagree anymore. At least then you could have disagreements and even heated ones and it not becoming a conflict between people.

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I agree with most of what you're saying, Steve.

honestly, dishonest.

Whoever said . . .

Judge blocks Trump administration push to fine UCLA $1.2 billion for alleged antisemitism​

A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from imposing a $1.2-billion fine on UCLA along with stipulations for deep campus changes in exchange for being eligible for federal grants.

The decision is a major win for universities that have struggled to resist President Trump’s attempt to discipline “very bad” universities that he claims have mistreated Jewish students, forcing them to pay exorbitant fines and agree to adhere to conservative standards.

The preliminary injunction, issued by U.S. District Judge Rita F. Lin of the Northern District of California, rendered moot — for now — nearly every aspect of a more than 7,000-word settlement offer the federal government sent to the University of California in August after suspending $584 million in medical, science and energy research grants to the Los Angeles campus.

“Agency officials, as well as the president and vice president, have repeatedly and publicly announced a playbook of initiating civil rights investigations of preeminent universities to justify cutting off federal funding, with the goal of bringing universities to their knees and forcing them to change their ideological tune. Universities are then presented with agreements to restore federal funding under which they must change what they teach, restrict student anonymity in protests, and endorse the administration’s view of gender, among other things. Defendants submit nothing to refute this.”

“It is undisputed,” Lin added, “that this precise playbook is now being executed at the University of California.”

Vanellus said:

There's going to be many people who will want to put their own interpretation on what Mamdani says and does, so if you want me to take this post seriously it needs to be backed up by up to date video evidence of him saying these things.

e.g.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/08/30/politics/zohran-mamdani-police-nypd-defund

What have you got against egalitarian societies?


For better or worse? - Equality Trust

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Well, here's an article how Mamdani plans to revamp security currently held by the police and create a Department of Community
Security.

NYC taking over grocery stores;

City-run grocery stores ​

As grocery prices have increased across the country, Mamdani has proposed creating what his campaign has described as a “network of city-owned grocery stores focused on keeping prices low, not making a profit.”

“Everywhere I go, I hear New Yorkers talking about the outrageous prices of groceries,” Mamdani said in an interview. “This is a bold and workable plan.”


In a poll earlier this year from non-profit organization No Kid Hungry New York, referenced by Mamdani’s campaign, 86% of New Yorkers reported that the cost of food is rising faster than their incomes, and 52% said they had taken on debt in the past year due to rising food costs.

Mamdani has said that since city-owned grocery stores wouldn’t be required to pay rent or property taxes, reducing their overhead costs, they would be able to offer their wares at lower prices. His campaign also argued money currently being used to “subsidize” private grocery stores should be redirected.

Other cities in states including Illinois, Georgia, Kansas and Wisconsin are either moving forward with similar proposals or already have city-owned grocery stores.

Ghosh, the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, economist, points to the adoption of public grocery stores in other countries, as well as elsewhere in the U.S. Such stores, she says, ensure people across the socioeconomic spectrum receive quality produce, which is not the case in grocery store chains in lower-income areas around the country.


“The idea of bulk buying and ensuring reasonable, good quality produce and other essential food items to people, it's not rocket science, and it's practiced all over the world,” she says.

Read more: Why Ground Beef Prices Are Hitting Record-Highs in the U.S.

Critics of Mamdani’s proposal, meanwhile, have pointed to the closure of similarly publicly owned or funded stores, such as a nonprofit grocery in Kansas City that shuttered this summer after almost a decade of city investment. Some New York City business owners have also raised concerns that their stores would be unable to compete with city-owned ones—though the head of one such group that previously opposed the plan, the United Bodegas of America, has since endorsed Mamdani for mayor.

Lastly:

Egalitarian societies such as in Scandinavian countries ended up creating greater divide between genders. This is because when the government socially engineers' outcomes, rather than opportunities, the results are greater disparities and over all the nation does worse.

Keep in mind that Scandinavian nations have far less people than the USA and virtually not near as diverse. They don't have to deal with issues that we do here in the USA.

Dale said:

Where I live in Florida, the state Cabinet just approved a land deal that was very shady, obviously corrupt. The outgoing Speaker of the House strongly and publicly disagreed. The State Cabinet, including the Governor, and the Speaker are all Republicans. Some politicians do have values besides grab, grab, grab.

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I was in the process of editing my post to add some stuff to it when you were replying, so not sure if you saw this second part of it

****************************************

Congressmen and House Reps make $174,000 per year. If you had to venture a guess at how many are multi-millionaires, what would your guess be?




Speaking as someone who has an income that's not wildly off of that $174k number... how are so many of them tripling and quadrupling their net worth in a period of 10 years? I have a good salary, my home was just recently paid off, and I'm in a "Dual income-no kids" situation, I don't have enough left over that I'd be able to pad my net worth by millions of dollars over the next 8-10 years.

*****************************************

I don't doubt that there's some state & local level politicians who still have some values.

But per the links I posted, finding one in federal politics is rare.


I thought this stat was somewhat striking:
Because the study focuses on percentage increases, a gap in the study it is difficult to determine a meaningful percentage for a member who had a starting net worth in the negatives but increased to a positive net worth by 2012. However, there were substantial increases in wealth of the members who fell into this category. For the 49 members who went from a negative net worth to a positive net worth, the average increase was $3.4 million per member.

We have some members of congress who are just absolutely raking it in somehow.

For that first stat I mentioned...

For someone who has a starting net worth in the negatives, to increase their net worth by $3.4 million dollars... even if they somehow were able to completely expense (and write off) every single aspect of their lives (housing, food, medical, travel, entertainment, etc...) and paid zero tax. On $174k/year, they'd literally have to save every dime from every congressional paycheck for 19 years.

Just how much does CNN pay for a 15 minute appearance for a congressmen on a panel discussion? lol

I have recently published a book on why it matters that Jesus is divine. It's only 80 pages and can be found here if anyone is interested: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1916801463