brainstorming

Auschwitz Liberated 1945

John of Argghhh!!! reminds us that Auschwitz was liberated Jan. 27, 1945 and has this to say to Holocaust deniers:

Any Holocaust Deniers, don't bother - I'll just delete the comment. I've seen the camps, the documents, the artifacts. I believe. And I don't believe the Allies were capable of creating a myth whole cloth like that. Just don't waste your time, move on. Any Holocaust Celebrators - leave any traceable data and I'll forward it to the Mossad. Of course, in my experience, most people like that don't have the courage of their convictions.

It's inconceivable that with the wealth of historical and physical evidence and living witnesses that anyone can deny or forget the Holocaust. Yet we know they do.

What will this encouragement of conspiracy theories cost us in the end? Even now the evidence is piling up that Europe chooses not to remember by not addressing the reports of growing anti-semitism, (which I'm sure has nothing to do with its growing Muslim population.........riggggghhhhhtttt.)

The person I am today, doesn't understand. It's just not logical. People can't just ignore history. We can't ignore death camps and mass murder. If we intend to prevent the same type evil from gripping the world, we have to face the evil that was, ever vigilant to stamp out any trace of it reappearing. Yet, it has not always been so close to my heart.

Let me be clear. I knew about Hitler, the war, the death camps, and would never have denied these things occurred. As I said, the evidence is overwhelming.

Yet anti-semitism really wasn't on my radar 12 years ago. Two things have changed my attitude:

My life was changed when I acknowledged God was real, that I had no choice but to believe. I know many of you may not agree, but He leaves me no room to doubt. I have seen His hand, felt His touch. He is more real than I am. One of the verses I ran across soon after was something God said to Abraham:

"And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed." (Gen. 12:2)

I could really go on for pages here. Suffice it to say my change of heart, (in relation to God), and subsequent reading led me to a greater love and understanding of the Jewish people and Israel. It was like finally understanding how that piece fit into the puzzle, where the roots of the tree were buried.

Then we come to 09/11. Of course the terrorists were active before that day, but we failed as a nation to focus on them. As we do examine their actions and motives it's obvious they are united in their hatred of Israel. The hatred runs deep enough that the Iranian Mullahs would rather let their people die than accept help from Israel.

Does anyone else wonder how this tiny nation continues to stand, surrounded as it is by its enemies, assailed as they are by violence, with their children blown up on their way to school?

Do you have children? If so, do you ever talk with them about the Holocaust? As we lose the people who lived through the war, it's our responsibility to make sure future generations never forget.

Current Blogging Conditions

Wetting my finger and extending it to the wind, I report the blogger current condition.....

Too many mountains, and not enough stairs to climb
Too many churches and not enough truth
Too many people and not enough eyes to see
Too many lives to lead and not enough time

It's too late
She's gone too far
She's lost the sun
She's come undone

Yes, dear readers, I'm over the edge, lost it, not a full deck, insert your favorite euphemism here. That was me in the Wal-Mart electronics department last night loudly proclaiming that I didn't care if my kids received anything for Christmas. That was me on the ride home proclaiming we would be canceling the holiday. Sure we'll go to church, meet with the relatives, but gifts and Santa??? Both are precariously on the chopping block.

What makes a normal mother transform into Mr. Grinch? I am the woman with everything, and my kids are the children with everything. The last thing anyone in this house needs is another material good. We're too busy to locate half of what we own now. Yes. For Christmas, I'd like a dump truck, thank you, and a clean up crew.

Call it a yearning for a simpler life. Not a manufactured Simple Life that you schedule, but real time when I'm not so exhausted I fall asleep anytime I sit down.

The sad truth is I won't follow through on my threat, (and damned if they don't know it too). What mother could? You could probably be turned into the state for "cruel and unusual" punishment, which means I'll be off shopping today and tomorrow. (I'd have to go to buy for other relatives anyway. At least if they're spoiled, I don't have to live with them.)

There is one benefit to reaching the end of yourself. It's often only then that we become willing to surrender whatever happens to God.

"I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:5

Now I'm not looking to accomplish great things, only to accomplish something. So my goal today will be to abide, to trust that someone greater than me will be in charge, and since they will be in charge, I can rest.

Trust me. Everyone else in the stores today will be safer this way.

DC

God on the Quad

The Boston Globe reports on the rise of Christianity on local campuses.

DC

Body, Soul, and Spirit

When looking through the Carnival of the Vanities posts, my eye caught this entry, Triune God Creates Triparte Man! submitted by the site, Catholic Pundits.

I've noticed too, that the terms Soul and Spirit are used interchangeably in our culture. However, Christianity teaches that there are three parts to us, our bodies, our souls, and our spirit. Excerpt:

God created man with a spirit, a soul and a body. (Gen 2:7; 1 Thes. 5:23; Heb. 4.12) In the Greek New Testament there are three words for our word “life.” That is “bios,” “psuche,” and “zoe.” From the word “bios” we get the biological life, which is our physical body. From the word “psuche” we get the term psyche, which is our psychological life, which is translated “soul.” Our soul is our mind (or intellect), our will and our emotions, or that which makes us who we are. The Greek word zoe is the highest form of Life, that is the God-Life or spirit-life.

God made man’s spirit with the capacity to contact, receive, and contain God (John 4:24; Rom. 8:16). He made man’s soul so man could express Him. He made our bodies so we could contact the physical world.

I'm not Catholic myself, but it looks like this could be an interesting site to check in on and add to my links.

DC

See You at The Pole

Today is See You at the Pole day, when students across America meet at their school flagpole before the school day starts to pray together. It's an annual event, usually held the third Wednesday in September, which was started by students in the Fort Worth suburb of Burleson, Texas in 1990.

In 2002, more than 2.5 million students met around flagpoles in all 50 states. It has become an international event, with reports of students meeting in countries on six continents.

This picture isn't the best, but it shows the group that gathered at one of our local schools this morning. (Click the photo to view a larger image.)

DC

Faith Dance

This poem was written a number of years ago for a friend who was going through a hard time. It's very close to my heart and I bring it out every couple years. Like a good soup it's taken on the flavors of new memories over time. (To read the entire poem, click on the link under the line, "The dance was for you.")

Faith Dance

I danced for you today,
With tears of both sorrow and joy,
The dance was for you.