The Occupy Wall Street movement gets a second life today. But what's it all about?
Transcript
[Darris McNeely] If you’ve been confused about the Occupy Wall Street
Movement, so have I and so have a lot of other people. It reminds of
being snake bit–seeing all of these protests across the United States
and other world capitals against the world economic financial condition.
[Steve Myers] Well, it certainly reminds you of how do we fix our
problems? You know, people come up with all kinds of solutions and the
latest one is protesting and violence in many cases. So, is that what
solves our problems? Is that really where it’s at?
[Darris McNeely] Well, you know, Steve, they drove them out of Zuccotti
Park in New York earlier this week and today they’re threatening to
come back in by the tens of thousands and maybe getting a second life it
seems with this protest movement. And, again, are they…There’s even
confusion about the goals that they have and what they actually want to
do…some want to bring down the whole economic system, whole system
of capitalism.
[Steve Myers] It’s interesting, some of the goals, are they good? Some
of the things I’ve heard, yeah. Is man’s system working in some
ways? Yeah.
[Darris McNeely] There are problems.
[Steve Myers] But in other ways there are problems.
[Darris McNeely] And we know now this has come three years after the
near collapse of Wall Street and the entire American and world financial
system that has been tried to be put back on track, yet there has been
recessions that have kept it from really operating and coming back with
all engines operating. And we’re still in the middle of a mess and that
seems to be fueling this. This seems to be a symptom of larger problems.
[Steve Myers] Boy, is it ever. Absolutely.
[Darris McNeely] It reminds me of the story you told in a Beyond Today
program recently that we did of the canary in the coal mine that starts
to sing when the gases get a little bit too high. This is a symptom of
something bigger. That, um, just won’t go away.
[Steve Myers] And where do you look? Are we looking to Wall Street to
solve our problems or do you take down Wall Street so we can solve our
problems. Or is there a different place that we need to look?
[Darris McNeely] Well, the problem is in leadership. The problem is in
some workable solutions. It reminds me of a scripture in the book of
Amos, where the prophet Amos talks about conditions at the time of the
end. People are told there that they will flee from a lion, and run into
a bear. They will run into a house and put their hand against a wall
and get bit by a snake (Amos 5:18-20). Everywhere they turn, they don’t find solutions, they find bigger problems.
[Steve Myers] That’s right
[Darris McNeely] And I think that’s where we are right now.
[Steve Myers] Are we solving our own problems? I think that scripture
points it out. As long as we keep looking to ourselves we’re going to be
snake bit. We’re going to run into a bear. We’re going to run into a
lion. So are we looking to God for the solution? Proverbs says that we
look to God. He knows how to direct our steps (Proverbs 3:5-8).
[Darris McNeely] That’s BT Daily. Join us next time.
The college years are often some of the greatest times of challenge for young people brought up in Christian homes. A college degree is essential for so many occupations. Yet four or more years of college or university often tear young Christians away from their foundation, at times destroying values and beliefs taught them by their parents and their churches.
Is it possible to survive college and hold on to Christian values? If so, what are the keys? And what are the big dangers in college life?
Challenge number one: anti-Christian philosophies
No matter where you go, you will probably have professors who don't share your beliefs, and who may even be openly hostile to them. Humanism and the various forms of Marxism or Communism are still popular philosophies in the world of postsecondary education. And even though these beliefs have less popularity outside of college, you will still need to be prepared to face them.
When I went to university in England, I suddenly found myself in a radical political environment. Those who didn't seek radical political change in some form or other were definitely in the minority. “Leftist” groups of many different stripes seemed to abound. The ideas of famous German philosopher Karl Marx were everywhere. Having never studied Marx before, I became fascinated, and then somewhat pulled in, before I finally (thankfully!) rejected those ideas.
Marx taught that history is driven by conflict between social classes, not by national, racial or religious conflict. The opening words of his Communist Manifesto read as follows: “The history of all … society is a history of class struggles.” From this flows the idea that as lower classes rise up in rebellion against their oppressors, society moves forward toward an ultimate utopia free of class distinctions and injustice.
I came to see the falseness and futility of these ideas. It was the Holy Bible, the Word of God, that helped me to see it. The Bible makes plain that evil isn't determined by who has his hands on the means of production in society. People from lower classes can be just as evil, just as selfish and just as prone to mistreat their neighbors as those from the privileged classes. And overturning it all, as Communists desire, might lead to only loss of freedom, bankrupt economies and, often, far worse abuses of power.
Another very common, but unchristian, philosophy encountered in college is humanism. Essentially, humanists believe “the solution is within us.” They view human nature as inherently good and suggest that humankind's problems would be solved if only the good in us can be coaxed out. Most humanists deny any idea of the uniqueness of man or of life after death.
Again, humanism conflicts with what the Bible teaches us. The prophet Jeremiah made it very clear when he declared, “O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps” (Jeremiah 10:23Jeremiah 10:23O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walks to direct his steps. American King James Version×) and “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9Jeremiah 17:9The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? American King James Version×). Of course, God knows this and is willing to help us change, once we make the choice to live the way He commands. King David of Israel discovered this and wrote of the changed heart in Psalm 51. Praying to God, he said, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (verse 10).
The solutions taught on many college campuses are really misleading. Humanity can't make it without God's help, no matter how reasonable the proposed solution may sound or how radical it may be!
Challenge number two: drugs and alcohol
A recent survey found that 49.7 percent of college students reported participating in “binge drinking” (defined as five or more drinks in one sitting) in the two weeks prior to completing the survey. The same survey showed that 64.5 percent had experienced a hangover from excessive drinking, 55.3 percent reported having been nauseated or vomiting, 40.5 percent had “done something I later regretted” and 12.3 percent reported they had been taken advantage of sexually while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Of all the students in the survey who had experienced unwanted sexual intercourse, 82.6 percent said they were under the influence of drugs or alcohol when this occurred, while 76 percent of those reporting unwanted sexual touching said they were under the influence at the time (2001 Statistics on Alcohol and Other Drug Use on American Campuses ).
Abuse of alcohol and drugs is a big problem among college students. So what's a Christian to do? The Word of God makes it plain: “Hear, my son, and be wise … Do not mix with winebibbers [in other words, avoid the parties where people are getting drunk or taking drugs!] … for the drunkard … will come to poverty” (Proverbs 23:19Proverbs 23:19Hear you, my son, and be wise, and guide your heart in the way. American King James Version×-21).
And don't forget that you can always get up and leave. If the drugs begin to circulate or people are getting drunk, the Christian can always say, “Thank you for the invitation, but I have to leave now.” You might be surprised to see others get up and leave with you!
Challenge number three: sexual immorality
Recent research shows fewer high school students are having sex now compared to 10 years ago and that the majority of high school graduates are virgins. But the picture changes drastically in college.
A report in the December 2001 issue of Archives of Sexual Behavior indicates that 71 percent of unmarried college students reported being sexually experienced. Breaking it down further, 64 percent reported one sexual partner in the 30 days prior to the survey, while 30 percent reported no sexual partners in that time. Presumably, the remaining 6 percent had been with two or more partners in the month prior to the survey.
College will present challenges to young Christians wanting to remain morally pure! Perhaps the greatest challenge to your character and determination will come in this area. How can you protect yourself?
First, choose your environment carefully. It may be wise to stay at home or with close relatives while in college. That way you can avoid the noise, drugs and excessive drinking you would have to face in many college dorms.
If you're going away from home, it's a good idea to find roommates with whom you share certain basic values. Look for people you'll get along with and who will commit to having no drugs, no illegal or excessive drinking and no boyfriend or girlfriend sleepovers. Sit down and discuss these things with potential roommates before committing to sharing a room with them.
If there's no choice but to live in a dorm, you might try to find one where other Christians are living. Fraternities and sororities are often the most free-living dorms, and should usually be avoided. But there are fraternities and sororities that are organized on a set of values, such as service to the community or basic Christian morality.
Anything you can do to be in the company of people who will help you maintain your Christian values is something to be pursued. The Bible tells us that “evil company corrupts good habits” (1 Corinthians 15:331 Corinthians 15:33Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. American King James Version×), and, conversely, that “whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools suffers harm” (Proverbs 13:20Proverbs 13:20He that walks with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed. American King James Version×, New Revised Standard Version). Like it or not, we're all heavily influenced by the company we keep.
A source of help: true Christian fellowship
One of the big keys to holding on to your Christian faith during the college years is the Church. Keep going to Church! In fact, during this time when your faith is being assaulted, you really need more time with like-minded Christians than you did before. Spiritual camaraderie and adding to your Christian knowledge offer tremendous encouragement.
Hold on to your source of strength during your college years. Take the time for prayer, for study of the Scriptures and for true Christian fellowship to help you through. Build the bonds in Christ, and survive the college years—with your Christian faith not just intact, but strengthened! VT
We made a list of 10 reasons Darwin's theory of evolution does not hold up to scientific scrutiny.
1. "Warm little pond" theory: There is no solid evidence of life arising spontaneously from a chemical soup. 2. Simplicity of the cell theory: Scientists have discovered that cells are tremendously complex, not simple. 3. Theory about the cell’s simple information: It turns out cells have a digital code more complex and lengthy than any computer language made by man. 4. Theory of intermediate fossils: Where are the supposed billions of missing links in the evolutionary chain? 5. Theory of the variation of species: Genetic adaptation and mutation have proven to have fixed limits. 6. Theory of the Cambrian Explosion: This sudden appearance of most major complex animal groups at the same low level of the fossil record is still an embarrassment to evolutionists. 7. Theory of homology: Similarity of structures does not mean the evolution of structures. 8. Theory of ape evolution : Chimpanzees have not evolved into anything else. Neither has man. 9. Theory of the tree of life: Rather than all life branching from a single organism, evidence has revealed a forest of life from the very beginning. 10. Rejection of an intelligent designer: This opened the door for many to reject God, the Bible and Christianity.
History rarely turns on the impact of one lone event. It is more common that a major historical shift is built on the smaller events that precede it. The current anti-religious environment in the United States did not arrive without prior notice. Those seeds were planted a long time ago. However, a major public relations blow was dealt against having God at the center of society and education back in late July, 1925. It was known as the Scopes Monkey Trial.
Planting doubt
Charles Darwin had proposed his Theory of Evolution in the 1850’s, and that theory had been gaining in popularity in the subsequent decades. So much so, that many states passed laws making illegal the teaching of evolution in schools. One such state was Tennessee, and a young high-school teacher named John Scopes decided to deliberately violate the law in order to get arrested and be able to challenge the law in court. The trial quickly took on an entertainment atmosphere as thousands of spectators gathered in Dayton, Tennessee at the courthouse. The defense sought to have the judge declare the law unconstitutional and then tried to bring in experts in evolution to challenge the law. The judge ruled that the law was not on trial, but rather John Scopes violation of the law.
Clarence Darrow, the famous lawyer, quickly made the prosecution look inept and embarrassed them with their unclear answers and contradictory statements. His points discredited the prosecution before the gathered crowds. Much to the surprise of many, Darrow in his closing remarks asked the jury to find his client guilty so that their case might be appealed. Under Tennessee law, William Jennings Bryan (a renowned politician, and lawyer for the prosecution) was denied the opportunity to give his closing speech. While the prosecution won the case, the flames of doubting the Bible were fanned, and its role at the center of education in the U.S. was further damaged.
History will turn again
Even as we have seen America (and much of the world) decline in moral behavior and obedience to God in the subsequent decades, we also know that God has been shaping the future through current events. Down through time He has worked with those who are faithful to Him to be examples of His way of life. God has preserved His Word through the Bible. He is shaping His Body of disciples so that we will be able to stand in the truly difficult times to come—troubles coming as a direct result of society rejecting God as the source of true education. He will direct end-time events and not allow mankind to erase all life from this planet. God will then usher in the Millennial reign of His Son, Jesus Christ to show the world how to live life as He designed it to be lived.
We could choose to suffer along with this world as it moves away from God, but you and I have access to something (through repentance, baptism and laying on of hands) the world doesn’t currently have – God’s Holy Spirit. We can understand why history is playing out the way it is. You and I have a hope for the future. We know the end of the story and so do not need to fear the consequences of the choices mankind is making. We also have God’s Sabbath day to be reminded of His plan of Salvation and to be recharged spiritually as we face the challenges of daily life.
John Scopes and those who believe the Theory of Evolution have it wrong. We are not descended from monkeys. We can see through the falsehood of the Theory of Evolution and know that we truly are made in the image of God (Genesis:1:26And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.). We know that one day we can be in the very family of God, the most epic turning point in all of human history!
[Darris McNeely] I was intrigued by a recent headline, "Can I Be a Scientist and a Christian?" It's a good question. It's a question endlessly debated today among people who believe strictly in science as a means of explaining our world and our universe, as opposed to those who believe in the Bible and take the Bible as the word of God and as a guide for life. Can we marry the two, or must the two remain forever separate?
You know, there are basically three different categories into which people fall as they try to explain the creation, or the existence of this world, life, the universe, and to reconcile faith and reason together, science and the Bible.
First off is what we might call atheistic evolution – the idea that evolution is the sole means to explain the origin of life on earth, there is not a God, there is no Creator, He is not involved in the process. According to a recent poll, about 15 percent of Americans polled adopt and accept this approach.
A second is what is called scientific creation – the idea that the Bible is literal and that there is a God who created this world, and science is not exactly as evolutionists would say that it is. About 46 percent of people adopt this approach. Many who call themselves Christian, fundamentalist or otherwise, and believe in the Bible as an account to explain the creation.
And then there's another third category in a general sense, called a theistic evolutionist, tends to blend the two – that the world, the universe was created by a God but evolution is used as part of the process by which the life forms arose on this earth, especially, and within the universe in terms of its creation, but with a hands-off approach from a Creator who designed into the processes the ideas and the things that we might term as the evolutionary process.
When you look at this, in one sense, these are three general classifications, but on Beyond Today , we have done a number of programs
They loom over us at the zoo and capture the imagination of children. Such an improbable animal is the giraffe with its huge bulk suspended over long, thin legs and covered with a hard-to-miss pattern. They water awkwardly and seem delicate from a distance, despite their height.
However, scientists have uncovered one element of the overall giraffe design that allows the improbable to be possible. In an unusually deep groove or channel on the lower leg bone is an exceptionally strong ligament that allows the great mass of bodyweight the giraffe carries to remain safely suspended above the ground.
Researchers used the remains of giraffes that had died in captivity to gather data to test the actual strength of this ligament system. These super-strong ligaments allow giraffe legs to remain stiff and require less muscle engagement and thus fatigue. The findings will be helpful to further study of giraffe anatomy and also to the study and development of robotics, which takes many of its cues from animal design (Victoria Gill, “Giraffe Legs’ Strong, Skinny Secret,” BBC at BBC.com, July 2, 2014).
Jesus Christ, who before his human birth was the Creator God, designed and brought into existence all the “creeping things” or living, land based creatures on the sixth day, shortly before he created the first man, Adam (Genesis:1:24-25[24] And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. [25] And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.). The giraffe, with its spectacular ligament design would have been among this phenomenal part of the creation.
Recently, two of the world's most vocal atheists published books to defend their claim that there is no evidence for God's existence. Richard Dawkins ( The God Delusion ) and Christopher Hitchens ( God Is Not Great ) have presented their best arguments for their position that God does not exist and that religion poisons the world. Ironically, their own books provide much "evidence" to the contrary.
So what are their claims? Let's consider their reasoning and conclusions. Common arguments by atheists against God include:
• Comparing the God of Israel to all gods through history. In the minds of atheists, all gods take on the same value. Whether it is Zeus, Thor, Baal, Vulcan, Vishnu or the God of the Bible, there is no difference in their eyes. They conclude that all gods have been humanly contrived to accommodate the social and psychological needs of man.
• Discrediting the notion of God because of violence done in His name. As atheists evaluate history, they often note how many times violence, genocide, killing, rape, murder and war have happened in the name of God. Whether the Spanish Inquisition, the Crusades or the ethnic cleansing in Kosovo and Africa, these types of violence are commonly cited as the hypocrisy of religion and a result of belief in God. Atheists conclude that there could be no benevolent, loving God behind this.
• Claiming errors and duplicity of Scripture. Many atheists deny the existence of the Judeo-Christian God based on alleged discrepancies of the Bible. Examples of biblical disagreements they cite include issues related to history, science, the teachings of Jesus, death, murder and war. If the Word of God—the Bible—contradicts itself, they reason, the book cannot represent the mind of an omniscient God.
• Showing that paganism is in mainstream Christianity. Both Dawkins and Hitchens cite the fact that, although mainstream Christianity claims its origins from Jewish forefathers and the writings of the Bible, much of its doctrine, ceremony, images and worship have their origins in pagan practices actually condemned in the Bible. They correctly note that the origins of Christmas and Easter (mainstays of many churches) come from Babylon, Egypt and Greece—not the true Creator God of the Bible.
Atheists point out that these practices are hypocritically borrowed from earlier pagan religions. If the forms of worship are this flawed, they reason that claims by these same worshippers that God really exists must likewise be hypocritical.
• Asking who designed God. When trying to debunk intelligent design (a movement of scientists claiming that the complexity of systems enabling all life to exist cannot be adequately explained by Charles Darwin's theory of evolution), atheists fall back to what they believe is the mother of all questions: Who designed or created God? In answer to Christians saying that God is the original cause of all things, they want to know who created Him. Since there is no acceptable answer to this question (at least to them), they believe that there clearly can be no God.
• Concluding that Darwinism must be true! Atheists believe that there is only one answer to the origin and development of life: that of Darwinian evolution. Most professors, teachers and scientists in the fields of zoology, anthropology and biology believe and teach this theory as fact. Atheists see this instruction by educators as further proof that there is no God.
When atheists make sense
You might be shocked to know that some of the observations from which atheists argue make perfect sense! When you consider the observations and knowledge of religion and history that avowed atheists embrace, it is easy to see why they struggle with believing in a Creator God! Much of the historical evidence of religion, biblical interpretation and deeds done in the name of God discredit religious people's efforts to justify their belief in God. Some facts to consider:
• The many gods in varied cultures through history do not represent the true God. These "gods" are, in fact, fictional and do not, nor have they ever, existed.
• The varied practices, doctrines and historic acts of Christians through the ages (in the Middle East, Europe, America and around the world) are confusing and hypocritical.
• The confused and often contradictory interpretations of the Holy Bible by so many denominations, sects, groups and individuals are mind-boggling. These individuals have misrepresented the Bible!
• Many of the practices that began in the church of Rome in the second and third centuries were borrowed from the pagan customs of the pre-Christian world. The observance of Christmas, Easter, New Year's Day and even worship on Sundays is not taught in the Bible!
A missing dimension, once again
The fact is, we do live in a world that is confused about virtually everything—including God, science, morality, religion and the Bible! While many people (like Hitchens and Dawkins) assume that the history of mankind and religion represents a God-centered worldview's best shot—actually, the opposite is true! The history of mankind generally represents man's rejection of God. Human history doesn't represent God at His best, but man at his worst!
For nearly 6,000 years man has been devising his own view of morality and life—which includes various forms of religion (including Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, etc.). What we see in the practice, teachings and history of these religions is too often generated and designed solely by human beings—not by God at all!
Jesus Christ told His disciples nearly 2,000 years ago that, as time went on, the masses would be deceived by many claiming to be His true representatives. He said: "Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many" (Matthew 24:4-5 [4] And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
[5] For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
See All..., King James Version).
Put another way, the vast majority of the world's religions and religious leaders would be counterfeits. The result is that millions of people have been deceived by Satan the devil—the real ruler and god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
See All...; Revelation 12:9And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
See All...).
While there are as many views of the meaning of the Bible as there are religious sects, even this confusion was foretold by God! The written history of the God of Israel is unlike the accounts and historic writings referring to any other deity in human history. In the writings of the Holy Bible, God is referred to as transcending the physical realm, including the many gods conceived in the human mind. The gods of images and human imaginations are nothing compared to the invisible, all-powerful God of the Bible!
Evidence of a Creator
The Bible tells us that people, having the physical creation before them, are truly "without excuse" when it comes to knowing that God exists (Romans 1:20For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
See All...).
Interestingly, while the modern intelligent design movement acknowledges that the creation truly was created, a majority of educators deceptively decries the concepts of irreducible complexity and design inference as nonscience. Even so, a large and growing body of scientists and educators today realizes that this complex universe could not exist without some intelligence behind it!
In more than one place in the Bible, God tells us that "the fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God'" (Psalms 14:1(To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.) The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
See All...; 53:1). And yet, some of these same "fools" that have sadly rejected the idea of a loving, omniscient creator God do have a clear understanding of the hypocritical, confusing and often violent history of mankind and its many religions.
Their fundamental error is that they attribute such confusion and chaos in man's history to the best the idea of God can offer, when, in fact, man's sordid past (and his immediate future) are the result of man's rejecting the true Creator. GN
Modern celebrations of Halloween may appear on the surface to be quite harmless, but the spiritual implications of dabbling with the spirit world are extremely serious.
Why are such bizarre practices so popular? Why would anyone celebrate a holiday emphasizing the morbid and macabre? Where did such strange customs originate?
As with Christmas and Easter, we can trace the roots of Halloween far back into the pagan past. The Encyclopedia of Religion says, "Halloween, or Allhallows Eve, is a festival celebrated on 31 October, the evening prior to the Christian Feast of All Saints (All Saints' Day). Halloween is the name for the eve of Samhain [pronounced sow-en ], a celebration marking the beginning of winter as well as the first day of the New Year within the ancient Celtic culture of the British Isles. The time of Samhain consisted of the eve of the feast and the day itself (31 October and 1 November)" (1987, p. 176, "Halloween").
Besides Halloween, the Celts observed many other holidays including the winter solstice (later transformed into Christmas), spring fertility rites (reborn later as Easter) and May Day as a harvest festival.
Concerning Halloween The Encyclopedia of Religion continues: "On this occasion, it was believed that a gathering of supernatural forces occurred as during no other period of the year. The eve and day of Samhain were characterized as a time when the barriers between the human and supernatural worlds were broken. Otherworldly entities, such as the souls of the dead, were able to visit earthly inhabitants, and humans could take the opportunity to penetrate the domains of the gods and supernatural creatures.
"Fiery tributes and sacrifices of animals, crops, and possibly human beings were made to appease supernatural powers who controlled the fertility of the land ... Samhain acknowledged the entire spectrum of nonhuman forces that roamed the earth during the period" (pp. 176-177).
On this holiday "huge bonfires were set on hilltops to frighten away evil spirits ... The souls of the dead were supposed to revisit their homes on this day, and the autumnal festival acquired sinister significance, with ghosts, witches, hobgoblins, black cats, fairies, and demons of all kinds said to be roaming about. It was the time to placate the supernatural powers controlling the processes of nature. In addition, Halloween was thought to be the most favourable time for divinations concerning marriage, luck, health, and death. It was the only day on which the help of the devil was invoked for such purposes" ( Encyclopaedia Britannica, 15th edition, Micropaedia, Vol. 4, p. 862, "Halloween").
Ancient practices continued today
As with Christmas and Easter, church leaders adopted this ancient celebration to serve their own purposes. "Samhain remained a popular festival among the Celtic people throughout the christianization of Great Britain. The British church attempted to divert this interest in pagan customs by adding a Christian celebration to the calendar on the same date as Samhain. The Christian festival, the Feast of All Saints, commemorates the known and unknown saints of the Christian religion just as Samhain had acknowledged and paid tribute to the Celtic deities" ( The Encyclopedia of Religion, p. 177, "Halloween").
Several ancient Halloween practices still exist in modern observances. Bobbing for apples was originally a form of divination (fortune telling) to learn of future marriages. The first person to bite an apple was predicted to be the first to marry in the coming year ... The jack-o-lantern ... represent[ed] a watchman on Halloween night or a man caught between earth and the supernatural world" (Jack Santino, All Around the Year: Holidays & Celebrations in American Life, 1994, p. 26).
The Bible condemns the occult
Although some may dismiss the demonic symbolism and divination associated with Halloween as harmless fun, the Bible reveals the existence of evil spirits, led by Satan the devil, whom God holds responsible for great suffering and sorrow inflicted on the human race. Revelation 12:9And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
See All... speaks of "the great dragon ... that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan ... [who] deceives the whole world ..."
The name given him in the Bible, Satan, means adversary or enemy. The apostle John tells us that "the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one" (1 John 5:19And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.
See All...). Satan and the other fallen angels (demons) constantly try to keep humanity spiritually blinded, turning them aside from their awesome destiny as part of the family of God.
As a loving Father, God commands us to avoid things that can harm us. Concerning the spirit world, notice what God says to His people: "Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God" (Leviticus 19:31Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.
See All...).
In addition to this command to avoid practices that pertain to evil spirits, God warned ancient Israel to avoid any kind of occult practices: "There shall not be found among you anyone who ... practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord " (Deuteronomy 18:10-12 [10] There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch,
[11] Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
[12] For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
See All...).
God has called His people to a different standard. Instead of superstitions and myths, God tells us to look to Him for our blessings, direction and future.
Modern celebrations of Halloween may appear on the surface to be quite harmless, but the spiritual implications of dabbling with the spirit world are extremely serious. Fortune-telling, Ouija boards, astrology, voodoo, clairvoyance, black magic and the like can all be related to occult, satanic forces or the worship of natural phenomena and are forbidden in Scripture.
Jesus Christ tells us that "the first and greatest commandment" is to love our Creator "with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind" (Matthew 22:37-38 [37] Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
[38] This is the first and great commandment.
See All...). God alone is the giver of life and all good things. To give recognition to false gods, and to imitate practices that honored them, is unacceptable and idolatrous.
Anarchists across the world have united in street conflagrations. Annual May Day celebrations deteriorated into fistfights. Macedonian Slavs rioted over NATO peace deals. On the island of Jamaica 23 died in riots. Violent protesters marred the EU summit in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Anticapitalist radicals tried to ruin the G8 meetings in Genoa. Three former mill towns in Lancashire, England, sustained three nights of race-inspired rioting. Riots occurred on the divided Mediterranean island of Cyprus. In Belfast 23 police officers were hurt in riots.
Much has been written about the human right to protest peacefully, but what begins as a peaceful demonstration often winds up as an old-fashioned riot, sometimes with severe injuries to rioters and police. Professional troublemakers travel the globe to protest against capitalism and other imagined evils.
A British journalist remarked on the enjoyment rioters seem to gain from bloody confrontations. Obviously, human nature has a violent downside. It had become so pronounced in the pre-Flood world of Noah that "the earth was filled with violence" (Genesis 6:11The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.
See All..., 13). Much later Jesus Christ said that, just as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the coming of the Son of Man (Matthew 24:37But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
See All...). Are our crimes and violence signs that we may be in the end time? (Sources: The Times , The Observer [London].)
Will you be leaving home for college this fall? If so, your Christianity is sure to be tested. Read this article for advice on how to remain strong.
The college years are often some of the greatest times of challenge for young people brought up in Christian homes. A college degree is essential for so many occupations. Yet four or more years of college or university often tear young Christians away from their foundation, at times destroying values and beliefs taught them by their parents and their churches.
Is it possible to survive college and hold on to Christian values? If so, what are the keys? And what are the big dangers in college life?
Challenge number one: anti-Christian philosophies
No matter where you go, you will probably have professors who don't share your beliefs, and who may even be openly hostile to them. Humanism and the various forms of Marxism or Communism are still popular philosophies in the world of postsecondary education. And even though these beliefs have less popularity outside of college, you will still need to be prepared to face them.
When I went to university in England, I suddenly found myself in a radical political environment. Those who didn't seek radical political change in some form or other were definitely in the minority. "Leftist" groups of many different stripes seemed to abound. The ideas of famous German philosopher Karl Marx were everywhere. Having never studied Marx before, I became fascinated, and then somewhat pulled in, before I finally (thankfully!) rejected those ideas.
Marx taught that history is driven by conflict between social classes, not by national, racial or religious conflict. The opening words of his Communist Manifesto read as follows: "The history of all ... society is a history of class struggles." From this flows the idea that as lower classes rise up in rebellion against their oppressors, society moves forward toward an ultimate utopia free of class distinctions and injustice.
I came to see the falseness and futility of these ideas. It was the Holy Bible, the Word of God, that helped me to see it. The Bible makes plain that evil isn't determined by who has his hands on the means of production in society. People from lower classes can be just as evil, just as selfish and just as prone to mistreat their neighbors as those from the privileged classes. And overturning it all, as Communists desire, might lead to only loss of freedom, bankrupt economies and, often, far worse abuses of power.
Another very common, but unchristian, philosophy encountered in college is humanism. Essentially, humanists believe "the solution is within us." They view human nature as inherently good and suggest that humankind's problems would be solved if only the good in us can be coaxed out. Most humanists deny any idea of the uniqueness of man or of life after death.
Again, humanism conflicts with what the Bible teaches us. The prophet Jeremiah made it very clear when he declared, "O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps" (Jeremiah 10:23O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.
See All...) and "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
See All...). Of course, God knows this and is willing to help us change, once we make the choice to live the way He commands. King David of Israel discovered this and wrote of the changed heart in Psalm 51. Praying to God, he said, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me" (verse 10).
The solutions taught on many college campuses are really misleading. Humanity can't make it without God's help, no matter how reasonable the proposed solution may sound or how radical it may be!
Challenge number two: drugs and alcohol
A recent survey found that 49.7 percent of college students reported participating in "binge drinking" (defined as five or more drinks in one sitting) in the two weeks prior to completing the survey. The same survey showed that 64.5 percent had experienced a hangover from excessive drinking, 55.3 percent reported having been nauseated or vomiting, 40.5 percent had "done something I later regretted" and 12.3 percent reported they had been taken advantage of sexually while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Of all the students in the survey who had experienced unwanted sexual intercourse, 82.6 percent said they were under the influence of drugs or alcohol when this occurred, while 76 percent of those reporting unwanted sexual touching said they were under the influence at the time (2001 Statistics on Alcohol and Other Drug Use on American Campuses ).
Abuse of alcohol and drugs is a big problem among college students. So what's a Christian to do? The Word of God makes it plain: "Hear, my son, and be wise ... Do not mix with winebibbers [in other words, avoid the parties where people are getting drunk or taking drugs!] ... for the drunkard ... will come to poverty" (Proverbs 23:19Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.
See All... -21).
And don't forget that you can always get up and leave. If the drugs begin to circulate or people are getting drunk, the Christian can always say, "Thank you for the invitation, but I have to leave now." You might be surprised to see others get up and leave with you!
Challenge number three: sexual immorality
Recent research shows fewer high school students are having sex now compared to 10 years ago and that the majority of high school graduates are virgins. But the picture changes drastically in college.
A report in the December 2001 issue of Archives of Sexual Behavior indicates that 71 percent of unmarried college students reported being sexually experienced. Breaking it down further, 64 percent reported one sexual partner in the 30 days prior to the survey, while 30 percent reported no sexual partners in that time. Presumably, the remaining 6 percent had been with two or more partners in the month prior to the survey.
College will present challenges to young Christians wanting to remain morally pure! Perhaps the greatest challenge to your character and determination will come in this area. How can you protect yourself?
First, choose your environment carefully. It may be wise to stay at home or with close relatives while in college. That way you can avoid the noise, drugs and excessive drinking you would have to face in many college dorms.
If you're going away from home, it's a good idea to find roommates with whom you share certain basic values. Look for people you'll get along with and who will commit to having no drugs, no illegal or excessive drinking and no boyfriend or girlfriend sleepovers. Sit down and discuss these things with potential roommates before committing to sharing a room with them.
If there's no choice but to live in a dorm, you might try to find one where other Christians are living. Fraternities and sororities are often the most free-living dorms, and should usually be avoided. But there are fraternities and sororities that are organized on a set of values, such as service to the community or basic Christian morality.
Anything you can do to be in the company of people who will help you maintain your Christian values is something to be pursued. The Bible tells us that "evil company corrupts good habits" (1 Corinthians 15:33Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.
See All...), and, conversely, that "whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools suffers harm" (Proverbs 13:20He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.
See All..., New Revised Standard Version). Like it or not, we're all heavily influenced by the company we keep.
A source of help: true Christian fellowship
One of the big keys to holding on to your Christian faith during the college years is the Church. Keep going to Church! In fact, during this time when your faith is being assaulted, you really need more time with like-minded Christians than you did before. Spiritual camaraderie and adding to your Christian knowledge offer tremendous encouragement.
Hold on to your source of strength during your college years. Take the time for prayer, for study of the Scriptures and for true Christian fellowship to help you through. Build the bonds in Christ, and survive the college years—with your Christian faith not just intact, but strengthened! VT
Why is the world the way it is? What’s shaped our society and the kind of people we are? We’ve come up with all kinds of great things, like technology, medicine and governing constitutions. But the way we live is only getting worse and worse. Why?
Source: sxc.hu/grceva “One rotten apple spoils the whole barrel,” goes the saying. The Bible says effectively the same thing using the imagery of fermenting yeast working its way through bread dough: “A little leaven leavens the whole lump” (1 Corinthians 5:6Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
See All...). This idea is right at the heart of the wrong values people live by today.
In our modern world, five “rotten apples” are rotting away the good morals the Bible teaches us. These bad apples were introduced in different countries, but their corrupting effects have gradually spread around the world.
Society’s rotten apple #1: Marxist communism
The philosophy of atheistic communism was spread mainly by the German writer Karl Marx, who lived in England in the mid-1800s.
His ideas were helped along by the bad conditions for workers during the Industrial Revolution in many countries. Suffering terrible hardship and abuse, the working man was attracted to Marx’s ideas. Eventually, the bloody Bolshevik Revolution in Russia in 1917 led to the takeover by Marxist Vladimir Lenin and the creation of a communist empire, the Russian-headed Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.).
After World War II, the U.S.S.R. imposed communism on the countries of Eastern Europe. In 1949, it became the official political system in China. Then it spread to other nations, like North Korea, Vietnam and Cuba.
In 1991, communism was overthrown in the Soviet Union, which then let go of Eastern Europe. It’s also been watered down and reshaped in China to allow for a more open economic society. But morally, the world has never been the same. Communism—or more technically Marxist-Leninist socialism—is always attached to atheism. This belief has affected the mindset of so many political, cultural and educational leaders around the world. Because of that, it still has a lot of influence all over the world.
This rotten apple is based on three false ideas:
1. God does not exist, and man is just an evolved animal.
2. Truth is relative. There is no true moral way to live. Everyone has the right to decide what is right and wrong for themselves.
3. A one-party government should own both the wealth and the ways of creating wealth in a country. It can distribute the wealth however it wants. This means the goal is to have state control over the economy, politics, education and religion.
Furthermore, the institution of communism is in direct rebellion against God’s commandments, consisting essentially of lies, covetousness and theft. And, as history shows, it always leads to terrible atrocities including mass murder.
Alexander Solzhenitsyn, a dissident who suffered in the Soviet concentration camps and later won the Nobel Prize in literature, once noted, “If I were asked today to formulate as concisely as possible the main cause of the ruinous [Soviet] Revolution that swallowed up some sixty million of our people, I could not put it more accurately than to repeat: Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened . . .”
He continued: “If I were called upon to identify briefly the principal trait of the entire Twentieth Century . . . I would . . . repeat once again: Men have forgotten God . . . Within the philosophical system of Marx and Lenin, and at the heart of their psychology, hatred of God is the principal driving force, more fundamental than all their political and economic pretensions” (“Men Have Forgotten God,” address when receiving the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion in London, 1983, emphasis added).
Society’s rotten apple #2: Darwinian evolution
In the 1800s the English naturalist Charles Darwin developed a theory that human beings evolved in a genetic lineage. Starting from single-celled amoebas, it supposedly progressed to fish, then to amphibians, to reptiles, to mammals, to apes and finally to man. This led to the conclusion there is no real meaning to life. Karl Marx was so thrilled with this idea that he asked Darwin if he could dedicate his famous book on communism, Das Kapital, to Darwin. Darwin declined, but the connection between the two beliefs is very real.
Author Aldous Huxley, a great supporter of Darwin’s theory, made this remarkable admission: “For myself, as, no doubt, for most of my contemporaries, the philosophy of meaninglessness was essentially an instrument of liberation. The liberation we desired was simultaneously liberation from a certain political and economic system and liberation from a certain system of morality. We objected to the morality because it interfered with our sexual freedom” ( Ends and Means, 1941, p. 273).
As various critics of evolutionary theory have pointed out, if you teach a student to believe he’s just an animal, don’t be surprised when he begins to act like one.
Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, developed his methods and views on psychology in the late 1800s and early 1900s. His teachings on the subject centered on removing guilt from sinful acts and promoting sexual liberation as a way of avoiding mental and emotional disorders.
He insisted that sexual cravings, fundamental to human thought and behavior, should be freed. This idea wasn’t accepted in society or academic circles before his time. Freud’s drive theory suggested that people are instinctually driven from birth by the desire to experience physical pleasure. And he saw moral repression of this drive as damaging to mental health.
As Freud’s ideas spread and caught on, there was a loosening of society’s sexual morals in the 20th century—paving the way to widespread depravity.
Toppled thinkers still holding on
Author Phillip Johnson, a law professor and science writer, said this about the three rotten apples we’ve talked about so far:
“Every history of the twentieth century lists three thinkers as preeminent in influence: Darwin, Marx and Freud. All three were regarded as ‘scientific’ (and hence far more reliable than anything ‘religious’) in their heyday. Yet Marx and Freud have fallen, and even their dwindling bands of followers no longer claim that their insights were based on any methodology remotely comparable to that of experimental science. I am convinced that Darwin is next on the block. His fall will be by far the mightiest of the three” ( Defeating Darwinism by Opening Minds, 1997, p. 113).
Yet the influence of these figures, even the first two, has not gone away. Their corruption is still spreading even now, subverting the thinking of old and young alike.
But wait, there’s more you need to know! Two additional “rotten apples” have helped make your world stagger even further from the true God of the Bible and His way of life.
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1. "Warm little pond" theory: There is no solid evidence of life arising spontaneously from a chemical soup.
From http://el-paso.ucg.org/ or call 1-888-886-8632.
From http://el-paso.ucg.org/ or call 1-888-886-8632.