Politics and the Faith

As close as it is to the upcoming November election, it’s fitting to talk about how important it is to separate Politics and Faith. I know that it’s kind of a touchy subject, but it’s important because Politics and Faith are not compatible, as I have learned over the years. When people combine the two, it’s usually a recipe for heated arguments, even among the bestest of friends.

What I have discovered is that in order to talk about Politics and Faith in the same sentence, it’s important to have mutual respect for the subjects above to actually not carry the baggage in discussing it. I know because I have actually argued to friends about the subjects of Politics and Faith. Indeed, people do take these things seriously. I had one friend storm out of the room in anger when he could no longer argue since my knowledge of the subjects were far superior than his own. He took it personally. I think that’s wrong. We all have views and it’s also important to respect the views of others.

Holy Week

The moments leading to Jesus’ crucifixion must’ve been truly terrifying for his disciples. The greatest mystery is how these frightened men suddenly developed the courage to announce and proclaim that Jesus has risen.

Something must’ve happened to transform that fear into great strength. All we know is that Christianity spread in a rapid rate, and, it all began with a preacher’s arrival in Jerusalem that led to his crucifixion.

Merry Early Christmas

I would like to wish everyone an early Merry Christmas. I would like you to know, my great readers that I am doing well. As a scholar, I haven’t done much, since I am pursuing a different path in life.

God, I know understands my decision to pursue a different path.

I would also like to thank those who continued to support me during my inactivity periods in this blog.

Why people misread the bible

I would like to answer this question over a blog, but it’s better if I share the video clip I found in youtube.

Dear Readers:

I do regret to say that I won’t be blogging as much as I used to. Times have been a bit uncertain for me lately and I haven’t had much time to do some research on the important topics in the world of biblical studies. As of this moment, I haven’t been able to afford going back to college to achieve my dream of becoming an archaeologist. But, I’m hopeful that things could change.

If my situation changes, I’ll come back and write more entries in this blog.

Thank you for the readership and the caring.

The Da Vinci Code Conversation

I can’t believe just how fast this year has gone. It’s almost Christmas and then New Year.

The reason why I wanted to write today was the fact that I recently just had a conversation with a woman who had just read “The Da Vinci Code” for the first time. She had seen the movie before but just decided to read the book just for the sheer thrill of filling her day with some kind of excitement, so she decided to read the book authored by Dan Brown.

I had met the woman in a coffee shop. I couldn’t help but walk up to her and ask her whether she liked the book. As a writer, I felt the need to ask, but that’s just human nature, I guess.

The conversation centered around the debate whether Jesus was actually married to Mary Magdalene or not. After being 2/3 away from finishing the book, the nice woman in here 30’s was convinced that Mary Magdalene and Jesus was actually married and that many of the things in the book were facts.

I was not in the mood to argue, so I basically shrugged it off. I felt that if I argued with her, I would probably ruin her reading experience. But, there’s a point that I’d like to make with the experience. I think these days, too many people are swooped in the realm of confusing distinction between fact or fiction. It’s amazing how many fictional things are being passed as facts. It’s just the world that we live in these days.

The claim that Jesus was married can’t be proven; however, the source for the stories of Jesus, the New Testament, said nothing about this. If Jesus was indeed married, the Gospel writers would have had no reason to hide it. Why would they? Being married was expected in a man, and, if Jesus was married, the Gospel writers would’ve mentioned it in the New Testament.

Gnostic Gospels are the source for the claim that Jesus and Mary were married. According the the Gospel of Philip, a line says:

Jesus kissed Mary on the ________________. There’s a hole on the missing word. It’s understandable how many people can use their imagination to fill in the blanks, but as serious scholars, we can’t do that. The Gospel of Philip is a work in a much later period. It can’t be passed as factual unlike the 4 Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John because the gap between the historical Jesus of Nazareth and the Gnostic Jesus is far too large.

Dear Readers:

I do regret not being able to update my site lately. I have not been able to do much since I’ve been going through rather tough times. I do appreciate your daily visits and patience.

Hugs to all.

Curator of ‘The Biblical Adventures of a Former College Student’.

Is there a seventh heaven?

I had a discussion with someone the other day and he used an expression that is quite familiar with the world: it’s like the seventh heaven. I began to think whether there was actually a number in the amount of heavens there are. It’s quite fitting to ask this question because if you ponder about it, it just beckons the question: why would there be levels of heavens? Isn’t going to heaven the place where every human being aspires to be? How can going to the 7th heaven be determined?

As it turns out, there’s nothing in the Bible that suggests this; however, there’s no denying how important the number 7 is in biblical terms. God rested on the 7th day. Today, 7 is regarded as a lucky number.

In your studies of the Bible, what’s your take on the number 7?

The Bible and Morality

Click on image to see my official site.

Seeing a segment about being safe during Halloween, I was awestruck by how many parents there are who fear for their children’s lives. One parent said, “It’s not the way it used to be. It’s not as safe as it used to be in my time.”

I asked myself whether they are justified into thinking that. The truth is that it’s a whole new different world we live in today. People around the world have somehow lost their interest in reading scripture. It’s not just in America, but also in many parts of Europe and some parts of Asia as well. A European friend of mine had told me one day that he could not believe how Churches in Europe are so empty. It wasn’t like that when he was a kid.

It’s sad to know this, but unfortunately, this is a trend that’s been transpiring today. In closing this note, I hope to ask those who had lost faith why they had lost faith.

I am not implying that people who don’t read the Bible are immoral people, but since morality and the Bible are intertwined, I figured that it’s a good question to ask because it’s a question in which many people have varying views.

The Miracles of Jesus

Jesus' feet washed.

People who disregard the miracles of Jesus and think that the miracles in the book are just fiction are missing the points of the entire biblical texts. First off, it’s not logical to assume that because the writers were from 2,000 years ago that they necessarily wrote in a theological point-of-view. I take the view that the 4 Gospels were indeed based on testimonies of people who were actually there. People took religion seriously 2,000 years ago even more so than they do now.

Jesus lived about 2,000 years ago and historical data confirms that. No mainstream scholar today argues to the fact that Jesus indeed lived. So, it’s widely believed that Jesus did live. The debate is over.

There have been scholars who argued that miracles are unlikely to happen and could not be repeated, so that makes the miracle stories invalid. Once again, they assume that miracles are just plain impossible. They fail to explain why Jesus was so popular in his time. The reason for his popularity is because of his healings. He captured the imagination of people way before the internet and modern technology such as video cameras. To do something what Jesus did, it must’ve truly taken people aback.