Christmas… Should Christians Celebrate a Holiday that May Have Pagan Roots?
This is a question many Christians have asked themselves. In this sermon consider…
We are assembled this day to celebrate the nativity of the Son of God. The theme is one full of wonder, of instruction, and of comfort.
We celebrate in December and some have said that Christmas is indeed pagan. There have been many other sermons given through the years that question whether Jesus could have been born in the winter season. I never really gave it much thought. Until 25 or so years ago, my pastor at the time, Richard Schermerhorn, gave a sermon. In it, he made a clear case for Christ’s birth having occurred on or around the time of year we celebrate it.
This sermon, preached on Christmas Day in 1844 covers the pagan roots of the holiday and the difference between ”high church” (read liturgical) and ”low church” read informal celebrations. I also contains some timeless wisdom… especially since the exact arguments are tried today!
If we remember…
It commends Christ to us as a perfect Savior. As a Redeemer. We need one who can suffer in our stead; one who can make a satisfaction to divine justice; one who can be a “mediator between God and man,” [1 Timothy 2:5] “a days-man betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both,” [Job 9:33] This qualification the Son of God acquired by his assumption of flesh.
It is a great thing for us because He did assume flesh!
Read the entire sermon here: WallBuilders – Historical Writings – Sermon – Christmas – 1844
For me and my house… we commemorate the day to the Lord!
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BEST BUY MAKES US AWARE THAT AMERICANS OWE ALL TO ALLAH | The Last Crusade
Well… not from me!
The environmentalists proclaim this is the era of “life after shopping” perhaps it is true, at least where Best Buy is concerned!
BEST BUY MAKES US AWARE THAT AMERICANS OWE ALL TO ALLAH | The Last Crusade
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LAUS DEO
Do you know what it means?
One detail that is never mentioned is that in Washington, D.C., there can never be a building of greater height than the Washington Monument.
With all the uproar about removing the ten commandments, etc., this is worth a moment or two of your time. I was not aware of this amazing historical information.
On the aluminum cap, atop the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.., are displayed two words: Laus Deo.
No one can see these words. In fact, most visitors to the monument are totally unaware they are even there and for that matter, probably couldn’t care less.
Once you know Laus Deo’s history, you will want to share this with everyone you know. These words have been there for many years; they are 555 feet, 5.125 inches high, perched atop the monument, facing skyward to the Father of our nation, overlooking the 69 square miles which comprise the District of Columbia, capital of the United States of America.
Laus Deo! Two seemingly insignificant, unnoticed words. Out of sight and, one might think, out of mind, but very meaningfully placed at the highest point over what is the most powerful city in the most successful nation in the world.
So, what do those two words, in Latin, composed of just four syllables and only seven letters, possibly mean? Very simply, they say ‘Praise be to God!’
Though construction of this giant obelisk began in 1848, when James Polk was President of the United States, it was not until 1888 that the monument was inaugurated and opened to the public. It took twenty-five years to finally cap the memorial with a tribute to the Father of our nation, Laus Deo ‘Praise be to God!’
From atop this magnificent granite and marble structure, visitors may take in the beautiful panoramic view of the city with its division into four major segments. From that vantage point, one can also easily see the original plan of the designer, Pierre Charles l’Enfant – a perfect cross imposed upon the landscape, with the White House to the north, the Jefferson Memorial to the south, the Capitol to the east, and the Lincoln Memorial to the west.
A cross you ask? Why a cross? What about separation of church and state? Yes, a cross; separation of church and state was not, is not, in the Constitution. So, read on. How interesting and, no doubt, intended to carry a profound meaning for those who bother to notice.
Praise be to God! Within the monument itself are 898 steps and 50 landings. As one climbs the steps and pauses at the landings the memorial stones share a message.
On the 12th Landing is a prayer offered by the City of Baltimore ;
on the 20th is a memorial presented by some Chinese Christians;
on the 24th a presentation made by Sunday School children from New York and Philadelphia quoting Proverbs 10:7, Luke 18:16 and Proverbs 22:6. Praise be to God!
When the cornerstone of the Washington Monument was laid on July 4th, 1848 deposited within it were many items including the Holy Bible presented by the Bible Society. Praise be to God! Such was the discipline, the moral direction, and the spiritual mood given by the founder and first President of our unique democracy ‘One Nation, Under God.’
When one stops to observe the inscriptions found in public places all over our nation’s capitol, he or she will easily find the signature of God, as it is unmistakably inscribed everywhere you look. You may forget the width and height of ‘Laus Deo ‘, its location, or the architects but no one who reads this will be able to forget its meaning, or these words: ‘Unless the Lord builds the house its builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.’ (Psalm 127: 1)
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Gratitude
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A primer on ISM’s
Two Cows
SOCIALISM: You have two cows. State takes one and gives it to someone else.
COMMUNISM: You have two cows. State takes both of them and gives you milk.
FASCISM: You have two cows. State takes both of them and sells you milk.
NAZISM: You have two cows. State takes both of them and shoots you.
BUREAUCRACY: You have two cows. State takes both of them, kills one and spills the milk from the other cow into the sewer system.
CAPITALISM: You have two cows. You sell one, and buy a bull.
That explains how the various ism’s work in a nutshell. If you have further questions, click the names to get a little more detail.
Then, please vote out the incumbents 
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Atheists in Bubbleland
I don’t get it… Why is all this energy expended on nothing.
What I mean is this, people spend way to much time trying to upend Christianity… but what do they defend?
That there was this nothing and it exploded into everything and will collapse back to nothing! Where is HOPE in that?
Here is hope… 1 John 1:1-4!
Atheists in Bubbleland | thebereancall.org
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Not the Book of the Month, the Book of the Ages
No book has ever had as much opposition as the Bible.
Amen to that!
Not the Book of the Month, the Book of the Ages | thebereancall.org
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Letter from an attorney
confirmed to be from this attorney
these pages are jpeg’s so click on the image to bring it up without the text it overlaps
Born St. Louis , Missouri , August 21, 1944
Bar Admissions:
North Carolina, 1969
U.S. District Court, Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of North Carolina , 1969
U.S. Tax Court
Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals
Education: Wofford College , 1966A.B.
Mercer University, 1969J.D.
Phi Alpha Delta
Vice-Justice, District XIV, 1968 – 1969
Professional Associations and Memberships:
North Carolina and American Bar Associations (Member, Sections on: Administrative Law; General Practice; Litigation)
26th Judicial District and North Carolina State Bar
Mecklenburg County Bar Association
American Association of Justice
North Carolina Trial Lawyers Association
Captain, U.S. Army, 1969-1971, Vietnam
National Defense Medal, 1969
Republic of Viet Nam Service Medal, 1970
Bronze Star Medals (2), 1971
Assistant District Attorney, Mecklenburg County , 1971 – 1974
Charlotte Chamber of Commerce
Chairman, Board of Trustees Providence United Methodist Church
Board of Directors, Alexander Children’s Home
Board of Directors, Charlotte Culinary Institute
Wofford Alumni Executive Council
Scoutmaster, Boy Scouts of America
Board of Directors, Boy Scouts of America of Mecklenburg County
Board of Directors, Girl Scout Council
Life Member, National Eagle Scout Association
Life Member, Girl Scouts of America
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The Joys of Muslim Women
Try reading this impartially!
Please read it all (the next to last paragraph will no doubt scare you to death). The author of the story was interviewed on CBC radio last week and had quite an impact both for what she had to say and because her own experience gave her courage to say it.
Joys of Muslim Women
by Nonie Darwish
- In the Muslim faith a Muslim man can marry a child as young as 1 year old and have sexual intimacy with this child, consummating the marriage by 9.
- The dowry is given to the family in exchange for the woman (who becomes the man’s slave) and for the purchase of the private parts of the woman, to use her as a toy.
- Even though a woman is abused she can not obtain a divorce.
- To prove rape, the woman must have (4) male witnesses.
- Often after a woman has been raped, she is returned to her family and the family must return the dowry. The family has the right to execute her (an honor killing) to restore the honor of the family.
- Husbands can beat their wives ‘at will’ and do not have to say why.
- The husband is permitted to have (4 wives) and a temporary wife for an hour (prostitute) at his discretion.
- The Shariah Muslim law controls the private as well as the public life of the woman.
In the Western World (America) Muslim men are starting to demand Shariah Law so the wife can not obtain a divorce and he can have full and complete control of her. It is amazing and alarming how many of our sisters and daughters attending American Universities are now marrying Muslim men and submitting themselves and their children unsuspectingly to the Shariah law.
By passing this on, enlightened American women may avoid becoming a slave under Shariah Law.
Cruel and Usual Punishment is her latest book just released in most bookstores.
Ripping the West in Two.
Author and lecturer Nonie Darwish says the goal of radical Islamists is to impose Shariah law on the world, ripping Western law and liberty in two.
She recently authored the book, Cruel and Usual Punishment: The Terrifying Global Implications of Islamic Law.
Darwish was born in Cairo and spent her childhood in Egypt and Gaza before immigrating to America in 1978, when she was eight years old, her father died while leading covert attacks on Israel. He was a high-ranking Egyptian military officer stationed with his family in Gaza.
When he died, he was considered a “shahid,” a martyr for jihad. His posthumous status earned Nonie and her family an elevated position in Muslim society.
But Darwish developed a skeptical eye at an early age. She questioned her own Muslim culture and upbringing. She converted to Christianity after hearing a Christian preacher on television.
In her latest book, Darwish warns about creeping sharia law – what it is, what it means, and how it is manifested in Islamic countries.
For the West, she says radical Islamists are working to impose sharia on the world. If that happens, Western civilization will be destroyed. Westerners generally assume all religions encourage a respect for the dignity of each individual, Islamic law (Sharia) teaches that non-Muslims should be subjugated or killed in this world.
Peace and prosperity for one’s children is not as important as assuring that Islamic law rules everywhere in the Middle East and eventually in the world.
While Westerners tend to think that all religions encourage some form of the golden rule, Sharia teaches two systems of ethics – one for Muslims and another for non-Muslims. Building on tribal practices of the seventh century, Sharia encourages the side of humanity that wants to take from and subjugate others.
While Westerners tend to think in terms of religious people developing a personal understanding of and relationship with God, Sharia advocates executing people who ask difficult questions that could be interpreted as criticism. It’s hard to imagine, that in this day and age, Islamic scholars agree that those who criticize Islam or choose to stop being Muslim should be executed. Sadly, while talk of an Islamic reformation is common and even assumed by many in the West, such murmurings in the Middle East are silenced through intimidation.
While Westerners are accustomed to an increase in religious tolerance over time, Darwish explains how petrodollars are being used to grow an extremely intolerant form of political Islam in her native Egypt and elsewhere.
In twenty years there will be enough Muslim voters in the U.S. to elect the Presidentby themselves! I think everyone in the U.S. should be required to read this, but with the ACLU, there is no way this will be widely publicized, unless each of us sends it on!
This is your chance to make a difference…!
Think about those that died at Ft. Hood
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Excellent tool for Answering Common Errors
Here you find a list of misconceptions, misunderstandings, and outright errors that are commonly hurled at Christians.
Interesting reading, as always, from Defending. Contending.
Answering Common Errors « Defending. Contending.
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