The Nicene Creed

Imagine my surprise when I learned there was a Prayer/Pledge for Christians?  It is called The Nicene Creed and was formulated at the First Ecumenical Council at Nicea in AD 325 to combat the thought that Jesus could not be a God since he was created (born of a woman), and it was expanded at the Second Ecumenical Council at Constantinople in AD 381 to balance its coverage of the Trinity by including the Holy Spirit. It is the only creed that was made public to the lesser citizens by any of the seven ecumenical councils and thus it is the only creed that is truly ecumenical (involving people from different kinds of Christian churches) and universal. In the Orthodox Church, it is the only creed.  As a new baby Christian I’m glad to be learning the foundations of the Christian body aren’t you?

Gargoyles - Serving a Dual Purpose

Last week during class we covered a lot of interesting material and of all those topics what caught my attention?  Gargoyles so I did a little research and it turns out they served a dual purpose, in some instances they were intended to scare away birds from nesting on the roof and to divert water away from the face of the building by a hole in the top of the statue which either expelled the water through the face of the gargoyle or out the back just think of them as a really big gutter.

Pay No Attention Behind the Curtain

As I sat watching the video I was shocked and appalled at the woman screaming at Roland Martin, “you need to come away from that Democratic Plantation brother.”  While her name escapes me her antics do not she is one of a duo of women who are Donald Trump supporters.  Aint it great that we live in a time and country where two fabulously ghetto black women can choose to “drink the kool aid” happily?

I have tried to pay close attention to the proponents and the opponents and I have heard very little of the plan for a Trump Administration.  I have heard ad nausea of the guilt of the Obama Administration and of how if Hilary Clinton wins it would be four more years of the same shuffle the coconuts.  I agree with him if Hilary is elected it will be more of nothing only because the republican congress will make sure that she accomplishes nothing just as they did to Obama.  For the last two nights I have listened as presenter after presenter goes on about how Obama is responsible for the shootings of innocent men and law enforcement officers how Hilary lied about emails or Benghazi incident.  

When can we expect to hear how you will uphold law and order, what you plan to do to Obama Care, how you will decrease the deficit and how you will end excessive force incidents of law enforcement.  I’m starting to feel like Dorothy I’ve come to you for help only to realize that it was all smoke and mirrors, pay no attention to the man behind the curtain that’s not the real Donald Trump.

Persistence Pays Off - New Palestinian City

Daniel Master of Wheaton College has found what he thinks is a great find in the remains of a Philistine City.  After 30 years of excavating and searching he and his group have unearthed skeletons and artifacts that it suspects had rested for more than 3,000 years in the cemetery, potentially offering clues to the Philistines’ lifestyle and perhaps providing some answers to the mysteries of where the Philistines came from.   Much has remained unknown about their origins.  Dr. Master is a co-director of the Leon Levy Expedition to Ashkelon, which has excavated the site since 1985. The cities and their people are mentioned in the ancient texts of the Babylonians, Egyptians and Assyrians. In the Hebrew Bible, they were the nemeses of the Israelites and sent Goliath to fight David. Many tales tell of the great battles the Philistines fought and lost until their utter destruction at the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian army in 604 B.C.  Now we can hear the story from these individuals rather than their enemies.  

Budda's Budda's Everywhere

 Indian Buddha


  Pakistani Buddha


  Chinese Buddha
Every living being has the same basic wish – to be happy and to avoid suffering.  Human beings have spent much time and energy improving external conditions in that search for happiness and a solution to their many problems. But when we respond to difficult situations with a positive or peaceful mind there would not be problems for us; indeed we may even come to regard them as challenges or opportunities for growth and development. Problems arise only if we respond to difficulties with a negative state of mind. Therefore, if we want to be free from problems we must learn to control our mind.  These are just a few of the thinkings and perscriptives of Buddha.  Those who follow this way of life learn to view every aspect of life they choose to see life's challenges as just a part of life and not the end of it.  

King Arthur the Man the Myth

I believe that King Arthur was a real person but became the idyllic King after the stories of his battle conquest and his life were written about later sort of an artistic license if you will.  I think the idea of a King who wants what is best for his people and his men is an admirable but unachievable goal.  Of the stories I’ve read and the movies I’ve seen depict him as a strong and wise leader and a soft and humble man.  In order to show his men that he was their equal he designed a conference table that was round that way there was no one at the head.  The story of and the ideology of Camelot is one where all have what they need, life is a utopia and the people and the government work together.  Now wouldn’t that be a wonderful place to live?

The Revolution Will Be Televised

Since I don’t believe in coincidence I think I understand why I was experiencing difficulty in writing this week’s discussion blog.  As I was unable to attend class this week i don’t know what topics were discussed so allow me to just vent a little.  In the last 3 days all forms of media have been bombarded with information and images showing police using excessive force to peaceful protest turning violent at the blink of an eye some suggest that the riot in Dallas was deliberately executed in order to provide right wing conservative a higher platform to show others both domestically and internationally that non-whites cannot peacefully assemble and bolster Donald Trump supporters.  I recall after the Rodney King verdict and the ensuing riot there was a truck driver who was wrenched from his vehicle and beaten his name is Reginald Denny he was viciously attacked by rioters and looters, his life was only saved when a minister placed his body between the driver and his attackers.  I remember this because the national and local news ran the footage over and over ad nauseum until I no longer cringed when I saw it, the news media has run any and all media of the shooting and the riot repeatedly so much so I had to turn off my television, it’s was just information overload.  If it was the intent of certain news media to make me scared, bewildered and angry then they have succeeded.  If the message is civilians have no right to expect to be treated like human beings, then they have succeeded.  What most neglect to see is this type of abuse of power has been occurring for years the difference new and better technology, we now have the ability to show when officers are committing the very laws they were sworn to uphold.  I have no answers, only more questions.  Corruption exist in all walks of life but when the people who are supposed to be protecting us are the same ones oppressing us who then will protect us from the police?

Ideas and Concepts of Philosophy Worth Living For

Last week during class we spoke on a wide range of topics but the three that caught my attention were the concept of Yin Yang, Nirvana and Negative Space.  

Negative space is defined as space between objects or parts of an object for example the picture at first it looks like an image of two women or maybe one woman and her reflection but if you pull your gaze back it’s possibly the image of a glass or bowl with a neck and a base.  Prior to this class I never could grasp the concept of negative space or foreground or background it seems like I’m learning more about art then I originally thought
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Nirvana is a state of stability, harmony and joy while the word isn’t new to me since I was sort of  grunge head and loved the group, but I think the idea or concept of Nirvana is just such an abstract thought or idea that most would have difficulty grasping it but what would life be like if we lived in a time where everything in your life occurred without any conflict or difficulty where every decision you made was the right one every endeavor attempted was successful, that I think would be most folks idea of Nirvana.

Finally we have the Chinese philosophy of the Yin and Yang I have always thought that this symbol was akin to the symbols used in the astrological sign Libra, but it turns out there is a lot more to it than that.  While this is sort of true its more to do with a philosophy or way of thinking, the light side being feminine and dark while the other side is positive, bright and masculine.  Much like Nirvana I imagine this ideas main purpose to attempt to achieve harmony and balance something I think we all should strive for.