Veggie Tales Feast Presents for the Kiddies

Have you children outgrown Big Beak?  Do you know anyone this would make a good Feast present for? Perhaps Rod Meredith since he seems soooooooooo fascinated by what this represents. Or maybe for Flurry when he starts dating his new bride-to-be who will probably be 30 years younger than him.

How about a REAL Christian product that shows your kids how much you love the Lord.

Talk about failure in product placement!

Rod Meredith Speaks Out Against China

Documented failed prophet Roderick C Meredith has declared that China will not be a superpower in his latest article in the LCG copycat Tomorrow's World magazine.  Of course you can guess who will be.  Wait for it!  It's Lichtenstein!

Oh sorry, wrong Germans.  It's these Germans:

Germany is gearing up to dominate the world once again.  Spanky wants so much to see jackbooted Germans invading this country to spank all the pagans, gays, pig eaters, atheists, agnostics, anti-COGers, etc., etc.  He really gets off on the blood, guts and gore he daydreams about continually.

I hope he realizes that by moving his HQ to North Carolina he has placed his office workers and HQ hanger-on's in the first wave of German U-Boats as they invade the East Coast.  That is, IF,  any of his staff and church members have survived the deadly plagues and famine that will weaken the nation so much that no one will be able to fight the invading Germans.

Of course this also has end-time authority/prophet and world's most distinguished scientist, Dr. Bob Thiel salivating over Spanky's words. While he is off traveling the world and enjoying gastronomic delights during this feast (probably the last one REAL COG members will be able to attend) he is eagerly awaiting his vengeful god to return and wreck havoc on the world he is enjoying so much.

Thiel quotes Spanky:

China will not be the great power of the 21st century. Beset by increasing financial and social problems, Chinese influence will wane and a German-led “European Empire” will surge to the fore in world affairs. (Meredith RC. What is Just Ahead for You? Tomorrow’s World magazine, Sept-Oct 2011, p. 5)

So how does Prophet Thiel know this is true? Because Spanky wrote about this FOUR years ago!  It is prophecy coming alive!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Many publications have suggested that the 21st century will be “China’s century.” Even though the Chinese are fiercely moving forward, and their progress in developing their industries is obvious, these publications are dead wrong for two reasons. First, the inspired word of God describes specifically how a coming European Union will be the dominant force in this world—obviously within the next several years. Therefore, brethren, I would like to focus your mind on this matter so you can more intelligently “watch” world events along this line as they unfold before your very eyes. In the coming years, you will perhaps even see a revolt of the peasants in the outlying Chinese cities, who have lagged far behind the standard of living afforded those who have moved to Beijing and Shanghai. Plus, the tremendous pollution of the water, air and foodstuffs may bring about massive disease epidemics and other problems for the Chinese.

In addition, distracting wars and other events may— as God chooses to guide it—greatly undermine the material progress now being made by the Chinese. Meanwhile, you will soon see the European Union evolve into an absolutely powerful and dynamic force in the world— ultimately to become the “Beast” as revealed in Revelation 17 in your own Bible!

So the 21st century will not be the “Chinese century!” Rather it will appear to become the European century for a few years, until the magnificent return of Jesus Christ as King of kings and Lord of lords. From then on, the 21st century will be, indeed, “Christ’s century!” And all of us who are able to understand the “Big Picture” of world events from God’s point of view should be preparing to help straighten out the appalling degree of suffering, starvation and misconduct we find on this earth today in virtually every nation (Meredith R.C. An Inspiring and Successful Trip. Living Church News. May-June 2007, p. 21).

Prophet Thiel ends his blog entry with this firm, authoritative conclusion that is the FINAL word in the matter! Scoffers beware!

The Bible supports what Dr. Meredith has written about China and Europe.  And while China will have some influence this century, it will not truly be its leader.

The Clergy Project

People change as well the information, stories, understandings, so called facts, ideas and truths we all were given from others in our youth.
  

Every wedding I ever performed, whether I thought the couple had much of a chance or not, was an exercise in forcing them to promise they would never change in their views towards life or each other, and then I failed to inform them everything all around them, from this moment on will start to change .  The reason I didn't tell them that was that I did not understand that myself at the time.  You know, "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and tomorrow," along with the church and it's story kind of thing.

Ministry is a somewhat unique calling.  From experience, the membership totally expects the minister to never change and always tell the same old old story they all think they love so well.  They all too often expect him/her to be and do everything they have no personal intention of ever being or doing as well.  I know churches from both sides of the altar so to speak and people are just plain people.  In fact, one lesson from all this myself is that people change very little in life no matter what the story.  

The world of theology is huge. Most in ministry attend the school of their 
denominational choice and, of course, get the spin on the Bible and the "truth" plainly visible to them in their perspectives.  Others outside that experience are less than true.  In most fundamentalist schools it truly becomes a case of "we are right and you are of your father the Devil."  Most liberal seminaries are called liberal because they actually study the bigger picture of theology and admit to it's messy nature. 

But life unfolds. None of us get the truth of anything from birth into it.  It truly is "the glory of a king to search out a matter."  The problem is that as a man or women given to teaching theological truth as they understand it also accumulates more and more knowledge, experience, disasters, pain and life realities along the way. Most of life unfolding will eventually challenge anyone's beliefs so dearly gotten in their youth.  
One reads more and listens to more and eventually comes to hold different conclusions about those once cherished beliefs.  Remember, beliefs are not truth.  There truly are mere beliefs.

And so along with members of churches, ministers realize they need to move on and perhaps either regret the choice in the first place, or at least realize they can't teach what they no longer believe and need out.

Let me be blunt.  On this site and with the experience most here have had, the reactions to or the advice given to such men and women in this life situation are usually along the lines of:

"The bastards should quit now and stop stealing their paychecks"

"The liars deserve what they get."

"The moment you stop believing, you should move out of your house, stop eating the food "they" provide for you by giving you a paycheck, tell your family they can go swim for it and get your job at Walmart you son of a bitch."

I can't help you if that's the best you can come up with in your mind on how a man or woman who probably made a lot of personal sacrifices and has a story on how they came to ministry themselves, should handle this dilemma in their maturing lives.  However, I do expect these kinds of comments and will attribute them to painbodies trying to get even  :)  I know many CURRENT COG minister and member types who struggle with this dilemma and stay.  I know many COG members who "keep the Feast," by going to nice places each Fall but never to any services.  Yet they painly tell their friends and bosses, "I have to keep the Feast."

For decades, ministers have told me, "You are ahead of your time and you say what I only think!"   I can't help that but do know the conflict of it all.  I imagine most critical thinking Christians of all denominations understand this concept. 

The Clergy project, sponsored by the Freedom From Religion is an organization that helps clergy, most highly educated at the best schools and not booklet educated Apostles, Watchers and Witnesses, is the work of Dan Barker, former Evangelical Pastor and Author of Losing Faith in Faith.    Most of these pastors could tie the average person up in knots of the history of the Bible and the contradictory messages it contains.  The Clergy Project is a compassionate and balanced way for men and women of former faith to move on with as little collateral damage as possible.  Many times the damage is unavoidable and the lives of mates, children and extended are forever changed as well.  

I serve in the capacity of "one who knows'' to this project and find it all very familiar with only the names and organizations changing.  

Life is a journey and the Clergy Project is a way station along the way for men and women of former faith who finally had to face the facts and stop not seeing what they do see.  It's a painful journey and like a church member who can just not choose to show up the next week while their lives keep in full step, liberating sometime after the "No one told me this when I was in Seminary" hits the fan. 

The Clergy project is a very compassionate, balanced and extremely helpful endeavor and I honor them in this. I am pleased to be a small part of it. I wish I had had something like this in my own transitions instead of just getting thrown under the bus by my own studies and denomination and left in the gutter with, "just call the business office and they can help you with your questions about severance," or as the head of the WCG "Reconciliation Dept" said,  "We wish you the best of luck and will pray for you."   Or did they say "be warmed and be filled,"   I forget...

The Clergy Project

The Clergy Project is a confidential online community for active and former clergy who do not hold the supernatural beliefs of their religious traditions. The Clergy Project launched on March 21st, 2011. 

Currently, the community's nearly 100 members use it to network and discuss what it's like being an unbelieving leader in a religious community. The Clergy Project’s goal is to support members as they move beyond faith. Members freely discuss issues related to their transition from believer to unbeliever including:

• Wrestling with intellectual, ethical, philosophical and theological issues
• Coping with cognitive dissonance
• Addressing feelings of being stuck and fearing the future
• Looking for new careers
• Telling their families
• Sharing useful resources
• Living as a nonbeliever with religious spouses and family
• Using humor to soften the pain
• Finding a way out of the ministry
• Adjusting to life after the ministry

“We know there must be thousands of clergy out there who have secretly abandoned their faith but have nowhere to turn,” says Dan Barker, a former evangelical preacher who “lost faith in faith” after 19 years of preaching the gospel. “Now they do have a place to meet, a true sanctuary, a congregation of those of us who have replaced faith and dogma with reason and human well-being.” 

Dennis C. Diehl

DenniscDiehl@aol.com