In case you missed it, in Friday’s newspaper (4-5-14) the announcement was only one paragraph long (and then on page 14): The CEO of Mozilla Firefox, Brendan Eich was forced to step down after holding the position for only two weeks. And the advocates of homosexuality have begun to encroach upon free speech. One wonders how far behind can be Orwell’s Thought Police. What great crime had the CEO committed to warrant such swift and drastic action?
Was a cache of child pornography found on his office computer? Had he been embezzling money from the company? Did several female employees come forward to allege sexual harassment? No, it was none of these striking offenses. Here’s what he had done. Back in 2008, in California, there was an initiative on the ballot regarding the nature of marriage. As in many states at that time, the issue was, “Should homosexuals be allowed to marry?” or “Should marriage be between a man and a woman?” Well, here is what Eich had the nerve to do. He donated $1,000 (wait for it) to uphold the traditional, Biblical definition of marriage.
And that’s why he lost his job? Yes, it’s called revenge, and the homosexual community will go after anyone who disagrees with their viewpoint. What is sad is that in America people are no longer free to have a viewpoint that differs from those who practice what the Bible calls perversion. If you do, a loud chorus will chant your name to the elite media, who will brand you a hater. If you do not agree with homosexual marriage, you are not fit to run a company (which you helped found). You must be punished for not being politically correct—for daring to stand in the way of those who just want happiness. Right—and nothing but contempt and hatred for anyone who does not think the way they do. Probably you are not fit to hold any job, let alone be a CEO. In fact, maybe you should be sentenced to sensitivity training or imprisoned until you can think properly.
The jackals are leaping high in a victory dance while also keeping an eye out for their next victim. Who will it be? Never mind what technological advancements Eich made; never mind his genius, never mind how he might have improved life for the high-tech wolves themselves. One must conform. Big Media is Watching You. Orwell feared the government would take over and determine what we thought. But even government is subservient to the news and entertainment media these days.
In 1966, Stephen Stills wrote, “”For What It’s Worth,” and it was released in January of 1967. It was performed by Buffalo Springfield at the time; Stills would go on to become part of Crosby, Stills, and Nash. The song was not actually a war protest song, although it is easy to see why most people would think it was; it was actually the first of the Los Angeles Sunset Strip Riots that inspired the song. A curfew of 10:00 P.M. had been imposed, and the young people protested it. The words in the final verse, however, could not be more appropriate for what is now occurring in America.
Paranoia strikes deep.
Into your life it will creep.
It starts when you’re always afraid.
Step out of line, the men come and take you away.
We better stop.
Hey, what’s that sound?
Everybody look – what’s going down?
Yes, citizens better begin to look at what’s goin’ down. Events such as Eich’s resignation will contribute to everyone’s paranoia. Be careful what you do, say, text, or think. You could be the next target. And if you’re in no danger tomorrow or the next day, how long have you got? Two years? Five? You can have a #1 hit with, “I Kissed a Girl,” but how long will it take before, “When a Man Loves a Woman” is banned?
Why This Is Not a Surprise
How did all of this begin? Back in the ‘70s, the American Psychiatric Association declared that homosexual behavior was no longer deviant. For the next few decades, the media began to repeat ad infinitum that homosexuality was just an alternative lifestyle. Oh, it was so unfair. The right of homosexuals were being violated, and they needed to have equality, although they were, of course, already equal. No, what they really wanted was to openly declare their homosexuality and have the approval of the general public as well. Eventually, that was not enough, either. No, they now wanted to be “married,” although such an idea is totally farcical. Even though voters in several states turned down redefining marriage, the camel got its nose under the tent with some court decisions and a state legislature or two—all of which went contrary to the voters’ wishes.
But what do voters know? Why should anybody listen to them? Many are not politically correct and are not in bed with (so to speak) the eastern establishment of New York, Boston, and Washington, D.C. So now, state after state is adopting (through one means or another) homosexual “marriage.” The only battleground left is to go after those who disagree and try to humiliate them, get them fired, or (at the least) vilified. Oh, yes—and to wage war on the few religious groups who still reject the sin of homosexuality. Watch for it.
So, why is it not a surprise that this kind of viciousness is occurring? The Bible was written for a reason. It’s main purpose, of course, is to help as many people as desire it to get to heaven. For that reason, Jesus and redemption are the main themes of the Bible. But in preparing everyone for that goal, there must also be an emphasis on truth and what constitutes sin. Both of those concepts meet together in Genesis 18-19, which is considered a sacred text by Jews, Muslims, and Christians. The reader learns that there is a very grievous sin being committed in Sodom and Gomorrah. (Gen. 18:20). In fact, there was an outcry against the city. So what was its sin?
Anyone who has ever read Genesis knows that the men there were homosexuals—all the men, “both old and young, all the people from every quarter” (Gen. 19: 4). Practicing the sin would have been bad enough, but it was worse than that. Homosexuals were obviously in the majority, and the freedom to choose to participate no longer existed. Do we not think it is strange that an entire city was given over to the practice? The men were taught at a young age that this is what this community does. Our respected leaders, the most intelligent among us—not to mention the wealthiest—we all believe we should engage in this practice. You will join us. With the peer pressure that existed in the city, few (if any) men seem to have been exempted from the practice. Even being captured by a foreign enemy had not caused them to repent of their sins. Now things were so bad that they were forcing travelers and strangers to partake of their immorality.
For that reason there was an outcry against Sodom. No one was free to refuse to participate. This is the ugliness of the homosexual agenda. It is no longer enough to avoid persecution for their perversion; they have become the persecutors of anyone who objects to their behavior. For that reason, we now see coercion for everyone to agree with what they are doing and vengeance for anyone who steps out of line with the program. How much longer will voluntary participation give way to it being a requirement?
When the depravity became so great in Sodom that even visitors were forced to comply, God destroyed it. America has already entered the phase in which even a mild expression of support for the only kind of marriage that God ever authorized (one man and one woman for life) must be punished. Six years ago Brendan Eich gave $1,000 to support traditional marriage, and that cannot be allowed to stand. He must be protested against and removed from being CEO of a corporation he helped found. This type of ugliness cannot allow freedom of speech or an opposing point of view. Opponents must be crushed! Annihilated! And let this be a lesson to anyone else that those who for decades have pleaded for tolerance are themselves perhaps the most intolerant of all!
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BIBLE MOVIES?
Gary W. Summers
“Wouldn’t it be great if more Bible movies were made?” Sure, if they were relatively true to what the Bible teaches, but all that has been produced lately is, well, judge for yourself. The tremendous success of Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ undoubtedly caught the attention of some who saw that there was money to be made in this genre. Although it took some poetic license and had a few flaws, it may be the best Biblical movie ever. Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments was inspiring, although a large portion of the epic was fictional and inaccurate. The more recent One Night With the King, which portrayed the life of Esther, was a disappointment in several ways. Not only were several details wrong, they fiddled with two of the most important scenes—Esther going before the king and Haman pleading for his life. And it was supposed to be produced by religious folks!
Then last year we were treated to 10 hours of The Bible on television. Being produced by Roma Downey and her husband, expectations were high, but they were soon dashed as the opening scene had Noah speaking to his grandchild on the ark in the midst of the Flood. The only problem is that no grandchildren were on the ark—at all—of any age. The rest of the series suffered from the same ailment. This publication spent a few weeks reviewing that series. Although some events in the Bible were done well, it was not worth wading through to find them. Their current movie, Son of God, uses many of the same scenes from the television version.
Noah
By now, many have heard that the one who wrote and directed this movie is an atheist. It shows. The most accurate thing about the film is his own assessment: “It is the least accurate Biblical movie ever.” One of the few accuracies is the rainbow at the end. But up until then, just about the only semblance to what happened in the Bible is an ark and a lot of water.
Most people have wondered their entire lives what the name of Noah’s wife was. Hey! Now we know. It was Naamah—which just happens to be the name of Tubal-Cain’s sister—who just happens to be leading the battle against Noah. Aha! The plot thickens. The reader has no doubt wondered how Noah and his sons built such a huge ark. Now we know: They had help from the Watchers. And who might they be? We just had to ask! The Watchers are giant rock formations which can move because they are really fallen angels. Right. And they help Noah build the ark. Talk about reading between the lines! But if Tolkien can have enraged trees working on behalf of the heroes, rocks can presumably do the same thing.
But there is more. Ham is mad at Noah for allowing the woman he wanted to marry die. Tubal-Cain becomes a stowaway on the ark. The Watchers protect Noah and the others so that they can get on the ark, thus sacrificing themselves. Having redeemed themselves, they are allowed to go back to heaven. See, Darth Vader’s not the only evil one who can be saved.
Apparently, Shem’s wife was barren until blessed by Methuselah, who chose to remain on the earth rather than board the ark. Noah thinks Shem’s child should be killed so that humanity can be wiped out. A fight ensues, and eventually Ham kills Tubal-Cain. The movie should be called Noah, In a Parallel Universe. If anyone desires to actually see the movie, it would be best to wait until it comes to television.
God’s Not Dead
Although the story is fictional, similar things have occurred, and several lawsuits are mentioned in the closing credits. The strong point of the movie is the way it deals with the atheistic professor and his arguments. Several people’s stories are developing concurrently, including that of a Muslim girl. The main story, however, involves a college professor who, in his philosophy class, tells the students they are not going to waste time discussing agnostics, but those philosophers who were actually atheists. To be sure that no discussions about God occur, he tells the students to write down on a piece of paper the sentence, “God is dead.” They are to sign their name in agreement underneath it and hand it in. One student cannot bring himself to do so. The professor, obviously annoyed, says, “All right. Here’s what we will do. For the next three class periods, you will have 20 minutes to make the case for God.” The Freshman asks who will judge his success. The professor answers that he will do so.
The lad suggests that he might be biased and suggests that the class decide. The plot moves on from there, and the argumentation is really good. It is not so high that viewers cannot understand it, but it is current with what has been published within the last few years. This part of the movie is very encouraging.
On the down side, the movie is produced by denominationalists; so it contains comments about the way the Holy Spirit speaks to us (allegedly). There are “faith only” conversions, and the final big scene involves a gospel rock concert. Of course, a false gospel and false worship always serve to detract from the message of any production—even if the message is a moral or theistic one.
One added dimension concerning this film ought to be made known. The Duck Commander and his wife are in it. No, they are not there to present the truth to the movie audience. No mention is made of the role that repentance and baptism have in salvation. They appear at the beginning of the movie when a female reporter does an ambush interview with them. However, she is more concerned about killing ducks than anything spiritual. However, at the end of the movie, when the gospel rock concert is in full swing, the duck commander is on a video screen bidding welcome to all who are present. Thus, he endorses singing with instrumental music. And they are supposed to be representing the Lord’s church? Furthermore, since they are in a movie that teaches “faith only” conversions, they are tacitly endorsing error as it pertains to salvation. Is anyone who attends worship where they do going to say anything to them about this? Does the church they attend have elders? This cannot be allowed to stand.
Heaven Is For Real
This movie opens on April 16th; it is based on a 2010 book which chronicles a 3-year-old boy who claims to have visited heaven during a near-death experience. According to Wikipedia, Christian “pastor “Todd Burpo writes that during the months after his son Colton’s emergency surgery in 2003, he
began describing events and people that seemed impossible for him to have seen or met. Examples include his miscarried sister, whom no one had told him about, and his great grandfather who died 30 years before Colton was born. Colton also claimed that he personally met Jesus riding a rainbow-colored horse and sat in Jesus’ lap, while the angels sang songs to him. He also says he saw Mary kneeling before the throne of God and at other times standing beside Jesus.
Right. Could it be that he overheard family members talking about the miscarriage while surrounding his bed? When Muslim children have these experiences, do they see Allah or Muhammad? Even if a 3-year-old might be in heaven briefly (where else would he go?), how odd that all his relatives are there! Especially those who never obeyed the Gospel. Wait for it on television.