Some people have the ambition to achieve world domination. They apparently have the confidence in their ability to climb to the top of the human race and in their intellect to convince people to obey their set of principles. That, in this blogger's past opinion, would have been a grandiose dream for anyone to have. His opinion has changed recently because of his new-found awareness of how big the universe is relative to the size of the Milky Way, the galaxy of which the earth's solar system is a part and which itself is merely a speck of dust in the entire universe. [1], [2] The dream of ruling over a microscopic planet, earth, in whole universe makes both dreamer and the dream to dominate the world so very small.
The universe is enormous and is beyond man's ability to measure. [3] For the human mind to comprehend fully the size of the universe is nearly impossible. And that is just one universe. Can there be another universe? That is entirely possible.
Does this universe and any other that may exist have a Creator or is a universe a haphazard occurrence? As far as this blogger knows, galaxies conform to a certain set of laws that prevent them from colliding with one another at random like gas molecules [4], and planets within each of them also exist in some preordained order so that they also do not crash into each other like bumper cars driven by blind or blind-folded people in an amusement park. Accordingly, the only reasonable conclusion is that an ordered universe has a Creator.
Within that ordered universe, the Creator created man and placed man in the Milky Way galaxy, on the planet earth which was once the Garden of Eden. While man is important because man was created in the image of the Creator, God, the universe that man exists in is equally important because of its precise configurations allowing man to continue with his existence.
Being able to create laws that define the universe in which earth can exist, and a solar system that is well-ordered for earth to maintain a certain equilibrium in which man can exist, and man with a self-contained system of flesh and bones that can survive in harmony with what the earth provides, that is power.
Therefore, for those to want to rule the world ought to realize how insignificant they really are, how immaterial are their concerns relative to their existence on this planet, in this solar system, in this galaxy and in this universe and how blind their ambition for power truly is. [5]
[1] http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/the-universe-is-scary#.jspaXn3oj
[2] http://io9.gizmodo.com/why-is-the-scale-of-the-universe-so-freakishly-large-1719048488
[3] http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/space/stories/astronomers-discover-humongous-structure-one-ninth-size-observable-universe
[4] https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/airplane/kinth.html
[5] A small shift in something as basic as the magnitude, direction or consistency of gravitational pull affecting earth can bring about the demise of the entire human race. The possibility of instant mass extinction of man by any random movement of the other planets in the solar system knocking earth off its normal course, even without a fiery collision, makes the nuclear and hydrogen bombs and the rest of the less dramatic conflagrative build-ups that man uses to show power small and silly. From this perspective, man is truly nothing, nothing without God allowing for his existence, yet some think that they, when armed with conflagrations far more minuscule than the light that emits from the abdomen of fireflies in the not-so-large scheme of things (like the Milky Way galaxy within its yet-to-be-defined universe), have immense power. How ignorant can they be?
Friday, January 29, 2016
Sunday, January 24, 2016
The Costs Of Original Sin
It is common knowledge that death is the result of Original Sin. Death is also the end of life, a finality to suffering of all kinds and where decrepitude and the process of dying are lengthy and difficult to endure, death could be a welcomed relief unless the soul is destined for Hell. Nobody knows if one's soul will go to Heaven or to Hell, therefore, it is better to endure whatever that may be left of life than to hurry the soul to Hell, if Hell is the soul's eternal destination. If during the final period of suffering, one awakens to the true meaning of salvation and accepts it with a genuine and contrite heart, asking for the forgiveness of one's sins, as well as the forgiveness of those who have committed wrongs, then hopefully one's soul may be saved from the torments of Hell. [1]
It is believed that suffering in life shortens the time one's soul spends in Purgatory, an intermediate and painful stop for a full and irrevocable cleansing, freely-willed, in order that the soul may enter Heaven.
The cost of Original Sin is not merely death, it is perhaps life itself, full of suffering in varying degrees punctuated with moments of true joy, serving as contrasting windows for Hell and Heaven.
Relative to eternity, life is a short journey, one that continues to be presented with even more temptations as knowledge increases, and one that continues to be given the Free Will to select among them. Many see the vast array of choices as advances in human intellect and capability, but this blogger sees them as multiplication of temptations, more new and improved paths that lead a sinner comfortably and luxuriously to Hell.
In other words, the high cost of death relative to life is no longer the one payment for Original Sin. The one-time payment has been modified, a long time ago, into an installment plan even though the final payment, death, remains unchanged. Now, each installment has become cheaper and thus affordable and accessible to everyone at any age where God is supplanted by social media, technology, virtual entertainment and, increasingly more and more sophisticated artificial intelligence. Anytime when one's life, or for that matter, the world at large, does not have God's presence, there is suffering, some perceptible, some imperceptible until it is too late.
[1] For those who do not believe in Hell, just look at what humans can imagine, especially the work of artists and those in the movie industry who are so effective in presenting graphic Hell-like images on canvas and on screen, then imagine such hellish scenes being infinitely worse. Once in Hell, Hell is no longer a childish pay-to-view entertainment but a real-time experience from which the soul can never escape--and what could that possibly feel like-- like a person who is continuously and forever gasping for oxygen but it is only available in the smallest amount so life cannot be lived and death cannot be had.
It is believed that suffering in life shortens the time one's soul spends in Purgatory, an intermediate and painful stop for a full and irrevocable cleansing, freely-willed, in order that the soul may enter Heaven.
The cost of Original Sin is not merely death, it is perhaps life itself, full of suffering in varying degrees punctuated with moments of true joy, serving as contrasting windows for Hell and Heaven.
Relative to eternity, life is a short journey, one that continues to be presented with even more temptations as knowledge increases, and one that continues to be given the Free Will to select among them. Many see the vast array of choices as advances in human intellect and capability, but this blogger sees them as multiplication of temptations, more new and improved paths that lead a sinner comfortably and luxuriously to Hell.
In other words, the high cost of death relative to life is no longer the one payment for Original Sin. The one-time payment has been modified, a long time ago, into an installment plan even though the final payment, death, remains unchanged. Now, each installment has become cheaper and thus affordable and accessible to everyone at any age where God is supplanted by social media, technology, virtual entertainment and, increasingly more and more sophisticated artificial intelligence. Anytime when one's life, or for that matter, the world at large, does not have God's presence, there is suffering, some perceptible, some imperceptible until it is too late.
[1] For those who do not believe in Hell, just look at what humans can imagine, especially the work of artists and those in the movie industry who are so effective in presenting graphic Hell-like images on canvas and on screen, then imagine such hellish scenes being infinitely worse. Once in Hell, Hell is no longer a childish pay-to-view entertainment but a real-time experience from which the soul can never escape--and what could that possibly feel like-- like a person who is continuously and forever gasping for oxygen but it is only available in the smallest amount so life cannot be lived and death cannot be had.
Friday, January 22, 2016
Free Will & Divine Intervention
God gave man Free Will. Interfering with it ruins it but when divine intervention occurs after Free Will has been fully realized, it is unaffected.
Divine intervention occurs more often than one realizes. When things are going well, nobody questions why. People are usually not conscious of and grateful for what God has given them, but when bad things happen, people start to question God and doubt God's existence because people do not expect to have bad experiences with regularity even though many often make the wrong choices by their own Free Will. The fact that so many live to see the next day with a degree of inner peace, to carry on as if nothing can go wrong, is very much a result of divine intervention. [1]
Some who do not believe in God think that divine intervention is nonsense, that daily life is daily, and that every day life will be similar to life the day before. That theory works until God stops intervening, and nothing is the same anymore. Life turns hellish, then God suddenly becomes relevant but only as an entity to be blamed. [2]
To be sure, life of a sinner is replete with misfortunes, some of them subtle, some not. To lessen the frequency and intensity of negative consequences of one's own misguided Free Will, and the evil Free Will of others [3], one ought to become aware of each divine intervention that takes place and say a prayer of gratitude.
[1] It seems like people who had killed and who had commanded a military to kill are able to continue to live out their days as if nothing is wrong. This blogger does not personally know these people but can imagine that they cannot be living the same lives they had before the killings. This blogger surmises that they are constantly haunted by their actions. Unable to obtain any inner peace at all, they may start painting and doing other things, but nothing they do that they believe to be therapeutic provide permanent relief. They could lose sleep and become obsessive. Divine intervention is probably missing from their lives entirely and their individual hell has already started.
[2] Many blame God for natural disasters like earthquakes, droughts, tsunamis and floods that claim people's lives. Those who do need to realize that natural disasters are natural to this planet earth and these natural occurrences only become disasters when humans lives and properties are lost. Humans by their Free Will have chosen to build tall buildings in earthquake zones, live in deserts and on drought-prone lands, near beaches and rivers, build communities in low-lying and below sea-level terrains and populate the earth and exploit its natural resources at a rate faster than the time it takes for the earth to regenerate, destabilizing the planet's delicate balances, is that God's fault?
[3] Among the evil-doers are the war mongers of the world, the regime changers, the killers (regime changers are also killers -- ISIL, for instance, is a regime changer), the market and money manipulators, the unconscionable polluters, and in each category their allies.
Divine intervention occurs more often than one realizes. When things are going well, nobody questions why. People are usually not conscious of and grateful for what God has given them, but when bad things happen, people start to question God and doubt God's existence because people do not expect to have bad experiences with regularity even though many often make the wrong choices by their own Free Will. The fact that so many live to see the next day with a degree of inner peace, to carry on as if nothing can go wrong, is very much a result of divine intervention. [1]
Some who do not believe in God think that divine intervention is nonsense, that daily life is daily, and that every day life will be similar to life the day before. That theory works until God stops intervening, and nothing is the same anymore. Life turns hellish, then God suddenly becomes relevant but only as an entity to be blamed. [2]
To be sure, life of a sinner is replete with misfortunes, some of them subtle, some not. To lessen the frequency and intensity of negative consequences of one's own misguided Free Will, and the evil Free Will of others [3], one ought to become aware of each divine intervention that takes place and say a prayer of gratitude.
[1] It seems like people who had killed and who had commanded a military to kill are able to continue to live out their days as if nothing is wrong. This blogger does not personally know these people but can imagine that they cannot be living the same lives they had before the killings. This blogger surmises that they are constantly haunted by their actions. Unable to obtain any inner peace at all, they may start painting and doing other things, but nothing they do that they believe to be therapeutic provide permanent relief. They could lose sleep and become obsessive. Divine intervention is probably missing from their lives entirely and their individual hell has already started.
[2] Many blame God for natural disasters like earthquakes, droughts, tsunamis and floods that claim people's lives. Those who do need to realize that natural disasters are natural to this planet earth and these natural occurrences only become disasters when humans lives and properties are lost. Humans by their Free Will have chosen to build tall buildings in earthquake zones, live in deserts and on drought-prone lands, near beaches and rivers, build communities in low-lying and below sea-level terrains and populate the earth and exploit its natural resources at a rate faster than the time it takes for the earth to regenerate, destabilizing the planet's delicate balances, is that God's fault?
[3] Among the evil-doers are the war mongers of the world, the regime changers, the killers (regime changers are also killers -- ISIL, for instance, is a regime changer), the market and money manipulators, the unconscionable polluters, and in each category their allies.
Saturday, January 9, 2016
Man's Ego
Man's ego feeds on pride and pride is Satan's favorite sin [1]. Thus, the bigger the ego, the more pride one has and the more likely would one's soul have a reserved space in the express lane to Hell.
Individuals have egos, as do groups of people, institutions and nations. When the collective ego of a group of people within an institution or a nation is not aligned with that of other groups in the same institution or nation or other institutions or nations, there will be entrenched and lasting conflict.
The ego thinks it is always right, believes what it does is always just, desires everything that benefits and pleasures itself but lacks humility because humility diminishes the ego while perfect humility extinguishes it. Jesus had perfect humility and therefore He had no ego.
It is no coincidence that Christ is the Prince of Peace for he who has no ego is always at peace. Whoever is able to exist within the peace of Christ has no ego and no pride, but few exist in that realm who serve all with a pure heart.
On the contrary, many people, institutions and nations exist to serve their egos with arrogance at best, and with deceit, hypocrisy, ruthlessness and depravity at worst. This world is filled with egoistical pride, from mildly to severely sinful in degree, which turns it into a Hell hole in which man himself must suffer. Those who had created, are creating and are planning to create new or bigger Hell holes on this planet ought not to be concerned with their transitory earthly existence but to fear instead for their souls' eternal torment in Hell.
[1] http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/what-is-the-devils-favorite-sin-pride-says-an-exorcist/
Individuals have egos, as do groups of people, institutions and nations. When the collective ego of a group of people within an institution or a nation is not aligned with that of other groups in the same institution or nation or other institutions or nations, there will be entrenched and lasting conflict.
The ego thinks it is always right, believes what it does is always just, desires everything that benefits and pleasures itself but lacks humility because humility diminishes the ego while perfect humility extinguishes it. Jesus had perfect humility and therefore He had no ego.
It is no coincidence that Christ is the Prince of Peace for he who has no ego is always at peace. Whoever is able to exist within the peace of Christ has no ego and no pride, but few exist in that realm who serve all with a pure heart.
On the contrary, many people, institutions and nations exist to serve their egos with arrogance at best, and with deceit, hypocrisy, ruthlessness and depravity at worst. This world is filled with egoistical pride, from mildly to severely sinful in degree, which turns it into a Hell hole in which man himself must suffer. Those who had created, are creating and are planning to create new or bigger Hell holes on this planet ought not to be concerned with their transitory earthly existence but to fear instead for their souls' eternal torment in Hell.
[1] http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/what-is-the-devils-favorite-sin-pride-says-an-exorcist/
Sunday, January 3, 2016
A Precarious World
The early days of 2016 did not begin well:
With Russia backing Iran and Syria and United States supporting Saudi Arabia and demanding a regime change in Syria, the stage is set for far more uncertainty going forward in 2016 than what was experienced in 2015 now that Saudi Arabia had cut diplomatic ties with Iran.
With tensions rising in the Mideast and a limited nuclear confrontation entering the realm of possibility, the moment of peace [7] in this world has become more and more impossible to realize in the foreseeable future and a place of peace [8] can only exist in one's imagination.
May God bless us all!
January 2, 2016: Saudi Arabia, a kingdom of primarily Sunnis, executed a Shi'ite cleric, Nimr al-Nimr, along with 46 others, of whom 43 were Sunni jihadists and four, including Nimr, were Shi'ites. [1]
January 3, 2016: Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic ties with Iran after "protesters stormed and set fire to the Saudi Embassy in Tehran in protest over the death of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr." [2]
For those, including this blogger, who are ignorant about the differences between Sunnis and Shi'ites, an article dated September 15, 2014, entitled "ISIS and Washington's Ignorance About the Sunni-Shia Divide" by Gary Leupp, Professor of History at Tufts University, is a worthwhile read. [3]
It gives "[s]ome necessary historical background: In the seventh century the still young Islamic movement split into two camps, Sunni and Shia. The proximate cause was a difference of opinion about the selection of a new caliph, the spiritual and political leader of the Muslim community. The Sunni felt he should be elected; those who came to be called Shiites believed that he must be a member of the Prophet's family. The quarrel came to a head at the Battle of Karbala (in what is now Iraq) in 680 and the defeat of the Shiite faction, which still nurtures historical resentments toward the victors, and a sense of eternal victimhood." [4]
"There was a time when Protestants viewed Roman Catholics as idolatrous heretics and bloody wars of religion ravaged Europe. ISIL is now fighting such a war against Shiites, Christians, Yezidis, secularists, and others it sees as unbelievers and as stooges of the west. But its primary target is the Shiites." [5]
"During the 1950s the U.S. embraced the Baath party as the only alternative to communism (the Iraqi Communist Party was the largest in the Middle East) and Islamism. Its view changed after the 1967 war, when Washington came to see the Middle East through Israel's eyes and bought the Israeli line that Baghdad was a 'sponsor of terrorism.' The U.S. might still occasionally differ with Israel (as when Reagan administration condemned the Israeli bombing of Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor in 1982). It might even align itself with Iraq, as it did from 1980 to 1988 when Iraq as fighting a war of aggression against Iran. But (especially as the neocons gained ascendency [sic] in the regime) Washington sought 'regime change.' President George W.H. Bush did not obtain this during the 1991 assault on Iraq.... But his son used the 9/11 attacks to one-up his dad and accomplished a long-held ambition.
"George 'Dubya' Bush gleefully destroyed the Iraqi state. He smashed a state in which Christians served in high posts, women attended college and felt free to leave their heads uncovered, rock n' roll blared from radios, liquor stores operated legally, and there was even a gay scene. He replaced it with an occupation run by clueless cowboys literally marching around Baghdad in cowboy boots, issuing orders--most notably the orders of dissolution of the Baathist Party and the Iraqi Army.
"But these were the main vehicles of power for the Sunnis....These were secular institutions, not tools for the propagation of any theology. Their dissolution was an attack, not on a religious belief system (about which the [Dubya Clueless Cowboy] Occupation could have cared less), but on the Sunni community that had provided Saddam Hussein's support base and dominated his regime.
"The Sunnis violently resisted the [Dubya Clueless Cowboy] Occupation. The Shiites, sensing opportunity, stood by looking sullen, then in response to Ayatollah al-Sistani's call, mounted peaceful protests, demanding elections. After the Abu Ghraib torture photos scandalized the world, the U.S. was forced to allow elections for an Iraqi advisory body, dominated by Shiites, and to return sovereignty to a now-Shiite led regime in 2009. Meanwhile a Sunni-Shiite civil war broke out. The U.S. had opened a Pandora's Box of ethnic strife, which continues. It is the gift that just keeps on giving.
"Abu Musad al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian free-lance terrorist, decided to establish an Al-Qaeda branch in Iraq. He found ample support among the Sunnis of Anbar Province. His group was largely chased out during the U.S. 'surge' of 2007, but found a home in Syria. In 2011, during the ill-fated 'Arab Spring,' a pro-democracy, anti-corruption protest movement erupted in Syria. Obama announced that President Bashar Assas must resign. (Why? Here was another secularist, another Baathist, presiding over another country where women dress in Western fashions, go to college, drink beer and listen to rock n' roll--a country striving for a normalized relationship with the U.S. but spurned by the State Department due to its opposition to Israel, which illegally occupies its Golan Heights, and due to its alliance with Iran.)." [6]
(That was a lot of typing quoting Professor Gary Luepp's article). The article has a conclusion (click on footnote number 3 below if interested).
With Russia backing Iran and Syria and United States supporting Saudi Arabia and demanding a regime change in Syria, the stage is set for far more uncertainty going forward in 2016 than what was experienced in 2015 now that Saudi Arabia had cut diplomatic ties with Iran.
With tensions rising in the Mideast and a limited nuclear confrontation entering the realm of possibility, the moment of peace [7] in this world has become more and more impossible to realize in the foreseeable future and a place of peace [8] can only exist in one's imagination.
May God bless us all!
[3] http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/09/15/isis-and-washingtons-ignorance-about-the-sunni-shia-divide/, accessed January 3, 2015.
[4] Ibid.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ibid.
[7] Address of this blog: http://lemomentdepaix.blogspot.com/
[8] Title of this blog: Place de la Paix.
[7] Address of this blog: http://lemomentdepaix.blogspot.com/
[8] Title of this blog: Place de la Paix.
Friday, January 1, 2016
A Refugee's New Year's Resolutions
What kinds of resolutions can refugees have when they have to rely on the mercy of others and any opportunity that may come their way? This blogger has never been a war refugee but can imagine what could go through a refugee's mind.
The two basic resolutions that had been formed somewhere along the refugees' common journey away from strife would have been to survive and thrive. Beyond these two resolutions that continue in this new year would have to about character. Would a third resolution be to refuse a handout or an opportunity so that someone else more needy may have it first? Would another be to help a neighbor in need regardless of religion? Would yet another be to thank God that they have their lives even though they might have lost their possessions?
What about the young refugees who had lost their parents and are alone in a world that is unfamiliar to them and hostile those who are vulnerable? What kinds of resolutions could they have in mind? Revenge? Forgive those who killed their family and build a better society? Could they even have any hope in a new year in which the pains deep down in their hearts remain fresh? Despite the disproportionate burden of their sufferings, the children in a refugee camp frozen in time in the photograph below [1] waved to the rest of the world and to new year revelers in New York City Times Square and other cities around the world:
If anyone ought to feel guilty, this blogger ought to be at the front of the guilt line, without having to suffer much and having much that is beyond one's basic needs. His cross may be light relative to cross that each child in the photograph has to bear but it is nonetheless a cross, one that he bears with love for Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, as much as he knows what that love entails which is not much, being a descendant of the first refugees from the Garden of Eden and of Sin.
[1] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/worldnews/9791269/Winter-storms-snow-torrential-rain-and-flash-floods-hit-the-Middle-East.html?frame=2447279
The two basic resolutions that had been formed somewhere along the refugees' common journey away from strife would have been to survive and thrive. Beyond these two resolutions that continue in this new year would have to about character. Would a third resolution be to refuse a handout or an opportunity so that someone else more needy may have it first? Would another be to help a neighbor in need regardless of religion? Would yet another be to thank God that they have their lives even though they might have lost their possessions?
What about the young refugees who had lost their parents and are alone in a world that is unfamiliar to them and hostile those who are vulnerable? What kinds of resolutions could they have in mind? Revenge? Forgive those who killed their family and build a better society? Could they even have any hope in a new year in which the pains deep down in their hearts remain fresh? Despite the disproportionate burden of their sufferings, the children in a refugee camp frozen in time in the photograph below [1] waved to the rest of the world and to new year revelers in New York City Times Square and other cities around the world:
If anyone ought to feel guilty, this blogger ought to be at the front of the guilt line, without having to suffer much and having much that is beyond one's basic needs. His cross may be light relative to cross that each child in the photograph has to bear but it is nonetheless a cross, one that he bears with love for Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, as much as he knows what that love entails which is not much, being a descendant of the first refugees from the Garden of Eden and of Sin.
[1] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/worldnews/9791269/Winter-storms-snow-torrential-rain-and-flash-floods-hit-the-Middle-East.html?frame=2447279
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