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	<title>The ArchiTexters Net &#187; Internet Religion Resources</title>
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		<title>Churches in McKinney</title>
		<link>http://architexters.net/churches-in-mckinney/</link>
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		<pubDate>Tue, 03 Jan 2012 14:06:03 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[Internet Religion Resources]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Living With Lifestyle]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[No matter if in the subject of communicating, resolving problems and conflicts, or personal financial situations, raising children each married couple creates some dirty laundry.  For example, what is the top source of struggle in married couples today?  Personal financial struggles!   The vast majority of us never gained the information of [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>No matter if in the subject of communicating, resolving problems and conflicts, or personal financial situations, raising children each married couple creates some dirty laundry.  For example, what is the top source of struggle in married couples today?  Personal financial struggles!   The vast majority of us never gained the information of how to manage our families&#8217; funds God&#8217;s manner. Hence we do what we know with the limited information, but this oftentimes includes yelling and bad blood.  One way to handle the high emotion is to get educated on what is taught from a <a href="http://www.intersectchurch.org/intersection">church in McKinney Texas</a> or your local religious organization. We live in an incredibly active culture. We drive. We work. We have conversations with friends and family. We keep busy schedules. But what is underneath it all?  So few people take a few minutes to seek answers to the question which all of us should ask.  The question is is, &#8220;Why do I do what I do?&#8221; One of the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/intersectchurchtx">Frisco Texas churches</a>, or your local church, is a helpful resource to begin to solve this urgent question.Last, with all of the conflicts in our everyday lifestyles, how much do you genuinely understand about being a fantastic partner the way God intended?  Raising these questions at a <a href="http://www.facebook.com/IntersectChurch">church in Frisco</a> or your local area can help you find more joy in your life. </p>
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		<title>A Clean Facade Prolongs Life and Reduces Power Consumption</title>
		<link>http://architexters.net/a-clean-facade-prolongs-life-and-reduces-power-consumption/</link>
		<comments>http://architexters.net/a-clean-facade-prolongs-life-and-reduces-power-consumption/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 13 Mar 2011 19:31:03 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[Food + Nutrients]]></category>
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		<description><![CDATA[All facades are affected by pollution and water damage. Much of the damage to the facades is caused by an excessively high moisture content. Consequently, this triggers mould and rot inside the material behind the facade, as an example within the studs, sleepers and floor structures. A facade with high moisture content also leads to [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>All facades are affected by pollution and water damage. Much of the damage to the facades is caused by an excessively high moisture content. Consequently, this triggers mould and rot inside the material behind the facade, as an example within the studs, sleepers and floor structures. A facade with high moisture content also leads to a poorer thermal efficiency of the property.</p>
<p>Working appropriately with facade cleaning / <a href="http://www.specialrengoringar.se/tjanster/rengoring-av-fasader">fasadtv&#228;tt</a> is all about engagement with and designed approaches for cleansing, restoring and safeguarding the facades in a suitable and responsible manners. Each and every facade is exceptional with its specific material composition and for that reason demands a exclusive treatment. The goal is that the impact will likely be lasting and secure.</p>
<p>With continuous cleaning of the facade and preventive measures reduces not only energy consumption as well as the need for renovations. As a bonus, you create higher well-being of your residents, visitors and tenants.</p>
<p>How we support you look immediately after your property:</p>
<p>Facade Cleaning</p>
<p>Dirt, algae and moss that may perhaps be left facing decreasing capacity to breathe, which reduces the life of the facade. We support you to wash clean and treat your facades prior to damage becomes a reality.</p>
<p>Blasting Cap</p>
<p>A large number of of our properties are on a stone plinth, which are commonly specifically vulnerable to dirt, everything from road film, urine from dogs to pollution from gravel, soil and sand. For ideal and lasting outcomes combine this service having a water repellent and graffiti protection.</p>
<p>Boost enjoyment on patios and courtyards</p>
<p>Clean and fresh environments contribute to wellbeing and make a superb impression of the area. We assist you with the cleaning of the ceiling, walls and terraces. We have techniques, equipment that makes cleaning quickly and finished having a long-term outcomes.</p>
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		<title>Feels Like Heaven!</title>
		<link>http://architexters.net/feels-like-heaven/</link>
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		<pubDate>Wed, 11 Mar 2009 09:52:57 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[Internet Religion Resources]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[When it feels like heaven, is it really?
When we initially meet someone who absolutely makes us feel light on our feet and puts extra energy in our veins by rushing blood through parts of your body and brain which have been left dormant for a while it causes our body to be excited.  It [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>When it feels like heaven, is it really?</p>
<p>When we initially meet someone who absolutely makes us feel light on our feet and puts extra energy in our veins by rushing blood through parts of your body and brain which have been left dormant for a while it causes our body to be excited.  It feels different in a GREAT kind of way, like heaven possibly would make us feel.  This excitement can cause our brain to release what is called &#8220;endorphins&#8221; which explode in the brain at just the thought of that special someone, or seeing them, or talking with them, or spending time with them.  The endorphins give us a feeling of peace.  It really is a natural chemical produced in the brain and it has a marked affinity for opiate receptors.  An opiate is a chemical, a type of drug, made from Opium, a plant, and is something that induces rest or inaction or quiets uneasiness.  Our brain can produces endorphins, which causes other chemicals to be produced in our brain, opiates, which have the effect of making us feel relaxed and at peace.  This is what you are really feeling when you initially meet that special someone.  It is all in your head.  However, it is manifested in your entire body.</p>
<p>I wondered, &#8220;Why did God make us this way?&#8221;  Through many studies and personal experiences that we all have either been through or seen first hand in our families and friends, we know that being on drugs long term is not good for us.  Yet, God allowed us to have this mechanism to be on a natural high, all of the time!  Wow.  I think this is deep, so I decided to study it a little more and look at it from a biblical and human perspective.</p>
<p>When do we feel this incredible, heaven like, change in our mind and body?</p>
<p>The first thing I wanted to understand was does this incredible heaven like feeling happen to us on other occasions, other than when we meet someone we want to fall in love with?  I checked it out and found out that we actually don&#8217;t feel this specific feeling at any other time.  There are things that come close, like when you or someone you love is in danger, you will have this feeling of peace and strength to do whatever it takes to save yourself or your loved one.  It is not the same as that feeling of being in love though.</p>
<p>What does the Bible have to say about it?</p>
<p>Was it Gods plan for us to have this sort of incredible heaven like feeling?  I came across a few scriptures in the Bible that led me to believe that God intended for us to have this incredible heavenly feeling.  Proverbs chapter 18 verse 22: &#8220;Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the LORD.&#8221;  Wow! Right off the top, the LORD gives favor to a man who finds a woman and makes her his wife.  The Bible calls it &#8220;a good thing&#8221;.</p>
<p>It gets even better folks.  I John, chapter 4 verse 16: &#8220;And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.&#8221;  Double Wow!!  God is love and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God and God in him.  This topic became more than a notion to me at this point.  Now I am  putting 1 + 1 together to get 2.  Could it be that the heaven like feeling that is induced in our brain and manifested in our body when we are in love with someone is a Godly response to his plan being carried out in our human lives?  It&#8217;s just a question.  Let me know what your answer is?  As I continued reading I John chapter 4 verse<br />
 18: &#8220;There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.&#8221;  &#8220;There is no fear in love&#8221; I immediately reconcile this quote with the opiate feeling of peace and strength.  It makes me realize that God has given us everything we need and more to be all we can be.  To the extent that our brain and body work together to complete our mission toward Godliness by letting us know physically when someone is compatible with us.   &#8220;He that feareth is not made perfect in love.&#8221;  Compatibility is something that is subjective, but only you know for sure, you have to take into account all of the circumstance.  Think about it, why is it that when you fall in love with someone, you have no fear of anything?  You are ready to take on the world, as long as you have your sweet heart by your side.</p>
<p>I believe it is Gods plan for men and women to become a perfect union.  The love is essential, but God knew that there had to be something else, something to give the man and the woman the drive they needed to sustain a God loving relationship.  He gave the ability for humans to fall in love as a plan to show us how we must be able to love God and follow his commandments.  Read Ephesians chapter 1 verses 3 &#8211; 6:<br />
 &#8220;3&#8243;: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:<br />
 &#8220;4&#8243;: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:<br />
 &#8220;5&#8243;: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,<br />
 &#8220;6&#8243;: To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.  Wow! wow! wow!  Being holy and being in love are the things that GOD wants for us as human beings.</p>
<p>Is being in love enough?</p>
<p>As I concluded my research on this heaven like feeling, I discovered that even with the mental and physical tools that are God given, people need more than just that heaven like feeling to stay in love.</p>
<p>The key to staying in love is being able to accept the truth about who you are and get to know all about the person you are in love with in a constructive way.  You have to know who you are in order to share you with someone else.</p>
<p>Ephesians chapter 4 verses 1 &#8211; 4:  &#8220;1&#8243;: I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,<br />
 &#8220;2&#8243;: With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;<br />
 &#8220;3&#8243;: Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.<br />
 &#8220;4&#8243;: There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;</p>
<p>Here the Apostle Paul is telling us how we should behave with each other in love.  This is a crucial element to being able to stay in love.  Paul also elucidates on how we strive to be in the one spirit of our calling.  If a man is called to be a husband and a woman is called to be a wife, then they should continually be endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  There it goes again y&#8217;all, that word &#8220;peace&#8221; going back to how you felt when you first met that special person you fell in love with in the context of this article.</p>
<p>I believe what tends to happen with us is this:  We fall in love and then time goes by and we need to get more and more endorphins to sustain the level of heaven that we want to be at.  Something like a crack addict wanting to get higher and higher, but realizing that they need to smoke more and more crack to get to that high they were at before.  What happens is we get use to it.  Our body is regulated.  Too much of anything is not good for us.  The Bible says in Philippians chapter 4 verse &#8220;5&#8243;: Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.  Our body has a built in mechanism to regulate how much heaven we can feel at one time.  When we go pass that threshold, we usually have dire consequences, if not death.</p>
<p>We have to have balance as human beings.  We are not God!  We are trying to be Godly though and to that end we need Jesus Christ.  At the core of a good relationship or marriage is a true belief in God and his awesome power to do everything and anything.  Believe that.  Ephesians chapter 3 verse 17:  says &#8220;17&#8243;: That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;<br />
 &#8220;17&#8243;: That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love.</p>
<p>We need Jesus in our life to get to GOD and GOD only deals with the inner man, what is in our deepest heart.  The core of it all is to know the love of Christ.  Remember, Christ died for us!  That is the sort of love you need to have always for the person you are in love with.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s not heaven, but it&#8217;s heaven like</p>
<p>In conclusion, I found out a lot and I wanted to share it with all of you.  The Heaven like feeling is GOD given to help us know when we are in love with someone.  I hope you understand the heavenly feeling you get when you meet someone is GOD given and not to be wasted on just anybody, literally!  Remember, &#8220;The Lord is at hand.&#8221;  Remember, too much of anything is not good for us humans.  We need a balance that is centered on Jesus Christ and his advocacy with GOD for us.</p>
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<p>Nevada York has based one of her characters: &#8220;Pastor Ethan&#8221;, in her book Mahogany&#8217;s Revelation on Ethan Berry, A.K.A. &#8220;Pastor Ethan.&#8221; He resides in the Bay Area of California. <a href="http://nevadayork.com." rel="nofollow">http://nevadayork.com.</a></p>
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		<title>Josephus Called Jesus a Bandit</title>
		<link>http://architexters.net/josephus-called-jesus-a-bandit/</link>
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		<pubDate>Fri, 27 Feb 2009 08:39:41 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[Internet Religion Resources]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[You might already know about the Essene Templars and how they tell their initiates that they are not connected to Masonry at the early stages of their indoctrination. One such person who has read a lot of my work discussed it with the Essene Patriarch who supported much of what I said about their origins. [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>You might already know about the Essene Templars and how they tell their initiates that they are not connected to Masonry at the early stages of their indoctrination. One such person who has read a lot of my work discussed it with the Essene Patriarch who supported much of what I said about their origins. So when I say Templars I include pre-Christian derivatives of the Mystery Schools that have always had differing names, symbols, icons, effigy mounds, logos, and associations. Most of the rituals remain connected to ancient guilds and priestcraft to be sure.</p>
<p>Stonehenge, Cholula and the Ka&#8217;aba of Mecca are ever-present reminders of what knowledge and power lie dormant in the macrochips of metal or rocks. The Kensington Runestone is a touchstone to gain insight into how perverse the academics can be. Hanno left a stone in New England that tells of 30,000 men brought to America before Jesus adopted the moniker of Christ or Christos (if he ever did). The Melungeons near the mounds of Pennsylvania might be the reason Columbus brought an Arabic (Berber) translator on his third trip to America rather than the Ogham-based Hebrew scholar he had on his first voyage. The Bat Creek Nine left the Roman Collosseum and its lions to other Christians, but the archaeologists who found their skeletons held the nearby rock upside down and thought it was Cherokee rather than Judaic or Semitic script according to a top linguist named Cyrus Gordon who has written extensively about the European and America cross-pollinations. All of these things are just recent history when compared with the 250,000 year-old Mexican human artifacts or Leakey&#8217;s 200,000 year old arrowheads from the shores of the old Salton Sea.</p>
<p>Needless to say if this giant of archaeology would be ridiculed for such evidence, so will I. Dr. Lee and his boss at the National Museum of Canada lost their livelihood and suffered persecution for telling what they thought about the Manitoulin Island quarries dating to 130,000 years ago. But there is so much evidence now that the hegemony must begin to adapt and admit their errors. It isn&#8217;t really likely that it was just a matter of simple errors of lack of information when you consider the ancient authors like Strabo, Herodotus and Plutarch as well as Plato and many more told these same stories; even if they did have less hard evidence. All the writers who wrote about circumnavigating Libya on two or three year voyages are likely talking about voyages to the Americas. We don&#8217;t care if it was pseudo-Aristotle or Hammilco &#8211; the stories have the ring of truth simply because it was possible and men are adventurous and courageous enough to try it. The hard evidence is not explainable by any other method.</p>
<p>In Crossan&#8217;s excellent and open-minded book called The Historical Jesus, I see room for another speculation about Jesus and the likelihood of Jewish writing found in Cherokee country or Tennessee. Gordon ties it in with the Christians and Lions treatment of Rome, but this could have been going on amongst seafarers like the Kelts and Druids for long before that or even Rome. Freedom-seeking mariners might well have left the Mediterranean for the Americas for safer places if for no other reason. This book mentions a Jesus who was head of the brigands or bandits in the time of Josephus and a deal to co-opt these 800 mercenaries or thieves that Josephus made a deal with. Could there have been many Jesuses and the one we amalgamate into Jesus from a non-existent town (name in no records) of Nazareth; whose actual name appears to be Yeshua bar Joseph?</p>
<p>&#8220;I conclude, therefore, that a widespread revolt of peasantry spearheaded by banditry took place in 52 C.E., that Josephus suppressed it much more in Jewish War than in Jewish Antiquities, and that Quadratus came south, as Tacitus said, to quell an insurrection and not just to adjudicate a complaint. In plain language, the First Roman-Jewish War almost started in 52 C.E., and it almost started among peasants and bandits rather than among aristocrats and retainers. But since, in Roman eyes, those latter were responsible for keeping order, saving them might well have meant gaining the support of Pallas, for which the price was Felix his brother as next procurator. That might also explain why Jewish Antiquities 20.162 records tensions between Jonathan and Felix, even though, as it says demurely, he himself &#8216;had requested [Claudius] Caesar to dispatch Felix as a procurator of Judaea.&#8217; Those, of course, are guesses, but guesses warranted by discrepancies in the records.</p>
<p>Be that as it may, and whatever the reasons, Felix went out as governor of Palestine between 52 and 60 C.E. Josephus mentions banditry twice during his rule, and, in each case, one but not the other of his parallel texts combines and confuses bandits with prophets. But, as seen earlier, it is necessary to ignore any mention of prophets or: as Josephus prefers to call them, &#8216;imposters&#8217; and &#8216;deceivers,&#8217;&#8230;&#8221; (7)</p>
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<p>Author of many books available at Lulu and World-Mysteries.com</p>
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		<title>Indian Culture &#8220;Castes&#8221; its Shadow on Christianity</title>
		<link>http://architexters.net/indian-culture-castes-its-shadow-on-christianity/</link>
		<comments>http://architexters.net/indian-culture-castes-its-shadow-on-christianity/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jan 2009 09:31:31 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[Internet Religion Resources]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[In largely Hindu India, the number of Christians is on the rise. Despite being a child of the West, Christianity in India is growing up with its own identity.
&#8220;Indian Christians, because they live in close proximity with other religions, tend to take other religions seriously and bring them to their theological discourse, which the Western [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In largely Hindu India, the number of Christians is on the rise. Despite being a child of the West, Christianity in India is growing up with its own identity.</p>
<p>&#8220;Indian Christians, because they live in close proximity with other religions, tend to take other religions seriously and bring them to their theological discourse, which the Western Christians do not need to do,&#8221; said Kuruvilla Pandikattu, a Jesuit priest and physicist. &#8220;By and large the perspective is similar,&#8221; Pandikattu said.</p>
<p>Certain areas in India have always been strongholds of Christianity, such as Goa, a former Portuguese settlement on the West Coast, and Kerala on the East, where the Apostle Thomas is believed to have settled in the first century.</p>
<p>While the landing of Thomas is hard to prove or disprove, &#8220;there is definite evidence of a thriving Christian community in Kerala by the third century largely because of Syrian spice merchants who stayed in Kerala and intermarried,&#8221; said Corrine G. Dempsey, an associate professor of religious studies at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.</p>
<p>&#8220;A conservative estimate is that 60 percent of all Christian Indians come from Dalit and lower classes,&#8221; said Albion University&#8217;s Selva Raj.</p>
<p>Missionaries, though banned by the government, gain a foothold thanks, largely, to the entrenched caste system in society. Although casteism has been officially outlawed since 1950, rural society runs along strict caste lines. The lowest caste, <em>Dalits</em> or <em>Harijans</em>, previously called &#8220;untouchables,&#8221; faces widespread discrimination along with economic and educational disadvantages.</p>
<p>India has a quota system, similar to the American affirmative action, but the realities of rural life are removed from it. Sociologists and anthropologists agree that a casteless religion is, therefore, attractive to indigenous tribals.</p>
<p>Yet, it is hard to determine whether faith precedes the desire for socioeconomic mobility, or vice versa, said Raj.</p>
<p>Evangelists also influence Christians from the mainstream churches or from other sects, said Rowena Robinson, an associate professor of sociology at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. &#8220;It is difficult to judge from attendance at evangelical ceremonies, the measure of actual conversions. The two should not be confused. Many may attend healing rituals etc without aligning themselves on a more permanent basis,&#8221; continued Robinson, who authored <em>Christians of India </em>and<em> Religious Conversions in India: Modes, Motivations, and Meanings</em>.</p>
<p>Those who do convert soon discover that Christianity is also rife with discrimination, Raj said. Even after adopting Christian names that have no obvious caste markers like Hindu names do, it remains obvious they are converts and, therefore, a step below. &#8220;Until 30 years ago, Christian cemeteries had separate burial grounds for Dalit converts,&#8221; said Raj, whose forthcoming book is called <em>Dealing with the Deities</em>.</p>
<p>Converts tend to retain their pre-conversion rituals, traditions and non-converted relations. &#8220;In all conversions almost everywhere, it is unlikely that the past will be completely eradicated. Cultural retentions are always there, including in terms of kinship structures, marriage patterns and ritual elements,&#8221; said Robinson.</p>
<p>Even in educated circles, the influence of preconversion and their neighbors&#8217; Hinduism abounds. Christian brides in India wear white but eschew dresses for saris. At Kerala&#8217;s Syrian Christian weddings, the climax of the event is the tying of the tali around the bride&#8217;s neck, like at Hindu weddings, said Dempsey. The tali is a gold leaf-shaped ornament worn on a gold chain. Christian talis often have crosses on them to distinguish them from Hindu talis. &#8220;Syrian Christian churches often have prominently displayed gold lamps similar to lamps you see in Hindu temples,&#8221; she said.</p>
<p>Additionally, &#8220;Saint festivals look very much like festivals at Hindu temples, particularly when it comes to processions in which the saint&#8217;s statue  like the Hindu murti, or statue  brings up the rear.&#8221;</p>
<p>Syrian priests even used to provide astrological advice, though Dempsey said this has fallen out of favor in the past half century. Nevertheless &#8220;some Christians still quietly visit astrologers and pay attention to muhurtham, or auspicious timing, when it comes to travel or arranging major events such as weddings,&#8221; she said.</p>
<p>&#8220;Kerala Christians don&#8217;t see themselves as hanging onto Hindu practices as a sign of semi-conversion,&#8221; said Dempsey, who with Raj co-edited <em>Popular Christianity in India: Riting Between the Lines</em>. &#8220;Rather, they understand their Christianity as being embedded in the culture and are proud of the fact that their Christianity is ancient, integrated and different from more recent converts.&#8221;</p>
<p>Sonjharia Minz, a professor of theoretical computer science at New Delhi&#8217;s Jawaharlal Nehru University, is the daughter of a Christian pastor, but her family is originally from the indigenous Oraon tribe in northern Jharkhand state. Minz has been exploring the similarities in tribal religion and Christianity, focusing on the elements that made conversion easier. &#8220;Pre-salvation rituals are very similar,&#8221; she said, &#8220;as are myths, practices and attitudes toward all of creation.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;Theology emerges from concrete, lived reality,&#8221; said Raj. &#8220;For [Indian Christians], these are discrimination and poverty.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;Western people are more radical,&#8221; said Ram Surat, a convert from a middle class Hindu family who works as an evangelical social worker with a &#8220;holistic ministry to people who are dealing with AIDS, casteism and sexism&#8221; on the side. &#8220;Our psyche is different.&#8221;</p>
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<p><em>Chhavi Sachdev is international editor at </em>Science &#038; Theology News.</p>
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		<title>Spending a day with God.</title>
		<link>http://architexters.net/spending-a-day-with-god/</link>
		<comments>http://architexters.net/spending-a-day-with-god/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 18 Dec 2008 17:23:52 +0000</pubDate>
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		<description><![CDATA[To be able to develop a close relationship with God, we need to spend quality time with Him. We need to study His Word, and let His Holy Spirit speak to us through it. We require time to spend in earnest prayer, talking to Him, praising and worshiping Him. We need time to look at [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>To be able to develop a close relationship with God, we need to spend quality time with Him. We need to study His Word, and let His Holy Spirit speak to us through it. We require time to spend in earnest prayer, talking to Him, praising and worshiping Him. We need time to look at nature and reflect on all the wonderful creations that He has made. And finally, we need time to spend with fellow believers, to worship together in song and have fellowship with each other, encouraging one another and building up each other&#8217;s faith by our testimonies. </p>
<p>In this hectic world with our busy lifestyles it is so easy to get so engrossed in other things that we never have time for God. Some of us may spend a couple of hours of a Sunday morning attending church, but then the hum drum of the rat race catches up with us, and we find ourselves mowing lawns, going to the footy, or off doing other secular activities where God is just not a part of it.</p>
<p>With stress related diseases such as heart attack and cancer on the increase every year, the necessity to take a days break, and bask in the presence of our mighty father in Heaven, has never been so important. We need to be replenished and rested, so that our bodies have time to recuperate.</p>
<p>God gave us His Sabbath day as a blessing to all mankind. A day that we could truly get to know and fellowship with Him, and not have to do any work or labour. A day on which to rest, away from the worries and cares of this world. He also ordained it as a day in remembrance that He is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. The scriptures say, Exo 20:8-11 &#8220;Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it&#8221;.</p>
<p>The Bible shows the true spirit of the Sabbath. Isaiah 58:13-14 &#8220;If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight..&#8221; It shows that the Sabbath is a delight. It is a wonderful day and something to look forward to each week. </p>
<p>All Bible references are from the King James Version.</p>
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For more information on this topic, please visit: <a href="http://www.godssabbath.com" rel="nofollow">www.godssabbath.com</a></p>
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		<title>Hurricanes and Religion</title>
		<link>http://architexters.net/hurricanes-and-religion/</link>
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		<pubDate>Tue, 18 Nov 2008 06:43:33 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[Internet Religion Resources]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[During the 2005 Atlantic tropical hurricane season we watched hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast and destroyed city after city and we all know what happened 12 hours later as the levee broke in New Orleans; filling up the city like a soup bowl.
Perhaps you&#8217;re aware that many people decided as the hurricane Katrina hit [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>During the 2005 Atlantic tropical hurricane season we watched hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast and destroyed city after city and we all know what happened 12 hours later as the levee broke in New Orleans; filling up the city like a soup bowl.</p>
<p>Perhaps you&#8217;re aware that many people decided as the hurricane Katrina hit that they would pray and they actually believed that they stop the hurricane from a direct hit on New Orleans, but they stop praying probably too early, as they got the Hurricane to miss New Orleans but then as the Christians in all those group prayers slept the levee broke.</p>
<p>What can we learn from this?  One of two things; either praying did no good all as the city of New Orleans is a total loss and ought to be condemned as a Superfund site or the Christians counted their chickens before they hatched and made a calculated error because they did not observe the situation with Lake Ponchartrain filling to the rim.</p>
<p>During the 2006 Atlantic tropical season we have to ask ourselves should we even bother to pray against the wrath of Mother Nature? Or should we just sit back and watch everything unfold on our TV sets? Some who believe in the power of prayer will try to pray anyway even if it does no good and still people die.  I think since 4500 people died during hurricane Katrina that the Christians who prayed wasted their time. Silly humans your minds are not powerful enough. Perhaps you should consider this in 2006.</p>
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