Re: Any Believers in Jesus Christ Here? (Non-debate thread for believers only)
I have been on again and off again with Christianity and religion in general. Sometimes I would tell people that "I'm spiritual" but I was not even sure I knew what I was talking about. Now, I'm a believer...why? Biology & Anatomy. Seriously. After going through these classes and learning just how COMPLEX the body is, I simply can't chalk this up to evolution alone.
The blood has to be kept at a certain pH balance or else even the slightest 0.1 change in balance can cause death...how does it stay stable? It has its own buffers to maintain this balance.
Hormones: A woman (who has just given birth) will not produce milk until she expels the placenta from her body...unbelievable!
Your stomach contains gastric juices so acidic that it could digest the rest of the organs in your body. But thanks to tight junctions of the cells lining the stomach (like a zip-lock bag), fluids are not able to seep through.
I could go on and on, but I am always amazed at how this "system" we call a body came to fruition. No way this was just evolution alone. No way! :clapping:
Welcome home
You are sooo right, the complexity of creation (not only the human body) is nothing short of amazing. Michael put it so beautifully and brilliantly in
Planet earth - this world of ours is no mere
speck of matter in a mindless void.
I'm a believer. I'm a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Nice to have ya around, welcome
My mom is home from her hip replacement surgery! I've been taking good care of her.
Good girl, Jaye *claps* Keep it up and keep your chin up about the work thing. I recently read something really nice - there are three answers God gives to our prayers:
yes, not now, i have something better for you in store. Hang in there soldier and you'll see, something better will come along :cheeky:
After a rather extensive fast, as we approach the end of the month dedicated to the Holy Heart of the Lord, we celebrate today two of the greatest apostles of the Church –
Saint Peter,
the Rock on which the Church stands and
Saint Paul –
the Apostle of the Gentiles. Although in the beginning they have had their doctrinal differences, their love for Christ reconciled them in the spreading of the Good Word and they were further united by their sacrifice in the eternal city of Rome. What both of these apostles teach us is the Lord's Mercy knows no bounderies – Peter denied the Lord three times, but he was still considered worthy of having the keys to heaven, Paul attended the martyrdom of the first Christian saint – Stephen and persecuted Christians before being not only blinded by the Lord's light, but awaken on the road to Damascus.
What Saint Peter, Saint Paul, Simon of Cyrene and the thieves on either side of Jesus symbolize are each and every one of us.
When we sin we all are Simon denying the Lord, Saul perscuting our brothers in faith, the stranger doubtful and reluctant to help the Lord and the thief demanding proof of the Lord's divinity.
When we forgive and when we love, we are Peter and Paul defending the faith, the stranger who became the friend who shares the burdain of the Cross and the sinner who finds salvation at the very last moment, showing us all that is never too late to call on the Lord and on His Mercy and His forgiveness.
Here is a picture showing both apostles done by
El Greco (Spanish master of Greek origin as the name aptly suggests, belonging to
el siglo de oro of Spanish culture, known for his unique style of angular faces, sumber tones and often vertical alignments).
Earlier this year, during the Easter season i was blessed to go on a pilgrimage to Rome on the footsteps of Saint Peter, Saint Paul and John Paul II and to Turin to see the Holy Shroud. Let me tell you all – these are experiences any believer who has the time and the means ought to live. Saint Peter's square and the Basilica have got to be my favorite places in the world, not that i've seen the entire world hahaha. But i really feel at home there; if i could have, i would have fallen asleep on one of the benches in the chapels of the church. Although some might be overwhelmed by the sheer size and magnificance of the cathedral, i felt it a very safe, warm and familiar place to which my soul connected deeply.
There are few experiences as light and as enjoyable as enjoying the warm April breeze and sunshine and having a cheeseburger, sharing the last crumbs of it with pigeons in Piazza San Pietro whilst sitting on the stairs around Bernini's columns (which seem to surround the square in a loving embrace), all of it whilst watching people pass by and grandparents playing with children. Truly awe inspiring moments i highly recommend to anyone.
And since i mentioned the Shroud, i have to recall „
The Passion of the Christ” movie which I saw in its entirety recently for the first time in a few years. I know i have mentioned the movie before in this thread, but i couldn't help but be overwhelmed by its sheer brilliance.
Beyond the amazing awareness which it brought people about the Lord's Passion and the praise that it deserves, this movie is a brilliant piece of art.
Mr. Gibson did a superb job of directing, truly supreme craftmanship – the slow motions, the music and the punctuation of certain sounds, the memory insertions and the references to some of the most important moments of the Gospels, the exaggerated features of some of the characters to point out their character, the wealth of symbolism which the movie was permeated with....truly amazing piece of art.
All the actors – of all nationalities and differing degrees of fame or lackthereof – were truly brilliant:
Jim Caviezel, Maia Morgenstern, Monica Bellucci, the entire cast.....true professionals who in spite of their differences, especially when it comes to the faith and the Church, came together for a once in a lifetime project which has helped so many people find their way (back) to Christ.
God bless them all.
One of the scenes charged with most symbolism is the picture of the tools used to torment and to crush the Lord, tools which became, as the Holy Cross itself, instruments of our salvation. It reminded me of another brilliant piece of art put in the service of the good Lord - the
Forgiven paiting by
Thomas Blackshear II.
Deeply emotional is also the Pietá moment with Mary holding Jesus' lifeless body – it was as though Michelangelo's sculpture had come to life or a sacred paiting had become a picture in motion. Sooo heartbreaking and sooo true – the absurd silence of death, the presence of the Holy Spirit because of the wind, Mary's faithful suffering, the disciples' pain....
The entire movie is nothing short of amazing – from the very start with the threatening music warning of the incumbing torture and the full moon to the “I make all things new” encounter between Mary and Jesus along the Via Dolorosa.
The ending is beyond words. The tear of the Father falling from the sky, the emptiness of hell and the dispair of the enemy at the realization that it had been defeated...
….the Lord's triumphant exit from the tomb with the proper acompanying music....awesome moments, truly awesome.
Before i close this verrrry long post with some beautiful music, let me quote some of the most beautiful words ever written by Saint Paul in
Romans 8. These words contain the greatest reassurance of all – NOTHING in all of creation can ever separate us from the Lord's love.
..We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him,who have been called according to his purpose.....
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?...
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?...No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
And as i promised, a musical finish – earlier today i was thinking of the phrase
Blessed is he who cometh in the name of the Lord (Baruch Haba B'Shem Adonai) – a Psalmist quote used during mass for the Hallelujah chant. I found a truly brilliant version on youtube. I hope you will all enjoy it. Deepest apologies for the length of my post.
Oh, Blood and Water which gushed forth from the Holy Heart of Jesus as a fountain of salvation for us I trust in You. JESU, UFAM TOBIE.
God bless you everyone