Apech

I don't think any Christian thinks about God in that way (beyond Sunday school that is) - as they say to many atheists 'the God you don't believe in doesn't exist'. Just as an aside ... although I realise that Christianity originated in the Middle East and from the Jewish religion ... I find there is something quite Northern European about it. I am sure that nature of divinity and jesus was somehow morphed sometime after the fall of the Roman Empire to appeal to the Germanic tribes especially the Franks. For instance: 'Our Father which art in Heaven, Hallowed be thy name' God is the Father and where is he? In Heaven - which in many languages just means sky. So God is the Sky Father and his name is Hallowed ... a word which echoes for me something like Valhalla ... i.e. his name is in an exalted place. Yes, yes I know this is spurious etymology - don't @ me! God the Father is Deu Pater = Jupiter = Zeus ... it's all Indo-European imagery. 'Thy kingdom come, thy will be done' Fealty to the Lord ... a feudal state of the soul. 'On earth as it is in heaven' The uniting of heaven and earth. (via a great tree on which the god is hung?)

Seek yea first the kingdom of heaven and all else will be added unto you.

Yes Mr. Texts you are right ... but ... you may have missed my point. Other religions don't put this kind of miraculous stuff up front and in yer face the way Christianity does. In doing so it requires of an enquirer an act of faith rather than a gradual growth of confidence which another system will allow. And actually there are probably a great many cultural Christians who are not connected to their souls also.

I believe that technically the 'immaculate conception' is the conception of Mary by her parents who made love without lustful sinning in a perfect copulation. Because Mary was born of a pure conception it was this that made her a fitting vessel for the holy spirit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immaculate_Conception ... but I guess it may also apply to the conception of Jesus by Mary (I am no theologian (thank God)).

Did someone open the fortune cookie jar?

Not on the sabbath.

I thought it was too elaborate. But I won’t interfere with the flow of the thread any more.

That’s a nice bit of waffle. 👍

What is it that does the identifying?

There’s Egyptian pictures but I don’t have the link.

Gosh that makes me want to know even more what you were going to say. I was remembering that my father used to speak very fondly of the Russians (he also had some links to Russian academics) and that he recalled a fairly famous scientist called Dirac who used to toast every Russian victory in 1940's Cambridge. There was a definite sense in Britain before the Cold War really set in that Russia was our saviour against fascism. The US also but the sacrifice made by the Soviets was so much greater. He also told me that in around 1970 he went as a delegate to the Russian embassy in London and all the staff greeted them by saying 'we believe in peace, don't you too?' - he was very impressed by this. Being me, I did point out that only two years before the tanks had rolled into Prague ... but it didn't seem to damped his enthusiasm.

The English practice insult aikido - when the insult arrives they assume you are just insulting them because you recognize their natural superiority and so the insult becomes praise.

Although I have no harrowing stories like this I have the same feeling about Ukraine and Gaza ... even WWI was called 'the war to end all wars' and even more after Nuremberg they swore there would be peace, that we loved peace - but now it seems we have forgotten. I think if we had a thread on WWII you would have to put up with my historical musings about why and what are the causes of these disasters ... I would like to talk about it but fear to go there.

It would be interesting- the war loomed large over my childhood (as a recent memory of my family and so on - even I am too young to actually remember it). It certainly changed the world forever.

With irony of course. PS with the possible exception of Sweden and somewhere forgettable in Sputh America there isn’t a country in the world we haven’t fought, invaded or screwed over in some way.

Luckily no one insults the English.

They were displaced when the dam was blown up at the beginning of what was supposed to be the ‘counter offensive’ last summer.

We have some ‘Ukrainian’ refugees in the village now - they bought a house and have been very industrious in repairing the house and garden. Then someone noticed that they were speaking Russian and not Ukrainian and when asked they said they supported Putin. So it’s a funny old world. They are extremely friendly and good neighbours. I realize this is irrelevant but I just thought I’d mention it.

I considered reporting this hateful slur but I will in the circumstances let it pass.

Both you and silent thunder had already reported him by the time I read his post.

You didn’t say anything transphobic.

What does this mean?

I used to be a moderator and it is one of the basic rules - no ad hominem attacks.

There is no compulsion to understand or even to try - he has his view and that’s his right ( which everyone has) .