Doctor - With a heart for charitable work

Dr. Jeff Ho,

I want to take a moment to let others know how much I appreciate what Dr. Jess Jo is doing for the senior citizens and poverty stricken people of Davao, Philippines and surrounding areas.  I do not doubt  most doctors are concerned with the care they give their patience’s and want to do the best they can to heal them.  Doctor Ho goes far beyond what I have ever seen a doctor do in my nearly eighty years of life.  He puts medical care before a lavish life-style. He truly has a heart of charity and community concern.

I admit and apologize for wanting to leave when I first entered his office.  I was concerned.  It was not what I was used to.  It was very simple and honestly needs repairs.  I thought of leaving and I thank God I did not.  It is not the furnishing or structure that should be of concern when you seek medical care.  The only thing that should matter is the doctors ability and Dr. Ho certainly far exceeds the ability of many doctors.

To be quite honest I have not known Dr. Ho long, but in one week I saw remarkable change in my health issues.  I have heart, lung and kidney failure and Diabetes.  I was on 17 different medications and taking some twice a day.  My medicine bill was running about $1100 USA dollars per month.  I simply could not afford it any longer.  I also felt I was being poison by medicines.  I had discussed with my previous  doctors about my issues with medication to no avail.  It was like they were the doctor and I was the patient and if I knew so much why did I need a doctor.  I felt like it is my body and I should have a voice in my care.  Dr. Ho has listened to me and is trying to address my issues.

I was taking medication for my lung problems as needed and was hesitant to take it unless I was so bad I thought I would pass out.  He said use it morning and night and through out the day.  This has made a remarkable difference.  Others had told me to limit my fluid intake (water and broth from soups) to 1500 ml.  I simply felt this was not sufficient, but did as they said.  I am taking fluid medication to keep fluid expelled from my body.  Dr. Ho has allowed me to increase my water intake and I believe it has made a difference. I no longer feel dehydrated.   I have had a problem with my right lower leg for over two years.  I was told it was from Diabetes.  Dr. Ho advised me I cannot wear socks up over my ankles and prescribed exercises and increased my fluid medication.  I already see results. 

Of course time will tell, but in this short time I am grateful to Dr. Ho.  This may sound silly to some, but I was in such pain and unable to walk. I use a wheelchair. One morning I prayed to God to lead me to another doctor for another opinion.  I am a retired priest from the USA and I came to Davao after I was forced to retire because of health issues.  I did not really know how to find another doctor.  I went to the computer and searched for help.  Dr. Ho’s site came up immediately and I felt I should give him a try.  Thank God I did!

Dr. Ho provides free care for senior citizens and operates a free clinic on Saturdays for the poor.  He will see the poor and senior citizens anytime in case of an emergency.  The charges to regular customer or unbelievably small. Medical care is available to all because of this one giant of a man.  It is a shame that the Philippine Government or some Charitable Organization does not provide him support.  But, of course if they did they would want to take over his clinice and make all the decisions and destroy what the man has accomplished.

Please pray for Dr. Ho I know of no other doctor anywhere in the world and I have lived in many, many places that is as concerned about people as he is.  He truly lives what he professes.  I was floored when I had my caregiver call him about lab results he had requested and was told he and his wife had gone to wash clothes.  I know of no doctor that washes his own clothes.  I pray God blesses him and his family abundantly with joy, peace, love and protection.

Fr. Tom Martin - Retired

Racism, bias, charity makes some rich and famous and they do not want it to end.

Evil will always be present until the end of time because of mankind’s thirst for power, wealth and fame.  Jesus Christ said the poor will always be among you and they will because it is advantage for many in society, especially the wealthiest of the wealthy.  There will always be some in the middle class that will take satisfaction in knowing there are some in society worse off than them. Do not kid yourself there are those at the upper rung of poverty that delight in others being poorer than them.  It all revolves back to their position in society.  If someone is worse off than you then you automatically have a higher position in society. 

It matters not how much money is spent by governments under the pretense of eliminating poverty or other social issues they will never be solved.  The reason being CORRUPTION within government and NGO’S.  Those at the top of these organizations have more interest in their getting more than they are in the ‘HAVE NOTS’ getting more.

God’s Kingdom will never be on earth before Christ returns again due to mankind’s inability to LOVE as God has instructed us to do.  If only we could LOVE as God called us to there would be peace, there would not be starvation, there would be equality, discrimination would not exist, crime would end and paradise would return.  LOVE a simple word and that could be accomplished, but difficult for mankind to do because of our desire for greed, fame and wealth.

It is true  racism is very much alive in America in all sectors of society and it runs rampant among influential black Americans.  It was very much on display in 2013 at the Lincoln Memorial where prominent black activists gathered a few days ahead of the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr's historic "I have a dream" speech in order to advance their careers by pretending to care about the state of race relations in the nation today. 

Instead of simply using the opportunity to honor the work of his father in a dignified way, King's son, Martin Luther King III, cheapened it by attempting to stir up racial hatred. He said, “The vision preached by my father a half-century ago was that his four little children would no longer live in a nation where they would judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.  However, sadly, the tears of Trayvon Martin’s mother and father remind us that, the color of one’s skin remains a license to profile, to arrest and to even murder with no regard for the content of one’s character,” He used the occasion to pitch for repeal “stand your ground” self-defense laws, which had no bearing on the Martin case.  I believe both of the young thugs were guilty of crimes and brought the disaster upon themselves.  I believe Trayvon Martin was a trouble maker and I believe George Zimmerman was a trouble maker and both deserved long prison terms.

It is my opinion that it is important to note that Martin Luther King Junior’s four little children did grow up to live a life of advantage.  The only real problems they had in life were the ones they created for themselves by fighting over their father estate – GREED!

These black civil rights leaders have become rich and famous by vilifying white people and the American system, claiming blacks are persecuted and discriminated against, and asserting that there is an invisible conspiracy of white supremacists preventing black people from becoming successful. Not everything they do or say is actually racist in any meaningful sense, but they routinely say things that conservatives would be pilloried for had they said them about people of a different race.  The one thing they always neglect to say is that you have a difficult time making it not only in America, but anywhere in the world if you do not know who your father is or where he is.  They do not talk much about the importance of staying in school and the importance of education.  They become irate when you speak of drug dealing and the high number of black men in prison for crime largely due to illegal drugs. 

Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are largely race industry profiteers and poverty pimps and are not sincere. They rally against evils that no longer exist and they ignore the evils that do exist.

These leaders for justice and equality quickly forget and never speak of the black-on-white violence that has become increasingly commonplace in recent years, despite the best efforts of the media, politicians, and left-wing activists to ignore it or deny its existence. America's major urban centers, cities like Chicago and Philadelphia, have been plagued by black race riots in recent years. Few people know about these often deadly melees because they rarely get reported.  The black leaders justify blacks killing policemen because of black thugs having pent up frustration over things in history that happen over 100 years ago.

Where is the outrage from the black leaders for 88-year-old World War II veteran Delbert Belton who was  beaten to death by blacks in Spokane or 23-year-old Australian college student Chris Lane who was shot to death in Oklahoma allegedly by young black males out of boredom or the blacks that killed nurse David Santucci in Memphis or the blacks in Minnesota who beat Ray Widstrand so brutally that he suffered permanent brain damage or the blacks in Missouri that hit a hot dog vendor in the head with a hammer or the two young black men in Georgia who killed 13-month-old Antonio West in front of his mother during an attempted robbery .  Two thugs Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman make the news for years following their incident and still yearly celebrations are held for Trayvon Martin, because the Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson’s of the world keep it in the news in order to keep themselves prominent and wealthy.

Members of  today's civil rights establishment aren't interested in solving or even acknowledging the problems of the black community because they profit so handsomely from them. They see turmoil in black neighborhoods as opportunities to promote change and raise funds. Theses same members of civil rights groups seem blissfully ignorant of the fact that America has come a long way since 1963 when Democratic President John F. Kennedy and congressional Democrats worked together to block civil rights legislation. 

It is as if the civil rights revolution never happened and Jim Crow is still making the lives of black Americans miserable. The unspoken premise of all these self-serving rants is that America somehow owes blacks for past injustices even though most black Americans today weren't even alive in 1963. 

These are the top race baiters in order to advance their personal careers in my opinion and could really care less about the black community:  Al Sharpton, Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Eric Holder, Oprah Winfrey, James Cone, Martin Luther King III, Cornel West, Louis Farrakhan, Alice Walker, Hillary Clinton and Jesse Jackson.  These public figures for the most part do not suffer any consequences for their racism or their cynical use of race for political purposes. If Martin Luther King were alive today, would he defend these people and everything they do?

Do not get me wrong BIAS is a human condition, and American history is rife with prejudice against groups and individuals because of their race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or other differences. The 20th century saw major progress in outlawing discrimination, and most Americans today support integrated schools and neighborhoods. But stereotypes and unequal treatment persist and are often exploited by hate groups –Black, Latino and White hate groups.  In recent years, the FBI has reported between 7,000 and 8,000 hate crime incidents per year in the United States and many more go unreported. 

All over the country people are fighting hate, standing up to promote tolerance and inclusion.  There are still good people in the United States and the world.  One person, acting from conscience and love, is able to neutralize bigotry. Imagine, what an entire community, working together, could do. Decent people must take action; if we don’t, hate persists.  Sitting home with your virtue does no good.  Apathy will be interpreted as acceptance. 

Hate tears society along racial, ethnic, gender and religious lines. The U.S. Department of Justice warns that hate crimes, more than any other crime, can trigger larger community conflict, civil disturbances and even riots. For all their “patriotic” rhetoric, hate groups are really trying to divide us; their views are fundamentally anti-democratic. True patriots fight hate.  Hate escalates when not addressed and do not kid yourself the Obama, Sharpton’s, Jackson's, Winfrey's, etc., profit from hate and division of the races.  

When hate happens, we are faced with two choices: Do nothing, and let hate go unchallenged. Or do something — rise up, speak up and stand up against hate.  When it happens in your community  call the circle around you, including family, neighbors, co-workers, people in your church, synagogue or civic club. Meet informally and discuss the problem – make it known that you want the Jesse Jacksons and Al Sharpton to stay away.  It is a community problem and can be solved better in the community without outside interference. 

call on local law enforcement officials. Work to create a healthy relationship with local police.  Law enforcement officials can track early warning signs of hate brewing in a community, allowing for a rapid and unified response.  The police are not our enemy as race baiters want us to believe.

Support hate-crime victim in your community, show support.  Let victims know you care.  Surround them with comfort and protection.   Victims of hate crimes feel terribly alone and afraid.  They have been attacked simply for being who they are — their skin color, their ethnicity, their sexual orientation.  Silence amplifies their isolation; it also tacitly condones the act of hate.  Victims need a strong, quick message that they are valued.  Small acts of kindness — a phone call, a letter – can help.

Every act of hatred should be met with an act of love and unity.  Hate must be exposed and denounced.  Denounce hate groups and hate crimes and spread the truth about hate’s threat to a pluralistic society. An informed and unified community is the best defense against hate. Hate purveyors are cowards.  Take hate crimes seriously.

We all grow up with prejudices. Acknowledging them – and working through them  can be a scary and difficult process. It’s also one of the most important steps toward breaking down the walls of silence that allow intolerance to grow. Luckily, we all possess the power to overcome our ignorance and fear, and to influence our children, peers and communities.

The Elderly need to be touched to!

Touch is the most developed sense when an infant is born and continues to play a fundamental role in communication development throughout life until the end.  I have found as I get older (approaching 80) I need human touch more than ever.  Yet, mankind seems to have some aversion to touching the elderly or the sick.

In 2004 I was the pastor at a church in Galveston, Texas.  I got a call from a hospice in Houston, Texas to see if I could administer last rites to a dying patient with H.I.V.  The call came around midnight on Saturday and I explained I was about 80 miles from Houston and it would take several hours for me to get their.  I told the hospice attendant that Holy Rosary was only two blocks from them and The University of Saint Thomas was only three blocks from them and perhaps it would be better to ask a priest from one of those organizations to come.  She replied Father we did and they refused claiming they had a busy schedule the following day, the notice was just too short and the man had no affiliation to their particular organization.  I ask why did she call me or how did she even know about me and she replied a client knew about you. 

Needless to say I went.  I arrived and the man was nothing but skin and bone.  We talked about his family and him for a while and then I lifted him in my arms to pray with him.  He began to cry uncontrollably.  When he was able to speak he said you are the first person that has held me in nearly a year.   The man died before sunrise.

That emotional experience has always stayed with me!  I was always a touchy person , but I became more aware of the importance of touch following that visit.  I firmly believe it is as important as any medical procedure offered to the elderly and dying and possibly more important.

In the past few months I had begun to think that something was missing and I could not put my finger on it.  I finally realized I long to be held/touched.  As a retired priest (celibacy) I was never touched or held.  How would I solve the problem if that was the problem.  I will be honest I began to look on the Internet for sensual massages with a male.  There are lot of listings in the Philippines. I knew I did not want a sexual encounter, nor did not I want any type of relationship.  I looked and looked and finally gave up on the idea.

Frustration, depression, anxiety and anger grew – stupid CELIBACY!

One day my caregiver (male) ask if he could help.  He said, “Father, I do not know what you want or need or if I can do it, but please tell me and let me try.”  He has been my caregiver for ten years.  I thought about it for weeks, but gave him no answer.  One night he came to my room and I said I feel like I want to scream, cuss and destroy something.  He again offered to try and help me and we talked about it even more and I explained how I felt I needed to be held and touched.  He said he would try.  That night he began to sleep with me and we laid close to each other, body to body.

The benefits were immediately.  The next morning I found it had accomplished the following:

It served as a  form of nonverbal communication;

Decreased sensory deprivation;

Increased reality orientation;

Stimulated my mind;

Decreased my pain;

Decreased my sense of isolation and vulnerability;

It created a sense of companionship;

It conveyed trust, hope, and reassurance;

He claimed he felt a personal feeling of reward when intentionally physically contacting another human being.

Over the next month I found:

 it help to promote sleep;

Enhanced feelings of well being;

Decreased blood pressure;

And lab results were better.

Have you ever bothered to noticed how rarely many elderly are touched.  So often, elderly people live alone and have little contact with the outside world.  As their lives slow down or as physical illness takes its toll, many elderly become more and more home bound.  Many move to Assisted Living Facilities and, although surrounded by others, rarely receive the simple gift of a hug.

We must also keep in mind touching someone – even the gesture of a light hug – might be an unpleasant experience for some.  In situations where there has been physical or sexual abuse, a person may be afraid, reticent or uninterested in acceptable ways of being touched.  Many people have grown up without having touch as part of their lives and are not comfortable receiving touch.  In one of my caregiving experiences, after I grew close to a particular client, I once greeted her by asking if it was okay to give her a hug.  I was pleased with her honesty as she told me, “No, no, I don’t hug.  My family doesn’t hug.”  I personally had a an older sister that hated to be touched or kissed and she would be quite rude if you attempted to do so, being from the south we were raised among kissing and touching relatives.

Yet, when touch is welcome, it can communicate what words cannot.  Touch can say, “I am here for you.” Touch can communicate connection and solace and kindness.  Touch can say, “I love you.  You are important to me.”  Touch can say, “You are not alone.”

The elderly do not require strong touch.  Gentle touch usually suffices.  If you offer some form of massage, be aware that some elderly people have thin skin.  Certain medications may even make skin susceptible to breaking.  Proceed with care.  Offer your hand or arm as support to one who is getting up from a chair or in and out of a car.  Even this simple form of contact can be valuable to the psyche.  If you are in a position where you are bathing or showering an elderly loved one, this can be the perfect time for a soapy back rub!  Hand massages or foot massages are generally appreciated.  Trust your instincts and your love.  Listen to your heart,  follow your instincts, and you will always do what is right.

Touch is a communication that transcends age and time. No matter how old we are, we all love to have our hand held, our backs rubbed, or the feel of a warm embrace.  Seniors who live alone often do not experience the simple act of touch on a daily basis. The reasons vary:  spouses and close friends have passed away, families live in other states, or physical limitations may affect activity and contact with others. Stupid vows of celibacy.  Remember this when spending time with the senior in your life. A simple, encouraging arm around a shoulder or a momentary grasp of a hand conveys a message of affection. Feelings of affection can make a big difference in the lives of seniors.

The sense of touch is so powerful that some experts recommend elderly clients receive regular, professional massages. Massages in general are not meant to convey affection, but use the power of touch in another way. Gentle kneading of muscles helps release tension, can improve blood flow through the body and ease the pain of arthritis. While no affection is involved during a professional massage, oxytocin released in the body during the process produces the same comforting effects. In place of a full-body massage, foot and hand rubs can be emotionally and physically beneficial.

Knowing someone wants to touch you has far more benefits than knowing they are simply doing it for the money.  So if you call for a massage always inform them of your age and health condition.  Tell them you will not accept or pay anyone that comes and makes you feel that they do not want to touch an elderly person or a large person.  You have rights demand those rights.

I will continue in the future to seek out ways to fulfill my need to be touched in the future and will not be cramped by what others thinks.

Don't Poison a Child's Mind.

I was bless with an experience I will never forget when passing through Immigrations in Singapore.  We were in line and in front of me was a Filipino mother and two children.  One child a boy about 10 and a girl about 3. In the next line was an Indian mother with two young boys maybe 5 and 8. 

These children started reacting with each other in spite of language and cultural difference with pure love - no bigotry, no bias, just pure love and delight. It was a reminder to me bigotry is a learned habit or character trait. It is not a God given characteristic. Matthew 21:16 - "...out of mouths of babes and sucklings God prepared praise ..."  NOT HATE!  Oh, if we adults could only learn from the  young children the world would be a better place indeed!

"Hatreds never cease by hatreds in this world.  By love alone they cease.  This is an ancient Law."  

I have shared many thoughts over the year's concerning our thinking for ourselves and not depending upon others to think for us or teach us absolute truths about God, self, world or the universe.

It is delusion for us to allow others to teach us to cherish pride and selfishness when we all know in the end it leads to suffering, loneliness and death.

God did not put upon the heart of every person the right way to live with self and others simply for us to think about them. God put them there for us to practice and to make them part of our daily lives. 

We should control our own minds and keep them clean of evil thoughts concerning greed, jealousy, prejudices and hate.  Love, respect, humility and faithfulness to God (not denomination, nationalities, preachers, priest, bishops, traditions, anger, religions,etc) is the only way to a happy life.  

The youngest Indian child at the airport had a bottle of water and without words he walked over to the youngest Filipino child and sat it down in front of her and backed away.  I knew instantly he was sharing all he had to offer the other child love (water).  Tears filled my eyes and I knew I had witness pure love. 

Our minds, our learned behaviors, can make us like God or like the devil.  We should control our minds and not allow others to leads us away from the right path.  RESPECT each other. Human's have more in common than we have differences.  God created us to be like milk and water to mingle together not like oil and water that repel each other.  

I honestly believe if you do not feel this way you have never had a personal relationship with God.  You certainly are NOT a follower of Christ.  

Life is becoming more clear to me as I grow old and my body falls apart like an old worn out car that has traveled many, many happy miles.  Do not make the same mistakes I did if you are still young in body.  You cannot cram five lifetimes into one there is only so much time.  

You do not need to see or do everything to have a full life. You only need to recognize the importance of love and service to each person you meet.  

God did not ask us to solve all of the world's problems just do the best we can with those we encounter. 

There are always people around you that need an encouraging word, a person willing to listen and or a helpful hand.  It is not all about having large sums of money to give away.  A little becomes a lot when good people come together for one cause. 

Few if any of us would sleep with a poisonous snake in our bed so why go to bed with a poisonous snake (our mind)?  Ephesians 4:26 "...do not go to bed while you are still angry..." Go to bed filled with hate, anger, bitterness, jealousy, prejudices and discontent and  you will awake the next morning with the same bed partner not beside you, but inside you.  You should control your own mind.  Protect your mind from poisonous thoughts of others. 

We should practice being like the children I witness in the Singapore Immigration line.  

What do you believe and why?

What are some of your most deeply held beliefs or convictions? Why do you believe them? For most of us, our parents played a key role in shaping our beliefs.  Many of our beliefs have been shaped by personal experiences, teachers, peers, society, ministers and traditions.  They are not our original beliefs, but someone else’s.

What we believe matters.   What we believe can lead us down a path that leads to good or bad, success or failure, safety or danger, happiness or sadness, humility or pride and even love or hate.   One set of convictions or beliefs shapes those  that belong to the Ku Klux Klan or The Black Panthers or ISIS and another set of beliefs shapes those that belong to charitable organizations, support groups, community service that benefits all, etc.  What we believe really does matter.

From the earliest times Christians made attempts to summarize their essential beliefs the Apostle’s Creed is an example of that.  I know of no church organization that does not have a statement of beliefs and I know of no fraternal organization that does not have a statement of beliefs.  Beliefs matter!  They define our values, morals and relationships.  They shape our goals, ambitions, hopes, and dreams.  It is important we know what we believe in and be able to defends those beliefs.

Unfortunately we can be so rigid in our beliefs and convictions that we cannot listen to those with different beliefs or convictions.  This is especially true in the religious world.  Regardless of what we believe about God, humanity or our world, we will lack certainty and that lack of certainty should lead us to humility in our convictions and in our interactions with those who disagree with us.  How can anyone prove beyond a shadow of doubt  what they believe is absolute truth and that there is no other way?

I learned long ago that what I believed was sometimes flawed and not only hurt me it hurt others.  This is not going to set well with many, but there was a time that I believed if you did not accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior you COULD NOT go to heaven.   Pastor Joel Olsten is criticized by many in the religious community because he will not state point blank that your destiny is hell if you do not accept Jesus Christ.  I am not God and God has inspired men in scripture to write, “My ways or not your ways”, I am not to judge, but leave that to Him, that He can do anything He pleases and does not need our permission. 

I once believe that abortion was an unforgivable sin.  I once believed people that divorced and remarried without jumping through the church's legal loops to get an annulment could not partake of the sacraments.  I once believed if you were not baptized you could not go to heaven and that babies who died before being baptized were in LIMBO.  I once believed in purgatory.  I once believed priest had a special power to represent God when it came to forgiving yours sins.  I once believed we needed to sacrifice Christ over and over again at every mass as if the one sacrifice on the cross was not enough.  I now do not believe any of those things.  Not only did I sincerely believe those things I taught them to others.  I believed them because that is what my parents believed and my church believed.  I did not know any different and did not think I had the right to question them.

What we believe has a significant impact on our lives.  Our beliefs influence who we marry , the career we choose, the way we see right and wrong, how we see our parent and our children, what we do with our time and money, and how we face adversity.  Those beliefs lead us to say no to many things we may have said yes to and yes to things we might otherwise have said no to.

“I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.”  I believe Christians must believe there is a God, a Supreme Being, that created the universe.  How God created it may be open for debate, but it is essential that a Christian believe that God did create all things.  I believe Christians must perceive God not simply as a force of nature, but as an entity, a Being, that is both intelligent and powerful.

Men like Isaac Newton, Blaise Pascal, and Galileo, who, despite the church’s blunder in criticizing their conclusions, continued to maintain their faith in God.  I do think science and faith are compatible.  I also believe these men were far more intelligent than me.  There are some scientist that do not believe in God, but there is just as many that do.

 Jesus Christ is our defining story.  Jesus demonstrates who God is, what God is like, and what God’s will is for our lives. His life and ministry, His death and resurrection shape how we see ourselves and how we see the world.  Jesus Christ provides us with a different perspective on life.  Christians believe we were born with purpose, our lives have meaning and when our mortal body is finished, we’ve only just begun to live. 

Richard Dawkins (who I believe to be evil) once wrote, “We are survival machines—robot vehicles blindly programmed to preserve the selfish molecules known as genes.” But faith in Jesus says that we were made for more than this.  In fact, the pain and brokenness in our world are largely the result of our living as “robot vehicles” blindly focused on serving the self.  Jesus calls us to be authentically human, to love, give, serve, and rise above our selfish genes.  As we do so we not only make the world a more just and compassionate place; we find joy in the process.  I pity Richard Dawkins and I am willing to show him mercy because of his broken body that may influence his beliefs.  Regardless of what Richard Dawkins says about Jesus Christ or what anyone else may say I know Jesus of Nazareth has been the dominant figure in the history of Western culture for over 2000 years and I doubt that Richard Dawkins will be.   

When God sought to communicate His love for us, he sent Jesus. It was in His Son that God’s message came to us and became our defining story. Through Jesus, God was saying: You matter to me and I love you.  In Jesus, God showed that He cares about those who are lost and those who are made to feel unimportant.  He showed us compassion for the sick.  He showed us how to love, to forgive, to give, to serve.  In Jesus’ death on the cross God showed us the depth of His love and the price of grace. And in Jesus’ resurrection, God defeated our evil, hate, sin, and death! 

My church has put so much emphasis on Mother Mary that our people know little about the Holy Spirit.  Many Christians in our church haven’t been taught about the Spirit, nor encouraged to seek the Spirit’s work in their lives. As a result, their spiritual lives are a bit anemic and they are trying to live the Christian life on their own power and wisdom.  That is impossible!

What are the voices you listen to, and what are the powers that shape your life?  I find there are voices in my own life that would lead me to give in to hate, indifference, desire, pride, infidelity, selfishness, or greed. But when we listen to the voice of the Spirit and open ourselves to the Spirit’s active work in our lives, we find that we are led to a very different place and to become very different people.

The Spirit convicts us and quickens our conscience when we’re doing wrong. The Spirit, through persistent nudges, urges us to act selflessly in our care for others. The Spirit makes us long to be more than we are at the present and to become more like the people God intended us to be.  in Galatians 5:22-23: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”  The Holy Spirit gives us these gifts and no where in the Bible does it say Mother Mary does. 

How different is this fruit than the fruit of our own hearts, and the culture around us.

The “Holy” and catholic (universal/unity) church.”  When many people view the church today, it looks neither holy nor catholic. It seems filled with hypocrites and judgmental people; in fact, this is one reason why many have turned away from “organized religion” and why so many young adults today say that they are “spiritual but not religious.”  Interestingly, these same young people have great admiration for Jesus, but far less admiration for His people, the church. They see neither holiness nor catholicity (unity) when they look at the most vocal Christians and the most outspoken churches today. 

The word holy in the biblical context means belonging to God, or “sacred to” God or “set apart for” God. You’ve likely heard it said that the church is not a country club for perfect people, but instead a hospital for broken and sinful people who are slowly being made well. We need to make sure the non-churched understand that we know that and stop pretending we are bunch of perfect people.  The church does not belong to us it belongs to God.  The next time you try and tell someone they are sitting in your seat at church remember that. The church is holy when we love Christ and seeks to be faithful to Him.  The church is holy when we are not attacking one another for interpreting a scripture differently. 

Christ tried to forestall the divisions among His followers by telling His disciples not to judge one another, and to love one another and forgive one another. Nevertheless, the church divided and continues to divide to this day.   Our belief in the holy, catholic church (universal/unity) is an ecumenical belief that all who call upon the name of Christ and seek to follow Him as Savior and Lord are, despite their denominational or nondenominational names, part of one universal church.  The Roman Catholic Church is a part of that one universal church, and so is the Eastern Orthodox Church, as well as the Lutherans, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Baptists, Pentecostals, Methodists, nondenominational churches, and all the rest.  What right do you have to say Catholics are not CHRISTIANS?  Does it make you feel more important than Catholics, more loved by God?  PRIDE!

I still believe in the importance of the church, but unfortunately at the moment I find that I cannot attend and that certainly has affected my life in a negative way.  I pray one day before I die I will be able to find a church that I can return to and feel at home.  I have not stopped looking.  People need to be able to express differences of opinion within the church and be respected and loved.  I knew that once in a church in Galveston, Texas and I will never forget it. 

The church failed me I did not fail the church.

We speak often of the young people straying from God and I do not and never have believed young people are straying from God.  They are straying from organized religion – the church. They are fleeing a religion that has become more about prosperity than love, more about condemning than forgiveness, more about ministers living extravagant lifestyles than helping the poor, more about ministers being the focus of the ministry in order to become celebrities rather than making God the focus of their message.  The young people are not straying they are running to get away from the hypocrisy in the Christian Church which has becoming nothing more than a business to make a few rich beyond their dreams.

Bishop Jake of Potter’s House in Dallas, Texas was not satisfied with the fame and fortune he had accumulated and had to have more.  He is the new “Doctor Phil” on television.  Joyce Meyer’s realizing she is getting older and may want to step aside as the head minister of Joyce Meyer’s Ministries and enjoy all her toys made sure her book royalties no longer go to the ministry, but come directly to her.  Joel Osteen has turned a “self-help” ministry into personal assets worth far more than forty million dollars in a few years.  The Copelands fly around in a twenty million dollar jet while foolish people send them prayer request which the Copeland’s never see or pray over, but make sure the millions sent in with the prayer request are accounted for.   Jesse Duplantis is a onetime used car salesman that should be on a Comedy Hour Show and not in a ministry.  I admit he is entertaining.  Then we have Murdock, Hinn, Creflo Dollar, Eddie Long, Paula White, Ed Young, Jr., Ed Young, Sr.,  John Hagee, Charles Blake, Franklin Graham, Rick Warren and the Catholic Bishops and Cardinals that do not have to make fools of themselves on television to live like royalty.

I think a lot of senior citizens, like me, are also fed up with Christian Organized Religion.  I as a retired priest can no longer force myself to go to Mass.  You see I know too much about the hierarchy of my church.  The cover-up of child abuse in my church was the straw that broke the camel’s back, once it became public the hierarchy continued to deny it and blame the messengers. I reported a case to my bishop over forty years ago and was told as many priest were told, “I will take care of it, but say nothing about this to anyone we have to protect the Church.”  It took a long time for me to realize that God did not need us to cover up a crime in order to protect the Church. In reality in most cases the Bishops and Cardinals were protecting their own secrets.  The laity of the church allowed this to happen and many in the church pews today want to sweep it under the rug.   Those that speak out are said to want to destroy the church.  It never crosses their naïve minds that some of us want to help the church be what God called it to be.    

I am closer to God today than I have ever been in my life – no thanks to the church hierarchy.  I will confess I do not understand why God allows the hierarchy of the church and religious organizations to continue to make a mockery of Him.  I try to rationalize that perhaps the few and seldom truths they spew in pulpits and on television help some.  I believe that one day God will seek revenge as He did with Jimmy Swagger of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

I do not fault the poor naïve people that these religious leaders take advantage of because all people are looking for love. God makes that plain in this verse in Proverbs. What a person desires is unfailing love; better to be poor than a liar (Proverbs 19:22).  True love comes from God.  There is a part of us that can only be satisfied by a relationship with God. The love of a man or woman simply cannot take that spot. Just because our experience with church – organized religion has proved unfulfilling, abandoning God for something physical will only leave us emptier inside.  These charlatans prey on the need people have for unconditional love.  

You, God, are my God,

earnestly I seek you;

I thirst for you,

my whole being longs for you,

in a dry and parched land

where there is no water.

I have seen you in the sanctuary

and beheld your power and your glory.

Because your love is better than life,

my lips will glorify you.

Psalm 63:1-3

Hypocrisy is a real problem in the church today. Hypocrisy exists in church because there is hypocrisy not only in the religious leaders, but also among the laity. That’s a truth that most of us know and some will not admit. Let’s face our own hypocrisy so we can root it out.

Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?… You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. (Luke 6:41,43)

Today, men and women must struggle to find his or her own identity in an oppressive culture of church.  God isn’t the problem. Neither is the kind of church we learn about from the Bible. Loveless religion changes when we live lives that make God attractive, build relationships that feel like family, and do good in our own communities. Now that’s real church.  That is what the younger generation is looking for and not getting in the church today.  Instead of real love they are getting empty words and even I nearing eighty am sick of it.

As long as those running organized religion continue to blame the Internet, liberal thinking, lack of religious upbringing, gays/lesbians, same sex marriage, etc. and continue to blame non-believers, politics, worldly distractions, etc., instead of looking within people young and old will continue to leave the church/organized religion.  The solution is simple stop putting the emphasis on religion and the organizations and start putting it on a personal  relationship with God.

In our current cultural moment, unprecedented millions are sick to death of what religion has become today. There are more people who do not want to be associated with any organized religion in the United States than there are Catholics and nearly as many Protestants.  

I am a Bible believing Christian. I believe in God. I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I believe that the Bible is reliable and is the basis for truth. I believe that God wants to have a relationship with everyone on earth and to see them come to salvation. I have a hard time believing in religion. I am seldom religious any more ... God created us for relationship. He wants to walk with us, talk with us, help us to learn and grow. We are spiritual beings, created to know God. One of the problems I see with the church/organized religion is that it takes its focus off of the relationship and puts it onto the “lifestyle” of Christians.

There is a Christian lifestyle defined by man — common dos and don’ts, ways of talking and behaving, an expected political view — and unfortunately, a common critical eye towards those who believe differently and act differently. I find the biggest fault with Christianity/organized religion is  the focus on sin, both personal sin and the sin of others rather than grace and forgiveness. Jesus Christ did not come and die on the cross to get us to stop sinning. He knew that was impossible. He came to set us free from sin. He came, not to put our focus on sin, but to take our focus off of it ... God wants our focus to be on Him, not on the rules.  I have found through the years the more you try not to sin the more you sin – trust God!

I don’t lay down the law against my best friend. We have a relationship; we love each other, and learn and grow together. Rules don’t make that relationship work, love does. God wants the same thing to be true with the relationship He has with us.

Now after saying what I have I think the church community is important (critical) to a believers life.  It is sad that trying to find a church today that allows you to discuss, agree and disagree with one another, to question freely what you do not understand or believe and not be judged is hard to find.  It is difficult to learn in a vacuum or alone.  To truly learn one must be able to express their ideas freely and be able to share and receive knowledge from one another.  It is far better in my opinion to be spiritual and religious, but finding a place to do that is like I said nearly impossible. I think Jesus called us to transcend petty religion.

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me. Watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly” (Matthew 11:28-30). 

Jesus backed up this invitation with his life. He overturned Temple tables, healed on the Sabbath (and taught others to do the same), called religious leaders “broods of vipers” and “whitewashed tombs,” cursed fig trees symbolizing fruit-less religionists. This kind of confrontation was not uncommon: So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with defiled hands?”  He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’ “You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions.” And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions” (Mark 7:5-9)!

Jesus’ overall appraisal of the religionists of His day is “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.” Jesus seemed to be about creating a new kind of community, one where the values of repressive religion and empire would be absent.  We have forgotten the lessons of Jesus pertaining to His followers and have reverted back to the ways of the Pharisees. (Matthew 20:25-27).  Paul advocated for a Spirit-led rather than rules-led community.

2017 is as good a time as any to bring life back to the church and organized religion and we will not do that with stage shows and entertainment.

The Forgotten Man - Jospeh

All the attention is given to Mary the Mother of Christ, but what about Joseph?

Joseph had as much to do with raising Jesus as Mary and maybe even more. 

After the bar mitzvah the Jewish boy became the responsibility of the father. That is how Jesus was left behind in Jerusalem. Jesus got separated from his parents after his bar mitzvah and they started home. Going he would have traveled with His mother and returning it would have been the custom for Him to travel with his father. Each parent probably thought Jesus was with the other. 

There is not much said of Joseph in scripture. He is only mentioned by name about 17 times. The preachers do not mention Joseph much and do not preach sermons on Joseph. Sometimes he is mentioned on Father's Day.

I know my denomination teaches there were no other children than Jesus, but I personally do not believe that teaching is correct. I do not accept the doctrine that my denomination uses to explain away the reference in the Bible of Jesus siblings in order support the doctrine of Perpetual Virginity.

We do not know much about Joseph, but we do know he was a carpenter and trained Jesus to be a carpenter. We do know he was an honorable man. He married Mary in spite of the pregnancy.

We can use our imagination and assume since Joseph was a carpenter (craftsman) he would have been creative, patient, dedicated, disciplined, took pride in what he did, quite and humble. I say humble because God always chose the humble for great things in scripture. Scripture makes clear God always looks into a mans heart when judging him.

Joseph did not build houses because he worked with wood and houses were not made of wood in Israel. He made furniture, doors, shutters, etc. requiring great skill and dedication to perfection.

I would also assume Jesus had a good relationship with Joseph and called him daddy, since Jesus called His Heavenly Father Abba meaning daddy.

Yes, I would say Joseph was a good father and a good man all together. Jesus had a good role model on earth.

We can learn much from Joseph, especially daddies. If we do perhaps 26 percent of young men that were surveyed in the U.S. in 2016 when ask next year about their relationship with their father’s will not say they have a bad relationship with their father's.

What have we all done (mothers, daddies, grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts and uncles) to be good role models to children and young people today? We need to model our faith in order to pass it on to the next generation. We need to demonstrate love of God, others and self.

You would be surprised how many men and women avoid a relationship with God the Father because they had a bad experience with their earthly father.

Divided Nation / Divided Christians

Part II

Divided Nation / Divided Christians

Reading the comments in social media is alarming to me. It seems to me that many Christians today are traveling the same path that Islamic radicals are traveling they feel they are right and there is no discussion on the matter.

I believe that the Quran contains passages about fighting and I believe that the Bible contains passages about fighting that we would not agree with in 2016. I believe most Muslims today read those passages in  the same way most Christians read stories from Joshua in our Bible about the killing of Canaanite men, women, and children.  Most Muslims and Christians do not see these passages as commands to kill those who do not share their faith. However there are some Islamic extremists that see the Quran’s passages about the rules of engagement in wars from Mohammed’s time and prior as permission for violent activities and there are some Christians extremists (generally those who translate the Bible literally) that see the violence in the Bible towards those that did not believe as they did as a pass to violence today. The Quran and the Bible all contain passages that are not peaceful and passages that are peaceful. It is how we react and interpret those passages that makes the difference in 2016.

The Five Pillars of Islam are: (1) There is only one God – Christians should not have a problem with that; (2) Pray five times a day – it would be helpful if Christians adopted that practice; (3) Give to support the needy – Christians have always believed that; (4) Fast from dawn till sundown during the month of Ramadan – many Christians practice the tradition of fasting and I believe it is a healthy tradition; and (5) If possible make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime – many Christians go to Israel each year and many more would like to make a pilgrimage to Israel.

You see we have many things in common. Why don’t we try and concentrate on those things. Why do we generalize that all Christians and all Islamist are bad? Why are the extremist on both sides determined to prove that the Quran and the Bible is evil from beginning to end?

There are divisions among Christians and there are divisions among Muslims. Muslims and Christians have their own liberals, moderates, conservatives, fundamentalists, and extremists.

ISIS truly believes what it professes: that it is engaged in a conflict to bring about the end times. The primary enemies of ISIS are other Muslims who do not share their beliefs. The Islamic view of end times involves victory in a climactic battle in Syria among all the nations of the world and God’s people.  I would say the majority of Christians believe that there will be a climatic battle in the Middle East among nations and God’s people. Because Fundamentalist Christians and Islamic Extremist believe what they are doing is God’s work they are a difficult force to fight. Is it even possible to win over Christians who think God wants all homosexuals dead and when they voice hated for homosexuals they are doing God’s work or Islamist that believe God wants all Christians dead? I honestly do not know. If it is it will take a mighty work of the Holy Spirit to do so.

The division in the U.S.A. now over racism, disdain for the police, riots in the streets, a few rogue police officers, yelling at  one another on Kelly’s show (FOX) and bigoted social media post does not speak well around the world for the U.S.A. or Christianity. I think a  lot of people around the world and in the U.S.A. believe some American’s are acting as extremist. Many of us want to think of ourselves as a Christian Nation so we should act like it.

Paul, in his Letter to the Romans, expresses how we are to wage spiritual war: never avenging ourselves, never repaying evil for evil, overcoming evil with good. Most of us believe it’s wrong to judge an entire category of people based on the actions of a relatively small number of extremists within that group. At the same time, terrorist attacks by Islamic extremists within our midst have heightened our concerns about future attacks — from Adam Hamilton. I am not saying we should not use military force against ISIS. I am saying we cannot generalize about any group of people and we must be careful to the best of our ability to target ISIS and not all Muslims in general. I certainly do not want to be associated with literal radical Bible interpreters and many Muslims do not want to be associated with I.S.I.S.

We have legitimate fears about attacks by Islamic extremists, but how do we apply our faith in ways that balance those concerns for people’s safety with our belief that it is wrong to judge someone only on the basis of religion or nationality or gender or sexual inclination?

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” No, “if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:14-21). These scriptures are extreme and it  may be impossible to follow all of them, but the harder we try to follow them the better we will be and the world will be.

We are not battling Islam, because there is no such thing as one Islam. One Islam cannot be extracted from the numerous offshoots, branches, and sects that make the world's 1.3 billion Muslims as ideologically, religiously, and politically fractured as the other two monotheistic faiths, Christianity and Judaism.

The "War on Terror" should really be called the "War on Militant Islam or War on Radical Islamic Terrorist." The terrorists of September 11, Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda, and the Taliban all adhere to an ideology we have come to know as militant Islam, a minority outgrowth of the faith that exudes a bitter hatred for Western ideas, including capitalism, individualism, and consumerism.

It rejects the West and much that it has to offer seeking instead to implement a strict interpretation of the Koran and sharia (Islamic law). America, as radical Muslims see it, is the primary impediment to building an Islamic world order.  Radical Muslims have a history of violence against American, Western, and even Muslim interests. But the movement did not appear spontaneously it has taken 14 centuries to evolve.

Many Muslims adapted to the fast-paced changes common to Western industrialization and modernization, but some Muslims rejected them. Instead, they created a rigid ideology embedded in the traditional values and laws of the Koran. This is the known today as Islamic fundamentalism, or Islamism.

Islamism represents a yearning for the "pure" Islam as practiced by the prophet. Not unlike the American Amish, the movement rejects much that is innovative. Islamist, however, take the rejection of modernity a step further. They perceive those who have introduced these innovations as its enemy.

Islamist Radical Muslim Terrorist not only reject the influence of the West, they reject the legitimacy of their own governments in the Arabic world, which they see as subservient to the West. Therefore the overthrow of these regimes has become an important part of their agenda.

The biggest push for this agenda came in 1928, with the founding of the Ikhwan al-Muslim or Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. This organization became the cornerstone for most of today's Islamist movements, advocating Islamic beliefs and values as expressed by the common Egyptian. The organization rejected western rule and England's secular influence over Egypt. Obama made a grave mistake when he embraced the Muslim Brotherhood over the dictator ruling Egypt for over three decades.

"The earthquake" came in 1979 when Iran became the first modern Islamic republic, as Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini overthrew Iran's secular regime and established a new order in which sharia became law. Suddenly, Islamism was no longer an ideology of movements. It had inspired a state. America's first violent introduction to militant Islam came shortly after Khomeini's Islamic Republic was established in 1979, when Islamic extremists seized the U.S. embassy in the Iranian capital of Tehran.

Given that militant Islam has plagued America for 22 years the attacks of September 11 should not have been surprising. A trend had been established. So, perhaps the biggest shock of that tragic day was the nation's utter surprise. Psychologically, America was completely unprepared for the attacks - why? I think because our government has refused to make it clear who our real enemy is and name them – all for the sake of political correctness and a President Obama that seems to have some need to defend ALL Islam thinking that we are so naive that if we reject some Islam we will reject it all.

Bin Laden's own words. "We have seen in the last decade the decline of the American government and the weakness of the American soldier. He is ready to wage cold wars but unprepared to fight hot wars...We are ready for all occasions, we rely on God."

Militant Islam has strongholds in Algeria, Egypt, Somalia, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, the Palestinian territories, Lebanon, Jordan, Yemen, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Pakistan, to name just a few countries. The challenge now for the western world is finding ways to destroy the radical infrastructure and arrest or kill militants while bolstering the influence of moderate Muslims.  No one in the Obama administration seems to know how we can accomplish this task. We cannot win without the support of moderate Muslims.  Hatred of ALL Muslims is not going to gain the support of moderate Muslims. Americans must come to terms on who are enemy really is and it is not ALL Muslims.

Until we Americans learn to love ourselves and each other we cannot expect the world to love and respect us. If we want to talk about Radical Islamic Recruitment I would imagine showing the division among our people is a great tool to use in their recruiting. One 30 second video of Americans fighting among ourselves in the streets is worth millions of words. It becomes okay to kill homosexuals if you can demonstrate that even your enemies, the Americans, hate homosexuals. It is easy to claim that Americans are out to destroy you if you can demonstrate that Americans are willing to destroy other Americans that do not agree with them. Finally it is easy to demonstrate that Democratic Laws do not work when we take to the streets and riot over injustice in our country rather than engaging in civil conversations about our differences and injustices.