The Laws of Nature and of Nature's God

 Nature can overwhelm floodgates.

 Has the dam tamed Nature or has Nature defeated the mile-wide Three Gorges Dam?

I have been discussing the attitude toward the Word of God with one member. Our Founders assumed Creation in writing about the "laws of Nature and of Nature's God."

The US Constitution is written on that basis, that basic rights and freedoms are part of God's Creation, not something invented or merely permitted by man. They are self-evident. A right may be suppressed, as we see today in the closing of churches, but the right remains. A California judge agreed that a church had a right to worship that transcended the dictates by government officials.

In gardening I only try to understand the created nature of each plant, animal, and weed. I cannot force my opinions on a living creation that has its own software. When I cut down Joe Pye, the roots continue to wait for spring and the stalks rise up stronger than ever, blooming late. When I cut the ever-spreading Bee Balm, the fragile looking plant greens up and starts flowering again.

The complexity of Creation is such that the participants work out their own place in the garden. Rabbits enjoy the cover and abundant food, so they stroll through the open places as if they own it. Oddly, hawks scream that they are hungry and look for food where food is abundant.

Once a piece of ground reaches maximum creature activity, the abundance is sustained at a high level. Leaves and mulch are absorbed faster. Plants grow greener and stronger. Animals reach a balance between the hunter and the hunted. The top foot of soil locks in a certain amount of moisture and nutrition from the interplay of bacteria, mold, earthworms, soil creatures, roots, and rain.

Weeds are like false doctrine. They will always show up, but they thrive where the conditions are ideal. An apathetic congregation will not be upset by changes, but an alert parish will ask, "How can this be allowed?" Synod officials erase the evidence and say, like the Chinese rulers, "Everything is fine, except we have a few who exaggerate everything."

1 Corinthians 11:18 For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.

19 For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.

Comfrey is a bully herb. We chopped a lot of it back, and now it is larger than ever.

Leshan Buddha Toes Wet - Watch the Water

Leshan Buddha - if the toes are wet, the area is flooding at an alarming rate.

This Buddha statue is 200 feet tall and 1200 years old. News reports have mentioned this level of flooding as a very bad sign in China.

The Three Gorges Dam tailwater is backing up on the western side and escaping at the max rate on the eastern side. Even with all the floodgates open, the artificial lake may rush over the dam's top and force a collapse. Water is flowing in at 75 million cubic feet per second and releasing the maximum of only 50 million cubic feet per second. Those figures are rounded; no one trusts the government to tell the truth about this.

As many have said, this is the same scenario as the Midland, Michigan area, where one earthen dam collapsed and caused the collapse of the next earthen dam downstream. 

 This temple on an island in the river may be even more swamped than this photo shows.

 This photo shows how high the river must be to reach the top windows.

New Phase for the Rose Garden - Joe Pye Bye Bye

 Take It Easy ran out of red! This one is small and striking, blooms often.

Joe Pye turned into skyscrapers blocking the sun, which I expect in a bully plant. I am using them in the backyard garden to suppress the Blackberries.

I decided to chop them at the base and let them compost in the middle area of the Rose Garden. Each plant has up to 10 stalks and each stalk bears hundreds of compound flowers. They were turning to seed and no longer useful for the pollinators.

Bee Balm, equally anxious to take over the air space, is being cut at the same time. It will rebloom, as it did where the mailman cut the stems leading bees to the mailbox that he wanted to fill. Vitamin B1, B2, B3 - he was not buying it.

 Veterans Honor rose: fragrant, long-lasting, far more beautiful than any photo.

I am refreshing each Veteran's Honor rose and the new clearance roses. Each one will get an egg carton for 30 eggs, with a hole in the middle. I will add peat humus and wood mulch to hold it down and make the area distinctive where the grass weeds will make another attempt to choke them.

Ranger Bob ordered me to fill all the hummingbird feeders, so I made the formula for this task.

 Falling in Love is fragrant, pink, and white.

Joe Biden - "I Am Joe Biden's Husband"

Joe Biden, "Hello everyone. I am Joe Biden's husband."

One Result of a Bad Translation - Key Church Growth Dogma Embedded In Great Commission: Manufacturing Disciples for Success!

Dear Pastor Jackson,

I think you may be shooting at the wrong target... ELDONA consistently uses the NKJV, at least it does now.

http://eldona.org/category/blog/

ATP's Pastor Sullivan also recommends the NKJV

https://youtu.be/P_R825pimjE?t=190

Which Bible Translation Do You Recommend? Someone asks, "Which Bible should I use?" There are so many translations to choose from these days so what should we look for when choosing a Bible? youtu.be

and is critical of the new-fangled EHV

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MohL2ALTpwQ

BTW, ELDONA (to which Pastor Rydecki belongs) is anti-UOJ and anti-Waltherian Predestination. (And I am not in an ELDONA church.)

Let's stick together for the very rough ride ahead.

Blessings,

***

New KJV 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 

Stephanus Traditional Greek Text
19 πορευθεντες ουν μαθητευσατε παντα τα εθνη - Go therefore and teach (transitive verb, takes an object) all nations (object of teach).

KJV 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

New NIV 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

ESV - the Calvinist revision of the RSV -
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[b] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 

 EHV

Brug Copy and Paste EHV - Therefore go and gather disciples from all nations by baptizing them in[c] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [c Matthew 28:19 Or into]

Luther 1545 Darum gehet hin und lehret alle Völker (teach all nations) und taufet sie im Namen des Vaters und des Sohnes und des heiligen Geistes,

Schlachter 2000 19 So geht nun hin und macht zu Jüngern alle Völker (awkward - make into disciples all nations), und tauft sie auf den Namen des Vaters und des Sohnes und des Heiligen Geistes.

***

GJ - "Make disciples!" is the battle cry of all Fulleroids and bad translations. Note that the Greek text clearly says "teach all nations," so the emphasis is on

1. Going
2. Teaching 
3. Baptizing,

very much the efficacy of the Word in the Means of Grace.

"Make disciples!" comes from the cell groups of Pietism. They divide the church into mere members (ptui!) and disciples (yay!) All growth will come from disciples. As Kent Hunter, DMin Fuller, said patiently, "Shepherds do not have sheep. Sheep have sheep." His attempt at animal husbandry leaves many openings for humor, but I will avoid that temptation.

Gerlach, the covert Fuller guy at Mordor, used this passage to claim that disciples will make disciples who make disciples who make disciples... And yet these numbskulls cry out that we cannot have two examples of "teach" in the Great Commission.

The LCA and ALC had plenty of materials on cell groups, home study groups, prayer groups, koinonia groups, affinity groups, and Bible study groups.

 So many people sent materials to me, so I could fight instead of them. But Wayne Mueller claimed in print there was no Church Growth in WELS. I even had the first issue of TELL, which SP Naumann endorsed in that issue.

WELS, not to fall behind in the Pietism race, had their Church Growth experts selling David Cho (nee Paul Y. Cho) occult prayer growth gimme success books, endorsed by Napoleon Hill disciple Robert Schuller. (Hill switched to his exotic middle name because the police were after him for his many fraudulent schemes. Spirits guided Hill! Spirits from ...? Hill rejected the concept of Satan, doubtless viewing him as a competitor.)

LCMS had their own great treasures - Kent Hunter, DMin, and Waldo Werning, D.D., who had an IQ of 130, when adding the scores together. They turned false doctrine, laziness, and stupidity into a business before anyone noticed it was a scam worthy of Bernie Madoff (the guy who made off with $50 billion).

Reasons Why the Denominations Will Race to the Bottom

If people grasp every outcome of the main principle - but not the foundational argument - are the results different or better?

That may seem mysterious, until the facts are added to the  question.

If people consent to treating the Bible as just another book, but never make that claim themselves - will that make a difference in how the Scriptures are treated?

The answer is "Yes, of course it will." If the results come from the main principle, "the Bible is just another book" has been conceded.

The most important figure in the destruction of Biblical teaching is a British academic named Fenton John Anthony Hort, the argumentative half of Wescott and Hort, who created another Greek text for the New Testament.

That was back in the 1880s. If we go back further, the same theme can be found among the Biblical scholars at Halle University, mother ship of Objective Justification. Rationalism finds a way to grow, whether in one place or another. Rationalist clergy send themselves - they are not sent by God.

Let's stick with Hort for this, because his destructive work on the New Testament text directly affects all English translations.

Hort's first rule - or principle - was to treat the Bible as just another book. The rest of his rules are tricks to set aside the traditional text of the Bible in favor of what he liked. The subordinate rules do not matter, because the results have already been determined, even if they take time to show up.

Translating the rules into Latin - so cool. If the rule is in Latin, it must be serious and credible. "The shorter version of a verse or passage is better, because we know that stories grow in length, the more they are told." Actually, there is no reason to believe that is true, and text scholars know that.

The difficult reading is preferred - that is even better. Difficult for whom? - the traditional Christian, of course. True scholars know the Bible is just another book, and eeevul traditionalists have neglected the truth of Jesus being just a man who died expressing his solidarity with the poor. If we sand down those rough spots, more of the original will shine forth.

"The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God."

If they have a manuscript that omits "the Son of God" from Mark 1:1, that must be the best reading. Why? It is shorter and more difficult for the traditional Christian. The English translation will probably have a footnote that says "some witnesses omit the Son of God." That varies with the translation and the year that edition came out. Bible sellers have learned to put the big changes in the overlooked footnotes.

 "Give me a place to stand, and I can move the world." Archimedes

Multiply that by the five to six thousand changes that have been made in the traditional text, most of them not singled out as Mark 1:1 or the ending of Mark are. Even then, who reads Biblical footnotes and how valuable are they in determining the original text?

Add to that list of changes - the simple fact that the Biblical language clergy are quite rare today. Those who study text criticism are even rarer.

Hort was standing where he could move the world of Christianity, and he applied maximum force to the lever. To this day, a few people gather to vote on the text of the New Testament, they vote changes up or down. That becomes the Greek New Testament, and that alone is the basis for the English translations.

The Old Testament is treated with much more care, because there is a tradition of the rabbis counting words and letters of each copied book, an ancient check-sum formula to make sure there were no omissions or additions.

ELCA's Rev Nadia Bolz-Weber represents the denomination's true nature,
and LCMS-WELS-ELS are not far behind her.

Denominations Race to the Bottom

Biblical relativism led to similar creativity among the theologians. The Bible could mean anything, as a product of man's imagination, and so could the entire field of theology.

The so-called problem of modern theology is making sense out of Biblical images that are no longer believed by the academics and leading clergy.

Karl Barth - and his live-in mistress Charlotte Kirschbaum  - spent decades recasting the topics of theology into Marxist talking points. The work simply turns all religious categories upside-down, like his dysfunctional family.

The ever-loyal Charlotte would say to today's LCMS-WELS-ELS clergy - "So what? Your founder, Martin Stephan, had the same arrangement with his young woman and other girls as well. Your precious Walther and his buddies went along with it until - just wait for the book - Walther, the American Calvin: A Synod Built on Felonies."

So we have this perfect set of harmonies. The Calvinism of Stephan and Walther puts their followers comfortably in the camp of Calvinistic Fuller Seminary. The theological hero of Fuller is Karl Barth - and covertly his luffly mistress Charlotte. Their rationalistic treatment of Christianity is no different from Hort's - the Bible is just another book.

The LCMS-ELS-WELS seminaries follow Hort and reject the traditional text of the Bible. They send their doctrinally disadvantaged students and faculty to Fuller Seminary for additional training in methods and gimmicks. The president of Mordor, Valleskey, was a proud Fuller alumnus - like his buddy Frosty Bivens - and lied about it.

A denomination does not have to be 100% Fuller-Barth to be under their control. Each one reaches the tipping point where an ambitious teacher or pastor never questions the wisdom and insights of Karl Barth, Charlotte Kirschbaum, or C. Peter Wagner.

People do not use what they do not trust. They do not trust the Word of God, so they apply human wisdom to their tasks. The worse things are, the more they search out and buy human solutions derived from business and the charlatans who are always happy to help.

 I just love how diverse Mark Jeske is - ELCA, Thrivent, WELS, LCMS!

 Just because they speak at Church and Change Your Gender Conferences doesn't mean... Oh forget it.

 Would you wear a dress at a congregational picnic just to become a major speaker for WELS?

 Male and female created He them. 

 Valleskey never went to Fuller Seminary, he said. Then he admitted it to David Koenig, who wrote me about it. And then Valleskey was angry with Koenig, and Koenig was angry with me for telling the truth. Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive! Notice the Mark Jeske half-smile, which suggests inner conflict.

 These guys are dy-no-mite! blowing up everything in sight.

Rescue Roses - Something To Do in August

 Easy To Please introduced a new purple rose, but it is not blooming yet.

Bright sun mixed with long sod-soaker rains - what a perfect way to grow weeds that rival Jack's beanstalk.

I was finding my rose count disappearing under blankets of green, the growth so lush that Borage had to be cut back. I sow those seeds in empty spaces for the bees, who have nicknamed it Bee Bread.

"What are you doing with egg carton cardboard?" Mrs. Ichabod asked, as if I were assembling something dangerous.

"I have to rescue some roses," I explained.

"How many eggs to you have to eat to have enough?"

"I wait until the layer is done." I buy 5 dozen at a time, because we all like them scrambled. They are composed of newsprint pressed into shapes for holding the eggs.

The idea is to block the sun's energy around the rose and keep the egg crate material down with mulch or peat humus. Encroaching grass is easily isolated and cut with more mulch sprinkled to block sun and feed the soil.

People buy these minus the eggs- "makes a great roach colony." Oh boy!

Removing nine egg slots creates a square donut that fits over new roses.

Did I tell you about carrying a very large, full egg crate down the stairs at the donut shop, only to have my older brother jump out suddenly near the bottom and shout?

The punchline is this - the egg lady had the eggs while I remained upstairs working.

She screamed and dropped the entire double carton, 12 dozen or more eggs.

My brother got to clean up the slippery mess all by himself. The rest of us had a good topic to bring up for continued comedy for ages, including various egg puns:

• You are our eggs-pert.
• The yolk was on you, literally.
• Scaring people is not all it is cracked up to be.
• The Wizard of Ooze.
• How many eggs survived the drop?

 They turned up the hue levels on Rio Samba, but it is a striking rose.

The rose rescue turned out to be surprisingly fast and easy. Two had disappeared beneath the grassy growth, but each one sent up a purple rose (Heirloom - heavy with old rose fragrance) as if drowning in green. It only took a few moments to cut away grass, lay down the cardboard donut, and drop mulch on top.

Nurse Ida could barely talk, for reasons  unknown, and Bethany could not speak because of neurological problems. They found each other and radiated love, shared jokes and pranks. Ignored by many, shunned by others, they enjoyed their own Paradise.

The abundance of Creation reminds of how many blessings come from the Gospel. The Military Gardening Group, meeting on the front porch, concluded - "There is no garden like this in our area."

It is not one people put on magazine covers, like the careful poses of political families, but a dynamic tangle of unusual plants aimed at attracting the hummingbirds, bees, butterflies, and beneficial insects. Sometimes we have to draw back the weeds to find the roses; in the same way we push back the afflictions to enjoy the blessings.

Hymn - How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds

 Norma Boeckler's Christian Art

"How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds"
by John Newton, 1735-1807

Tune - St. Peter - linked here

1. How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
In a believer's ear!
It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear.

2. It makes the wounded spirit whole
And calms the troubled breast;
'Tis manna to the hungry soul
And to the weary, rest.

3. Dear name! The Rock on which I build,
My Shield and Hiding-place;
My never-failing Treasury filled
With boundless stores of grace.

4. By Thee my prayers acceptance gain
Although with sin defiled.
Satan accuses me in vain,
And I am owned a child.

5. Jesus, my Shepherd, Guardian, Friend,
My Prophet, Priest, and King,
My Lord, my Life, my Way, my End,
Accept the praise I bring.

6. Weak is the effort of my heart
And cold my warmest thought;
But when I see Thee as Thou art,
I'll praise Thee as I ought.

7. Till then I would Thy love proclaim
With every fleeting breath;
And may the music of Thy name
Refresh my soul in death.

Hymn #364
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Song of Solomon 1:3
Author: John Newton, 1779
Composer: Alexander R. Reinagle, 1836
Tune: "St. Peter"

Hymn - How Shall the Young Secure Their Hearts

 Norma Boeckler's Christian Art

"How Shall the Young Secure Their Hearts"
by Isaac Watts, 1674-1748

Tune - St. Peter - linked here

1. How shall the young secure their hearts
And guard their lives from sin?
Thy Word the choicest rules imparts
To keep the conscience clean.

2. "Tis like the sun, a heavenly light,
That guides us all the day,
And through the dangers of the night
A lamp to lead our way.

3. The starry heavens Thy rule obey,
The earth maintains her place;
And these Thy servants, night and day,
Thy skill and power express.

4. But still Thy Law and Gospel, Lord,
Have lessons more divine;
Not earth stands firmer than Thy Word,
Nor stars so nobly shine.

5. Thy Word is everlasting truth;
How pure is every page!
That holy Book shall guide our youth
And well support our age.


Notes from The Lutheran Hymnal
Hymn #286 from The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Psalm 119:9
Author: Isaac Watts, 1719, cento
Composer: Alexander R. Reinagle, 1836
Tune: "St. Peter"

Sung to a different tune -

Hymn - How Blest Are They Who Hear God's Word

 Norma Boeckler's Christian Art

"How Blest Are They Who Hear God's Word"
by Johan N. Brun, 1745-1816
Translated by Oluf H. Smeby, 1851-1929

Tune - Min Sjael og Aand - linked here

1. How blest are they who hear God's Word
And keep and heed what they have heard!
They wisdom daily gather;
Their light shines brighter day by day,
And while they tread life's weary way,
They have the oil of gladness
To soothe their pain and sadness.

2. God's Word a treasure is to me,
Through sorrow's night my sun shall be,
The shield of faith in battle.
The Father's hand hath written there
My title as His child and heir,
"The kingdom's thine forever."
That promise faileth never.

3. Today I was my Savior's guest,
My soul was here so richly blest,
The Bread of Life receiving.
Oh, may thereby my faith prevail,
So that its fruits shall never fail
Till my account is given
Before the throne in heaven!

The Lutheran Hymnal
Hymn #48
Text: Isaiah 61:3
Author: Johan N. Brun, 1786
Translated by: Oluf H. Smeby, 1913
Titled: "O salig den Guds Ord har hoert"
Tune: "Min Sjael og Aand"
1st Published in: Psalmebog, 1569

Hymn - God Himself Is Present - Listen to the Pachelbel Arrangement Below

 Norma Boeckler's Christina Art

"God Himself Is Present"
by Gerhard Tersteegen, 1697-1769
Translated by Frederick W. Foster, 1760-1835

Tune - Wunderbarer Koenig - linked here

1. God Himself is present:
Let us now adore Him
And with awe appear before Him.
God is in His temple--
All within keep silence,
Prostrate lie with deepest reverence.
Him alone God we own,
Him, our God and Savior;
Praise His name forever.

2. God Himself is present:
Hear the harps resounding;
See the hosts the throne surrounding!
"Holy, holy, holy"--
Hear the hymn ascending,
Songs of saints and angels blending.
Bow Thine ear To us here:
Hear, O Christ, the praises
That Thy Church now raises.

3. O Thou Fount of blessing,
Purify my spirit,
Trusting only in Thy merit.
Like the holy angels,
Who behold Thy glory,
May I ceaselessly adore Thee.
Let Thy will Ever still
Rule Thy Church terrestrial
As the hosts celestial.

The Lutheran Hymnal
Hymn #4
Text: Habakkuk 2:20
Author: Gerhard Tersteegen, 1729, cento
Translated by: Frederick W. Foster, c.1826, alt.
Titled: "Gott ist gegenwaertig"
Composer: Joachim Neander, 1680
Tune: "Wunderbarer Koenig"

Hymn - Blessed Are the Sons of God

Norma Boeckler's Christian Art

"Blessed Are the Sons of God"
by Joseph Humphreys, 1720-?

Tune - Voller Wunder - linked here

1. Blessed are the sons of God,
They are bought with Christ's own blood;
They are ransomed from the grave,
Life eternal they shall have:
With them numbered may we be
Here and in eternity!

2. They are justified by grace,
They enjoy the Savior's peace;
All their sins are washed away,
They shall stand in God's great Day:
With them numbered may we be
Here and in eternity!

3. They are lights upon the earth,
Children of a heavenly birth;
One with God, with Jesus one;
Glory is in them begun:
With them numbered may we be
Here and in eternity!

Hymn #391
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Matthew 5:14
Author: Joseph Humphreys, 1743, cento, alt.
Composer: Johann G. Ebeling, 1666
Tune: "Voller Wunder"

Hymn - Christ Jesus Lay in Death's Strong Bonds - Luther

 Norma Boeckler's Christian Art

"Christ Jesus Lay in Death's Strong Bands"
by Martin Luther, 1483-1546

Tune - Christ lag in Todesbanden - linked here

1. Christ Jesus lay in death's strong bands,
For our offenses given;
But now at God's right hand He stands
And brings us life from heaven;
Therefore let us joyful be
And sing to God right thankfully
Loud songs of hallelujah!
Hallelujah!

2. It was a strange and dreadful strife
When Life and Death contended;
The victory remained with Life,
The reign of Death was ended;
Holy Scripture plainly saith
That Death is swallowed up by Death,
His sting is lost forever.
Hallelujah!

3. Here the true Paschal Lamb we see,
Whom God so freely gave us;
He died on the accursed tree-
So strong His love!-to save us.
See, His blood doth mark our door;
Faith points to it, Death passes o'er,
And Satan cannot harm us.
Hallelujah!

4. So let us keep the festival
Whereto the Lord invites us;
Christ is himself the Joy of all,
The Sun that warms and lights us.
By His grace He doth impart
Eternal sunshine to the heart;
The night of sin is ended.
Hallelujah!

5. Then let us feast this Easter Day
On Christ, the Bread of heaven;
The Word of Grace hath purged away
The old and evil leaven.
Christ alone our souls will feed,
He is our meat and drink indeed;
Faith lives upon no other.
Hallelujah!

The Lutheran Hymnal
Hymn 195
Text: Acts 2:24
Author: Martin Luther, 1524, cento
Translated by: Richard Massie, 1854, alt.
Titled: "Christ lag in Todesbanden"
Tune: "Christ lag in Todesbanden"
Latin melody, c. 1100
Based on "Christ is erstanden"

A Bigger Crime Than the Biggest Breaking Scandals - The Biblical Text

 It all depends on how we read it, eh?

Very few clergy know Hebrew and Greek. Hardly any clergy have a working knowledge of Greek, which is fairly easy to learn. Of that group of New Testament Greek users, a tiny fraction are familiar with text criticism.

Like the Three Gorges Dam, the modern Bible starts out without a direct connection to bedrock. They were in a hurry to build the dam, which was a money-maker, so they did not dig all the way down to the bedrock. Bibles are money-makers, so there is hardly such a thing as a new Bible that does not gush money for the sponsors.

 Profiles in discourage - WELS President Schroeder hated the New NIV but went along with approving all translations, which made the NIV the official Calvinist, Objective Justification Bible.

Key people working on the text of the New Testament were apostates and charlatans, so they created their own foundation material by attacking the traditional text, the basis for Luther's Bible and the KJV. Tischendorf had his pets - Sinaiticus and Vaticanus. Hort had his fakey text theories spun out of his head and designed to remove the traditional text, which he loathed.

• Picking a starting date of 1880, we can see that it only took 140 years for the traditional text of the Bible to be cast out like a leper, 
• from congregations, 
• from colleges, 
• from seminaries, 
• from any discussion of the Bible. 

From 1950 until now, the KJV went from dominant and trusted to rejected and distrusted.

ELDONA prides itself on being almost 100% pure Ft. Waynish, the seminary for guys who do not know Hebrew or Greek, with some possible exceptions. The practical seminary was designed for those without an academic foundation for theology, which used to mean - for Biblical studies. Want a call but in a hurry? - skip the foundation and get an MDiv from Ft. Wayne.

ELDONA has no use for the KJV or any modernized KJV (New KJV, KJV 21, etc). They like the outrageous NIV and the equally laughable ESV, both thoroughly Calvinistic and corrupt.

The same is true of the Little Sect on the Prairie, the Missouri Synod, and the Wisconsin Abusive Sect.

Now that the text is an adiaphoron, so is the translation a matter of indifference. The whipped cream decorating the cow paddy is "dynamic equivalence," turning the original text (OK, ignore that concept) turning the invented text into what the Holy Spirit really meant but was incapable of articulating.

The results are in. Statistically -

1. No one is using the original text, with very few exceptions.
2. No one is using a precise translation of the original text.
3. Vast numbers are learning from the New NIV that "the entire world is forgiven," Romans 3.

 Many individual words are removed, too, and the traditional translation is footnoted to indicate there is another way of understanding it - young woman, instead of virgin in Isaiah 7.

Real News - Watch the Water - Fourth Flood Now Pushing Through Three Gorges Dam

Ingrates Desert Bird-Feeders - I Have Your Number

 By Norma Boeckler

Birds do not flock to their food at this time of year. They like berries ripening. I know, because they eat my elderberries, blackberries, wild strawberries, and poke berries. They are keeping in shape now to eat my beauty berries later.

I put some walnut crumbles on the recycle bin lid. They were largely untouched. I was watching out the kitchen window for the hummingbird that says "Hello and thank you?" every day.

Suddenly a female cardinal landed, did a threat analysis, looked over the offering of walnut bits, selected one, and took off. Not long after, the male cardinal landed, checked out danger, examined the walnut fragments, grabbed one, and headed for his mate.

That is why I am putting only a little food out for the birds. They enjoy their own food and really need baths during the dry spells. I dump all bird baths and refill them often. They like to wade in from a dry area, so I try to slant the two kiddie pools accordingly.

The two baths in the front yard are quite shallow and get refilled daily, washed often.

By Norma Boeckler

Ranger Bob agrees that cardinals are always celebrities in the yard. His mother loved them especially and related to all wildlife.

Cardinals have plenty of nesting sites and 10 crepe myrtles producing seed for their winter season. People love to see male cardinals flock together in the winter, when they are not vying for mates. 

 By Norma Boeckler