The Super Blogosphere of a parallel word.

Compassion is at the Heart of the Gospel. Compassion could be said to be a Buddhist doctrine but it also runs through the heart of Christianity as well. There is the famous passage of the rich man and Lazarus in the gospel of Luke, where the rich man had more than enough wealth and food but refused to share it with the poor man who used to beg at his gate. They both died, and the poor man was taken by the Angels to paradise, while the rich man ended up in torments in hell. God's justice is that when there is suffering on earth, He does't immediately make up for it by making all those who suffer with poverty rich. The poor man's poverty in this story was not as some think a curse of God, the poor man had all the chances to succeed in his life as the rich man, but God in His providence saw something that we humans don't see, and that is the eternal outcome for our choices on earth and how we treat others less fortunate than we are! Yes Jesus said you will always have ...

The Secret to Staying Happy. Young people get it, they live in the moment and of course this is because they have more energy and haven't given up on their dreams. If there is something we should know about happiness it comes from staying youthful. There is an innocence that of course can't be fully recaptured, but if you aren't careful you might grow up to become jaded, you know like those people you always resented in your youth. Bob Marley in Redemption Song said "emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds." Part of staying happy is being kind to yourself, and being carefree to a certain degree. When you get older you might have less energy but that doesn't have to make you unhappy. Part of keeping yourself young at heart comes from knowing your limitations, but not letting that stop you from feeling young. Just because you have more responsibilities, that shouldn't stop you from dreaming. Life is short and we w...

My Experience at a Non-Denominational Church. I got into a bit of trouble for my practise of mindfulness meditation. It made me feel like a hypocrite. It made me doubt my salvation and it forced me to alienate myself from that church and it's people. It made me feel that I was a bad person and unforgiven. There are many things that people do wrong, but as a Christian in this kind of a church, my entire life was on display 24/7. I was held accountable before this sin came out, and because of my pressure to conform to the ways of the world, I enjoyed this kind of small group accountability. But this sin of meditation didn't come out in a small group setting, it came out online on Facebook in public. As a result I experienced emotional trauma for 3 years and ongoing, and a greater isolation from the other concerned people in my life. They and I didn't understand why I didn't attend this church anymore. I also lost my desire to serve the Lord, which I had been doing wit...

They are Living in Harmony with Nature. I am not against progress, but there is a price we pay in the developed world when we suppress the laws of nature. One thing I am understanding about indigenous peoples is that they are the richest people in our world. I'm not talking about economics, but the wisdom and knowledge indigenous peoples provide our culture and the culture of the world, is literally priceless. We cannot understand fully what it means to live off the land, or to live in harmony with nature, but they can. We are a developed country and we have never had to live off the land. Yes there were pioneers and they really did live off the land, but somewhere the harmony was broken. I want to say that there is an interdependence between indigenous peoples and the so called developed world. Part of our environmental crisis lies in the fact that we don't see or understand this. We live in a state of dependence on each other, and there isn't a need now to go back ful...

On Long-Term Illness. First I want to say that I was born in Canada and I was born a Canadian citizen. For 25 years in my life I was healthy, and never knew what it was like to live with a long-term illness. When I was 25, euthanasia wasn't allowed in my country. It was a shock to receive a diagnosis for a long-term but not terminal illness. The nature of my disability limits my ability to live like the rest of society, but I don't identify with my illness. I am a free person, and what my disability limits me I have no limits in my mind. At first I couldn't see a future for myself, and because part of my illness involves a depression, thoughts of ending my life or giving up hope is never a realistic option for me. I have always been a person of faith, and my faith has stayed with me as a disabled Canadian citizen. I can see how some people want their pain to end, but in moments when I feel that I can't climb the mountain of my disability, I am always reminded that m...

I Wish I Could Relive My 20's. I had just become a born again Christian and had high hopes for my future but quickly lost that faith. What happened to me next was I decided to move on. My intentions were not to isolate myself, but that is what happened next. I thought that putting myself into a University setting, I would be preparing myself for my future and the problems of my lack of a social group and status would be solved. I had never been the lone ranger type of person, and that year when I attended Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario, I had worked at Greenpeace in Toronto that summer, so I had made a lot of friends and connections. However, when I left Toronto and moved to Peterborough those connections were lost, (or so I believed!) Before the school year started, I was sitting in a café and happened to recognize someone I worked with in Toronto. I approached her and said hi, and I think we hung out for the day. It happened that Greenpeace either bought or rented ...

We are living in a time where very few people experience God's real presence. How do you know what God is? If I am going to talk about His Presence I am going to have to recall when I first became aware of it. First to live in the presence of God requires that you are open to believing in Him. I have believed in God for most of my life, so it is hard to say that growing up that I ever felt separated from God. Preachers like to say that sin separates us from His presence, and while this is true, there is something else that I have learned that cuts people off from Him, and that is their suppression of His presence. We all have an awareness that God exists, so it isn't my imagination working when I tell you that God is real. Part of the reason people don't believe in God, or believe they are sinners is because they are suppressing this truth. Read: 18 But God shows His anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. 19 They kn...

Why I believe we are less free. Humanity has failed to understand the seriousness of sin, and what unrepentant sin and unresolved conflict can do to a once free society. Mankind has asserted their own will, rather than submitting to the will of God. The reason why I believe mankind has lost it's freedoms goes beyond just not believing in the bible, but great indifference to the things that once made us free. We can be loving, and not be free, but neglect of fighting our own sin and even denying the doctrine or Original sin, has lead people to believe that there is no God, and we are the authors of our own destiny. To fail to fight for the common good leads people into falsely assuming that it is right to assert our own will over other people and not practice the realities that lead to the common good of humanity. To live in a self imposed isolation from the truth that once made this world a peaceful place, is dangerous to freedom. Suspicion and unreality feeds this world's ...

Why are Millennials rejecting religion? Millennials are extremely social people. They know how to network and make friends and professional contacts almost instantly. Most Millennials have an acute awareness about social issues and they know how to galvanize for a cause without effort. Mostly because their understanding of technology is far superior to all the other generations they are the most not interested in religion. What they are most interested in is relationships. If they have a weakness it is they don't like when relationships fall apart. They base their identity and ideologies on consensus and like mindedness. They have an interest in things like mental health and the arts, and other things that stimulate their minds. I don't think that many of them believe they have an immortal soul, because realities that they can't conceptualize becomes their greatest frustrations. The reason why religion and God doesn't appeal to most of them is because they are ratio...

What I really want for Christmas this year. In all honesty I want lots of presents, but I know that sometimes we don't always get what we want in life, so how about I talk about what makes me happy? In my 20's I went through an existential crisis of not knowing what I wanted from life. What I believed would make me happy, I quickly discovered was no longer making me happy anymore. I found God, I was young and I believed my life was heading in the right direction, and it was. What I didn't expect was the challenges that I would have to face, but something had changed in me. The idea of world peace has always been an interest in my consciousness ever since I was a kid, and I believe the bible where it says blessed are the peacemakers. I never liked conflict growing up, and I still don't like it. One of the things I have had to learn as an adult is to grow with conflict, not necessarily live with it or let it shape me, but to grow with it. To me there is a danger when ...

How Christmas has changed for me throughout the Years. In a sense, it's still the same holiday but I think if I am going to talk about how I think it's changed, I really have to talk about how I traditionally celebrated it and how I celebrate it now. Growing up Christmas was always my favourite time of the year, there always used to be sense of goodwill during this time of year. I'm not making this up, but traditionally people used to really lift each other's hearts up during this time of year. I don't think we over celebrated this time of year. When I was in my 20's I didn't really celebrate the way that I used to, I was on a spiritual path and I enjoyed Christmas in a different way. I believed Christ could be found within ourselves and it was our job to worship the Christ that exists in all people. Of course that is a strange way at looking at salvation because obviously not everyone believes in Jesus, so how could he exists in all people? The way th...

What is Compassion? Coming from a biblical worldview I see compassion as an essential in a Christian's life. I have been through some pretty challenging experiences, and I am learning where I should have showed more compassion. Being a fallen human being I tend to want things to go my way, and there has been times in my life when I get frustrated because I feel stuck, not knowing who to trust, or how to solve my own problems. God is showing me that He cares for other people just as much as he cares for myself. When we try really hard to have faith, it can be a frustrating experience. When we sin and we don't know how to stop, it can make us want to give up on life's real pleasures. We desire the temporary pleasure from things that we make the most important things, and those things blind us from discovering who we really are. My greatest desire is happiness and when I feel sad, I feel like my life is disapproving to God. I really want to make God happy, but when I stop ...

My Mental Health Change, and What it means to me. Several months ago I began transitioning out from a mental health program that I had been a part of for more than ten years. I just turned 46, so that would mean that I was in my early 30's when I started the program. I was having difficulty at the time in structuring my days, I was not well enough to work, and I needed outside help to feel like I was a part of my world. In 1999, I was given a mental health diagnosis and since then have been using anything and anybody that is available for help. Growing up before my diagnosis, I had a very strong sense of my physical health and never had any serious mental health problems. When I was 21, I briefly slipped into a very short depression, but was able to come out of it by myself. I then became a born again Christian and things were very happy in my mind, and relatively happy in my life. I never had any other mental health problems until my crisis in 1999. I learned a lot about psy...

Friendship. By Mike Finnerty. It can begin with a whisper, a handshake a hello. It grows into concern for the common good of all involved. It's a warm summer day, It's a hot chocolate on a cold winter day. It's a clean house, a warm blanket a game of chess, It's faith in Love with its Creator. It's a well structured house. It's a hot slice of pizza. It's a drive to the mall. It's confidential It's accountable It's affirming It's forgiving It grows into something with branches. It sees through the hurt, It's comforting It's painful It's consoling, It's considerate It forgets the past. It looks to the future It goes out of its way, It's happiness It's childlike It's recognizable It's true. Friends are indispensable and we can't live without them! This is Mike.

Will Christianity be lost Within This Generation? This is a question that I think about everyday while I look at the lukewarm condition of both the evangelical church and the Catholic Church. Will we loose the message of salvation in a culture that no longer sees itself as a Christian nation? There are many young people who see our religion as old fashioned and not relevant anymore, but I don't think the onious or the blame should be directed towards those who reject Christianity. Rather, the blame if any should be directed towards ourselves if the message of Christ's saving death and resurrection is lost in the generation we are currently living in. Jesus in his words to us left us with the mission and stewardship of proclaiming this gospel and it isn't solely up the the structured church to do this. It is up to individual people like you and me, to not only live out our faith, but to share it with others, and if I think the message is being lost it's not because p...

Why are People Ignoring Natural and Moral Law? Most people are not fully aware they are doing this, but our conscience has a big role to play in mankind's salvation. Some evangelicals are content not to have a system of ethics and or moral theology like us Catholic's but it still doesn't change the nature of sin. Some Christians don't believe in a spiritual law, so they conclude that categorizing sin is a fruitless effort. Just tell people they are sinners and they need to repent, and we'll work out how they will actually live their lives, after they get saved. We can fall into a deeply human error if we think this way about our biblical ethics and morality, and although I agree that we are saved by faith, there is something deeply irresponsible about not telling the world that God actually has a standard for living even for Christians. We are not talking about loosing your salvation, we are talking about keeping it, and the maintenance of the world system aroun...

Living Life with no Regrets. Not everybody does it but that doesn't mean that it can't be done. I believe you have to start at a young age and I believe this attitude has to go with you throughout your life. Making mistakes can produce a sense of regret in your life, but like all fears we have to face them and forgive them. Sometimes forgiving ourselves helps us gain the necessary perspective on why we felt hurt by others. Sometimes understanding our pain, can give us validation as we accept the limitations and faults of others. No one can go through life not feeling hurt, but it is our choice with what we do with the hurt. Pain is real and it stings sometimes, and it is a grace of God not to carry our burdens with us as we get older. Sometimes we just need to feel that we belong. Being mindful is a great way to start living with no regrets. The more conscious we are to our feelings the better it is to let go. Blame sets us back, and is the cause for fear and anger. Yes tak...

Celebrities From a Different Lens. I'm starting to believe that we no longer view celebrity in the same light that we used to see them. It was my dream as a little boy to become a professional hockey player when I grew up, but at that young age of course I had no idea of the hard work, and commitment that it would take to make my dream a reality. I think dreams are important, they give us something to live for but it is also my belief that becoming a celebrity no longer holds value the way it used to. Morality is an important thing to have if you are thinking you want to be famous, and because people think less of morals those ideas I had as a child are slowly being eroded away by a society that glorifies the bad, and ridicules the good. We used to look up to famous people as role models when I was growing up, and our role models were very important people to us and our society. We would never think as a community to destroy the reputation of a good person who was famous, just ...

26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, 27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. 28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: 29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Hebrews 10:26-31 | KJV Sin is taken very seriously in the bible and it is taken very seriously in the ongoing history of the church. To get this wrong is to fail to understand the message of the bible. The Old and New...

1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, 2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this will we do, if God permit. 4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. 7 For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: 8 But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned. Hebrews 6:1-8 | KJV Spend...

What is God's Grace? We all have heard the song "Amazing Grace" but have you ever thought of what the word Grace means? Grace is God's unmerited favour given to undeserving sinners. No one will be in Heaven except by the grace of God. In Ephesians 2:8-10 it says "8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." Mankind is justified not by works but by faith, and all of this is by grace. There is common grace given to all mankind and without God's common grace we wouldn't have any of our blessings or needs met. God's saving and sanctifying grace is different. Through Christ, the church and the New Covenant God asks mankind to repent and believe in His Son for Salvation. The gospel isn't an easy way out of an impossible sit...

Christ died for All Kinds of Sins. Our society doesn't understand the the seriousness of God sending Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. The reason for any Christian belief in the history of the world is so that sinners can go to Heaven, and the wicked can go to hell. God's message through Jesus Christ is a message of deliverance and forgiveness of sins. You don't have to be a Christian to understand that when Jesus died on the cross over 2000 years ago, he died for every sin that man would ever commit. He took upon himself the sins of the world, not just during his lifetime, but for all of humanity for all of history! This is why you can be sure that when you trust him for your forgiveness, you can know that the Holy Spirit is working in you to free you from the sins you commit and the sins that other people commit. Jesus only can forgive sins. We don't have to do anything for a world struggling in sin, because the work has already been done by Jesus. You need ...

God doesn't Judge on the Points System.  This is a biblical and theological approach to explaining salvation when I was attending a Pentecostal church in my thirties. The pastor explained very well that there are two ways that people believe we go to Heaven, one is correct and the other is not. He used the example of St. Mother Teresa and Billy Graham. I think he asked us who we thought was holier, of course both these people are somewhere now, but back then it was a respectful debate. He went on to explain that we all agreed that these two people were saints, but we still didn't know why these two people were equally holy in the presence of God? The Pastor went on to explain the points system and the difference of being a good person, and how some people feel we can earn our way to Heaven. He was saying that the more good deeds we do, the more points we get with God and the more points we have that are good when we die than the bad points, God lets us into Heaven. Of cour...

Does the Bible teach Hatred or Love? I was at church last night and I had a really bad sleep because of the message that was taught by our deacon. This is my childhood church, I have been going to this church since grade two, and have been exposed to Catholic doctrine all my life. Although I understand what the teacher was saying, I think he missed the message of Jesus while he was interpreting Luke 14:26 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters--yes, even their own life--such a person cannot be my disciple." Taken literally that would mean that instead of fostering love in my relationships with other people I foster hatred. This is the problem I used to run into with a lot of evangelicals when Christians take this verse literally to foster hatred and bigotry in their heart. The doctrine of justification by faith is used as an excuse to not take the other teachings of Jesus literally and creates an environment of ...

Does Christ have Authority in You? One question to ask in the Christian life is "who has power over you, and is Christ reigning or in Authority in you?" If Jesus is Lord of your life, you have given him the power to have his Authority ruling in your Spirit. When you become saved, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in your Spirit, and in a real sense your life shouldn't belong to you anymore. What makes people lost is not just that they haven't repented yet, but they are their own authority in what decisions they make in life and not Christ. Matthew 7:21-23 21Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ 23Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’ Being a Christian is different than liv...

On The Glorification of Violence. Culture has shifted in our consciousness over the past ten or so years in my opinion. It is really hard for most people to focus and this leads people to watch and say things that are violent. Even older people who in the previous decades, who would sense that they are close to the end of life, are feeding themselves things that make the soul restless and not prepared to enter a peaceful eternity. I don't have children but I still believe that our younger generation can change things. I'm not expecting this planet to be 100% peaceful, but as a society we have to start thinking how we build bridges and not tear one another down. Being open and honest with all kinds of friends is really important in the 21st Century because people now are really craving emotional intimacy. When we starve ourselves of the joy of honest friendship, we can take our frustrations out on innocent people. Of course making the world a happier place doesn't just r...

What is the Trinity? God through holy scriptures reveals Himself as One God in three persons. The Catholic Church holds this as a mystery of faith. Why is it important to believe this in order to be saved? The Trinity is the Doctrine of God and reveals that Jesus is just not the Son of God, but also equally God in essence and substance, in the incarnation and His eternality. Equally the Holy Spirit is God and all three are equal and co-exist as one substance. God is one substance but three equal persons, and all three distinct persons have relationship with each other in the Godhead. The Father reveals the Son, and the Son is One with the Father. The Spirit discloses the things of the Son, and regenerates the sinner. Through ongoing repentance and renewal of our spirits, the Holy Spirit enables us to continue to believe and have peace. With our cooperation with the indwelling Spirit we are renewed daily to be like Christ, and live the beatitudes. The Trinity is One Substance and al...

The following verses are from Matthew 25:31-46. Please read them before reading the rest of my blog post because I really want to address the issue of compassion. 31 i“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, jthen he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him kwill be gathered lall the nations, andmhe will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates nthe sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Thenothe King will say to pthose on his right, ‘Come, you qwho are blessed by my Father,rinherit sthe kingdom tprepared for you ufrom the foundation of the world. 35 For vI was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you wgave me drink, xI was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 vI was naked and you clothed me, yI was sick andyou zvisited me, aI was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and...

We Live in a De-moralizing Culture. I have said this before that "how our society treats the vulnerable in our society, determines if that society will survive." The weakest among humans should not be exploited but protected. When "our" culture sees weakness as an evil, something to be hidden and eradicated we begin to loose our humanity, and whatever blessings we have achieved as people. The polarization of certain poor people groups because we fear our own weakness, is a great sin against our human nature and the progression of our culture. Being strong is not a virtue, and clobbering the poor, will only result in our own poverty as a nation and as peoples. I still believe in the golden rule and karma, so to speak, so how I treat my vulnerable country men is how I will be treated when I am in need. We never foresee tragedy when it comes, so God tests us before it happens. We cannot separate ourselves from our weakened human natures and everyone is vulnerable, ...

On Christian Marriage. (Short) The modern co-habitation crisis has produced a lot of single moms and dads, and has fractured "family units" allowing other family members and relatives to take a bigger role in these "Separated families." There isn't a "one cause" why families have separated or divorced, it is a complicated issue, sometimes resulting in very hard emotions for Society to process. Things like the "millennial sexual revolution" have contributed to the widespread "non-committal" attitude, which in turn has given the traditional marriage the "black eye" it currently has and has turned many Christian men away from seeking a life partner. The more society devalues "traditional marriage" the more co-habitation you will see in all the other generations as well as the Millennials. This is Mike.

(What Makes us who we are.) Being silly is fun when you are a kid, but adults who act silly are seen as foolish. If you have never thought deep thoughts, I would like to challenge you to consider a few things. Humans are said to be complex beings, but religion teaches that we have a soul, but it is also my belief that we are more than just flesh and blood. Who wants to know the reason why we were put here, I'm sure it wasn't just to twiddle our thumbs, no I believe humans where created for greatness, but a different kind of greatness. A love that can only be found in loosing yourself! I don't mean to say that we should get lost, some of us are already there, it's a discovery that comes by grace, when we realize that there is purpose to my life. When I was 21, I had a discovery and I have been thinking about it ever since. We can be youthful even though we might not be young, and we can always be happy no matter where we are in life. The problem is that we need to le...

Why Sports are Good for this Country. I first want to congratulate the Toronto Raptors for uniting the city of Toronto and possibly the country. I remember growing up in the days of Vince Carter, and if I'm not mistaken I have seen one Raptors game in my lifetime. That doesn't stop me from becoming a Raptors fan, and jumping on the band wagon as they were winning their division. I played a lot of hockey in my life, but I really enjoy watching basketball. Our high school team had a really good basketball team, and I learned the basics of basketball through a friend who was a really good player. God didn't give me the talent to shoot hoops, but I always enjoyed watching the taller players in high school do the slam dunks, which I learned is really hard to do in a game. I don't pretend to know how the game has changed over the years, but it sure was fun watching Toronto's Raptors make history twice, first by making the finals, then by winning it all. Today I spent ...

Fighting to be Heard. There are many times in our lives when we feel that others aren't listening to us. As a child I always felt that I had to always make the effort to be heard. It's not that I was somehow unruly, I was a quiet child and I was shy and didn't know how to express myself properly. Among people I trusted, I could be fun and makes jokes, but I always had a hard time with new people in my life. I would eventually win over their trust somehow, but I always struggled inwardly with myself to really communicate what I was actually feeling. I wasn't a troubled child, I had people who loved me and provided for my needs. I would celebrate birthdays with joy. I always joked with family members about how many girlfriends I had, but in my mind it was real. I had a good childhood, and into adolescence my life was still easy and fun. I considered myself a serious child, I took things seriously and I always believed in God. I wasn't evangelical but Catholic, I w...

The Flooding crisis in Toronto. With the population increase came urban sprawl, and poor city planning created a concrete jungle. The solution to the problem isn't to make people leave the city, but to change the urbanization of what already exists. The idea isn't to create a camp city, but if we are serious about solving the flooding problem, there must be more green than concrete, the problem is the city is already overdeveloped and things must be re-made in order to accommodate for the acts of nature that will continue. Our earth is a living organism and in order for humans to live in harmony with nature, we have to learn how to respect it. We cannot control God or the natural order of humanity, we have to learn to live with the natural order of nature. Human beings have a collective mind, and we should still use our mind to solve problems, not make them worse! We cannot fully harness nature, and we shouldn't try, and we cannot fully prevent natural disasters like fl...