Hello to all of you! Can you believe it's nearly a new year already -- where does the time go? We hope the past year has been good for you, and we continue to pray for those who are suffering hardships and trials. We sincerely hope you enjoy this month's e-Newsletter, and as always, remember to test all teachings with the scriptures.

Apocrypha and Canon
The First Gospel of the Infancy of Jesus Christ
http://www.pseudepigrapha.com/LostBooks/infancyall.htm

This book is twenty-two chapters long and claims to cover the time of Christ's childhood. However, this writing contradicts the Canon in significant ways:
* It states Christ displayed miracles as an infant (Chapter 1:2-3). However, the Canon says people receive miraculous gifts through receiving Holy Spirit (Acts 1:6-8,  1 Corinthians 12:1-11), and Christ didn't receive Holy Spirit until after his baptism at age thirty (Luke 3:21-23). On top of that, Canon states Christ's first miracle happened after his baptism (and reception of Holy Spirit), at the wedding in Cana (John 2:11).
* This book states his mother, Mary, gave birth to him a cave (Ch.1: 7-9) and the shepherds visited her at the cave (vs. 20). However, Canon tells Jesus was in a manger (a feeding trough for cattle), and was where the shepherds visited him (Luke 2:7-12).
* Chapter 6:2 mentions a possessed woman throwing stones at men near "churchyards". This is interesting, since churches weren't established yet, considering that Christ was still a child at this point. According to the Canon, the Church/Christian Congregation was not established until after Christ became an adult (Matthew 16:18).
* Chapter 6: 25 refers to the child as "Jesus Christ". Realizing that the word "Christ" is defined as "anointed", and Christ wasn't anointed until after his baptism when the Holy Spirit came upon him, nobody would have called him "Christ" as a child, since he wasn't anointed yet.
* The book goes on and on with miracles attributed to the infant Jesus: People being healed by his wash water, his swaddling clothes, or by holding him. Again, lets refer to the fact that Jesus didn't have the power of the Holy Spirit for such miracles while he was a child.
*Chapter 19 tries to show Christ as a vengeful child; killing one boy for destroying a small fish pool (vs. 20-21), and killing another boy who accidentally knocked him down, (vs. 22-24). This is continued in Chapter 20:15-16, where it says Jesus killed a school master for trying to whip him. This is in contradiction to the fact that Jesus died for our forgiveness and taught us to love our enemies. (John 3:14-15, 36, Matthew 5:44-48).
* Chapter 22 finishes the story, claiming that after Christ's temple teaching at age twelve he discontinued showing his miracles until after his baptism at age thirty. However, this is in contradiction to John 2:11, which states the miracle of turning water into wine as being the first miracle Christ ever performed.

Of course, there are scores of other accounts in this apocryphal book that simply defy testimony from the Canon and common logic. For example, at one point a family's son was turned into a mule, and Jesus turned him back into a human. At another point, Jesus turned children into goats, and then back into children again, and yet another part which speaks of the boy Jesus making sparrows from clay and bringing them to life, and on and on.

From all these various accounts in the First Gospel of the Infancy of Jesus Christ, we can see that it doesn't fit with canonical scripture.

ARCHAEOLOGY/ HISTORY
Mountains of Ararat
The Mountains of Ararat was where Noah's Ark came to rest when the flood waters receded. According to Genesis 8:4, it says: And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat. (Darby Translation).

The Ararat region is mentioned few other times in scripture. For example, at  2 Kings 19:36-37 Assyrian king Sennacherib was assassinated by two of his sons, who afterwards fled to the region of Ararat; an account retold at Isaiah 37:37-38. Aside from that, the region of Ararat was named in a prophecy against Babylon at Jeremiah 51:27.
The Encyclopedia Britannica Online has an article which gives more information regarding the Mountains Of Ararat:

Mount Ararat
Turkish  Agri Dagi,   extinct volcanic massif in extreme eastern Turkey overlooking the point at which the frontiers of Turkey, Iran, and Armenia converge. Its northern and eastern slopes rise from the broad alluvial plain of the Aras River, about 3,300 ft (1,000 m) above sea level; its southwestern slopes rise from a plain about 5,000 ft above sea level; and on the west a low pass separates it from a long range of other volcanic ridges extending westward toward the eastern Taurus ranges. The Ararat Massif is about 25 mi (40 km) in diameter.

Ararat consists of two peaks, their summits about 7 mi apart. Great Ararat, or Büyük Agri Dagi, which reaches an elevation of 16,854 ft above sea level, is the highest peak in Turkey. Little Ararat, or Küçük Agri Dagi, rises in a smooth, steep, nearly perfect cone to 12,782 ft. Both Great and Little Ararat are the product of eruptive volcanic activity. Neither retains any evidence of a crater, but well-formed cones and fissures exist on their flanks. Towering 14,000 ft above the adjoining plains, the snowcapped conical peak of the Great Ararat offers a majestic sight. The snowline varies with the season, retreating to 14,000 ft above sea level by the end of the summer. The only true glacier is found on the northern side of the Great Ararat, near its summit. The middle zone of Ararat, from 5,000 to 11,500 ft, is covered with good pasture grass and some juniper; there the local Kurdish population graze their sheep. Most of the Great Ararat is treeless, but Little Ararat has a few birch groves. Despite the abundant cover of snow, the Ararat area suffers from scarcity of water.

Ararat traditionally is associated with the mountain on which Noah's Ark came to rest at the end of the Flood. The name Ararat, as it appears in the Bible, is the Hebrew equivalent of Urardhu, or Urartu, the Assyro-Babylonian name of a kingdom that flourished between the Aras and the Upper Tigris rivers from the 9th to the 7th century BC. Ararat is sacred to the Armenians, who believe themselves to be the first race of humans to appear in the world after the Deluge. A Persian legend refers to the Ararat as the cradle of the human race. There was formerly a village on the slopes of the Ararat high above the Aras plain, at the spot where, according to local tradition, Noah built an altar and planted the first vineyard. Above the village Armenians built a monastery to commemorate St. Jacob, who is said to have tried repeatedly but failed to reach the summit of Great Ararat in search of the Ark. The village, the monastery of St. Jacob, and a nearby chapel of St. James were all totally destroyed by an earthquake and avalanche in 1840.

Local tradition maintained that the Ark still lay on the summit but that God had declared that no one should see it. In September 1829, Johann Jacob von Parrot, a German, made the first recorded successful ascent. Since then Ararat has been scaled by several explorers, some of whom claim to have sighted the remains of the Ark.

Ararat, Mount. (2006). In Encyclopædia Britannica.  Retrieved October 31, 2006, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9009204

To see a satellite view of the Ararat peak:
http://www.noahsarksearch.com/PickettTom/AraratCorona3.jpg
To view a photo map of Ararat:
http://www.noahsarksearch.com/ararat-map.jpg
To view an array of Mt. Ararat photos:
http://www.armgate.com/ararat/index.html

BIBLE TOPIC
The Biblical Definition of Christianity

Among Christians today, many disagree on what true Christianity is and who has it. There are many denominations under the title "Christian", and each believes it has the real truth in worship. Each has points of view that differentiate them from the other denominations: Some are trinitarian, others are unitarian. Some believe in salvation by works, other believe in salvation by grace. Some believe there is nothing new coming from God, others believe God is "still speaking". Many seem to base the definition of Christianity on what a person's denominational label is. Given the vast array of  beliefs and teachings, are all Christians truly Christian?

We want you, the readership, to understand first that we are not judging anyone on this matter. This is essentially a matter between you and God, and nobody else. It doesn't matter how other people label you, or how you label others;  This article is not meant to be a set of judgments. That being said, on with the topic:

To begin with, we want to establish what the word "Christian" actually means. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, the suffix "-ian" means 1) Of, relating to, or resembling  2) One relating to, following to, or resembling. " Therefore, a Christian would be someone who relates to, resembles, or follows Christ. This is confirmed in the  dictionary, as its definition for "Christian" is as follows:
adj.
   1. Professing belief in Jesus as Christ or following the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus.
   2. Relating to or derived from Jesus or Jesus's teachings.
   3. Manifesting the qualities or spirit of Jesus; Christlike.
   4. Relating to or characteristic of Christianity or its adherents.
   5. Showing a loving concern for others; humane.
n.
   1. One who professes belief in Jesus as Christ or follows the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus.
   2. One who lives according to the teachings of Jesus.
[Middle English Cristen, from Old English cristen, from Latin Chrstinus, from Chrstus, Christ. See Christ.]"  Christian. (n.d.). The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Retrieved November 16, 2006, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Christian

The word "Christian" doesn't appear in the bible until midway into the New Testament, at Acts 11:26, which says:
 And having found [him], he brought him to Antioch. And so it was with them that for a whole year they were gathered together in the assembly and taught a large crowd: and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch. (Darby Translation)

Since a Christian is one who relates to, resembles, or follows the life and teachings of Christ, the question is: What constitutes the life and teachings of Christ that a Christian follows, resembles, or relates to?

When it comes to Christ's life and living, the bible shows reveals many interesting things, including:
1: He didn't pursue a life of wealth or luxury (Isaiah 53:3, Matthew 8:20, 2 Corinthians 8:9)
2: He spent his life teaching about God (Matthew 4:23, 9:35, Mark 6:6)
3: He performed humanitarian works (Matthew 14:14, Mark 1:41, Luke 7:13-15)
4: He was charitable (Matthew 8:2-3)
5: He showed a variety of emotions (Matthew 15:32, Mark 10:21, John 2:14-16,  11:35)
6: He showed mercy to others (Matthew 9:27-30, 15:22)
7: He showed consideration for the lowly (John 8:1-11)

As for his teachings, the primary theme of Christ's teachings is "LOVE". Christ told us of the two basic commandments that everything boils down to (Matthew 22:35-40):
1-- To love God completely
2-- To love others
Christ centered his life and teachings around these two commandments: In his life, he showed love to others, even those who weren't of his own people (Matthew 15:22, John 4:7-30) and those who practiced sin (John 8:1-11, Mark 2:15-17). In his teaching, he taught behavior based on love (Matthew chapter 5, Matthew 19:21, John 13:34-35, John 15:17). How did he teach these two basic commandments? Starting with the first commandment:
To love God completely:
He taught us to worship the Father and no one else (Matthew 4:9-10 referencing Exodus 20:2-3). He taught us to pray to the Father (Matthew 6:9). He taught us to give thanks to the Father (Matthew 15:36, Matthew 14:19).  He showed love for the Father by defending the Father's worship (John 2:13-17). He also taught us to make God our priority, not men (Matthew 6:1-8, 15:3-9).
To love others:
Christ taught us to keep the peace (Matthew 5:23-24), show love to our enemies (Matthew 5:44-48), take care of the poor (Matthew 19:21) and disabled (Luke 14:13-14),  and show mercy (Matthew 12:7, 18:23-35). He taught us to be generous (Matthew 5:40-42) and refrain from taking advantage of others (Matthew 5:42), simply dealing honestly with one another (Matthew 5:34-37).

Although love  was a major component of his teachings, it wasn't the only thing Christ taught us. He also taught various things such as adhering to the lifestyle taught by him, Baptism, and disciple-making (Matthew 28:19-20), humility (Matthew 6:1-8), and the taking of the sacraments (Luke 22:19-20). Christ also taught that true believers must have faith in his blood and his taking of sin from the world (Mark 14:23-24, John 3:14-15, 36).

Unfortunately, this Newsletter can give just a small part of the teachings that Christ gave us, as we are limited on space. However, the bible contains the complete collection of Christ's teachings in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. For those of you without a bible at home, you can read these books online at http://www.biblegateway.com . If we model our lives based solely on those books of the bible, we will truly be Christians: Ones who relate to, resemble, and follow the life and teachings of Christ.

BIBLE Version Critique
Darby Translation
http://darbybible.com/

Virtues: This bible version doesn't hesitate to use God's Holy Name -- Jehovah -- throughout it's Old Testament. It's a public domain bible version, so there is no fear of copyright infringement when quoting from it. In spite of some of it's archaic language, it's an easier read than the King James Version.
Flaws: This bible uses some older English which can be difficult for younger readers. Some of the traditional spellings of bible names are a little different, causing slight confusion. Non-trinitarians will note that this version has a trinitarian slant to it.

According to the Biblegateway.com site, the Darby Translation was first published in 1890 by a man named John Nelson Darby, a bible teacher associated with the Plymouth Brethren. The Darby Translation is also available in French and German.

Encouraging Word
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
4 Love has long patience, is kind; love is not emulous [of others]; love is not insolent and rash, is not puffed up, 5 does not behave in an unseemly manner, does not seek what is its own, is not quickly provoked, does not impute evil, 6 does not rejoice at iniquity but rejoices with the truth, 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (Darby Translation)

Although we can certainly follow this scripture in our own lives, it is encouraging to know that God Himself follows this theme of love as well. Scripture tells us that God is Love (1 John 4:8, 16). Being that God is Love, He will have all the above named attributes of Love: Patience, kindness, unselfishness, rejoicing in truth, lacking envy and provocation, etc. It is encouraging to know we have such a Father whom we can approach when we've done something shameful, knowing His Love will get us back on track. He will have the patience to help us back up again, the kindness to forgive us again, rejoicing when we confess our sins again. He won't be easily provoked into punishing us when we sincerely repent, and He is generous with His blessings -- never denying us His love. This is the Perfect God, He is Love, and we are all so blessed to have Him and receive His unlimited Love.

GUEST COLUMNIST
Blood Transfusions and the Bible
(This can be a controversial topic - CommonTruth editor)
A Restoration Light Publication
Unless noted, Bible quotations in this article are from the World English Bible

"But flesh with the life of it, the blood of it, you shall not eat." -- Genesis 9:4
"Therefore I said to the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger who sojourns among you eat blood." -- Leviticus 17:12
"For as to the life of all flesh, the blood of it is [all one] with the life of it: therefore I said to the children of Israel, You shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh; for the life of all flesh is the blood of it: whoever eats it shall be cut off." -- Leviticus 17:14
"Only be sure that you don't eat the blood: for the blood is the life; and you shall not eat the life with the flesh." -- Deuteronomy 12:23.
"You shall not eat of anything that dies of itself: you may give it to the sojourner who is within your gates, that he may eat it; or you may sell it to a foreigner: for you are a holy people to Yahweh your God." -- Deuteronomy 14:21
"Only you shall not eat the blood; you shall pour it out on the earth as water." -- Deuteronomy 15:23
"But that we write to them that they abstain from the pollution of idols, from sexual immorality, from what is strangled, and from blood. " -- Acts 15:20
"That you abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality, from which if you keep yourselves, it will be well with you." -- Acts 15:29
According the our neighbors in the "Jehovah's Witnesses" organization, as well as a few other groups, the above scriptures forbid use of blood transfusions. Many of our neighbors in these groups have died, or have let their children die, in obedience to their leaders who have interpreted the above scriptures in this manner.

Of course, in reality blood transfusions are not mentioned in the Bible. Yet it is also true that just because the Bible does not mention a specific act as sin, this does not necessarily mean that it is not sin. Smoking, especially smoking around others, would fall into this category. We reason that smoking is a sin due to the fact that it is an unloving thing to our neighbor to smoke, which breaks the second greatest commandment as spoken of by Jesus.-- Matthew 22:39.

Likewise with blood transfusions: we need to ascertain if the medical practice of blood transfusions do in fact violate the intent of the command that forbids eating blood. What was the intent of the command? Blood is used to represent the life of the animals that were being slain for food, which life belongs to Yahweh. According to the Law Covenant, blood was to be poured out upon the earth -- that is, that which represents the soul [nephesh] taken was to be poured out in honor of the life which had been taken, which life belongs to Yahweh. (Genesis 4:10; Leviticus 17:14,15; Deuteronomy 12:15,16; Psalm 36:9; Ezekiel 18:4) It is this law of God that the apostles and elders at Jerusalem referred to as recorded in Acts 15:20,29, when telling the Gentile Christians to abstain from strangled animals and blood.

Do these commands in any way transfer to the modern practice of blood transfusions? No; only if you are taking the blood to be transfused from the body of a dead person could I see any application, for normally the life of the donor of blood is not taken during the blood transfusion process. Since the life of the person giving blood usually is not demanded in blood transfusions, the application has no significance in this practice. Thus there is nothing in these scriptures that prohibit blood transfusion.

We have been asked if we thought that Jesus would have accepted a blood transfusion? As we have shown, abstaining from eating blood of dead animals is not related to the modern practice of blood transfusions. All life belongs to Yahweh. To show respect for life, the blood, representing the life taken, was to be poured out to Yahweh. Usually no life is taken in blood transfusions, so the principle does not apply.

Would Jesus have accepted a blood transfusion? Quite a hypothetical question, since his life source was not tainted with the inherited fallen nature of man. I don't know of any reason he would not have, except that it may have conflicted with the blood lineage from David. My answer is hypothetical, since divine providence never permitted such a situation to arise. I can say, that any reason that Jesus would not have taken a blood transfusion would have to do with his Messiahship and its royal lineage rather than disobeying the law not to eat of blood. Assuming that he had been of the fallen nature, and had not been the promised Messiah, I am sure that he would have taken a blood transfusion if so needed without any disobedience to Yahweh connected with it.

The objection is raised that there is an ever increasing body of evidence that blood transfusion therapy is highly dangerous. That the benefits are often outweighed by these risks is something the public is often not informed of by those who claim blood transfusions should be avoided. There are risks, that is true, but many have highly exaggerated the risk factors. Nevertheless, there are risks of equal magnitude involved in many kinds of medicinal and surgical procedures. On this basis of argument it would appear that we should not utilize modern medicine at all, lest we risk our life in doing so. In truth, however, for most cases the need far outweighs any risks involved.

Some have claimed that Charles Taze Russell is the one who came up with the idea that the Bible prohibited blood transfusions as well as organ transplants, even forcing this teaching on his followers. To make this clear, Russell never prohibited blood transfusions nor organ transplants; nor do Bible Students today. Russell never forced this teaching on his followers, for he did not believe this teaching. Indeed, he did not force any teaching on his associates, his supposed followers, but constantly encouraged all to accept or reject based on the scriptures and their own development and understanding. The Watchtower leaders adopted the "no blood transfusion" doctrine long after Russell died.

Some have claimed that in 1909 the Watchtower specifically stated that the Jewish prohibition against eating blood was not considered law for Christians.

Here is what the 1909 Watch Tower said, which does not exactly specifically state that the Jewish probibition against eating blood was not considered law for Christians:

A similar thought attaches to the prohibition of the use of blood. To the Jew it was forbidden, and under his covenant it was made a symbol of life--to partake of it would imply responsibility for the life taken. Moreover, in the typical ceremonies of the Law the prohibited blood was used as a symbol representing the sin-offering; for by the blood atonement for sins was effected. To emphasize these typical lessons the Jew had been forbidden to use blood. And there may be other, sanitary, reasons connected with the matter, which are not yet known to us. These prohibitions had never come to the Gentiles, because they had never been under the Law Covenant; but so deeply rooted were the Jewish ideas on this subject that it was necessary to the peace of the Church that the Gentiles should observe this matter also. The things strangled meant animals taken in traps, whose blood was not shed or drained out by bleeding to death, as the Jewish Law required of all meats that should be eaten. This restriction was necessary to the harmony between the two branches of spiritual Israel--that which came from Judaism and that which came from the Gentiles.

If they did not wish to be contentious and cause divisions in the Church, the Gentile brethren would surely be willing to restrain or sacrifice their liberty respecting these matters. The fourth restriction specified was "fornication," the Greek signifying "harlotry." It is difficult to understand why one moral precept should be thus separated from others and placed on the list with ceremonial requirements. We incline rather to ask, Why not have included profanity, drunkenness, idolatry, adultery, false witness, murder, etc.? Are we to understand that the Gentiles are free to commit all the crimes in the calendar not stipulated by this Conference, and merely counseled respecting meats offered to idols, or that have died by strangulation -- and the use of blood and fornication? Surely not. Rather all the requirements of the Law are included in the one law of the New Creation-- Thou shalt love the Lord and thy neighbor.

Love would cover idolatry, profanity, murder, theft, false witness, adultery, but the law of Love would not so thoroughly cover the items enumerated by the Counsel. These were necessary, proper, and we are to recognize the authority of the Apostles to "bind things on earth," and that they were so guided in their public utterances that they bound nothing unnecessarily, nothing contrary to the Divine will. It is our opinion, therefore, that these items thus superadded to the Law of Love should be observed by all spiritual Israelites as representing the Divine will. As a matter of fact nearly all the butchering for our markets is in harmony with the Jewish regulations, although many Jews decline to recognize this and eat only such meats as have been inspected and approved by their rabbis.

We also present what Mr. Russell said in the June 1, 1902, Watch Tower:
RECOMMENDATION RESPECTING OUTWARD CONDUCT.

God's dealings and instructions commended themselves both to their hearts and to their reasons, and covered four points. (1) Abstaining from meats offered to idols, which might appear to be giving sanction to idol worship. (2) Abstaining from the eating of the blood of animals. (3) Abstaining from eating things that had been strangled, in which the blood would remain, which would imply the eating of blood. (4) The avoidance of fornication. In considering these rules we are to keep in memory the circumstances and conditions of the times, and the objects sought to be attained. (1) The idol worship which prevailed at that time had connected with it a great deal of sensuality, which would be contrary to the spirit of Christ in every sense of the word. (2) The object was to permit a ground of fellowship and brotherhood between those whose previous experiences and instructions had been lax, and those whose previous instructions had been rigid. And the things here required of the Gentiles were not merely features of the Mosaic Law, for the forbidding of the use of blood, and the explanation that it represented the life, was given long previous to Moses' day -- to Noah after the flood, when he and his posterity were granted the privilege of eating meat, because of the changed conditions and the impoverishment of the race, and the need of more stimulating food. The use of blood was still more common then than now, being used not only in blood puddings, but also as a drink mixed with wine, as some today use beef extract blended with wine.

Of course, blood transfusions were not in general practice in Russell's day, but in reading what he wrote on the subject of blood, I don't think he would have objected to blood transfusions. The prohibition of eating blood was because the blood represented the life of the animal, which life belongs to God. To show respect to Yahweh for life that was taken away, one was not to eat the blood of animals slain for food, but rather to drain the blood. Of course, usually in blood transfusions no life is taken away, so the principle does not apply.

However, I do not totally agree with Brother Russell's conclusions regarding the eating of blood or things sacrificed to idols. I believe that this prohibition regarding blood is necessary for the Christian, out of love and respect for our Creator. Thus it is still necessary to show respect for a life taken by not eating the blood representing the life taken, thus blood should be drained before eating meats. This, however, has nothing to do with blood transfusions since life is not taken away during a blood transfusion.

The claim has been presented that the commands not eat of blood were part of the Jewish dietary laws that are not applicable to the Christian. The command given to not eat blood was before the Jewish dietary laws were given. (Genesis 9:4) It was repeated in the Christian scriptures. (Acts 15:20,22) Acts 15:29 clearly refers to the earlier commands not to eat blood (Genesis 9:4, Leviticus 3:17, Deuteronomy 12:16) We should still have respect for Yahweh concerning any life that is taken by not eating the blood by making sure that our meats have been properly drained of blood, symbolically pouring it out to Yahweh, that is, to give respect to Yahweh for that life to Yahweh to whom that life belonged.

Nevertheless, under the law, the prohibition to eat blood was obligatory only upon the Israelites and any traveler who visited the land of Israel. Deuteronomy 14:21 shows that he did not expect the Gentiles to observe this law. This indicates a further symbolism of the peculiar holiness expected of God's people. The Israelites only were given the Law through Moses; it was not obligatory upon the Gentiles. It was not yet due time to expect the heathen in general to repent, nor was it the due time for them to receive the things pertaining to the blessing of all the families of the earth. Likewise, we as Christians should stand out as a peculiar people, holy to God; we should not expect the groaning creation still in bondage to sin at the present time to recognize or adhere to the same peculiarity as God's people are expected to adhere to.

RRD, October 16, 2002

All studies on this site may be freely reproduced and distributed for non-profit purposes. We encourage you to print out, or reproduce, as many copies as you wish for your Bible study group, or to distribute to others to whom you wish to give a witness.

http://reslight.net/bloodtransfusions.html

NEWS BYTES
(AgapePress) - A pro-family leader is wondering who's minding the net for the National Hockey League, given its support for a homosexual movie that features an 11-year-old drag queen. Read more...
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/11/292006f.asp

(Associated Press) BEIJING, China -- A Chinese court has secretly executed the leader of a fringe underground Christian sect and 11 followers who were convicted of murdering members of a rival group, a defense attorney said Wednesday. Read more...
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/11/29/china.christian.ap/

(Reuters) By Corinne Heller JERUSALEM - Building a housing complex or a road in the Holy Land can often have grave implications. Ancient cemeteries, burial caves from biblical times and centuries-old artefacts have been unearthed during construction work in Israel over the years, forcing contractors by law to call in archaeologists and sometimes halt building projects. Read more...
http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenews.aspx?type=reutersEdge&storyID=2006-11-29T120852Z_01_NOA943727_RTRUKOC_0_FEATURE-ISRAEL.xml

(The Telegraph) By Graeme Paton, Education Correspondent
Hundreds of state schools may be teaching the Biblical story of creation in science lessons, a leading academic said last night.
James Williams, head of science teacher training at Sussex University, said confusion over GCSE and A-level science syllabuses had "opened the door" to groups trying to widen understanding of creationism and its more recent off-shoot, intelligent design. Read more...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/11/28/ncreation28.xml

PEOPLE OF THE BIBLE
Goliath
Goliath was a man from the Philistine city of Gath. According to 1 Samuel 17: 4, he stood at six cubits and a span. In modern measurements, a cubit is about 18 inches (.5 m), and a span is about 9 inches (23 cm). Therefore, six cubits and a span is about 9 feet 9 inches tall (3 m, 23 cm)! He was the champion of the Philistine army, and he would come every day for 40 days to taunt the Israelite army, daring any of them to fight him; The winning side would be rewarded with enslaving the losing side. Eventually David, who was young and an unlikely candidate for success, chose to face the challenger with the support of Yahweh and successfully defeated him. After David killed Goliath with his slingshot, he took the giant's sword and decapitated him with it (1 Samuel 17:1-51).

Was it normal for the men of Gath to be so large? From reading the passage, we can infer that Goliath was considered to be an unusually large man. Since the bible takes the extra step of mentioning his height, the weight of his armor (5,000 shekels just for the torso armor alone -- 208 lbs., 95 kg) and the size of his weaponry (spearhead 25 lbs, 11kg), we can conclude that Goliath was an anomaly. The bible also doesn't mention anything about Gath citizens having a tendency towards giantism, therefore it is believed that Goliath was the exception, not the rule.

Giantism, a.k.a. "gigantism" can be seen today on rare occasions. Giantism is caused by an excess of growth hormone secreted by the pituitary gland (a pea sized organ at the base of the brain) and is evident during childhood. The symptoms of this disorder can give us a probable picture of what Goliath may have looked like. This is because people afflicted with giantism tend to have an unusually prominent forehead, a prominent jaw, and heavy, thick bones. This would cause the giant's body to be very sturdy looking. From this we can suppose that Goliath was a large, intimidating man.

Known giants outside of scripture include (information taken from Wikipedia) Emperor Maximinus Thrax (173a.d - 238a.d; 8ft 6in), John Middleton (1578-1623: 9ft. 3in.), Bernard Coyne (1897-1921: 8ft 2in), Vaino Myllyrinne (1909-1963: 8ft 3in), Robert Pershing Wadlow (1918-1940: 8ft 11in), Zeng Jinlian (1964-1982: 8ft 2in.), Leonid Stadnyk (1971- current, 8ft. 4in), and Max Palmer (Died 1974, 8ft, 2in).

VOCABULARY ENRICHMENT
Teraphim
A term used of a kind of household idols and means of divination. In Genesis 31:19 the Teraphim of Laban were stolen by Rachel; these were small enough to be concealed in a camel-saddle (vss. 34-35). They were a valuable possession. Michal, by placing such an object in David's bed, deceived Saul's messengers into thinking that David was there but was too ill to receive visitors. (1 Samuel 9:13-16). This idol resembled a man sufficiently well to make the ruse temporarily effective. In the spiritual revival under king Josiah the teraphim and other "abominations" in Judah and Jerusalem were put away (2 Kings 23:24). Zechariah asserted that "the teraphim utter nonsense." (Zech. 10:2, RSV). Hosea prophesied that "the children of Israel shall dwell many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or pillar, without ephod or teraphim." (Hosea 3:4 RSV). Ezekiel included the consultation of teraphim among the divination practices of the king of Babylon preceding the destruction of Jerusalem. (Ezek. 21:21).

Source: Zondervan's Compact Bible Dictionary 1993 edition

WEBSITE OF THE MONTH
Creation Science Home Page
http://emporium.turnpike.net/C/cs/

This is a site filled with resources relating to the study of origins and science from a creationist point of view. This site boldly pits the strength of creationism against the weakness of the theory of evolution. Includes articles, annotated slide shows, comparisons, the history of evolutionary thought and a vast list of resources accessed by their links. It's a wonderful tool for teaching homeschooled children, gathering information for sermons/bible discussions, or simply for personal enrichment.