Fiberaddict's Fiber Fumblings

I read all sorts of blogs - yes, even some Christian ones! :gasp!: This one....I don't agree with everything he says, but he hit this one out of the park. Let me give you an excerpt:

You see, God is not done with any of us yet. Each of us is made in the image of God, yet we are all marred by sin. In our current form, we are flawed, but God can reshape us as He will. And He promises He will if we let Him.

When you and I encounter another human soul, we see a slice of a life, a moment in another’s journey. We do not see the departure from the gate, nor the arrival at the final destination.

The link is here if you want to read the whole thing - I HIGHLY recommend it. (I don't often recommend Christian sites, because I usually don't agree with them. This one, though....there's a lot here I do agree with, and a lot that I don't, but God can and will use those that don't agree 100% with Him to get His points across. And this? Has been nagging me ever since I read it. :lol:)

I see this a LOT online...people go off on others because they don't believe the same way they do, or don't do things the way they would do, or a myriad of other reasons. It's...sad. I think it's a way for them to feel superior - for whatever reason, but we all should remember that it's a journey, not a single step, and not everyone is one the exact same path.

Look, I know what *I* believe, and why *I* think it's right. *You* may also believe, but not the exact same way I do.....and is that wrong? I don't think so - I mean, I know that God has led me *here*. I don't know that He *hasn't* led you to where you are, today. Maybe you're further along than I am; maybe I'm further along than you are. It's not - NOT - my place to tear you down just because YOU are still going to a mainstream church - I know that for ME, that's not where I belong. Maybe God has you there for a reason - I don't know. (And maybe He doesn't - again, not MY place to tear you down. *I* don't know what God is doing in YOUR life, just like you don't know what He's doing in mine.) All I can do is live the way I think He wants me to live; in my case, that's as a Torah-Observant, Messianic-believeing Spiritual Jew. I can pull out verses that spell out WHY I believe that, but honestly? It's beside the point - anyone can pull verses out of the Bible to back up their beliefs, even if the beliefs are misguided.

Anyway - Shabbat Shalom! Have a wonderful weekend!

Sukkot/feast of Tabernacles/Feast of Booths/Messiah's birthday begins tonight! We're setting up the tent - and I remembered to pick up an air mattress this year!

Hope you have a happy one! And, Merry Christmas! :wink:

Ali made an interesting post, saying (basically) that Christianity is screwed up. Not wanting to blog her comments, I'm posting it here. This *might* upset some of you - but please, before going off in a ranty rage, please THINK about what I'm saying, OK? This isn't aimed at ANYONE specifically, it's just me trying to put my thoughts in some sort of order.

OK. Christianity IS screwed up. Basically because Constantine - in the 4th Century - declared all things Jewish forbidden in *his* religion. Which became the core of the Catholic church, which has become - thanks to the Protestant Reformation - the entire Christian church. Problem......JESUS, the Messiah that ALL Christians profess to follow, IS Jewish. (Which....actually explains a lot of what I don't understand in modern churchiantiy. Anyway...)

If you profess to be a Christian, you claim to follow Jesus. A JEWISH man. The JEWISH Messiah. He kept Torah. He followed Tradition. He kept the Biblical Feasts. He was Jewish. Let that sink in for a bit. IF you are Christian, you worship the Jewish Messiah.

Now. Most churches espouse "replacement theology" - even if it's not stated outright, they have the mindset that Christianity has *replaced* Judaism as God's people. I have asked for Biblical support for this idea....and have NEVER gotten it.

Oh, they try to use Paul's words from Acts...but that doesn't work. See, you have to read the ENTIRE thing, not just cherry-pick....and it simply doesn't work. (An aside: this is why I have a problem with those who claim circumcision is gone....um. That's NOT what was said. Yes, Paul said it's of the heart now...but he was talking about circumcision on adult males. It's hard, it's painful. Remember Shechem, where Jacob's sons attacked the men the 3rd day after they were circumcised? Because the prince had raped their sister, then wanted to marry her? Paul was saying, hey - don't put that burden on the adult men, because pretty soon they won't want to join us. Instead, give them a pass - they WILL circumcise their sons, in accordance with the Abrahamic covenant (which has NEVER been overturned, BTW). Anyway....) The original Gentile Christians became Jewish - but ones who believed that Jesus WAS the promised Messiah. They kept Torah. They kept kosher. From the outside, they would have looked JEWISH.

When you removed the Jewish bits from Christianity, you are left with......not much, honestly. Pagan bits creep in (just take a look at Christmas traditions. Seriously. And don't get me started on Easter....) - even though Scripture clearly states to NOT mix the Holy with the profane. But without the foundation that Jewishness gives you, there's nothing there - so things have to be added to make it "work".

And......why is it that so many Christians are anti-Semitic? I mean....Jesus IS Jewish. Why, oh why, do they HATE the Jews? How can they function with that kind of disconnect....I mean - really? How can you claim to follow Jesus, and yet support a 2-state solution? (Seriously, how can anyone claim to follow Jesus, then scream for Israel to GIVE UP land that GOD HIMSELF gave to THEM?????? I just......I can't think that way.)

It's not just Christians, either - the Messianics are also messed up, but in the opposite direction. They want to be TOO Jewish.....:sigh: Yes, Believers are grafted in - adopted, if you will. IF you believe that Jesus IS the Messiah, then, in God's eyes, you ARE one of His chosen...which IS Jewish. Which goes against most of what modern churches teach...but it's all there, in the Bible (in the Torah, even, which makes it more "real". The NT was never intended to be held to the same holiness (for lack of a better word) as the Torah/OT was. The NT was, basically, commentary on HOW to live a Torah-based life for those not raised with it. Gentiles, in other words. The Jews that believed didn't change how they lived - except they shared the news of Jesus with everyone they met. They were *still Jewish*.

:sigh: I have more, but it's hard to catch to put into words. I'm also trying to frantically get a Physics course set up for Himself - we are 1 week (or so) from finishing Chemistry, and he told me Monday that he really, really HATES this author. :eek: So, I have been googling my little eyes out. I found a promising looking, Homeschool-designed Physics course ( donttouchthephotons.wordpress.com ) that he said looked "OK", so I have been scrounging up the money to get the books. :grumble: Thank the Lord for eBay and HPB.com! 4 books ordered, for under $20. 3 to go....but I think we can get started with just these 4. :sigh: Ah, well...

Shabbat Shalom! Please keep the comments civil - I don't block, but would like to be able to have a discussion about this, not screaming fights.

swirling around in my brain, so....guess I'll dump it here. :lol: It's what it's for, right?

First up, have a photo - SG's very first lathe project.



I was mistaken; this is made out of peach wood. He's upset because he cut the handle 1/4" too short; me? It fits in my project bag better. He says he'll try again....I keep telling him perfection is over-rated, but hey - more darning eggs for me! :lol:

We just finished Lev. 26 today. HEAVY stuff! It lays out Biblical prosperity - and hey, the church got it wrong Again!

I've heard way too many preachers/lay ministers/chrischuns say that God wants us to have "stuff". Shorthand - prosperity gospel. Where God wants us to have that new car/designer clothes/bling...but that's NOT what Torah promises us.

Torah says that IF we keep the covenants (more on this in a minute!), THEN God will make us prosper. How? By giving us enough food, shelter - everything we need. Key word: NEED. Yes, He'll even give us more than we need to just survive, which will provide many of the *wants* we have, but we are promised everything we *need*. That's....that's a very humbling thought, and very comforting. (And yes, He does keep His end of the bargain, as long as we keep ours.)

Thing is......WE have obligations, too. What are those? (You won't hear this in church!) Well, when you accept Jesus (Yeshua) as your lord, you are adopted into His family. THINK about this, because it is key, and most chrischun churches totally ignore this - they practice replacement theology, which is WRONG. YOU are adopted into Yeshua's family...which is what? The JEWS. Hebrews. God's Chosen People.

Now, when you're adopted, what happens? You are expected to follow the rules of your new family, no? I mean, when you adopt a child - whether it be from overseas or domestic - you raise the child to follow *your* family rules, right? You don't have 1 set of rules for your Chinese son, and another set of rules for your Indian daughter, and yet another set for your biological child, do you? Of course not - you have 1 set of rules that EVERYONE in your family is expected to follow.

So why do we think that Gentile members of Yeshua's family have a different set of rules from the "biological" Jewish members?

We *do not*. When we are adopted into God's family, we come under the covenants God made with ISRAEL. And we are expected to follow them. THAT'S the only way we can partake of the blessings God has promised His chosen - and Lev. 26 lays it ALL out.

Yes, the sacrificial laws have been fulfilled by Yeshua's sacrifice...but there are other laws we are expected to keep as members of God's family. The eating laws, for example. And the clean/unclean laws. And no, Paul did NOT say that we as Gentile members are exempt - in fact, he kept saying over and over and over again that we were NOT. The thing with adult circumcision that everyone trots out to "prove" that we don't have to keep those pesky laws? Was to not put too much of a burden on adult men - think about it! Adult converts were allowed to forgo circumcision, but the expectation was that they would circumcise their sons - thereby fulfilling the everlasting covenant with God. They were expected to follow the Sabbath laws, and the food laws, etc. In fact, they were expected to live *like Jews* - because, guess what? They WERE Jews - Jews who believed in Yeshua the Messiah!

Follow God's laws, and the Blessings will flow. Ignore those laws, and curses will follow....and I'm seeing that. Our Nation.....every time our leaders tell Israel to give away land that God gave to *them*, our nation is hit with divine punishment. And it's only going to get worse....and thing is? Believers will be affected too, because we LIVE here. You thought Katrina was bad? Sandy? The current drought? It's going to get worse unless we as a nation all repent...and I don't see that happening. (Yes, Katrina and Sandy were God-sent. Remember, God uses the natural in SUPERnatural ways......)

Anyway, gotta run. I ran my bills Tuesday, and came up short. :gulp: Tuesday afternoon, I got a phone call with a small job that paid *just enough* to cover the shortness. God IS good! And I need to finish said job and get it back to the employer!

that will mean NOTHING to most of you. But I have to get it out...

In a post, you said " In other words, His blood was shed in place of the OT covenant of shedding blood to cut oneself off from sin (aka circumcision). In other words, Abraham was circumcised by his own shedding of blood, and we’re circumcised from sin by Messiah’s blood."

No. No no no no no no NO. Circumcision has NOTHING to do with sin, or the cutting off from. Circumcision is the outward sign of the covenant with Yah. IF it had to do with sin, then a) the Jews wouldn't NEED a Messiah, would they?; b) only men would be covered, so women would be out of luck; and c) why would the Temple run sacrifices all Bloody Day Long? (the pun was TOTALLY not intended, honest!) Also, if His Blood cuts us off from sin, why do we mere humans who believe in Him STILL sin? Even when we try our darndest not to?

Sin is disobedience to God, yes? Sin HAS to be covered BY BLOOD (hence the animal sacrifices) if you (the sinner) wants to be near to God. His Holiness won't allow it any other way. Yeshua's sacrifice REPLACED the animal sacrifices; His Blood washes sin away while animal blood simply covered it.

This is wrong thinking. Circumcision is about obedience, yes - NOT sin. IF it were about sin, then why did Paul say that new believers did NOT need to be circumcised (and yet he himself was)? Yeshua's sacrifice had *nothing* to do with marking one's flesh as a sign of accepting the covenant - it had everything to do with defeating sin and death.

:grumble: Back to your regularly scheduled day now.....

I do a LOT of thinking while milking. Sometimes it's heavy, sometimes it's fluff....lately, it's been heavy.

It was sparked by something I read - I *think* in TorahClass, but I'm not sure - that said, basically, that the New Testament letters were never meant for publication, let alone being raised to the same level as the Tanakh (Old Testament). I read that, and paused, because...that's a heavy thought.

Then I read something else that said the NT letters were arranged longest to shortest, *just like the Prophets*. Um. No. In the Tanakh, the Prophets - heck the whole thing except for Torah! - is arranged *differently*. I think it's by date - which makes a heck of a lot of sense. The NT was arranged by the Catholic Church.......

So I've been thinking. And.....my thoughts are going to be very controversial to most. Comments WILL be welcomed - I don't delete anything except spam, so feel free! - but please keep it civil, OK? If you wouldn't say it in my physical living room, don't say it in my virtual one, OK?

:Deep breath:

What is Scripture? That's an easy one: Scripture is the Tanakh. It's what Christ meant when he said Scripture, it's what the Disciples meant. It's what is quoted in the NT, it sets up God's laws and explains how humans can meet with and have a relationship with God. It IS Holy.

The NT? The first 4 books are accounts of how Yeshua fulfilled the Scriptures, written by people contemporary with Him, and people who actually KNEW Him. Acts is the history of the early church, and shows that God didn't change between the OT and NT (Sapphira and Ananias, for example.) The rest? Personal letters from the Disciples and Paul to the early churches. Human advice......and I have come to the conclusion that they should NOT be raised to the same level as Scripture. Oh, and Revelation, which is from John, the LAST Disciple who actually walked with Yeshua...it's regulated to the end of the Bible. I kinda get that, as it's the last prophecy to a Disciple, and it's about the End Times....but it's dismissed in the modern church and not taught, while Romans is THE most important part of the NT (or seems to be.)

And Paul.....why is he so revered in the Christian world? He never met Yeshua - in fact he persecuted His followers! - and (and this is where I think most of the "worship" comes from) he was a Pharisee - a renowned Talmud scholar. Talmud is NOT Scripture, even though a lot of Jews hold it on the same level. Talmud is basically commentary (calling it Oral Torah doesn't cut it...Scripture doesn't mention Oral Torah, and what I've read of it (honestly not much)...it's just human commentary.)

I have the feeling that when Paul converted, he was immediately given "rock star" status...because of all his education. He was well versed in every aspect of Jewish law - and he quickly became the leader of the fledgling Christian church (and the Catholic Roman Church claims he was the first Pope (I think - I know they claim he was Christ's heir to the leadership of the church.)

Um. I have a MAJOR problem with this. Paul didn't KNOW Christ, some of what he wrote is in opposition to Torah (his view on circumcision, for example. Circumcision is a perpetual commandment per Torah. Paul says, no....you don't need the physical sign anymore, even though Torah says it's forever. I just....nevermind.)

Also - WHO arranged the Christian Bible? KJV, NIV - all of them are arranged the same way, which is different from the way the Jews have it. Ask yourself.....why? And again - who? (hint: the Catholic Roman Church, again.) Why did they choose THESE letters out of all the ones they had? And why did they cut those that they did? (There's at least 1 more Gospel out there that humans considered Not "Real".) Why is Paul given so much weight, and the Disciples that actually walked WITH Yeshua are given 2nd billing? And how much of what Paul wrote comes from Talmud instead of God?

Paul seems to add to Scripture an awful lot......and his words are taken to be - pardon the phrasing - Gospel Truth. I have a problem with that - and have for years.

I'm not sure where I'm going with this...but this is what I've been ruminating on lately. There's still a lot of stuff floating around...but I *needed* to get this out. Scripture is what we should be going by and studying; the NT is good reading, but I don't think it should be placed above Scripture. And, really - without Torah, you really don't understand the NT. You NEED that foundation before moving on...and most Christians don't have a good foundation. I have to ask myself why that is.....(I have a feeling I know, but......without anything to back it up, I won't mention it.)

Because I get confused. :lol: Lev. 23 is the Calendar of Sacred Time - the "master" list of all Feasts Believers are supposed to keep.

V. 5 lays out Passover - the 14th of Nisan - and it makes it VERY plain that Passover is NOT a full day. It's "between sundown and complete darkness". IF you celebrate Passover for a full day (that is, this year you would have celebrated it Monday evening to Tuesday evening), well, you're wrong. This is the ONLY Feast that isn't a full day.

V. 6 is the start of Matzoh/Unleavened Bread - it's a 7 day Feast that begins the 15th of Nisan. the first day is a Shabbat - so, if you took Tuesday off, that's what you were supposed to do...but it was NOT Passover, it was day 1 of Unleavened Bread. (People get confused - me included!)

V. 9 starts the explanation of Firstfruits (Resurrection day!); it's the day after the Shabbat mentioned in the previous bit. So, it's the day AFTER Matzoh begins - or, the 16th of Nisan (this year, that'd be yesterday.)

V. 15 lays out the counting of the Omer, which starts on Firstfruits. 50 days, which lead up to Shavout.

Now. I saw one chart that had Firstfruits 4 days AFTER Matzoh begins....I have no idea where that idea came from, because it's not Biblical. :shrug: Probably a brain-fart.....but it's wrong. The Spring Feasts come *boom*boom*boom* - 3 days in a row. Which equates to the 3 days in the tomb. :wink:

Gotta skitter - school, then we have to go help G'ma with her car. Laters!

We've been "hit" with freezing rain, again. Was supposed to go into the office, but it was called off due to possible freezing. We'll try again, tomorrow. It'll still be cold....

Yesterday, we had to go house-sit....when the contractors were done, we went to an actual *theatre* and saw "The Lego Movie". WORTH it. So much fun! Both kids had asked, so how could I say no? Because we went on a Monday, there was NO ONE (OK, *8*!) in the room with us. I can highly recommend this - it was fun! :lol:

I'm at the gusset of sock #2. Slow going, because...honestly? I've done it once, I love it, but I'm over it and want to move on. Doesn't help that there's a knit-along I'd like to maybe join on Necker (from Op-Art Socks). I'm trying to talk myself out of the KAL, because....really? I'd prefer to enjoy THIS sock, instead of getting antsy about casting on another one. :sigh: Hard to explain....I do still LOVE my shamrocks, though!

Made a few more project bags, and figured out how to make pyramid bags (for stitch markers and cable needles. I wanted something prettier than plastic tubs. :lol:) I even "mastered" zippers! (sorta. I can at least install them on bags invisibly!)

Our refund is due to hit this week :fingers crossed: If so, it'll be another town day, because I have plans. As do the kids (they get part of it, as well, to do with as they please. Good way to teach budgeting!) I need new cookware.....the Fiesta outlet will enjoy our visit, I think......:lol:

It's gotten interesting in TorahClass lately. We're near the end of Exodus...and.....WoW. I've said all along that we (as Believers) shouldn't participate in things like Halloween/Chrismess/etc, and I've been chastised for it. Folks, it's right there in Exodus 34. We are NOT to mix pagan (NON-God!) practices in with our Torah-observant lives. Dressing up for Halloween? IS mixing. So is setting up a tree for Chrismess....:sigh: Ah, well - I can only do what *I* know is right; I can't make anyone else agree with me. :sigh:

Gotta run - I *really* need to get this sock done!

'cause I could REALLY use some rest! :lol: Yesterday was fun, but very very very tiring. Still, the kids got to spend time with Granny and Papaw, they got to spend time with the kids, and the kids got to spend the Grands' money. :lol: and :wince: Herself cleaned out the bead store, while Himself was more restrained....good day.

There's a LOT of kerfluffle going on about what the Duck Dynasty dude said. I don't watch DD; we don't have any sort of cable/satellite/dish, so it's local stations and whatever the PBS app has for us, but......I don't get the kerfluffle. From what I understand, the DD guys are all professed chrischuns, so....why the surprise that he actually *believes* what the Bible SAYS?

Here's the deal: YOU profess to be a Christian. Logically, this means that:

1. You profess to follow the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ. Right? Therefore

2. You profess to follow what the Bible SAYS, because 95% of what Jesus is quoted as saying was quoted DIRECTLY from the Torah; therefore

3. The Bible says that homosexuality is a sin.

LOGICALLY, then....you, by professing to be a Christian are saying the EXACT SAME THING. IF you turn around and say, "Wait, um, no - I don't believe that. Jesus said to love everybody!"...um. You're missing the point.

Let's go back to basics here. (This is for "believers" - if you profess to be a NON-believer, then carry on and skip this, OK? Because it does not apply to *you*.) Jesus IS the Word, and the Word IS God. That's pretty basic. God laid out the Torah (that's "Bible" to you Believers - I'll get to the NT in a minute.) to tell Believers HOW to live. Jesus came and QUOTED the Torah - He led a Torah-observant and -obedient life (the only human to actually live a Torah-obidient life, if we're being honest here!). He pointed out sin and moved on, leaving it up to the sinner to either repent or not.

Now....Torah says that homosexuality is abomination. It's a SIN. Right? Jesus Himself said (in Matt. 5:17-20):
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the Torah, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the Torah, till all be fulfilled.

19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Got that? He DID NOT abolish the Torah (sometimes translated as "law", which isn't quite correct) - He came to Fulfill it. And so far, the only fulfillment has been to the sacrificial system (His sacrifice was "once and done", so no need to keep sacrificing animals.). Got that?

Therefore...the rest of the Torah is STILL in effect. We STILL are supposed to follow it.

Now, some folks claim that Paul said that no, Torah is gone now. Um.....care to quote that? Because....first off, Paul IS NOT God, and can NOT throw out a God-thing. Paul never even physically met Jesus, and to claim that he said something Jesus didn't is...well, it's crazy. And WRONG. (The animals-on-a-sheet-thing that keeps getting dragged out to "prove" the eating laws are gone....yeah. No. Read the verses AFTER the vision, where Paul himself explains that it wasn't about what's for dinner, it was about *people*. NON-Jews, to be exact - God made them just like He made the Jews, and they needed to hear about Jesus too.)

(And, umm...this applies to the whole chrismess tree debacle, too. Yeah, God made trees....He also made bunnies and eggs. Does this mean I can celebrate the Easter Bunny? No. God made, but man perverted. A question: If having a chrismess tree is really OK per Torah, why is everyone so defensive when it comes to discussing them? Because.....everyone is; I'll read maybe 1 post a year about them then NOTHING, because...I dunno. Maybe because they know, deep down, that it's profane but they don't want to give up a human tradition? We threw our tree out years ago - it was HARD. It's still hard to walk around and see all the pretty trees and lights, but.....they're pagan. Profane. We're not to mix. :sigh:)

Anyway. Back to the point. The DD dude is simply trying to live his life according to his beliefs. Why are folks so upset/pissed/surprised by this? The Bible says homosexuality IS a sin....why is so upsetting that he simply quoted that? (This is rhetorical; I know the answer.)

All the chrischun churches that are embracing homosexuals? Are - to be blunt - in direct conflict with the Book they claim is their foundation document. Bottom line - it IS a sin. No, I don't hate gays - I have my own sins to worry about, and honestly don't have the time nor the energy to bash someone for theirs. The people that are up in arms over the DD dude's statements? IF they really are chrischun, they might want to take another look at their Bible......:sigh:

When something's been on my mind for more than a week, and it won't let go, then I know I need to blog it. Bear with me here, ok?

The subject: Mixing the Holy with the profane. We're told in Scripture NOT to do it....and yet, every year, I see Believers (as well as chrischuns!) doing this exact thing. I've mentioned it before - and each time, I get defensively told that they are NOT mixing, they aren't following pagan practices - the excuses go on and on. I've even been quoted Paul - Col. 2:16-17 "So don't let anyone pass judgment on you in connection with eating and drinking, or in regard to a Jewish Festival or Rosh-Hodesh or Shabbat" (CJB...wait, this makes my point before I start - *JEWISH*. Let me see...) KJV: "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day or of the new moon, or of the sabbath." Most folk see "holy day" and read it as "holiday"....Um, yeah....about that...

I have to give a quick History lesson here, because what Paul said there has been taken WAY out of context. After the destruction of the Temple, during the Babylonian Exile, the Levitical Priests kinda disappeared, and were replaced by Rabbis. To keep the Jewish people together, the Rabbis started instituting Traditions, which got later codified and written down in what is now known as the Talmud. (And most Jews claim that Talmud is "Oral Torah" and was given to Moses on the Mountain. No...not really. How do *I* know this? Because Talmud says that it's OK to deal with witches, as long as they're "good" ones, and it's perfectly normal to use spells and magical amulets to protect yourself, as long as they include verses from Torah. No, I'm not making it up, and NO, I don't study Talmud. But I read.....:sigh:)

Anyway. Rabbinical Tradition has become - and had become, by Paul's time! - at least equal in importance to Torah. But. There were a bunch of Jews that rejected the Rabbi's teachings - they were Torah-only, and thought that any Tradition should be avoided completely. (This is a quick nutshell.....there's lots of info out there, if you wanna look.)

So. In this passage, who is Paul talking to, and who is he talking about? Well, he's talking to Messianic Jews (to use a handy "box" - Jews that believed Jesus (Yeshua) WAS the promised Messiah), and about Believers that came from the Gentile world that weren't sure WHAT they were supposed to do - after all, didn't Yeshua set us Free from all the Law? (Nope...but I'm not talking about that here.) This verse is a lot like the one in Acts about kosher food - it doesn't mean what chrischuns want it to mean. (Hint: We are still supposed to eat Torah-kosher. No pork, no shellfish....it's not that hard, folks, to keep a Torah-ordained diet! (Except you do have to read labels. They sneak lard into all sorts of things!)) Anyway - in this passage Paul is talking specifically about JEWISH Festivals and Holy Days/holidays, NOT those of the Goyim.

What does that have to do with anything now? Simple. I see a LOT of Believers who think it's perfectly OK to take part in Halloween celebrations (and some of them justify it by saying "Oh, it's NOT Halloween! It's a Harvest Festival! See, it's OK for us to do the same things, because we AREN'T celebrating the pagan thing!"), and to have christmas trees etc during the Holiday Season ("it's not a christmas tree! It's a chrismon tree - see, we have doves to remind us of the Holy Spirit, and red ornaments to represent Christ's blood....it's all OK, because it's totally NOT pagan!") :sigh:

Look. Torah says NOT to mix the Holy and profane. Call it any name you want, justify it any way you want...but you ARE mixing. And....ask yourself "What would Jesus do?" (Yeah, I went there. :snicker: To make a point.)

Would Yeshua celebrate Hallowe'en?
Would Yeshua celebrate christmas?

The answer to both: No.

Halloween = All Hallow's Eve = a heavily christianized version of Samhain, a Celtic festival of the dead. The costumes? Were to represent the spirits - or to disguise one's form so that the spirits wouldn't recognize you and do you ill. Treak or treating? Started out as a way for households to donate food to get good luck.

Christmas = Christ's Mass = a heavily christianized version of many pagan winter solstice festivals. A lot of similarity with Mithras's birthday (the Roman god of the unconquerable sun). Pope Julius I chose Dec. 25 - which just so happened to be the same day of the Mithras celebration! - in an effort to adopt and absorb the traditions of the festival of Saturnalia (in honor of Saturn, the agricultural god). The whole thing is full of pagan symbols and meanings and traditions. The tree? Evergreen trees, wreaths, and garlands symbolized eternal life in the customs of the ancient Egyptians, Chinese and yes - even the Hebrews (and what does God say about asherah poles/trees?). Tree worship was common among early pagans and it survived their conversion to Christianity. I could go on, but I won't - I feel like I've made my point.

One more thing to think about: most of us that have left the church because of the lies taught as Truth didn't go quietly. Most of us were pretty vocal about it, in fact :blush:.....and let me tell you, the folks you left behind in the church are watching. Some of them may have thought about what you said, and may even have been tempted to start searching out the Truth for themselves...and then they saw you and your family all costumed out at a "harvest festival". Or they drove by your house and saw a tree set up in your window. What do you think that did? I'll tell you - it made them think you were more of a hypocrite then you said they were.

Yes, it's hard to give up fun traditions - I LOVE dressing up and have a closet full of SCA-garb that is SO MUCH FUN to wear! and I have 3 tubs full of ornaments that are all lovely and pretty and full of sentimental meaning....and yet, somehow, I've survived. I got rid of the tree right after I discovered Truth - yeah, it was hard, but I knew it had to be done! - and, look, I'm still here, no worse for wear.

And I *know* that I am not driving people away from Truth by my actions. I know that I can't force anybody to believe...but I CAN drive them away. It's my job to NOT do that - I don't want their refusal to consider Truth to be laid at my door, kwim?