Granted, this news is a few years old now, but recent events are resurrecting the past.
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After all, lest we forget ...
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Another One Bites the Dust!
Include me among those who firmly believe that Billy has some 'splainin' to do, and not just about his association with Epstein.
Remind me to telly you all sometime about the battle between Microsoft and WordPefect/Novell, and how one of M$'s top programmers wound up working at WordPerfect, and the things I learned about both companies because of it.
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Mythology, Tradition, Religion, and Science
THIS ... is really what it's all about: The planets are the gods, and God is (in) the universe.
It actually says so in scripture. I can show you. You've probably even read it yourself, and will even remember having read it. But, like everyone else, you probably just filed it away under 'interesting but, ultimately, meaningless trivia'.
(Apologies in advance for 'classic' art) (aka nudity)
But you were mistaken. Scripture has been severely condensed. Hardly a wasteful word remains. And what does remain remains because of its great importance.
How does anyone explain away all religions in the world throughout all history being so very cosmically oriented? And not just cosmically-oriented, but even cosmically based?
Idolatry? Seriously?! Have you never read D&C 88?, D&C 76? Isaiah? Ezekiel? Revelation? Facsimile 2?
And, since our faith is THE faith, the one faith which not only unites all others, including the one we call science, but even completes and validates all others, how can we so completely ignore, yes ignore the glaring cosmic aspects of our faith? How can we simply content ourselves with every single blatantly cosmic reference being overlooked by every lesson manual?
And you know exactly when it happened.
Anyone who's been in the church more than 50 years should remember it.
Good news always comes with bad news. When Paul took the gospel to the gentiles, it wasn't because it was being expanded, turned into a 'global' church, but because it was being taken from the Jews. Not all at once. Not completely. But enough. And over a long enough period, that, just like the Book of Mormon says, they were eventually left with nothing at all.
It was, what? almost century ago when there were more saints outside Utah than in it? It was a couple of decades ago, I think, when there were more members outside the country than in it. When will there be more temples outside north America and Europe than in them? I doubt we've crossed that line yet, but it's not far off.
It's not that I begrudge anyone else the gospel. I don't. My entire purpose here is to spread it. But I mean to spread it here first. Charity, after all, begins at home. And when the balance tips the way it has, it can only mean that we're failing at home, the one place we must not fail, so David O. McKay.
What have we done with this stunning gift that Joseph gave us?
What have Christians done with the things Christ left us?
Did you notice today's subtitle? Do you know what it means?
I've noticed that interviewers like to gather 'gotcha' question for job applicants, questions hardly anyone can answer. Christ did this to the Pharisees when he ended their needling of him with the question, "How is it that David can call Him both father and son?"
This wasn't one of those questions they didn't dare answer for fear of exposing themselves; they simply had no idea at all what the answer might be.
But, can you answer it?
But that's Christ's 'gotcha' question, and far from the only one.
God has a few, too, and he posed them to Job and his friends. Do you know them?
And even I have a few of my own:
Why does Genesis switch from heaven to heavens?
What is Genesis 49:11-12 talking about?
Who is the Firstborn ... really?
What and where is the Church of the Firstborn?
What is the secret name of God?
If spirit is eternal, and cannot be created, then where did we come from?
Why is the word, Man, capitalized in 3 Nephi 11:8?
What did He draw on the ground?
(Looking it up won't help; they're all wrong.)
(Hint: Vesica was off the hook.)
(Oh, that was bad ... well, actually, no. It was quite good.)
So how do we fix this?
Do we even need to?
Does anyone else even see the problem?
Or is it just me who's simply failing to see that 'all is well in Zion'?
Oh! Oh. Yes. I get it. All is not well in Zion. To even suggest such would be to condemn one's self. But, whatever may be wrong with Zion, it has nothing to do with anything I've written here. Right?
Well, ok, then what? I'm all ears.
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Speaking of which ...
Greg Jay basically narrates passages from books he's reading, adding visuals for illustration and impact. And he does a fine job of it. And this is one of his best.
In other words, volumes have been written about this very subject. Lots of them.
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From my playlist
Today's theme is hymns and anthems. These pieces are always readily recognizable because they all have two or more martial attributes:
1) A marching cadence
2) Simple melodies everyone can remember, and anyone can sing
3) Heavy use of drums and/or drum solos, usually with snare drums
4) Frequent use of a capella passages
5) Choirs, often male
6) Repetitious, monotonous threads, usually in the bass and/or treble range
7) A moral, cautionary theme, or call to action (hence their frequent abuse, usually by communalistic ideologs)
The religious theme is pretty obvious here.
Coven - One Tin Soldier (The Legend of Billy Jack)
Has everything but male voices.
Richard Ashcroft - Are you ready?
Another religious theme. (I'm just mesmerized by the lead guitar.)
Rod Steward & Jeff Beck - People get ready
More religion, plus brilliant mimicry of train whistles and steam locomotive sounds.
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Don't Come Around Here No More
Not religious, but notice the multiple, twangy/buzzy monotone parts as well as the drums.
Chris de Burgh - Where Peaceful Waters Flow
You can practically envision worshippers marching along to this one.
Mike & The Mechanics - Word of Mouth
Probably the most obviously militant of the bunch.
SSGT Barry SADLER - Ballad of the Green Berets
Well, except for this one.
And this is far from an exhaustive list, so feel free to send me your own favorite anthems.
And now, my (current) favorite 'hymn':
Passion - Remember
Notice the mood of unity and purpose.
And that right there is the real purpose of hymns: Unity, harmony, singularity of mind and purpose. That's why militaries have always incorporated hymns, none so blatantly and effectively, perhaps, as the Russian military.
And that's why we sing hymns in church. And it's high time we remembered that. It's high time we taught everyone that. And it's high time we started learning and singing those hymns, and nothing else, in church again.
And it doesn't really even matter which hymns, or that they're old and outmoded. The mere fact that we're all singing them together, with spirit, is what makes almost any hymn work. But, the more martial hymns do work the best. Those are the ones that truly remind us of the war of attrition that we're engaged in.
I personally feel like it helps when we all stand, too.
If you want to make church worthwhile, for you and everyone else, start by finding out what hymns will be sung, and practice them at home, learning your part perfectly, and singing it as best you can when the time comes.
If you send out those hymns in a weekly e-mail, maybe add the links to them like this one here:
Sometimes, just setting the example makes you the greatest leader in the world.
And, trust me when I tell you, it won't go unnoticed or unrewarded.
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