For The Sake of Christ vs For the Sake of Argument

I have been doing some recent reading on a Theological perspective that has the Presbyterians and other denominations in turmoil. This theology is called "The New Perspective". Perhaps at another time, I will discuss this and how it is effecting many organized institutional "churches".

I did want to quote something written by a Reformed Theologian who has wrote a paper about this subject. My reasoning for doing so will be explained after his statement.

*We can become preoccupied with debate –making faith an expression of cerebral competition and intellectual arrogance rather than heart engagement and spiritual dependence. If our ministries only become battlegrounds for sacramental correctness rather than instruments for promoting the Gospel of grace, then we and the Church will have lost much. We all must pray earnestly for the work of the Spirit in our hearts to help us determine whether our efforts are turning the Church toward ever-greater introspection and isolation, or whether we are preparing the Church for Gospel-true priorities and progress. Each must examine his own heart to ask if what he is doing and teaching is creating greater love for Jesus that liberates the soul to serve Him, or is binding God’s people to standards of ecclesiastical correctness rooted in our own doctrinal insecurities and preferences.
We need the Lord’s wisdom to know what needs to be defended, what needs to be denounced, and what needs to be ignored because it only appeals to our appetite for argument.


Dr. Bryan Chapell - President and Professor of Practical Theology- Covenant Theological Seminary. From his writing on "an Explanation of the New Perspective - for friends of Covenant Theological Seminary.

His final statement as written, is important.

Now, I ask myself, why do I so want to attack Dispensationalism as it is especially presented into today's churches by people like the Reverend Hagee and others.

I can tell you, with heartfelt sincerity and Spirit taught truth and a longing deep desire to see Christ as center of whatever we do or say, this is my reason for the debate.
I wholeheartedly believe that at the heart of this false teaching and other teachings is a subtle demon leading people from Christ and His teaching on the Sermon on the Mount, Paul's declarations on salvation, and who Israel is and what is the Kingdom of God and where does God reign, in the heart of the believer or in a man instituted government that will restore the shadow of the things that Christ has removed from us. The very things that He has revealed in truth to, his life, death and resurrection, Pentecost and the continued life of Christ in the believer is at risk of being degrinated, and shunned, for a false teaching that has existed throughout man's history, dominance over another man, and their land or their goods dictated by another men.
Historically, it always results in war and blood shed and a totalitarian existence for those conquered.


I don't argue for the sake of argument. I believe that the subject of Dispensationalism, Christian Zionism and Christian Nationalism are the most dangerous prevailing doctrines to the truth of scripture and Christ. These subjects that have become so very popular with the "church", I believe in my heart will lead to totalitarianism, a police state, apartheid government, a false Theocracy and the suffering that will come will be upon the Christian, those who truly hold the truth's of the Sermon on the Mount, and all of the work of Jesus to bring salvation to us, and those living out Christ in them, the hope of glory, will be killed at the very hands of those that now are the tares amongst the wheat in the organized "church".
In all of this, there will come more and more of a propensity to drive law towards more and more capital punishment for minimal crimes.
Just as in Saudi Arabia, you can chop of the hands of someone who steals, I believe the whole concept will lead to a bloodthirst of others, which the "church" will relish seeing and watching, and calling what is evil - good.
These things are already happening, but the uneducated on the real news going on around the world, and the real autrocities going on even at the hands of America and Israel are often times hidden from the populace or they just choose not to look at it to believe the lie.
We have made an unholy alliance that will lead more and more down the road to eliminating everything that we say we are fighting for - freedom. Without this freedom, there will be only the freedom to choose between the interpretation of things by the elite few, the religious leaders like Hagee, Robertson and others who think they can establish a Theocracy or the freedom to have death for opposing their views and the views of the prevailing majority who will be seriously blinded by the "god of this age"- Satan.
The spirit of anti-christ is here, now. I will say in all seriousness, it can be found in the warmongering, bloodthirsty mouths of all those in organized religious leaders spewing out of their mouths the lie of Dispensationalism, which has lead them into a pro-zionist view, that has become in their minds a Christian nationalist view. I pity them for not seeing Jesus anymore.
I pity them for leaving their first love. I pity them for turning to a false gospel of violence from the Prince of Peace. I pity them, that they have quenched the voice of the Holy Spirit in their hearts.

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False prophets appeared in the past among the people, and in the same way false teachers will appear among you. They will bring in destructive, untrue doctrines, and will deny the Master who redeemed them, and so they will bring upon themselves sudden destruction. Even so, many will follow their immoral ways; and because of what they do, others will speak evil of the Way of truth. In their greed these false teachers will make a profit out of telling you made-up stories. For a long time now their Judge has been ready, and their Destroyer has been wide awake! from 2 Peter Chapter 2

Nothing can better describe many of these ministries, then they deny the Master who bought them, and they do it to make merchandise of you. They preach for profit, and riches and to make themselves important.

Did you know that Pat Robertson has a jet given to him by the Israeli government, and that he has a jet he leases out to others to fly, and makes a profit off this as well, all money provided by the "faithful".
These may all be facts to some of you, but you have been so blinded to truth, it won't bother you.
You will say, oh well! what's wrong with giving to those who preach the gospel.

First. I will declare they are presenting a false gospel.
Second listen to Paul - the greatest preacher of the true Gospel since.

You yourselves know very well that you should do just what we did. We were not lazy when we were with you. We did not accept anyone’s support without paying for it. Instead, we worked and toiled; we kept working day and night so as not to be an expense to any of you.
2 Thessalonians Chapter 3

Paul was a tentmaker and anyone with common sense and reading of these scriptures knows until Paul was imprisoned, he drew no financial support by demand, salary or hourly. He did recieve gifts from time to time, but never a "tithe" for his missionary work.
He was self sufficient in Christ, and many times this resulted in the following "prosperity" for him. I have placed this prosperity in bold.

But if anyone dares to boast about something—I am talking like a fool—I will be just as daring. Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they Abraham’s descendants? So am I. Are they Christ’s servants? I sound like a madman—but I am a better servant than they are! I have worked much harder, I have been in prison more times, I have been whipped much more, and I have been near death more often. Five times I was given the thirty-nine lashes by the Jews; three times I was whipped by the Romans; and once I was stoned. I have been in three shipwrecks, and once I spent twenty-four hours in the water. In my many travels I have been in danger from floods and from robbers, in danger from my own people and from Gentiles; there have been dangers in the cities, dangers in the wilds, dangers on the high seas, and dangers from false friends. There has been work and toil; often I have gone without sleep; I have been hungry and thirsty; I have often been without enough food, shelter, or clothing. And not to mention other things, every day I am under the pressure of my concern for all the churches. When someone is weak, then I feel weak too; when someone is led into sin, I am filled with distress.
If I must boast, I will boast about things that show how weak I am. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus—blessed be his name forever!—knows that I am not lying.
2 Corinthians Chapter 11

If anybody was preaching health, wealth and prosperity - it sure wasn't Paul. He knew that being a Christian was counting the cost, and the cost was great!

Opulent lifestyles, big caravans, fancy homes, lots of cash, sure wasn't the story the Apostles nor the Lord Jesus Christ could boast about while they ministered. They had no home, no place to rest their heads, because their call was greater than all that. There call was a higher call.

The lie of health, wealth and prosperity teaching has stolen from the Gospel and Christ as well, and right along with Dispensationalism, Escapism Rapture, Christian Zionism, and Nationalism, these are made up of three things of this world.

Lust of the eye, lust of the flesh and the pride of life!

Do not love the world, nor the things in the world, if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in Him

We are to contend for the Faith always and hold to the traditions that have been taught to us by Christ and the Apostles.
We cannot make the same mistake that Israel did, and explain away the Word of God for the traditions of men.
Christians that say they believe in "justified war" can give no answer to Christ teaching on "love your enemy". Then to deny it.
The Dispensationalist can give no answers to Paul's writing that both Gentile and Jew are "one" now in Christ. Then to deny it.
The Health, Wealth and Prosperity teachers can give no answer for the suffering of all saints through the ages. When they do offer answers, they are nonsense, and scripture twisted to benefit them. They deny the truth for greed.

I know that surely, more sermons today are preached toward making the flesh feel good, then there are sermons that make a broken and contrite spirit before a Holy God, that would make us beat our chest and say "have mercy upon me a sinner".
No, our days are the days of Pastor or Reverend- Feel Good.
Please make me feel good about my materialism, my nationalism, my hatred for those that don't fit my image of God (which is an image of my self), hatred for anyone I prefer to hate and help me justify it. Help me Lord to take and get all I can get in this life, "as I only go around once, so I got to grab all the gusto I can". We enter a false temple, to get a false sense of well being, from a false priest too often.

I am sickened by the "me" sermons. What's in it for me? Yea, preacher, preach it, it makes me feel good, it pumps up my human drive to accomplish great things in this world for myself.
It makes me excited, it's like those sales seminars I go to, I love it man, preach it. I can go out of here and conquer the world for my flesh.

The question we should be asking, is what is in it for our heavenly father and the Kingdom of God (his rule in my life) and sacrificial love expressed to others. A love that puts others first over the "me". If worship is nothing more than pumping up the human spirit, I know some better speakers than a lot of preachers in that area. This is where we have gone, the better Dr. Feel Good is at making me feel good, the bigger the numbers become, and the more money there is to build a temple unto myself. Bigger crowds means more money, and more praise for my flesh.

My stomach is sickened when I hear the feel good sermons, not that Our heavenly Father doesnt want us to feel good.
The Kingdom of God is about the Holy Spirit, it is about joy, peace and righteousness in Him, all these things can bring psychological and emotional "feel goods".
The reason most often we don''t have this is that we have not given recognition to our need to let go of all the other things that substitute for this.
Material wealth, perfect health, being the top dog, etc. Our idea to be the best over others, etc.
The guy with the biggest toys when he dies, wins! That's the exclamation of the new "me" crowd and the preachers who drive them with their humanistic sermons.

I would go even as far to say, it is because of these false teachings and the false gospels, that more church going Christians, suffer depression and anxiety, than those that aren't proclaiming to be Christian or those who have "come out of her", the institutional organizational Babylon.
Why is this? because of a false gospel they are living in the flesh as carnal Christians, the flesh wars with the Spirit, and as long as you sow to the flesh - it's what you get - more of it. There is a clear dictomomy between the flesh and the spirit once you have been given the new birth in Christ by the Holy Spirit. You will be in a stuggle, yes, but it is a struggle that can only be won in the Spirit and by the Spirit. You must fall into the arms of Jesus and rely upon his resurrected power to overcome the flesh and this means having a paradigm shift of thinking as well, and this comes through the study of God's Word, without commentary at hand, without interpretation from some super spiritual teachers, or school. It comes as we open ourselves to the Holy Spirit as our one and only true teacher of the Word. Soak your self in the Word, fill you heart with it , breathe it, eat it, and love it, and change will happen.
David put it this way, let me hide your Word in my heart that I might not sin against YOU!

Then, go back and read all the traditions of men, and you will have a huge paradigm shift of thinking, because now you will see things through the eyes of Christ and not the organization you belong to, not to any denominations doctrine, you will see God for the first time - in your heart and your need for Him in every aspect of your life, above all things. You will see and realize how wonderful it is when He grants the grace not only for us to believe but to live the Christian life.

Then stand fast to the traditions taught you by the Word of Christ, no matter what.
He is the ulitmate authority for all things doctrinal or "sacramental" or other.

No man can give you what the Father will - TRUTH!

In all the false teachings that are going around, these teachings, disturb me the most, and I will shout it out from the house tops if I have too. False teaching is false teaching and their is no compromise with darkness. We are to abstain from even the appearance of evil.
Greed, war, hate, pride, all these things, all come from evil. Satan is disguising himself as an angel of light, in his ministers.

So, if you read my editorials, comments or news, you will find, often that I appear negative.
I am not negative, I believe in the most positive thing that ever happened to mankind, the love of God expressed in Christ toward us.
I do pray and hope that my writing will make believers more like the Bereans when they heard the Gospel preached.

The Bereans "received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so" (Acts 17:10-11)

If I accomplish this one thing, if I give you a readiness to recieve God's word, and to make a sincere search and study for yourself, of scripture, politics, history and all these that are associated in many ways, I will have accomplished my calling from God, it is to stir the gift within you, the gift of the Holy Spirit who brings holiness into your life.

My calling is the ministry of reconcialation, and that calling is to express to as many men, women and children, God reconciling men unto himself through Christ and how that reconciliation should affect us in every area of our lives in being reconciled to all people, of all races, economics, culture and life. The Gospel is the only thing, when taught in truth that brings peace and love, to a world that is torn by hate, war, greed and pride.

Jesus is the Prince of Peace. Do you really want peace in your heart, that is everlasting, that provides greater joy than all the things material that we could ever buy or own, greater than all the position you could hold, greater than the day your first child was born, come to Yeshua Messiach - Jesus the Messiah. Come to the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords who offers a Kingdom that is everlasting and takes in all men, that have recieved him with joy.

So, my arguments are presented "for the sake of Christ".

With that said, I will continue to Contend for the faith always. I will always, God help me, stand up and speak out against error and false teaching. Christ first always!

Dr. J.

The Move Toward Noahdic Law in America and How Dispensationlism Helps

I stated sometime back in an article, that I would discuss just what Noahdic Law is.
Most Christian Americans have no idea what these laws are, their importance to understanding present Judaism and the great harm of Dispensationalism that it brings to America and our ideal of "equal justice under law" .

Most Christians are under the misinformed belief that those practicing Judaism strictly follow only the Torah and it's 613 commandments. They are deadly wrong. We have been misinformed by Preachers and Sunday School teachers for too long that have spoken on a subject they are clearly ignorant about or have chosen to conceal the truth. Judaism has the Torah, this is true, but the first five books of the Bible which you think they believe only in and practice is not what they go by. The Talmud is their Bible. The Talmud interprets the Torah for them.
To understand the how that the Talmud came about, you have to go back to what transpired after the Babylonian captivity. The Jews feared ever breaking the Torah again, as they feared being sent back into capitivity. So as time went by, in order to find someway put the brakes on anyone of them breaking the Law, they begin to create what we can call "fence laws", these laws were simply fence's around the Torah, so that if one broke these, he had not broken the Torah or the Commandments of God.
For example, one of the laws reasoned out was on eating goat and drinking goats milk. It is forbidden under the Mosaic law to boil a kid in it's mother's milk. This law given by God was intended to keep OT Israel from taking on Canaanite practices. There was some sort of Cannanite pagan practice of boiling a goat kid in it's mother's milk then sprinkling it on a field in a fertility right of sort. So God, thought it best to lay down this command to keep His people unto Himself pure from all idolatry. Which forms the commandment, "Thou shall have no other God's before me". Now soon after the Babylonian capitivity the Sophrem or Sages, begin to expound and pass along orally, new fence laws associated with the Torah Law. For example, they eventually begin to separate their meat dishes from their milk dishes, etc. Why? Here is the reasoning, if one sat down and ate some goat meat, then drank down some goat's milk and it went into the stomach, the digestive process would heat up that goat's milk and in ther thinking would boil the goat kid. What if, that goats meat came from the kid of the mother that the goat milk came from - well they had violated God's law. So there were discussions on how long one would have to wait to eat the meat after the milk so that this wouldnt take place, and on and on argument went to the formation of a new law or fence law that would put the brakes on breaking the true Torah.
Now, perhaps one might break these dish laws, but they wouldn't have broken God's law ncessarily. So they built one by one fence laws around the true law, the Torah. This provided protection for them from ever going into captivity again in the vanity of their minds and logic. They built all kinds of arguments into fence laws such as this on several matters other than eating. They argued over things like what made a vessel clean or unclean.
At this point, the Sophrem laws were not supreme, they were recongnized only as the "fence laws" around the true Torah which still remained true law. The Sophrem law could be debated, not the Torah or what is known as the Tenakh. Well, after awhile new teachers came along and they begin to take these arguments and expound on these "fence laws" of the Sophrem, and they come up with new laws or commentary on the law of the Sages, these formed a fence law around the fence law. For the time, this was fine, but then the Tanna begin to say that the Sophrem law was to be obeyed, never argued and the Torah begin to become not the center of law, but to fade away to the Sophrem law. The Tanna was arguable but the initial fence laws were not.
This is about the time when Jesus came into the picture. Thus he debated with them on both aspects trying to make them see God's intent of the Torah and to see they had broken it with their traditions of men. Jesus was constantly upsetting them with the breaking of their traditions or the Oral Law and the written law. Jesus the Son of God, God incarnate could declare the law as He saw fit. Why not, he was God manifest in the flesh. He broke them from not washing his hands before a meal (which is equal to being a murderer under the Talmudic law) to walking through a corn field ( sowing, reaping and storing of the grain) and eating and healing on a Sabbath. On and on he violated the traditions of men making love His first priority. Now, have you ever read any of these laws Talmudic laws in the Torah. of course not, because they aren't there. They are the figment of many years of Judaic imagination, speculation and thought. Much like the traditions of men, today in the church that have been developed which are not scriptural based but based upon the writings and commentary on scripture of over 1900 years.
The Rabbi's taught the Jews that these laws which now superceded the Torah (Tenakh) had been handed down secretly to Moses from God for his people and the people accepted this explanation. Out of these writings, came the Mishnah ( the oral tradition), the Gemara the explanations and analysis of the Tanna and what today is known as the summation of all these as the Talmud.
This is the Bible of people who practice Judaism, along with the Kabbala a mystical Jewish theology based on numbers. If you haven't read the Talmud, as I have much of it, It sometimes difficult reading because the reasoning in it becomes non-logical in my opinion at times, and much of it's law is very pro-Jewish and anti-Gentile and even anti-Christ and anti-Christian. See http://www.talmudunmasked.com/ - Though this is written by a Catholic it very astutely points to the anti-Christian views of the later Rabbi's.

Now, what are the Noahdic Laws.
Here is a summary of explanation:

Following the great flood Yahweh made a covenant with Noah and all of his decendants known as the Noahdic Covenant (see Gen. 9.) This Noahdic Covenant included what is called in Judaism "The Seven Laws of Noah." These are seven laws which can be drawn from the opening portion of Genesis prior to the calling out of Abraham and his decendants (the Jews), as a result these seven Laws apply to all mankind. (Jews and Gentiles.)

These Seven Laws of Noah are:

1. Against idolatry.
2. Against fornication.
3. Against murder.
4. Against blasphemy.
5. Against theft.
6. Against eating the limb of a living animal.
7. To promote justice.

The requirement for justice found in this list is derived from Gen. 9:5-6 where man is commanded to institute capitol punishment. Thus man was empowered to establish human government. For this reason Dispensationalist Christians recognize this as the beginning of what they call "the Age of Human Government." In Judaism this justice commandment is recognized as an obligation on the part of man to establish courts and governments to enforce the other six laws of Noah.
In this way Yahweh empowered man to govern himself.

Now given the their direct enpowerment from the Old Testament, they built upon these laws as well. This building of fence laws and defining the law as well became part to the Talmud.

Here is the danger to our society and American freedom. They are not laws or definitions of those laws by the Jewish community that offer in any sense, "equal justice under the law."

For example:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- from Carol Valentine-

In contrast, Talmud law insists on unequal justice under law. Talmudic law holds there is one law for Jews, and one for Gentiles. This is not inconsistent with the Old Testament, in which LORD God decrees that Jews should not enslave other Jews: Gentiles are the proper slaves of Jews.

44. Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids.
45. Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that are with you, which they begat in your land: and they shall be your possession.
46. And ye shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them for a possession; they shall be your bondmen for ever: but over your brethren the children of Israel, ye shall not rule one over another with rigour.

Gentiles Easy To Convict

Under Jewish law, Gentiles are easy to convict for capital crimes; but it is difficult to convict Jews. The standards of proof are different.

For a Jew to be convicted by a Jewish court, two eyewitnesses must have seen the perpetrator about to commit the crime and warned him of the potential penalty. The murderer must verbally answer that he chooses to proceed anyway. (For a non-Jew, only one witness is required and no verbal warning.)

Rabbi Adlerstein, as told to Naomi Pfefferman (5)

Rabbi Adlerstein's statement is confirmed by the Talmud.

(When excerpting the Talmud, we sometimes omit footnotes and non-germane text. The omission of text is indicated by an ellipsis (…). The full text and footnotes may be found by following the hot link at the end of the excerpt. It is our pleasure to make available the text of the complete tractates cited in this article, so you may read the Talmud in full context.)

GEMARA. … R. Jacob b. Aha found it written in the scholars' Book of Aggada: A heathen is executed on the ruling of one judge, on the testimony of one witness, without a formal warning, on the evidence of a man, but not of a woman, even if he [the witness] be a relation.

Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Sanhedrin 57b
Soncino 1961 Edition, page 390

Rabbi Adlerstein's statement is also confirmed by Talmud scholar and translator, Rabbi Dr. H. Freedman. In the following quotes, "Noahide" means a non-Jew. Rabbi Dr. Freedman tells us twenty-three judges must sit on a court that hears a capital case against a Jew; when a Gentile is tried on a capital charge, one (Jewish) judge is required.

5. A Noachide is tried by one judge, and on the testimony of one witness only, and is executed even if no formal admonition preceded his offence; a Jew is tried by a court of twenty-three, on the testimony of at least two, and only after formal admonition. Moreover, a gentile is decapitated, whereas a Jew is stoned.

Rabbi Dr. Freedman (6)

Laws Different for Jew and Gentile

Not only are the court procedures and the standards of evidence different from one class to the other, the very laws are different. For example, if a Jew murders a Gentile, there is no death penalty.

GEMARA. … 'For murder, whether of a Cuthean by a Cuthean, or of an Israelite by a Cuthean, punishment is incurred; but of a Cuthean by an Israelite, there is no death penalty'

Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Sanhedrin 57a
Soncino 1961 Edition, page 388

But if a Gentile strikes a Jew, "he is worthy of death."

GEMARA. … R. Hanina said: If a heathen smites a Jew, he is worthy of death, for it is written, And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian. R. Hanina also said: He who smites an Israelite on the jaw, is as though he had thus assaulted the Divine Presence; for it is written, one who smiteth man [i.e. an Israelite] attacketh the Holy One.

— Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Sanhedrin 58b
Soncino 1961 Edition, page 398

No Jury of Peers under Talmud Law

Talmud law does not provide for the accused to be tried by a jury of his peers. In Talmud law, the accused is tried by rabbis.

Ox Gets 23 Judges

In case there were any doubt about the place of the Gentile in Talmud law, the following excerpt from Sanhedrin 2a settles the question. Recall that a capital case against a Gentile is heard by one judge. According to Sanhedrin 2a, a capital case against an ox, a hyena, or a serpent is tried by 23 judges.
MISHNAH. … CAPITAL CASES ARE ADJUDICATED BY TWENTY-THREE. THE PERSON OR BEAST CHARGED WITH UNNATURAL INTERCOURSE, BY TWENTY-THREE, AS IT IS WRITTEN, THOU SHALT KILL THE WOMAN AND THE BEAST, AND ALSO, AND YE SHALL SLAY THE BEAST. THE OX TO BE STONED IS TRIED BY TWENTY-THREE, AS IT IS WRITTEN, THE OX SHALL BE STONED AND ITS OWNER SHALL BE PUT TO DEATH — AS THE DEATH OF THE OWNER, SO THAT OF THE OX, CAN BE DECIDED ONLY BY TWENTY-THREE. THE DEATH SENTENCE ON THE WOLF OR THE LION OR THE BEAR OR THE LEOPARD OR THE HYENA OR THE SERPENT IS TO BE PASSED BY TWENTY-THREE. R. ELIEZER SAYS: WHOEVER IS FIRST TO KILL THEM [WITHOUT TRIAL], ACQUIRES MERIT, R. AKIBA, HOWEVER, HOLDS THAT THEIR DEATH IS TO BE DECIDED BY TWENTY-THREE.
— Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Sanhedrin 2aSoncino 1961 Edition, page 2

Soncino 1961 Edition, page 2

Perspective on Gentiles

A further perspective in traditional Jewish laws and attitudes concerning Gentiles is contained in What About Gentiles? (18) Of particular interest is the modern study by Rabbi David Bar-Chayim, the head of the Makhon Ben Yishai Institute for Torah Research. Israel National Radio calls Rabbi Bar-Chayim "one of Israel's Leading Torah Scholars." (19) Rabbi Bar-Chayim's essay, The Jews Are Called "Man," offers a definitive statement of the doctrines concerning Gentiles, with extensive references to many Jewish Scriptures. (20)

US Supreme Court Warms to the Talmud

Approximately three years after Nathan and Alyza Lewin filed the Bryan v. Moore amicus curiae brief a notable event in itself another notable event took place. A kosher dinner was held to honor the establishment of the National Institute for Judaic Law (NIJL). The dinner was attended by 200 people, including Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Stephen Breyer, Antonin Scalia. Nathan and Alyza Lewin also attended.

The site of the dinner? The United States Supreme Court Building in Washington, DC. The Jewish Week reported the event in this manner:

What does the Talmud have to say about legal and moral controversies in Modern America?

Plenty, according to the creators of the new Washington-based National Institute for Judaic Law, which opened with a lavish Supreme Court dinner last night.
Some Orthodox activists say they can't figure out exactly the point of the whole thing. But Noson Gurary, a Lubavitch rabbi who came up with the idea and won backing from some top Jewish legal experts, harbors no doubts.

— Jewish Week (2)

Noson Gurary is an ordained rabbi of the Chabad Lubavitch sect, and follower of late Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. Chabad Lubavitch is a movement within the Hasidic (sometimes spelled "Chasidic") branch of Judaism. Rabbi Gurary is the executive director of Chabad of Buffalo, New York. (3) He is co-author of several books on Hasidic and Chabad Lubavitch philosophy. (7) Hasidism embraces a Kabbalistic concept of God, the Ein-Sof, (8), a power reminiscent of "The Force" in George Lucas' Star Wars.

Coming from Where We've Never Been

The Jewish Week explains more of the NIJL project. In the following paragraph, macher is a Yiddish word meaning "big shot," a person with access to authorities. (10)

According to Gurary, the group, which has hired two researchers to compile reports, will focus initially on the issue of business ethics. Eventually, the goal is to compile a library and database in Washington that will offer Jewish law insights into a host of contemporary issues and to help create courses on the subject at law schools nationwide. The institute will also inaugurate a monthly lunch series for legal machers in Washington.

— Jewish Week (2)

The Jewish Week continues:

"It will be an eye opener for judges, scholars and law students," he told The Jewish Week. "Before you know where you're going, you have to system in America. You need to know where you came from. And Jewish law is the basis of our legal Gurary, who teaches at the University of Buffalo law school, said his target audience includes judges around the country and law students, not politicians and law students. "And as a teacher of Judaic studies, I began to see the excitement of students who were being exposed to Jewish law for the first time, who now had a better understanding of where Western law come from," Gurary said.

— Jewish Week (2)

It is a safe bet that all of Rabbi Gurary's students had been exposed to the Ten Commandments before, and none were encountering them "for the first time" in his classroom. Hence, Rabbi Gurary's term "Jewish law" must refer to Talmud law rather than Biblical law. Thus, Rabbi Gurary's statement reads that Western law "came from" Talmud law — and that is patently false. The sources for law in Europe and America include Roman law, Anglo-Saxon law, and the Western philosophers of Liberty. Neither American nor European law has ever institutionalized legal superiority of Jew over Gentile.

Bush Approves Talmudization of America

The Jerusalem Post reported the November 2002 kosher dinner as follows:

Jewish legal experts have created a new institute that will educate jurists and others about 2,000 years of Jewish law and promote the application of the teachings to contemporary legal disputes and other modern- day issues.

US President George W. Bush sent greetings and applauded the institute for promoting an "understanding of Judaism's rich tradition of legal thought".

"As we face new challenges and welcome new opportunities, our society must continue to promote good character and strong values. Through the study and teaching of Jewish law and philosophy you are contributing to a growing culture of service, citizenship, and responsibility in America," Bush wrote.

— The Jerusalem Post (1)

Justice Scalia Is a Key Player

The Jerusalem Post reports that Justice Antonin Scalia has high praise Jewish law.

Scalia, in a letter to the institute's founder, Noson Gurary, wrote that "Jewish law is certainly one of the oldest and most highly developed systems" and explained why the comparative study of legal traditions was beneficial.

— The Jerusalem Post (1)

In fact, Rabbi Gurary came up with the idea of the Institute as a result of correspondence with Justice Scalia:

Gurary said that the idea for the institute came in an exchange of letters in which Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, one of the most conservative Justices, expressed his "fascination with Jewish law."

— The Jerusalem Post (1)

Justice Scalia has sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution and its Bill of Rights. Yet, by his attendance at this dinner he clearly indicated his support for an antithetical system: Talmud law. How does he reconcile the two? We are not told.

Talmud vs. Old Testament

Some non-Jews take the position that the Talmud perverted the Old Testament teachings. See, for example, Chapter I of Elizabeth Dilling's The Jewish Religion: It's Influence Today. The question then becomes: If the Talmud perverted Jewish law, what is real, un-perverted Jewish law the Jewish law of the Old Testament? What was the quality of justice that pervaded the mind-set of the ancient Jews? Should we in America emulate that Old Testament sense of justice?

We have prepared a sampling of Old Testament passages in a compendium called In His Own Image. (21) Let us examine an incident described in Genesis 34.

Shechem is a Gentile, a Hivite. Jacob's daughter, Dinah, catches his eye. Under circumstances not fully described, Shechem seduces Dinah. Shechem loves Dinah tenderly and wants her as his wife. He offers to give any dowry asked for her, and suggests to Jacob's family that their two tribes be joined. While harboring vengeance in their hearts, Jacob's sons (the progenitors of the Tribes of Israel) deceitfully agree to the merger, but insist that the Hivite men be circumcised. The Hivites agree. While the Hivite men are recovering from the operation and still in pain, the Hebrews attack the city, kill all the men, and take the women and children as captives slaves.

1. And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.
2. And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.
3. And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel.
4. And Shechem spake unto his father Hamor, saying, Get me this damsel to wife.
5. And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Jacob held his peace until they were come.
6. And Hamor the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with him.
7. And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard it: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob's daughter: which thing ought not to be done.
8. And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife.
9. And make ye marriages with us, and give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you.
10. And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you possessions therein.
11. And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give.
12. And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give.
13. Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife.
14. And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and said, because he had defiled Dinah their sister:
15. And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that were a reproach unto us:
16. But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we be, that every male of you be circumcised;
17. Then will we give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.
18. But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone.
    …
24. And unto Hamor and unto Shechem his son hearkened all that went out of the gate of his city; and every male was circumcised, all that went out of the gate of his city.
25. And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males.
26. And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem's house, and went out.
27. The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and spoiled the city, because they had defiled their sister.
28. They took their sheep, and their oxen, and their asses, and that which was in the city, and that which was in the field,
29. And all their wealth, and all their little ones, and their wives took they captive, and spoiled even all that was in the house.
30. And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.
31. And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?

Genesis 34:1-18, 24-31

While many religions frown on sex before marriage, most of us understand that unmarried sex happens. If a man or even the son of the prince slept with our sister before marriage, few of us would think it appropriate to murder all the other men in the city, loot the fields and buildings, and take the women and children into slavery. Nor is it likely, having done such a thing, that we would find a sympathetic judge or jury to hear our case. In short, what we have here is a very different concept of justice so different that many of us could not agree it should be called "justice." The Bible passage shows that:

1. Shechem, a Gentile, is not accused of using force or violence on Dinah
2. Shechem declared his love for Dinah, and pleaded for her as his bride
3. Shechem asked Jacob to name any dowry he would like
4. Shechem expressed his good will toward Jacob's tribe, offering a merger of wealth and fortunes
5. Jacob's sons responded deceitfully, pretending friendship and planning murder
6. Jacob's sons slew other men who were not implicated in the seduction
7. The women and children taken in slavery were blameless victims — of Jacob's sons
8. Between the time that Shechem came to Jacob and the time that Dinah was taken from Shechem's house, there were approximately three days. During that time, Jacob and his sons knowingly permitted Dinah to be "defiled" without protest. In consideration of the treasure and slaves looted from the city, did not Jacob and his sons "deal with [their] sister as with an harlot?"

Jacob's final statement on the issue is particularly telling: He complained to his sons that they had put him at odds with the local tribes, and they might retaliate. In no other way did Jacob find fault with their actions.

We have examined each of the Soncino Scriptural index entries for Genesis Chapter 34: there are no comments from the Sages on the injustice in this incident. All apparently approve of the actions of their ancestors.

This is the Old Testament tradition, repeated over and over again through many narratives, as cited in In His Own Image. In particular, note the fate of those who do not follow the Hebrew religion they are put to death. Is this the tradition of law and justice for which we should trade our Bill of Rights?

A Little Beacon of Light

Many defend the Old Testament because, they say, it contains commandments that regulate human interaction and produce an ordered society. But earlier civilizations had codes of law regulating human society. See, for example, the Code of Hammurabi, who reigned in Babylon between 1795 and 1750 BC. (12) Moses received the Tablets of Stone in 1275 BC. (13) Hammurabi's Code was on public display approximately 500 years before LORD God's conversation with Moses on Mt. Sinai.

In its report of the November, 2002 kosher dinner at the Supreme Court, The Jerusalem Post quotes Rabbi Gurary thus:

By demonstrating the philosophy of Jewish law and its moral values, we can bring a little beacon of light to this world.

— Rabbi Gurary, quoted in The Jerusalem Post (1)

How much light Jewish law and its moral values brought to this world is a subject for open, informed discussion. See also Was Jesus a Jew?

Thank you for your consideration of the above,
Carol A. Valentine, Ear@Come-and-Hear.com
July 14, 2003 ( This article is on line at http://www.come-and-hear.com/editor/capunish_4.html )

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Thank you Carol for your well informed piece I have reprinted above on this subject.

Now, I ask you does any of what the Judaic idea of Justice sound like justice as designed for America? Of course not, and perhaps we can better understand why their is no thought of protection afforded or even given to Christians in the State of Israel. Thousands of Palestinian Christians have died at the hands of Israel. It doesn't matter - they are Gentiles in their sense of law. Can you honestly support such a system that is apartheid and provides one sort of law for the Jew and another for the Gentile. I can't and won't.

I warn people like the Reverend John Hagee - persist in your practice of monetary support and political lobbying and it may mean your own death at the hands of those who falsely call themselves Israel.

How could the EKKLESIA of Jesus Christ make such a detrimental and terrible mistake as Dispensationalism. Easy, when the flesh is involved. I say unto the fleshly pre-millenial dispensational teachers. REPENT! Today is the day of salvation.

We will have no more of your unscriptural two or three returns of Christ, your gaps that are unscriptural for the return of blood sacrifice and the restoration of a Temple in Jerusalem, and all the fictional stuff Darby and Scofield's followers like Lindsey, LaHay and others have come up with.

I highly recommend you return to your Bibles and study and quit reading fiction and quit trying to create an Armegeddon. Do something constructive to bring peace to the Middle East.

"Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall see God"

"Through great tribualtion we enter the Kingdom of God" Acts 14:22.

The great tribulation is here and has been since Pentecost when the last days were declared from then on until when Christ comes. The only promise left for the Hebrew people is eternal life and the Holy Jerusalem built as the Temple of God, of which we are his priest and He our High Priest, and that dwelling place of God, if they will but recognize Jesus as the promise fulfilled in all things.

Christ has made the sacrifice and broken down the barrier between believing Jew and Gentile. The nation you so try to support is a nation made by violence and continued in violence and promotes violence, with all the justification they can rouse support for through a "church" blinded by the god of this world, Satan.

Will you, Christians Gentile accept the laws of the Talmud over the law of love, which Christ gave unto all men? Will you accept unequal justice and be the one on the recieving end of this kind of justice? I doubt it.

Wake up, Christians we need to strive for peace in the Middle East and we can when the demands for Israel to obey the laws already in place, is equal to the demands we put on all the rest of the nations.

It is the dispensationalist, that I will say, the blood of all of the saints will end up upon your hands and heads. Keep it up and wait and see. I promise you, God will reveal the truth and it will be too late for you,

Jesus is coming and He isn't waiting for Israel to take over land or these United States to conquer the world, or us to become as a nation a joint partner as church and state. Give your loyalty to Jesus and the Kingdom of God and not the kingdoms of this world, whether Jewish or Gentile.

Once, again I am not anti-semitic, I love the Jewish people and have some dear friends who are Jewish to whom I lift to Christ in prayer for their salvation daily.

I spent time just the other day conversing with a Messianic Jew, and it was a wonderful time of sharing our faith. Though he is Dispensationalist, I love him and pray that he too will see the truth and see how this doctrine divides and destroys that for which Christ died. To save all of Israel - his body - the EKKLESIA made up of many nations,as the stars in the sky, as promised Abraham.

All men who come to Christ are children of Abraham. We cannot allow the lie to continue, especially amongst the body of Christ of separate promises for the Jew and Gentile. The promise has come, and He must be recognized as Yeshua Meshiach - Jesus the Messiah who died for us on a cruel cross and shed his blood for all of us while were yet His enemy. Yeshua ( Jesus) who was raised the 3rd day, and now lives through his people resurrected, guiding us, sanctifying us, and bringing us to glory with Him by the Holy Spirit.

This is love, that God first loved us. Our response is to love all men, all races, all cultures equally, and as a "Christian American" to see that justice is "equal for all men." - especially in this country.

It is the words carved above on the entry to the Supreme Court of these United States. "Equal Justice Under Law".

The Law of the Talmud and the Law of these United States is incompatible.

Dr. J.

The Immigration Issue Can Be Resolved

For sometime now, I have been given the immigration issue some thought. I have thought about this on the perspective of being a Christian and on being a citizen of the United States. It is a difficult issue and both sides have legitimate arguments. Immigration is what made this country and how I came to be here. My grandmother and her parents immigrated here from New Zealand, her husband my grandfather, I have traced his family tree back to the first "Black" coming over here on the Mayflower. In all truthfulness the only real natives of the North American continent and especially what we refer to as these United States are the "American Indian".

Now, we all know somewhere back there we have immigration roots.

The real question has to do with what to do about the thousands that cross our borders everyday illegally.

Here are some stats, I dug up off the Internet:

 

The United States accepts more immigrants than any other country; in 2000, its population included 31.1 million foreign-born persons (that is 11.1 percent of the total population.) The revised immigration law of 1990 created a flexible cap of 675,000 immigrants each year, with certain categories of people exempted from the limit. That law attempts to attract more skilled workers and professionals to the United States and to draw immigrants from countries that have supplied relatively few Americans in recent years.

Illegal Immigrants
The US Immigration and Naturalization Service estimates that some five million people are living in the United States without permission, and the number is growing by about 275,000 a year. Native-born Americans and legal immigrants worry about the problem of illegal immigration. Many believe that illegal immigrants (also called "illegal aliens") take jobs from citizens, especially from young people and members of minority groups. Moreover, illegal aliens can place a heavy burden on tax-supported social services.

In 1986 Congress revised immigration law to deal with illegal aliens. Many of those who had been in the country since 1982 became eligible to apply for legal residency that would eventually permit them to stay in the country permanently. In 1990, nearly 900,000 people took advantage of this law to obtain legal status. The law also provided strong measures to combat further illegal immigration and imposed penalties on businesses that knowingly employ illegal aliens.

Yet, none of these laws had any strong effect as we can see because they were as toothless as I am when I lay my dentures to rest at night. Not enough men, not enough technology, not enough enforcement and definitely not enough penalty on the employers who employ illegals to fill their pocketbooks with the profit from hiring those who will work in servatude for lower wages.

Here is what the big question for me is,  how could our President who has been in office for 6 years now, and most of the Congressman and women, and legislators who many have served in their positions for 20 years or more, act surprised suddenly and say, "Geez, we need to do something about this". "We really don't have a handle on the situation" and "we don't understand how it got this way"  - now of all times they finally awake from their slumber. Where were they? What have they been doing all this time to safeguard America? Where has all that money gone from taxes?

Our President who puts so much emphasis on Homeland Security has served for 6 years while the problem of those breaking the law and coming across the river or over the wall or under the ground, has continued to go on while he sits there claiming he is protecting our nation from terrorism. How can this be? Why we have spent billions of dollars on war in Iraq and Afghanistan, to stop so called terrorism and to protect our country, while he has almost eliminated the Bill of Rights and the Right to Privacy in this country spending millions on spying on Americans, the terror to the south and to the north continues day after day, week after week, month after month, right under his nose! Why do I call it a terror. Well, stop and think about it, while he claims he is keeping the Homeland secure, God knows who and whatever the political leanings are of the people who can creep across our borders and come into this country illegally and we can't even come up with an actual count of how many people may have crossed and who all these people are. What do they believe? Are they loyal to freedom? Do they really care about America in the sense they want to be a part of the contribution to good? Are they coming here perhaps to enlarge their criminal or anti-American behavior?

I am with Alan Keyes when he said the answer to the Immigration problem is to first get rid of those like the President and the Congressman who have sat there on their tuffs for so long and then all of a sudden  they go, "I didn't know". What bunk!

I am so tired of the lies that procede out of the mouths of politicians, I often get nauseous when I see any of them talk on television or make campaign speeches or whatever. I believe what my one grandfather said, a great Scottish man. "To be a politician you have to be either a horse thief or a liar."

He was so right!

The problem with illegal immigration is just that, we have plenty of laws already on the books which allow millions to come into this country legally already. We do this so it can be controlled. We have some idea what we can do or  not do economically and socially to assimilate these into our society and most of these are intelligent, productive and very American once they get here and work for sometime legally. We do this, so we can maintain control and make it work for the whole as  something good.

Now, we don't have enough people to work the borders, so along comes good old American volunterism in the Minutemen who gave their services free and the President puts  them down and resorts to calling them "vigilantes"  Yes, vigilante they were! Bush surely can't lay claim to that, being vigilant in guarding this country from threat that is coming in illegally. What's wrong with being vigilant as a citizen. When it comes to securing the homeland only American citizens can ever provide true security. Instead of thanking them for coming to the rescue, he wants them gone and Bush's solution is to offer amnesty to those that are already here illegally. How can we trust who is here illegally? What do we know about them? Have they taken an oath to the Constitution of this country? My grandparents family did so when they they came over from New Zealand and to obtain citizenship. The other problem is, jobs. It is a fact that wages have steadly become lower in the many areas that illegals take up most work in, agriculture, service jobs and the like. It is not that Americans will not do these jobs, it is the wages have been driven so low the job will not entice an American citizen. These wages are to the level that the greedy pay the poor immigrate less and especially the illegal immigrant, because they know the illegal has no recourse but to accept it. Yes, American corporations are all for illegal immigration, and amnesty, it drives their profits higher and the payscales lower. It makes everything become the employers market rather than the employee market.

They command the helm of hiring, as they have plenty of illegals willing to accept slave wages, and along comes an American worker needing a job and they offer him the same pay. The American worker may have already had a standard of living which he is accustomed to and now he is expected to step down to a lower level just to feed his family. Yes, it is a perfect scenario to reduce this country to third world standards and enrich third world countries to the economical standard we will all soon be saying was ours. It is a subtle but ingenious way for the New World Order to accomplish it's task of reducing us to ashes.

Globalism has only one purpose in mind and that is to make the corporation and all government one, an elite ruling class over the servant masses. Communism in essence. While the Burgeouise takes all it can the Proletariat worker will feed them, clothe them, and bow down to their every whim. We will become a nation of servants to the rich and powerful corporate elite. The results are even more tragic than what you think, it becomes totalitarian in nature. Already many of us feel the squeeze on wages and job availability. The move of corporations to China and other low wage paying countries will soon end. Why? America will become one of the lowest paying countries in the world. It will reign only as a servant state in the new union of the New World Order.

No country can stand sovereign as long as it allows it's constituents to become the people of another country who have yet sworn their loyalty to the country they are in. Thus we have laws to allow those that want to come into this country. We should never make laws that grant automatic citizenship just because you are already here. This is stupid and shows to me the ignorance of those in office in Washington. The question you have to ask, is it ignorance alone that has allowed the influx to continue without really guarding the borders for all these years? Is the problem just  because they lacked the real manpower or money to do the job of securing our borders? I doubt that. Perhaps, it was they chose not to guard our borders  for subtle reasons we need to ask our President and Congress about. If we are going to send troops anywhere it should have been to the south and to the northern borders to stop the greatest threat to National Security that has ever existed, immigrants that have illegally come here without a bit of "known loyalty" to our precepts, law and our way of life. They have already shown their disrespect for our laws by circumventing them and breaking them. What do we do?
We give them the law options that have existed for sometime already to allow immigration to this country and we enforce the borders and the law that already exist. Then we return them to their home, until such time they can meet the present laws already on the books. Then what do we do? We shut down the borders. We bring our boys home from Iraq and Afghanistan and we give them the real job of guarding our homeland. We create a joint responsibility of military and law enforcement for doing some real homeland security work and we do this without violating the Posse Comitatus Act.

George has along with Democrat and Republican (in my opinion, there isn't any difference between them)they have been asleep too long at the wheel, and frankly I think it is time to clean house and let's get some real "Homeland Security" going. Guard against illegal immigration while still using the immigration laws we have to allow workers from other countries to come in. While they are all asleep and were asleep, they allowed 14 immigrants with VISA's to come here, who committed the autotrocity of 911, yet here is an example of granted immigration and look what happened. So that system needs fixing as well. Before we add more laws to more laws that do nothing to keep the American worker with decent wages, or from becoming substandard. We keep America safe from ideals that may not have our best in mind. I can only say, where have you been Georgie boy? This isn't something new, it has happened under your watch as well as all those in Congress Democrat or Republican, for a very long time.

Now to the point. Men are greedy, men will always seek power over others. In this, we can only propose this question. Do you believe the American corporations have the best in mind for America or their personal pocketbooks when they are so pro- illegal immigration amnesty. Betcha, the pocketbooks win!

Dr. J.

 

 

War and Taxes - A Call to the Christian Conscience

"What would you do if someone came to your door, with a cup  in hand asking for your contribution to help buy guns to kill a group of people they didn't like"?

 

You would either ask the questions as to who and why, as many do today, accepting the governments explanation for spending 30-40% of your income tax for the wars it is involved in, or you would say go away, I'm not giving you anything to kill anybody.

Going with the latter answer, it seems the most logical when offered no explanation for this contribution other than to buy guns and kill a group of people they didn't like.

Here is the problem of tax paying for those like myself, who do not believe in war and believe Jesus brings a Gospel of peace.

Peace and goodwill to all men was the declaration of the angels at Christ's birth.

How the church has turned from the heart of the Gospel to where most fundamentalist today stand is a subject I am writing on in a book I intend to title "Why The American Church is Failing",

 

The question of paying taxes is a question we must face as a non-resistant believer in our Lord Jesus Christ. This question I believe has been answered with suggestions of how to resist by either no payment or partial payments to the IRS and great clarity of the penalties, etc. by  the Mennonites www.mcc.org and the War Resistance League. www.warresistors.org

 

Here are some facts you may not be aware of:

 

Cost of the War in Iraq
$410,451,578,221
as of 8:46 on March 22, 2007

 

MORE DEATHS

 

• More than 34,000 Iraqi civilian deaths in 2006 — twice as many as in 2005 — and 37,000 injured 1
• More than 12,000 Iraqi security forces killed since 2003 1
• More than 3,900 U.S. military and "coalition" forces dead with more than 38,400 U.S. military and coalition forces wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001 2
• Twice as many Afghani deaths in 2006 — 4,400 (including 1,000 civilians) — compared to 2005 3

 

 LESS SECURITY 

 

"Rather than contributing to eventual victory in the global counterterrorism struggle, the situation in Iraq has worsened the U.S. position."4

 

"It's a very candid assessment . . . stating the obvious," according to
one intelligence official.

 

1 UN report, 1/16/2007;
2 icasualties.org;
3 Human Rights Watch report (AP, 1/30/07);
4 A key finding of the National Intelligence Estimate, a 2006 report from 16 U.S. government spy agencies ("Spy Agencies Say Iraq War Hurting U.S. Terror Fight," Washington Post, 9/24/06)
 FEWER FRIENDS 

 

A poll of 26,000 people in 25 countries show the global view of the U.S. role in world affairs is deteriorating.
• 73% disapprove of U.S. role in Iraq
• 68% believe that the U.S. military presence in the middle East provokes more conflict than it prevents
• 49% believe the United States plays a mainly negative role in the world

 

source: BBC World Service poll conducted by WorldPublicOpinion.org
 

Now these facts alone are not enough to make many individuals war resistors, for the truth be told, fundamental churches have bought into the teachings of Dispensationalism and  the result is war mongering, and more and more they have twisted scriptures, I believe to their own destruction. When I speak of destruction, they have left their first love, Jesus, for the love of the world, self and nationalistic pride.

 

I am someone who understands the IRS and their power. I have since 1983 been in a struggle against their tactics of intimidation and not because I had resisted paying taxes, in most cases, it was due to employers failing to report all I have paid, or to the IRS claims somehow enough was not paid. In some cases upon filing I found out that I still owed more taxes when during the time I was working and my employer was taking out taxes, I assumed they were taking out the right amount, then would find at the end of the year, I owed and I didn't have what was owed to pay. 

I have always filed and never intentionally lied on my income tax return and simply tried to pay my tax as due. Misunderstanding the scripture in context when it says, pay taxes to whom taxes are due. We forget that this continues with saying, owe no debt to anyone but the debt of love.

I have since 1985 paid near every month additional payments to the IRS just to pay them what they claim I owe. In the last 6 years that has meant paying them, $250.00 a month until I finally got them to reduce it to $50.00 per month. I was at that time going through a period of unemployment, health problems and more, which left me broke. I am still only partially employed, doing direct marketing for 20 hours per week that pays only commissions when an appointment is set for the service representative to do a demo of our product. The demo must be carried through, sale or no sale, which means most often people have second thoughts and cancel their appointments I set. To this point I have earned only $584.00  - subtract taxes, in the past 5 weeks since going back to work part-time. I am still broke. I obtain little help from outside sources, but God is my sustainer and my provider and I remain thankful to him, for all that he has done for me and is doing for me. I have been unable to find full-time work, for 6 months now, and have sent out, over 100 resumes, to find that the corporate world is just not in the market for 53 year old men regardless of their  education, experience and skills. I continue to look but still no replies, or answers to applications or resumes.

The IRS during all these years, would dig up new claims of owing them taxes even going back to the tax year 1993 in the year, 2005. This is over 12 years ago, assuredly there has to be some sort of law against going back that far.  They know I couldn't prove them wrong if I wanted to, as those tax records are long gone. Those records are lost to the many moves I have made, the cleaning out of my home after my wife's untimely death in a freak car accident in 2001 and just in general of not holding onto these records  because I didn't think it was important to keep them beyond 7 years. 

I was mislead to think they could only go back 7 years. I guess I was wrong, I have had no one tell me different.

 

My wife and I had filed an Offer to Compromise in July 2001, they didn't respond after the longest time period, (per their statement they had 30 days to decide), I heard nothing for 9 months, we did hear from our Taxpayer's Advocate, two months after the filing that the IRS claimed they didn't get our electric utility bills, which we know they did and the Taxpayer's Advocate, said she recalled them being in the package she helped mail.

We went through the whole process again of accumulating these records to send them. Yet, still time went by. My wife of 27 years was killed in an accident on November 21, 2001, then not until April 2002, did I hear from them after I filed my taxes for 2002, and they had rejected our plea, When I called them they told me, now that my wife was dead, I would have to file "two" Offers of Compromise one under my dead wife's name and then one under my name. Needless to say, I was exasperated. I gave an attorney $4,000 of my wife's life insurance money I had inherited to file these, being assured by him he could help reduce my tax and get them to make an offer in settlement.

Instead the lawyer took me for a ride, did nothing and kept the money, then created a fake bill for his time- which might have been a total of 2 hours that we ever talked. The State only offered a grievance form to be filled out as the only means of action to be taken against him. This "shyster" knew what he was doing, he made it impossible for me to come back and get my money back, as he wrote the contract, to say in small lettering, "he guaranteed no results and no money back guarantee".

Lawyers like him commit a crime against people everyday and walk away, without penalty or repayment to their client. This is life in America, land of the rich and the oppressed.

Land where the lawyers make laws that oppress the poor and enrich the rich.

 

I lost my chance to file an Offer to Compromise and I lost $4,000 which could have been paid on the taxes which would have been better than the "thieving" lawyer stealing my money. So, there  I was back to square one paying money to the IRS for years back that they claim I owe and I truthfully do not know that I do owe any taxes for most of the years claimed.

I have had during all this time, two personal audit meetings with them. One in 1986 and one sometime around 1994. Neither one of these would be what I call at that time a chance to prove them wrong with records but rather a time for them to tell me what I was going to pay and when.

My battle has gone from a Congressional tax case initiated by a Senator of Texas, Phil Gramm, who assisted me in getting the Tax Payers Advocate and an opportunity to settle for less with an Offer to Compromise, to the IRS denying of my Offers to Compromise, to them requiring two new Offers of Compromise, to no offer filed because a lawyer stole my money, to paying them monthly from 2002 - 2005  - $250.00 per month to paying $50.00 per month until I finally couldn't pay them anything due to my bad health and unemployment.

I now suppose I will get the typical letters of demand - "pay or else" threats again. To be quite honest, I am not only tired of the harassment, I am tired of contributing any money period to a nation that has gone mad and spends over 31% of our income taxes for WAR!

I am tired of the threats and the harassment, I have nothing for them to take, and welcome them to take the only thing I own, a 1996 Pickup truck which has over 168,000 miles on it and is my only means of transportation. Take away my means of transportation they take away my ever having a chance to pay their taxes. Garnish my small earnings I have right now, I quit work and they get nothing.

I would say I should be declared "uncollectible". Since the rejection in 2002, I have paid what they claimed was $28,000 down to about 9,000 dollars. The remaining $9,000 is as debatable as that which they have already collected from me. You have to remember this is the Internal Revenue Service. Though I have dealt with some individuals by telephone who have been very understanding, the collections process is not. The poor men, pays by intimidation which they the IRS know works well. The rich men is very seldom harassed because he can afford large tax attorney firms that can hold collections up in court for years. They almost always can obtain an Offer to Compromise and pay little of the actual tax due. I once read a report by a former IRS collector who said this was their practice and the managers of the IRS collection department made this very clear to their collectors, to collect from those that they could intimidate, "the poor".

 

I am a peace lover, I am strong believer in non-resistance as Christ taught and the Apostles lived out with the practices of the earliest believers who died for their faith in the Roman Coliseums and even on a cross hung upside down as Peter did. The Great Persecution or The Great Tribulation.

Why didn't any of them resist those who persecuted them? Why didn't the early Christians including Paul take up a sword and form a group of people to fight their oppressors. Not one of them ever lifted their hand to strike out at their persecutors, all except Peter on the night at Gethsemane and then Christ told him to put down his sword and the Jesus healed the servants ear.

 

We must ask ourselves, if we are truly Christians, one specific question. Doesn't contribution monetarily toward a government that is bent on the deaths of many people, constitute, that we should refuse to pay either that portion of tax that goes to war or even all our taxes? This is a question I have asked myself a lot in the last 3 years especially since through time with the Lord in prayer and much biblical study, I concluded that I believe as the Mennonites do in Non-Resistance and only in the Kingdom of God.

The Holy Spirit has confirmed this in my heart.

I know there are many arguments otherwise but there is no argument that stands against what Jesus did, and what the  book of 1st John tells us, that if "we abide in Him, we will walk even as He (Jesus) walked".

 

Yes, Jesus showed anger and there is no where we are told that anger is wrong, as long as it doesn't lead to sin.

I am angry now, but my anger will not lead to murder or hatred of my brother.

I am angry against a organized governmental system that in no way gives us a choice to contribute or not to contribute to evils that we as Christian believers should have choice in.

I choose to love my enemy as Christ taught and to do good to them. Good is not the death and destruction this nation has become largely responsible for worldwide anymore. One cannot even apply Justified War to Iraq. The attack of 911, had nothing to do with Iraq and Afghanistan, yet now, thousands have died because in our hearts along with a lying President, we became evil and cried, Vengeance!

When the Lord, says, "Vengeance is mine", and He wasn't even talking about vengeance for the sake of countries and governments but for the persecution of those of His church. The attack on the WTC was an attack against our financial systems and economics, it wasn't an attack directed at Christianity and even if it were, God, says, "Vengeance is Mine"! We are now suffering the chastening of the Lord individually for not listening to the Spirit of God, with 3,400 men and women being sent home in body bags. Truly, if this was a battle God told us to fight the victory as an the Old Testament days would have been hands down with little or no loss of American lives. I state this because those who ascribe to justified war love to use OT scripture as their justification, as if we are a Theocracy as Israel was. This is not the Lords' Battle.

 

Good is not killing others for the sake of my ideas of government or other worldly concepts. Good is preaching the ministry of reconciliation to Muslim and Jew alike. Teaching the truth of salvation, when taught in truth always results in peace between all people. "Love conquers all".

I am now in the place trying to determine how best to continue paying for taxes I am not sure I owe anyway and my conscience that hates war and loves peace. It is a difficult problem for anyone facing this. In truth the biggest reason people don't want to answer their conscience in regards to this, is because refusal or even partial payment, may result in the loss of any and all material goods they have, including if they own a car or their home. The other side is they may fear going to jail. Something even I fear, as I see jail as the worst thing we can do to anyone. To take a person and lock them up for their conscience on serving or not serving war, is absolutely the greatest injustice one man can do to another. Then again, no one ever said, that man's justice is good, even David asked God to give Him His justice rather than that of men's, knowing full well that God's is tempered with love and compassion and correctiveness in mind, and the concept of sinful men's idea of justice is only in punishing individuals for their sins against society or law, while yet they are sinners themselves. God offers forgiveness, men do not. God is holy and any justice he gives us is from Him that is perfect, whereby imperfect men, subject other imperfect men to  punishment for the very same sins they are guilty of. They live a lie, saying it isn't true but Jesus proved just the opposite. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Even the murderer is no more greater a sinner then he who hates his brother. Jesus made this clear, and hatred of any group, of people, culture, race, or peoples of a religion that we don't agree with is in the eyes of God, murder!

The American fundamentalist continue to feed this fire of hatred with their rhetoric against Muslim, Palestinians, homosexuals and more. We may not agree with various practices, or religions, or other, but we are not called to be judges as Christians but to minister reconciliation to these people in the form of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Beyond that we have no higher duty then to love them, pray for them and preach the Good News to them.

We cannot legislate righteousness, man is sinful, only a new creation in Christ can establish righteousness in a man, woman or child's life. Law's designed to regulate man's behavior, have proven failed throughout history. I am not calling for no law, for society itself would crumble without law because it is made up of the lawless as well as the Christian, but to remember that the law is for the lawless and a school master to Christ, and that as such it is our purpose only as Christians to seek the redemption of all violators by showing them the way to Christ.

It is not our job to punish  this belongs only to the, One Lawgiver and Judge, God.

I oppose the death penalty for these reasons and I truly believe we can find better ways to correct criminals then propagating criminality through penitentiaries and putting them in a society that only promotes criminality, not only among the imprisoned but with those that imprison them. Recent events in Texas youth prisons have proven my point and the history of criminal justice has proven my point. Very few people come out corrected and very few people stay corrected from imprisonment. The few that have it is only due to the presence of Christian outreach and their conversion to Christ. Many of these in the prisons suffer, psychological and spiritual problems that could be resolved, many had no chance in life in their upbringing, and they could be made whole with a different societal approach to their correction. How can imperfect men, ever correct imperfect men, without Christ as center of that correction coming from a Spirit led and abiding Christian.  This is not the case in the real world. Thus it is a spiral that continues until Jesus comes, or we as believers take more action to being a part to bringing the Kingdom of God to pass in people's lives. I thank God for people like my uncle who was a Prison Chaplain, I have seen God use his ministry to bring life to many individuals. He is not perfect but he has Christ and scripture and it is the Word that changes an individual whether them, you or me.

It is our calling to correct the body of Christ always with the thought in mind that we too may fall into sin, and to offer compassion and forgiveness. not judgment, condemnation in which punishment doesn't involve these things -correction ( being steered in a new direction) and healing ( both psychological and spiritual). Punishment only appeases men's flesh and sinful pride, especially for those doing the punishment.

We are to extend this love of God to ALL men, regardless of their religious belief or sin. We are to remember, that God so loved the "world" that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever shall believe in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. It must always begin the same way God's love does, He loves all men, and offers them redemption.

He took care of the redemption it is our call and duty to offer this to others by the way we live our lives and the words we share with others. This love for them that is without prejudice or bias.

We are to love them not kill them, or punish them, we are but to love them. This is the hardest way, this is the narrow gate, because everything in our flesh says the opposite.

 

I have digressed from somewhat where I began this editorial, but all the same, it is for us to see, that war doesn't meet the call of our heavenly Father, and that we really need to ask ourselves; are we contributing to this evil by paying our taxes. In honesty, the answer has to be a loud, Yes.

Now what you do about it is up to you, and how much you may be willing to sacrifice of the "me" for the "all".

The greatest prophets and saints have always sacrificed as they stood in direct opposition to the world, their people, their culture and their society, and it's ways.

We are in the world, but scripture makes it very clear, we are not to love the things of this world and hatred is one of the big things of this world and war is it's means of exercising that hatred.

Dispensationalism, and the "Left Behind" series of fictional, non scriptural theology and exegesis has brought many to believe the big lie. This lie feeds the flesh. It is fed with justified hatred and it is very hard to escape it once one let's it become a part of themselves.  Sow to the flesh, you reap the flesh.

I am really beginning to see that "war tax resistance" may be the only hope we have left of changing this country from the war mongering, blood thirsty nation we have become.

God have mercy on us for the death and destruction we have so willingly supported. We need forgiveness not only for our willingness to listen to preachers with itching ears, but our continual contribution to the war effort in our silence, and our willingness to pay for it.

I remind readers it was over a simple tax on tea, that fired up the American Revolution, it is perhaps time for a new revolution in this country that has totally failed at the ballot box to change the face of America. Taxes are the only support these politicians have - my money and your money.

Without money, they cannot continue to disregard the voice of the people.

The "moral majority tries to make us believe that it is an attack on Christianity, whether or not the Ten Commandments are in a court officials building or not. This has little to do with being a Christian especially when the very same people that fought against the removal of the Ten Commandments from a judge's court in Alabama will not resist and take action against war, especially when one of those commandments say, Thou Shalt Not Kill. I don't read FIFTY justifications written alongside of this commandment for doing other than what it says.

It was only with the passing of time, that Christians came to the idea  of " justified war", and this not from scripture but from men, like Augustine.

I can truly say, Christian, "You Nullify the Commandments of God for Sake of the Traditions of Men!"

It is time for us to say, no more war, and no more support for your wars. My battle is not against flesh and blood. I am in a spiritual battle, in that battle we are called to render unto God what is God's.

The opposite of  the coin. Our very lives and all that we are and have belongs to God, not to the Federal government or the State, It all belongs to Him. what will you do with it, render all that you are to Caesar or to God. There is in the scripture, unlike "justified war", taught by men, there is clearly taught in scripture and the New Testament "justified civil disobedience".  "Is it better to obey God or men"?, the Apostle asked.

We know what they did, they obeyed God, and continued to proclaim His name though told it was against the law and to not do it.

This is one of the reasons, the early Christians turned the world upside down! They feared no man and only feared God. They lost all that they had to follow Jesus, who said," foxes have dens, and birds have nest, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head"

Lest we forget, we are no less called to this calling, that Jesus spoke, "Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men".

Peace is the only answer to war, and we as Christians, are the answer for peace in this world, if we hold fast to the traditions taught by the Word and the Apostles instead of the "traditions of men"

Neither Muslim or those that practice unlawful  or immoral things, will ever be able to resist love and peace.

When we harken to His word, we truly will become "Fishers of Men" and like the Disciples, our nets will be full and our boats will be weighed down with the catch. But hear me, WE HAVE TO FIRST CAST OUR NETS!

Cast your net, stand against war and hatred, and turn to love both in word and deed.

 

 

Dr. J.