Does Pell Do Pagan Rites?

Deltoid just posted a link to a site that says:

“George Pell [Roman Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Australia] recently suggested that young fit Australians who voted Green were indulging in a pagan ritual”.

The words “Pagan Ritual” conjure up an image of people in long robes chanting words in an obscure language. Maybe there's a human sacrifice involved to meet the requirements of an ancient god, which is later celebrated by eating the victim's flesh and drinking his blood.

Does Pell think only his kind of people should be allowed to do such things? I wonder if he wishes for the good old days when pagans were tortured and killed to please this angry god?

What does Genesis have to say about man's place in the world? Gen 1:26 (NIV) says:

Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals[a], and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

With rulership comes obligations. Genesis 2:15(NIV) says:

The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

That's what Pagans and Greenies are really about- trying to take care of the world. So whose side is God really on, Cardinal Pell?
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[a]. the earth. [This is the] Probable reading of the original Hebrew text (see Syriac); Masoretic Text

Bible Quotes from BibleGateway New International Version, ©2011 (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica

Happy Easter!

Every year I make up an original puzzle for my youngest to solve so he can find his Easter treats. He just turned 19 so I have to make them challenging. I figured I'd share the one I just made, in case someone else would like to try it. It's in a form that I invented myself.

There are 5 shapes in 7 different colours with letters on them. You place them into the blanks to make words and sentences. The shapes and colours are in repeating patterns. ie if there were only 2 colours, they'd alternate. If there were only three shapes, they'd go diamond, cross, star, diamond, cross, star for example.

Here are the blanks typed out. Except for the last line, each line has one word. The "," are commas, not apostophe's. The solution is a cryptic clue.

_ _ _,
_ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _
_ _
_ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _
_ _ _
_ _ _, _ _ ?

You can print it out by accessing this file:
Fill in the blanks.

The shapes are here:



You do get 4 hints to get you started:

The green triangle with the letter Y on it is the 3rd letter.
The yellow egg with the letter Y is the 19th letter,
The red square with the H on it is the 30th letter,
and the blue triangle with the Y on it is the 53rd letter.
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So Happy Easter from me, my family and my dog Silas and my favourite plant!

I Promise to Love, Cherish, & Wash Your Feet?

When Jesus was washing his disciple's feet at the last supper, was he referencing a loving relationship between a woman and her husband?

In Jesus time a marriage contract outlined what the husband and the wife had to do for each other. Jewishencyclopedia says:

The husband's duties to the wife are set forth in detail under Ketubah [marriage contract] . In the body of that instrument he binds himself to work for her, and to honor, support, and maintain her. The wife, if she brings no dowry, is bound to do such housework for the husband as grinding, baking, washing, cooking, suckling her child, spreading the bed, and working in wool (spinning, knitting, and the like). If she brings one slave woman, or the means to buy one, she need not grind, bake, nor wash clothes; if two, she need not cook, nor suckle her child; if three, she need not spread the bed nor work in wool; if four, she may "sit still in her chair". She must, however, do certain small services for her husband which it would be improper for any but the wife to perform, such as washing his hands and face.

This was a legally binding contract . Note how a woman could get a slave to perform most of her duties for her except for filling his cup, make his bed and wash his hands, face and feet. This is something she couldn't get out of, even if she made a vow not to in order to serve God.

The relevant passages in the Talmud are:

Mas. Kethuboth 61a:

IF FOUR, SHE MAY LOUNGE IN AN EASY CHAIR. R. Isaac b. Hanania stated in the name of R. Huna: Although it has been said, SHE MAY LOUNGE IN AN EASY CHAIR she should nevertheless fill for him his cup, make ready his bed and wash his face, hands and feet. 28

(28) Such personal services are calculated to nurse a husband's affections (Rash. l.c.).

Mas. Nedarim 81b:

E.g., if she vows, Konam be fruit unto me? he can annul: Konam that I prepare nought for my father, for your brother, for your father, for my brother, or that I place no straw before your cattle, or, water before your herds, he cannot annul. [Konam] that I may not paint or rouge or cohabit, he can annul as a matter affecting their mutual relationship; that I do not make your bed, or, prepare you drink, or, wash your hands or feet, he need not annul. 5

(5) Such vows are automatically invalid, since she is under an obligation to do these things.

Let's look at Genesis 2:24 (NIV):

That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

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Now read John 13:6-9 (NIV):

He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”
“Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”

In a marriage, the two become one- so each is a part of the other. Maybe Jesus was saying he wanted his disciples to be so close that they are part of him and part of each other. And that they are to take the subservient role in this relationship. So like a wife, they were supposed to wash the other's feet to symbolize this deep love, bonding and humility? This would be backed up by the beginning of the account where it says in John 13 :1 (NIV):

Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.

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Bible Quotes from BibleGateway New International Version, ©2011 (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica