I Stand with the Copts

Coptic Christians tattoo this symbol onto their children at a young age.

That way if they happen to die, they will be treated as a Christian and not as another religion.

However, that tattoo has recently been used as a symbol to persecute Coptic Christians.

I probably won't tattoo it to myself, but I will put it here...I stand with them.

Thank God for the 2nd Amendment

And the 1st Amendment.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Yesterday there was a national walk out of high school students to show their frustration for many things.

First and foremost their concerns were the current gun laws, but also it was to show their fear and concern that students in schools are being gunned down and it seems very little is being done to stop it.

Their knowledge or lack of knowledge on the current issue should not be the issue, it should be how thousands of children perceive these laws and are tired of seeing students being shot in schools.

A dog died on a plane trip the other day, and the very next day a US Senator proposed legislation to make sure this doesn't happen again, yet we are told over and over that school safety takes time; that the leaders are speaking about it, coming up with ideas.

Meanwhile there are other shootings.

And the students grow more scared and more frustrated at their perception that nothing is being done.

I'm not saying that I agree with every single person who walked out yesterday and why they did it, but I can tell you that I 100% support civil disobedience. 

It seems too often anymore that we don't agree with protests or disobedience unless we agree with the issue that group is protesting and it shouldn't be that way.

Civil discourse is how we talk about our differences and come up with solutions, or at least that is how I believe it should be done.

We see that these students en mass are upset and we should ask "why?"; not attack their wound, but see why that wound occurred.

But I also support a consequence for that civil disobedience.

Agitating and breaking "rules" or "laws" is what brings change. It's that consequence which must be handed out to have effective discourse and change.

Dr. King or Gandhi almost demanded that there be some sort of consequence for any action they took. Agitating the power elite is what motivates the people to examine their way of thinking.

But attacking students because they have a fear of dying (justified or not it's how they feel) and that they perceive that very little is being done is not the answer.

I teach civics and I have tried to get students to understand that we are relatively safe in our school, yet we need to be realistic, and be prepared.

I try to teach students to stand up for what they believe in (an informed belief), but realize there are consequences.

And I try to teach students that they are important and they are the future.

Agree or not, I love the 2nd Amendment, but I also love the 1st Amendment.

For all of us Constitutional scholars, I would hope we could learn to appreciate all of the Constitution and not only those parts we really, really, really agree with or is convenient dependent on our own opinions.

This Past Weekend

But It's in the Bible

What are the main divisions of the Old Testament Law?

by Matt Slick
2/18/15

There are three main divisions within the Old Testament law. Following is a categorization. Please note that occasionally the civil and moral laws overlap.

The main differences between the civil, ceremonial, and moral aspects of the Law of Moses as revealed in the Pentateuch (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) are in their purposes.  The civil law deals mainly with relationships between individuals, the settling of disputes, and the description of proper behavior. The ceremonial law deals with the priesthood initiation and the priestly procedures as they related to the various sacrifices through which the people of the Old Testament were cleansed of there sins. The moral law is based on the character of God and extends from the Old into the New Testament. Therefore, as it was wrong to lie in the Old Testament, it is still wrong to lie in the New Testament.

1. Civil - Deals with disputes between individuals.  Expired with the demise of the Jewish civil government
   1. Be just with the poor, (Lev. 19:15)
   2. Cattle, of neighbor (Deut. 22:1-4)
   3. Children, rebellious (Deut. 21:18-21)
   4. Debt (Lev. 23:34-43; Deut. 31:10)
   5. Divorce (Deut. 22:19)
   6. Dress, attire (Deut. 22:5)
   7. Do not hate in your heart (Lev. 19:17)
   8. Inheritance (Num. 18:26; 26:53-56; 36:8-12)
   9. Justice practices (Lev. 24:17-23)
   10. Kidnapping (Exodus 21:16)
   11. Landmarks (Deuteronomy 19:14)
   12. Property redemption (Lev. 25)
   13. Murder and killing (Deut. 21:1-4)
   14. Retain just scales in commerce (Lev. 19:35f)
   15. Robbery, extortion, false witness, and restitution (Lev. 6:1-7)
   16. Sabbath breaking punishment (Num. 15:32-36)
   17. Theft (Deut. 5:19; Lev. 19:11)
   18. Warfare (Deut. 20:1-20)
2. Ceremonial - Expired with the fulfillment of priestly work of Christ (Matt. 3:15)
   1. Cleaning house of leper (Lev. 14:33-57; Num. 5:2)
   2. Festivals (Lev. 23:1-25; Nu. 29:39)
   3. Laws on animals for food (Lev. 11:1-47)
   4. Law of Atonement (Lev. 16:1-28;17:1-16)
   5. Offerings (Num. 29:39)
   6. Priest, consecration of (Ex. 29:1-46)
   7. Priestly duties (Lev. 7:1-37)
   8. Regulations for Priests (Lev. 21,22)
   9. Various sacrificial offerings for sin (Lev. 1,2,3,4,5,6)
3. Moral - No Expiration because it is based on God's character.  "You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy," (Lev. 19:2)
   1. Idolatry (Lev. 26:1-13)
   2. Love God (Deut. 6:4)
   3. Love your neighbor as yourself (Lev. 19:18)
   4. Oppress your neighbor (Lev. 19:13)
   5. Stealing or lying (Lev. 19:11)
   6. Sacrifice children to Molech forbidden (Lev. 20:1-5)
   7. Sexual sins: adultery, incest, bestiality, homosexuality, etc. (Lev. 18:20; 20:9-21; Num. 5:12-15)

My Weekend of March 4, 2018

I am a Fraud

I am a fraud.

The life I present to people in the real world is not who I am at home all the time.

The life I present online through social media is not who I am at home all of the time.

I am imperfect.

I lose my temper.

My life from the outside is not as "good" as it may seem by those just perusing my social media life.

I yell too much.

I lose my temper too often.

I am too impatient too many times.

Some people rub me so wrong that I have given up attempting to be close or understand them.

Some people, I wonder if they even deserve more chances to be understood.

And some of you read this and agree with everything I've written, you know I am not what I could be perceived to be.

You have dealt with my impatient side, my side that is short and attempts to be one up all the time.

Others understand and admire that I would be so transparent and honest and complimentary that I have been honest.

Which is part of the problem.

Do I always admit my downfalls in the real world?

I hope so.

Probably not as much as I should.

But I am trying.

Junior Prom...I was 16