The Chronicles of Narnia, a seven-volume saga for children by C. S. Lewis, reveals a world that exists parallel to our own, populated by men and women, dwarves and talking animals, giants and merpeople, centaurs and fauns, and ruled by a kind but awesomely ferocious and gigantic lion named Aslan. Lewis, who died on the same day as JFK, November 22, 1963, combined the three passions of his life–classical mythology, medieval lore, and Christian-based philosophy–to create in Narnia a microcosm of the moral struggles our own world faces.

Characters and plot
Along with Aslan himself, the heroes of the Narnia books are the four Pevensie children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy. Taken away from their London home to avoid the Nazi bombings, they are boarded with an elderly bachelor professor in his rambling mansion in the country.

While playing hide-and-seek, Lucy, the youngest at age 8, hides in an old wardrobe filled with racks of overcoats. Moving farther back to escape detection, she pushes her way past the coats, expecting to hit against the back of the wardrobe at any moment. Lucy feels instead the boughs of evergreen trees, hears the crunch of snow at her feet, and sees in the distance the glow of a lamppost just like those she had seen many times back in London.

This marks the beginning of the four siblings’ many adventures in Narnia. Each of the books, though loosely connected to the others, can also stand alone. Eventually we learn where the lamppost came from and how the wardrobe became a portal. We also learn more about Aslan, what it takes to be his friend, and who his enemies are.

The deeper meaning
For those who know to watch for it, Lewis has filled Narnia, not only with interesting characters, majestic scenery, and exciting action, but also with Christian allegory. Aslan himself represents Jesus Christ, “the lion of the tribe of Judah” (Revelation 7:14). The Pevensie children eventually become so much at home in Narnia that they see it as their native land and this world as the place where they are visitors. Lewis, in his books on Christian apologetics, describes the spiritual world as existing parallel to the physical one, having the quality of being, not shadowy and insubstantial as compared to physicality, but more real, more colorful, and much, much more alive.

As Paul explains,

…many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ…. –Philippians 3:18-20 (see also Hebrews 11:13-16).

The Disney movie
The first book of the seven, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, is now the subject of a major motion picture produced by Walt Disney Pictures & Walden Media and directed by Andrew Adamson. At the climax of the story is a beautiful sacrifice, Lewis’s pictures the death of Christ.

If you go to the movie, watch for the breaking of the Stone Table, which symbolizes how Christ’s death and resurrection brought about the end of the Law of Moses by meeting its demands for blood atonement. Watch also for the role Susan and Lucy play in witnessing the death and revival of Aslan, corresponding to the historical role women played as mourners at Jesus’ death and burial and as the first witnesses of His resurrection.

The professor helps Peter and Susan to sort through how to receive Lucy’s testimony about Narnia: if she’s not a liar and she’s not crazy, then logically, she must be telling the truth. This corresponds to the testimony Jesus gave about His own identify, and the testimony His follows gave about Him–what Lewis elsewhere describes as the trilemma about Jesus: is He Lord, Liar, or Lunatic?

Another significant parallel is this: Aslan’s loyal followers play a significant role in the battle against the White Witch. Like our own spiritual warfare, Christ ensures the final victory, but calls on His followers to engage personally in the fight. For passages relevant to that conflict, see Ephesians 6:10-18; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; 1 Timothy 1:18-20; 1 Timothy 6:12; and 2 Timothy 4:7).

Plans are for six more movies to follow this first one, in which the rest of the history of Narnia unfolds. If they are as faithful to the books and well-conceived and produced as this one was, all of us diehard Lewis fans welcome them as an introduction of Narnia to a jaded world. We hope that viewers will grasp and appreciate the allegorical features as much as they do the surface story. The goal is not only to know about Aslan and Narnia, but to become His friend and subject and to live in His realm forever.

Want to go deeper?
You can do a search for papers going into more detail on the allegory of Narnia, including these three: “The Lion, the Witch, and the Allegory,” “The Wardrobe as Christian Metaphor,” and “Myth Made Truth: The Origins of the Chronicles of Narnia.”

If you want to purchase and read your own copy of The Chronicles of Narnia, they are available in a variety of editions, from the one-volume edition in softcover to the seven-volume boxed set in either hardback or softcover. Available also is the Official Illustrated Movie Companion for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, with photos from the movie and interviews of the director and cast members, as well as E. J. Kirk’s Beyond the Wardrobe: The Official Guide to Narnia. (My blog provides links to all of these, enabling you to access substantial discounts, from 24% to 33% off the retail prices.)

Reiki is “energy” from a higher source that has a wisdom of its own. It is described as something that already knows where to go and what to do once allowed into the human’s energy field.

Humans have known since time began that there is a Great Spirit, Guiding Intelligence, God, Goddess, or some form of Greater Good that humans have been trying to define, reach, remember, go home to, discover, prove and secure for themselves.

Those closest to this essence, from Jesus to successful Native American Healers, have known that every human has a latent, direct access to this Higher Energy, and these people’s gift to humanity was/is to help them access and remember that connection. Those who would abuse this knowing may say that they, and only they, have access to this Higher Energy, and anyone wanting to win favor with it must adhere to their rules.

It is said that Jesus channeled a Higher Power through his palms. He was not creating something new that before had not existed, but rather he was demonstrating something we can all access. He is further attributed to saying that all shall eventually do all that he has done, and even greater things.

We can all activate our “palms of Christ,” and we can all, during times of stress or for on-going well-being, have sessions with those who do energy healing to help us remember our inner connection and become reconnected from within again.

Authentic Reiki attunements, Quantum Touch training, Therapeutic Touch training, and other successful, established energy methods have very good track records for restoring this ability, and are even entering hospitals and being taught to children. While there are certainly frauds and delusional people, and shameful false “faith healers,” just as there are those who misuse any career or human interest, there are also the occasional people born remembering this intuitively. But it is available to all, not just the “chosen” or “gifted.”

Receiving and spreading love through Reiki or other forms of energy healing can begin to transform the outer world from within.

(c) 2013 Barbara Adams

The chorale prelude "Ich ruf zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ", BWV 639 by Bach is among the best-loved chorale preludes of this composer. The gentle character, beautiful harmonies, delicate ornaments, and sensible text make it a perfect piece for a quiet occasion for your service playing or a wonderful meditative piece for your recital. Although it is written in a trio texture with pedal part, the slow tempo makes it accessible for organists who have limited technical abilities. In this article, I will give you my advice on playing this intimate composition on the organ.

• Learning Process. Since this chorale prelude can be conveniently divided into 7 fragments according to chorale lines, it is best to practice it by playing one fragment at a time. The length of each fragment is determined by the fermata sign. As you practice each fragment, in the beginning play each of the three parts separately carefully observing that your fingering, pedaling, and articulation are correct. The left hand part will require more practice because it is written in a constantly moving broken chord texture. After you can play each of the parts with precision and accuracy at least three times in a row, practice combinations of two voices. Only after you master these combinations, play the entire fragment with all three parts. Try to resist the temptation to go to the next fragment before you master the previous one.
• Tempo. Practice at a tempo which allows you to play without mistakes. It could be very slow. However, as your performance gradually becomes better and better, try to play at the concert tempo which also should not be fast. The most important thing to remember about choosing the right tempo is this: pick such a tempo in which you can comfortably count all four beats in a measure and feel the alternation of strong and weak beats. Make larger breaks before the stronger beats which will allow you to emphasize the meter.
• Registration. Although for practicing purposes this piece can easily be played using one manual, to perform it in public you will need two manuals with different sound colors. A gentle solo reed, such as the oboe (with or without the flute 8 ') works well for the right hand part. Another option would be to play it on a cornet, or some other flute combination with mutations. Even a principal with a vocal quality may sound very good. A gentle tremulant might add to the expressive power of this composition. Play the accompanying parts using flutes with 16 'in the pedals.

If you practice "Ich ruf zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ" according to my suggestion, you will gradually achieve the level when you can perform it with precision and clarity. For best results, make sure you play each chorale phrase at least three times correctly in a row. After each individual fragment can be played correctly, you can combine a couple of phrases at a time and make your fragments longer. Similarly to practicing other compositions by Bach, you must have the patience and inner motivation which leads to success. However, if you succeed in mastering this chorale prelude, it will be a perfect piece for your service playing or recital and your audience will love you for it. Therefore, it is well worth the effort.

“In unity there is strength,” is a famous saying from an old fable we’d all love to hear in the crushing events of life. A story shows a father and his sons who were quarreling over power and money. The father called his sons and showed them a bundle of sticks, while trying to break it. He couldn’t break the bundled sticks. Next, the father showed one stick and broke it easily, until all the individual sticks were broken. Here, the sons understood what unity meant. And from then on, they did not quarrel anymore.

In the Holy Bible, it shows a clear example how the body works. One body works perfect with all the parts together – the eyes, the hands, the feet, the mind. Such are also the gifts and talents that each one of us has. In work and service, we have the various vocations working together for a community. Take for example, a nation: it has a leader, a government, the health workers, the teachers, the traders, the students, the parents, the garbage collectors, and all the public and private sectors that move lives everyday. We are all parts of that one body. And whether we like it or not GOD created us to be united and be happy. Collaboration is unity.

Bible expert Fr. John Lucas RCJ, during the annual gathering of the Rogate Family, highlighted the theme “Unity,” among the Rogate family and compared it to Jesus’ Apostles breaking of the bread. “The essential elements of unity are faith, worship, and service,” Father John assented.

From the quotes of St. Hannibal Mary Di Francia (Patron Saint of Vocations), “The community is unable to please God, to improve, to produce fruits -unless it is enlivened by charity and union of the hearts.” Also, Pope Benedict XVI focuses on unity of the church. He even got to visit the Muslims, and joined the Jews in their prayer on the Western Wall.

Truly, unity is the acceptance of the other, and working for the good of the community. Fr. John gave a challenge in this question: Am I a collaborative person?

If there are still doubts in the answer, the Rogationist Family believes in the love of Christ that unites.

Again, remember “Caritas Christi Iunget Nos;” the love of Christ unites us.

http://roseprayers.blogspot.com

Rose Flores – Martinez

December 28, 2009

Jerome was appointed by Damasus, the Bishop of Rome, to compile the New Testament at the end of the 4th CAD. The aim was to bring forth a text that the various branches of the Catholic organisation established by Constantine in 325 AD could use for conformity. The emperor invented Jesus Christ, which is verified in Revelation 13:13-18. Until that time no one knew about the religion or the prophet.

As there was no Christ there were also no apostles. The vision that showed me that Constantine is 666 led me to research his life and times. It happens that he was an Amorite, born of the Amors who built Roma (Reverse Amor). Their first Capital was Babylon and they worshiped the sun star, Mari, which means ‘mother’s powerful eye’. This image was produced when the sun passed behind an aperture, such as a hole in a rock held aloft on a pole.

When told to research the origin of the cross it was a vision of the people on a hill top gazing towards such an image that gave me the answer. The sun’s rays divide into the seven colours of the rainbow and form perpetually moving circles in an outward direction. Central to it is the right-angled cross.

It was while researching this that the ritual of men dying on crosses to marry Mary and become Father Gods in heaven was unearthed. The Catholic fathers thought this knowledge was buried but the Spirit had secret hiding places to record it. One such location is language and the first symbols of speech. Another is archaeology where ancient societies practiced the ritual and left images of it in rock art, such as in Scandinavia where men are depicted rising upwards on the circle/cross symbol or kite. They have huge erect penises showing their ability to fertilise Mother God.

Fray José of Spain was appointed by Philip II to write about Jerome’s life and times. He had access to the Vatican archives and was able to compile an accurate record of the authorship of the New Testament. Jerome wrote in his letters and diaries how he compiled the work from the writing around the empire. Never once did he mention disciples.

Jerome confessed to taking the order of mass, festivals, calendar, instruments and the laws from the Imperial Roman religion and applying them to the Catholic Church. As the book of Matthew contains some of those laws it is unlikely to have been written by anyone other than him. It is a reproduction of the life of Krishna (Chrishna) from which the term Christian may have come. He is the third person of the Vedic Trinity which the NT has applied throughout.

The OT denies there are any other beings beside the one Spirit God, Isaiah 45:4-8.

Ezekiel 22:25,26 details the conspiracy against God and the profanity engaged in. The evidence against the New Testament is proof enough that the work is one of fiction based on myths from other sources.

These verses of Scripture from St. Paul are commonly used in Christian marriage ceremonies. They speak of the relationship between Christ and the Church in terms of the relationship between a husband and his wife. As beautiful as they are, they are also very misunderstood and misinterpreted. Look closely and see their wisdom for your marriage. In Eph 5:21 to 33 Paul writes,
“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. “In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church- for we are members of his body. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery, but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.” There are four important points here. First, Christ loves us so much that He wants to marry us, He calls us His Bride, and He uses marriage as a picture of His relationship to the Church, and to each of us as his followers. Second, there is the “S” word. Submission. Submission does not imply INFERIORITY. God made Eve out of the side of Adam, to be bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh – his equal – his companion. To say that submission somehow implies inferiority is to say that Jesus, when he submitted to the Father, was somehow inferior to the Father. Submission does not imply inferiority in any way. It is a voluntary reliance on another. In fact, the Apostle Paul says that we are all to submit to each other. Wives to submits to husbands, husbands to wives, both to Christ. Third, husbands are to be the leaders of the family, the Pastors in the home. And men are to love their wives as Christ loves the church, and even died for it. And finally, just as Jesus is preparing his bride, the Church, for the day when she will be presented in Heaven without spot or wrinkle, so husbands, as leader, are to prepare your wives to stand before God one day. Always remember that leadership in the home is primarily a spiritual responsibility. May God richly bless your marriage.

When you go camping with Harold, you learn the strangest doctrines. May 21, 2011 has been proclaimed to be the day of the return of Jesus Christ on some Christian family radio stations.

Setting a date for the return of Christ is only setting yourself up for a BIG fall. No one knows the date, nor the hour, thus saith the Lord. But then, there are other extremely dangerous doctrines being put forth by these same people, not just false dates for the return of the Lord.

1. The Church Age is Over. According to those who claim the Lord will return in May 21, 2011, The Church age is over, and everyone that is a Christian should leave their church, for all the churches are apostate. This is absolutely aggravating when most of us preachers are trying to get people INTO the church. And, the Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:25 that we are NOT to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. Now, we all agree that the day is approaching, but who can refute that we are to be more faithful in church as the end draws near?

2. Only the elect can be saved. If you are not one of the elect, there is nothing you can do about it. Either you were born chosen of God, and therefore saved, or else you were born lost, and there is nothing you can do about it. According to them, you cannot repent. According to them, you cannot be converted. This is utter insanity. Why then, did Jesus have to come and die on the cross for our sins? If the saved were “saved” before birth, then why even preach to them? And if a lost guy can’t do anything, try as he might, to get saved, what hope does he have? That is not a very encouraging message to give to someone.

3. And now they are setting the date for Jesus’ return.

I count it the greatest honor in the world to tell you three Basic Bible Truths.
1. Jesus DID die for your sins on the cross.
2. ANYBODY can be saved, by merely placing your faith and trust in the finished work of Christ on the cross.
3. It doesn’t matter how you were born…. as long as you get Born Again!

HOLD THIS quote below, in the tension of what might be, but don’t settle for just it:

“Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.”

~ Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

No, there is something superior to being a first-class version of the first of ourselves – that is to be thoroughly won to the integrity of the Christ identity – for, in that, and in only that, we may be found to have secured something beyond humanity, though something also never more human.

Consider the potential for any of us to acknowledge the eternal identity – soul and spirit united and out of the body, and home truly in heaven. Hold that in tension with the inherent state of our human identity – that we are broken, fallen, sinful creatures so fitted to earth. Both of these designates are amazing in there oppositeness. As our Lord Jesus was both fully man and fully divine when he strode the earth, we too have features of both humanness and divinity.

When we can unite these two throbbing truths we can find ourselves cherishing an integrity that we always hoped would be ours; not a contrived integrity, but a real and an integral one.

The key is this: we must consider ourselves to have the fullness of the identity of a sinner, with – completely with – the fullness of one that Christ came to save.

This is when we have allowed God to unite these two integrities of our Christ identity. We have made two forms of integrity – humanness and divinity – positively integral, and together, both these two are keys to the unification of the integrity of our Christ identity.

TWO-INTO-ONE

Made in the image of God, and having the Holy Spirit dwelling deep within, affords us to say, we can identify with both our humanity and our divinity.

God asks us to hold these matters together in tension: 1) we are sinners, and 2) we have been saved. The second thing couldn’t have happened if not for the first thing, but the second thing is what we have ever wanted and needed. We always wanted to be our own gods.

***

The true Christ identity is the integration of two important conditions: 1) we are sinners, fully human, fallen and broken, and 2) we are fully divine because of Christ’s cross, his resurrection, and because we are sealed by the Holy Spirit. Integrity is joining these two very different concepts-of-self together.

The fruit of integrity of self is peace within and peace all about: the Christ identity.

The greatest single advantage the integrity of our Christ identity gives us is the ability to be real persons, faithful in reality, honest to God.

© 2013 S. J. Wickham.

Although scripture clearly states that a “double minded man is unstable in all his ways,” open-minded Christ followers have to agree – there are some issues about Christianity that create discomfort. It is not a stretch to admit that a truthful Christian grapples with a certain amount of doubt along the journey. Denying the potential of doubt is being intellectually dishonest. The question is – are you alone in your doubts or are others having similar debates?

Ed Gungor’s candor in What Bothers Me Most about Christianity is admirable. His prose is easily followed and his development of key issues evidences sufficient thought and study. Pastor Gungor is to be commended – his selection of pivotal issues speaks to the doubts of which thinking Christians struggle. It is refreshing to read of a popular pastor’s doubts and see honest reflection. Such transparency only elevates the author’s authenticity.

Not satisfied to talk about trite issues, Gungor tackles some of the bigger things which plague Christians. For example, one issue dealt with is the idea that Jesus Christ is the only way to a relationship with God. Since post modernity seeks all things pluralistic, the exclusivity purported by Christianity’s claims cause some to feel the sting of unfairness. Could a loving God banish the faithful of religions contrary to Christianity to utter torment? If the Bible is truthful then a Christian has to concede that God would respond according to scripture. Gungor seeks to bring balance by admitting that the nuances of saving faith are not easily understandable and that Christians should only convey this message with the undergirding of love. In his response he never denies the truthfulness of the issue but makes it clear that an audience of mutual respect is best for dialogue.

Thinking Christians will benefit from reading about the other issues with which Gungor wrestles. Classic debates, such as “Why is there Evil in this World?” and “How does one reconcile reason with faith?” are presented in logical fashion. Gungor’s desire is to share his reflections which enables him to write candidly about how thinking Christians struggle to explain something as prevalent as evil.

Faith is a journey. If you would enjoy a cogent development of such issues – this book is for you.

What Bothers Me Most about Christianity: Honest Reflections From an Open-Minded Christ Follower. [Soft cover]

by Ed Gungor

256 pages, $15.99

ISBN-10: 1416592555

Nonfiction

Review by Steven King, MBA, MEd

Taking in a movie is a very rewarding experience especially when I have an experience that I had not expected to have. Seeing the movie WALL-E on the silver screen was truly a spiritual experience for me! This movie is a brilliant metaphor for the mystical union of Man with his Divine Higher Self.

An Initiate of the Inner Teaching views things in a dramatically different Light than does the uninitiated. To most, WALL-E is simply a sci-fi children's movie. To me, WALL-E is a movie saturated with spiritual overtones with many parallels to the Inner Teaching .

WALL-E (acronym for W aste A llocation L oad L ifter E arth-Class ) represents the first man, Adam , from the Earth ( First Corinthians 15:47 ). Like Adam, WALL-E was commissioned to perform physical labor ( Genesis 2: 15 ). WALL-E was one of hundreds of thousands of waste disposal robots left to clean up a planet that has become too toxic for human habitation. Some 700 years later WALL-E, the sole functioning droid, adheres to the daily routine of compacting trash into cubes [1] for disposal. Over time WALL-E evolves into a curious and sentient robot with the ability to experience emotion. Some believe in the inevitability of robots developing intelligence to exceed our own if they are programmed to make their own software and their own upgrades. We have seen this theme explored in movies such as Terminator , The Matrix , and I, Robot.

Each morning WALL-E commences his day by recharging his solar battery. The image of WALL-E drinking in sunlight through his unfurled solar panels reminds me of the Christ Conscious man basking in the Light of GOD , recharging his soul battery through reflective, meditative, and contemplative prayer.

Like Adam, WALL-E longs for a companion. When WALL-E (the natural man) meets and falls head over heels in love with EVE [2] (the dynamic Christ principle) he discovers just what his life is meant for. When one becomes illuminated with Christ the purpose of ones existence is made manifest.

EVE is an advance robotic probe whose classified directive is to find Life on Earth. Once Life is found humans can then return to re-colonize their home planet. EVE (shaped like a sleek white egg) and the seedling plant (that WALL-E discovered) both symbolize LIFE. These two symbols for LIFE are synthesized when EVE places the seedling into her "Womb."

WALL-E, with the tenacity of the Patriarch Yacov ( Genesis 32:27 ), refuses to part with EVE and is willing to go to any length to remain united with her. At one point in the movie, WALL-E is carried off into the depths of outer space in pursuit of EVE.

Within each one of us lie vast Worlds greater than any planet or galaxy that NASA can take us to. Yahshua 'said, "In my Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you …" The significance of the Inner Teaching, aka, the ENTER Teaching, is that we are given the practical tools required to rend the Veil which separates us from GOD.

[1] The Cube is a symbol concealing the Mystery of Christ. When the Cube is unfolded the figure of the Cross emerges and the Mystery of Christ is revealed.

[2] EVE ( E xtraterrestrial V egetation E valuator ) represents the Eve of the Book of Genesis (3:20). EVE also symbolizes the Hindu Tattwa symbol, Akasha. Akasha (SPIRIT) is represented as a black egg and symbolizes the void of space, the womb, feminine energy, and New Life.