Let There Be No Foreign God Among You…

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‘Let there be no foreign god among you;

GOD THE FATHER
Cima da Conegliano (1460–1518)

no worship of an alien god.
I am the Lord your God,
who brought you from the land of Egypt.
Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.

‘But my people did not heed my voice
and Israel would not obey,
so I left them in their stubbornness of heart
to follow their own designs.

‘O that my people would heed me,
that Israel would walk in my ways!
At once I would subdue their foes,
turn my hand against their enemies.

‘The Lord’s enemies would cringe at their feet
and their subjection would last for ever.
But Israel I would feed with finest wheat
and fill them with honey from the rock.’

…………………………………….– Psalm 80 (81)
…………………………………….– from Today’s Divine Office, Morning Prayer

 

Translation 2012:
(addendum requested by a friend)

Much of 2012 America refuses to obey God’s law.
Even “religious” people who pray, have re-interpreted Judeo-Christian teaching to suit themselves, condoning abortion, promiscuity, divorce, gay marriage, dishonesty and materialism.
God is no longer God (i.e. first and most important and in charge).
Now comfort and pleasure are gods, and we are the bosses.

As the above psalm states, God sadly leaves us in our stubbornness of heart to follow our own designs.  He has given us free will.

If only God’s people would heed Him, God would subdue our foes and feed us with all that is good.
Hope we figure that out soon, as a nation.

Clarification:

God’s rules are not archaic, outdated or stupid.
God’s rules are not counter-scientific or mysterious.
God’s rules are wise, and are designed to protect us from rash, impulsive and dangerous decisions which lead to misery in this life, as well as in the next.
God is the ultimate wise one, the ultimate loving one, and the ultimate patient and tolerant one.

When we start obeying His law, and stop thinking that we are smarter and wiser than He is, our lives will improve.
Our lives will improve not only personally, but our life and prosperity as a nation will also improve.

But Religion is myth, is it not?

We have no trouble believing historical accounts on the existence, deeds and words of  ancient philosophers, Roman Emperors, and Presidents.  We believe the reports of individual news reporters every day.
Yet we question the witness of thousands of people throughout history, and discard the testimony of literally billions of religious people today, when it comes to the existence, deeds and words of God throughout human history.

For those not in some form of denial, religion is just as historical as is the existence of Abraham Lincoln.
Abraham Lincoln, who was, by the way, home-schooled by his mother with the Bible as his text.

Studying the history of God’s participation in human events and acknowledging our need to follow His rules and to ask for His help equips us for greatness.
Ignoring God leads to masochistic folly.
Satan knows this.
And no, Satan is not a myth, any more than God is.
The best military tactic in history is to convince your enemy that you do not exist, that you are no threat.
That has been one of Satan’s favorite tactics.

(Subject for a future blog post.)