Angels are shown as white, not to elevate one race over another, but because the brightest light which we can see is white, the apparant color of the Sun. A fire would be almost white when burning very hot, and gradually become yellow, then red before it died, leaving black embers. Black is the color of darkness, such as found deep inside a cave. The dualism in Christianity AND in other dualistic belief systems such as Mithraism links forces of Good with Light and Knowledge and forces of Evil with Darkness and Ignorance. Gods sword which kept Adam and Eve from returning to Eden was "burning". The Bible warns that evil people will be cast into darkness, where they will weep and gnash their teeth. Other deities, such as Ahura-Mazda, are represented as a burning flame which dissipates darkness. This is why one brand of light bulb is called "Mazda" (don't know if this is connected to the automobile company or not). Further, in the ancient world, the natural color of a woven cotton or linen garment would have been almost white when clean, growing gradually darker as it became dirty. Wool could be more colors because it comes from the hair of sheep, so might naturally have grey, brown or black fibers in it, but an all white wool garment would have been very special, and therefore expensive. Early tires for automobiles were white rubber, and were observed to pick up dirt from the road, developing a black band around their circumference. Since there was no way to prevent them from picking up dirt, eventually they came to be made of black rubber, with the white sidewall becoming a special, extra-cost decoration which implied that the car, and therefore the owner, was a person of importance. The idea continues in the raised white letters seen on some tires. In modern times, light is still associated with knowledge and safety. Cartoons often show a light bulb over someones head when they have an idea. Advertisements for Ford used to show a brightly lit bulb, with the expression "Ford Has A Better Idea". The symbol for the Unitarian-Universalist church is a flame burning in a chalice, dispelling ignorance through study and knowledge. Lighthouses save lives because of their bright light warning ships of dangers which await in the darkness. Children often sleep better if a small night-light is left burning, rather than allowing their room to be completely dark/black.
gaiagirl
JoinedPosts by gaiagirl
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52
Why are angels always white?
by slimboyfat inin pictures of conventions or the new system they tend to show a mixture of races, but the angels always seem to be white.
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slim.
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Lady In The Water
by gaiagirl ini just saw this wonderful film, directed by m.night shyamalan, who also directed "the sixth sense", "unbreakable", "signs", and "the village".
basically, the film illustrates some philosophical points by means of a fairy tale.
i don't think the storyline is meant to be taken as literally true, only the points which the story illustrates.
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gaiagirl
LITW grew out of a bedtime story which M. Night made up for his daughters. It was kind of a "continued tomorrow night" sort of epic which went on for some time. Eventually, he wrote it as a childrens book, beautifully illustrated by "Crash" McCreery. The book illustrates in a general way how the interconnectedness works and how people can do great things. The movie illustrates the same things, but for one specific case, the subject of the story.
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Lady In The Water
by gaiagirl ini just saw this wonderful film, directed by m.night shyamalan, who also directed "the sixth sense", "unbreakable", "signs", and "the village".
basically, the film illustrates some philosophical points by means of a fairy tale.
i don't think the storyline is meant to be taken as literally true, only the points which the story illustrates.
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gaiagirl
I just saw this wonderful film, directed by M.Night Shyamalan, who also directed "The Sixth Sense", "Unbreakable", "Signs", and "The Village". Basically, the film illustrates some philosophical points by means of a fairy tale. I don't think the storyline is meant to be taken as literally true, only the points which the story illustrates. The story is making the points that we are connected, in the sense that small things which we do can have large influences on the lives of others, and that ordinary people can individually and cooperatively do extraordinary things. The story involves the manager of some apartments, who spends his days solving problems for his tenants. He has a secret as to why he works at such a job, revealed later in the film. One day he almost drowns in the swimming pool, loses consciousness, and is saved by a water nymph who lives in a room which she made under the swimming pool. He learns that she has been sent to inspire someone, a writer, to finish his book, which will become very influential, and change the course of human history. But she doesn't know how to find the writer. And there are very bad creatures who wish to keep her from completing her mission, and prevent her from returning to her home and fulfilling her own destiny. In helping her complete her mission, ordinary people rise to greatness. The story is told in a slow but beautiful manner, showing how even the most mundane people have something to contribute. There were portions of the film which were so moving I could hardly catch my breath. LITW received poor reviews from many critics, and didn't do well at the box office. I decided that critics didn't like the film because of two things: Shyamalan cast himself in a significant role in the film which some might see as arrogant, although I didn't. Also, one of the most annoying, least helpful characters in the story is a film critic, and meets a very unfortunate ending. If I had to sum up this film, I would say it was beautiful to the point of being magical, intensely moving, and very bittersweet.
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The "perfect human" being ...
by Frequent_Fader_Miles inaccording to the jw belief, what definition/explanation were you given for the concept of "human perfection"?
what exactly would make a "perfect human" ... well... perfect?.
i remember once when i was a child, my mom told me that when i decided on my adult profession, i should make sure it's one i would be able to use in the "new system".
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gaiagirl
I never considered "perfect" humans as being unbreakable, just that they would heal perfectly when injuries did occur, sort of like the cheerleader on "Heroes".
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OK, my dealing-with-heckler skills need work! (stand up comedy)
by AlmostAtheist inso i went to the bar again tonight for my 4th appearance at the open mic comedy event.
my last three sets went fine, got plenty of laughs, and i felt good about them.
tonight i thought some folks from work were going to be there so i was using old material that had worked previously.
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gaiagirl
How about... heckler: "you're an asshole". comic: (borrowing line from Monty Python) "And I fart in your general direction".
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Musings about geology, "deep" time, and humans
by Alpaca inone of the most humbling things a person can do is to stand at the base of a tall (hundreds of feet) outcrop of fossil bearing sedimentary rocks, wiggle out a piece of rock, and look at the fossils...knowing that they have not seen the light of day in 350 million years (give or take a few million, lol).
ordinary concepts of time disappear with these kinds of numbers, hence geologists resort to the term "deep time.
" when you take the mental step back to try and grasp "deep time" it makes you realize how puny and insignificant the human species is.
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gaiagirl
Another idea that seems to go away when one thinks about deep time is the anthropocentric notion that the earth was created FOR us. When we see how long other species existed, unchallenged, and then realize that, but for a volcanic eruption or stray asteroid, they might still exist today, it rather takes some of ones breath away. Humans have existed as a species for less than 500,000 years, and that is being generous with what one considers human. Our "civilization" has existed for much less than 10,000 years. Consider whales, large brained sentient beings which have existed for more than 50 million years. Or consider crocodiles, which have existed almost unchanged since BEFORE there were dinosaurs. If another 6 mile diameter asteroid struck the planet tomorrow, who would survive, humans or crocodiles?
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Pre-Historic Video Games for those quiet afternoons....
by kid-A infor anyone that can actually remember these games: pacman, tetris, frogger, space invaders, asteroids...... they are all available here, free and no downloads required:.
http://www.80smusiclyrics.com/games.shtml.
man i'm so old...... .
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gaiagirl
My favorite "old" game was Venture, sort of a very early version of Tomb Raider, in which the character (an orange dot which could shoot arrows) had to enter the rooms of a building and grab the treasure, while avoiding whatever spooky creatures were in the room. I used to play the game at a restaurant where I used to eat.
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Jesus' Tomb... Has it been found?
by Elsewhere init's a long shot to prove such a thing... i'm curious how this will pan out.. .
http://time-blog.com/middle_east/2007/02/jesus_tales_from_the_crypt.html.
february 23, 2007 6:55 jesus: tales from the cryptbrace yourself.
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gaiagirl
I have heard from a reliable source that the actress Audrey Tautou is an actual descendant of Jesus : )
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Do you still believe in the Return of Christ? 66% says in 2007
by magdalenefan ini thank you for your support for my sadness over my divorce, and not taking in the faith of the witnesses no more.
i tried the search engine for some articles and it said it was being updated.. i am still believing in the word of god, i dont believe anymore in greedy people.
how many here believe that christ will still return?.
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gaiagirl
66% of who? Certainly not 66% of all Americans, or 66% of the entire world. Perhaps 66% of Baptists (or other BAC church)? The story of Christs "return" was written decades after his execution. Since the original copies of those stories have long since disintegrated, there is absolutely no way to even know those originals ever contained such a promise, or if even ANY person ever made such a claim. My expectation is that no return will ever take place, not in my lifetime, or yours, or of any person who ever lives at any time in the future.
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Purpose for the Earth
by zarco inafter re- reading at the suggestion of auldsoul the context of john 10:16 and ephesians 2: 1-22 i can now see the the other sheep are the gentiles believers and indeed jesus is speaking to the pharisees in john 10. my question is:.
what is god's purpose for the earth?.
zarco.
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gaiagirl
If one assumes that Earth has a "purpose", instead of simply "being", this then begs the question "What is the "purpose" of all the other planets and stars?"