Posts by THE GLADIATOR

12

Some respite from the usual subjects hammered out on the forum

by THE GLADIATOR in

jw
friends

i no longer send postcards when i go on holiday.

i wait until i am home and write a satirical account of the holiday.

this is emailed to my friends.

THE GLADIATOR

Thanks to you all for you comments and thanks for the pm Tammy.

There is no problem using my wife's real name. I was being unnecessarily secretive.

34

Gentle JESUS, meek and mild . . .

by nicolaou in

okay, this is a subjective choice of scriptures but i'm throwing them out here for discussion.

what do these texts tell us about jesus?

remember, this is jesus in his own words!.

As shown below the occult is often misunderstood. Any belief in a supernatural being is occult Deleted dictionary definition due to p roblem with formatting but you can google Occult for yourselves

12

Some respite from the usual subjects hammered out on the forum

by THE GLADIATOR in

jw
friends

i no longer send postcards when i go on holiday.

i wait until i am home and write a satirical account of the holiday.

this is emailed to my friends.

THE GLADIATOR

I no longer send postcards when I go on holiday. I wait until I am home and write a satirical account of the holiday. This is emailed to my friends. It has gathered quite a following, so I thought I would share my last one with you. I live in southern England and satire is appreciated here. (I have changed my wife’s name to Rachel)

You may be amused or not - but it may give you some respite from the usual subjects hammered out on the forum.

Well Hello,

For all my sins, I have been forced to go away on yet another holiday. This time two weeks in a charming stone cottage nestling just above Ambleside in the Lake District . Just the place for Lakeland Lovers - they only provide the lakes. We were fortunate enough to enjoy a heat wave, no rain for two weeks and still light at 11.00pm ‘up Narth.’

Over the two weeks we covered 1,000 miles by car, in all, and 140 miles on foot, mostly over mountains. Rachel won’t tie her laces for anything less than 10 miles. Onwards and upwards, I focused on Rachel’s small but beautifully formed behind and blocked out the fatigue.

‘Such beauty makes me philosophical,’ I declared, as I absorbed the breathtaking scenery.

‘Full of something,’ she replied.

Using up energy faster than a leaking well head, we climbed into the realms of the gods. Over the Old Man of Coniston, Langdale Pikes, Wansfell, Wast Water, Irton Fell, Borrowdale, Aira Force et al, we climbed a stair every day.

Complete strangers greeted us. I put it down to the high altitude.

‘Why is everyone pretending to be nice?’ I asked Rachel.

‘People are nice,’ she assured me.

Unconvinced, and with much effort, I strove to be nice for the whole holiday; More of a challenge than the walking. I stopped to give a hiker a lift.

‘Why are you stopping for him?’ Rachel asked.

‘Because I am being nice,’ I replied, with a Tony Blair smile.

Our evenings were spent savouring the softer side of life and planning our next conquest. Ambleside is a quaint Victorian town, full of delightful restaurants which have considerately raised their prices to meet the expectations of tourists.

On TV we watched BP trying to cap the well. They seem unable to produce a cap that fits tightly and won't leak or blow out. I am so glad they don’t make condoms!

Before our sojourn, I had acquired two walking poles; not to be confused with walking sticks.

‘You will look ridiculous!’ Rachel declared.

‘Looking ridiculous is something I have long become accustomed to. Just being here is an achievement.’

I explained that they enabled me to spread the exertion through my whole body, providing balance, exercise and stress reduction by employing my upper limbs.

‘You mean using your arms,’ she replied.

Ah! The beauty of simplicity.

As the miles passed and I vaulted up the inclines, Rachel became more contrite. It appeared that all the serious walkers were employing their upper limbs. After 10 days, a breakthrough. She agreed to sample my mobility aides and now wants some of her own!

My original 20 year old walking boots, which I should have placed in a museum, finally met their end on the stony walk over The Old Man of Coniston, and fell apart. An omen perhaps?

‘You’re very fit for an older man,’ Rachel remarked.

‘You’re very fit yourself,’ I replied sparingly.

Despite our evening excesses, I lost 5 pounds. Rachel lost nothing, being perfected already.

One minute’s walk from the cottage was a rustic organic wine store run by a charming Italian ‘ Uomo. ’ I spent so much time there that Rachel began asking questions.

Saturday morning came too fast. Suntanned, sated, sober and chastened, we thrust ourselves back down the motorway to rejoin reality. We have climbed every mountain, forded every stream and I have found my dream - the fragrant Rachel. Despite her best efforts, she was unable to out-walk me and my poles.

I hope this satirical postcard finds you well and that you too will find time to make a grape escape and reconnect with your passion for the stuff of dreams.

Take care

149

NOW how do you view the Future?

by theMadJW in

jw
friends

casting aside what little you learned about god and christ- are you thrilled with the future of mankind?.

THE GLADIATOR

This is a good thread and I have enjoyed all you comments.

I don't feel able to contribute at the moment but thanks for the entertainment.

34

Gentle JESUS, meek and mild . . .

by nicolaou in

okay, this is a subjective choice of scriptures but i'm throwing them out here for discussion.

what do these texts tell us about jesus?

remember, this is jesus in his own words!.

THE GLADIATOR

Then I stalked out to my car and spent the next hour fruitlessly trying to figure out why the $@@%$#% thing wouldn't start.

The moral of this story is - get a decent car!

209

Christians: Do you believe Jesus is the only way?

by sabastious in

jw
friends

i was walking around town and a guy on a bike comes up to and shoves a cardboard bum sign in my face with "jesus is the only way" written in classy sharpy marker.. check out this scripture:.

john 14: 6 - jesus answered, "i am the way and the truth and the life.

no one comes to the father except through me.. according to this scripture the guy's sharpy message was correct.. do you believe this message?.

THE GLADIATOR

Thanks Tammy.

I have my little flare ups, but have had a stronger lid made for my box to keep me in check.

36

Is your Intellect Pre-Enlightenment or Post-Enlightenment?

by Terry in

before the age of enlightenment the earth was filled with many nations living under vastly differing beliefs about the world.. tribes, nations and empires possessed fanciful superstitious beliefs about their own importance in the big picture.. religion helped man find a place among fearful gods and demons.

faith and belief, ritual and performance duties, helped man allay fears by.

becoming active in appeasing the gods and shunning the evil spirits.. judaism allowed adherents a means of ridding themselves of sin (animal sacrifice) and accounting for wrongs (justice via law).. christianity removed animal sacrifice and substituted fealty to the church (catholic).

THE GLADIATOR

Pre-Enlightenment: dependant on scripture, church and Authority?

Post-Enlightenment: testing everything with practical curiousity?

Of course people who have a faith in a god or gods consider themselves to be Post-Enlightenment or Enlightened.

Whereas non-believers are considered Pre-Enlightenment - or Unenlightened.

So it becomes a matter of our perspective or world view. Everyone is certain they have tested everything with practical curiosity and are

Post-Enlightenment. Challenge anyones dearly held beliefs and the challenger is automaticaly considered Pre-Enlightenment.

I realize that to your lazer like mind Terry, my comments make no sense; but I am describing how the 'average' mind works.

34

Gentle JESUS, meek and mild . . .

by nicolaou in

okay, this is a subjective choice of scriptures but i'm throwing them out here for discussion.

what do these texts tell us about jesus?

remember, this is jesus in his own words!.

THE GLADIATOR

nicolaou

I would hate to think that I've contributed to 'bad feelings' or in some way shaped a battle field - but I probably have...

We all have. This is a discussion forum and we all contribute our thoughts and opinions and this inevitably leads to conflict. I have enjoyed some of the battles and regretted others.

There is nothing wrong with this forum or the people that post here and I have no desire for it to change. What I desire to change is my own outlook and perspective. Badging myself as a gladiator is not helpful!

34

Gentle JESUS, meek and mild . . .

by nicolaou in

okay, this is a subjective choice of scriptures but i'm throwing them out here for discussion.

what do these texts tell us about jesus?

remember, this is jesus in his own words!.

THE GLADIATOR

Thankyou ProdigalSon

I have 2 of Deepak Chopra's book in my study: Unconditional life & Quantum Healing. I used to be something of a fan but have alas change my view of him.

bohm I watched the U-tube clip. It's funny but sad that it's so true.

34

Gentle JESUS, meek and mild . . .

by nicolaou in

okay, this is a subjective choice of scriptures but i'm throwing them out here for discussion.

what do these texts tell us about jesus?

remember, this is jesus in his own words!.

THE GLADIATOR

nicolaou

The bible covers all bases. For every scripture one can quote, there is another that says the opposite. Should it become impossible to reconcile or make sense of the discrepancy, it must be assumed that the quoted scripture is not part of god's inspired word. Any verse that proclaims love and kindness is god's word. It is a no win circular argument, like a dog chasing it's tail.

To be honest. I am weary of such discussions and the bad feeling they create. I started on this forum under my own name when it first opened. I felt it was a place for those who had lost their faith to come and share their loss with similar people.

Now it seems to be a battle-ground for Christians and Atheists. A place for egos to find satisfaction. These remarks are not aimed at any particular persons. Most Christians have shown me great kindness but I am not sure that being here is helpful to me anymore.