2008-Jun-10 - Mezuzah
Since two weeks I have a part time job at the Eastern Eoropean Mission as a receptionist. That means I have to answer the telephone and do something on the computer, I don't know what, we'll see. There is also a souvenir shop where I bought a mezuzah. Now what's a mezuzah?
A mezuzah (Hebrew: "doorpost") (plural: mezuzot ) is a piece of parchment (usually contained in a decorative case) inscribed with specified Hebrew verses from the Torah (Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21). These verses comprise the Jewish prayer "Shema Yisrael," and begins with the phrase "Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God, the Lord is One."
A mezuzah is affixed to the doorframe of Jewish homes to fulfill the mitzvah (Biblical commandment) to inscribe the words of the Shema "on the doorposts of your house."(Deuteronomy 6:9) Many families place a mezuzah on the front door only, but observant Jews fix one on every doorway in the home apart from bathrooms, and closets too small to qualify as rooms.[1] The parchment is prepared by a qualified scribe (a "sofer stam") who has undergone many years of meticulous training, and the verses are written in indelible black ink with a special quill pen. The parchment is then rolled up and placed inside the case
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2008-Jun-5 - The Legend of the Cherokee Indian Youth
Do you know the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of Passage?
His father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone.
He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it.
He cannot cry out for help to anyone. Once he survives the night, he is a MAN.
He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own. The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises.
Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blew the grass and earth, and shook his stump, but he sat stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could become a man!
Finally , after a horrific night the sun appeared and he removed his blindfold.
It was then that he discovered his father sitting on the stump next to him.
He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm.
We, too, are never alone. Even when we don't know it, God is watching over us, sitting on the stump beside us. When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him.
Just because you can't see God,
Doesn't mean He is not there.
'For we walk by faith, not by sight.
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2008-May-13 - The Holy Ghost
The day before yesterday we celebrated the coming of the Holy Spirit, The true Spirit of God. The Spirit Jesus already showed to his disciples : the Spirit of love, understanding, respect, forgiveness. The Spirit that knows no hatred to those who don't believe. and no revenge to those who hurt and despise us. That is the Spirit that belongs to God and to Jesus. That is what we call the Holy Trinity. Three different ways of God to show Himself to this world.
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2008-Apr-27 - A Thought for this Day
I read this in church this morning.
An Angel is somebody,
whom God sends in your life,
just like that, suddenly
and undeserved,
to light a few stars
when it gets very dark
( translated from a poem by Phil Bosmans
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2008-Mar-21 - Am Abend da es kühle war......
Since I was sixteen I have been a devoted listener to Bach. I got this score of the St. Matthew Passion on my 19th birthday and I am 74 now.
74. Rezitativ (Bass)
Am Abend, da es kühle war,
Ward Adams Fallen offenbar.
Am Abend drücket ihn der Heiland nieder;
Am Abend kam die Taube wieder,
Und trug ein Oelblatt in dem Munde
O schöne Zeit, o Abendstunde!
Der Friedensschluss ist nun mit Gott gemacht,
Denn Jesus hat sein Kreuz vollbracht.
Sein Leichnam kommt zur Ruh'.
Ach liebe Seele, bitte du,
Geh', lasse dir den toten Jesum schenken,
O heilsames, o köstlich's Angedenken!
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2008-Mar-19 - He was one of us.
Drawings by Rien Poortvliet.
Jesus, who lived among us as a man of peace, blessed and healed those who came to him. He called himself Son of Men. He lived the life of the perfect human being, without sins. He was against violence and has never killed or allowed killing. He was opposed to killing, and it goes without saying that killing in the name of God is the greatest sin possible.. He was the face of God on earth. By him we can say that we have a father in heaven.
Maundy Thursday: Jesus celebrated the Last Supper surrounded by his 12 diciples. Judas betrayed him that same night.Peter claimed never to betray him but before the morning came he had told three times that he didn't know Jesus. During the night he was interrogated by the priests. The next mornig they sent him to the Roman governor Pilate, who didn't know what to do with Jesus, but had him flogged and ordered him to be crucified because the priests demanded it. He was crucified on Friday and buried in a new grave. His diciples went to the grave on Sunday and saw that the grave was empty and the Roman guards had disappeared. Jesus was risen from the dead and soon showed himself to his friends
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2008-Mar-17 - The Holy Week
This Holy Week will be celebrated in all churches all over the world. On Maundy Thursday we commemorate the last supper Jesus took with his dicipels. On Good Friday I always listen to the St Matthew Passion by J.S. Bach.
I found this poem which I translated from the Dutch:
He lives!
He didn't want to be a Protestant,
a Roman Catholic or Salvation Army,
A socialist or a liberal.
He didn't build frontiers,
nor did he create nations,
empires or republics.
He didn't believe in gods.
He was a man.
He loved.
He was full of God.
He lives among us.
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