DID YOU KNOW: that in 306 AD Constantine the Great, became the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, he decriminalized Christian practices and stopped its persecution. He had a political ideology called Constantinianism, which called for the unity of Church and State, one single "state religion." Universal or Catholic because it combined the many different religions of his Empire, and thereby solved many political problems. Familiar aspects would be, the Unknowable God and Trinity of the Greek Platonist's, Eternal life of the Egyptians, and many elements from both Roman and Greek religio-philosophy. It would have a Jewish back story and Messiah. One of the largest religions of his Empire was the Persian faith of Zoroaster, their priest were called Magi, the same wise men who followed a star to Bethlehem looking for a newborn king, and why the Book of Revelation was added to the Bible 70 years after the Council of Nicaea. 390
An important motivation for the creation of the Roman Catholic Church was the concept, "IN HOC SIGNO VINCES," which is Latin for, "by this sign conquer." Zoroastrianism, was the principal Persian religion, it had a single creator God, and featured a cosmology of good and evil, predicting the ultimate destruction of evil in a final battle. This is the Book of Revelation, which was included in the New Testament canon by the Council of Hippo and the Council of Carthage in the fourth century. Added by the Roman State in Constantinople, for the purpose of expanding and better dominating Persian territories. Rome had no problem with killing you, and then taking your land, genocide was business as usual, just like Gaza today, Do Christians know the Book of Revelation comes from the people of Iran, a people who we now wish to eliminate because they oppose the theft and genocide of Gaza. What side of this battle do you think a Christian should take? 389 BB-10
At the Battle of Siddim, the first of twenty battles described in the Bible, Abraham starts his profession with a household of three hundred eighteen trained mercenaries. After this battle Abraham gives tides of 10% to Melchizedek, priest of the God El ʿElyon , King of Jerusalem, and Messiah. It will be declared that the Jewish priesthood will be forever, in the order of Melchizedek. To the Jewish world, no one was greater than Abraham, yet Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek, indicating that Melchizedek was even greater. There is a stark contrast here between a religion of war profiteers, to one which teaches us to love our enemy. Christ too is from the line of Melchizedek, but rejects a jealous God, and describes an unknowable, just and benevolent God. The priesthood is changed to those of Christ, and the law is changed as well. Look up Hebrews 7, then ask, and tell me why, if I am a Christian why must I support genocide? 386
Then the Lord said to Abram, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?” So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.” Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and mistreated there. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions." On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the River of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates." Do we commit genocide and start World War three because of a Bible Story, where has our logic, compassion and reason gone? 385
Does the Bible talk about corporations, and what is the word Ekklesia? A legal entity that is separate from its owners, with its own rights and liabilities, just like you, but different. Socrates believed that an un-examined mind was not worth living, then the same must apply to an un-examined society. I ask that you examine the behavior of your society, then understand what a corporation is, and how they dominate our economy. Then answer these questions: If corporations were democratic open and directly managed online by investors, would that not eliminate the crooks and tyrants behind our corporations? Would we not then be done with, secrecy, corruption and the vast majority of social problems. I believe that we were once enslaved by Tyrants, and today our master has become the corporation. Seek the truth, collaborate with others and build a better society for you and our children. 375
God is the term we use to describe a superior being that we imagine and fear, underpinning theology and representing creation. The phenomenon of God doesn't require belief in any particular deity, as interpretations of God vary as widely as individual perspectives. Whether or not one believes in God, religions provide meaning to many lives. However, since one religion often deems others false, it can be argued that religion imparts false meaning to people's lives. Believing in God involves recognizing the vastness beyond our understanding and accepting that any purpose to our existence can only be known through faith. Unfortunately, much current faith was established without regard for truth, reason, or established theory, often propagating ignorance and facilitating enslavement. We need an interpretation of God that is based on factual understanding, adds cohesion to society, and enhances the quality of life for everyone.
Western Religion is a set of instructions, or in other words an algorithm. Instructions from a God we must fear and obey. Religion shapes our future and is responsible for our past behavior. Although God can be denied, it cannot be denied that people believe in God, nor that what people believe affects their behavior, and in turn affects you. Religion is both the problem and the solution. The realm of the unknowable increases with time, yet the unknown must be given words and form, thus we will always need some form of religion and faith to give meaning to the unknowable, call it God, or any other term we wish to call all that we cannot understand. History shows us that our religion has failed us and that we must build a more functional religion. We require a Religion that evolves with us, that is truthful, promotes intelligence, equal justice and motivates us to care for the least of us. Instead of fearing God we should embrace the unknown with inquiry and doubt. 363
In 1290 King Edward expelled the Jews from England. After persecution in Portugal a Sephardic Jew, Menasseh ben Israel, came to Holland with is father, studied at the Yeshiva in Amsterdam, excelled in Talmudic studies, and was appointed to the Rabbinical Council in Amsterdam. In 1650 he sent "The Hope of Israel," a petition to the English Parliament asking for the readmission of Jews. In October 1655, he was permitted to go to Britain, and wrote "Salvation of the Jews." Oliver Cromwell then granted individual Jews the right to settle in London. He was a Cabbalist with a strong belief in the coming of the Messiah. In 1666 the son of a British cloth merchant and Cabbalist, Sabbatai Zevi would declare himself to be the Messiah, he would convert to Islam, declare sin to be holy, and immoral acts were encouraged, many Europeans would hail him as the Messiah. They would be declared heretics and go underground. 379
We choose our partners, have children, and pray they will grow up to be better than us. We compete for a better mate, and in one way or the other all progress is shaped by our vision of reproductive success. Our struggle to dominate motivates evolution and shapes the fabric of our civilization. Language first, then reading and writing emerge, now if you can't communicate you are less competitive. Each passing day more knowledge is required to compete. Complexity increases, with each generation, repeated generation after generation, with each step being more complex than the previous. Our epoch, place, language and civilization is imposed on us, our desire is imposed on us. Progress is pushed by sexual motivation, one generation causing the formation of the next, both causal and deterministic. Do we have free will, or is free will an illusion? 359
Who can deny we are animals? We choose our partners, have children, and pray they will grow up to be better than us. We compete for a better mate, and in one way or the other all progress is shaped by our vision of reproductive success. Our struggle to dominate motivates evolution and shapes the fabric of our civilization. Language first, then reading and writing emerge, now if you can't communicate you are less competitive. Each passing day more knowledge is required to compete. Complexity increases, with each generation, repeated generation after generation, with each step being more complex than the previous. Our epoch, place, language and civilization is imposed on us, our desire is imposed on us. Progress is pushed by sexual motivation, one generation causing the formation of the next, both causal and deterministic. Do we have free will, or is free will an illusion? 359
