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christendom

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(www.sass-pants.com) — A tweet from Divapalooza led me to an article about the concept of biblical grounds for divorce. Author Shane Vader Hart does a beautiful job of explicating some key scriptures surrounding this issue, but I think there’s more to the issue.

As Hart points out, God hates divorce. When a man and woman marry, they are to become one flesh. Under Mosaic law, divorce was permitted as a concession, not as a commandment. But Jesus said that “anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness ["fornication," KJV], and marries another woman commits adultery” (Matthew 19:8-9), and Christ’s teachings cancelled out the Mosaic Law (see also Ephesians 2).

Does Jesus explicitly say that divorce is prohibited? In the preceding verses is this exchange: [click to continue…]

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All About Christmas Traditions

by Kristen King on December 24, 2008

(www.sass-pants.com) — Mental Floss posted a handy, albeit not brilliantly written, article that discusses the origins of popular Christmas traditions, including the date, the American obsession with the holiday, Christmas trees, Santa Claus, and Rudolph. You can read what they found here.

Me, I’ve done some research on these very topics myself, which led me to the decision that I don’t want anything to do with Christmas (see “No, Not Even Thanksgiving” for info on why I don’t celebrate that holiday). During Western European expansion into the rest of the world, Christian leaders adapted pagan traditions into acceptable practices by replacing many elements with Christian symbols and practices. One of the best-known instances of this is the revision of the Roman festival of Saturnalia, celebrating the birth of the sun, into a Christian celebration of the birth of the son of God, Jesus Christ. Many Christian beliefs and pagan traditions have been interwoven in what we now known as the Christmas season. [click to continue…]

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No, Not Even Thanksgiving

December 3, 2008

(www.sass-pants.com) — On Thursday morning, my mom sent me a text message:
Why can’t you celebrate thanksgiving if when the Bible was written it hadn’t happened yet and we’re giving thanks to God?
It’s a logical question since I stopped celebrating holidays mainly for religious reasons. God = religion, right? Except, there’s more to it than that.
Widely [...]

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If Jesus Is Your Prozac, Depression Is the Least of Your Problems

November 26, 2008

(www.sass-pants.com) — How’s this for offensive? “Jesus Is My Prozac”
I was test driving my husband’s new truck when I saw that absurd statement on a sign in front of a church in Fredericksburg, VA, and I nearly ran off the road I was so aghast that anyone could possibly be so ignorant as to suggest [...]

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