It is often remarked upon how quickly US Presidents visibly age while in their 4 or 8 years in office; presumably a result of the stress of the office. Most however would pale by comparison to how much this man has visibly aged during the 8 years of his Papacy. He is barely recognizable as the same man. And his face seems, to me, appears to telegraph that he is in pain, and rather intensely so.

The thing about that is that despite the certitude of those who say that the New Testament is a verbatim history and written record, it is in fact an assemblage of stories by people who were not even present, eventually committing to writing what had until then been oral history for decades, generations and even centuries.

So the bottom line is we don't know exactly what Jesus said. We know what others, who told others, who told others say is what Jesus said.

And the original books of the New Testament, having been written mostly in Aramaic, and Greek, and then eventually translated into Hebrew, and modern Greek and Italian and eventually into English ... and then followed a multitude of independent translations in English to eventually evolve into the King James version which is prevalent today (but keeps evolving with new scholarly translations of original aramaic and ancient Greek texts)

Isn't it more important to embrace the philosophical lessons, and spiritual meaning of the teachings of Jesus (and tangentially the teachings of other great spiritual beings from other parts of our world) then to posit that if one disagrees with any interpreted word of the currently accepted version of the New Testament then they are casting aspersions on Christian doctrine, or worse "calling Christ Jesus a liar"?

The world would be a far more peaceful and productive place for all of us to live if we could all take our heads out of our asses long enough for a moment of reflection and introspection, to acknowledge that the other guy over there who has beliefs which aren't EXACTLY in keeping with our own ... might actually be on to something, and have something worthwhile to offer to us on the subjects of spirituality, and the human condition.

Alexander the Great, designed the Greek Language to be the most exacting one in the world to facilitate communications over his VAST empire of hundreds of dialects. One would have to go through GREAT lengths to misinterpret the Holy Scriptures, ESPECIALLY since they were inspired by the HOLY SPIRIT. That being said, JESUS SAID; Matthew 7:13

“Enter through the narrow gate;

for the gate is WIDE and the way is broad that leads to destruction,

and there are many who enter through it. 14 For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it."

THE CREATOR of the universe, THE LORD CHRIST JESUS said it so if you got a problem with the narrow way, take it up with Him. (hopefully before you die) May you be blessed exceedingly Robert.

NBC's Britt,

Got evidence? You do know that hundreds of millions of peaceful Hindus worship Hanuman the Monkey God, right? How are your claims any different from theirs?

Could you be wrong about your threatening claims? (They might be hate crimes according to the TOU of this site, afterall you are taunting people with damnation). Shame on you if children are reading. I have flagged your post as inflammatory because of that threat.

Why are atheists against the freedom of speech and the US Constitution?

Atheist-6939529 HERE'S THE EVIDENCE YOU ASKED FOR: .CROSS.TV/74799 and .CROSS.TV/74896.

NBCsBritt,

Learn the definition of atheism. It's quite short: lack of a belief in the supernatural (gods). Atheism has nothing to do with speech, the Constitution, environmentalism, liberalism, libertarianism, republicanism or any other ism.

Let me put it another way, the only thing that unites atheists is their shared lack of belief in magic. That's it.

Now, there are atheists who are scientists, teachers, elected leaders, and even atheists in the clergy (research The Clergy Project which helps trapped atheists leave the clergy). And there are atheists who are active in upholding the 1st Amendment which makes it impossible for there to be religious bias in American Law despite the constant attacks on it. But this is a different subject than the short definition of atheism. Please reflect on your misunderstanding.

I still await your evidence. Hanuman the Monkey god has more entertaining videos than the one you posted. Can you not tell me in your own words what evidence you have for your particular deity? Don't think too hard. There is no documented evidence for any of the gods ever claimed to have existed. But do try, I have an open mind because I am a freethinker. Are you aware you are not a freethinker?

Atheist,

I got your point. Some would say that Hanuman is not really a God (God is a Western English word)...but Homo Habilis or Homo Eructus, well recorded in some Eastern community history and memory through folklores and mythologies, whose members were treated with respect.

And sometimes "respect and celebration" of history, its experience and our basic tree of life, may come in the form of worship in some pre-literate societies.. You know what I mean? It might be fundamentally about remembering and celebrating...rather than worshipping.

The earliest documented members of the genus Homo are Homo habilis, which evolved around 2.3 million years ago; the earliest species for which there is positive evidence of use of stone tools. The brains of these early hominins were about the same size as that of a "chimpanzee". The next million years saw the process of encephalization begin, and with the arrival of Homo erectus in the fossil record, cranial capacity had doubled.

Homo erectus and Homo ergaster were the first of the hominina to leave Africa, and these species spread through Africa, Asia, and Europe sometime between 1.3 to 1.8 million years ago. It is believed that these species were the first to use fire and complex tools.

According to the Recent African Ancestry theory, modern humans evolved in Africa possibly from Homo heidelbergensis and migrated out of the continent some 50,000 to 100,000 years ago, replacing local populations of Homo erectus and Homo Neanderthalensis.

Research continues! Knowledge of the so-called monkey man, or respect for him and her, as part of our human evolution through stories and celebrations might not be that far fetched.

With better literacy, better research techniques and better methods of validation we might not need folklore and rituals as much today...but they played a huge value in pre-literate societies, and in remembering aspects of our lives and long human history that few might have remembered without documentation, and with poverty, migration, mingling, wars, wars and wars (which erases culture, history and aspects of our own human evolutionary past).

So don't slight Monkey Man...he is part of you and all of us!

As they say, "Be nice to your dogs and pigs....but be nicer to your monkeys for you carry their gene...and must fight everyday to evolve from it! Show remember, respect...but move on! Evolve!" :))

Of course Aliens could have tinkered with yours! :)) And you might call them Gods and their technology "magic". Who knows?

Keep on think Atheist and Religious Men! Just don't start another war both of you! :))

Dr. Ms,

You said you "got my point" but then followed it up with a many paragraphed non sequitur. All you needed to do was up-vote my post.

Magic is evil Atheist-6939529 but The Creator of the Universe, The Lord Jesus Christ, did not use magic when he spoke the universe into being by saying "BANG" and a BIG event occurred. And there's PLENTY of evidence for it. just ggl it.

So NBCs Britt, seeing you love to talk about hell and condemnation I have this for you.

Are you a Roman Catholic? If you are, have you protested and demanded the immediate resignation of the Pope, the Cardinals and Bishops who covered up the priest rapes of children and moved them around to rape even more children? Have you spoken out against your Unholy Roman Catholic Church of Pedophile Pimps, Priests and the Parishioners who love, adore, worship, defend and protect these scum? Have you sought out priest rape survivors and talked to them about the horror they went through? Do you still attend a RCC, giving money to them in their collection plate? Do you praise the Pope as a holy man, worthy of heaven? Do you praise all the Cardinals and Bishops as holy men, worthy of heaven?

If you are a member of the RCC or even a Christian, and you do not demand the immediate resignation of the Cardinals and Bishops who covered up priest rape to protect the church rather than protect the children, if you still attend a RCC and do not speak out against this evil and demand your leaders resign and submit for prosecution, if you put money in their collection plates, then YOU and the rest are just as guilty of these priest rapes as if you held down the child while the priest raped them.

As a survivor of priest rape and torture, I condemn YOU and all Parishioners who defend, support, protect, love, adore and worship your bloody Pedophile Pimp Pope and his Pedophile Pimp Cardinals to hell. I speak as Jesus in that:

It would be better for you to tie a boulder around your neck and throw youself into the deepest of lakes than to harm a single hair on the head of a child.

and

Many shall call me by my name, but their hearts and minds are far from me. To these I shall say get thee behind me you workers of evil, into the pit of hell for which I reserve for you.

So not only does I and tens of thousands of victims of priest rape and torture condemn all of you, so does your own Jesus Christ.

So have a fun and great time burning in hell. You deserve it NBCsBritt

Can't tell: are you being sarcastic, or are you seriously that confused?

Sadly backtobasics, you are correct, changing a Pope means nothing as the Pope has nothing to do with Christiananity. Need to focus back on the TRINITY > Father, Son and Holy Ghost not on the "Pentanity" > Father, Son, Holy Ghost, Pope and Vatican. Only 3 of them are mentioned in the Bible, if you want a city in your religion, then become a Muslim, they got Mecca. Time for all Christians to look at the Trinity and not be distracted by Sinners like the Pope and earthly cities the will eventually be back to dust.

So you aren't happy with the so-called choices of the Holy Spirit? Shouldn't you be? Doesn't the third person of the Trinity guide the selection? We are talking about the mystery of Yahweh here!

But of course, you are a nominal Catholic. You don't really believe that. As you shouldn't. It's goofy. The Church is just another human political construct and behaves as such.

What else don't you really believe in? Wine is really blood? Come on. You don't believe that either and you know it.

So why do you stay? Comfort or fear? Which one? It can't be because of evidence.

It's probably comfort. Religion is the deepest seated attribute in one's soul and RCC Churches are SOOO nice inside. I really miss them.

Were did you get that peice of information from? Cardinal Mahoney, on a short list? I suspect he's not any list. Why? Too liberal. Sean O'Malley, or Boston, is apparently being talked about but again the same problem. Too liberal. Highly unlikely the next pope will be from the US.

You missed the point of my post. The very fact that he is up for promotion AT ALL, is immoral. Are you unaware of the priestly pedophile cover-up he was the leader of in LA?

He is going to Rome and will vote. One of his colleagues, if not he himself, has the highest probability of becoming elected compared to anyone else on this planet. That is a very short list of celibates that supposedly the Holy Spirit picks from.

Timothy Dolan is also a pedophile protector and he's supposedly on the short list too.

skrekk,

I have never met Cardinal Dolan, but there is something very off-putting about him. I mean beyond the normal weirdness of virgins teaching about sex and calling themselves father! How Orwellian is that!

No, in my gut there is something sinister about him. Perhaps he is just a run-of-the-mill Liar for the Lord (those who believe white lies are ok as long as they bring people to Jesus). Perhaps it's something more evil.

But, I don't have any evidence. But WAIT! Why is evidence important? People of faith don't need it. I FEEL in my HEART that this is a valid concern. :P

Dolan's profound homophobia and his history of giving $20K bonuses to priest who rape kids is what qualifies him to be Pope.

Ahhhh the happy clown Pedophile Pimp Cardinal Timothy Dolan. He got his granny panties in a bind when New York passed the same sex marriage law, saying that the legislature and people of New York betrayed him for passing the law. Then he turned around and slammed the legislature for having the guts to say it is time we end the one year statue of limitations against child abuse with Cardinal Timothy Dolan spewing from his well used outhouse piehole the following:

Dolan also explained that he wanted to keep the statute of limitations for child sex abuse victims to one-year, because if the church gets sued, "The perpetrators don’t suffer. There’s no burden on them. What suffers are the services and the ministries of the apostolates that we’re doing now. Because where does the money come from? So the bishops of 30 years ago that allegedly may have reassigned abusers, they don’t suffer. They’re dead. So the people that suffer are those who are being served right now by the church. We feel that’s a terribly unjust burden."

Yes Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Pedophile Pimp Protector of the Roman Catholic Church feels it would be unwarrented suffering and an unjust burden if all statue of limitations for child abuse were ended. Why is it suffering and an unjust burden? Because he damn well knows if the statue of limitations were ended for these crimes, he would find himself indicted, prosecuted and when he is convicted for paying priests who raped children 20 grand to disappear, sent to prison where he would be a shower buddy picking up soap and finding out what it is like to be raped.

Oh and Dolan and the RCC has done everything they can to make sure any state that even thinks of ending the statue of limitations against child abuse does not pass so they can stay protected under the SOL.

And, Alex, The Creator of the Universe, The Lord Jesus Christ loves you and all other humans. VERSE:

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ( THAT'S WHAT ALL THOSE GALAXIES WERE CREATED FOR; YOUR FUTURE PLAY-GROUND FOR ETERNITY!) and

1 Corinthians 2:9

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him"--

+1 (ex-Catholic myself).

All the money I used to donate now goes to organizations that care about the relief of human suffering only (like KIVA Atheists) and national secular organizations that keep religious bias out of American Law (like the Freedom from Religion Foundation).

I hope your friend finds the true gospel of salvation Jamie; Salvation through faith alone, by grace alone from Jesus Christ alone.

NBCsBritt--same old Protestant BS and criticism of Catholicism based on misconceptions and erroneous information. That's why I converted to Catholicism. The whole idea that faith alone, without good works, will save you flies in the face of ALL of the gospels. That's the problem with memorizing the gospels like a bunch of "sound bites" and just picking out the parts you like best. Believing that Christ died on the cross to save you from your sins is the beginning, but it doesn't give you an automatic entry pass to heaven like so many Protestants seem to think. The path to salvation is hard work, and it is never over. If you don't even try to live in accordance with the Word, repent when you fall short and ask for forgiveness, you might as well not even call yourself a Christian.

As for Jamie, anybody who believes that the killing of innocent unborn babies is EVER justified, for ANY reason, does not understand what it means to be Christian, either. Being Christian means taking responsibility and accepting personal burdens, however immense, when it is the right thing to do, just as Christ did. Extinguishing the lives of innocent humans with casual indifference in order to make life easier can NEVER be consistent with Christian teachings. If the new Pope gives in to popular pressure to make the church "modern" or "progressive" by sanctioning abortions and same-sex marriage, it will lose it's very soul.

NBCsBritt,

Are you claiming that Stalin was rational and a critical thinker? Stalin's anti-scientific agricultural program resulted in the starvation of millions of Soviets. In fact, Stalin's regime had more attributes of a religion, with him as supreme leader, than a rational, empathetic liberal democracy.

But you've swallowed the Big Lie NBCsBritt. There simply is no rational pathway from atheism to crime. Are you aware, NBCsBritt, that atheists make up the smallest percentage of criminals in the US prison system (1997 Federal Bureau of Prison Stat). People of faith make up the largest percentage of criminals. This is not a trick of statistics. This is a figure taking into account the need to adjust for the population of both demographics. Just think about that.

Now, do you want to talk about the rational pathway between faith and violence? The Church you defend murdered peaceful freethinkers like me in the past. How can you sleep at night knowing you belong to such an organization?

That was the RCC not biblical christians Atheist-6939529, so your logic is faulty. You need to unload the huge baggage of hate in your heart so you can see and think clearly. Were you an alter boy or something?

NBCsBritt,

Ah yes, biblical Christians. That means you must support slavery. I think we're done.

NBCs Britt. Catholics ARE biblical Christians no matter what your preacher may have told you. As a matter of fact, Catholics are pretty much the only Christian denomination who all (1.2 billion, give or take) pretty much agree on what the bible actually says. And, it may surprise you to find out that we read the bible--a lot. By contrast, Protestantism started out when certain groups of Christians decided to cherry pick the bible to throw out the parts they didn't agree with. From that point, it devolved into total chaos, with literally hundreds of Protestant denominations interpreting the Word of God in the way that best suits their own unique beliefs. Most of these beliefs are pretty similar to what Catholics profess and believe, but some aren't even remotely close to Christian teachings.

Yep, need to focus back to the Holy Trinity instead of the Pentagy with a Pope and Vatican added. No Grace nor Salvation come from a born into sin human such as a Pope nor earthly city that eventually will resort back into dust.

AND focus on The biblical gospel; Salvation through faith alone, by grace alone from Jesus Christ alone.

NBCsBritt. How about this: Why don't YOU quit bashing Catholics based on the bogus propoganda you've been fed since birth. Did you ever consider the fact that the gospels you speak of were actually handed down for hundreds of years by the universal (Catholic) church via tradition before they were ever written down? Please, quit demonizing something that you have no knowledge of. If you want to know what catholics REALLY believe (as opposed to what your preacher or the media told you) why don't you start by cracking open a copy of our catechism--you will be amazed at what you see and by how wrong your preconceived notions are.

Sorry trying2serve, didn't mean to open up any old wounds of the counter-reformation from 400-years ago.

Can you please point out one sentence in my posts that is not true?

Be Blessed!

Not only that Dan; The Eastern/Byzantine EOC released this video world wide after the RCC went 1-worlder. Here's the link; The RCC is now about 99.7% corrupt. See; .cross.tv/74799 AND .cross.tv/74896 As time is short...