cogitation_station

Tidings of Christmas

Forgive me for being so long in posting, but I'm back now, and I wish all of you a very Merry Christmas! (I know; it's not PC, but I don't care.)

I thought I'd talk a bit about Christ's birth, so if you don't want to read further, it's time to stop--fair warning. (I've been reading a lot of English (literally) literature lately, so if I slip into UK spelling,forgive me.)

Some of you will know that December 25 is an arbitrary date picked by early Church fathers to soothe those disgruntled new Christians whose winter soltice celebrations had been curtailed. Many of the practices and symbols from that earlier time remain, adapted to fit the Christian festivities.

(It would appear that actual facts were exchanged for expediency much earlier than many think, and not only those pertaining to Christianity. I believe this practice began shortly after Adam and Eve's Fall and expulsion from Eden, but there are those who believe lying to please various groups is a relatively new wrinkle.)

One fact has not changed: Mary gave birth to Jesus, the Christ, in a manger in Bethlehem (as prophesied) during the reign of Caesar Augustus.

The Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus, had decreed that a census be taken "on all the inhabited earth"--that Caesar Augustus was emperor of said inhabited earth remains in dispute, but have you ever known a politician who did not exaggerate or seek as much power as possible during his tenure?

Mary was engaged to Joseph before she found out she was pregnant. (Oops!)

No, they did not "know" each other in the biblical sense, and Joseph had had a problem at first with Mary's obvious pregnancy--who wouldn't? But "an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit." Matt: 1:20

(This must have been some kind of dream! I can't imagine any male, who actually believed his fiance was carrying another man's child, changing his mind about marrying her, because of some fuzzy "dream" or the girl's story that she was still a vergin! Can you? By-the-way,the actual procedure Joseph had contemplated to rid himself of Mary was "divorce," because engagement entailed contractual obligations back then.) But, because of what he'd learned in the dream,Joseph married Mary, but didn't touch her until after Jesus was born. ( Matt. 1:25). After that they had several more children together. (John 7: 3-5, etc.)

Anyway, during this time Herod was king in Jerusalem and Quirinius was governor of Syria--more facts that you can check. Since Joseph was of the line and city of the renowned King David, the newly married couple had to travel to Bethlehem, AKA "the City of David", because to register for this census, people (meaning males) had to travel to the city of their forebears, thus encurring the first Christmas travel bottle-neck. We know it was crowded, because when Joseph and Mary finally reached their destination, there was no room for them in the inn--presumably the only one--,and they were forced to take refuge in a stable.

So take note of their predicaments when you complain about inferior accommodations during the holidays and the discomfort of traveling home by air, car, or other mass transportation. I tell you, it could be much worse! You could be nine months pregnant, traveling on a donkey, from Nazereth to Judea to Bethlehem, all because of the government, just to find that you 1) have no room, 2) are in labor with your first child while still a virgin, 3)have to give birth without hospital, doctor or midwife, 4) in a stable--a smelly stable filled with animals at that!--and 5) only the guy you're "married" to for help!

Then, of course, they had to entertain. Oh, yes.

That night an angel appeared to shepherds in the region, who were watching their flocks of sheep. After scaring them nearly out of their wits, the angel told them: "Do not be afraid"--a bit late, don't you think?--"for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths, and lying in a manger." (Luke 2: 10-12.)

So, these shepherds, armed with directions but no GPS, said, "'Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.' And they came in haste"--of course they did!--"and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger."

Now all this happened within the span of a week! (Jesus was circumsized on the eighth day without...well, you can imagine.) Shortly afterwards, they're up and traveling to Jerusalem to present Jesus to the Lord in the temple. I'd like to see any newly married couple, with a new baby--even their own--deal with these kinds of things now!

With such a tough beginning, anyone might have second thoughts about Jesus being the Savior of the world. It just doesn't seem right, does it? That someone so kind and giving--literally laying down his life for us!--should have had such a rough life. But it seems that was the original plan, and many at the time recognized Him.

There was an old man named Simeon, who had been told by the Holy Spirit that he wouldn't die until he had seen the Messiah. When Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem that day, Simeon took the baby into his arms, "...blessed God, and said: 'Now Lord, Thou dost let Thy bond-servant depart in peace, according to Thy word; for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou has prepared in the presence of all peoples, '"A light of revelation to the Gentiles,"' and the glory of Thy people Israel.'" (Luke 2: 28-32). (I'm not at all certain that Simeon spoke these words in King James' English, but since that translation was published,it seems that quite a few people who really shouldn't,do.)

Then there were the magi who traveled a very long way--by camel no less...talk about uncomfortable! Even the evil King Herod of Judea knew that the time was close for the Messiah to be born, and so he thought he'd learn more from these wise men from the East.

Milking them for all the information he could get, he found out that they had been following a strange star--astrology was big back then, even more than it is today--which they believed to be the star signifying the King of the Jews.

Another king seemed problematic to Herod. When the magi didn't return--an angel of the Lord had warned them--he got everyone to work on the timing and place and killed all the male children, two years old and younger, who were in Bethlehem and the surrounding area.

In the meantime, the magi had found Jesus, worshipped Him, left gifts, and traveled back home by another route. When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him to take Jesus and Mary and flee to Egypt, which they did. When Herod died,an angel of the Lord appeared again to Joseph and told him to return to Israel, then another angel came and told Joseph to move to Galilee. Then another angel told him to move again to Nazareth, all of which he did. (Angels are busy! They don't sit around on fluffy clouds all day, playing harps!)

And so the controversy began: Who is this Jesus?

There are many who will say that he is simply another prophet or worse--nothing new there! Many will say that since the dates are wrong, the events described did not happen, or because of myriad translations from the original Hebrew and Greek, the account is flawed. (Some, obviously Hebrew pre-King James characters, even seem to spout perfect King James English!)

I say: Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, our Savior, our Lord, Who now sits at the right hand of God the Father, and is no longer a baby! Jesus is God the Son, who came "for the salvation of the whole world, and not for ours only." (John 3:16 ff)

Since I believe this, I can wish you and yours a VERY MERRY AND BLESSED CHRISTMAS! (And it doesn't matter one whit when you celebrate His birth, only that you celebrate it.)

How Much of Our Moral Values Are We Willing To Relinguish?

I looked at my title and wondered if anyone would understand the terms. "Moral values"...the term has become a joke during my lifetime, although the philosophy promoting the demise has been going on for centuries, just as "Christianity" has become a punch line.

When there are no absolutes--only "situation ethics"--the people perish. If you don't believe me, just look around. There is no area of your life which is not affected. You are told what to think; you are told what is and isn't "acceptable"--but not to worry, those things that are "acceptable" today will change tomorrow.

Have you paid attention to the ads lately? I know you've seen them, but did you pay attention? There are two which really get to me: The first is the one where everyone is buying something with a credit card and everything is going smoothly until someone wants to write a check or (gasp!) pay cash for a product, disrupting everything. The second is the one which in ALL CAPS announces that PEOPLE ARE SMART. Really? Then why does it have to be announced? The fact is that most people, whatever their brain power, are sheep, easily flattered by such ads, and typically will file in line to buy whatever product has given them the benefit of a brain.

PLEASE!

An Open Letter to President Obama

I am not in the habit of writing open letters to anyone. But, in light of today's press conference, I thought you deserved special treatment.

I am appalled at your continued willingness to entertain as honored guests an Iranian regime which has proven to be violent, corrupt, and suspect in every area from human rights to voting practices. That you are "disturbed" by images of an Iranian girl is disturbing, because as I watched you deliver your words, your demeanor contradicted them. You did not act as a man disturbed by killing of innocents in this protest of Iran's people against a sham election results. (Paper ballots in the millions counted, and the winner declared, before the election was completed? I don't think so, and neither do the people who believe--I think rightly so--that their votes were not counted.)

Instead after using the word "condemn," you continued to hold out Fourth of July hot dogs to Iran's current regime.

While Britain expels Iranian ambassadors, we ask Iran's bloody leadership to a picnic at the White House. In this, you again slap our allies, while giving aid and comfort to our enemies, all in the name of creating a "path to peace"--peace at any price, Mr. President? That policy has never worked in the entirety of history, except to enslave those desiring that kind of "peace."

Would you have entertained China after the horrors of Tianamen Square? Given your present track record, I'm afraid I would say you would have. As it is, you've enslaved our people, by means of massive endebtedness, to China, Japan, and others. You would have us owned by countries whose interests and philosophies differ greatly from our own. And you and the Democratic Congress did this WITHOUT the permission of the American people, to whom you answer, Mr. President.

You are a servant of the People, Mr. President, not an absolute monarch. The Congress would do well to remember that they also serve the people who elected them, not you, nor anyone else. The Supreme Court serves to protect the integrity of the United States Constitution, not to legislate it. But your administration has forgotten these things. You "order" the Congress to have this or that bill done and ready for you to sign by such-and-such date, as if the Executive Branch were the only branch of government that matters. Even with your "czars", AKA "courtiers", who answer only to you, you are still subject to the will of the people through the Congress, which is also answerable to the will of the people.

If our Representatives in the House and our Senators in the Senate are not allowed time to read, debate, and come up with right solutions to our manifold problems--many of your own making, Mr. President--then the blame falls to you, and you alone.

The "Bush Administration made me do it" argument fails to wash; YOU are responsible; YOU have reneged on your campaign promises.

And now the $250K limit for income taxation increases has fallen to $100K--quite a drop--and, speaking of taxes, you are also proposing taxes on tabacco, soft drinks, gasoline, even a VAT tax on top of the taxes already mentioned, not including the state income and sales taxes some of us are required to pay. So you make the poor, poorer; those who could give them jobs bankrupt; penalize those employers who offer great benefits; and take over companies when you have no clue how to run them.

Why? That is the great question.

Why would you kill so many golden geese and ruin any future chances of golden eggs? Class hatred? No, I don't think so. To make everyone equal with equal chances? No, I don't believe it for one second. Revenge? Nope. I think everyone reading this letter should ask themselves why a President of the United States--formerly the most powerful nation in the world--would intentionally weaken that nation and its institutions. Why, in the name of helping those who need help, would that President cause so many others, formerly not in need of help and able to give aid to others, to become taxed into poverty, regulated into bankruptcy, and punished for contributing to the welfare of the very ones he so vehemently states he wants to help? I'd love to hear your answer, Mr. President, not the answer for today, but the ANSWER.

You cut the military budget, while protesting that you are trying to protect America. You "honor" our soldiers by cutting their insurance, their equipment budget, and allowing some in your administration to "suggest" that returning veterans may be a danger to our population, while releasing terrorist detainees--some of whom do not wished to BE released--from GITMO and shutting down that facility which our nation needs. You've cut the missile defense budget and programs down to dangerous levels at a time when both North Korea and Iran pose significant neuclear missile threats to our very shores, not to include our allies, e.g. Israel. (By-the-way, even Israel issued a statement yesterday saying they'd be willing to work with a NEW government in Iran--a definite policy change,wouldn't you say? And yet, you hedge, hem and haw, and wait to see which side will win. Courage, Mr. President! It's a virtue in a leader of the FREE WORLD.)

And now you want a new Health Care Program, modeled on the failed and notoriously bad European systems, e.g., Canada and Great Britain. THEY hate their health care, and now you, with such "altruisitic motives," want to bring the dross into our system, not to fix what is wrong with our current free market system, but to replace the gold in it that now exists. So, we will have government committees privy to our private health needs and sitting in judgment over who will and won't be able to get the care they need. Putting all of our health care records on computers? Give me a break! How reckless is that? You are exposing every person in this nation to identity theft, hackers who could literally change records, perhaps resulting in anything from misdiagnoses to death. And let's not forget the ever-present problem of "my computer's down", "rebooting", "updating".... This is NOT a good idea, and it is an expensive one. Most doctors could not afford to implement this overhaul of their records and offices. I won't go into all that is wrong with your $10 trillion health care program, because YOU have not given us all of the details! Do you not know what they are, Mr. President? Or do you just not want our representatives and the People to know what they are before YOU force a vote.

And now the American people are awash in debt; American businesses are now controlled by the government; the financial sector is in turnmoil, and YOUR solutions have produced more unemployment, less opportunity for future employment, and more national debt that any other President since the inauguration of President Washington as the first President of these United States.

I'd love to hear your answer, Mr. President, not the answer for today, but the ANSWER. The repetition IS intentional. I'm waiting.

The Census Is Important: Obama's Trying to Change It

I have tried to warn people about the drastic appropriations of power that President Obama has garnered under the Executive Branch with his unprecedented use of the Executive Order.  I hope now you will do something!

The second nominee for Secretary of Commerce, Judd Gregg, withdrew his nomination for that office to return to his post as a leading Republican Senator.  This happened yesterday.  The reasons he left were basic ideological differences with the current administration over the stimulus bill and the national census.

The Census Bureau is under the provenance of the Commerce Department and controls such things as electoral votes (yes, those things that determine Presidents), appropriations, the number of Representatives in the House, and if skewed, even the party make up of those representatives.  Under the Commerce Department how these numbers are arrived at must be made public record.

What President Obama is attempting to do, and one of the reasons Sen. Gregg left, is to bring the Census under Rahm Emmanuel, his White House Chief of Staff, where NO TRANSPARENCY is required.

Instead of actual head-counting of every person in the United States, computer "sampling" can be used.  But the truth of the matter is the American public will have no way of knowing how their numbers are arrived at, virtually guaranteeing corruption at best, and rigging elections and the other matters determined by the census numbers at worst.

To put it simply, the President is not acting like the President of the United States, who controls the Executive Branch of government, but who does not control the other two branches, the Congress and the Supreme Court.   He is wielding the Executive Order as a formidable sword of Royal Decree, and he is doing it to disrupt the balance of power. 

If we allow this to continue, King Obama will have effectively changed (oh, yes, he did promise change) our republic into a kingdom of socialism, communism, or an absolute monarchy.

With the Democrats holding the majorities in both the House and Senate, the Republicans and Independents can do only so much without the support of principled and courageous members from the other side of the aisle, who serve the Constitution of the United States and their consciences before their pockets and political aspirations.  We NEED MEN AND WOMEN OF PRINCIPLE MORE THAN EVER.

Obama uses stick and carrot equally well:  threats that your political career will end if you do not go along with him are paired with promises of political clout and passage of favorite projects if you do, or so it would seem from his speeches and from the remarks of those who have crossed lines to support the insupportable.

As we have seen, many of those in Congress are more interested in their Pary and their pockets to stand up for what is RIGHT, or are too cowardly to vote no, when the bill in question is WRONG.  The corruption in Congress has been exposed and openly ignored.

Change is what you make of it.  So far, Obama has changed this country for the worse with more coming.  The Census is just the first of many--of course, we're not counting the so-called "stimulus" package, which is a travesty of obfuscation, taxation, and debt in the trillions of dollars.

TRANSPARENCY?  OBAMA HAS BANISHED IT FROM HIS (yes, HIS) WHITE HOUSE.  If we don't stop him now, there will be no chance to in 2010.  Why?  Because the manipulation of the Census will guarantee that he will win again.  Mark my words:  this is not a man who intends to lead and cooperate.  He intends to Rule!

Call your Congressmen and women; march on whatever government agencies you have; make your voices heard, before they are silenced....

President Obama Is Deceived: He Thinks He's An Absolute Monarch

I have never seen any President of the United States who has done more damage in his first month in office. President Obama believes the Executive Order constitutes a Royal Decree, and he has used it to garner power.

Did you know that Obama has now put the Census Bureau under his White House Chief Of Staff? (It was not widely reported.)

 Do you know that Acorn is getting money from the so-called "stimulus bill" just passed by two votes in the Senate? (You have to read the bill for yourself to believe what's in it. What's not? Stimulus.)

 Have you ever seen so many corrupt politicians in any cabinet? Proven tax-evaders, like Geithner,Secretary of the Treasury, now hold the purse strings. And what a purse it is! Trillions--yes, folks, trillions--of money is now in the hands of a man who refused or forgot or simply couldn't decipher the tax code (right) enough to pay his own taxes on "consulting fees." He did manage to take the reimbursement checks which the company provided to pay those taxes and put them into his own pocket, still without paying the taxes they were intended to pay.

 Then there are more--some who've resigned their nominations because their failures to pay taxes were even greater. Of course, there's Charles Rangel, a tax-evader of the First Stripe, who has yet to do anything to rectify his own problems with the IRS. But now, the IRS is under Geithner. Talk about putting the fox in charge of the hen house!

And who's at the top of all these nominations? King Obama. I suppose you can take the boy out of corrupt Illionois politics, but you can't take the corrupt politics out of the boy, er President or Monarch.

I'll say this for him--Obama, that is: he's crafty. He uses the Executive Order like a sharp sword.

 He says that his message is one of "hope" then everywhere delivers his messages of "catastrophe" if we don't ACT NOW, even if it's wrong! Then he blames it all on the Bush Administration.

 Unbelievable, but then there are many who are so blind that they will not see what is going on. His every word is music to their ears, instead of the sound of the needle ruining an old vinyl record as it makes its deep scratch. Like that needle, he moves swiftly, carving into the very fabric of our Constitution and leaving us with socialism. Yes, I said socialism, and I'm being kind to stop there.

Greed is a disease; power is fatal--to the one who wields it poorly as well as to the nation who is governed by him. It is not yet too late.

 But AMERICA WAKE UP! If you do not, when you do, you'll wake up to a country you do not recognize, did not want, but can't leave.

The Republicans put up a united front in the House; I hope and pray that they will do so again and that those enlightened Democrats and Independents will join them.

 In the Senate, three senators "let their side down," but more than that, they let our country down. And they did it knowingly. The two naive senators from Maine, Snowe and Collins, were easy prey it seems. But I expected more from Sen. Specter who is up for re-election in 2010.

Sen. Specter, you have nothing to lose, and everything to gain by taking a stand against this waste! As it stands now, your own state is calling for your head on a plate.

I also feel compelled to tell those Members of the Senate who prate about "constituents" that in matters like these, matters which affect every human being in this nation, constituency comprises the entire population of the US, not just the people in your state or district.

 I urge every elected official in state or federal posts to take heed and cast your votes for the right things, instead of for your own glory. Glory fades quickly.

 If I sound like I'm all doom and gloom...I am. I see no light here--just a bunch of cronyism and power-mad politicians eager to curry favor with the king.

What Are You Watching?

I have been watching very little television these days. How about you?

The reason? Hard to find programs that appeal to me. I loathe reality shows. Why? Because I see enough bickering and clawing for the top every day, and to watch more of it does not classify either as entertainment or newsworthy. OK, "American Idol" may have some redeeming social values for the contestants, namely exposure and possible fame. But I just tuned in this week to see the one of the best guys voted off by the "people." The contestant who was allowed to remain was in shock. Why did I even tune in? Because the shows that I normally watch during "American Idol" were not on or were in reruns.

"Survivor"--good grief. It's multiple dysfunction and greed. No, I won't watch it.

"The Greatest Race"--is that even the correct title? A gymkana gone bad.

Actually one of my favorite shows, "Studio 60 on Sunset Strip," takes this issue on without apologies and the new network hotshot calls them in "poor taste," suggests that they appeal to the lowest and worst common denominator in the demographics, and add nothing to culture, news, or the higher forms of entertainment. Of course, the other network execs are upset when this is said on air by the once head writer of the show--terminated immediately. But his replacements--hooray!--are committed to lifting the quality of the writing of their imaginary show, and in the process, they lift the discussion of what should and should not be the business of entertainment to a level I haven't seen since "West Wing," "House," "Nothing Sacred," "Northern Exposure," and for sheer fun and great writing, "Grey's Anatomy." The actors in this show shine brightly with few others in an otherwise smog-filled ether which represents today's airwaves.

"Gilmore Girls'" writing used to be some of the best and wittiest anywhere. I understand now that the network, in all its ignorance, wants to replace or change writers, so guess what Lauren Graham and the rest of the great cast are doing? You guessed it. So we will have to enjoy that show in reruns or buy the DVDs. The "new" show will lack viewers; at least I won't be watching it.

Then someone had a bright idea to spin off Kate Walsh's character from "Grey's Anatomy" into a new series. I didn't like her character in the first place, and from what I've gathered around the water cooler the new spin off will be "dead on arrival." Why can't you people learn not to muck around with a good thing?

"House" is wonderful. Hugh Laurie and the rest of the cast are superb, and every week, the show actually continues with a high standard of writing and medical and personal puzzles. PLEASE don't mess with this one.

"The Closer" follows suit as just a great show. Like "Grey's," "House," "Studio 60," and "Monk," it exhibits great writing and solid, well-rounded characters. I love great writing. But it seems I'm in the minority.

Who said "Never underestimate the stupidity of the American people?" I don't remember, but I surely don't.

Most American audiences--oh what the heck, most Americans period--seem to suffer from Drew Barrymore's memory problems in "Fifty First Dates." Talk about ADD!

And television reflects or projects and certainly exacerbates--I haven't quite decided which came first--this subtle amnesia. News--something as huge as 9/11--has to be retold, just so people in America don't forget what that date meant and means. Gee, guys, it's our Pearl Harbor. Why do people get so upset that our country responded in the same way we did to that foreign terrorist act with a declaration of war on terrorism?

Well, TV pundits don't help. Has anyone else noticed that journalists have put aside objectivity in reporting the news to telling us what we should think of the news they care to share with us?

Do you know how much news we actually are exposed to in the US, if we were to read all the big newspapers from cover to cover daily and watch the televised news? ONE PERCENT. That's right folks, and by and large it's the SAME one percent. Good grief.

Have people put their brains on some shelves so that others can do their thinking for them? Big Brother (and Sister) are not only watching, they are talking, and sadly most of us are listening....

Television is their primary tool.

So when you sit down at your TV and watch tonight, just try for a moment to think what messages underlie the gab and "plots." The messages that they're trying to sell and that you're buying without even looking at the large print, much less the small print at the bottom, are eating your souls.

Is the World Going to Hell in a Hand-basket?

(Sorry to have been absent for so long--selling CDs, we now have US and Canadian national distribution.)

Have any of you noticed the difference/similarity in certain aspects of our cultural and societal concerns, say to that of ancient Greece, Rome, and the once great Egyptian and Persian civilizations?

I've been struck by the plethora of occult themes, sex--though the subject has always been with us--has never been so prolific in every media outlet, even hard news, a tolerance to the point of apathetic numbness to things which would never have been mentioned a few years ago, to outright celebration of almost every abberation with which I can hope never to hear, see, or come into contact.

Nothing is sacred, not even the sacred.

Personal hygiene for both men and women is expored so graphically in TV commercials that I doubt anyone could be ignorant of E.D. or anything pertaining to a woman's reproductive cycle.

That MAN (or WOMAN) is in practice, if not in fact, his or her own god has been creeping into our collective psyches since Darwinian debates, but even those who profess to believe in God or some "Higher Being" acts as if they are their own HB.

I've seen--just on TV--the Nephilim (if you don't know who and what they are, look it up), mediums poke out of every nook and cranny, and reincarnation has taken the place of evolution as the next great theory which has no proof. The End of the World, discussed endlessly, has taken all forms but the right one, but no one really takes the possibility of a Christian Rapture or Christ's return seriously.

I've now experienced Wicca as a true religion. Freedom of religion has been taken out of the original context of protecting our citizens from state-imposed religion to an "anything goes" stance.

Critics of this slippery slope greased with apostasy and deciet are derided, labeled, and sometimes actually killed.

I thought I'd heard of every preposterous religion--I mean there are some out there which are really OUT THERE--but along comes Scientology, invented by L. Ron Hubbard, a former science fiction writer who declared that the way to really become rich was to invent a religion--a feat which he has evidently accomplished beyond even his imagined beyond. (Even the script of "Boston Legal" treated this with derision, and I must say, that's a huge step in the right--no puns intended--direction.)

P.T. Barnum said fools are born every minute, and I'd hate to been counted as one when the Lord Jesus Christ comes and says, "I never knew you." Chills overcome me with dread of being deceived by the current theologies buzzing in our atmosphere like so many flies, for I was once exactly in that sinking boat.

Look to history and the falls of the great empires. Note the parallels and search your own mind. I wouldn't dream of filling your heads full of evidence, since most are so certain their myths are fact, and they must find out for themselves.

I just hope it is not too late.

"Rockin' the Day Away" Nationally Released May 10, 2005

Color me floored! This is a tale of miracles and hope for all independent artists out there.

In 1998 I began writing children's music, because my first granddaughter liked me to sing her to sleep. After a while, I started writing them down, because I thought they had some merit, and my kids might like to have the music someday.

I had collaborated with two other people on a musical, and while they were in other states, a tape of one of the songs needed to be recorded for a person in the industry who indicated his interest.

That's when I found 25th Track Recording Studio and Walt Bowers - great guy and wonderful engineer and keyboardist. We recorded the song from the musical, and afterwards my husband asked Walt if he could buy 30 hours of studio time.

I thought Ed had lost his mind. I couldn't figure out what the 30 hours were for. It turned out, he wanted to record the baby songs I'd written.

In the interim, I had worked on four songs with my collaborators, and I asked them if they wanted in or not. They did.

Walt came over and heard all 10 songs, and said, "You don't have a demo; you have a CD."

And that's how it started. I already had a company, but ASCAP said I had to have another name for the label, and we were already at crunch time, so that's why the label is Pamela Kay Hawkins Publishing - not because I'm really vain.

I ran into a jeweler friend of mine who knew an artist, who was just getting started, and Kristen did the illustrations for the cover, and I came up with the idea of a coloring book with lyrics inside, so she did the line drawings for the children to color. Another friend of mine owned a performing arts school and complained of never having anything for her children to use for auditions, and that gave me the idea for the instrumental track for kids to use for auditions. (I've since been told that English as a Second Language - ESL - Teachers find it helpful for teaching purposes.)

Then I thought I had a deal with Barnes and Noble, and Ed informed me that the first run of 1,000 had been sold to a convenience store chain. (It turned out that neither deal was what I thought it was.) The female singer on the album, Meredith Easley, and I appeared on Tulsa's TV show "Six in the Morning." Barnes and Noble's store on 71st Street in Tulsa had a "CD Release Party" at which about 100 people showed up to hear Meredith, John Weller (you've probably seen John on "Boston Public"), and Tommy Crook - the only guitarist Chet Atkins bowed to -whose name is unfortunately misspelled on sites and the album credits - perform. We were on our way!

So I thought....

It turned out that Barnes and Noble meant I had a deal with one of their stores - not all of their stores. The deal Ed made turned out to be a PR disaster, through no fault of his. The convenience store chain has since filed for bankruptcy :-). But after trying to buy the album at all these mirage venues, people just gave up. Who could blame them?

Oh, and I had another run done, because I didn't want to let B & N down.

But then Peter Chipman of CapCan.com in Canada and Derek Silver of CDBaby.com came to my rescue, but of course there was no interest, because no one knew the album existed. Then CDBaby.com sold out and needed more stock, but had emailed the wrong person. So for six months they had no stock. I found out because I was going to cancel my account. Imagine my surprise, and theirs!

The great buying group Alliant had been excited about my album when it came out and was going to red-line it for the stores they represented, but then they went bankrupt. So...nothing. I was one person trying to sell one independent album to the world one store at a time. Very hard.

But you don't want to hear about the six years from then to now, do you? I didn't think so....

Cut to chase:

Last Thursday, that would be Oct. 6, 2005, I walked into Barnes & Noble to pick up a book I'd ordered and a DVD in the music department. The head of the music department, Chris, had been keeping my album alive for all these years. He had told his new head of "local artists" about the album and I'd met Seth, also a budding musician along with Chris, and he hadn't heard one of the songs from my CD. So we went to find the demo CD so he could listen. Nowhere. He was puzzled, because there was always a copy of my CD on top of the children's section for display purposes. There were no CDs. So he checked the backstock. Nada. Neither of us could believe we'd sold out, so I asked if the computer said anything.

Seth said: "You're a local artist. Local artists aren't in the computer." He went back to the search.

Finally he gave up and checked the computer: I was there! The album was there! I'd been red-lined!
He ran over to the kiosk where you can listen to the music? It was there! He liked it -really liked it! And then he said, "Look at this!" We looked: A note on the album said "Released May 10, 2005!"

I was so excited! I told some friends on www.Soflow.com, and in seconds the album, which was online on B & N was sold out and the picture went with it.

I called my distributor, Hapi Skratch Entertainment's Morris Beegle, and he said I'd been red-lined since May. (No one had said a word to me.) And that my album was now in Border's, Best Buy, Circuit City, Sam Goodys, and Amazon.com, besides Barnes & Noble. Shock is not the work for the state I was in.

After six years, as one salewoman at B&N said, "You're legit!"

I Googled "Pamela Kay Hawkins Rockin' the Day Away" and found not only the sites above, but a German site http://www.totalrecal/de/items/338.htm; another Megastore in Germany, England and Sweden who is carrying the album: english.megastore.se/template/next,Index.vm?@atid=10&page=9 (listed under Children/Tales). The megastore link with all the info just covers the German location.

I share this with you, not only to promote the CD which I still believe in, but to say to all of the independent producers and artists out there: "Don't give up! Miracles still happen!"

I also wanted to thank all of the people who believed in me and this album and have made this possible, Richard Bridge of Rainy Day Records, Chris Karasek of Barnes & Noble on 71st, Full Circle Bookstore in Oklahoma City, the other Barnes & Noble stores who took a chance and bought my albums, Peter Chipman of CapCan Distributors in Canada, Derek Sivers of CDBaby.com, Morris Beegle who gave me national distribution, and David Define of Alliance Entertainment, who got me red-lined! To all the companies who've since bought the album, like Best Buy, Borders, Circuit City, Sam Goody's, EBay and Amazon.com - THANK YOU ALL!

Pamela Kay Hawkins

P.S. I'm going to use the money and connections I hope to make (so far it's been a losing proposition) to help others who need a leg up, and to help get a workshopping gig for a musical that's been waiting a year longer than the CD.

PPS If they're out of stock, they can order more. I understand that orders can be filled within a week to 10 days at the outside. So please order from these wonderful people who've taken a chance on an unknown and made a dream possible. - Thank you to all my future customers!

And if you have comments, I'd love to hear from you!View this photo

My Take on Katrina

The "Wall Street Journal" ran a poll yesterday asking that question: Should New Orleans be rebuilt in its orginal location? The overwhelming answer was no.

I've been reluctant to begin a blog on New Orleans, mainly because I've such mixed feelings. I feel for those who have lost their homes and businesses, who are searching for loved ones, who have lost loved ones and everything thing else they held dear.

However, as unpopular as it may be to say this, I have heard too much griping, seen too much corruption within New Orleans and Louisianna, and have been appalled at the lack of understanding of what actually happened there.

Katrina hit Gulfport, Mississippi, and Biloxi. Orginally everyone thought New Orleans had dodged the bullet. So rescue efforts rightly centered on Biloxi, Pas Christien, and Gulfport. Then Lake Pontchartrain's levees, which should have been fixed 15 years ago, and which could not have been made to withstand Katrina's storm surge and wind in the time so many have touted, broke: "We knew one year ago that the levees wouldn't hold, if this happened."

Well, sorry, but you knew 25 years ago and did nothing. The Chief of the Army Corps of Engineers said, "This is a non-partisan problem, covering many presidencies. There was nothing President Bush could have done in the entire time he's been in office to stop this thing from happening."

Yet, we hear how the federal government failed us and the people of the Gulf Coast. We hear how Ivan and Dennis and Frances were on the recovery track as soon as the storm moved.

Well, people, you could get to those cities. The roads were intact. Not so in New Orleans.

It had flooded, as predicted in worse case scenarios. I-10 was gone in some places; bridges were gone. The airport was closed until they opened one runway used for aid coming in.

Helicopters and their crews risked their lives, being shot at occasionally, dodging downed electrical wires, polluted water, flying 24/7 to help people. The National Guard was dispatched, and I'm sorry, but it takes a while to train those people to handle this kind of disaster and move them, and they can't be called out and moved into a state without its permission. So it took a few days.

New Orleans had buses which could have been used to transport the poor and disabled out before the storm struck. They chose to let them sit in a place which they knew could be compromised by a storm of this magnitude. Buses which are now underwater. So other buses from other states had to be found, and coordinated, and places in other states had to be found to house the refugees.

The Red Cross, several private charitable organizations began immediately and were stymied because they could not get to New Orleans.

People in New Orleans shot at rescuers in a truck who were trying to help those in hospitals - children. And the doctors inside, whose morgue was in the basement and flooded, wondered where the rescuers were and why people were not helping.

Meanwhile, three navy ships were sent to the Gulf to help with rescue efforts, a hospital ship was sent; the Coast Guard was called in, and all I heard was how the federal government was to blame.

Really?

Did the federal goverment cause Katrina? Did it cause the continuing warnings of 25 years ago to go unheeded just in President's Bush's term? Did the people of New Orleans think they were exempt?

To rebuild New Orleans in the same disastrous place is foolhardy. "But we want the 'Big Easy' back!" Well, people, the 'Big Easy' isn't easy anymore. The wetlands which should never have been drained are back. The Mississippi River has been ruined by years of mismanagement.

You will never have New Orleans as it was back again.

If people are smart, they will try to move the spirit of the place, the salvageable architecture of the place, to somewhere else on higher ground.

I have hesitated to give money. I watched what happened to the money sent to the victims of the Tsunami. I'm waiting to see what and where it's needed and who needs it most.

People I know; people who need new jobs, a new start.

Did we really think that we could stop natural disasters?

I live in Oklahoma. Ask anyone here if they could stop tornadoes.

Ask the people in the paths of flash floods, mudslides, earthquakes. The best thing you can do, especially when you have as much warning as people in the paths of hurricanes do, instead of the minutes or seconds warning that we have with these other disasters, is to get out of their way, which is sometimes impossible, or hold on in the safest place you can find and hope you live through it.

This hubris reminds me of Xerxes, who had his soldiers whip the Hellespont because it broke his bridge to the Greeks. He was insane. And the Hellespont just kept on flowing, just like the Mississippi.

Am I angry? You bet I am.

Compassion is overflowing in America, and some of the most vocal people are ranting that they haven't gotten enough; they haven't been given enough; everyone's to blame but the people who neglected to protect New Orleans in the first place.

You have your lives. Many lost theirs. And you're shooting at, and ranting against the very people who've come to help you, one of whom is my 21-year old niece who just got married two weeks ago.

Terrorism & Fear

Today is July 7, 2005, and the terrorists have hit London, just as the G 8 Conference in Gleneagle, Scotland was beginning. Why?

There is no why, unless you are as evil and mad as those who committed these acts and those in Madrid, New York, and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA. Of course, there are many more atrocities committed each day in other countries by people who say they do it for "God" or "Allah" or some "cause." But the truth is that they do it because, if not totally deceived, they are just evil.

Their purpose is to destroy and create FEAR wherever they attack. Fear.... Fear is the greatest enemy of mankind, for it keeps us from doing things we would otherwise do and enjoy.

Long ago, I made a vow to myself (and I know what real fear is) that if I feared a thing, I would not let it stop me, no matter what the consequences to myself.

September 11, 2001, caused the USA to fear to take planes without taking precautions which now border on subjugating our Rights, under the US Bill of Rights.

Fear robs us of action of enjoying the world God made for us to enjoy.

I don't fear death; I fear inaction when faced with someone who's intent on harming me or those around me. Lambs to the slaughter is far more terrifying to me than the wolf who attacks the flock.

I say: Do not let these People of the Lie and of Fear and of Death defeat you with their tactics. We are greater than Evil. Though Evil will sometimes win; it will not always win; and in the end, it will be defeated beyond its comprehension.

Londoners have faced worse than this during WWII; America has faced worse than this in the Revolutionary, French & Indian Wars, and in the horrendous Civil War which pitted brother against brother.

Make no mistake, this is a WAR. It is a war not against any country, but against the evil behind the terrorist attacks.

London is not the only one called to stand up and face fear: the entire world rises in rage and anger and courage and strength to fight this evil which threatens us on every hand.

So, be not afraid. Terrorists strike when and where no one thinks they will. How can you prepare? BE NOT AFRAID whatever may come, and when it comes, for it will, take your stand; hold your head high; and charge as one who has no fear. Whatever the outcome, you will have prevailed.

Schiavo Autopsy Exonerates Husband

Well, as most of you already know, Terri Schiavo's autopsy has been completed. She was found to be in a persistent vegitative state, totally blind, with a brain half the size expected, and no signs of trauma.

BUT it seems this is still not good enough for her parents, who continue to want to tie up the courts, the government, and Michael Schiavo.

Isn't there some way to prosecute people who just waste the courts' time on frivolous suits?

I am saddened to report that the President and Congress, according to what I hope are erroneous reports, are still not regretting their ill-advised interference in this case. Good Grief! What does it take!

And, I just got a letter from the Republicans asking me for money. I told them, when they got back to being Republicans and not a second before.

GET THE GOVERNMENT OUT OF OUR LIVES, MR. PRESIDENT, AND RESTORE OUR RIGHTS WHICH HAVE BEEN ERODED BY SO-CALLED "SECURITY MEASURES."

Prognostication, Providence, and Pudding Proof

You see something, then turn around and read something, then hear something, and CLICK!--epiphany!

For some of us cursed with synthesis, this happens a lot. But lately some things have been happening which for us who synthesize make us wonder if all these seemingly disparate parts don't combine to form a message for our global generation: We have grown lazy. We have become the land of lotus eaters, and we dream that we have not.

Not to worry...I'm not a radical nut who's preaching THE END OF THE WORLD. Heck, I'm not even going to advocate selling everything you have, leaving it in my tender care--I'd take care of it; you can trust me--climbing some mountaintop to wait for the Mother Ship or the Messiah (He's not there yet) or even buying out the local stores for food and water to keep you through the DARKNESS AHEAD. (Shouldn't someone have a monster playing a dirge at a huge organ here?)

I'll join you in the deep end, and it's getting very deep indeed.

Politics, religion, and television have occupied my mind a lot, along with "great minds" discussing the "ethics of blogging" at the January Harvard conference, "Blogging, Journalism & Credibility." They have much in common. (For the link, check with Jessica Mintz at the Wall Street Journal. The one I had doesn't seem to work anymore, but here it is: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu.webcred/.)

Experiences--the problems or lack thereof concerning TV and, in a broader sense, all communication avenues; the old TV news adage, "what bleeds, leads;" Dr. James Dobson's concern over programming, which not only borders on censorship, but crosses the line; the overwhelming time taken up by ads on TV over actual content--lead me to ask: where is the general populace, not to mention journalists and our government's leaders, getting accurate information?

I got a Master's in Journalism/Mass Communication when I was 36. I wondered why my fellow students, all much younger than I, couldn't quite grasp the concept of "objective reporting" and of journalists being the "watchdog" for the people.

I didn't understand how they could read The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and come away with the singular idea that it protected only freedom of the press and of speech.

The answer finally dawned on me when I was having coffee in the Union with a few students: they chose to be journalists to "change the world" and to "teach" people what they "needed" to know.

Well, that does explain a lot, doesn't it? It seems that the leaders in our government now believe the same thing.

I subscribe to a polling station called "The Polling Station" http://pheedo.com/pollingstation/, and on Jan. 25, 2005, Jack Dinkmeyer commented regarding a poll testing people's actual knowledge of who was involved and what happened on 9/11. The results of the poll were all over the place, meaning no one knew much about anything. Dinkmeyer attributed this to what he deemed "The Tolstoy Syndrome." He then quoted (I'm sorry I don't know the direct source) from Leo Tolstoy:

"I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most obvious truth if it be such as would oblige them to admit the falsity of conclusions which they have delighted in explaining to colleagues, which they have proudly taught to others and which they have woven, thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives."

Experience and observation has taught me that this statement is a truism: The one thing most people cannot abide is admitting that they are wrong about something they have long held to be true, factual or not.

TV, advertising, communication media in general pander to this dictum in most instances--first telling the "masses" what they "should think," backing it up with so-called "facts," and tying it all up into a well-produced, well-written, well-spoken, well-designed package. The result? Few, if any, bother to question the validity of what is being stated, seen, read--what, in short, fills the spoon with which they are fed.

Well, I am not one of them, I'm saddened to say. Why saddened? Because my belief in the leaders of my country, the Republican Party, and our President seems to have been delusional.

I honestly believed I would never hear Republicans supporting actual expansion of federal governmental power to the detriment of their constituents, from whom they derive their power. (I believe they've forgotten that part, along with large chunks of our Constitution.)

To hear Tom DeLay, a professing Christian--"professing" is the operative word here; see my blog on "People Who Give Christianity a Bad Name"--ranting about "activist judges," the unimportance of our judicial system and those who sit as judges, and to find out this man is accused of gross impropriety and misuse of federal funds, whose own party fights to drown the din of protests against his and others' actions of late more than saddens me, it sickens me.

I was wrong. So I'm taking action, as are many of my friends and family, and changing registration from Republican to Independent. I will not associate my name with a party of hypocrites, especially one espousing "Christian values" while making a mockery of the phrase. I know there are many in the Republican Party who are not hypocrites, but staying within it at this time is not a good thing, nor will it change the others. Read Tolstoy's remark above.

Neither is it a time to keep silent. If your voice is not heard now, with all the talk about censorship, creating standards of "decency," and doing away with the time-honored practice of filibuster in the Senate, soon you may be unable to speak at all.

But beware when you speak; there are consequences:

"If you want to say what you think, you shouldn't have the notion that it's not going to cost anything at all, because that would get you into surrealism very quickly. If the notion is that when you say something you want to make a slight change of the given, then you should expect the given will push back one way or the other." --Norman Mailer in "Norman Mailer, A Literary Lion Roars" by Carloyn T. Hughes, an interview published online in a 2005 issue of Poets & Writers Magazine http://www.pw.org/mag/hughes.htm/.

Communication as it once whas thought of--the free exchange and dissemination of ideas for debate and the discovery of the truth of a matter or of a relationship or of a belief--has ceased to exist except in emails, the rare personal note, even rarer letter or phone call, and in this new world of blogs--even there you must choose with care.

What are we being taught? Greed is good; mass consumption of goods is better; all "legal" drugs are good, except when they're not, so call your doctor and ask them what the drug we're advertising is for. Truth in advertising is an "all's fair in love and war" concept, which means I can lie to you as long as I'm not caught, and by that time, you've probably been "branded."

Great literature, performances, and stories are not worth watching unless interrupted for "breaks"--ad people run ads during this time, while most people run for food or take bathroom breaks.

We're taught that short attention spans are better. In fact everything short is better, with a couple of exceptions.... (What was Kevin Costner thinking making a movie that lasted more than 120 minutes? And thank God we didn't have to see all three books of the "Lord of the Rings" in the same year! It was hard enough sitting through one that overreached the 120 minute mark! And, now, good grief! "Harry Potter" over seven years!)

TV schedules are more important than just about anything else in a newspaper. The rest of our time should be spent working, shopping, and getting groceries so we can watch.

Thirty-minute TV shows equal-22 minute stories, if you're lucky. The ratio of showtime to adtime decreases as the total length of the "story" increases.

It's simpler to stay at home and watch TV than to go out; it's simpler to rent DVDs (guilty), skip the commercials, and stay at home. It's simpler to buy fast food or "prepackaged meals" than to cook. (Heaven forbid we would have to sit in the dining room and talk while the TV beckons. Family time? Isn't that watching TV together?)

And please...don't read the book if the movie version is out.

So I'm taking my stand: I'm going to call those who call themselves "Christians" to account and to act like it or be exposed for the "wolves in sheeps' clothing" they are; I'm going to buy books and read them; I'm going to read a lot of newspapers and cram all the news I can get into my head; I'm only going to watch TV if it's really good stuff (that will cut my watching time down considerably); I'm going to say exactly what I think without fear; I'm going to write my leaders and tell them what I think, and I'm going to yell what I know is True from the mountaintops, if need be, realizing there will be consequences:

We have grown lazy. We have become the land of lotus eaters, and we dream that we have not.

Saints & Others

I've been trying to be silent, and I've done pretty well, but it's time to lay my cards on the table and discuss "The Saints."

The Old Testament word "saint," "qaddish" in Hebrew, only appears nine times in plural and singular form, but the word translates as: "holy," "holy one," "holy ones," and "saints." The New Testament word "saint" appears in Greek as "hagios" from the root word "hagos," and since my keyboard will not deliver either Hebrew or Greek script, you'll have to look it up.

"Hagios" translates into the following: "holy" (61); "Holy" (92); "Holy of Holies" (1); "Holy One" 5); "holy ones" (1); "holy place" (7); "most holy" (1); "saint" (1); "saints" (59); "saints" (1); "sanctuary" (2), and "who is holy" (1). (Source: New American Standard Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible: Hebrew -- Aramaic and Greek Dictionaries. I have other more exhaustive word study books, but this will suffice for now.)

What do all these languages and definitions have in common? The word or function of being "holy" translates into something or someone being "holy" or used for "holy" purposes, and that it applies both to supernatural beings and men. So we need to understand what being "holy" actually means.

For our purposes (for there are other words in Hebrew which have different meanings), we shall take the Hebrew word "qodesh" (from an unused word which means "apartness," "sacredness):"---"consecrated" (2); "consecrated thing" (1); "consecrated things" (2); "dedicated" ( this applies to dedicated gifts and things); "holies" (6); "holiness" (13); "Holiness" (1); "holy" (286); "Holy" (6); "holy ones" (1)--and this applies to:" portion" (3); "holy thing" or "things:" "most holy place" (6); "most holy things" (6); "sacred" as in "gifts" (2); "things" (3); "sacrifices" and "sacrificial" (both 1); "sanctuary" (65), "set apart," (1); "things that are most holy" (1); and "things dedicated."

So let's see how the Greeks used the word "holy." Strangely enough it is the same word used for "saint" in the New Testament, with the exception of eight other times, all of which use only two other words.

So, what is a "saint" then? A saint is someone, living or spiritually translated or already existing in that form, who is dedicated, consecrated, set apart to a holy purpose. These terms also apply to things as well.

So where have they been canonized? What made them "saints?" You need only to begin reading the introductions to many of Paul's Epistles:

To the Romans: "...among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called saints: Grace to you and peace... (1: 6, 7); to the 1 Corinthians: "...to the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours..." (I Cor. 1:2); to the Ephesians: "Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are at Ephesus, and who are faithful in Christ Jesus..." (Eph. 1:1); to the Philippians: "Paul and Timothy, bond-servants of Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers and deacons"..."in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now." (Phil 1: 1 & 5); to the Colossians: "Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ in the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae:..." ( Col. 1: 1, 2); to the Thessalonians: "...when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed--for our testimony to you was believed." (2 Thes: 1: 10).

The Epistles of Peter also echo Paul's teaching: "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ to those who reside as aliens, scattered ...who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His Blood.." (1 Pet. 1, 2); "Simon Peter, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, to those who have received a father of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ..." (2 Peter 1: 1)

I could continue, but I'm certain you've noticed five things: 1) that the apostles did not think themselves above others who believed in the gospel of Jesus Christ; 2) that they called these people "saints," 3) that belief/faith in Jesus Christ was the determining factor between saints and others; (4) that "sanctification" is through the on-going work of the Holy Spirit in a believer's life...all believers; 5) that Mary was never mentioned. (You can read the whole of the Epistles.)

So what is a "saint?" A saint is any person who has believed in the gospel of Jesus Christ as set forth in the Scriptures (read John 3: 16, if you don't know what this is). That's it. They are considered "holy;" "consecrated" by the blood of Christ; "set apart" to the work of the gospel which God gives to all who believe.

What is that work? It differs for everyone. But the one constant is that in so doing whatever is given you to do that you try, through the help of the Holy Spirit, to do it according to the will of God and looking for your example to Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who intercedes for you daily and has sat down at the right hand of God the Father. (Good News: you don't have to speak in tongues, perform miracles, or interpret tongues to be a saint!)

Please note: Mary is not a perpetual virgin. Read the gospels: Jesus had other brothers and sisters, one of whom wrote the Epistle of James and became head of the Christian church in Jerusalem. Mary is not mentioned after brief and sporadic mentions in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

A Pope is never mentioned. In fact there is a condemnation of those "who would forbid marriage." And besides our earthly parent, we are to call no man "Father," for God the Father, Who is in Heaven, is our Father.

Intercession for sins is accomplished by Jesus Christ, no other, with the one exception of the Holy Spirit who sometimes intercedes for us in prayer "with groanings too deep for words," when we are at a loss as to what or how to pray.

Men do not make "saints," nor can acts of a "saintly" nature make non-believers saints, nor believers for that matter. Men become saints through belief in the Lord Jesus Christ. They are "set apart" for "holy" purposes.

I've watched the near deification of the deceased John Paul II with a mixture of sadness and incredulity. A worshipper of both Jesus Christ and "the Perpetual Virgin Mary," who made over 400 saints, and who is now looked upon as a "Saint," is the same man who after being shot believed that "Mary of Fatima" saved his life. He may have been a great man; he may have been, at some level, a real follower of Jesus Christ, in which case he was already a saint, but his teachings and beliefs were so full of errors, only God can sort them out. So I do not presume to condemn him; but neither will I call upon him "to intercede" for me in Heaven.

Over a billion people in this world believe in these things. Have you never read the Bible in which you profess? All I can do is plead with you to do so. Martin Luther did and was appalled enough to separate himself from the Roman Catholic Church, even under the threat of excommunication, which in truth cannot affect the salvation of any man, woman, or child who has believed in Jesus Christ as their Savior (c.f., John 10: 27-30.) The errors of the Roman Catholic church teachings are myriad, flying in the face of the teaching of the apostles ("sent ones") and of Peter himself.

I am not asking you to believe my witness, though it is true. I'm asking for you to read the Bible (I recommend the New American Standard Version because it has the most literal translation of the original languages) and forget any additions which the Roman Catholics have included calling it "The Apocrypha," which in Greek means "hidden things." You might be interested in reading up on "Gnosticism" as well.

Then form your own opinions on the things you have been taught or read or heard.

God will bless you for it.

A Time to Be Silent, A Time to Speak

Pope John Paul II died today at 1:37 CST. Memorials, specials on this man's life and leadership of the Roman Catholic Church, debates on his place in history, and sorrow and joy combine in the aftermath of his passing.

Things must be done; cardinals must be summoned; the conclave must convene; the body must be buried.

I write a lot on this blog, and I'm certain many are offended by what I say, but it is not for me to judge this man, though man he was. He has entered Eternity, and it is time for me to be silent.

On Death And Dying

I have no idea why I've never had any fear of dying, but I haven't. I'm afraid of other things, but not Death. (And for several years, I should have been.)

Why am I writing about Death now? It's been so much in the news lately, e.g., Schiavo, the Tsunami, earthquakes, deluges, disease, and now the Pope finds himself at the door.

As an inveterate People Watcher, I've been astounded at the reactions, some of which I've explored in depth here.

Last night I watched cable news coverage of the Vatican "Death Watch." People praying for Pope John Paul II's recovery, some referring to a recovery as a "resurrection," some sorrowful, and some, taking their cue from John Paul, resting in their faith in God "serene" and looking ahead "with joy."

Grief at the loss of a loved one, while natural and understood, pertains not to the end of a person's earthly life, per se, but to the loss of being able to hold, touch, talk to that person who has moved on. The grief is not for the end of the loved one's suffering, but for our own loss of communication with that person.

Death seems especially horrible when a young person is involved. When this happens, as it has in my family, I remember Isaiah's words:

The righteous man perishes, and no one takes it to heart; and devout men are taken away, whle no one understands. For the righteous man is taken away from evil. He enters into peace. Each one who walked in his upright way. -- Isaiah 57: 1-2.

Who would not wish for their loved ones to escape from all evil? It is not the manner in which I would like it to occur, but then, I am selfish and would prefer to see the faces and be able to hug those I love.

I shall leave you with one sonnet, "Death Be Not Proud," in John Donne's collection of what are known as the "Holy Sonnets."

Death be not proud, though some have called thee

Mighty and dreadul, for thou are not so;

For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow

Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.

From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,

Much pleasure; then from these much more must flow,

And soonest our best men with thee do go,

Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.

Thou'rt slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,

And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell;

And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well

And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?

One short sleep past, we wake eternally,

And death shall be no more: Death thou shalt die.

--Holy Sonnet X

And isn't that what Easter is all about?

Writing Journals

I just added a new blog site to my list of good blogs, "Writelife." It's written by a Canadian whom I felt a kinship with, even though I have nothing but his picture and his words to guide me.

He wrote an interesting blog on journal writing and on the DVD "Finding Neverland." Curiously Barrie always kept a journal, and I can't remember when I started writing journals, but I agree that it is a necessary outlet and "flashes-of-genius-keeper" for any writer.

I also like his idea of a real journal...the paper kind on which you write with a curiously archaic object, known as a pen. Nothing like it, really.

When I taught at the University of Oklahoma back in the Dark Ages, I became friends with a young man from France, who held dual citizenship in both that country and England. He was at OU teaching French in lieu of paying tuition. As it happens, he had to take my class (poor thing).

Most English teachers tell student to keep a journal and then hand out grades. I had a bit of a twist, because no one wants to really write personal things--the things that matter--in a journal which someone else might read or even grade. Result: Journals as assignments are useless. However, since I had been forced to write in one myself, and resented every minute of it, I decided that the students had to write in the journal every day, but that I promised I wouldn't read a word, unless they put a note on the front of their journal saying "Please Read." Everyone who kept a journal got an A.

Well, the young French teacher found it particularly cathartic. Journals are therapists, too. He found that because I didn't read it (and I never did), he could actually talk to his journal about his deepest concerns, ideas, etc. It freed him. When he told me about the drastic improvement his life had made since keeping a journal, I was not surprised.

Writing automatically objectifies the subjective. If something is really bothering you, get it on paper. It's amazing. By the act of writing it, you release it from your brain to free yourself to look at the thought from an "outsider's" Point Of View (POV). It's even more useful for evaluation if you leave it for a few days and then come back and read what you've written.

Regardless of the problem or conundrum, it's out of your head, screaming to be heard, and set down in ink. Black and white LOL. Or, if you're like me, you can write in colored inks according to your mood.

Try it, you'll like it. And while you're at it, if you can find a copy, you might want to try reading a very short wonderful book by Brenda Ueland entitled, If You Want To Write. The copy I have is from Graywolf Press, Saint Paul, MN, Second Edition 1987, so you might have to look. It's a little nugget like Strunk & White's Elements of Style.

A bit short tonight, I know, but I have to go write in my journal.

So You Want To Know Who I Am?

I have recently noticed that many people have been looking for "Pam Hawkins," and have ended up here.

To those of you who landed by mistake, thank you for visiting, and I'm sorry I'm not the Pam Hawkins you're looking for.

If I am, you can read more about me on the "About" page, or read my blogs. I am what you read...at least, most of the time.

It's easier to "google" me if you use Pamela Hawkins, Pamela K. Hawkins, or Pamela Kay Hawkins. I am everywhere. Truly sorry about that.

I am known by other names, but those are for me to know...:-).

(A little levity lightens the load, sometimes; don't you think?)

Terri Schiavo, Rest In Peace

Terri Schiavo died late last night after a long and difficult battle. She leaves behind a loving husband, Michael, to whom I express my sincere condolences and best wishes for a happy life.

My sincere sympathies to the Schindlers and to Terri's siblings. Perhaps now that Terri's battle is over, yours can also end, and you can return to picking up the pieces of your lives. I hope so.

My fear is that although Terri's struggle has at last come to an end, the impact of this tragedy will reverberate for years to come.

I truly hope that I am wrong, and that people on both sides of this traumatic issue will "extract the precious from the worthless," and that Terri's death and the controversy which raged around her will produce good and not evil results.

Michael, if you can, forget the insults and insinuations which were hurled at you by unthinking people who never knew you. You did everything you could do to honor Terri's wishes.

This Is Important, People

An end in sight? With the Schindlers who knows? But the U.S. Supreme Court has once more refused to rule in the Schiavo's case, meaning the lower court rulings stand.

I have to say I am concerned about the smelly, lake bottom this furor has turned up.

This is the first time in my life when I find myself siding with Democrats. I'm a life-long Republican, as you know by now, and I'm sorry, but the Republican Senator from Pennsylvania sounded more like a Democrat than a Republican.

Since when does the federal government determine and intervene in a civil case affecting one person's life? Since when does the Congress ignore the Constitution and insist on "a de novo case," meaning go back and start over in the federal courts and ignore 15 years of litigation and medical evidence?

The rapidity and urgency of the Schiavo case nullified any possible Supreme Court review of the constitutionality of the legislation. A fact that seems to escape most people, and which seems not to matter much to the rest.

It matters.

I've said things are upside down and topsy-turvy, but it's more than that. This case, which should never have been aired publicly in the first place, has blurred so many lines among the federal government's role, the federal courts and the state courts judicial areas, federal versus state's rights, medical and religious issues, that the only ones who seem to adhere to some form of sanity number very few, who put emotion aside to deal with the facts of the case, not what they wish were the facts of the case.

This case turns my world on its head. Black becomes white, and white slowly changes to black.

Spiritual "leaders" rant like lunatics (I can't name names, but you've seen them); Michael Schiavo, who has acted well during this entire circus, is slandered, vilified, and called a "murderer" for sticking by Terri for 15 years, long after she ceased to know anything. Her responses are not conscious; they are reflexes. How much easier would it have been to just walk away and let the Schindlers deal with the trauma?

But he didn't. Why? Because if he did, he knew that Terri's parents would ignore her wish that she not live this way.

I have heard Terri's mode of death termed "starving" and "dehydration," "cruel and unusual," by people who should know better. How much more do you need air to breathe? Yet no one screams when a respirator is turned off and/or IV tubes are removed.

She is not in pain. How do I know? Because I've sat and watched my grandmother, who was conscious until a brain tumor overcame her faculties, die in the same way for six long weeks after the feeding tube and water were removed. Was she fighting for her life? No, she was trying to let go of her body.

Terri cannot swallow. You want to leave her death to God? Then let Him decide when to take her. Right now, everyone in that so-called "vigil" outside the hospice is trying to interfere with God's will. Trust me, if He doesn't want her to go, He can heal her with or without any extraneous or heroic efforts.

Some people hate "Christians" for this very kind of emotional and vitriolic display. You who are really Christians, stop! You are not witnessing for Christ; you are making a mockery of it and of my beliefs by saying and doing things that are not Christian at all.

I look at this mess, and I see planted the seeds of destruction for my country.

Wake up, PEOPLE! When chaos and emotion take over, order goes out the door, and the "rule of Law" becomes nothing but a nice phrase having no meaning.

This matter boils down to much more than one woman's desire to die with dignity, without the heroic measures which keep the body alive while the spirit longs to leave. It is about who we are and what America stands for.

Everywhere basic rights, guaranteed in our Bill of Rights and in the Constitution of United States, are eroding. We are willing to sell our birthright, bought with the blood of countless individuals over the last 400 years, for a mess of "safeguards" and "safety measures." Beware that the Freedom which we teach and preach in other countries and which so many have fought and died for is not bargained away in bits and pieces.

If you do nothing, you have contributed to our demise and to your own.

In The Book of the Revelation to John while John was in exile on the island of Patmos, Jesus Christ said to the Laodicean Church:

"The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God says this: 'I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I would that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich, and white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eyesalve to anoint your eyes, that you may see.

'Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline: be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with Me.

'He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

'He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'"--Revelation 3: 14-22 (NASV).

Immediately before dictating the letter to Laodicea, Christ dictated a letter to the church in Philadelphia.

I personally believe that these two churches represent the two kinds of "Christianity" left on earth before the Great Tribulation begins. When Christ comes for His Church, "churches" will still be doing a brisk business with most pews filled.

To Philadelphia Jesus Christ writes: "He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this: 'I know your deeds. Behold, I have put before you an open door which no one can shut, because you have a little power, and have kept My word, and have not denied my Name.

'Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews, and are not, but lie--behold, I will make them to come and bow down at your feet, and to know that I have loved you. Because you have kept the word of My perserverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell upon the earth.

'I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, in order that no one take your crown. He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it any more; and I will write upon him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which come down out of heaven from My God, and My new name.

'He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'"--Rev. 3: 7- 13 (NASV)

Notice the choice set before you. It is choice, not coercion. Even if you choose to reject this, it is by your choice that you do it.

Make no mistake: this is a choice that needs to be made now, for who knows what tonight or tomorrow may bring?

I shall leave you with one more quotation from 2 Peter 3: 3-9:

"Know this first of all that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts and saying, 'Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.' For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water.

'But the present heaven and earth by His word are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

'But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.'"--NASV

For those of you wondering why I am talking about the "last days," and making such a big deal out of this, read Matthew 24 and following. Pay particular attention to the "Parable of the Fig Tree." Even this Spring, it is putting forth leaves.

Not Over Yet...Yes, Schiavo's Parents Do It Again

Well, there was hope for ending this saga...but now, the Schindlers have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court once again to have Terri's feeding tube reinserted.

Will nothing stop these people?

Perhaps they heard Justice Clarence Thomas's clerk on "The Abrams Report" and think they might have a chance. Here's hoping the prevailing wisdom of the Supreme Court holds firm, and they refuse to continue this madness.