Ancient Sun Worship

[Opened_Eyes]

[b]II Kings 23:4-[/b]

And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Bethel.

[b]II Kings 23:5-[/b]

And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, [u]to the sun[/u], and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/baal.jpg[/img]

Above is an altar used for burning incense to the ancient Canaanite sun god Baal. The altar was discovered inside of a large Canaanite temple built 3, 300-3, 700 years ago.

[url="http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/History/Early%20History%20-%20Archaeology/Hatzor%20-%20The%20Head%20of%20all%20those%20Kingdoms"]CLICKHERE[/url] to read about the excavation in which the altar was found.

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/baal2.jpg[/img]

The symbol on the altar to Baal is a cross with a circle around it, with a circle in the middle of the cross.

The four points on the cross of Ball are very similar to the locations of the earth in it's rotation around the sun during the 2 equinoxes and 2 solstices.

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/suncross.jpg[/img]

[b]Summer Solstice-[/b] Occurs around June 22nd in the Northern Hemisphere and it signals the first day of the Summer season. It is also the longest day and shortest night of the year.

[b]Fall Equinox-[/b] Occurs around September 22nd in the Northern Hemisphere and it signals the first day of the Fall season. Also day and night are of equal length (12 hour each) in all parts of the world.

[b]Winter Solstice-[/b] Occurs around December 22nd in the Northern Hemisphere and it signals the first day of the Winter season. It is also the shortest day and longest night of the year.

[b]Spring Equinox-[/b] Occurs around March 22nd in the Northern Hemisphere and it signals the first day of the Spring season. Also day and night are of equal length (12 hour each) in all parts of the world.

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/shamash.jpg[/img]

Above is a tablet approximately 2, 900 years old that depicts the ancient Babylonian sun god Shamash. The tablet was discovered in 1880 by Hormuzd Rassam in Sippar, southern Iraq and is presently located at the British Museum.

[url="http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/compass/ixbin/hixclient.exe?_IXDB_=compass&_IXSR_=kx2&_IXSS_=_IXFPFX_%3dgraphical%252ffull%252f%26_IXNOMATCHES_%3dgraphical%252fno_matches%252ehtml%26%2524%2b%2528with%2bv2_searchable_index%2529%2bsort%3d%252e%26_IXDB_%3dcompass%26%257bUPPER%257d%253av2_free_text_tindex%3dshamash%26_IXSESSION_%3dyqpfpslDcLu%26_IXsearchterm%3dshamash&_IXFIRST_=13&_IXMAXHITS_=1&_IXSPFX_=graphical/full/&_IXsearchterm=shamash&submit-button=summary"]CLICKHERE[/url] to see the Shamash tablet at the British museum.

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/shamash2.jpg[/img]

The symbol on the Shamash tablet is very similar to the symbol found on the altar to Baal, except there is an X on top of the cross.

There is a less ancient symbol called the Wheel of the Year which resembles both the older symbols of Baal and Shamash. The Wheel of the Year marks the days in which certain pagan festivals are observed. The festivals or “Sabbats” as the pagans call them, are spaced at even intervals throughout the year.

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/wheeloftheyear.jpg[/img]

There are a total of 8 pagan sabbats and 4 of them fall on the exact dates of the 2 equinoxes and 2 solstices. The dates of the other 4 sabbats are called cross-quarter days because their dates occur at the exact halfway mark between a equinox and a solstice.

The Eight Pagan Sabbats:

[u][i]Imbolic-[/i][/u] February 2nd [b](Middle of Winter season)[/b]

[u][i]Ostara-[/i][/u] March 21st-March 23rd [b](Spring Equinox)[/b]

[u][i]Beltane-[/i][/u] May 1st [b](Middle of Spring season)[/b]

[u][i]Litha-[/i][/u] June 21st-June 23rd [b](Summer Solstice)[/b]

[u][i]Lughnasadh-[/i][/u] August 2nd [b](Middle of Summer season) [/b]

[u][i]Mabon-[/i][/u] September 21st-September 23rd [b](Fall Equinox)[/b]

[u][i]Samhain-[/i][/u] October 31st [b](Middle of Fall season)[/b]

[u][i]Yule-[/i][/u] December 21st-December 23rd [b](Winter Solstice)[/b]










[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/illumination.jpg[/img]

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXKIqnjRCHk"]CLICKHERE[/url] to see a video of the various symbols that are portrayed all around us. (5 minutes long)

[cmotherofpirl]

and your point is?

[Opened_Eyes]

[size=7]Prophecy[/size]

[u]Revelation 17:1-17:5[/u]

17:1- [b]And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:[/b]

17:2- [b]With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.[/b]

17:3- [b]So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.[/b]

17:4- [b]And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:[/b]

17:5- [b]And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, [u]BABYLON[/u] THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.[/b]





[b]Symbol of ancient [u]Babylonian[/u] sun god Shamash-[/b]

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/shamash2.jpg[/img]

[u]Vatican City, Rome-[/u]

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/Roman3.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/Roman.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/Roman2.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/sha.jpg[/img]

Edited January 26, 2007 by cmotherofpirl

[Akalyte]

LOL. Someone please kick jack chick off of phatmass...

Is Catholicism Pagan?


If few Fundamentalists know the history of their religion—which distressingly few do—even fewer have an appreciation of the history of the Catholic Church. They become easy prey for purveyors of fanciful "histories" that claim to account for the origin and advance of Catholicism.

Anti-Catholics often suggest that Catholicism did not exist prior to the Edict of Milan, which was issued in 313 AD and made Christianity legal in the Roman Empire. With this, pagan influences began to contaminate the previously untainted Christian Church. In no time, various inventions adopted from paganism began to replace the gospel that had been once for all delivered to the saints. At least, that is the theory.



Pagan Influence Fallacy


Opponents of the Church often attempt to discredit Catholicism by attempting to show similarities between it and the beliefs or practices of ancient paganism. This fallacy is frequently committed by Fundamentalists against Catholics, by Seventh-Day Adventists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, and others against both Protestants and Catholics, and by atheists and skeptics against both Christians and Jews.

The nineteenth century witnessed a flowering of this "pagan influence fallacy." Publications such as The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop (the classic English text charging the Catholic Church with paganism) paved the way for generations of antagonism towards the Church. During this time, entire new sects were created (Seventh-Day Adventists, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses)—all considering traditional Catholicism and Protestantism as polluted by paganism. This era also saw atheistic "freethinkers" such as Robert Ingersoll writing books attacking Christianity and Judaism as pagan.

The pagan influence fallacy has not gone away in the twentieth century, but newer archaeology and more mature scholarship have diminished its influence. Yet there are still many committing it. In Protestant circles, numerous works have continued to popularize the claims of Alexander Hislop, most notably the comic books of Jack Chick and the book Babylon Mystery Religion by the young Ralph Woodrow (later Woodrow realized its flaws and wrote The Babylon Connection? repudiating it and refuting Hislop). Other Christian and quasi-Christian sects have continued to charge mainstream Christianity with paganism, and many atheists have continued to repeat—unquestioned—the charges of paganism leveled by their forebears.



Use of a round wafer implies sun worship?


Hislop and Chick argue that the wafers of Communion are round, just like the wafers of the sun worshippers of Baal. They don’t bother to mention that the wafers used by the same pagans were also ovals, triangles, some with the edges folded over, or shaped like leaves or animals, etc. The fact that a wafer is round does not make it immoral or pagan, since even the Jews had wafers and cakes offered in the Old Testament (Gen. 18:1-8, Ex 29:1-2).

Unfortunately for Chick and other Fundamentalists, their arguments backfire. An atheist will take the pagan connection one step further, saying, "Christianity itself is simply a regurgitation of pagan myths: the incarnation of a divinity from a virgin, a venerated mother and child, just like Isis and Osiris, Isa and Iswara, Fortuna and Jupiter, and Semiramis and Tammuz. Beyond this, some pagans had a triune God, and pagan gods were often pictured with wings, as was your God in Psalms 91:4. The flames on the heads of the apostles were also seen as an omen from the gods in Roman poetry and heathen myths long before Pentecost. A rock is struck that brings forth water in the Old Testament . . . just like the pagan goddess Rhea did long before then. Also, Jesus is known as the ‘fish,’ just like the fish-god Dagon, etc." Unless the Fundamentalists are willing to honestly examine the logical fallacies and historical inaccuracies, they are left defenseless. Fortunately, like the attacks on Catholicism in particular, all of the supposed parallels mentioned above self-destruct when examined with any scholarly rigor. If not guilty of historical inaccuracies, they all are guilty of what can be called "pagan influence fallacies."



Anything can be attacked using fallacy


The pagan influence fallacy is committed when one charges that a particular religion, belief, or practice is of pagan origin or has been influenced by paganism and is therefore false, wrong, tainted, or to be repudiated. In this minimal form, the pagan influence fallacy is a subcase of the genetic fallacy, which improperly judges a thing based on its history or origins rather than on its own merits (e.g., "No one should use this medicine because it was invented by a drunkard and adulterer").

Very frequently, the pagan influence fallacy is committed in connection with other fallacies, most notably the post hoc ergo proper hoc ("After this, therefore because of this") fallacy—e.g., "Some ancient pagans did or believed something millennia ago, therefore any parallel Christian practices and beliefs must be derived from that source." Frequently, a variant on this fallacy is committed in which, as soon as a parallel with something pagan is noted, it is assumed that the pagan counterpart is the more ancient. This variant might be called the similis hoc ergo propter hoc ("Similar to this, therefore because of this") fallacy.

When the pagan influence fallacy is encountered, it should be pointed out that it is, in fact, a fallacy. To help make this clear to a religious person committing it, it may be helpful to illustrate with cases where the pagan influence fallacy could be committed against his own position (e.g., the practice of circumcision was practiced in the ancient world by a number of peoples—including the Egyptians—but few Jews or Christians would say that its divinely authorized use in Israel was an example of "pagan corruption").

To help a secular person see the fallacy involved, one might point to a parallel case of the genetic fallacy involving those of his perspective (e.g., "Nobody should accept this particular scientific theory because it was developed by an atheist").

Whenever one encounters a proposed example of pagan influence, one should demand that its existence be properly documented, not just asserted. The danger of accepting an inaccurate claim is too great. The amount of misinformation in this area is great enough that it is advisable never to accept a reported parallel as true unless it can be demonstrated from primary source documents or through reliable, scholarly secondary sources. After receiving documentation supporting the claim of a pagan parallel, one should ask a number of questions:

1. Is there a parallel? Frequently, there is not. The claim of a parallel may be erroneous, especially when the documentation provided is based on an old or undisclosed source.

For example: "The Egyptians had a trinity. They worshiped Osiris, Isis, and Horus, thousands of years before the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost were known" (Robert Ingersoll, Why I Am an Agnostic). This is not true. The Egyptians had an Ennead—a pantheon of nine major gods and goddesses. Osiris, Isis, and Horus were simply three divinities in the pantheon who were closely related by marriage and blood (not surprising, since the Ennead itself was an extended family) and who figured in the same myth cycle. They did not represent the three persons of a single divine being (the Christian understanding of the Trinity). The claim of an Egyptian trinity is simply wrong. There is no parallel.

2. Is the parallel dependent or independent? Even if there is a pagan parallel, that does not mean that there is a causal relationship involved. Two groups may develop similar beliefs, practices, and artifacts totally independently of each other. The idea that similar forms are always the result of diffusion from a common source has long been rejected by archaeology and anthropology, and for very good reason: Humans are similar to each other and live in similar (i.e., terrestrial) environments, leading them to have similar cultural artifacts and views.

For example, Fundamentalists have made much of the fact that Catholic art includes Madonna and Child images and that non-Christian art, all over the world, also frequently includes mother and child images. There is nothing sinister in this. The fact is that, in every culture, there are mothers who hold their children! Sometimes this gets represented in art, including religious art, and it especially is used when a work of art is being done to show the motherhood of an individual. Mother-with child-images do not need to be explained by a theory of diffusion from a common, pagan religious source (such as Hislop’s suggestion that such images stem from representations of Semiramis holding Tammuz). One need look no further than the fact that mothers holding children is a universal feature of human experience and a convenient way for artists to represent motherhood.

3. Is the parallel antecedent or consequent? Even if there is a pagan parallel that is causally related to a non-pagan counterpart, this does not establish which gave rise to the other. It may be that the pagan parallel is a late borrowing from a non-pagan source. Frequently, the pagan sources we have are so late that they have been shaped in reaction to Jewish and Christian ideas. Sometimes it is possible to tell that pagans have been borrowing from non-pagans. Other times, it cannot be discerned who is borrowing from whom (or, indeed, if anyone is borrowing from anyone).

For example: The ideas expressed in the Norse Elder Edda about the end and regeneration of the world were probably influenced by the teachings of Christians with whom the Norse had been in contact for centuries (H. A. Guerber, The Norsemen, 339f).

4. Is the parallel treated positively, neutrally, or negatively? Even if there is a pagan parallel to a non-pagan counterpart, that does not mean that the item or concept was enthusiastically or uncritically accepted by non-pagans. One must ask how they regarded it. Did they regard it as something positive, neutral, or negative?

For example: Circumcision and the symbol of the cross might be termed "neutral" Jewish and Christian counterparts to pagan parallels. It is quite likely that the early Hebrews first encountered the idea of circumcision among neighboring non-Jewish peoples, but that does not mean they regarded it as a
religiously good thing for non-Jews to do. Circumcision was regarded as a religiously good thing only for Jews because for them it symbolized a special covenant with the one true God (Gen. 17). The Hebrew scriptures are silent in a religious appraisal of non-Jewish circumcision; they seemed indifferent to the fact that some pagans circumcised.

Similarly, the early Christians who adopted the cross as a symbol did not do so because it was a pagan religious symbol (the pagan cultures which use it as a symbol, notably in East Asia and the Americas, had no influence on the early Christians). The cross was used as a Christian symbol because Christ died on a cross—his execution being regarded as a bad thing in itself, in fact, an infinite injustice—but one from which he brought life for the world. Christians did not adopt it because it was a pagan symbol they liked and wanted to copy.

Examples of negative parallels are often found in Genesis. For instance, the Flood narrative (Gen. 6-9) has parallels to pagan flood stories, but is written so that it refutes ideas in them. Thus Genesis attributes the flood to human sin (6:5-7), not overpopulation, as Atrahasis’ Epic and the Greek poem Cypria did (I. Kikawada & A. Quinn). The presence of flood stories in cultures around the world does not undermine the validity of the biblical narrative, but lends it more credence.

Criticism, refutation, and replacement are also the principles behind modern holidays being
celebrated to a limited extent around the same time as former pagan holidays. In actuality, reports of Christian holidays coinciding with pagan ones are often inaccurate (Christmas does not occur on Saturnalia, for example). However, to the extent the phenomenon occurs at all, Christian holidays were introduced to provide a wholesome, non-pagan alternative celebration, which thus critiques and rejects the pagan holiday.

This is the same process that leads Fundamentalists who are offended at the (inaccurately alleged) pagan derivation of Halloween to introduce alternative "Reformation Day" celebrations for their children. (This modern Protestant holiday is based on the fact that the Reformation began when Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg, Germany, on October 31, 1517.) Another Fundamentalist substitution for Halloween has been "harvest festivals" that celebrate the season of autumn and the gathering of crops. These fundamentalist substitutions are no more "pagan" than the celebrations of days or seasons that may have been introduced by earlier Christians.



Historical truth prevails


Ultimately, all attempts to prove Catholicism "pagan" fail. Catholic doctrines are neither borrowed from the mystery religions nor introduced from pagans after the conversion of Constantine. To make a charge of paganism stick, one must be able to show more than a similarity between something in the Church and something in the non-Christian world. One must be able to demonstrate a legitimate connection between the two, showing clearly that one is a result of the other, and that there is something wrong with the non-Christian item.

In the final analysis, nobody has been able to prove these things regarding a doctrine of the Catholic faith, or even its officially authorized practices. The charge of paganism just doesn’t work.

[IcePrincessKRS]

[quote]LOL. Someone please kick jack chick off of phatmass...[/quote]


He's just tryin' to open our eyes...

[Akalyte]

Jewish high Priest

[img]http://www.taroscopes.com/miscimages/kohen-breastplate2.gif[/img]

17:4- And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

A CITY WITH FINE CLOTHING AND PRECIOUS STONES



Revelation 18:16-17
"…Alas, alas, great city, wearing fine linen, purple and scarlet, adorned (in) gold, precious stones, and pearls. In one hour this great wealth has been ruined."

Exodus 35: 30 - 36: 1

"Moses said to the Israelites, ‘See, the LORD has chosen Bezalel… of the tribe of Judah, and has filled him with a divine spirit of skill and understanding and knowledge in every craft: in the production of embroidery, in making things of gold, silver or bronze, in cutting and mounting precious stones, in carving wood, and in every other craft. …He has endowed them with skill to execute all types of work: engraving, embroidering, the making of variegated cloth of violet, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen thread, weaving, and all other arts and crafts. ‘Bezalel, therefore, will set to work with Oholiab and with all the experts whom the LORD has endowed with skill and understanding in knowing how to execute all the work for the service of the sanctuary, just as the LORD has commanded.’ "

Exodus 39: 1-2, 8-14
"With violet, purple and scarlet yarn were woven the service cloths for use in the sanctuary, as well as the sacred vestments for Aaron, as the LORD had commanded Moses. The ephod was woven of gold thread and of violet, purple and scarlet yarn and of fine linen twined…
(8) The breastpiece was embroidered like the ephod, with gold thread and violet, purple and scarlet yarn on cloth of fine linen twined. … Four rows of precious stones were mounted on it: in the first row a carnelian, a topaz and an emerald; in the second row, a garnet, a sapphire and a beryl; in the third row a jacinth, an agate and an amethyst; in the fourth row a chrysolite, an onyx and a jasper. They were mounted in gold filigree work. These stones were twelve, to match the names of the sons of Israel, and each stone was engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes."

[url="http://members.aol.com/johnprh/whore2.html#baby"]http://members.aol.com/johnprh/whore2.html#baby[/url]


The Whore of Babylon is apostate Jerusalem. Not the Catholic church.




Just as "Babylon" is referred to as a whore, a harlot. Jerusalem is also called a harlot.

Revelation 17:1
"Then one of the seven angels who were holding the seven bowls came and said to me, ‘Come here. I will show you the judgment on the great harlot…"

Ezekiel 16: 1-3, 26
"Thus the word of the LORD came to me: Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her abominations. Thus says the Lord GOD to Jerusalem: By origin and birth you are of the land of Canaan; your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite…
(26) You played the harlot with the Egyptians, your lustful neighbors, so many times that I was provoked to anger."

Jeremiah 2:1-2, 17-20
"This word of the LORD came to me: Go, cry out this message for Jerusalem to hear! …
(17) Has not the forsaking of the LORD, your God, done this to you ? And now, why go to Egypt, to drink the waters of the Nile? Why go to Assyria, to drink the waters of the Euphrates ? Your own wickedness chastises you, your own infidelities punish you. Know then, and see, how evil and bitter is your forsaking the LORD, your God,
And showing no fear of me, says the Lord, the GOD of hosts. Long ago you broke your yoke, you tore off your bonds. ‘I will not serve,’ you said. On every high hill, under every green tree, you gave yourself to harlotry."

Isaiah 1:1, 21
"The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah… (21) How the faithful city has become a harlot, she that was full of justice! Righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers." RSV

Edited January 26, 2007 by Akalyte

[Opened_Eyes]

[size=5]The Birth of Messiah[/size]

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/Blowing.jpg[/img]

I did a study on the 33.5 years of the life of Jesus and found out through scripture that Jesus was born on the [b]Feast of Trumpets[/b] on September 11th 3 B.C. and he was conceived on [b]Hanukkah[/b] December 13th 4 B.C. This can be validated through scripture by calculating the time of birth of his cousin, John the Baptist who was exactly 6 months older (See Luke 1).

John the Baptist's Father Zechariah was a Priest in the Temple after the division of "Abijah." In [b]2nd Chronicles 24[/b] we find what time of year the division of Abijah would serve in the temple. Therefore when the angel Gabriel announced to Zechariah that his wife Elisabeth would conceive a son, we know what time of year that was and from that we know when John the Baptist was conceived. So we count 271 days forward (normal gestation period) and we find that John the Baptist was born on Passover in 3 B.C. We count 180 days (6 months) forward and we find that Jesus was born on a Holy Day of Israel called [b]"Yom Teruah"[/b] (Day of Blowing Trumpets) (See Leviticus 23). This day is also the [b]"Head of the Year"[/b] in Hebrew it is [b]"Rosh"[/b] (Head) [b]Ha'Shanah[/b] (The Year).

[b][u]The Catholic Church[/u] made up "Christ Mass" to assimilate Jesus to the pagan sun god that was always "reincarnated" each December 25th on the winter solstice in astrology! "Tammuz" was this pagan sun-god also known as "Baal." God showed this to Ezekiel in Ezekiel 8 that they were worshiping this pagan sun god in Israel and he said it is an Abomination![/b]

So why is this so important? Because Jesus' real date of birth validates prophecy! The Bible tells us in Revelation 18:10, that [b]"the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."[/b] Now by understanding all this, I came up with an exact time-line of "Daniel's 70th Week" from the "going forth of the command to rebuild Jerusalem" (Daniel 9:24) which was the decree given by King Cyrus in 457 B.C. There are 70 weeks X 7 years=490 years for the length of this prophecy. The word "weeks" here in Daniel 9:24-27 is the Hebrew word [b]"Shebuah"[/b] which means a "seven year period" hence "Seventy Weeks" means 70 times 7, which is the exact same formula that Jesus gave his disciples when they asked him [b]"how many times we should forgive our brother?"[/b] In other words 70 X 7 = FORGIVENESS!

When the 490 year prophecy is completed, there will be a completeness to God's atonement for sin towards all of mankind. Some will receive it and some will reject it, but it will be finished in the earth!

Okay, so lets add 486.5 years to 457 B.C. and we come to the exact date that Jesus died on the cross which was Wednesday, April 3rd, in 30 A.D. This day was the Passover on the Jewish Calendar. There is no such thing as [b]"Good Friday."[/b] Good Friday discredits Jesus and makes it appear that he lied when he said he would be [b]"three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."[/b] Good Friday puts him in the [b]heart of the earth[/b] only 1 day, not 3.

The day after his crucifixion, was an annual Sabbath called the "Feast of Unleavened Bread" and then 2 days later was the weekly Sabbath.

From these dates we find that Jesus fulfilled the first 3.5 years of Daniel's 70th week leaving only 3.5 years to complete of this 490 year prophecy. The last half of Daniel's 70th Week (3.5 years), picks up with the antichrist setting up the [b]"Abomination of Desolation"[/b] in the 3rd Jewish Temple, and this is when the "Tribulation" period actually begins. (Matthew 24:15-21) Concurrently, the "two witnesses" in Revelation 11 will also have a ministry that lasts for 1, 260 days (3.5 years).

The above was written by [url="http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=71872063"]Lioness 4 Yeshua.[/url]





[b]The Pagan Wheel of the Year-[/b]

[img]http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r217/Shlichus7/wheeloftheyear.jpg[/img]

[b]A few Catholic holidays-[/b]

[u]All Souls' Day[/u], is held within a few days of the pagan sabbat called [b]Samhain[/b], that takes place on October 31st which is the half-way point between the fall equinox and winter solstice.

[u]Christ-Mass[/u], is held within a few days of the pagan sabbat called [b]Yule[/b], that takes place on the winter solstice around December 22nd.

[u]Candle-Mass[/u], is held within a few days of the pagan sabbat called [b]Imbolic[/b], that takes place on February 2nd which is the half-way point between the winter solstice and spring equinox.

[mortify]

The first thing you learn in stats 101 is that correlation does not mean causation. Just because things seem to parallel doesn't mean they are connected! Take the Aztec and Egyptian civilizations for example; both utilized pyramids and hieroglyphics but neither robbed the other of the ideas.

The vestments and symbolisms that we use were used by the Jews as well. That's the real origin of much of what you see.

[KnightofChrist]

Yo Check dis out yall

[url="http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=134588159"]http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fusea...endid=134588159[/url]

[Akalyte]

Perhaps you're scratching your head, wondering how anyone could actually believe this pagan-connection stuff as Adventists believe about Catholicism. Very well, I wonder too. But believe it or not, some even believe, as the notorious Alexander Hislop did, that the typical Christian "fish symbol" actually stands for the pagan fish god Dagon! Here again, pseudo-science and pure bias are at work: "The fact is, Dagon worship had died out long before [the early Christian persecution] -- in the latter days of the Assyrian Empire--and was not contemporary with Christianity" (Ralph Woodrow, The Babylon Connection? [Palm Springs, CA: RWEA, 1997], p.78). So what's the point of accusing others that the fish symbol they have on their car is actually a tribute to Dagon? It is totally unrelated and unconnected. It may perhaps be a bit similar, but similarity is irrelevant. What Adventists put forth as "proof" concerning a Catholicism/paganism connection would be dismissed by any serious researcher as biased, unscientific, and ridiculous.

Now let's go head and look at some more Adventist "evidence" concerning a connection between Catholicism and paganism with regards to the image of the sun or sunburst. Consider this image:

[img]http://www.biblelight.net/b-canopy.jpg[/img]

This is Scheifler's commentary:

You see the sunburst image on the underside of the canopy of Bernini's Baldacchino, the large canopy-like monument in St. Peter's Cathedral, directly over the main altar of St. Peter's, and the alleged tomb of St. Peter. The dove in front of the sunburst is symbolic of the Holy Spirit. Note the shape of the sun rays. They are essentially identical to that of the pagan sun symbol worn by Assyrian kings (a Maltese cross), over 800 years before the time of Christ.

(Pagan Sun Worship and Catholicism: The Truth [sic])

Scheifler at least acknowledges that the dove represents the Holy Spirit (and is not a Catholic endorsement of dove worship) but he infers that the sunburst behind the dove is somehow a connection to paganism 800 years before Christ? HELLO? How much sense does that make? This is a classic example of Adventist pseudo-science mixed with their bias and paranoia.

So why's there a sunburst there? Well, because the Holy Spirit is GOD, and God "is a sun" (Psalm 84:11). God is the Sun of Righteousness, the Eternal and True Light, and so it is quite appropriate to paint a sunburst to represent the Lord.

The same article also claims that what is now known as the Maltese Cross was formerly used in paganism. Scheifler says: "Twenty-eight hundred years ago that shape was symbolic of pagan sun worship." So? That was 2,800 years ago! Scheifler is pointing to a similarity without a connection! That same symbol is now the Maltese Cross and has a totally different meaning! Scheifler himself admits that the "connection" he is attempting to make is separated by 2,800 years! How much more proof that there is no connection does one need?

The Maltese Cross has been used throughout history for various purposes. For instance, it is a symbol of honor and protection for firemen, as can be seen here and here. Another source tells us that the Maltese Cross is a "symbol of the Knights of Malta and Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem."

The fact that the same or a similar cross can be found in some almost 3,000-year-old pagan religion proves nothing. My goodness, crosses are VERY generic and VERY commonly used throughout history.

Seventh-Day Adventists also claim that Catholic use of the "halo" is actually another hint at its descent from paganism because pagan artists, too, gave their heroes and gods "circles of light" around their heads. Michael Scheifler even thinks they are "sun wheels." However, as Ralph Woodrow observes:

The symbol itself is not evil. Light, quite naturally, forms a circular glow. If an artist is seeking to portray a saintly person from whom the light of God shines, the round glow of light is not unrealistic nor unbiblical.

In the Bible, when an angel appeared to the shepherds, "the glory of the Lord shown [sic] round about them" (Lk. 2:9). The Greek word here is perilampo, meaning "halo." It is based on peri (cf. peripheral) meaning "around," and lampo (cf. lamp), "to radiate brilliancy."

As the wise men followed the star to Bethlehem, it "went before them, till it came and stood over where the child was" (Matt. 2:9) . . . Adam Clarke . . . goes on to say that "probably this gave the first idea to the ancient painters, of representing Christ in the manger, with a glory surrounding his head."

(Woodrow, The Babylon Connection?, p.67)

Mr. Woodrow had the guts to renounce what he saw was mere superstition, bias, and paranoia, namely the seeing of pagan connections everywhere. Will Adventists show as much sincerity and bravery?

Not Michael Scheifler. He claims that halos are sun wheels and are a "symbol of Baal." Please look at the following image Scheifler has on his web site:

[img]http://www.biblelight.net/100liragold.jpg[/img]


This is an Italian gold coin depicting Christ the Lord, who has the typical messianic halo, a circle with a cross inscribed into it, to make clear to everyone that the person depicted is the Messiah, not just any other saint. What does Scheifler conclude about this? He says that this messianic halo is actually nothing other than the pagan symbol of Baal, shown here:

[img]http://www.biblelight.net/hazor-baal-2.jpg[/img]

How much more stupid can it get! It should be obvious now that one can find similarities without connections!

In another essay, entitled Pagan Sun Worship and Catholicism: The Pagan Sun Wheel, the Obelisk and Baal, Scheifler says: "At left is a pagan sun wheel in the temple at Kararak India, which is associated with occultism and astrology. It resembles a chariot wheel doesn't it?" This is the picture he's referring to:


[img]http://www.biblelight.net/wheel.jpg[/img]


Yes it surely does resemble a chariot wheel. But as one of my friends has commented: "Has it occurred to [Scheifler] that artistic inspiration for such emblems might come from the presence of chariot wheels, or spiked wheels in general, being found in most every culture on earth?" I am amazed to no end at how anyone could actually see a connection between Catholicism, sun wheels, and chariots. Even children, when they doodle during a boring class at school, may draw circles and then adorn them with all sorts of strikes that start from one end of the circle, go through the center, and then end at the other end of the circle. I did it myself when I was little!

But the worst is yet to come. Consider the following picture of Pope Pius XII wearing an especially beautiful stole. To the right of that picture is a detail of that stole in color:

[img]http://www.biblelight.net/piusxii-stole.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.biblelight.net/stole-baal-ishtar.jpg[/img]


Now, what do you think the detail in this stole depicts? Horror of horrors, the Pope wears a stole with a cross! Imagine!!! Wouldn't everyone agree that it is a cross, presumably standing for Jesus Christ and Christianity? Yes indeed, that's what anyone unbiased would see. But not Michael Scheifler, no. For Scheifler, this is the symbol of Baal/Shamash! And he "proves" it too, having two photographs of the pagan symbols on his site. And what are those symbols? Crosses! You see, the cross in the Catholic Church, the Adventist thinks, doesn't refer to the cross of Christ but to the pagan Baal and Shamash! And that's not it. The detail shows that the cross is inside a polygon. Scheifler concludes this must be the star of Ishtar, which has eight points!

<desperate> I mean, this is where, I think, anyone with common sense and a sane mind can see that the Adventists are being ridiculous and paranoid! What surrounds the cross in that stole is not the star of some pagan Ishtar but simply a rectangle with four points coming out of its sides because of the four-pointed cross inside. My goodness! In any serious class dealing with credible research, the Adventists would fail miserably.

Scheifler's comedy, however, continues. He says that the obelisk which can be found in the center of St. Peter's square is "meant to honor the sun god." He further says that "[t]he obelisk is, of course, a phallic symbol, but it also was used in sun worship." What, then, is Scheifler's point? That the Vatican has some humongous phallus in its center? Or that people use this obelisk to worship the sun or something?

Concerning the same obelisk, Scheifler notes that it is "a genuine Egyptian obelisk shipped from Heliopolis to Rome by the Roman emperor Caligula." But what are we supposed to conclude from this? That Catholics are sun worshippers because of this stolen obelisk? When the Babylonians stole the ark of the covenant, did that make them Yahweh worshippers? Far from it.

Instead, let's look at the facts:
The Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) tells us about the obelisk in the Vatican: "The obelisk is 836 feet high, and weighs 360.2 tons. Its apex is adorned with a bronze cross containing a fragment of the True Cross" (s.v. "Basilica of St. Peter"). Now Scheifler didn't mention that part, did he? The obelisk has a CROSS on top of it. This represents the triumph of the Church over paganism. There is more evidence, however:

It is known that Emperor Augustus ordered [the obelisk] erected in the Julian Forum in Alexandria, where it stayed until A.D. 37. That year, the Emperor Caligula had it removed to the Vatican Circus in Rome. According to the Egyptologist Labib Habachi, "Legend has it that in the Vatican Circus innumerable Christians, including St. Peter, were put to death and that the reason this obelisk was not later overturned as were all the others in Rome was that it was looked upon as the last witness to the martyrdom of St. Peter."

(PBS, Nova Online Adventure)

So there we have it. The obelisk is there for at least two reasons: (1) to show the triumph of Christianity over paganism by capturing a beloved pagan symbol and christianizing it, and (2) to give a last witness to the martyrdom of the early Christians, who were persecuted, tortured, and executed most cruelly at the hands of the Romans. We might add a third purpose: by pointing to the sky, the obelisk reminds people that they are to "seek the things that are above" (Col 3:1).

Interesting, isn't it, that Michael Scheifler, in his essay The Pagan Sun Wheel, the Obelisk, and Baal, has a link to the very same article I just quoted (Nova Online Adventure) and yet does not mention the above-quoted evidence on why there is this obelisk.

Scheifler notes: "The pagan association of the obelisk was something well understood by the church. The Jesuit scholar, Athanasius Kircher in his book Obeliscus Pamphilius, published in 1650, gives an account of the ancient views of the obelisk as the digitus solis, or 'finger of the sun.'"

Now, first of all, just because one Jesuit wrote such a thing doesn't mean such ideas were "well understood," or accepted by, the Church. OK, so Fr. Kircher studied the ancient views of an obelisk. What's the point?

More Scheiflerian comedy: "Here you see a photo looking up into the dome of St. Peter's. Notice the
very obvious 16 ray sun wheel," says Scheifler about this picture:

[img]http://www.biblelight.net/dome.jpg[/img]

Well, basically every "dome" on this planet has what one could call "rays" coming out of it. It is as much an issue of structural necessity as it is common artistic format. No religious significance is tied to it (duh!).

And on and on it goes on his web site. Sunbursts, wafer gods, round images, ad nauseam. I hope that in light of what has been presented here in this essay, you can sanely analyze and judge any claims made by Adventists concerning the supposed Catholicism/paganism connection.

Finally, let me close with a few words on the similarity issue once more:

These [pagan] cults bore marked, though superficial, resemblance to Catholicism. . . . They also bore marked resemblance to fundamentalism [and non-Catholic Christianity in general], at least in things that Catholicism and fundamentalism hold in common. . . . If Catholicism happens to have more points of similarity with paganism, it is not because it is more likely to have grown from these cults, but because it is a broader religion . . . so there exist more aspects in Catholicism to which there could be parallels in paganism.
[...]
We should expect the true religion to be a fulfillment of, but not a complete contradiction of, mankind's earlier stabs at religious truth. After all, each ancient religion had something true in it.
[...]
We should expect that the religion that is the fullness of truth . . . would incorporate the good points of earlier religions while rejecting their errors.

(Keating, Catholicism and Fundamentalism: The Attack on "Romanism" by "Bible Christians" [San Francisco, CA: Ignatius Press, 1988], pp.159,163)

He couldn't be more right on this point.

I hope this has been helpful in exposing the silly charges of some Seventh-Day Adventists. In order for their accusations to have validity, they must demonstrate connection, not just similar

Edited January 26, 2007 by Akalyte

[Opened_Eyes]

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[KnightofChrist]

[quote name='Opened_Eyes' post='1176232' date='Jan 25 2007, 10:22 PM']
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[cmotherofpirl]

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[KnightofChrist]

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[homeschoolmom]

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