I particularly loved the last paragraph of this post where you wrote “those who should have been “salt and light” in their communities, have failed to keep themselves pure, and full of savor” I completely loved this post and its got to be the best post I read this week.

Reading that poster is so very sad. I suppose that whomever wrote it is also a very sad person with no hope for tomorrow or eternity. It must make the Fateher weep to know that one whom He created lives in such a dark place.

In college, I studied under an excellent ethics professor, Dr. Hans Tiefel. Whenever someone would trot that phrase out in one of his seminars, he would visibly wince. As Tiefel explained, the idea that the Church and the State should be separated, was intended as a protection of the Church from the State, not the other way around. Americans have misconstrued this phrase, originally coined by Jefferson, to suggest that religious beliefs (and those who hold them) have no part in public policy, yet those who framed our constitution had quite the opposite intention, from what we can tell.

This article is a good place to start, to understand the issue.

I want to have to have the freedom to have manger scenes and 1o commandments and such, so I think they need to have their freedom to celebrate the plaques of both solstices if they so desire. Weird, but whatever.

THANKS for the clear reminder and encouragment to be salt and light TODAY where we live.

I love you kids. Aunt Kate

Something that God has been showing me lately is that I (we) don’t really know what sacrifice is and we really are quite greedy. I recently read an “Our Daily Bread” article which pointed out the the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah was not due to homosexual behavior (although that is certainly an abomination as well ), but this is the reason given in Ezekiel:

“This was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty and committed abomination before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit” (Ezekiel 16:49-50)

Being salt and light is so much more than speaking or living as an example, as we so often call Christianity in the U.S.; it is action toward a world in need. Serving “sinners” as we speak the truth in love. That’s tough, really impossible without trusting and obeying the leading of the Holy Spirit in God’s word and through prayer.

Thank you for the verse from Proverbs 28, it’s perfect for the times.