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Luke 17:28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; 29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. 30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.Perhaps the greatest sign that we are in the last days before God’s judgment is that the sins of Sodom and Gamorrah have been codified. Sodomy laws have been passed promoting and protecting the behavior in the United...

Ironically, Hamas’s gruesome attack on Israeli civilians on October 7, instead of unleashing a flood of criticism of jihadist Muslims, has turned up the fire under the apparently ever-simmering cauldron of anti-Semitism. Everyone seems focused on Jews — even obsessed with them. But the loudest voices are those raised in condemnation of the Israelis, their supporters, and worldwide Jewry. There are a number of tropes that Jew-haters dredge up on such occasions: the debunked but widely disseminated Soviet psy-op pamphlet The Protocols of the Elders of Zion; the Jews as Christ-killers; the popular trope that the Jews “own the banks”;...

A museum in Britain has decided that a Roman Emperor was actually transgender and has decided to change his pronouns in their displays. I’m not sure this was the wisest move on their part, not only because the idea is rather silly, but because the emperor in question is widely regarded as one of the very worst that Rome ever had, and that is saying something. 🔴 Roman Emperor was trans, Hertfordshire museum declares The ill-fated Elagabalus will now be referred to as 'she', although experts say a transgender category did not exist in ancient Rome ⬇ https://t.co/b1S8KFYTcP— The Telegraph...

Researchers used artificial intelligence to extract the first word from one of the first texts in a charred scroll from the ancient Roman city of Herculaneum, which has been unreadable since a volcanic eruption in AD 79 — the same one that buried nearby Pompeii...The Vesuvius Challenge, a contest with $1,000,000 (£821K) in prizes for those who can use modern technology to decipher the words of these scrolls, has awarded a 21-year-old undergraduate student at the University of Nebraska $40,000 (£32.8K) for being the first to read a word from one of the ancient Herculaneum scrolls.Luke Farritor, who is at...

An American citizen was detained by security forces in the museum after being observed shattering the statues, which he claimed were "in violation of the Torah." ... tourist in his 40s was arrested by Israel Police on Thursday for damaging and destroying ancient Roman statues displayed at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. According to initial police suspicion, the tourist intentionally destroyed the statues due to them being "blasphemous" and "in violation of the Torah." The suspect, an American citizen, was detained by security forces in the museum after being observed shattering the statues, which police said hold "sentimental" value. On...

It's believed to be a first — and it certainly came as a surprise: Ancient Roman coins have been found in the ruins of a castle in Okinawa, Japan, that dates to the 12th and 15th centuries. The copper coins were found in 2013; X-ray analysis shows that they bear an image of Constantine the Great. The four Roman coins were found at the Katsuren Castle — a World Heritage Site in Japan's southwestern city of Uruma. The excavation was carried out by the local board of education, which says the find hints at the region's wide trade ties.

Ancient Caesarea's water arch collapsed, putting its preservation at risk; The 1,870-year-old structure, built by Emperor Hadrian, was renowned for its precise design and impressive attention to detail at the time The historical water arch in Caesarea suffered a collapse during the early hours of Friday. This arch stands on the Aqueduct Beach, a popular bathing spot. Representatives from the Antiquities Authority were present at the site this morning, and a team from the Antiquities Authority's Conservation Directorate is expected to evaluate the extent of the damage on Sunday. The collapsed portion of the arch, a 1,870-year-old addition built during...

“The One Man Adam and the One Man Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:6-15) As by one man all mankind fell And, born in sin, was doomed to hell, So by one Man, who took our place, We all were justified by grace. So we just sang, and so is the message of our Epistle reading today, from Romans chapter 5. As it says in verse 15 of our text: “For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many.” In...

Visiting the Pantheon, one of Rome’s premier tourist sites, it’s hard not be humbled by the knowledge that this building has lasted 1900 years and still stands as the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome, while modern concrete structures deteriorate. Take a look at the magnificence of the Pantheon.Photo credit: CC BY-SA 4.0 licensePhoto credit: Macrons CC BY-SA 4.0 licensePhoto credit: Anthony Majanlahti CC BY 2.0 licenseThe Romans’ concrete technology was lost for almost a millennium as the Dark Ages unfolded, and Europe regressed technologically and economically. The discovery of Roman manuscripts on making concrete in 1414 sparked gradual reintroduction of...

On Thursday’s broadcast of CNN’s “New Day,” CNN Chief Business Correspondent and host Christine Romans stated that under President Joe Biden’s student loan cancellation, “the winners are the colleges that just keep raising tuition again and again and again.” And the plan doesn’t address the root cause of student loan debt, the massive cost of college.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.Ecclesiastes 3:11 Don Richardson spent many years in Papua New Guinea. In his research, he investigated many cultures and their religious ceremonies. This book is a result of that investigative work. The first time I read this book was back in 2004, and I still find myself picking it up from time to time. The information inside is well worth the few dollars you may spend.Besides being an...

JERUSALEM—Authorities are investigating after witnesses accused a local religious nut named Simon Peter and several others of hosting an unauthorized super spreader event in an enclosed room in Jerusalem. Experts say the event, which was not authorized by the local Jewish or Roman authorities, may put everyone in the area at risk for infectious diseases such as leprosy. "This is completely inexcusable," said local magistrate Biggus Tookus. "We have found that there were at least 11 people at this event. No one's address was recorded at the door and we don't know where they are now." One medical expert named...

“Inculcating the Reformation through Catechesis” (Romans 3:19-28; John 8:31-36) First, let me tell you my title for this message. It’s “Inculcating the Reformation through Catechesis.” Now the next thing I want to tell you is this: Don’t let that title scare you off! Don’t worry, I’ll explain each of those terms: “Inculcating the Reformation through Catechesis.” So here we go. The first one I’ll explain is “the Reformation.” What is the Reformation? This term refers to the much-needed reforming of the church--straightening it out where it had gone wrong--the reforming movement undertaken by Martin Luther and his associates in the...

Most of us are familiar with Martin Luther’s heroic statement at the Diet of Worms when he was called upon to recant. “Unless I am convinced by sacred Scripture, or by evident reason, I cannot recant, for my conscience is held captive by the Word of God, and to act against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me.” Today, we rarely hear any reference to the conscience. Yet throughout church history, the best Christian thinkers spoke about the conscience regularly. Thomas Aquinas said the conscience is the God-given inner voice...

“Governing Authorities: God’s Servants for Your Good” (Romans 13:1-10) Our text today is the Epistle reading from Romans 13. And as soon as I say “Romans 13,” most people who know the Bible will instantly say, “Oh, that’s the chapter about government.” And that’s right. Romans 13 is the classic passage in the Bible about the role of government, about how God instituted governmental authority, and about our relationship to the governing authorities, especially as Christians. So those are the things we’re going to explore now, under the theme: “Governing Authorities: God’s Servants for Your Good.” “For our good? Really,...

“Genuine Love in Our Church Family” (Romans 12:9-21) Our church is called to be a loving family. I know this is so, because that’s who God says we are. God has made us a loving family. He calls us to live and act as his loving family. And he enables us to do so. This is why I as your pastor can call on you to be who you are in Christ: brothers and sisters who love one another with a genuine love that shows itself in actions. That is kind of a summary of today’s Epistle reading, from Romans...

“If God Is for Us” (Romans 8:28-39)In our Epistle reading for today, St. Paul writes, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” The answer, of course, is no one. If God is for us, it doesn’t matter who might be against us, because they are not God. Oh, they may indeed be against us, but that is far, far outweighed by the fact that God is for us. I mean, who could be greater and more powerful than God? No one. By definition, no one or no thing can be more powerful than God; otherwise, that person...

For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. ( Romans 5:11)Romans chapter Five is one of those places in the Bible which “established (me) in Righteousness”(Isaiah 54). I had a very finely tuned conscience, I was keenly aware of the “sinfulness of (my) sin” and needed constant reinforcement of the assurance of salvation. I needed to know that in spite of my sins, I was right with God. How can a righteous and Holy God accept a grievous sinner such...

The Fezzan is an area of approximately 212,000 square miles of unforgiving desert and valleys. Situated in the south west of modern day Libya it’s not an area you’d easily traverse, let alone live in. Yet in the 1st millennium BCE a people did exactly that. They created art, irrigated the baked earth and sustained a culture. One of the earliest surviving references to the Garamantes is found in Herodotus’ Histories, written in the 5th century BCE[1]. Herodotus’ description was contradictory, they had no weapons, but they hunted a cave dwelling tribe nearby using chariots. He also went on to...

“Words of Spirit and Life” (Ezekiel 37:1-14; Romans 8:1-11; John 11:1-53) Have you been starting to feel like you’re Lazarus? I mean, you’ve been cooped up in your quarantine “tomb,” not just for four days, but now going on fourteen days. You’ve been stuck inside so long, maybe skipping showers, maybe skipping laundry--“Lord, by this time there will be an odor!” You’re stuck inside, and you’re waiting for someone to speak the word, “Lazarus, come out!” But for now, it looks like you’re going to have to wait a little longer. The President’s hope that we will be able to...