VOLUME 9  # 6                                    November / December,
2003
EPHRAIM'S  FORUM

For those who are of Ephraim, holding the rights and responsibilities of the
kingdom, this is your forum; to pursue remedy for our ills, and accomplish
the bringing forth of Zion.

Ephraim's Forum is now on a website. go to www.ephraimsforum.com

History
History, makes it's own compelling case.  But unlike philosophical
interpretations, history has a factual basis, that is, it is what has
happened.  Lives people played out across history, the pages are covered
with the flesh and blood of real persons.  We can search history for
treasures, or for warnings, to evade disasters already made in the past. 
There is more similarity to much of what has transpired in the past to our
own time than what we are ready to admit.  Almanacs can show helpful trends.
  I think that by showing the history of Christianity over 2000 years, we
can pin point accurately where we are in the scheme of things and how we
have arrived to our present position.  Therefore, can we also make an
informed choice toward where we want to be.  Also, credit is due our
predecessors, for their travail, and where we are lucky enough to have some
record of historical events, God bless the historian, even though we may not
like the message.
I hope you will enjoy patiently some of the events of Christianity as it
happened through the centuries, and I know it will show relevance to our own
century; granted, even historians such as Josephus made errors, but did the
best they could do, from the information they could get.
MARK

Without Compulsory Means

"Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax
strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall
distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.  The Holy Ghost shall be thy
constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness
and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without
compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever." (D&C 121: 45-46)
"Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the
consent of the governed."  Although this is oft quoted it seems to be ill
understood; many may see our government overstepping its bounds, but how
many see themselves?  Accepting Family as the basic unit of government, and
accepting plural marriage as a valid celestial family unit, let us begin our
investigation there.
Should not a Polygamous family function in a similar manner to that of our
Constitutional government?  Should not men as husbands and fathers be
responsible to their wives and children as our Federal government should be
responsible to the State governments?  Should there not be some kind of 
"Bill of Rights" to protect women and children from the tyranny of men who
like Satan, would, "rather rule in hell than serve in heaven."
Because of a lack of understanding, or just plain meanness, priesthood is
wielded as a despotic power much as a title of nobility, or the "right of
kings."  I should know, as I have been guilty of wanting blind unquestioning
obedience from my wife.  I have found it very difficult to let go of
subliminal training that has become so ingrained in me to the point that I
am held captive by my false concepts and beliefs; hence the need to know, to
come to an understanding, of true priesthood government, that can free me
from a tyranny that lies within that has me bound. Nor do I wish to lay the
fault solely at the door of men, there are women who, in their struggle to
live plural marriage, exercise a cruel despotism over their sister-wives;
also women whose children rule over them as they rule over their men and
oppress them.
We need to understand the true principles of government and how they apply
to our lives, and to the lives of those we love.  It seems to me the
principles embodied in the inspired Constitution are far more consistent
with that of a loving family than the rash of religious dogmas that have
become so polluted and perverted as to be the bain of any living thing that
finds itself beneath its oppressive hand.
So what are the proper bounds of a federal government, and how do they apply
to a man who sincerely wishes to love, care for, and support his family? 
What is the woman's place in the home, or outside of it?  How is she
supposed to fulfill the measure of her creation as a mother, helpmeet, or as
a person of infinite worth and ability?  What would a "Bill of Rights" have
to say in defense of children and their "inalienable rights", as infants,
minors, adolescents, and as the adult children within a patriarchal family
order?  What "self-evident truths" support your particular family
government, and what "self-evident truths" condemn the policies and or
actions of any or all within your family government?  What "self-evident
truths" exist that gives to each one in your family the rights to which
he/she is inalienably qualified as an individual to have?
A celestial marriage is not something that one man and several women can
attain by simply coming together in a marital relationship.  They need to
sincerely care for one another, have the wisdom and understanding, and an
unfailing desire to be just and right no matter what.  How many men could
share the woman they love with another man?  I think it is an honest
question.  I believe the only way I could possibly do so would be if I knew
and loved the other man as myself, and felt he cared for me in turn.  How
can anyone get past that overwhelming desire to be #1 in the life of the
person they love?  Yet that seems to be what some men ask the women in their
life to do almost unthinkingly as they embark on their quest to find their
Holy Grail.  There are women who need to put a stop to their oppression,
both in that which they are receiving as well as that which they give out. 
If children are to be raised up unto the Lord they need to be immersed in
the principles of righteous family government; it is as needful to them as
food and drink; I believe these things are to be found most clearly defined
in the Constitution.  It is true that we have the scriptures that can be
used to substantiate those self-same principles, but often the scriptures
are used instead to captivate and to place others in bondage.  I would say
most are aware that our government has fallen far from those noble
principles bequeathed to us as a people, but how many are aware how far we
ourselves have fallen from those "truths" and are failing to protect those
who come under our dominion in their "natural rights."  I am sorely afraid
we have assimilated that which we have tolerated; that we have been in
Babylon so long that it permeates nearly every aspect of our lives.
                                              (Title and foreword of
Widstoe's book)
JOSEPH SMITH AS SCIENTIST
A CONTRIBUTION TO MORMON PHILOSOPHY
John A. Widtsoe, A.M., Ph.D.
This volume is based on the conviction that there is no real difference
between science and religion. The great, fundamental laws of the Universe
are foundation stones in religion as well as in science. The principle that
matter is indestructible belongs as much to theology as to geology. The
theology which rests upon the few basic laws of nature is unshakable; and
the great theology of the future will be such a one.
"Mormonism" teaches and has taught from the beginning that all knowledge
must be included in the true theology. Because of its comprehensive
philosophy, "Mormonism" will survive all religious disturbances and become
the system of religious faith which all men may accept without yielding the
least part of the knowledge of nature as discovered in the laboratories or
in the fields. The splendid conceptions of "Mormonism" concerning man and
nature, and man's place in nature are among the strongest testimonies of the
divine nature of the work founded by Joseph Smith, the Prophet.

On Abortion: (con't.)
See http://www.religioustolerance.org/abortion.htm
In conjuction with:
The process of change within religions:
See http://www.religioustolerance.org/past_mor.htm
Many of the world's great religions base their beliefs upon ancient written
sacred texts. For Christian denominations, this is generally the Hebrew and
Christian Scriptures (the Old and New Testaments) in the Bible. Since the
writings are fixed for all time, the beliefs are often considered equally
unchangeable. But the historical record shows that change does occur, and
that religious groups use various methods to modify their beliefs.
Sometimes, the texts which support the old beliefs:

Are translated into English in an obscure manner;

Are simply ignored;

Are reinterpreted -- often symbolically;

Are regarded as having been valid at the era and/or the society in which
they were written, but are not for guidance for people today.
Every age since Galileo has had at least one public debate with a religious
component.

Most frequently, the conflict has been between established religious
organization(s) and a secular movement which is promoting change. The latter
can represent physical science, medicine, a social science, etc.

Other times, the conflict is between a religion and a group attempting to
obtain equal rights and protection under law. In the past, this often
involved discrimination on the basis of race, or gender. Now it is sexual
orientation,

Finally, in some cases, the conflict has been between liberal and
conservative faith groups as in the case of abortion access.
In 1898, Andrew Dickson White (1832-1918), a professor and co-founder of
Cornell University, wrote a rather notorious book called  "A History of the
Warfare of Science With Theology in Christendom." 1 He tracked many
religiously-based conflicts, and showed that they often take decades or even
centuries to resolve. Although his book exhibits a heavy -- sometimes
vicious -- bias and opposition to religion, he did notice a pattern in these
conflicts: they often go through eight stages before being finally resolved:
Some individual or group will propose a new belief system that is in
conflict with established religious beliefs. The official religious
institutions generally ignore the development.
A growing number of people will start to disagree with church teaching.
Churches issue statements which condemn the proposal, citing Biblical
passages as justification for their stance.
Support for the proposal continues to grow among the public.
Churches issue statement pointing out that belief in the proposal negates
the entire Christian message, or attacks a fundamental Christian principle.
Public support continues to grow.
Churches begin to ignore the proposal, and sometimes ignore the Biblical
passages that it once quoted in opposition to the new idea.
Many decades or centuries later, churches may incorporate the proposal into
their beliefs.
Since the advent of the modernist/fundamentalist divide in Christianity,
religious liberals have tended to readily accept scientific findings and
incorporate them into their theology and morality. Thus White's eight step
process no longer applies to all of Christianity, only to the conservative
wing.

Some examples of recent religious change:

In the 1960's, many people of different Christian denominations believed
that racial integration was against God's Law because it led to the "mixing
of seed". The Southern Baptist Conference (SBC) mounted boycotts against
restaurants and hotels that served people of all races equally. (We mention
the SBC because it remains the largest Protestant denomination in the United
States, and one of the most active in the area of social and legal change).
Laws in many states did not allow persons of different races to marry. A few
decades after the US Supreme Court ended racial separation in the schools
and declared anti-miscegenation laws unconstitutional, the scene is very
different. Those Biblical passages which were so often cited to condemn
mixed-race marriages are now ignored or reinterpreted. The SBC has had the
decency to apologize recently for the pain that it caused Afro-Americans and
for any residual racism that remains in the organization. Many Christian
denominations are now in the forefront fighting racism.

Many decades ago, some Christian denominations quoted Gospel passages which
blamed the Jews for executing Jesus. Included were verses in which the
Jewish people at the time were said to have accepted responsibility for this
immoral act, both upon themselves, and upon their children, and upon their
descendants forever. Probably triggered by the horrors of the Nazi
holocaust, these beliefs are now rejected by almost all Christian faith
groups. The Biblical verses that were once quoted now lie almost dormant in
the New Testament, or are interpreted as an example of early and regrettable
anti-semitism by the early Christian church.

A century and a half ago, some Christians supported institution of slavery
by quotations from the Bible. Other Christians (often within the same
denomination) fought for its abolition. Secularists and followers of other
religions were similarly split. Many Protestant denominations were severed
into two groups over the slavery question. The issue was settled through
negotiation in the late 18th century in Canada and by a disastrous war
between the states, some seven decades later in America. Today, references
to slavery in the Bible are largely ignored. Often they are obscured in
English translations by substituting the title "servant" for "slave."

Today's debates:
Many "hot" religious debates are active today. Until the late 1990s,
abortion access was the main concern by religious conservatives; equal
rights for gays and lesbians was the second major concern. The order has
since been reversed. During the life of this web site (1995 to the present
time) corporal punishment of children has risen from obscurity to be a major
topic of debate.
If the past is any indication, all of these disputes will eventually be
settled. It is unfortunate that the process cannot be accelerated. Many
people suffer while various groups within society laboriously work towards a
new consensus on these religiously-based conflicts.

Past conflicts:
Some topics which were once hotly debated and which are now settled include:

The solar system:
The writers of the Bible adopted the Hebrew concept of a flat earth with a
solid dome a few thousand feet up. Above the dome was Heaven. This cosmology
was derived from Middle Eastern Pagan religions. The Christian church
subsequently adopted Plato's ancient Pagan Greek geocentric principle: the
belief that the earth was at the center of the universe and that the moon,
sun and stars rotated around it.
Copernicus sounded the initial death knell of the geocentric principle in
his most important book De Revolutionibus Orbium Caelestium (On the
Revolution of the Heavenly Orbs) in 1543 CE. It described a crude model of a
sun-centered solar system which is correct in many ways. However, he was
unable to break away from an obsession with perfect circular motion by the
planets. A Lutheran theologian wrote the preface to the book, which
presented it as an hypothesis - a work of imagination. This minimized
friction between Copernicus and Christians.
There is a great deal of misinformation circulating about the reaction of
the Catholic and Protestant churches to the Copernican theory. For example:

Giordano Bruno, (1548-1600) an early supporter of Copernicus' theory, is
commonly believed to have been burned at the stake because of his support
for the geocentric principle -- specifically that the earth was not the
center of the universe, and that it was a mere planet revolving around the
sun. 7 He was in fact tried by the Court of the Inquisition on theological
charges for his many heresies -- largely dealing with salvation and the
human soul. 8 "There is nothing in his writings that contributed to our
knowledge of astronomy in any substantial way, indeed his astronomical
writings reveal a poor grasp of the subject on several important points." 8

Martin Luther is often quoted as having mentioned Joshua's command in Joshua
12:13 that the sun stand still as proof that the Copernican theory was
false. This citation is in doubt.
Initially, the Church took no action against the geocentric principle. It
was not until 1616, that De Revolutionibus and other similar books were
placed on the Index of Forbidden Books. It was removed from the Index and
published in Italy after 1616 after minor editing changes were made. The
concept of heliocentricism was finally condemned by Pope Alexander VII who
banned "all books which affirm the motion of the earth.'' 8
To defend the status-quo, Protestant and Catholic churches often quoted
biblical passage. for example:

Psalms 19:4-5 in which the sun "cometh forth as a bridegroom out of his
chamber".

Ecclesiastes 1:4 which refers to: "The earth standeth fast forever".
Early in the 17th century, Galileo's telescope revolutionized astronomy. He
observed that the planet Venus went through phases, that there were spots on
the sun and that Jupiter had moons. The church arrested Galileo twice; the
Inquisition showed him the instruments of torture that would be used to
force his recantation. He abandoned his teachings under pressure and
retired. It was not until the year 1835 that the teachings of Copernicus and
Galileo were finally accepted by his Church.

Other battles were fought between science and religion:

Roger Bacon (13th Century) was imprisoned for 14 years for his experiments
in time pieces, optics, chemical extractions, refraction of light, etc.

John Barillon (14th Century) was jailed because he possessed chemical
furnaces and apparatus.

Antonio de Dominius (15th Century) was killed by the Inquisition for his
experiments into the properties of light.

"Since the astronomy of antiquity it had been considered a sacred truth that
planets moved along exact circles: The circle was the most perfect curve and
the celestial bodies were the most perfect bodies." 9 (They actually move in
ellipses; "the sun being stationary in one focus of the ellipse.") 9

Theologians believed that we see lightning before thunder because "sight is
nobler than hearing."

The Greek Phythagoreans believed that the number seven pointed symbolically
to the union of the Deity with the universe. This association was picked up
by the Christian church, especially during the Middle Ages. Seven was
regarded as having sacred power, as in the seven cardinal virtues, seven
deadly sins, seven sacraments, seven churches mentioned in the last book in
the Bible, Revelation, etc. Thus it was held that there must logically be
exactly seven planets. Most astronomers consider Pluto to be the ninth
planet.

Religious leaders believed for a time that a vacuum was impossible, because
a vacuum implies nothing; that would mean that there would be at least a
small area of the universe where God was not present. That was believed to
be theologically impossible.

Interest on money:
Leviticus 25:36, Deuteronomy 23:19, Psalms 15:5 and Luke 6:35 prohibit
interest payments on loans. This policy was carried over from Judaism into
Christianity. The rationale given by theologians was based on "natural law:"
Only living entities can grow. Since money is not alive, it must remain
fixed in size. St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas lent their support.
Usury was defined as the charging of any interest whatsoever by 28 councils
of the Church and by 17 popes. Pope Clement V made it a heresy to even
suggest that the idea of interest could be acceptable.
Fortunately, Calvin argued that usury really meant oppressively high
interest rates. The Roman Catholic church reluctantly followed the
Protestant lead. By the 19th century, interest had become a non-issue.

Lightning:
The churches had always held that Satan, the "Prince of the Power of the
Air", controlled all lightening and thunder. But in 1752, Franklin's
experiment during a thunder storm proved that lightning was an electrical
phenomenon. The experiment was replicated by an experimenter in France, who
was electrocuted.
Lightning rods were a logical development; they protected buildings wherever
they were installed. Unfortunately, to install a "heretical rod" was to
admit that centuries of theological teachings were false. Churches were
reluctant to use them. Seventeen years after Franklin's experiment,
lightning struck the unprotected Church of San Nazaro, near Venice. This
ignited 200,000 pounds of powder which had been stored there for safe
keeping. The explosion wiped out one sixth of the city of Brescia and killed
3,000 people. Lightning rods soon appeared on spires across Italy.

Anesthetics during childbirth:
In 1846 James Simpson, a Scottish physician promoted the use of chloroform
to relieve pain during childbirth. This was opposed by the Church, citing
Genesis 3:16 "...I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in
sorrow thou shalt bring forth children". The avoidance of pain was seen as
thwarting God's will. Fortunately, Simpson found a competing passage
(Genesis 2:21) which describes the first surgical operation; it seems to
support the use of anesthetic: "...God caused a deep sleep to fall upon
Adam.....he took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh.." In time, the
Church's opposition dissipated; pain killers have since lost their religious
significance.

Childhood innoculations:
Early in the 17th Century, physicians in France and Great Britain promoted
inoculations to prevent small pox. Theologians were quick to respond. Rev.
Edward Massy in England preached a sermon blaming the distemper experienced
by Job in the Bible upon an inoculation by Satan. Other clergy preached that
the technique was being promoted by evil sorcerers and atheists. Smallpox
was regarded as "a judgment of God on the sins of the people......to avert
it is but to provoke him more". Inoculation was "an encroachment on the
prerogatives of Jehovah, whose right it is to wound and smite."
Jenner's development of vaccination was similarly opposed on religious
grounds. By preventing the spread of disease, they were "bidding defiance to
Heaven itself - even to the will of God." In 1885, a serious epidemic of
smallpox broke out in Montreal Canada. Few Protestants died because they had
been mostly vaccinated. However the Roman Catholic clergy were generally
opposed to the practice; their parishioners died needlessly, and in great
numbers.

Birth control
Birth Control appears (at most) only once in the Bible. See Genesis 38:1-10.
Judah (circa 1730 BCE) had three sons, Er, Onan and Shelah. The eldest son,
Er, was "wicked in the sight of the Lord", and so God killed him. This
placed the responsibility on the next eldest son to marry Er's widow, Tamar
and to have a male child. The child would then be considered the son of Er.
Onan married the widow, but was unwilling to conceive a child which would
not be considered his own. He practiced an elementary form of birth control
(coitus interruptus). God did not approve of this, and so He killed Onan as
well. It is not clear whether God disapproved of Onan's refusal to follow
Jewish custom and provide an heir for his brother, or of his use of birth
control. Most modern commentators believe the former; many ancient Christian
leaders selected the latter.
St. Augustine (354-430 CE) commented on this biblical passage. He wrote that
"where the conception of the offspring is prevented", sexual intercourse is
"unlawful and wicked". St. Augustine did not differentiate between coitus
interruptus and the rhythm method. This established Church policy for
centuries. Interestingly enough, later clerics totally misinterpreted this
same chapter; they said that Onan's crime was masturbation, not coitus
interruptus. It was believed that God killed him for what became known as
"self abuse"; Onanism became a synonym for masturbation.
The Christian Church's stand on artificial birth control was adopted by the
Protestant sects after the Reformation:

Martin Luther equated birth control to sodomy.

The Synod of Dordt stated that "contraception is the same as abortion".

John Calvin said that birth control is "the murder of future persons."

John Wesley declared that contraception is "unnatural and destroys the souls
of those who practice it."
All churches remained totally opposed to contraception until the Church of
England took a courageous stand in 1930 by stating that birth control might
be allowable under certain conditions. Other Protestant churches quickly
followed their lead. Pius XI issued an encyclical in 1930 which reiterated
the traditional view of the Roman Catholic Church which bans what they
describe as "artificial" methods of birth control.
All birth control methods can be considered "barrier" methods:

Some use the barrier of time by attempting to schedule sexual intercourse
for those intervals when it is unlikely that the woman is ovulating.

Others use a physical barrier to attempt to keep sperm and egg apart or by
preventing attachment of the fertilized egg to the lining of the womb.

Still others use a chemical barrier which prevents ovulation.
In 1951, Pius XII made the first break with tradition. He said that the
so-called "safe period" or "rhythm method" was lawful under certain
circumstances; however other techniques remained forbidden. Pope John later
set up advisory committee of specialists to study the legality of "the
pill". Although the committee was stacked with individuals opposed to birth
control, the majority altered their opinion during the life of the
committee, after they had learned of the worldwide necessity for some means
of lowering the birth rate in order to prevent unbearable levels of
suffering. In 1968, Pope Paul ignored the majority recommendation of the
panel and ruled against all "artificial" methods of birth control in his
encyclical Humanae Vitae.
Pope Paul's decision was met with widespread criticism from many within and
without the Church. The laity in North America has generally ignored the
encyclical and is now widely practicing birth control. It has proven
difficult for the Church to maintain control over its flock in a
multi-faith, and highly secularized culture. The family size of Protestants
now differs very little from that of Roman Catholics.
This conflict is different from those described previously, because it is
still an active concern within the Roman Catholic Church - at least among
the leadership.

Shape of the Earth:
This is a special conflict between religion and science which we include
here because:

It is a hoax, and

It is still widely believed.
There is massive documentary evidence that the Medieval Christian Church
generally accepted Pagan cosmology developed by ancient Greeks which taught
that the earth was spherical. However, an opposing belief that the church
taught a flat earth began in the early 19th century, became near universal,
and is only slowly dissipating today. The "Historical Society of Britain
some years back listed [this belief] as number one in its short compendium
of the ten most common historical illusions." 2 Some sources of the hoax
were:

Washington Irving (1783-1859) wrote a history of Christopher Columbus in
1828. 3 The book includes "a fictitious account of Columbus's defending a
round earth against misinformed clerics and university professors," in 1491.
This fictional account was accepted as a historical documentary.

A strongly anti-religious French author, Antoine-Jean "...Letronne falsely
claimed that most of the Church Fathers, including Augustine, Ambrose and
Basil, held to a flat Earth. 2

This idea was repeated by two leading anti-religious writers, John William
Draper and Andrew Dickson White, later in the 19th century. 4
This hoax became imbedded in school books as early as the 1860's. It
continues in some texts to the present day. Author Daniel Boorstin, wrote,
as late as 1985: "A Europe-wide phenomenon of scholarly amnesia...afflicted
the continent from...300 to at least 1300 [CE]. During those centuries
Christian faith and dogma suppressed the useful image of the world that had
been so slowly, so painfully, and so scrupulously drawn by ancient
geographers." 5
The hoax continues, in ever diminishing strength. More details

References:
A.D. White "A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in
Christendom." Thoemmes Press, (Reprinted 1993) Read reviews or order this
book safely from Amazon.com online book store
Jeffry B. Russell, "The myth of the flat Earth," American Scientific
Affiliation Conference, 1997-AUG-4. at: http://www.id.ucsb.edu/fscf/library
"Who invented the flat Earth?," ChristianAnswers.net, at:
http://www.christiananswers.net
"The Form of the Earth," an excerpt from A.D. White's "A History of the
Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom." D. Appleton and Company,
(1898). Online at:  http://www.santafe.edu/~shalizi
Daniel Boorstin, "The Discoverers: A history of man's search to know his
world and himself," Random House, (1985). Read reviews or order this book
safely from Amazon.com online book store.
"The scientific revolution in the seventeenth century," Modern Europe
Syllabus, at: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/lect/mod07.html
"Great theosophists: Giordano Bruno," Theosophy, Volume 26, #8, 1938-JUNE.
See: http://www.wisdomworld.org/setting/bruno.html
"The folly of Giordano Bruno," SETI League, at:
http://www.setileague.org/editor/brunoalt.htm
"The Significance of Johannes Kepler for the Beginning of the Modern
Physico-Astronomical World View in the 17th Century seen from the Angle of
Physics," Europäisches Bildungsprojekt, at:
http://www.hh.schule.de/hansa/comenius12.htm
H. P. Blavatsky, "The Number Seven," at:
http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/NumberSeven.htm
Copyright © 1996, 1999 & 2002 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Latest update: 2002-JUL-14
Author: B.A. Robinson
http://www.religioustolerance.org/past_mor.htm

Add to this list something that makes me personally uncomfortable, organ
transplant.  It all makes sense and is reasonable, but, and perhaps it is
because of old false beliefs handed down in subtle ways, it just doesn't
feel right to me.

The Ark of the Covenant
>From a tape by Pastor David Adam Haile
I was sent a tape (which frankly isn't the best way for me to get
information to put into E.F. because it has taken me.. what.. 8 or so months
to get around to listening to it and taking notes, and to now sit down to
write) which was a sermon dealing with the Ark of the Covenant.
The ark is symbolic, and critical to our future, but it has been out of our
minds for some 2,000 years.  Moses saw a burning bush and talked to God.  A
bush that was on fire but that did not burn.  There have been other
experiences of this nature in history and it has come to be called, St.
Elmo's Fire.  It has to do with some type of electro magnetic current. 
There are cities of light, cities which are built of particles of light, but
we can't see them even though they are, or might be right before our eyes. 
There are 12 vortexes or electro magnetic pillars, one of them is located at
the Bermuda Triangle.  One pilot's conversation just before he disappeared,
never to be seen again, was to the effect that, "Everything seems strange. 
I cannot determine the land from the sea or the sky.. Everything seems
strange".  An electro magnetic field has the ability to destructuralize
matter.  The United States did the same thing when they put two large
electrical generators on each side of a small destroyer and caused it to
dematerialize.  (I think this was using Tesla's technology.)
The ark was, or is, an electro magnetic generator of immense magnitude. 
The Priests had clothes that would naturally bleed off static electricity, 
they used two wooden staves to carry it (wood is a natural insulator), and
the priests had a rope tied to their leg when they went into the holy of
holies (where the ark was kept) in case they died and had to be drug out. 
There are several biblical cases where people died because of touching the
Ark, or being in close proximity to it.
At certain colleges they have built replicas of the Ark but in each case
they later decided to destroy them as they were to dangerous causing people
to get hurt.  The Ark is capable of generating more electricity than
anything we know of.  (At this point the sermon went into the Temple and
it's symbolism.  I found it very interesting that the Holy of Holies was a
cube, with all walls, ceiling and floor being the same dimensions.)  The Ark
going before the children of Israel through the Jordan river was explained
as an electro magnetic force that causes the water to stand back, similar, I
suppose, to the force we all know when you try to put two magnets together.
how shall I say it. the wrong way.
At this point the sermon went to Jeremiah and to what I consider the
interesting belief, backed with considerable evidence, that Jeremiah and a
princess of the royal blood, along with the Ark and other sacred relics,
traveled to Ireland.  It was noted that some believe the Ark is buried in
the sands of Egypt, in a cave in Mt. Nebo, in the Great Pyramid, as well as
raptured up to heaven.  How there are mounds in Ireland that are believed to
be tombs wherein lies David's harp, as well as the Ark.  How "Jacob's stone"
sits beneath the chair in Westminster where the English Monarchs are
coronated, or crowned King or Queen.  And how Israel is in a stupor,
according to prophecy, and do not know who they are.
According to Irish records a man fitting Jeremiah's decription sailed in a
"westerly" direction.  How there is archeological evidence of ancient
trading posts or colonies here in America; trading posts of Celts, Iberians,
and even ancient Israel.  In Las Lumas, New Mexico they have found a stone
with the Ten Commandments written on it in ancient Hebrew.  In Arkansas they
have recently unearthed a sundial that dates back to 800B.C.
Why do some of the States have the names they have?  It is because of
Indian names, Arkansas comes from the name of an Indian tribe (which he
identifies as "Ark carriers").  He then contends that the Ark is hidden in a
mountain in Arkansas.  But then he goes on with the concept of a false ark
and the abombination spoken of by Daniel and spoken of again in Matthew
Chapter 24.  That in 1981 the Ark was claimed to have been found in
Palestien and that it has been taken to the Dome of the Rock.  He also
brings up Tesla again and a black box he said had great power, but which he
destroyed before he died, and how at the time of his death all his papers
were taken and turned over to the Russian Embassy in 1945.  He then ties the
false ark and Tesla's technology together in creating great power which will
go forth from the Dome of the Rock, or I assume an Islamic blood bath.  A
time of great trouble, I paraphrase, "unless the days be shortened all flesh
should be destroyed".  It was an interesting sermon and well worth listening
to.

Some calendar facts:

The word, "Month" came from the word "Moon".  The cycles of the moon repeat
over time.  The sun, the seasons, the weather as well.  For a long time,
when knowledge was lost, no one tried to fit days and months and years
together, they ran into trouble.  Full moon to full moon is about 29 ½ days.
  Days do not fit evenly into years.  The moon travels around the earth
between 12 and 13 times a year.
The priests of ancient Babylon worked out a calendar which had 29 days in
some months and 30 days in others.  Their year at first had 12 months in it,
but it was several days too short.  Soon the months had slipped out of place
in the seasons.to keep the months from slipping too far out of place in the
seasons, the priests put an extra month in the year every two of three
years.  The early Greeks had a calendar much in the year every two of three
years.  The early Greeks had a calendar much like the Babylonian calendar. 
So did early Romans.  But in Rome politics began to have something to do
with the calendar.  Whenever the priests did not like someone who was
elected to an office, they would make his term short by not putting an extra
month in the year even if it was needed.  On the other hand, they put in
extra months even when they were not needed, to make the terms of some
officials longer.
When Julius Caesar became the ruler of Rome, the calendar was badly mixed
up.  Caesar decided to throw out their moon-month calendar and start over. 
He asked some astronomers to help.  For the new calendar they borrowed the
idea of the year from the Egyptians.  The Egyptians had worked out the
length of their year by watching the bright star Sirius.  Their year began
when Sirius appeared in the eastern sky at dawn.  It was 365 days long.
Caesar's astronomers decided that a year should be 365 ¼ days long.  They
decided to have 365 days in a year for three years, then, every fourth year
they would have a leap year with 366 days in it.
Since they had decided not to have true moon months, they could make the
months any length they pleased.  They chose to divide the year into 12
months of about the same length.  It was easy to see that they could have
five 31-day and seven 30-day months.  The Roman thought that odd numbers
were lucky.  To get an extra 31 day month, they took a day from one of the
30 day months - February.
One of the 31-day months was named July in honor of Julius Caesar.  When
Augustus Caesar became emperor a few years later, the month after July was
named for Augustus.  But is was only a 30 day month. Another day was taken
from February, and February was left with 28 days, except in leap year.
Our months have come down unchanged from the time of Augustus Caesar. 
Their names are from Latin words.  Our weeks too are like those in Caesar's
calendar.  The plan of leap years was followed for 1,600 years, by that time
the dates had slipped a little out of place in the seasons.  Trouble was
that the year is not quite 365 ¼ days long.  Caesar's calendar put in leap
years too often.  Pope Gregory decided to correct the mistake.  He called in
an astronomer and a mathematician to help him devise a better rule for leap
years.  We still follow the Gregorian rule that was worked out:  If a year's
number can e divided by 4, it is a leap year unless it ends in 00.  Even
then it is a leap year if it can be divided by 400.
To put the dates back in place in the seasons, Pope Gregory moved them up
10 days, October 5 of 1582, the year of the change to the new calendar
became October 15th.
Some countries were very slow to accept the new calendar.  The
English-speaking countries did not use it until 1752.  By the time of the
old calendar was so out of step that the dates had to be moved up to eleven
days.  Many people thought that they were losing 11 days out of their lives.
  There were great meetings at which the cry was, "Give us back out 11
days".  At the same time January 1st was made New Years day.  Before that
time the year had begun on March 25th.  (Hence it was that October was the
eighth moon, November was the 9th, December the 10th month, etc.)
With this calendar dates stay in their proper places.  Many nations still
have their own calendar.  Christian year 1976 was Hebrew year 5736, Islamic
year 1395, Chinese year 4674.etc.  I have heard that the Mayan calendar was
close to our own.