A Knight's Blog

  There have been some monumental films about Jesus Christ. There was Ben Hur , starring Charlton Heston, which comes from a time when seeing Jesus' face was sacrilegious. Then there came Jesus of Nazareth which depicted Jesus as otherworldly. There was Jesus Christ Superstar , which was a musical. Then came Jesus which is an ABC two part mini series, it featured the best conflict between Christ and Devil. In 2004, Mel Gibson directed The Passion of the Christ , which focuses on the Crucifixion and depicts all the anguish and gore in every detail. Now Roma Downey, who many know as Monica from "Touch By An Angel" gives us the film Son of God . Son of God is indeed the re-edited version of the Bible Mini Series part of Jesus's Life. It has been put together when many scenes that had to be cut. Son of God is a Jesus film for this day and age. Jesus played by Diogo Mogada , is a compassionate, caring, and easy to connect with Christ. Mogada has successfull...

In today's society holiness has become synonymous with held back. It is viewed as a being something that deprives you of earthly pleasures and purpose. If someone chooses to live a holy life they are considered to be odd or self-righteous. Those who seriously believe they should forsake things of this world to be closer to God are seen as outcasts who cannot get with the times. The truth is that we need more people thirsting for holiness. It is only by Jesus Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit that anyone is holy. We exchanged our sinfulness for Christ's righteousness at the cross, but the act of living holy is another issue. We have been given the gift of grace and been saved through Christ Jesus. We are made holy now by his blood. However, we do control how holy he remain in the sight of the Lord and people of this world. What you choose to do each day and every action of every second makes you holy or full of holes in your character.   You can have eternal salvat...

I was recently at a bookstore that had Christian music. I tend to stick with certain artists I like such as  Kutless , RED , and Casting Crowns . In today's struggling economic climate it is difficult to branch out and seek new music (legally). I departed from my favorite bands and decided to give Fernando Ortega a chance. What drew me to his music was the cover. As you can see it has a crusaderesque cross, a stone sculpture of Jesus or a saint and Moroccan star designs. Compelled by these artistry, I took the album and listened to it at a sampling station in the store. I immediately was pleased with the Irish bagpipes, flute, and classical piano. More importantly, I liked Ortega's voice. The particular album I decided to purchase was Ortega's  Hymns of Worship . Orteg has collected famous hymns from the Middle Ages, Reformation, and beyond for this album. Ortega's style reminds me of the late Rich Mullins , but it has a more classical and soothing sound. Ortega...

When Christianity is compared with other religions the argument is fierce. Many contest the unique nature of the "Incarnation" of God in Jesus Christ. They cite that Zeus came in the flesh, Heracles took on flesh, and etc. The problem is that these gods were not sinless. Zeus took on flesh to seduce and have sex with a woman. Heracles it was to prove his prowess on Earth so that he could become a full fledged God, but falls in love with human and changes his mind. Jesus did not take on flesh for sinful pleasure or to prove anything. He took on flesh as a sinless man to save us. Jesus wanted to reconcile us, to relate to us, and to restore us back to a state prior to the Fall. Zeus did not marginalize himself to relate to man, he had carnal intentions. Buddha, who is revered like a god, abandoned his family to pursue his enlightenment (not very loving). Jesus is different because God did all the work. Greeks, Romans, Scythians, Norsemen, Buddhists, Hindus, and other follow...

Psychology is a field that I respect. I do believe that our mind is one piece of the pie. The other two are our spirit and body. However, what is distrubing is how Psychology has become it's own religion. Psychologists & psychiatrists use their methods and understanding of the brain, emotions, and thoughts to determine everything about a person. They use their practice to crush piety and proscribe drugs or exercises to fix the problem. Psycharitrists and Psychologists make the mind their only measuring stick. If you have erratic emotions, it is bi-polar disorder, but if they had been privy to your traumatic history it is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). These terms have become so engrained in people that they are used loosly in arguments. People in the  Church of psychology use their minds as measuring sticks much like the Ancient Greeks did. One could argue that like the proliferation of Norse beliefs these days, the Greek pantheon of god...

I have been reading about book called Byzantium and the Crusades by Jonathan Harris. In one chapter titled "Men of Iron" there is quote that inspired me. The Byzantines are approaching the Crusaders during the Fourth Crusade in robes of gold and adorned with precious gems. Their goal is to impress their Latin allies with their finery and assert their authority by spectacle. The Crusaders who have changed since 1095 respond, "It is time to put on iron and stop warring gold." (Citation available soon). What a profound statement! What if this was applied to the Church? Instead seeking to impress people with golden icons and lavish lodgings, we should put on iron. Iron is a metal that was used for arms and armor and for fortifications. It was strong and meant for war. We as Christians should clad ourselves in iron (metaphorically) to wage war against the devil and the desires of the flesh. We should not trust in gold, but instead take up irons and do battle with evi...

I grew up on Tom Clancy films and video games. My father was an avid reader of Clancy's novels. To me Jack Ryan will always be Harrison Ford. Ford portrayed Ryan in "Patriot Games" and "Clear and Present Danger." While Alic Baldwin was descent in "The Hunt for Red October," I think Ford did a better job of potraying the analyst side of Jack Ryan than Baldwin or Ben Affleck in the "Sum of All Fears." It has been twelve years since Ryan was on the big screen. The new rookie to play this famous espionage character is Chris Pine. When I first heard that Pine would play Jack Ryan, I was optimistic because of his performance in "This Means War." In contrast, when I learned that Keira Knightly would be playing Cathy Muller, Ryan's soon to be wife, I was skeptical. Mrs. Knightly tends to play very odd roles and frankly I cannot shake the image of her from "The Pirates of Caribbean: At World's End" or "Anna Karen...

I have always laughed at the notion of unbiased historians. History itself is biased. Depending on your nationality William Wallace is either a hero or a rebel. I have studied the relations between the Crusaders and The Byzantines for some time. I confess that I naturally ascribe to the European viewpoint because I am European. However, I was willing to give the Byzantines a chance to tell their side of history. Unfortunately, the more I read the more I am convinced the crusaders were correct and that the Byzantines were betrayers and even bedeviled! Here is the sharp contrast of character and convictions. The Crusaders believed they were the "soldiers of Christ", that they had been commissioned by their Savior to go on crusade for the salvation of their souls and to liberate foreign Christians. The Byzantines in contrast believe in self interest. The Emperor of Byzantium believe in pushing his rights as "Emperor of All Christians" and protecting the Byzantine ...