A Knight's Blog

  For the last four years or so companies have been in middle of controversies over forgoing Christmas designs. Starbucks for example became the center of attention when they weren’t going to use Xmas colors or designs in the name of inclusion. This sparked outrage that made them move to making a plain green cup, and later concessions. Honestly it is difficult which stance to take, a company has a right under liberty to not use certain designs and holiday symbols & colors if they want, and bullying them into conceding doesn’t seem very Christ-like to me. That said “The War on Christmas” which maybe a self fulfilling phenomenon at times oppose to the real cases of anti-Nativity escapades outside government buildings that have happened, and the Satanic Christmas Tree this year ( https://www.foxnews.com/media/satanic-hail-santa-christmas-tree-faces-blowback-display-wisconsin-museum.amp ). The truth is we often look for outrage nowadays, yes there is genuine infringements on religi...

  We see them on Valentine Cards, in Christmas art, and decking Victorian manors, little babies with angel wings who are called cherubs. Why had The Church and for that matter holidays become filled with naked babies with wings? Who’s idea was it to put naked babes flying about? Well in The Victorian era it a bunch of Cherubs was suppose to represent the presence of God, which still is very weird. I mean does a flying naked baby make you think of God’s presence? I picture more The Holy Spirit as a dove flying to and fro over people.  The chief issue is Cherub comes Akkadian and Hebrew for a race of Angels called Cherubim. The Cherubim is plural, Cherub is the singular, hence Satan before he fell was the Cherub who Coverath God (Azraiel), “Thou  art  the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee  so : thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.” (Ezekiel 38:14, KJV). These cherubs or Cherubim ...

  I have always been a fan of Godzilla. I watched the original black and white as a kid, The Showa Era movies where Gojira had that bobbing rubber suit and epic tail gliding powers like in King Kong versus Godzilla (1963) to the Heisei Era when I met Godzilla’s vixen girlfriend Biolante, my favorite villian Space Godzilla, and was traumatized as The Heisei Gojira died at the hands of Destroyah going Super Nuclear. I branched into Millennium Era, but really only saw Godzilla 2000 and Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla III, I sadly never saw Kaiser Ghidorah. I then enjoyed The Advent of The Monsterverse, Godzilla 2014 was the best Americano Gojira film to date, albiet I have a place in my heart for the much hated Godzilla USA with Matthew Brodrick, I love the lines, “aw he looks mad man! What should we do?”, “running would be a good idea!” I even tuned into Animated USA Godzilla series which did rather well.  Where my Godzilla resurgence of love for The King of Monsters was with Shin God...

  Once upon a time Christian Music was diverse with talent like Rich Mullins, Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant, Rebecca St. James, Kutless, Skillet, Chris Tomlin, Jeremey Camp and more. Many of these artists were unique, their voices and styles as recognizable as Queen, Aerosmith, ACDC, The Beatles, Blue Oyster Cult, and etc. Now the Christian Music Industry predominately is a monopoly of worship mega churches like Bethel, Elevation Church, Hillsong United, and etc who have decided for the industry what the sound and culture is. This is so dangerous to creativity, for once upon a time you could have deep soulful song like “Hold me Jesus, I am shaking like a leaf, you have been my king of glory, won’t you be my prince of peace? Surrender doesn’t come natural to me, I would rather fight you for what I don’t really want than take what you give that I need,” (Rich Mullins) and at same time have a foot stomping worship song, “How great is our God! Sing with me how great is our God! All the e...

  Most people think Monks of the Middle Ages only did self flogging, beating their own flesh for penance. It turns out that is false, that monks not only beat students at seminaries and theology schools, they often did so tell they died! The scholar Erasmus, a contemporary of Martin Luther, records how many youthful men were beaten to death by Monks for not keeping up with the study schedule: “Those unable to keep up with the study schedule were savagely whipped, often to the point of injury. Of the many students in Standonck’s charge, Erasmus would later write, he had within a year “caused the deaths of very many capable, gifted, promising youths” and brought others “to blindness, emotional breakdown, or leprosy.” The privations Erasmus experienced there would reinforce his aversion to monkish asceticism.” (Fatal Discord, Chapter 5: Breakthrough, Michael Massing).  Just when you think the Harlot and false Roman Catholic Church has drunk the goblet of villainy, cruelty, and co...

  France is a dark place spiritually. For a time in Reformation it was where doctrine for Roman Catholic Church was decided, there the Sarbonne fiercely fought against reforming the church as anti-Luthers and anti-Erasmus (Fatal Discord, Michael Massing, Chapter 5: Breakthrough, pg 59). There in Paris was the seat of Catholic Orthodoxy, and history shows us much worse from the Rhineland.  During the rise of Huguenot Christians, the French Catholic’s deceived Huguenots at a wedding, and slaughtered the Huguenots in the city in what was called The St. Bartholomew Day Massacre. This lead to Huguenots fleeing to other countries including America; them bringing their talents to forming a new nation to be.  The same country betrayed their saint Joan of Arc who saved France during The Hundred Year’s War over to The English Bishops who killed her because she believed in salvation by faith and that she could talk to Jesus (Joan of Arc, Encyclopedia Britannica). I believe it was an...

  I admit that the “Most Wonderful Time of Year,” feels less wonderful with each year. Part of this is the corporate Christmas creep that doesn’t let Holloween happen before busting out the tinsel and trees. It use to be stores did not prepare for Xmas till after Thanksgiving, beginning with Black Friday sales, well I can testify my department store already has black friday sales…  I feel like Cindy Lou Who, singing “Where are you Christmas? Why can't I find you Why have you gone away Where is the laughter You used to bring me Why can't I hear music play My world is changing I'm rearranging Does that mean Christmas changes too Where are you Christmas Do you remember The one you used to know I'm not the same one See what the time's done Is that why you have let me go, oh.” (How The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, Ron Howard Film, 2000). The song does not end on that melancholic and depressing note, nor does the Grinch story, but I find myself stuck in those lines more an...

  Many of those who grew up in 1980’s and 1990’s are in their thirties and so they have money & want to relive their childhood memories. A whole line of toys designed as they were upon release have come out, with vintage Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures, legacy Power Rangers toys from Mighty Morphin, 1997 X-Men dolls, Sonic The Hedgehog Classic stretchy toys & play sets, and more. All of this is to capitalize on the nostalgia, creating impulse buys from people who want to recapture if for only a moment that childhood time when they had that toy or a memory of the show and playing outside (yes kids use to do    that).  While there is nothing inheritantly wrong with giving in to this pull to the childhood, there are some cautions to consider. The apostle Paul says, “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to fa...