A Knight's Blog

  The cognitive dissonance of this world astounds me. All our lives we are told to venerate the risk takers, the thinkers, the rule breakers, and odd balls who broke new barriers. We peer at Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, marvel at Einstein’s theory of Relativity, and peruse Emily Dickinson’s poetry. All the while we are told the greats were exceptional, went against the flow, took risks, and defied the status quo. Then after burning incense at the altars of the rule breakers and regaling one another with their genius, we then are told to be normal and desire a status quo life. What the Farik? After you learn and hear your literature teacher worship Shakespeare and Emily Dickenson who broke the grammar rules of their day, you are then told to follow strict high school and college grammar and composition rules.  Why are the greats we venerate allowed to break the rules and defy conventional living expectations, being labeled genius and artist, but the rest of us must conform to a drone ...

  There is a trend where people are falling in love with fictional characters, even marrying them. The term to describe this phenomenon is waifu. According to the dictionary, “Waifu is a term for  a fictional character , usually in anime or related media, that someone has great, and sometimes romantic, affection for.” However, the actual origin of the word waifu means wife: “From  Japanese   ワイフ  (waifu), itself from  English   wife ; popularized by  4chan .  Doublet  of  wife . Believed to have first appeared in the anime  Azumanga Daioh. ” (Waifu, Wikipedia).  Headlines were made in Japan when a young man married a anime character and uses hologram to relate to her. In fact, the trend is growing in Japan and interest is growing in the USA as a new generation doesn’t want a conventional relationship.  What are we the Church to make of this? Does the Bible have any bearing on it? How should we respond as Christ follow...

  Gundam is one of those anime series that required a deep dive into its lore to really understand it. It has so many iterations that it is daunting for the uninitiated, but across all the different Gundam universes are common themes and stories, chief among them is that the Federation Government of Earth that rules space colonies from earth ends up at war with Neon Zeon, refugees and spacenoids who live in space and on the colonies. Emerging on both sides are Newtypes and Cybernewtypes that can possess untold psychic powers (a la The Force, Star Wars) in their mobile suite giant robot armored fight machines that can travel in space and are armed with massive guns, lightsabers, and missiles. Most important in reoccurring characters is Char Aznable, who leads Neon Zeon, and believes Earth must be purified of the parasites known as humans, so that our planet can heal after being harvested to the hilt. Char’s foil is Amuro Ray, who believes humanity can change and transcend its destru...

  A new native American translation of the Bible has been published. called “First Nations Translation.”Christianity Today is plugging this translation, and this is to their eternal downfall. This First Narions translation is false, it claims the Great Spirit the pagan Native Americans worshipped is the same God of Israel, who is The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Firstly this is who the Great Spirit is:  “The  Great Spirit  is the concept of a  life force , a Supreme Being or  god  known more specifically as  Wakan Tanka  in  Lakota ,[1][ need quotation to verify ]  Gitche Manitou  in  Algonquian , and by other, specific names in a number  Native American  and  First Nations  cultures. Wakȟá ŋ  Tȟá ŋ ka  can be interpreted as the power or the sacredness that resides in everything, resembling some  animistic  and  pantheistic  beliefs. This term describes every creatur...

  An Icon (ˈīˌkän, ikon, image) is a two dimensional religious painting of Christ or the saints. Typically an iconographer paints using Tempera, which includes an egg to create the golden halo. While artisan sculpts the image there is deep spiritual prayer, contemplation, and carving into the image. What is  alarming is what Eastern Orthodox believe about icons:  “The Orthodox Church teaches that an icon is a two-way door of communication that not only shows us a person or an event but makes it present. When we stand in front of an icon we are in touch with that person and we take part in that event. The historical event of the Nativity is here and now to us, when we look at a Nativity icon. What we call “our world” and what we call “the spiritual world” are opened to each other.” (Praying with Icons -Ancient Spiritual Disciplines, Linette Martin, 60 of 812)  Icons are time travel devices, and portals to the spiritual world?! For this reason I am greatly disturbed. W...

  When the devil tempted Our Lord Jesus in the wilderness, Christ always responded “it is written.” He used Scripture to combat the devil’s temptations. But the last temptation the evil one used was Scripture, “And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written,        “‘He will command his angels concerning you,           to guard you,’  and    “‘On their hands they will bear you up,           lest you strike your foot against a stone.” (Luke 4:9-11).  The most dangerous deceptions include misquoted or twisted understandings of Scripture. St. Benedict’s Rule is full of erroneous interpretations of Scripture to justify monastic abuses like monks beating a brother monk with rods (disciplinary action). The devil does the most damage when he uses scripture out of context, improperly, ...

  In Rio there is a massive Jesus statue called  Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer). It towers over the city and is a major tourist attraction. There are plans to build a even larger statue of Christ in Brazil. All of this masonry i doesn’t think impresses our Messiah. In Rio during the 2016 Olympics, the Olympians were accosted and threatened with molestation and rape, oh but its ok there is a giant statue of Jesus to make up for it (sarcasm).  It doesn’t matter how many statues you build if your actions ate sinful. King David after having adultery with Bathsheba and murdering Uriah became obsessed with building a temple of stone for God. The Lord told David via the prophet Nathan that he has no desire of a earthen temple, “ When King David was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all the surrounding enemies,   the king summoned Nathan the prophet. “Look,” David said, “I am living in a beautiful cedar palace,[ a ] but the Ark of God is out t...