The Hold That Passions Have On A Man

Only because you know just how bad they actually are for you, doesn't mean you can quit.

( You may wish to turn up the volume on your computer ).

The Heart of the Matter

One night I had a dream. Outside, the sky was made into a single being. I couldn't look at it because of its brightness. I fell with my face to the ground, because I understood that it was a divine power. I heard a voice telling me: Look at this! Who does not know what this is will never see the Kingdom of Heaven! As I was lying with my face to the ground, I lifted up my head a bit, to look at what it was showing me. About where its face was, I could see only lightnings, and when it spoke, it was as if it thundered. Looking towards the frightfully-large hand, I saw that it held a human heart wherein there was much filth. I heard that thundery voice again: Look and know that whosoever does not know what this is will not see the Kingdom of Heaven! The dream scared me greatly. For three days I was not able to do anything. I shook the whole time, and stood in great fear, although I haven't understood too much of it.

Norica Ion, The Escape from Hell

The Author of "Basic Instinct" Repents of a Life-Time of Sin, Addiction, and Debauchery

Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

During the summer of 2001, Eszterhas was diagnosed with throat cancer. His doctors worked to remove 80 per cent of his larynx and told him to immediately quit drinking and smoking. Eszterhas was 56. He lived a wild lifestyle and knew that changing his habits would not be easy.


His Conversion
On a day Eszterhas describes as “hellishly hot,” he was walking through a tree-lined neighborhood when he realized he had hit rock-bottom.

Eszterhas described his frame of mind: "I was going crazy. I was jittery. I twitched. I trembled. I had no patience for anything. … Every single nerve ending was demanding a drink and a cigarette.”

He sat on the curb and began to cry. In between fits of crying he began to pray, “Please God, help me.” He hadn’t prayed since he was a child. "I couldn't believe I'd said it. I didn't know why I'd said it. I'd never said it before," he wrote.


God reached out His hand
Eszterhas was immediately overwhelmed with peace. His twitching stopped. He no longer trembled. He saw a "shimmering, dazzling, nearly blinding brightness that made me cover my eyes with my hands." Similar to Saul seeing a blinding light on his way to Damascus, Eszterhas had seen the light of Christ.

Eszterhas described the experience as “absolutely overwhelming."

He went from doubting if he could make it through life without tobacco and alcohol, to knowing that he could "defeat myself and win."

Catholic News Agency

Psalms 34:6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.



Psalms 120:1 ¶In my distress I cried unto the LORD, and he heard me.

After years of smut and violence, Joe Eszterhas says he found God one hot summer day in 2001 as he desperately battled to survive throat cancer and his addictions to alcohol and cigarettes.

“I didn’t even really know how to pray,” Eszterhas writes in his upcoming book Crossbearer: A Memoir of Faith. “I didn’t know what to say, so one of the first things I said was ‘I’m sorry. I’ve acted like a colossal A-hole. I’m really, really sorry. I don’t deserve to be forgiven, but please try to forgive me.’”

In their effort to prolong Eszterhas’ life, doctors at the Cleveland Clinic removed 80 percent of his larynx, put a tracheotomy tube in his throat, and told him he must quit drinking and smoking immediately.

While Eszterhas wanted to change his ways, after a lifetime of wild living, the 56-year-old Hungarian native knew it would be a struggle to do so. And it was.

In the summer of 2001, Eszterhas reached a breaking point and for the first time since he was a child, he prayed for God’s help.

"I was going crazy. I was jittery. I twitched. I trembled. I had no patience for anything. … Every single nerve ending was demanding a drink and a cigarette," he writes in Crossbearer.

After his prayer, however, he felt an overwhelming peace.

It was "an absolutely overwhelming experience," he recalled to the Toledo Blade earlier this month.

Eszterhas went from doubting if he could make it through life without tobacco and alcohol to knowing that he could "defeat myself and win."

The Christian Post

What Does God Even Want From Us Anyway !?

Why does He demand so much of us? Who does He even think He is!? GOD !?

Well... yeah!
Remember our father Abraham, who was righteous in the sight of the Lord, fulfilled all His laws, and never broke any of His commandments? Well, now, ask yourself this: Was God satisfied by that? Or did He ask for more?

Genesis 22:2 And [God] said [to Abraham]: Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

Or the rich young man, who kept all the commandments from his youth? Was Christ satisfied by this? Or did He demand more?

Matthew 19:21 Jesus said unto him: If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow Me. ²² But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

Luke 18:22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him: Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow Me. ²³ And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.

There's a very special Lenten Prayer that we frequently say during this particularly sorrowful time of fasting and repentance: it begins with the simple words Lord, and Master of my life – is God really the Lord and Master of your life?

Kicking the Habit: The Struggle With Sin Continues

Exodus 20:2-3, Deuteronomy 5:6-7
I am the LORD thy God: Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Proverbs 23:26 My son, give me thine heart.

Matthew 6:21, Luke 12:34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Embracing the Emo Subculture: Depressing Orthodox Lenten Songs

Orthodox Zionism 101

Psalm 137:1 ¶By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. 6 Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember thee, Zion.

Why the Mother of God was Ever-Virgin

Because the following statement makes no sense coming from the lips of an already-engaged and soon-to-be-married young woman:

Luke 1:34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?

We've already been told several verses earlier, in Luke 1:27, that she was "espoused to a man whose name was Joseph ".

Thus, the usual reaction one would normally expect from her in such a situation would be: "Are you telling me that mine and Joseph's future child will be the Messiah of Israel ?"

Hence why the Church's "unbiblical" interpretation of their engagement as being one of paternal protection is more tenable than the equally-unbiblical ¹ Protestant belief that their betrothal was meant for future wedding and child-bearing.

¹ Unless one can show me just where exactly in the Bible the brethren of the Lord are called "children" or "sons of Mary"...

Al Pacino on God, Guilt, Fasting, Abstinence, and Morality

- What do you want from me?

- I want you to be yourself. You know, I’ll tell you, boy: guilt... it's like a bag of bricks. All you got to do... is set it down. I know what you're going through: I’ve been there. Just... Let it go.

- I can't do that.

- Who are you carrying all those bricks for? God? Is that it? God!? I’ll tell you... Let me give you a little "inside information" about God. God likes to watch. He's a prankster ! Think about it! He gives man instincts. He gives you this extraordinary gift... and then what does He do? I swear, for His own amusement, his own private, cosmic gag reel, He sets the rules in opposition ! It's the goof of all time ! Look... but don't touch ! Touch... but don't taste ! Taste... but don't swallow ! And while you're jumpin' from one foot to the next, what is he doing? He's laughin' !... He's a sadist! He's an absentee landlord ! Worship that? Never!

Al Pacino and Keanu Reeves in The Devil's Advocate

Tom Cruise On Lent, And Its Effects On People

Poor guy: he sure seems worn out by all the fasting... :-(
(Looks like all that asceticism and abstinence really got to him... big time!)

The First Words From The Savior's Lips:

Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Mark 1:14 ¶Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Protestants Were Right All Along: The Orthodox Are Idolaters And Worship Pagan Gods !

Before, there were idols, pagan temples and those who offer sacrifice to the idols. And now, they exist as thoughts in the soul. He who is a slave to debauchery worships the idol of Aphrodite. He who becomes angry and enraged worships the idol of Ares. He who is avaricious and closed to the pain and misery of his neighbor worships the idol Hermes. If you refrain from all of this and preserve yourself from passions, you have overcome idols, you have rejected an evil belief and have become a martyr for the True Faith.

Abba Athanasius

What's Holding You Back?

Here's what's holding me back...

Exodus 20:2-3, Deuteronomy 5:6-7
I am the LORD thy God: Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Proverbs 23:26
My son, give me thine heart.

Matthew 6:21, Luke 12:34
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Philippians 3:19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.

The Difference Between Orthodoxy and Jainism

Hey, don't look at me, I don't got all the answers...

The Difference Between Lent And Ramadan

None, if you're not willing to give up on the one thing that truly counts and really matters...

The Lenten Equation

Fasting = Castration + Evisceration

(Just do the math, if you don't believe me...)

If You Think Catholics Are Evil For Not Allowing Their Priests To Marry...

Think again!
At least they have the decency, common sense, and courtesy to restrict such impossible demands to clergy alone! In Orthodoxy, on the other hand, everybody's canon-fodder, and no one's safe...

P.S.: I can't help thinking about the poor Catholic Priest as some sort of scapegoat or 'sacrificial victim', whose "Vicarious Chastity" and Celibacy is meant to atone for the general half-heartedness, superficiality, and lukewarm-ness of his parishioners... Speaking of being in persona Christi !

A (Re)Loaded and Impertinent Question

Just what exactly is the essential, fundamental, and ontological difference between myself, and half-naked Hindu priests worshipping erect golden phallic symbols in their pagan Temples?

Heaven as Hell: The Gospel According to Mark (Twain)

For instance, take this sample: he [mortal man] has imagined a heaven, and has left entirely out of it the supremest of all his delights, the one ecstasy that stands first and foremost in the heart of every individual of his race -- and of ours -- sexual intercourse!

It is as if a lost and perishing person in a roasting desert should be told by a rescuer he might choose and have all longed-for things but one, and he should elect to leave out water!

His [man's] heaven is like himself: strange, interesting, astonishing, grotesque. I give you my word, it has not a single feature in it that he actually values. It consists -- utterly and entirely -- of diversions which he cares next to nothing about, here in the earth, yet is quite sure he will like them in heaven. Isn't it curious? Isn't it interesting? You must not think I am exaggerating, for it is not so. I will give you details.


You know what the human race enjoys and what it doesn't enjoy.
1. First of all, I recall to your attention the extraordinary fact with which I began. To wit, that the human being, like the immortals, naturally places sexual intercourse far and away above all other joys -- yet he has left it out of his heaven! The very thought of it excites him; opportunity sets him wild; in this state he will risk life, reputation, everything -- even his queer heaven itself -- to make good that opportunity and ride it to the overwhelming climax. From youth to middle age all men and all women prize copulation above all other pleasures combined, yet it is actually as I have said: it is not in their heaven; prayer takes its place.

That rich gift [intercourse] which, possessed as we possess it, makes all other possessions trivial and not worth the trouble of invoicing.

Mark Twain, Letters from the Earth, pp. 8-11

Why Orthodoxy is the True Faith (Extended Version)

Antiquity. Universality. And Consensus.

These are the three marks of truth, according to Saint Vincent of Lerins, and -among all Christian denominations- only Orthodoxy possesses all three of them, as we shall easily show in the following paragraphs:

Protestantism lacks all three of them, primarily antiquity, the first Protestant denominations dating back to no sooner than the 16^th century, or -more precisely- to 1517 AD. Even the so-called Pre-Reformers did not exist prior to the 12^th, 14^th, or 15^th centuries.

Among the remaining four¹ ancient and apostolic churches, only Orthodoxy possesses universality, as we shall now demonstrate:

Catholicism is distinguished by its unique, local belief in the Filioque, completely unknown to all other ancient and apostolic churches.

Monophysitism or Miaphysitism is distinguished by its unique, local belief in the one nature of Jesus Christ, completely unknown to all other ancient and apostolic churches.

Nestorianism is distinguished by its unique, local belief in the two persons of Jesus Christ (Jesus the man, and Christ our God), completely unknown to all other ancient and apostolic churches.

	Protestantism	Catholicism	Orthodoxy	Monophysitism	Nestorianism
Antiquity	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Filioque	-	Yes	No	No	No
One Nature in Christ	No	No	No	Yes	No
Two Persons in Christ	No	No	No	No	Yes

Therefore –among all the ancient and apostolic churches– Orthodoxy is the only one that possesses catholicity, being thus "the one holy catholic and apostolic church" of the Nicene creed.

¹ I did not take into account artificial hybrids, or unification movements, such as Eastern Catholicism (between Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy), Oriental Catholicism (between Catholicism and Oriental Orthodoxy), and Monothelitism or Monoenergism (the Maronites of Lebanon: between Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy), all of which lack both antiquity, as well as universality.

Halloween on the Old Calendar: When "Tales from the Crypt" Meets the Menaion

Today is the Saturday of Saint Theodore.
He was an early Christian Martyr and Military Saint, along with Saint George and Saint Demetrius. He was killed by being tied to running horses, and dragged by them for miles, until he died exhausted from severe wounds and bleedings. His celebration is especially honored among the Slavs: i.e., working on this day would be forbidden. My maternal grandmother is of Slavic (Bulgarian) background: her family-name is Putin. (Sounds all really sweet and innocent until now, doesn't it?...)

Now I'm gonna tell you a creepy little horror-story, that my granny used to tell me back when I was a little kid, and which scared the living life out of me: it's the kind of stuff that they don't tell you in Convert-Land. (If you have enough trouble dealing with the Ascension of Mary, then you better hold your horses [pun intended], 'cause this one's gonna give you a heart-attack...)


Saint Theodore's Horses
It was Saint Theodore's day. Everybody was supposed to rest. But, in a small remote village, an old mother and her young daughters had still a lot of unfinished business around the household... lots and lots of chores to be done... The younger sibling was feeling a bit sick and under the weather (plus, she was weak, and way too young), so her mother decided she better stay at home, while the others go and wash all the clothes and bed-sheets down by the river... While they were doing that, a group of handsome and fine-looking young men approached them, dressed in nice festive clothes, and wearing long boots. The girls started giggling, as they considered them strong and attractive... The lads approached the young women, and asked them why they work on Saint Theodore's day. They answered that they didn't really want to, but -then again- they didn't have much choice in the matter either, since there was all this work that still had to be done... But -as the lasses looked closer at the fine, handsome young men- they saw hair coming out of their curiously-long boots... It looked strange... like a horse's tail... and their manly laughter sounded like neighs... As evening drew close, and the day became darker and darker, the elderly mother was beginning to worry about the daughters she sent away to wash bed-covers down at the river, as they didn't seem to be coming back, nor was any shadow to be seen at the horizon... So she prepared some food, and sent the youngest away to bring them dinner... As the young maiden approached the place where her older sisters were supposed to be, she saw no sign of them, but only what from a distance appeared to be bed-clothes, hanging out to dry. As she came closer and closer, a frightening sight began to slowly reveal itself to her young and innocent eyes: what she at first thought resembled clothes left out to dry on a wire, were actually human guts and bowels, dripping with blood... Terrified to death, and barely able to hold her breath, the young child ran desperately home; her agonizing flight seemed to last an eternity... As she finally arrived, with tears running down her cheeks, and with her white dress all soaked in cold sweat, she told her mother the gruesome news: -- but the night was far from over!... Quickly, in fear, shock, and sheer terror, the old woman left everything that she was working on, locked everything up, and turned everything in the house upside-down, save for the egg and the rasp (which are symmetrical). Then they just sat there... waiting quietly, in the dark... all alone, just the two of them... frightened and scared to death... shivering, and holding their breath... As midnight drew near, strange whickering sounds began to be heard in the distance... As the disturbing noises drew closer, footsteps of boots (or were those hooves?...) resounded on the ground, near the door of the house... Knock, knock... "Open the door!" No answer. The door-latch clanked and clicked and turned... but the door was locked! "Open the door!" All the things in the house were turned upside-down, so they were unable to respond the call... except the egg and the rasp. The first fell, being round and slippery, and crashed, splashing on the floor... the second also slipped, and cracked as it hit the ground, breaking into pieces. -- And this is how the two helpless women were able to escape the avenging wrath of... Saint Theodore's Horses !

(And you thought the Jews were harsh for stoning people who broke the Sabbath!...)

Sweet dreams, everyone!

(And sleep tight!)

The Joy of Lent !

You just want to SCREAM for joy!

Matthew 8:29 What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?

The First Two Rules Of Fasting

Matthew 6:16 ¶Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.

1 Timothy 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

2 Timothy 4:7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

1 Corinthians 9:24 ¶Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. 25 And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. 26 I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: 27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

What Do Protestants Give Up For Lent?

Fasting.

(See? Whoever said Protestants don't give up anything for Lent!?...)

Christ Refutes One of the Solas !

Matthew 4:4 It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Luke 4:4 It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.

Are you an adept of Sola Pane ? Do you believe that man shall live by bread alone ?

What Would Jesus Do?

He'd fast.

Matthew 4:1 ¶Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. 2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

Luke 4:1 ¶And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2 Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered.

Matthew 9:14 ¶Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not? 15 And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.

Mark 2:18 ¶And the disciples of John and of the Pharisees used to fast: and they come and say unto him, Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but thy disciples fast not? 19 And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? as long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20 But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.

Luke 5:33 And they said unto him, Why do the disciples of John fast often, and make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees; but thine eat and drink? 34 And he said unto them, Can ye make the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? 35 But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.

The Lenten Prayer of Saint Ephraim the Syrian

Lord and Master of my life¹,

The spirit of laziness, and of the care for many things, of the lust for power, and of idle-talk, take away from me.

But the spirit of purity and meekness, of patience and love, grant unto me, Thy servant.

Therefore, Lord and King, grant that I may realize my own mistakes, and keep me from judging my brother,

For You are blessed forevermore,

Amen.
____________________________________
¹ Is God really the Master of your life ?...

Our One True God

I said our one true God, NOT the one true God...

A Short Summary of Over Five Years of Apologetic Efforts

Romans 10:21 All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.

Fasting: The Entrance-Gate Into A Sexless Eternity

Matthew 22:30 For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.

Mark 12:25 For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven.

Luke 20:34 And Jesus answering said unto them: The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage: 35 But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: 36 Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.