GENESIS... THE ORIGIN OF HUMANKIND - PART 4

Edited Sept. 25, 2010; 11AM

Here is where we begin to discover a paradox, between Genesis 1:26, the sixth day of CREATION and Genesis 2.

CREDIT for Biblical Quotes: DEVOTIONS - THE OLD TESTAMENT ONLINE


From Genesis 1:

"26 Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind* in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth,* and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth."
"27 So God created humankind* in his image, in the image of God he created them;* male and female he created them."
"28God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.’ 29God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food."

Those passages from the Old Testament, suggest man and woman were created together, on the sixth day of Creation. And God said: "Be fruitful and multiply..." In addition, "God created man and woman in his image..." Years later, Jesus, the Son of God said much the same thing. But that is for another post. Fact is... humankind were created on the sixth day... with dominion over the Earth, and encouraged to "be fruitful and multiply". Man and woman procreating.

Which brings us to Genesis, Chapter 2, verse 7:

"7then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground,* and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being." 
"8And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed." "9Out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil."

Man, reborn, after God rested on the seventh day.

"15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it." 
"16And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden." 
"17But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die."

Well we already knew that was coming - Drug Prohibition... "The forbidden fruit!" But what drugs, if drugs the tree was? And apples, really?? It doesn't specify apples... at least not yet.

Adam working away, alone, tilling fields. Sounds like history when our species changed from hunters and gatherers, around 75,000 years, ago if I remember correctly, to set down roots and become farmers.

"18 Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner."

"19So out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name." 
"20The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man* there was not found a helper as his partner."

Gone now are the dinosaurs, and modern animals now populate the earth. And poor Adam, alone somehow,  tilling the fields, though we know humankind exist, so I would have to assume that Adam, with dominion over the earth, was not only working hard at something new to humanity, but also probably pretty depressed without a partner. So God tries one more thing:

"21So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh." 
"22And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man." 
"23Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called Woman."

Why the paradox of the creation? Genesis One, and Genesis Two? The answer is, humankind evolved during the millions of years that God rested.

After God awoke, something happened, something changed. 

Next Post: EVE AWAKENS...

GENESIS... THE ORIGIN OF HUMANKIND - PART 3

Welcome to GENESIS and "The Temple of Time".

^*^

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Over the years I have collected books. Historical books in particular. The image posted above is from a book called "Universal History", by Emma Willard, 1855. I have no idea who Emma Willard was... have not had the chance to research her yet. 

It sets the date in history of CREATION, at 4004 BC. In the image above that is the centerpiece of the Temple and at the very back of the temple. It's the answer to the argument by today's creationists. Her book is divided into three separate eras: "Ancient, Middle, and Modern". It's priceless in it's understanding of the world before Darwin.

I wondered for years why dinosaurs mattered... why I asked my Sunday school teacher about them. There's a lot I didn't understand until my early twenties. The primary reason was I didn't feel comfortable questioning things. I believed life and society were organized, and to question that organization was inappropriate. Yet, I did question things, and the mystery of how dinosaurs and man began, and historically could coexist, was a burning question. 

My Sunday school teacher, Joel, wasn't completely wrong when he answered my question, and told me dinosaurs were from when the world was a dark void. It's obvious to me now that at age 8, I have some idea that Creation happened after the dinosaurs. Somehow, this notion that Creation happened, say 4004 BC, was  a fact I believed in my subconscious. Yet I knew dinosaurs roamed the Earth long before... 

According to the most recent understanding of the origins of a modern people, it's estimated they left Africa between 120,000 years to 75,000 years ago. Long prior to 4004 BC.

I also understand now that GOD "created plants and animals and creepy things" long before humankind..That the Creation did take place, over millions of years, and I believe it did take 7 days... 7 very long days... days that lasted billions of years.

Dinosaurs roamed the Earth long before man, and God made it so according to the Book of Genesis. Plants came before the dinosaurs. Plants like cannabis, which I can't resist but admire, and highlight. All prior to the existence of humankind, and "God saw that it was good". 

The origins of who we are go back millions of years, but there was a time ignorance was bliss, and we were akin to animals. There also came the time of the first "self-aware" human being. We can take it from the Bible that first self-aware human was named Eve. And she influenced Adam. 

We can add the mystery of the snake in the Garden of Eden, and the existence of other humans, like Lillith, described in details in books the Catholic church chose to expunge from "The Bible" in the 14th century.

Next time... "The Original Sin and the Original Penalty..."

GENESIS... THE ORIGIN OF HUMANKIND - PART 2

I began GENESIS with the Third day of Creation. The reason I did so was because after the First and the Second Day, which follows, God made the plants, made Nature.

Whether you take the Bible literally, or as an interesting story, fact is, Nature came before humankind. Before living creatures. At the end of the Third day of Creation, the world was formed, but neither human, nor animal, nor creepy thing existed.

God created the Paradise of Nature first. And that is when life began, after the Third Day. But In The
Beginning:

CREDIT for Biblical Quotes: DEVOTIONS - THE OLD TESTAMENT ONLINE

"In the beginning when God created* the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God* swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

And God said, ‘Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.’ So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day."

I was an inquisitive child. Thanks to my Aunt Helen who gave me Ray Bradbury's book, "R IS FOR ROCKET", at around age 8, I began to gain interest, insight and knowledge of the world. I can't say I was truly "self-aware" then, just that a seed was growing, a seed that might continue to grow, or may have died.

I don't recall what age I was when during a Sunday school class, I had a burning question for my Sunday school teacher, a man named Joel. What I couldn't understand is where the dinosaurs fit into the origin of humankind.

In my own mind, it was Day Four and after that stuck.

"And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so. God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. And God said, ‘Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.’ So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm, and every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.’ And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day."
Here we have Nature, plants and then the creation of all the different kinds of animals and creepy things. The end of the Fifth Day. And Humankind has not yet been created. Yet, my Sunday school teacher told me dinosaurs came before man, when the Earth was without form. And he was wrong. It didn't make sense to me then that dinosaurs ruled the world before mankind. Growing up, man always came first somehow. We were superior to everything within creation. That is what I was taught. Man had to have come before the dinosaurs, if man's dominion was real. Yet, archeology taught, dinosaurs came first. My teacher's answer to my question didn't settle well; it made me curious.

And then I found out why.

Man; Humankind didn't come first. Plants, Trees, Animals and Creepy things did, as did the dinosaurs. It wasn't until the end of the Sixth Day that God made Man and Woman. The reason is self awareness. The whole story as to why Darwinism and Creationism seem to conflict is what happened on the Sixth day of Creation?

Did humans evolve, or were they "Created" by God? The answer is "YES" to both questions. What the Old Testament of the Bible teaches is, God looked upon the Earth and All that had been Created. Whether the story of Genesis says so or not, Hominids already existed... and on the Sixth Day God Created the first humans:

"Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’ So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.’ God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day."

The Old Testament tells the story handed down over generations of Humankind's origin. It's a fascinating and remarkable story. The mere fact the story was handed down over many generations to find itself in print is extraordinary!

In my next post - the "Temple of Time" and our origin... the Sixth Day.

GENESIS... THE ORIGIN OF HUMANKIND - PART 1

CREDIT for Biblical Quotes: DEVOTIONS - THE OLD TESTAMENT ONLINE


"God said, ‘Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, ‘Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.’ And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good." 


Welcome, to Genesis... 


The beginning of humankind.


I was raised going to church every Sunday, in the Protestant religion, known as "Zion Covenant". I spent 3 years in SHS going every Friday to religious classes, to graduate what was called "Confirmation". At the end of that time, I was to join the church. I didn't. Neither did my sister. Everyone else did.


The Old Testament of the Bible always fascinated me. It's the New Testament I have issues with. During the 14th century the Catholic Church convened a meeting, a meeting that for now I could care less about, but it was a meeting that changed the world, a meeting where women were deemed subservient to men and a link to Satan, a meeting where what books of the Bible were deemed ADMISSIBLE. Several Books of the Bible were omitted then by the CHURCH. The Jewish Apocrypha, for one. The fact is, man, literally, decided what their Bible would be... and until the 20th century, women had little to say about it.


I find all that hard to understand, but easy to accept. I accept it because people evolved, and our history of how we evolved is what made us who we as a world are today. 


History is something to look back on, and question, but it can't be changed. It can only be built upon.


I'm not writing here to remind us we live in troubling times. That is nothing new.


I am here to tell our story of Genesis... 


Because it appears... we disagree on The Truth. And I believe, I understand the truth. 


In the beginning... there had to be a first human being that became "self-aware", and the Old Testament tells it was a woman named Eve.


Eve, and Adam, and All of humankind was cursed that day. Not because God wanted it, but rather, because, becoming self-aware, is a curse. "Ignorance is bliss", it goes without saying. But I said it. Because there are many that take bliss in ignorance... shelter in their religion, shelter in their politics, shelter in their own beliefs. 


The most common form of shelter is called dichotomy, the belief that there is "right and wrong", "black or white", "truth or lies". The fact is the world is gray and full of color. 


In the following posts, it's my hope to bring some color and gray into your life. Yet, I know, for many, your minds are made up. You know the truth. 


Yes, you know the truth...


As do I.


Apple anyone?

BEDBUGS AND THE REV. TERRY JONES - ON "BURN THE QURAN"

Reverend Terry Jones of the  Dove Outreach Center, Gainesville, FL.... considered a Church of Christ... is Pastor of the small Christian congregation... has been in the news of late vowing to burn the Islamic Bible, the Quran... the church is noted as condemning Islam as a satanic religion, which just happens to be the practice and the religion of millions of Muslim people. It also happens to be the alleged religion of the terrorists who killed a couple thousand people on Sept. 11, 2001, obliterating the Twin Towers in NYC, and hijacking two other airplanes, one which hit the Pentagon, the other that was heroically crashed in a field in PA when passengers overtook the terrorists.

Well, Rev. Jones believes Islam is evil. That building a mosque near "Ground Zero" in NYC is reason enough to burn a Holy Book of Islam. In protest.

On NPR tonight I heard he has spoke with God, and decided not to burn the Quran. But in the same report it was stated he decided God spoke to him because an Imam Muhammad Musri agreed to not build the mosque near Ground Zero as originally planned.

So who is Rev. Jones dealing with here? God or his own personal voices? Conflicting news suggests that the pastor is now changed his mind and is again planning on burning the Quran in protest because the mosque deal may be off. Odd, as God, if he truly spoke to the pastor would have told him all this.

Maybe the pastor doesn't hear too good... but all I know is, this is a great example of why I don't associate with organized religion.

I'm honesty not an atheist, but rather more of a Druid. I believe in God, but my God is All... all religions, all beliefs, all that is, was and will ever be.

As I've said before, my one moral is "don't hurt others". By burning the Quran, Rev. Jones is hurting the faith and the spirit of Muslims worldwide. It is fueling a fire that apparently the Christian pastor believes is just and approved by his god. All for the sake of a mosque that Muslims wish to build near, but not on Ground Zero.

The Rev. Jones apparently believes Muslims are akin to bedbugs... a pest to destroy. Fact is, it's mosquitoes that carry disease, not bedbugs. Maybe to those of the Christian faith, those who "Trust in God", Islam is a pest, but they are not the devil that Rev. Jones would believe they are.

I would like to ask Rev. Jones how many Muslims died in the destruction of the World Trade Center, destroyed by a pack of mosquitoes claiming to be the angels of Islam? It's a mistake of media worldwide that only Americans died in the destruction. Fact is, people of all faiths died.

Not one mention of that fact have I ever seen or read in any media reports... but that's the truth. Human beings of all kinds perished. The world was hurt... not just Americans!

Rev. Jones... you want to incite WW3, in America you have that right. I really could care less if I have to go to work on Monday if WW3 breaks out if you burn the Quran. But think about it! Is it the GOD talking to you or your own voices you call god? Because seriously... what happened on Sept. 11, 2001 was not the Muslims attacking us, but a radical group of extremists. If nothing else, God has given you the gift of making that message clear to the world, because I really don't think most people understand that. On the other hand, if your goal is to claim God doesn't want the mosque build near Ground Zero, then to me, you are nothing but a misguided, eccentric man that could very well light the fuse to WW3.

As President Obama said quite clearly, America is a Country that tolerates and welcomes religious freedom. Not that an atheist could ever become president, but then, it wasn't long ago that it was not deemed possible that a man "of color" could become president.

So what will it be? WW3 or religious tolerance??? Personally, I'd prefer a cannabis dispensary be built near ground Zero, since cannabis users tend to be peaceful, but I doubt I'll get my wish.

Talk to your god again, and maybe actually listen this time! You call yourself a Christian?  I have my doubts!

JUSTICE FOR JESSICA - BUTTS FAMILY MURDERS - PART 2

Edited Sept. 06, 2010

I'm not here to write the story about the murder of three people, the Butts family. That's already been done, told by journalist Sonny Long, who followed the Butt's Family murders almost from the beginning. Without his commitment, the murders most likely would never have come to the level it is today, which is that the long-time suspect, Kevin Hailey, pleaded guilty to strangling Gerri Faye Butts, the single mother of two children. I understand Mr. Long is finishing up a book on the the Butt's family.

Sonny Long provided everything one could possibly want in sleuthing a crime, a heinous crime that took the innocent lives of three persons - Gerri Faye, Jessica and Mackenzie Butts.

*******

Sonny Long, put this WEBSITE together, and this  timeline of events, beginning with the following:

Place - Atlanta, Texas (approx 20 miles from Texarkana)Population - 6,400
Cass County

Police department - - 21 employees - - 16 police officers 

Gerri Faye Butts, 29, and her daughters, Jessica, 11, and MacKenzie, 3.

Gerri worked for minimum wage at Stanco, a safety glove manufacturer. She lived in a trailer with her 2 daughters. They had different fathers, neither father was in the picture.

Gerri Faye had been arrested for selling marijuana in 1985. 21 people were caught in that "bust" - - only 2 didn't do time - - one was Gerri Faye.

Is it possible she made a deal to stay out of jail? Did she have any enemies from that time? 

The Butts had received "scary" phone calls shortly before the murders. One said that they would all be dead in eight days. One of Jessica's friends at school was supposed to be in a skit the next week, but she hurt herself and on January 24th asked Jessica to take her place. Jessica said she better not agree to do that, she might be dead by then. This information came from a counselor at Jessica's school. 

Reading though Sonny Long's comprehensive reporting on the murders, one finds that the alleged suspect, Kevin Hailey, wasn't the only suspect. 

*******

"OTHER SUSPECTS"; credit: Sonny Long::

"Bret Lawless was thought to be a suspect from early on, but he had an alibi (Lanette Butts) and passed a lie detector test. More than one person interviewed said that there was a "dispute" between Lawless and Gerri Faye over some land he wanted the family to sell. Gerri Faye was reportedly the lone holdout.

Bret was named by Atlanta Police as a possible suspect in Hailey's probable cause hearing, and Kevin's mother called him the killer on the Ma ury Povich Show."

***

Still, Kevin Hailey remained what most considered the prime suspect. He lived in the same neighborhood and the family, and although he didn't drive, (had lost his license or some such thing), during his recent trial, and previous ones, the defense argued he was home, and couldn't have traveled to the Butt's family home. Obviously the prosecution argued he lived in the same neighborhood - he could have walked! 

But why would Kevin Hailey, former boyfriend and friend to the Butt's family, murder them all? And what happened during the ensuing investigation with so much evidence available?

*******

During the Winter of 2004, I was assisting Brianna Maitland's family in there effort to find her. As fate would have it they asked me to work with a criminal profiler out of Texas. I call him Sam as he wishes anonymity. While we spoke mostly about Brianna Maitland, I discovered "Sam" had been involved the the Butt's family murders. What follows are some excerpts from e-mails we exchanged. It provide a unique perspective on really happens during an investigation. 

Thu, Aug 27, 2009

SAM: I was involved in the very begining when the murders occuredm chief scott was over the investigation the first time we arrested hailey. Then the same ones who attacked me had chief scott ran off. That left no who was willing to push the case. I took it upon myself after 10 years to start pushing the case again. That's when they came after me.

Fri, Aug 28, 2009


SAM: I lived in Texarkana and I was a criminal investigator for the army at
the time. Worked part time (weekends) for the Atlanta Texas Police Dept.
Chief Scott was a retired Dallas Homicide Investigator and a good
friend. He wasn't run out of town but they pressured him so much he quit
the Chiefs job and got completely out of police work. He lived about 6
to 8 miles outside of Atlanta and still does. He had a series of strokes
and is partially paralyzed now.
All the other officers were afraid to do anything because they were
scared they would lose their job and they would have if they pushed the
case. I didn't make my living with the City of Atlanta and since I was
involved with the case from the beginning I decided to push it.
In 1992 I was in my early thirties gun hoe and full of piss and vinegar.
The day the Butts bodies were discovered was Monday morning around 0800.
I was in a dentist chair having a root canal when I heard about it. By
the time I made it down there they had removed the bodies. I did not see
the bodies but I possess a crime scene video tape if it still works?
I studied all the crime scene photos, autopsy reports, evidence and
helped in the investigation. I also helped develop some of the evidence.
Chief Scott told me everything and I had access to the complete case
file. I'll be really surprised if I'm not called to testify over some of
the evidence. I hope I can stay out of it but will see. BobKat when I was
30 years old nobody came on my turf (beat) and murdered children and got
away with it.
NOBODY !!!!!!

Sat, Aug 29, 2009

Motive butts? Kevin owed geri money and wouldn't pay her. She told some of her friends she was going to get in his face. I guess she did.

*******

I'll leave you with the following description of the scene where Jessica was found murdered in her bedroom; Warning, contains graphic descriptions of violence.

Jessica, from the following: "TIMELINE 1992", credit: Sonny Long

"11 year old Jessica was found on the bed. She was wearing a t-shirt, her panties had been removed and she had been sexually assaulted. Later it would come out that she was killed first - - the sexual assault came after her death - -she had been injured but had not bled. Apparently there was a tear in the vagina but the hymen itself was intact.


One source told me that three pubic hairs were found at that scene. Two on the sheets - and one was on her toe - - a bit of mud was on her toe (had the killer carried it in? Stepped on her toe, perhaps? Her feet were on the floor, her buttocks at the end of
the bed.) The pubic hairs were checked and it was reported that they belonged to Kevin Hailey. Again, could they have been there from weeks before? Another source said what was found on her toe was a HAIR MASS, like from the tub drain.


Enter the egg - - there was an egg casing on one of the hairs -- the egg of a crab. The egg was photographed and studied and the experts say it was in day 7 or 8 of a 10 day incubation period.


When Kevin Hailey was questioned 4 days after the murder - -he was suffering with a new outbreak of crabs.


There was no semen or DNA found on her body or the sheets."

***

"Justice for Jessica" is about evidence and facts. How can those be diminished? The evidence found on Jessica, even DNA available on the phone cord used to strangle her, is or should be more than enough to bring justice to Jessica's brutal murder. And the drowning of a baby.

You decide for yourself, if justice was served? Myself, I think not. 

I may be back with more.