There are compelling reasons not to be misled into thinking anything or anyone can actually ever usurp any kind of power from God; and why it is imperitive not to have any preconceived images of what God is.
Quran
Al-A'la (The Maximal (Uppermost))
(87:1) سَبِّحِ اسْمَ رَبِّكَ الْأَعْلَى
(87:2) الَّذِي خَلَقَ فَسَوَّى
(87:1) Glorify the name of your Lord, the Supreme (Maximal; Uppermost)
(87:2) who creates, and ‘sawa’ (delineates, makes, forms, describes, shapes, levels, squares, planes out, organizes, categorizes, arranges, ranks…)
Al 'Imran (Jesus' Family--The House of 'Imran)
(3:6) هُوَ الَّذِي يُصَوِّرُكُمْ فِي الأَرْحَامِ كَيْفَ يَشَاء لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ
(3:6) He depicts you in the wombs (places of Mercy/Matrices) as He wills. There is no deity but Him, the Almighty, the Truly Wise.
( يُصَوِّرُكُمْ means to picture or imagine; no doubt where the phrase 'in his own image' comes from misdirecting us into thinking somehow God looks like a person and acts like one, but the true value of this phrase is that we are what God imagines us to 'Be'--if there is a 'person' out there that can do that-- create something from nothing but their imagination--I would most certaintly love to meet them--otherwise, let's come to terms with our own humanity and be grateful we think we are here).
As-Sajdah (The Prostration)
(32:9) ثُمَّ سَوَّاهُ وَنَفَخَ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِهِ وَجَعَلَ لَكُمُ السَّمْعَ وَالْأَبْصَارَ وَالْأَفْئِدَةَ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَشْكُرُونَ
(32:9) and then He delineates (‘sawa’ = lit. levels; makes, forms, describes, shapes, squares, planes out, organizes, categorizes, arranges, ranks…) him, and breathes into him of His spirit: and He endows you with hearing, and sight, and hearts (sensitivity; feelings; minds); seldom are you grateful.
(Parenthetically, if the abortion issue means anything to you, you may want to study the above passage to try and settle when a zygote is just a clump of cells and when does it become a living viable human fetus)
Al-Hashr (The Gathering)
(59:24) هُوَ اللَّهُ الْخَالِقُ الْبَارِئُ الْمُصَوِّرُ لَهُ الْأَسْمَاء الْحُسْنَى يُسَبِّحُ لَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ
(59:24) He is God, the Creator, the Maker, the Depicter! His are the attributes (names) of perfection. All that is in the Heavens and Earth worship Him: for He is the Almighty, the Truly Wise!
Nahl (Bees)
(16:8) وَالْخَيْلَ وَالْبِغَالَ وَالْحَمِيرَ لِتَرْكَبُوهَا وَزِينَةً وَيَخْلُقُ مَا لاَ تَعْلَمُونَ
(16:8) And (He creates) horses, mules, and donkeys, for you to ride and for their beauty; and He creates things that as yet you have no knowledge. (Some of which you now call UFOs—any guesses as to who the riders are?)
Now to proffer a few words of comfort to those among us who have actually been instructed to shoot them down and are now having an ‘aha! moment’; no worries really, among the riders could be your mothers and by far they make for safe targets because they don’t generally shoot back and what child doesn’t secretly harbor the fantasy of shooting their mom? In fact, the need to shoot one’s Mom must be quite pervasive as it provides comic fodder for prime time TV; Family Guy chronicles baby Stewie’s fantasy to do in his mom Lois at least every other episode.
While someOne goes to great lengths to ensure you have mothers, we all know they are the last people their children ever listen to; and that's why I questioned why I should bother at all (Michael) because a couple of years of diaper duty would have been absolution enough for me.
Al A'raf (The Heights)
(7:198) وَإِن تَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَى الْهُدَى لاَ يَسْمَعُواْ وَتَرَاهُمْ يَنظُرُونَ إِلَيْكَ وَهُمْ لاَ يُبْصِرُونَ
(7:198) and if you call them to guidance, they do not hear; and you may think they see you (pay attention to you) but they do not."
This last Sign is a tad troublesome since this particular convergence has been a difficult one. Understanding that the Ayat (Signs) can be understood on a multitude of levels, I think a practical explanation is called for at this time. First, like the others, Ayah (7:198) can be taken at face value and it might even seem a bit mundane; but please be cautioned that there is a deeper meaning.
The other day I was standing at the market service counter when a young couple came up to place their order. The young man stood close to the case so he could place his order and his companion took a couple of steps back in order to have a more panoramic view of what was on display in the deli case. A server called the next number and a patron whose number was called came over to the very spot that was right in front of the young man's companion; not only blocking her view and inserting herself between the couple, but seemed completely oblivious to the young woman now only about an inch behind her.
The young woman was so incensed at this patron's rudeness that she blurted out her frustration at being so completely insulted by what appeared to be such a total disregard for her 'space' and took a few steps away from the offender and around to my side; still muttering to herself how she can't understand how anyone can be so rude! The patron was in a state of absolute shock that this young lady was carrying on like that and the confusion registered in her eyes and the questioning look she shot at me, who happened to be observing this scene unfold.
I could tell it was not in the offended party's character that she was given to such a tirade, and it was painfully obvious to me that the patron clearly did not even see this young lady (tall as she was with very long, thick black hair--you would think no one could miss her) simply standing there when she cut in front of her. Despite my strong predilection to keep to myself I had to say something to explain to both of them what had just happened and I kept it in simple terms.
Patron: "What just happened?"
Me (as gently as possible): "She is upset that you just cut in front of her. She was standing right there."
Young Woman (still in a huff, embarrassed this is out of character for her): "How can anyone be so rude!"
Patron (still stunned, because she absolutely did not see her, but sincere): "I am sorry, I didn't see you standing there. I didn't mean to be rude."
The young lady collected herself and went back to the other side where her mate was standing, and the thoroughly bewildered patron moved away from them, having woken up to the fact that just moments before she was completely oblivious to someone whose physical stature actually dwarfed everyone else's in the vicinity.
12.5.09
9.5.09
UFOs In The Sky? This Is Why.
What's All The HubBub—Bub?
It does not seem right that here we are in 2009 and the news still reads like that of our ancient ancestors’. It’s kind of like coming out of a coma in 2000 and hearing about 1930’s flappers on a daily basis without any mention that the Cold War had been over for decades or that the current hot button issue is Y2K.
Who's bad burrito dream are we having that Mexican gangsters raid our borders, and people still can say ‘Middle East Crisis’ or ‘Arab Israeli Conflict’ with a straight face? I mean reaalllly--do you mean to tell me that the USA had more secure borders by the end of the Spanish American War than we do with all the money and technology we have going on since then; and that reallly--- the Jews and the Arabs are not yet having each other’s children but enough time has gone by that Israelis and Palestinians are reincarnating as each other because that is the Universal knee-jerk response to such mule-headedness and rightly deserved Justice Served Cold? There are still Holocausts going on? And people starving? Fighting for oil? And pandemics like AIDS? And hoopla about a flu that kills less than 100 people globally because they don’t know not to raise a pig with a chicken? And elitists trying to dispossess have-nots? And even supremisist groups? And griping about who copulates with who-- or what--for all that it matters?
Clearly if these things are still going on they exist for no other reason than because the miscreants promulgating such behaviour think their own farts don’t stink. This post is a brief survey to explain just how this arrogance evolved and why it should have dissolved by now.
First, there is the inequity from a pervasive disrespect for women worldwide. The nasty latest bit of news being recent Saudi legislation using the Quran as reason to slap their women in the face for spending money. Clearly, these simians have no business interpreting the Law if they don't even bother to read it and familiarize themselves with its basic tenets.
If ever a woman deserved a beating it was Job's wife for no other reason than that Job swore to God he was going to strike her for being mean to him during his indisposal and this is about all God allowed him to strike her with to make good on his oath--a couple of blades of grass! And the implication here is that it is not supposed to hurt, and because it is a token gesture it was not to strike on the face or any other place that would be considered an affront! Ideally, this would lead to spanking her on the butt with some grass and that might lead to some great make-up sex.
(The Much Maligned) Holy Quran
Surah 38 SAAD ص
38:44 [And finally We told him (Job):] “Now take in thy hand a small bunch of grass, and strike therewith, and thou wilt not break thine oath!”
Again the emphasis here is that it is not okay to hit a woman, and that you must keep your sworn oath.
So, if Saudi women are seeing fit to go out and spend all the Knee-And-Earth-All's ill deserved gains (a well-deserved moniker for the Saudi men since the recent passage of this 'Slap-A-Saudi-Woman' gaff) by shopping, they are merely doing their part to redistribute power, because that is what spending money is--a transfer of power and under no circumstance should women be mistreated for doing their part to keep the economy moving--I mean what the sand-dune else do the Saudi men need to be spending their money on?
And regarding the blatant disregard for women's rights in the so-called Islamic countries--there is absolutely no call for such behaviour based on Islamic principles-- so STOP! Not just the behaviour, but stop saying you are Muslims and committing such heinous acts in the name of Islam. According to the Quran you have violated every one of its tenets and are not deserving of any association with it. (Note how carefully I tread and avoid passing judgment since all I am doing is drawing a conclusion based on facts--Judgment left up to You).
This is what the Quran has to say about women, men and their equality; and I am not making this stuff up since the text can be traced back over 1400 years word-for-word. There are clear injunctions as to the proper treatment of women (and wives) and the consideration they are due.
Surah 2
The Calf
2:187 (your wives) they are as a garment for you, and you are as a garment for them.
Surah 3
Al-'Imran (Jesus' Family)
3:195 And their Sustainer answers their prayer in this manner: "I shall not lose sight of the labour of any of you who labours [in My way], be it man or woman: each of you is an issue of the other."
So if men and women are each an issue of one from the other, this is not just equality-but parity! And if men and women are like each other's garments, you can tell me the rest.
And this problem is not isolated to that region of the world. Here in the US we have laws espousing women's rights and a fair outward show of equality but the situation on the ground is dire, made all the worse because of the mad pretense.
One woman recounted to me her personal experience with her boss recently. Several years ago he made her the object of his unwanted attentions and since she is a decent woman and knows how to behave she rejected his advances only to find the very next day he had written a very bad note about her in her personnel file which has prevented her from finding work elsewhere and getting out from under his icky sphere of influence. After nearly 5 years she finally succeeds in getting reassigned so that she is at least not working directly under him, only to have her current supervisor appeal to her to take on her past duties in addition to her current ones, promising this would entail a promotion for her.
She concedes to the request, since she is in fact long overdue for a promotion, and once she fulfills her part of the bargain, the promised promotion does not come through. She has to go and appeal to the icky boss since the additional duties are in his area and he was the one who promised the promotion would ensue, only to have him call her a 'nasty word' for bringing up the subject (of a raise).
Granted, there are supposed to be mechanisms in place for her recourse, but she is terrified that her life will become even more of a living hell if she engages the system, since this guy is not just her boss, but the head cheese and she knows no one dare so much as cast a chiding glance his way.
So which is better; a legal slap in the face, or to get surreptitiously screwed and harassed enjoying the right to protections against such behaviour under the Law?
If good people do not trust those in power to faithfully carry out the Law, then what are we if not a Nation of Laws?
When did the problem get so far out of hand? I don't know, but there is an interesting timeline proposed in the Maxie Time diary.
Now, for the make believe problem in the Middle East that's been dogging us for far too long and is historically the root of much undeserved elitist mentation.
The Covenant, Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac:
Abraham was father to both Ishmael and Isaac, and by all true, consistent accounts Ishmael was born first, then later Isaac. Jews say that they are God’s ’chosen people’ because they have been fed a lot of pap about how they are the only people that descended from Abraham since some rabbis played fast and loose with the original Scripture. And then thinking to make a stronger point of it, they say Ishmael doesn’t really count as Abraham’s son because he was born of a handmaid--like, since when does a women’s job determine the father’s paternity?
This type of ‘I am holier than thou by birthright smut’ has stoked a lot of needless suffering in the general human populace in the name of religion, because who wants to be second best?
The root of all this evil is in the Semitic hyperbole of the original verb ‘to pick’ which when applied properly is intended to mean having made a selection, not ‘the only selection.’ For example, someone has many fine cars in their garage and if it is sunny outside they would choose to drive their Porsche convertible and if they were going for a long trip they would opt for the Mercedes CL63 AMG. It’s also akin to a teacher choosing a student to clap her erasers or act as hall monitor for the day—does this simple selection make any one car or student better than the others or the quintessential best-and-only-highly chosen-holier-than-my-mother? No? I didn’t think so.
Yet, this is what drives the modern-day Zionist argument that being ‘God’s chosen people’ somehow should justify a mad land grab in Palestine, not only displacing the indigenous population but also dehumanizing them to such a point as to make the rest of the world think it is okay to exterminate them all because they are squatting on land that God brokered to ‘His chosen people’ and that somehow God signed off on this bad behavior when He made a covenant with Abraham.
Well, let me tell you, mine may be the lone voice in the wilderness about this, but I know there is at least one Rabbi (I think he lives in Brooklyn) who agrees with me. The biggest joke is the inappropriate application of errant scripture that not only leads to thinking that Abraham had only given rise to a Jewish nation but that all the ‘begats’ in the Bible literally mean a direct line of descent (which is why staunch religious people think we’ve only been on Earth for a few thousand years).
In Genesis we get to know what exactly Abraham’s covenant with God is all about.
Genesis 17:10 This is my covenant with you (Abraham) and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. (Please note: Circumcision for males only because they have a penis (something cylindrical that has a circumference; what I'd like to know is which hairy monkey fell from a tree and started circumcising women?)
Abraham wasted no time in implementing this rule.
Genesis 17:23 On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him. (Note: See, no Isaac yet, and Ishmael is Abraham’s first born son and only son at this time. Emphasis here not to set up who is better than who or what came first-- the chicken or the egg--but to establish that Ishmael is Abraham’s first born and entitled to all the rights of the first born, and there is no need for reiteration.)
Genesis 17:24Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised...17:26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that same day.
Isaac shows up later (4 Chapters in Genesis after Ishmael) and he is also part of the covenant.
Genesis 21:4When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him.
Now for the fireworks--some anonymous rabbi tries to pull a fast one and establish a prime piece of Mediterranean real estate for only one segment of the population while disenfranchising all others by making God into something that has the memory of a GNAT and a liar to boot.
Genesis 22:2 Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac (what happened to Ishmael?), whom you love (I wager that Abraham was a good man and loved both his good sons), and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him (if God is not a liar and Abraham was to sacrifice his only son, that would have been Ishmael, because he was an only son before Isaac made the scene) there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about (hmmm, 'I will tell you' later--this literary device is meant to be a cliff hanger?)."
Hebrews 11:17 By faith (not by Truth?) Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, (Restating a lie, does not make it true, just more obvious, see argument above).
Hebrews 11:17 By faith (again, we are to take it on faith because there is no truth to it) Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, (…no matter how often a lie is re-stated can it ever negate the truth?).
God had no reason to disregard or conveniently forget about Ishmael, in fact, He thought highly of him, had no reason to dispossess him of his rights as Abraham's first born son, and we know He had not killed him off before Isaac was born.Genesis 17:20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation
Deuteronomy 6:10 When the LORD your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, (this right here means that it is definitely not Palestine, because Palestine did not have large, flourishing cities that the descendants of Isaac and Jacob did not build, unless the already built-up Palestine is intended for other descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the conveniently forgotten first born Ishmael).
Where do I get the gumption to think that not all of Abraham’s offspring are entitled to this vacation spot and indeed it would include others from elsewhere?
There is evidence throughout the Bible, and Jesus was mistreated for his stand on it, but here it is from another source.
Quran Surah 2
The Calf
2:24 And when his Sustainer tried Abraham by [His] commandments and the latter fulfilled them, He said: "Behold, I shall make thee a leader of men. "Abraham asked: "And of my offspring as well? "[God] answered: "My covenant does not embrace the evildoers. (That’s where)"
2:135 AND THEY say, "Be Jews" - or, "Christians" - "and you shall be on the right path." Say: "No, but [ours is] the creed of Abraham, who turned away from all that is false, and was not of those who ascribe divinity to anything (that includes niggardly (not a racial slur, just another word for stingy beyond reason) clinging to a piece of land) beside God."
6:83 And this was Our case which We entrusted to Abraham against his people: [for] We do raise by degrees whom We will (Suddenly, the 'Chosen ones' aren’t so elite after all, because others can overtake them by merely being raised up a notch). Truly, your Sustainer is Wise, All-Knowing.
2:136 Say: "We believe in God, and in that which has been bestowed from on high upon us, and that which has been bestowed upon Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and ,their descendants, and that which has been vouchsafed to Moses and Jesus; and that which has been vouchsafed to all the [other] prophets by their Sustainer: we make no distinction between any of them (this means no so-called Muslim can deftly execute someone for professing another belief). And it is unto Him that we surrender ourselves."
Even current interpreters of the Quran mistake the clear language of the original text; fortunately, we still have the original text.
3:33 Behold, God raised Adam, and Noah, and the House of Abraham, and the House of `Imran above all mankind, (this makes it sound like some kind of favoritism, when in fact, they were meant to be followed as a good example; linguists can have a field day with this one).
3:65 O Followers of earlier revelation! Why do you argue about Abraham, seeing that the Torah and the Gospel were not revealed until [long] after him? Will you not, then, use your reason?
3:67 Abraham was neither a "Jew" nor a "Christian", but was one who turned away from all that is false, having surrendered himself unto God; and he was not of those who ascribe divinity to anything/or anyone beside Him.
4:54 Do they, perhaps envy other people for what God has granted them out of His bounty? But then, We did grant revelation and wisdom unto the House of Abraham, and We did bestow on them a mighty dominion (not necessarily land, but authority; and it has been established that the House of Abraham is not only comprised of Jews):
2:140 "Do you claim that Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and their descendants were `Jews' or `Christians'?" Say: "Do you know more than God does? And who could be more wicked than he who suppresses a testimony given to him by God? Yet God is not unmindful of what you do.
37:100 [Abraham prayed]: “O my Sustainer! Bestow upon me the gift of [a son] one of the righteous!” 37:101 so We gave him the glad tiding of a boy-child gentle [like himself]?37:102 And [one day,] when [the child] had become old enough to share in his [father’s] endeavours, the latter said: “O my dear son! I have seen in a dream that I should sacrifice thee: consider, then, what would be your view!” [Ishmael] answered: “O my father! Do as thou art bidden: you will find me, if God so wills, among those who are patient in adversity!” 37:103 But as soon as the two had surrendered themselves to [what they thought to be] the will of God, and [Abraham] had laid him down on his face...(the good news is he didn't do it)
7:112 And [in time] We gave him the glad tiding of Isaac, [who, too, would be] a prophet, one of the righteous;
37:113 and We blessed him (Ishmael) and Isaac but among the offspring of these two (clearly referring to both Abraham's sons) there were to be both doers of good and such as would glaringly sin against themselves
The ones glaringly sinning against themselves, no matter how great a stock they think they come from, STINK!(That's why the tall, thin, blonde alien came down smoking--just to cover up the stench) They have been fomenting turf wars, lopping off people's heads, mistreating women and children, torturing, murdering, and marauding, destroying indigenous populations and dispossesing them of their rights and property, misrepresenting Scripture and bending it to their own misguided ends, telling children they are destined for doom and damnation for holding divergent views---that's who they are and that's why the trouble started, and the reason this arcana should be put to rest, so I can finally get some sleep around here!
If you have made it this far in this posting you might be asking yourself--Then who, who is all the good stuff being developed for if not the Jews, the Christians, or the in-name-only-Muslims? The answer was also given to you ALL so many years ago, but your collective arrogance won't let you accept it:
Al-Isra (The Journey by Night)
وَقُلْنَا مِن بَعْدِهِ لِبَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ اسْكُنُواْ الأَرْضَ فَإِذَا جَاء وَعْدُ الآخِرَةِ جِئْنَا بِكُمْ لَفِيفً
17:104 And after that We said to the children of Israel: "Dwell now securely on earth - but when the promise of the Last Day comes to pass, We will bring you forth as a motley (varied, assorted, intermingled, dissimilar, mixed, contrasting, diverse) crowd!
And because they didn't follow sound advice and thought there was some advantage to to somehow getting it all, what did it really get them? A host of inconvenient, usually terminal, genetic diseases found on this planet.
As a postscript I would like to thank the cast of characters who made this possible:
Thank You! God, for not stepping on me when you landed in my kitchen, and for Your Subtle, Eternal Mercy that they perceive East as always East.
Thank you Michael for being a gentleman and your kindness in sending word to me in the hospital--nothing like keeping it Real.
Thank you Raphael for consoling my friend in the park that day; I was merely thinking out loud and didn't think anyone actually heard me, let alone took action; and you can image how floored I was when my friend related his story the following week at work.
Thank you John for doing the best impersonation of my late father ever; nothing like a little levity!
Thank you Gabrielle, just because I know I am not this eloquent especially since I have lost most of my language skills, and anyone who talks to me can make the same evaluation.
Thank you Capt. Alan Bennett for your great directions when East is West; I am grateful for having made your acquaintance prior to you moving on.
Thank you to all my teachers, dedicated and underpaid; the truth is no one can ever pay you enough, but that doesn't mean they should not try.
Husband...You heard me. I can't bring myself to ask any one more thing of you, so I have posted a puzzle to commemorate our last visit.
It does not seem right that here we are in 2009 and the news still reads like that of our ancient ancestors’. It’s kind of like coming out of a coma in 2000 and hearing about 1930’s flappers on a daily basis without any mention that the Cold War had been over for decades or that the current hot button issue is Y2K.
Who's bad burrito dream are we having that Mexican gangsters raid our borders, and people still can say ‘Middle East Crisis’ or ‘Arab Israeli Conflict’ with a straight face? I mean reaalllly--do you mean to tell me that the USA had more secure borders by the end of the Spanish American War than we do with all the money and technology we have going on since then; and that reallly--- the Jews and the Arabs are not yet having each other’s children but enough time has gone by that Israelis and Palestinians are reincarnating as each other because that is the Universal knee-jerk response to such mule-headedness and rightly deserved Justice Served Cold? There are still Holocausts going on? And people starving? Fighting for oil? And pandemics like AIDS? And hoopla about a flu that kills less than 100 people globally because they don’t know not to raise a pig with a chicken? And elitists trying to dispossess have-nots? And even supremisist groups? And griping about who copulates with who-- or what--for all that it matters?
Clearly if these things are still going on they exist for no other reason than because the miscreants promulgating such behaviour think their own farts don’t stink. This post is a brief survey to explain just how this arrogance evolved and why it should have dissolved by now.
First, there is the inequity from a pervasive disrespect for women worldwide. The nasty latest bit of news being recent Saudi legislation using the Quran as reason to slap their women in the face for spending money. Clearly, these simians have no business interpreting the Law if they don't even bother to read it and familiarize themselves with its basic tenets.
If ever a woman deserved a beating it was Job's wife for no other reason than that Job swore to God he was going to strike her for being mean to him during his indisposal and this is about all God allowed him to strike her with to make good on his oath--a couple of blades of grass! And the implication here is that it is not supposed to hurt, and because it is a token gesture it was not to strike on the face or any other place that would be considered an affront! Ideally, this would lead to spanking her on the butt with some grass and that might lead to some great make-up sex.
(The Much Maligned) Holy Quran
Surah 38 SAAD ص
38:44 [And finally We told him (Job):] “Now take in thy hand a small bunch of grass, and strike therewith, and thou wilt not break thine oath!”
Again the emphasis here is that it is not okay to hit a woman, and that you must keep your sworn oath.
So, if Saudi women are seeing fit to go out and spend all the Knee-And-Earth-All's ill deserved gains (a well-deserved moniker for the Saudi men since the recent passage of this 'Slap-A-Saudi-Woman' gaff) by shopping, they are merely doing their part to redistribute power, because that is what spending money is--a transfer of power and under no circumstance should women be mistreated for doing their part to keep the economy moving--I mean what the sand-dune else do the Saudi men need to be spending their money on?
And regarding the blatant disregard for women's rights in the so-called Islamic countries--there is absolutely no call for such behaviour based on Islamic principles-- so STOP! Not just the behaviour, but stop saying you are Muslims and committing such heinous acts in the name of Islam. According to the Quran you have violated every one of its tenets and are not deserving of any association with it. (Note how carefully I tread and avoid passing judgment since all I am doing is drawing a conclusion based on facts--Judgment left up to You).
This is what the Quran has to say about women, men and their equality; and I am not making this stuff up since the text can be traced back over 1400 years word-for-word. There are clear injunctions as to the proper treatment of women (and wives) and the consideration they are due.
Surah 2
The Calf
2:187 (your wives) they are as a garment for you, and you are as a garment for them.
Surah 3
Al-'Imran (Jesus' Family)
3:195 And their Sustainer answers their prayer in this manner: "I shall not lose sight of the labour of any of you who labours [in My way], be it man or woman: each of you is an issue of the other."
So if men and women are each an issue of one from the other, this is not just equality-but parity! And if men and women are like each other's garments, you can tell me the rest.
And this problem is not isolated to that region of the world. Here in the US we have laws espousing women's rights and a fair outward show of equality but the situation on the ground is dire, made all the worse because of the mad pretense.
One woman recounted to me her personal experience with her boss recently. Several years ago he made her the object of his unwanted attentions and since she is a decent woman and knows how to behave she rejected his advances only to find the very next day he had written a very bad note about her in her personnel file which has prevented her from finding work elsewhere and getting out from under his icky sphere of influence. After nearly 5 years she finally succeeds in getting reassigned so that she is at least not working directly under him, only to have her current supervisor appeal to her to take on her past duties in addition to her current ones, promising this would entail a promotion for her.
She concedes to the request, since she is in fact long overdue for a promotion, and once she fulfills her part of the bargain, the promised promotion does not come through. She has to go and appeal to the icky boss since the additional duties are in his area and he was the one who promised the promotion would ensue, only to have him call her a 'nasty word' for bringing up the subject (of a raise).
Granted, there are supposed to be mechanisms in place for her recourse, but she is terrified that her life will become even more of a living hell if she engages the system, since this guy is not just her boss, but the head cheese and she knows no one dare so much as cast a chiding glance his way.
So which is better; a legal slap in the face, or to get surreptitiously screwed and harassed enjoying the right to protections against such behaviour under the Law?
If good people do not trust those in power to faithfully carry out the Law, then what are we if not a Nation of Laws?
When did the problem get so far out of hand? I don't know, but there is an interesting timeline proposed in the Maxie Time diary.
Now, for the make believe problem in the Middle East that's been dogging us for far too long and is historically the root of much undeserved elitist mentation.
The Covenant, Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac:
Abraham was father to both Ishmael and Isaac, and by all true, consistent accounts Ishmael was born first, then later Isaac. Jews say that they are God’s ’chosen people’ because they have been fed a lot of pap about how they are the only people that descended from Abraham since some rabbis played fast and loose with the original Scripture. And then thinking to make a stronger point of it, they say Ishmael doesn’t really count as Abraham’s son because he was born of a handmaid--like, since when does a women’s job determine the father’s paternity?
This type of ‘I am holier than thou by birthright smut’ has stoked a lot of needless suffering in the general human populace in the name of religion, because who wants to be second best?
The root of all this evil is in the Semitic hyperbole of the original verb ‘to pick’ which when applied properly is intended to mean having made a selection, not ‘the only selection.’ For example, someone has many fine cars in their garage and if it is sunny outside they would choose to drive their Porsche convertible and if they were going for a long trip they would opt for the Mercedes CL63 AMG. It’s also akin to a teacher choosing a student to clap her erasers or act as hall monitor for the day—does this simple selection make any one car or student better than the others or the quintessential best-and-only-highly chosen-holier-than-my-mother? No? I didn’t think so.
Yet, this is what drives the modern-day Zionist argument that being ‘God’s chosen people’ somehow should justify a mad land grab in Palestine, not only displacing the indigenous population but also dehumanizing them to such a point as to make the rest of the world think it is okay to exterminate them all because they are squatting on land that God brokered to ‘His chosen people’ and that somehow God signed off on this bad behavior when He made a covenant with Abraham.
Well, let me tell you, mine may be the lone voice in the wilderness about this, but I know there is at least one Rabbi (I think he lives in Brooklyn) who agrees with me. The biggest joke is the inappropriate application of errant scripture that not only leads to thinking that Abraham had only given rise to a Jewish nation but that all the ‘begats’ in the Bible literally mean a direct line of descent (which is why staunch religious people think we’ve only been on Earth for a few thousand years).
In Genesis we get to know what exactly Abraham’s covenant with God is all about.
Genesis 17:10 This is my covenant with you (Abraham) and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. (Please note: Circumcision for males only because they have a penis (something cylindrical that has a circumference; what I'd like to know is which hairy monkey fell from a tree and started circumcising women?)
Abraham wasted no time in implementing this rule.
Genesis 17:23 On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him. (Note: See, no Isaac yet, and Ishmael is Abraham’s first born son and only son at this time. Emphasis here not to set up who is better than who or what came first-- the chicken or the egg--but to establish that Ishmael is Abraham’s first born and entitled to all the rights of the first born, and there is no need for reiteration.)
Genesis 17:24Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised...17:26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that same day.
Isaac shows up later (4 Chapters in Genesis after Ishmael) and he is also part of the covenant.
Genesis 21:4When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him.
Now for the fireworks--some anonymous rabbi tries to pull a fast one and establish a prime piece of Mediterranean real estate for only one segment of the population while disenfranchising all others by making God into something that has the memory of a GNAT and a liar to boot.
Genesis 22:2 Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac (what happened to Ishmael?), whom you love (I wager that Abraham was a good man and loved both his good sons), and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him (if God is not a liar and Abraham was to sacrifice his only son, that would have been Ishmael, because he was an only son before Isaac made the scene) there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about (hmmm, 'I will tell you' later--this literary device is meant to be a cliff hanger?)."
Hebrews 11:17 By faith (not by Truth?) Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, (Restating a lie, does not make it true, just more obvious, see argument above).
Hebrews 11:17 By faith (again, we are to take it on faith because there is no truth to it) Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, (…no matter how often a lie is re-stated can it ever negate the truth?).
God had no reason to disregard or conveniently forget about Ishmael, in fact, He thought highly of him, had no reason to dispossess him of his rights as Abraham's first born son, and we know He had not killed him off before Isaac was born.Genesis 17:20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation
Deuteronomy 6:10 When the LORD your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, (this right here means that it is definitely not Palestine, because Palestine did not have large, flourishing cities that the descendants of Isaac and Jacob did not build, unless the already built-up Palestine is intended for other descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the conveniently forgotten first born Ishmael).
Where do I get the gumption to think that not all of Abraham’s offspring are entitled to this vacation spot and indeed it would include others from elsewhere?
There is evidence throughout the Bible, and Jesus was mistreated for his stand on it, but here it is from another source.
Quran Surah 2
The Calf
2:24 And when his Sustainer tried Abraham by [His] commandments and the latter fulfilled them, He said: "Behold, I shall make thee a leader of men. "Abraham asked: "And of my offspring as well? "[God] answered: "My covenant does not embrace the evildoers. (That’s where)"
2:135 AND THEY say, "Be Jews" - or, "Christians" - "and you shall be on the right path." Say: "No, but [ours is] the creed of Abraham, who turned away from all that is false, and was not of those who ascribe divinity to anything (that includes niggardly (not a racial slur, just another word for stingy beyond reason) clinging to a piece of land) beside God."
6:83 And this was Our case which We entrusted to Abraham against his people: [for] We do raise by degrees whom We will (Suddenly, the 'Chosen ones' aren’t so elite after all, because others can overtake them by merely being raised up a notch). Truly, your Sustainer is Wise, All-Knowing.
2:136 Say: "We believe in God, and in that which has been bestowed from on high upon us, and that which has been bestowed upon Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and ,their descendants, and that which has been vouchsafed to Moses and Jesus; and that which has been vouchsafed to all the [other] prophets by their Sustainer: we make no distinction between any of them (this means no so-called Muslim can deftly execute someone for professing another belief). And it is unto Him that we surrender ourselves."
Even current interpreters of the Quran mistake the clear language of the original text; fortunately, we still have the original text.
3:33 Behold, God raised Adam, and Noah, and the House of Abraham, and the House of `Imran above all mankind, (this makes it sound like some kind of favoritism, when in fact, they were meant to be followed as a good example; linguists can have a field day with this one).
3:65 O Followers of earlier revelation! Why do you argue about Abraham, seeing that the Torah and the Gospel were not revealed until [long] after him? Will you not, then, use your reason?
3:67 Abraham was neither a "Jew" nor a "Christian", but was one who turned away from all that is false, having surrendered himself unto God; and he was not of those who ascribe divinity to anything/or anyone beside Him.
4:54 Do they, perhaps envy other people for what God has granted them out of His bounty? But then, We did grant revelation and wisdom unto the House of Abraham, and We did bestow on them a mighty dominion (not necessarily land, but authority; and it has been established that the House of Abraham is not only comprised of Jews):
2:140 "Do you claim that Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and their descendants were `Jews' or `Christians'?" Say: "Do you know more than God does? And who could be more wicked than he who suppresses a testimony given to him by God? Yet God is not unmindful of what you do.
37:100 [Abraham prayed]: “O my Sustainer! Bestow upon me the gift of [a son] one of the righteous!” 37:101 so We gave him the glad tiding of a boy-child gentle [like himself]?37:102 And [one day,] when [the child] had become old enough to share in his [father’s] endeavours, the latter said: “O my dear son! I have seen in a dream that I should sacrifice thee: consider, then, what would be your view!” [Ishmael] answered: “O my father! Do as thou art bidden: you will find me, if God so wills, among those who are patient in adversity!” 37:103 But as soon as the two had surrendered themselves to [what they thought to be] the will of God, and [Abraham] had laid him down on his face...(the good news is he didn't do it)
7:112 And [in time] We gave him the glad tiding of Isaac, [who, too, would be] a prophet, one of the righteous;
37:113 and We blessed him (Ishmael) and Isaac but among the offspring of these two (clearly referring to both Abraham's sons) there were to be both doers of good and such as would glaringly sin against themselves
The ones glaringly sinning against themselves, no matter how great a stock they think they come from, STINK!(That's why the tall, thin, blonde alien came down smoking--just to cover up the stench) They have been fomenting turf wars, lopping off people's heads, mistreating women and children, torturing, murdering, and marauding, destroying indigenous populations and dispossesing them of their rights and property, misrepresenting Scripture and bending it to their own misguided ends, telling children they are destined for doom and damnation for holding divergent views---that's who they are and that's why the trouble started, and the reason this arcana should be put to rest, so I can finally get some sleep around here!
If you have made it this far in this posting you might be asking yourself--Then who, who is all the good stuff being developed for if not the Jews, the Christians, or the in-name-only-Muslims? The answer was also given to you ALL so many years ago, but your collective arrogance won't let you accept it:
Al-Isra (The Journey by Night)
وَقُلْنَا مِن بَعْدِهِ لِبَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ اسْكُنُواْ الأَرْضَ فَإِذَا جَاء وَعْدُ الآخِرَةِ جِئْنَا بِكُمْ لَفِيفً
17:104 And after that We said to the children of Israel: "Dwell now securely on earth - but when the promise of the Last Day comes to pass, We will bring you forth as a motley (varied, assorted, intermingled, dissimilar, mixed, contrasting, diverse) crowd!
And because they didn't follow sound advice and thought there was some advantage to to somehow getting it all, what did it really get them? A host of inconvenient, usually terminal, genetic diseases found on this planet.
As a postscript I would like to thank the cast of characters who made this possible:
Thank You! God, for not stepping on me when you landed in my kitchen, and for Your Subtle, Eternal Mercy that they perceive East as always East.
Thank you Michael for being a gentleman and your kindness in sending word to me in the hospital--nothing like keeping it Real.
Thank you Raphael for consoling my friend in the park that day; I was merely thinking out loud and didn't think anyone actually heard me, let alone took action; and you can image how floored I was when my friend related his story the following week at work.
Thank you John for doing the best impersonation of my late father ever; nothing like a little levity!
Thank you Gabrielle, just because I know I am not this eloquent especially since I have lost most of my language skills, and anyone who talks to me can make the same evaluation.
Thank you Capt. Alan Bennett for your great directions when East is West; I am grateful for having made your acquaintance prior to you moving on.
Thank you to all my teachers, dedicated and underpaid; the truth is no one can ever pay you enough, but that doesn't mean they should not try.
Husband...You heard me. I can't bring myself to ask any one more thing of you, so I have posted a puzzle to commemorate our last visit.
8.5.09
Angels And Demons Or How To Resurrect the Gospel
Growing up in these United States I was always told there is a separation between Church and State, so it surprises me when public schools are teaching the Bible as Literature, even in a State as progressive as California.
Not that I am opposed to reading the Bible, since I approve of reading anything and everything, even the small print on canned goods in the supermarket. But to make the Bible available to such a large captive audience that has every right to feel justified in holding divergent views which are not necessarily reflected in what has been touted as the Gospel truth; the Bible can no longer escape careful vetting by prying eyes and inquiring minds.
I was recently reminded that I have put off this task long enough since the signs are everywhere that the Truth of The Primary Word has fallen to inequity, transgression, contradiction, and strife (this also applies to how the Torah and the Quran have been wielded of late—posting on that political hot button is forthcoming).
It is not of my own volition that I write, and if you need to know by what authority I can do so, just ask Michael. Who, by the way, I know reads this blog, and I sent word to you that I apologize for not believing you when you said 'something very bad' was going to happen; but please don’t fault me too much for not taking your warning at face value because what in fact did happen was way worse than you intimated. You must also know that it wasn't fair to me because whenever an Angel casually shows up to talk to a woman, that woman gets to have a baby, but in my case I get to have the mother of all headaches!
You gave me a 3 year heads up, but I could not understand why you were telling me—a woman, this; then when it came to pass, I understood that any reasonable man in my place would have not hesitated to shoot his brains out rather than to go through it and the only reason I did not was because I could not find the gun (there was also the consideration of who would clean up the mess); and I read recently that there is actually a shortage of ammunition in the US, which is why I am finally sitting down to write this despite my strongly held position that this really is not my station--but there is no escaping The signal coming through all channels including the evening news and, of all things, license plates. (And, by the way, thank you for your well wishes when I was ‘ill’).
Since Jesus preached the Gospel there have been several notable state-sponsored book burnings in which valuable information was lost; I suppose the one at the Nicene Convention set the stage for this type of behavior in dealing with difficult subjects not in vogue at the time or that may prove troublesome if power was actually democratized.
Not that I am opposed to reading the Bible, since I approve of reading anything and everything, even the small print on canned goods in the supermarket. But to make the Bible available to such a large captive audience that has every right to feel justified in holding divergent views which are not necessarily reflected in what has been touted as the Gospel truth; the Bible can no longer escape careful vetting by prying eyes and inquiring minds.
I was recently reminded that I have put off this task long enough since the signs are everywhere that the Truth of The Primary Word has fallen to inequity, transgression, contradiction, and strife (this also applies to how the Torah and the Quran have been wielded of late—posting on that political hot button is forthcoming).
It is not of my own volition that I write, and if you need to know by what authority I can do so, just ask Michael. Who, by the way, I know reads this blog, and I sent word to you that I apologize for not believing you when you said 'something very bad' was going to happen; but please don’t fault me too much for not taking your warning at face value because what in fact did happen was way worse than you intimated. You must also know that it wasn't fair to me because whenever an Angel casually shows up to talk to a woman, that woman gets to have a baby, but in my case I get to have the mother of all headaches!
You gave me a 3 year heads up, but I could not understand why you were telling me—a woman, this; then when it came to pass, I understood that any reasonable man in my place would have not hesitated to shoot his brains out rather than to go through it and the only reason I did not was because I could not find the gun (there was also the consideration of who would clean up the mess); and I read recently that there is actually a shortage of ammunition in the US, which is why I am finally sitting down to write this despite my strongly held position that this really is not my station--but there is no escaping The signal coming through all channels including the evening news and, of all things, license plates. (And, by the way, thank you for your well wishes when I was ‘ill’).
Since Jesus preached the Gospel there have been several notable state-sponsored book burnings in which valuable information was lost; I suppose the one at the Nicene Convention set the stage for this type of behavior in dealing with difficult subjects not in vogue at the time or that may prove troublesome if power was actually democratized.
Lucky for us, while we cannot recreate every blessed word of his, we can at least lay down a blueprint as to the tone and nature of his language and his mission and leave it to the ‘men in frocks’ to go through their stores of ancient manuscript remnants to provide the rest, exercising the appropriate due diligence and reserve in editing. All of the past editorializing is one issue I have with teaching the Bible as Literature, given that it is now more of an evolving compendium rather than an integrated text (like one would consider a story by Charles Dickens say). But if you are going to ascribe something to the nature of Jesus or put words in his mouth to be repeated all throughout the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District, let’s at least strive for consistency.
And everything that follows here is given with the caveat not to talk smack about his mother Mary, or any other woman in the Bible (now that budding young men and nubile young women have to parse it out); just because the world is in a state where they don’t honor the wombs that bore them does not give anyone the right to project their shortcomings on Mary.
I use the Quran for reference here to check the integrity of one document with another, simply because it is the one I am familiar with. Use whatever else you are comfortable with provided the document is an authentic original source with a known (historically recognized author) written within the first 600 or so years of Jesus’s mission and can stand up to scrutiny and can prove that Jesus said this or Jesus did that and God is such and such; or tell us for what reason we should take the word of an inspired earthling that conflicts with the Message and somehow deserves to trump what either God, Jesus, or any other Prophet had to say on a given subject up to that point:
Quran (interpretation by Asad, contemporizing by me)
Surah 3
The House of ‘Imran (Jesus’ Family)
(3: 47) …God Creates what He wills; He says for it to ‘Be’ and it is
(3:48) (the Angel said to Mary) And He will impart unto your son revelation, and wisdom, and the Torah, and the Gospel (3:49) and make him an apostle unto the children of Israel.
(And Jesus Said) “I have come to you with a message from your Sustainer. I shall create for you out of clay, a 'bird' (الطِّينِ lit. 'that which flies, or is airborne' pronounced 'al-tayer'; i.e. UFO) and then breathe into it, so that it might come to life by God’s leave; and I shall heal the blind and the leper, and bring the dead back to life by God’s leave; and I shall let you know what you may eat and what you should store up in your houses. In this there is indeed a message for you, if you are believers.”
(3:50) “And to confirm the truth of whatever remains of the Torah, and to make lawful to you some of the things that were forbidden to you. And I have come to you with a message from your Sustainer; remain conscious of God, and pay heed unto me. (3:51) Verily, God is my Sustainer and your Sustainer; so worship Him: this is the straight way”.
(3:52) And when Jesus became aware of their refusal to acknowledge the truth, he asked: “Who will be my helpers in God’s cause?” The white-garbed ones (probably Naphtali from the Galilee area) replied: “We shall be helpers in God’s cause. We believe in God; and bear witness that we have surrendered ourselves to Him.”
(3:55) God said: “Jesus, I shall cause you to die and raise (entrust) you to Me, and rid you of those bent on denying the truth: and I shall place those who follow you above those who are bent on denying the truth, until the Day of Resurrection. In the end, you must all return to Me, and I shall judge between you on that which you differed. “(3:56) “And as for those bent on denying the truth, I shall cause them to suffer severely in this world and in the life to come, and they shall have none to comfort them; (3:57) for those who attain to faith and do good works He will grant their reward in full; for God does not love evildoers.”
(3:59) Truly, in God’s sight, the nature of Jesus is as the nature of Adam, whom He created out of dust and then said to him, ‘Be’—and he is…
(3:78) And indeed there are some who distort the Bible with their tongues, so as to make you think (what they say) is from the Bible, the while it is not; and who say, “This is from God,” the while is it not from God: and in so doing they tell a lie about God, being well aware (that it is a lie). (3:79) It is not conceivable that a human being to whom God had granted revelation, and sound judgment, and prophethood, should then have said to people, ‘Worship me beside God’; but rather (he did exhort them) “Become men of God” by spreading the knowledge of the divine writ, and by your own deep understanding of it.(3:80) And neither did he bid you to take the angels and the prophets for your lords; would he bid you to deny the truth after having surrendered yourselves to God?
Surah 4
Women (Al Nisa)
(4:156) …(We punished them) for the awesome calumny which they utter against Mary (4:157 ) and their boast, “Behold we have slain the Christ Jesus, son of Mary, an apostle of God!” However, they did not slay him, and neither did they crucify him, but it only seemed so to them; and in truth, those who hold conflicting views about it are indeed confused, having no real knowledge in this regard, and following mere conjecture. For, of a certainty, they did not slay him: (4:158) God raised (entrusted) him unto Himself—and God is indeed Almighty, Wise (4:159) Yet there is not one of the followers of earlier revelation who does not, at the moment of his death, grasp the truth about Jesus; and on the Day of Resurrection he shall bear witness to the truth against them.
(4:171) Followers of the Gospel! Do not overstep the bounds in your religious beliefs, and do not say anything about God but the truth. The Christ Jesus, son of Mary, was but God’s Apostle—His promise conveyed to Mary—and a soul created by Him. Believe, in God and His apostles, and do not say ‘a trinity’. Desist (from this assertion) for your own benefit. God is but One God; utterly remote is He, in His glory, from having a son; to Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth; and none is worthy of trust as God. (4:172) Never did the Christ feel too proud to be God’s servant, nor do the angels who are near to Him…
Surah 5
The Table (Al Ma-ida)
5:46 And We caused Jesus, the son of Mary, to follow in the footsteps of those (earlier prophets), confirming the truth of whatever still remained of the Torah; and We vouchsafed the Gospel to him, wherein there was guidance and light, confirming the truth of whatever there still remained of the Torah, and as a guidance and warning to the God-conscious (5:47 )Let the followers of the Gospel judge in accordance with what God has revealed therein: they who do not judge in the light of what God has bestowed from on high—it is they, they who are the iniquitous!
The following passage is provided as a talking point Regarding reasons for variance in faith and why you shouldn’t convert everybody to follow the Message from 'a single established location/situation' (i.e., always consider the source):
(5:48) …To every one of you We have appointed a (different) law and way of life. And if God had willed it so, He would have surely made you all one single community; but (your variance) is in order to test you by means of what He has entrusted you. Vie, then , with one another in doing good works! All of you will return to God: and then He will make you truly understand all that you differed in.
(5:72) …the Christ said, “O children of Israel! Worship God, who is your Sustainer and my Sustainer.” (5:73) ...they who deny the truth say, “God is the third of a trinity”—seeing that there is no deity whatever save the One God….(5:74) Will they not, then, turn towards God…for God is much forgiving, a dispenser of grace.” (5:75) The Christ, son of Mary, was but an apostle; all apostles had passed away before him; and his mother was one who never deviated from the truth: and they both ate food (like mortals). How clear We make our messages to them: and then how perverted are their minds!
(5:77) "Followers of the Gospel! Do not overstep your bounds in your religious beliefs; and do not follow the errant views of people who have gone astray, and are still straying from the right path."
(5:110) …God will say: ‘Jesus, son of Mary! Remember the blessings which I bestowed onto you and your mother—how I strengthened you with holy inspiration, so that you could speak to men from your cradle, and as a grown man: and how I imparted to you revelation and wisdom, including the Torah and the Gospel; and how by My leave you did create out of clay a 'bird' (الطِّينِ lit. 'that which flies, or is airborne' pronounced 'al-tayer'; i.e. UFO), and breathe into it, so that it came to life, by My leave; and how you did heal the blind and the leper by My leave, and how you did raise the dead by My leave; and how I prevented the children of Israel from harming you when you came to them with all evidence of the truth, and when those bent on denying the truth were saying, ‘This is clearly nothing but deception!’
(5:111) And when I inspired the white-garbed ones “Believe in Me and in My apostle!” They answered: ’We believe; and (You) bear witness that we have surrendered ourselves to You.’ (5:112) And the white-garbed ones said: 'Jesus, Son of Mary! Could your Sustainer send down to us a tables set from heaven?' (Jesus) answered; ‘Be conscious of God, if you are believers!’ (5:113) They said: ‘We desire to partake of it, so that our hearts might be set fully at rest, and that we might know that you have spoken the truth to us, and that we might be of those who bear witness to it!’
(5:114) Jesus, the son of Mary, said: ‘O God, our Sustainer! Send down to us a repast (table set) from heaven; it shall be an ever-recurring feast for us—for the first and the last of us – and a sign from You. And provide us our sustenance, for You are the best provider. (5:115) God answered: ‘Verily, I (always) do send it down to you: and so, if any of you should henceforth deny (this ) truth, on him will I inflict suffering the like of which I have never (yet) inflicted on anyone in the world!”
(5:116 ) And God said: ‘Jesus, son of Mary! Did you say to men, ‘Worship me and my mother as deities beside God’?” [Jesus] answered: “Limitless in Your Glory are You! It would not have been possible for me to say what I had no right to (say)! Had I said this, You would indeed have known it! You know all that is within me, whereas I know not what is in Your Self. Truly, it is You alone who fully knows all the things that are beyond the reach of a created being’s perception.
(5:117) Nothing did I tell them beyond what You did bid me: ‘Worship God, my Sustainer as well as your Sustainer.’ And I bore witness to what they did as long as I dwelt in their midst; but since You have caused me to die, You alone have been their keeper; for You are witness to everything. (5:118) If You cause them to suffer—in truth, they are Your servants; and if You forgive them—truly, You alone are Almighty, Wise!”
Surah 19 Maryam
K H Y 'Ayn Saad كهيعص
(19:30) [Jesus] he said: "Behold, I am a servant of God. He has vouchsafed unto me revelation and made me a prophet, (19:31) and made me blessed wherever I may be; and He has enjoined upon me prayer and charity as long as I live, (19:32) and [has endowed me with] piety towards my mother; and He has not made me haughty or bereft of grace.
(19:33) "Hence, peace was upon me on the day when I was born, and on the day of my death, and on the day when I shall be raised to life [again]!"
(19:34) such was, in the words of truth, Jesus the son of Mary, about whose nature they so deeply disagree. (19:35) It is not conceivable that God should have taken unto Himself a son: limitless is He in His glory! When He wills a thing to be, He but says unto it "Be" -and it is!
(19:36) And [Jesus said]: "Truly, God is my Sustainer as well as your Sustainer; so worship Him: this is the straight way."
(19:37) And yet, the sects are at variance among themselves [about the nature of Jesus] Woe, then, unto all who deny the truth when that awesome Day will appear!
Surah 43
Gold Ornaments (Zukhruf)
(43:59) [Jesus,] he was nothing but a servant whom We had graced, and whom We made an example for the children of Israel .
(43:60) And had We so willed, We could indeed have made you into angels succeeding one another on earth!
(43:61) and he is indeed a sign to know the Last Hour; so, have no doubt about it, but follow Me: this is the straight way.