The Journal of Theo

Can We Permanently Heal the Body? Everyone has experienced the loss of function of some part of the body. Whether through injury or disease, no one yet has experienced a completely perfect organism that continues to improve rather than degrade. Everyone has also asked, even if it was only once, why does this happen? They may not ask their parents, but their inner voice will project a query out into the universe. And we've all asked a related question. Can I be healed? If I am healed, who will do it? Is it through my own force of will? Through constant, repetitious adherence to a healthcare regimen? Perhaps through affirmations I tell myself regularly, I can train my mind. Perhaps, a spiritual guru will use their healing powers to grant me my wish. What about God? Could he heal me? Perhaps not God, but Jesus. In the Bible it says that Jesus healed the sick and the infirm. But he also said, after healing some people, "thy faith hath made thee whole." So is it our own faith ...

I feel like going out on a limb this morning. I want to talk about the sticky issue of race, specifically how people are treated. But it may not be how you think. There are certain protected classes in the United States. Jews, Blacks, and Hispanics come to mind primarily. We are not supposed to mention anything wrong with these groups. Doing so is tantamount to racism, and being labeled a racist may result in you being ostracized and your job being put into question. Here are two examples of what I mean. In the first case, you have the word "nigger." In the current climate, you are not allowed to say that word unless you happen to be black, or you have enough "street cred" or association with blacks. Even then, you can only use the word in the right group of people and you need to cut through a lot of unspoken red tape. Somehow the use of that word makes you racist, even if you don't mean to malign or pull anyone down. If you are not black, even using the word t...

When I came to Chicago, I thought that my move to this place represented that I was very interested in going after my dreams to make a film about a young man’s relationship with God. I then noticed that, even with plenty of resources at my disposal like the library, the Poetry Foundation, and using paper and pen, I still would not, after a year of homelessness, take the time out to write the script for my film. I then decided to go for a hail Mary. Once I found my own place, I would get a computer and type away the script in the serenity of my apartment where I would not be distracted. But once I found a place, I dallied for several months. Even when I had the money to get it, I waited, and chose not to, instead using my funds on other things I felt were more important. Then I finally got a computer but became frustrated because I was not able to use Google Docs on it offline and I didn’t have a connection to the internet. And I didn’t want to get a connection to the internet, not only...

When I use the word "authorities," I do mean that. There are people who we have appointed the role of handling and dealing with certain problems we have as a society. Although many love to talk about the failings of the authorities, I will not join them - at least not here. Let God be their judge. I have often wondered the best way to talk about my issues with pedophilia. It is a sin with a great deal of emotional charge. I rely now on the words of Jesus who gave his opinion on the best course of action in a list with the top being the best: 1. Address the underlying reasons you committed the crime and admit the crime to the authorities 2. Address the underlying reasons without admitting the crime to the authorities 3. If you don't address the underlying reasons, at least admit the crime to the authorities 4. Do nothing I have tried in vain to develop a desire to work through the issues surrounding my desire for prepubescent girls. Therefore, at this juncture, I would lik...

A German by the name of Arnold Ehret learned the power fasting and using vegan, whole foods when he healed from a life-threatening ailment. He went on to develop the Mucusless Diet. Mucus, pus, and yeast develop in the body when we feed on excess starch, sugar, and oil. This diet aims to prevent the formation of such problematic compounds. One interesting tidbit I learned from Ehret was how the lungs are the pump for the body. Most people think it's the heart. But when you consider how important breathing is, how the lungs are connected to the heart, and how the air pressure can be used to push blood through our cardiovascular system, it starts to make sense. Notice your breathing through the day. Notice the moments you stop breathing. What happened to make you do that? How are you feeling? We need to breathe and breathe well in order to feed our body with oxygen and feel through emotions of fear.

What is the potential of a child? In one of Jesus' talks (linked below), he shares how responsible he was from an early age. I always marvel at it and begin to wonder how children can be properly raised if we stopped... - doing everything for them - taking care of them in some way when we can educate them on how to do it themselves - watching them like hawks - pulling them down when they make mistakes Instead, we can... - encourage them to take initiative - facilitate their unique God-given desires - teach them that God is their real Parent and will always be there for them - show them that a mistake is just an opportunity to learn When Jesus was 5, he had three different jobs. When he was 12, he was making as much money as his father. In other videos, he also talked about how he cleaned up after himself, did his own laundry, and cooked for himself. The testimony I am referring to begins at 31:05 in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiqhWceVDOQ&t=1881s

This is the second of 3 speeches given to members of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Fargo-Moorhead. Marriage in the Unification Church One fine evening in the fall, my dad was driving me in silence back to my private high school. I sought to break the stillness of the long ride with a single question that might spark interesting conversation. Under the glow of the setting sun, with ribbons of highway stretched before us, and lush autumnal colors drifting past, I asked my father, "Dad, when will I start growing hair on my face?" His answer was so deliberate, strange, and surprising, there could be no response from a boy of 13: "When your dick stands up at night." After my initial shock dissipated, fury began to well up in me. I sat beside him raging inwardly with a thousand unutterable, unfathomable, unreasonable rebukes. Further back still, in early middle school, I brought a couple of words to my mother that needed explanation. You see the kids in school we...