Lyrics:
Maybe I’ve been the problem
Maybe I’m the one to blame
But even when I turn it off and blame myself the outcome feels the same
I’ve been thinking maybe I’ve been partly cloudy
Maybe I’m the chance of rain
And maybe I’m overcast
And maybe all my luck’s washed down the drain
I’ve been thinking about everyone
Everyone you look so lonely
But when I look at the stars
When I look at the stars
When I look at the stars
I see someone else
When I look at the stars
The stars
I feel like myself
Stars looking at a planet watching entropy and pain
And maybe start to wonder how the chaos in our lives could pass as sane
I’ve been thinking about the meaning of resistance
Of a hope beyond my own
And suddenly the infinite and penitent begin to look like home
I’ve been thinking about everyone
Everyone you look so empty
Everyone, everyone, we feel so lonely
Everyone, everyone, we feel so empty
When I look at the stars I feel like myself
When I look at the stars I see someone
Thursday, January 31, 2008
1st February 2008
Eek! It was only now that I noticed that for a lot of my previous posts, I labeled their year as 2007! Yes, I know that if I add a suffix of st/nd/rd/th behind the date, I must include and of, to make it something like 1st of February. But damn it, I'm not cut out for this. XD
Switchfoot paid a visit to Temasek Junior College before their performance at Max Pavilion, where I was. Aww, how I wish I was there.
I went for the Switchfoot Live in Singapore Concert yesterday! Me, Jony, Yuan and Yuan's friend, Julian. Switchfoot's first album was The Legend of Chin, because at first the band was called Chin Up, after a friend called Willis Chin. This also follows Isaiah 6, where we first look up to God, before looking inside and then outside ourselves.
Then Jony kept on rubbing his chin when I told him that. Hilarious.
Damn, you can already go to youtube, search for Switchfoot Singapore, and videos are already uploaded. The entrance said no video and audio recording, but at least 10% of the crowd took out their mobile phones as soon as Switchfoot started their first song.
It was a bit of a screw up. We reached at 6+, waited until 8 to gain entry. As expected, the concert started half an hour late. We had to listen to two local bands, whose names I didn't even bother remembering. Sitting through 7 agonizing songs for one hour. Woah, they planned to play EIGHT songs! Luckily the second band canceled one. Too bad, both bands couldn't move almost the entire audience to move and sing along. They were quite talented, but most of us never heard of them, wanted to see Switchfoot and they played an overwhelming of songs. After the first band finally dismissed themselves off, and the host announced that a second local band will be coming, I could feel the tension rise.
It was also yesterday night that the phrase "My granny can scrap better than that" was redefined. When the second band was playing, a lady seated a few rows from us around her fifties took out her earpieces when the second local band performed and listened to her mp3/Walkman/whatever. Either that or she covered her ears with them.
She:
1. Was there ALONE for a concert.
2. Was there for a ROCK concert at a rather awkward age.
3. Was there for a $70/$80 concert.
4. Was using her earpieces even though the cacophony from the band was overwhelming enough to drown out all other sound.
5. Was sitting at one corner, staring at the floor, even though everyone else (including me) was foolish enough to at least show our faces to the band.
6. Kept the earpieces only after that band excused themselves from the stage.
7. PWNed.
Hidden Text. Oh man, the starting was garbage. You may be like; "Come on, it's the first time you heard them, be easy on them" but no, it sucks ass from a straw. Okay, maybe that was a little bit too tough.
Then came Switchfoot. Compare the reactions of the crowd as soon as they came in to that of when the local bands were trying their best to stir up the crowd, and the verdict is obvious.
They played sixteen songs, excluding a Switchfoot version of Beyonce's Crazy In Love, of which an excerpt was used in conjunction to with Gone to form a medley. They are:
1. Oh! Gravity
2. Stars
3. This Is Your Life
4. We Are One Tonight
5. The Shadow Proves The Sunshine
6. Ammunition
7. Only Hope
8. Gone
9. On Fire
10. Dirty Second Hands
11. American Dream
12. Learning To Breathe
13. Awakening
14. Meant to Live
15. Twenty-Four
16. Dare You to Move
(I tried to recall the order as best as I can. They would most probably be quite a big number of mistakes around the middle.)
I remember the way they started their concert. They played some riffs, played the starting part of Meant to Live, made the crowd crazy, then immediately shifted to Oh! Gravity. Yuan was the first to identify that song; my was he fast. After that song finished, they played more riffs and proceeded to present the famous intro of Stars. I doubt the crowd could have went even more crazy then that. Yuan was grinning out his tooth, for God sakes. We Are One Tonight and The Shadow Proves The Sunshine were a medley. Awakening was killer. If only Yap Ning was there, then I would go, "Hey! Awake-Ning!"
There was one part where Jonathan Foreman's cable broke. Maybe he was rocking too hard. Anyway, he borrowed Phil's guitar instead. Andrew Philip Shirley is a guitarist and the newest member of the rock band Switchfoot. Shirley attended California Baptist University studying a Fine Arts degree with a Music minor. During that time he also started and led the Chapel Worship Team and the Thursday Night Live Bible Study. He had only started playing guitar as a senior in Highschool. After graduating from college, he also began working with Youth for Christ as the Riverside area Campus Life director.
So many things wowed me that night, I can't post them all! Towards the end of American Dream, before the last two lines of the final bridge (But that ain't my America, that ain't my American Dream), the band suddenly stopped and stoned there. Oh my Word, the bassist Tim was leaning back at quite an uncomfortable angle. Once again the crowd went wild and started chanting "Switchfoot, Switchfoot". I'm not sure just exactly how long they stoned there, but it must have been a minute at least. When The four of us were rather amazed by that idea. Jony proposed we do that during worship leading next time!
Yesterday was a dream come true, but it was also an awakening. When I heard twenty-four, one of my favorite live from the writer's own mouth, there were so many things I realized. All this while I have been more or less idolizing Switchfoot, and it was then that I knew what folly it was. The glory goes to God. They appeal to a wide audience when they play, but the lyrics, the soul of their music is dedicated to the Father. They cry out to God for forgiveness and grace, not to the audience for fame and glory. When Jon reached the first line of the bridge (I'm not copping out), he choked and delayed that part, and sang the second line (not copping out) with added determination.
The band and I, we are worlds apart, yet I feel we are so near. The way they profess their faith and reach out to souls is one that God will not ignore. Their songs sing of the things we face in our walk with God; not just the joys of salvation. Even Billy Graham once went up the mountains alone to think through whether or not his faith is real. The song 4:12 sings about how he doubted and thought the world was merely material, and how he realized that "souls aren't built of stones, sticks and bones". Dirty Second Hands talks about how we create our own enemy, how envy and lust causes us to fail, but the next song on the album, Awakening is on how grace abounds to cover our sin, and that we're awakening to fulfill what God wants us sinners to do. I think Yuan likes Stars because he also cogitates on the same theme as Jonathan Foreman when he wrote that song. He told me that if the stars had a choice, it would never shine its' light on this fallen world.
It's as though through faith, Jon is speaking to Yuan and saying, "Yuan, this one is for you."
Stars looking at a planet, watching entropy and pain
And maybe start to wonder
How the chaos in our lives could pass as sane
I've been thinking about the meaning of resistance
Of a hope beyond my own
And suddenly the infinite and penitent begin to look like home
I've been thinking about everyone, everyone you look so empty
But what is classic is how Jonathan leaves a hint at the end, "When I look at the stars I see someone" Where this "grace or love or anti-entropy" does not hide His face from this fallen world, and continues to shine for humanity.
Behind the Song:
"Here's another song that we've been playing live for a while. Maybe it's the Led Zeppelin side of me but I love a good rock riff and this one is really fun to play. It's a good builder that I'm anxious to play this summer. Speaking of summer, I have a theory about social entropy; if you and I ever end up talking about existence drinking caffeinated beverages in the wee hours remind me to tell you all about it. For now let's just say that in a world of pain and war and divorce and greed and genocide, how does anything good ever happen? I understand the second law of thermodynamics in the physical world to be something like this: "Any system which is free of external influences becomes more and more disordered with time. This disorder can be expressed in terms of the quantity called entropy." So without some sort of external influence on the social plane, I find no logical reason why humankind didn't see her last day a long time ago. Call it grace or love or anti-entropy- there must be something keeping things together. The question becomes, why do good things happen to bad people? In the song, the first verse looks at things from Descartes perspective, pinning the center of the universe on the individual. "Maybe I've been the problem," maybe I'm overcast, falling apart, etc... The second verse talks about our world from the perspective of the stars looking down on earth from the eternal dance of gravity and motion. I love the night sky. It reminds me of how small and insignificant me and my problems are in light of the infinite. When I look at the stars i feel like myself.” – Jon Foreman (Switchfoot)
God Bless Switchfoot, God Bless this world, God Bless YOU!
Switchfoot paid a visit to Temasek Junior College before their performance at Max Pavilion, where I was. Aww, how I wish I was there.
I went for the Switchfoot Live in Singapore Concert yesterday! Me, Jony, Yuan and Yuan's friend, Julian. Switchfoot's first album was The Legend of Chin, because at first the band was called Chin Up, after a friend called Willis Chin. This also follows Isaiah 6, where we first look up to God, before looking inside and then outside ourselves.
"We called our album Legend of Chin out of respect for our friend back in San Diego," says drummer Chad Butler. "He's such a great guy. A real smiler, too. The kind of guy who always has his chin up!" (Pun intended.)
"Willis is definitely one of our heroes," says guitarist-songwriter Jon Foreman. "He's so real and so consistent in living out his faith. He's no fake. And that's what we hope our album is all about—about being real, no matter what the situation or circumstance."
"And we are trying to show people where true hope is found," says bassist Tim Foreman. "And Willis knows exactly where his hope is found."
"Then there's our song, 'Ode to Chin,'" says Chad. "It's a tribute to Willis. It's about being accountable to someone like Willis. ... This song is also about keeping your eyes on the Lord."
Chin also plays in a band called Movement Oust, and you can sometimes find him leading worship at Calvary Chapel North Coast in San Diego, CA.
Damn, you can already go to youtube, search for Switchfoot Singapore, and videos are already uploaded. The entrance said no video and audio recording, but at least 10% of the crowd took out their mobile phones as soon as Switchfoot started their first song.
It was a bit of a screw up. We reached at 6+, waited until 8 to gain entry. As expected, the concert started half an hour late. We had to listen to two local bands, whose names I didn't even bother remembering. Sitting through 7 agonizing songs for one hour. Woah, they planned to play EIGHT songs! Luckily the second band canceled one. Too bad, both bands couldn't move almost the entire audience to move and sing along. They were quite talented, but most of us never heard of them, wanted to see Switchfoot and they played an overwhelming of songs. After the first band finally dismissed themselves off, and the host announced that a second local band will be coming, I could feel the tension rise.
It was also yesterday night that the phrase "My granny can scrap better than that" was redefined. When the second band was playing, a lady seated a few rows from us around her fifties took out her earpieces when the second local band performed and listened to her mp3/Walkman/whatever. Either that or she covered her ears with them.
She:
1. Was there ALONE for a concert.
2. Was there for a ROCK concert at a rather awkward age.
3. Was there for a $70/$80 concert.
4. Was using her earpieces even though the cacophony from the band was overwhelming enough to drown out all other sound.
5. Was sitting at one corner, staring at the floor, even though everyone else (including me) was foolish enough to at least show our faces to the band.
6. Kept the earpieces only after that band excused themselves from the stage.
7. PWNed.
Hidden Text. Oh man, the starting was garbage. You may be like; "Come on, it's the first time you heard them, be easy on them" but no, it sucks ass from a straw. Okay, maybe that was a little bit too tough.
Then came Switchfoot. Compare the reactions of the crowd as soon as they came in to that of when the local bands were trying their best to stir up the crowd, and the verdict is obvious.
They played sixteen songs, excluding a Switchfoot version of Beyonce's Crazy In Love, of which an excerpt was used in conjunction to with Gone to form a medley. They are:
1. Oh! Gravity
2. Stars
3. This Is Your Life
4. We Are One Tonight
5. The Shadow Proves The Sunshine
6. Ammunition
7. Only Hope
8. Gone
9. On Fire
10. Dirty Second Hands
11. American Dream
12. Learning To Breathe
13. Awakening
14. Meant to Live
15. Twenty-Four
16. Dare You to Move
(I tried to recall the order as best as I can. They would most probably be quite a big number of mistakes around the middle.)
I remember the way they started their concert. They played some riffs, played the starting part of Meant to Live, made the crowd crazy, then immediately shifted to Oh! Gravity. Yuan was the first to identify that song; my was he fast. After that song finished, they played more riffs and proceeded to present the famous intro of Stars. I doubt the crowd could have went even more crazy then that. Yuan was grinning out his tooth, for God sakes. We Are One Tonight and The Shadow Proves The Sunshine were a medley. Awakening was killer. If only Yap Ning was there, then I would go, "Hey! Awake-Ning!"
There was one part where Jonathan Foreman's cable broke. Maybe he was rocking too hard. Anyway, he borrowed Phil's guitar instead. Andrew Philip Shirley is a guitarist and the newest member of the rock band Switchfoot. Shirley attended California Baptist University studying a Fine Arts degree with a Music minor. During that time he also started and led the Chapel Worship Team and the Thursday Night Live Bible Study. He had only started playing guitar as a senior in Highschool. After graduating from college, he also began working with Youth for Christ as the Riverside area Campus Life director.
So many things wowed me that night, I can't post them all! Towards the end of American Dream, before the last two lines of the final bridge (But that ain't my America, that ain't my American Dream), the band suddenly stopped and stoned there. Oh my Word, the bassist Tim was leaning back at quite an uncomfortable angle. Once again the crowd went wild and started chanting "Switchfoot, Switchfoot". I'm not sure just exactly how long they stoned there, but it must have been a minute at least. When The four of us were rather amazed by that idea. Jony proposed we do that during worship leading next time!
Yesterday was a dream come true, but it was also an awakening. When I heard twenty-four, one of my favorite live from the writer's own mouth, there were so many things I realized. All this while I have been more or less idolizing Switchfoot, and it was then that I knew what folly it was. The glory goes to God. They appeal to a wide audience when they play, but the lyrics, the soul of their music is dedicated to the Father. They cry out to God for forgiveness and grace, not to the audience for fame and glory. When Jon reached the first line of the bridge (I'm not copping out), he choked and delayed that part, and sang the second line (not copping out) with added determination.
The band and I, we are worlds apart, yet I feel we are so near. The way they profess their faith and reach out to souls is one that God will not ignore. Their songs sing of the things we face in our walk with God; not just the joys of salvation. Even Billy Graham once went up the mountains alone to think through whether or not his faith is real. The song 4:12 sings about how he doubted and thought the world was merely material, and how he realized that "souls aren't built of stones, sticks and bones". Dirty Second Hands talks about how we create our own enemy, how envy and lust causes us to fail, but the next song on the album, Awakening is on how grace abounds to cover our sin, and that we're awakening to fulfill what God wants us sinners to do. I think Yuan likes Stars because he also cogitates on the same theme as Jonathan Foreman when he wrote that song. He told me that if the stars had a choice, it would never shine its' light on this fallen world.
It's as though through faith, Jon is speaking to Yuan and saying, "Yuan, this one is for you."
Stars looking at a planet, watching entropy and pain
And maybe start to wonder
How the chaos in our lives could pass as sane
I've been thinking about the meaning of resistance
Of a hope beyond my own
And suddenly the infinite and penitent begin to look like home
I've been thinking about everyone, everyone you look so empty
But what is classic is how Jonathan leaves a hint at the end, "When I look at the stars I see someone" Where this "grace or love or anti-entropy" does not hide His face from this fallen world, and continues to shine for humanity.
Behind the Song:
"Here's another song that we've been playing live for a while. Maybe it's the Led Zeppelin side of me but I love a good rock riff and this one is really fun to play. It's a good builder that I'm anxious to play this summer. Speaking of summer, I have a theory about social entropy; if you and I ever end up talking about existence drinking caffeinated beverages in the wee hours remind me to tell you all about it. For now let's just say that in a world of pain and war and divorce and greed and genocide, how does anything good ever happen? I understand the second law of thermodynamics in the physical world to be something like this: "Any system which is free of external influences becomes more and more disordered with time. This disorder can be expressed in terms of the quantity called entropy." So without some sort of external influence on the social plane, I find no logical reason why humankind didn't see her last day a long time ago. Call it grace or love or anti-entropy- there must be something keeping things together. The question becomes, why do good things happen to bad people? In the song, the first verse looks at things from Descartes perspective, pinning the center of the universe on the individual. "Maybe I've been the problem," maybe I'm overcast, falling apart, etc... The second verse talks about our world from the perspective of the stars looking down on earth from the eternal dance of gravity and motion. I love the night sky. It reminds me of how small and insignificant me and my problems are in light of the infinite. When I look at the stars i feel like myself.” – Jon Foreman (Switchfoot)
God Bless Switchfoot, God Bless this world, God Bless YOU!
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
30th January 2008
And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him.
And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, "Do you see anything?"
And he looked up and said, "I see men, but they look like trees, walking."
Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.
Mark 8:22-25
Everything clearly - Could see their form and features. His sight was completely restored. Though our Lord did not by this, probably, “intend” to teach any lesson in regard to the way in which the mind of a sinner is enlightened, yet it affords a striking illustration of it. Sinners are by nature blind. The effect of religion, or of the influence of the Holy Spirit, is to open the eyes, to show the sinner his condition and his danger, and to lead him to “look” on him as a Saviour. Yet at first he sees indistinctly. He does not soon learn to distinguish objects. When converted he is in a new world. Light is shed on every object, and he sees the Scriptures, the Saviour, and the works of creation, the sun, the stars, the hills, the vales, in a new light. He sees the beauty of the plan of salvation, and wonders that he has not seen it before. Yet he sees at first indistinctly. It is only by repeated applications to the Source of light that he sees all things clearly. At first religion appears full of mysteries. Doctrines and facts are brought before his mind that he cannot fully comprehend. He is still perplexed, and he may doubt whether he has ever seen anything aright, or has been ever renewed. Yet let him not despair. Light, in due time, will be shed on these obscure and mysterious truths. Faithful and repeated application to the Father of lights in prayer, and in searching the Scriptures, and in the ordinances of religion, will dissipate these doubts, and he will see all things clearly, and the universe will appear to be filled with one broad flood of light.
And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, "Do you see anything?"
And he looked up and said, "I see men, but they look like trees, walking."
Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.
Mark 8:22-25
Everything clearly - Could see their form and features. His sight was completely restored. Though our Lord did not by this, probably, “intend” to teach any lesson in regard to the way in which the mind of a sinner is enlightened, yet it affords a striking illustration of it. Sinners are by nature blind. The effect of religion, or of the influence of the Holy Spirit, is to open the eyes, to show the sinner his condition and his danger, and to lead him to “look” on him as a Saviour. Yet at first he sees indistinctly. He does not soon learn to distinguish objects. When converted he is in a new world. Light is shed on every object, and he sees the Scriptures, the Saviour, and the works of creation, the sun, the stars, the hills, the vales, in a new light. He sees the beauty of the plan of salvation, and wonders that he has not seen it before. Yet he sees at first indistinctly. It is only by repeated applications to the Source of light that he sees all things clearly. At first religion appears full of mysteries. Doctrines and facts are brought before his mind that he cannot fully comprehend. He is still perplexed, and he may doubt whether he has ever seen anything aright, or has been ever renewed. Yet let him not despair. Light, in due time, will be shed on these obscure and mysterious truths. Faithful and repeated application to the Father of lights in prayer, and in searching the Scriptures, and in the ordinances of religion, will dissipate these doubts, and he will see all things clearly, and the universe will appear to be filled with one broad flood of light.
29th January 2008
Wow. Heard Cloverfield was bad, but watched The Mist. Awesome. Many lessons to learn. See it to find out yourself; sorry, no spoilers. ^^
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Friday, January 11, 2008
11th January 2008
Spiritual highs; they feel rather exhilarating. Problem is, God does promise a life full of such experiences. It is not the articulus stantis et cadentis ecclesiae. However due to it's experiential nature, it becomes rather addictive as such. Must guard against it. Lest we find other times in our life too unfulfillable and depressing...
Monday, January 7, 2008
07th January
Funny. First time I prayed the sinner's prayer with a non-believer. It feels good, yet so strange. I always think I could have done better, that I could have some how used better words. I had no draft in front of me to guide me, and it was done in the school canteen, of all places.
I want to believe that the angels in heaven all rejoiced today. Yet, apparently he came from a missionary secondary school, and had prayed the prayer twice before. He said that this time felt different, but I fear that it is merely a temporary high.
He fears his parents will prosecute him if he goes to church, and thus feels it's not ready to take the first step.
Bottom line; so many nights I prayed for him and others, God is answering them. All the more I should continue to pray for him and the others! All glory be to God, He reigns victorious.
I want to believe that the angels in heaven all rejoiced today. Yet, apparently he came from a missionary secondary school, and had prayed the prayer twice before. He said that this time felt different, but I fear that it is merely a temporary high.
He fears his parents will prosecute him if he goes to church, and thus feels it's not ready to take the first step.
Bottom line; so many nights I prayed for him and others, God is answering them. All the more I should continue to pray for him and the others! All glory be to God, He reigns victorious.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
6th January 2008
An interesting conversation I had today. Names have been changed to protect their identities. Emoticons have been bracketed to their original words.
John says:
hi
John just sent you a nudge.
John says:
(What) are u (d) oing
John says:
where MARYDOE (?)
Shining Blade says:
oh hi
Shining Blade says:
i was having a bath.
Shining Blade says:
(-.-)
Shining Blade says:
erm she's still shopping
Shining Blade says:
anything i can do to help (?)
Shining Blade says:
i can send her a message to hurry up
John says:
where mARY doe(?)
Shining Blade says:
erm she's still shopping
Shining Blade says:
anything i can do to help
Shining Blade says:
i can send her a message to hurry up
Shining Blade says:
(haha)
Shining Blade says:
just kidding, am repeating myself
John says:
uppp
Shining Blade says:
(?)
John says:
marY DOE WHERE oline
Shining Blade says:
erm i said that she's still shopping
John says:
(ok)
Shining Blade says:
a group of us went shopping
John says:
upppppp
John says:
(....)
Shining Blade says:
u need me to pass a message (?)
Shining Blade says:
(the)n (the) guys left home earlier
John says:
where are u (?)
Shining Blade says:
i'm at home
John says:
hou(s)e(?)
John says:
home(?)
Shining Blade says:
girls still shopping in a shopping centre
Shining Blade says:
yes, i'm at home.
John says:
te(ll) (s)he oline
Shining Blade says:
erm she's not at home
John says:
TELL SHE OLINE
Shining Blade says:
u got something urgent to tell her(?)
John says:
(ok)
John says:
oline
Shining Blade says:
(?)
John says:
online
Shining Blade says:
oh
Shining Blade says:
she's not at home now, will give her a message to go online asap
John says:
TELL MARY DOE ONLINE (OK)
Shining Blade says:
no prob
John says:
(haiz)
John says:
PLEASE
John says:
(ok)
Shining Blade says:
yes, but she's not at her house, she's out shopping.
John says:
upppp
John says:
(s)he come to home
John says:
teLL (HI)M OPEN COMPUTER online
John says:
(ok)
John is inviting you to start sending webcam. Do you want to Accept (Alt+C) or Decline (Alt+D) the invitation?
John has canceled the invitation to start sending webcam.
John says:
(ok)
John just sent you a nudge.
John says:
(lol)
Shining Blade says:
whoops sorry was sending an sms to mary
John says:
(ok)
John says:
(haiz)
John says:
i go to (s) hopping (bye)
John says:
hi
John just sent you a nudge.
John says:
(What) are u (d) oing
John says:
where MARYDOE (?)
Shining Blade says:
oh hi
Shining Blade says:
i was having a bath.
Shining Blade says:
(-.-)
Shining Blade says:
erm she's still shopping
Shining Blade says:
anything i can do to help (?)
Shining Blade says:
i can send her a message to hurry up
John says:
where mARY doe(?)
Shining Blade says:
erm she's still shopping
Shining Blade says:
anything i can do to help
Shining Blade says:
i can send her a message to hurry up
Shining Blade says:
(haha)
Shining Blade says:
just kidding, am repeating myself
John says:
uppp
Shining Blade says:
(?)
John says:
marY DOE WHERE oline
Shining Blade says:
erm i said that she's still shopping
John says:
(ok)
Shining Blade says:
a group of us went shopping
John says:
upppppp
John says:
(....)
Shining Blade says:
u need me to pass a message (?)
Shining Blade says:
(the)n (the) guys left home earlier
John says:
where are u (?)
Shining Blade says:
i'm at home
John says:
hou(s)e(?)
John says:
home(?)
Shining Blade says:
girls still shopping in a shopping centre
Shining Blade says:
yes, i'm at home.
John says:
te(ll) (s)he oline
Shining Blade says:
erm she's not at home
John says:
TELL SHE OLINE
Shining Blade says:
u got something urgent to tell her(?)
John says:
(ok)
John says:
oline
Shining Blade says:
(?)
John says:
online
Shining Blade says:
oh
Shining Blade says:
she's not at home now, will give her a message to go online asap
John says:
TELL MARY DOE ONLINE (OK)
Shining Blade says:
no prob
John says:
(haiz)
John says:
PLEASE
John says:
(ok)
Shining Blade says:
yes, but she's not at her house, she's out shopping.
John says:
upppp
John says:
(s)he come to home
John says:
teLL (HI)M OPEN COMPUTER online
John says:
(ok)
John is inviting you to start sending webcam. Do you want to Accept (Alt+C) or Decline (Alt+D) the invitation?
John has canceled the invitation to start sending webcam.
John says:
(ok)
John just sent you a nudge.
John says:
(lol)
Shining Blade says:
whoops sorry was sending an sms to mary
John says:
(ok)
John says:
(haiz)
John says:
i go to (s) hopping (bye)
Friday, January 4, 2008
Was Jesus' Death a Sham and His Ressurection a Hoax?
The following is a rather long but meaningful essay that deals with the death of Jesus Christ. His resurrection would be covered in a later posting. I used an interview that Lee Strobel, interviewed Alexander Metherell in the book The Case for Christ (Authored by Strobel).
Metherell has a medical degree from the University of Miami in Florida, doctorate in engineering from the University of Bristol in England. He is board certified in diagnosis by the American Board of Radiology and has been a consultant to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health of Bethesda, Maryland.
The swoon theory, that says Jesus' reappearance was not a miraculous resurrection but merely a fortuitous resuscitation, and his tomb was empty because he continued to live.
Maybe Pontius Pilate was bribed to allow Jesus to be taken down from the cross before he was dead. Maybe he survived the entire ordeal, or entered a trance-like fake death. Or perhaps he was drugged to appear dead, and then revived by the cool damp air of the tomb. Could the Roman guards have been incompetent in ensuring his death and took him down accidentally alive?
Before Jesus could be resurrected, he must be dead first, that's common sense. So what exactly happened when he was crucified and could he have survived some way or another, only to rise up from the grave and make everyone think he was resurrected?
Lee Strobel's(M.D.) interview with Alexander Metherell(M.D., PH.D.), as adapted from The Case for Christ.
Jesus went with his disciples after the Last Supper to the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane. There, he prayed all night. Anticipating the coming events of the next day, he knew the amount of suffering he had to endure, and would naturally be experiencing a great deal of psychological stress. (As written in Luke 22:42-44, he prayed "'Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.' And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.")
There is a medical condition known as hematidrosis(Can be found in wikipedia). It is a very rare condition that is associated with a high degree of psychological stress. Severe anxiety causes the release of chemicals that break down the capillaries in the sweat glands. Thus, there's a small amount of bleeding into the glands, and the sweat comes out tinged with blood. We're not talking about a lot of blood; it's just a very, very small amount. What it also does is to cause the skin to be extremely fragile so that when Jesus was flogged by the Roman soldier the next day, his skin would be very, very sensitive.
Roman floggings were known to be terribly fatal. They usually consisted of thirty-nine lashes but frequently were a lot more than that, depending on the mood of the soldier applying the blows.
The soldier would use a whip of braided leather thongs with metal balls woven into them. When the whip would strike the flesh, these balls would cause deep bruises or contusions, which would break open with further blows. And the whip had pieces of sharp bone as well, which would cut the flesh severely.
The back would be so shredded that part of the spine was sometimes exposed by deep, deep cuts. The whipping would have gone all the way from the shoulders down to the back, the buttocks, and the back of the legs.
One physician who has studied Roman beatings said, "As the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh." A third-century historian by the name of Eusebius described flogging by saying, "The sufferer's veins were laid bare, and the muscles, sinews, and bowels of the victim were open to exposure."
The victim would experience tremendous pain and go into hypovolemic shock(Also in wikipedia). 'Hypo' means low, 'vol' refers to volume, and 'emic' means blood. This does four things. First, the heart races to try to pump blood that is not there; second, the blood pressure drops, causing fainting or collapse; third, the kidneys stop producing urine to maintain what volume is left; and fourth, the person becomes very thirsty as the body craves fluids to replace the lost blood volume.
Jesus was in hypovolemic shock as he staggered up the rode to the execution site at Calvary, carrying the horizontal beam of the cross. Finally Jesus collapsed, and the Roman soldier ordered Simon to carry the cross for him. (Mark 15:21 "And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.") Later we read the Jesus said, 'I thirst', at which point a sip of vinegar was offered to him. (Mark 15:36)
Jesus survived the beating that day and went on to the cross-which is where the real issue lies.
He would have been laid down, and his hands would have been nailed in the outstretched position to the horizontal beam. This crossbar was called the patibulum, and at this stage it was separate from the vertical beam, which was permanently set in the ground.
The Romans used spikes that were five to seven inches long and tapered to a sharp point. They were driven through the wrists, an inch or so below his left palm.
(All the paintings show the nails pierced his palms, a standard symbol representing the Crucifixion, but it really was through the wrist, as Metherell goes on to explain)
Through the wrists. This was a solid position that would lock the hand; if the nails had been driven through the palms, his weight would have caused the skin to tear and he would have fallen off the cross. So the nails went through the wrists, although this was considered part of the hand in the language of the day.
It's important to understand that the nail would go through the place where the median nerve runs. (From wiki, Injury of median nerve at different levels cause different syndromes. Injury of this nerve at a level above elbow joint results in loss of pronation and a decrease in flexion of the hand at the wrist joint. In the hand, thenar muscles are paralysed and atrophy in time. Opposition and flexion movements of thumb are lost, and thumb and index finger are arrested in adduction and hyperextension position. This appearance of the hand is collectively referred as ape hand deformity. In addition, in palmar side of the hand sensation of lateral part of hand, first three fingers and lateral half of the fourth finger and in dorsal side sensation of distal ⅓ portions of first three fingers and lateral half of distal ⅓ portion of fourth finger is lost.)
The pain was absolutely unbearable. In fact, it was literally beyond words to describe; they had to invent a new word: 'excruciating'. Literally, 'excruciating' means 'out of the cross.' They needed to create a new word, because there was nothing in the language that could describe the intense anguish caused during the crucifixion.
At this point Jesus was hoisted as the crossbar was attached to the vertical stake, and then nails were driven through Jesus' feet. Again, the nerves in his feet would have been crushed, and there would have been a similar type of pain.
The effect that hanging from the cross would have had on Jesus; first of all, his arms would have immediately been stretched, probably about six inches in length, and both shoulders would have become dislocated. This fulfilled the Old Testament prophecy in Psalm 22, which foretold the Crucifixion hundreds of years before it took place and says, 'My bones are out of joint.'
Once a person is hanging in the vertical position, crucifixion is essentially an agonizingly slow death by asphyxiation(wikipedia again). The reason is that the stresses on the muscles and diaphragm put the chest into the inhaled position; basically, in order to exhale, the individual must push up on his feet so the tension on the muscles would be eased for moment. In doing so, the nail would tear through the foot, eventually locking up against the tarsal bones.
After managing to exhale, the person would then be able to relax down and take another breath in. Again, he would have to push himself up to exhale, scraping his bloodied back against the coarse wood of the cross. This would go on and on until complete exhaustion would take over, and the person would not be able to push up and breathe anymore.
As the person slows down his breathing, he goes into what is called respiratory acidosis(wikipedia)-the carbon dioxide in the blood is dissolved as carbonic acid, causing the acidity of the blood to increase. This eventually leads to an irregular heartbeat. In fact, with his heart beating erratically, Jesus would have known that he was at the moment of death, which is when he was able to say, "Lord, into your hands I commit my spirit."(Luke 23:46) And then he died of cardiac arrest.
Before he died, the hypovolemic shock would have caused a sustained rapid heart rate that would have contributed to heart failure, resulting in the collection of fluid in the membrane around the heart, called a pericardial effusion, as well as around the lungs, which is called pleural effusion.
When the Roman soldier came around and, being fairly certain that Jesus was dead, confirmed it by thrusting a spear into his right side. It was probably his right side; that's not certain, but from the description it was probably the right side, between the ribs.
The spear apparently went through the right lung and into the heart, so when the spear was pulled out, some fluid-the pericardial effusion and the pleural effusion-came out. This would have been the appearance of a clear fluid, like water, followed by a large volume of blood, as the eyewitness John described in his gospel.
(True, John was untrained and could not identify the clear fluid that came out, and thus wrote it as water. However, in John 19:34, it is said that 'blood and water' came out; and John intentionally put the words in that order. But according to Metherell, the clear fluid would have come out first. A significant discrepancy here, explained in the following excerpt)
I'm not a Greek scholar, but according to people who are, the order if words in ancient Greek was determined not necessarily by sequence but by prominence. This means that since there was a lot more blood than water, it would have made sense for John to mention the blood first.
There was absolutely no doubt that Jesus was dead.
as aas (In the past, if the Roman guard somehow let any prisoner escape or allowed any convict sentenced to death to live due to carelessness or other reason, the sentence would be carried out on the Roman guard. That was quite a big incentive to ensure that the prisoner, or in this case, Jesus, was thoroughly dead. But as a final argument, Metherell depicts what would happen if somehow, Jesus survived the ordeal and lived to appear to the disciples. Here, he reasons that the wounds he suffered would not recover fully permanently, much less within a period of three days. Hypothesizing that Jesus would still be alive without means of resurrection, his body would be in a total mess.)
Listen, a person in that kind of pathetic condition would never have inspired his disciples to go out and proclaim that he's the Lord of life who had triumphed over the grave.
Do you see what I'm saying? After suffering that horrible abuse, with all the catastrophic blood loss and trauma, he would have looked so pitiful that the disciples would never have hailed him as a victorious conqueror of death; they would have felt sorry for him and tried to nurse him back to health.
So, it's preposterous to think that if he had appeared to them in that awful state, his followers would have been prompted to start a worldwide movement based on the hope that someday they too would have a resurrection body like his. There's just no way.
Metherell has a medical degree from the University of Miami in Florida, doctorate in engineering from the University of Bristol in England. He is board certified in diagnosis by the American Board of Radiology and has been a consultant to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health of Bethesda, Maryland.
The swoon theory, that says Jesus' reappearance was not a miraculous resurrection but merely a fortuitous resuscitation, and his tomb was empty because he continued to live.
Maybe Pontius Pilate was bribed to allow Jesus to be taken down from the cross before he was dead. Maybe he survived the entire ordeal, or entered a trance-like fake death. Or perhaps he was drugged to appear dead, and then revived by the cool damp air of the tomb. Could the Roman guards have been incompetent in ensuring his death and took him down accidentally alive?
Before Jesus could be resurrected, he must be dead first, that's common sense. So what exactly happened when he was crucified and could he have survived some way or another, only to rise up from the grave and make everyone think he was resurrected?
Lee Strobel's(M.D.) interview with Alexander Metherell(M.D., PH.D.), as adapted from The Case for Christ.
Jesus went with his disciples after the Last Supper to the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane. There, he prayed all night. Anticipating the coming events of the next day, he knew the amount of suffering he had to endure, and would naturally be experiencing a great deal of psychological stress. (As written in Luke 22:42-44, he prayed "'Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.' And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.")
There is a medical condition known as hematidrosis(Can be found in wikipedia). It is a very rare condition that is associated with a high degree of psychological stress. Severe anxiety causes the release of chemicals that break down the capillaries in the sweat glands. Thus, there's a small amount of bleeding into the glands, and the sweat comes out tinged with blood. We're not talking about a lot of blood; it's just a very, very small amount. What it also does is to cause the skin to be extremely fragile so that when Jesus was flogged by the Roman soldier the next day, his skin would be very, very sensitive.
Roman floggings were known to be terribly fatal. They usually consisted of thirty-nine lashes but frequently were a lot more than that, depending on the mood of the soldier applying the blows.
The soldier would use a whip of braided leather thongs with metal balls woven into them. When the whip would strike the flesh, these balls would cause deep bruises or contusions, which would break open with further blows. And the whip had pieces of sharp bone as well, which would cut the flesh severely.
The back would be so shredded that part of the spine was sometimes exposed by deep, deep cuts. The whipping would have gone all the way from the shoulders down to the back, the buttocks, and the back of the legs.
One physician who has studied Roman beatings said, "As the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh." A third-century historian by the name of Eusebius described flogging by saying, "The sufferer's veins were laid bare, and the muscles, sinews, and bowels of the victim were open to exposure."
The victim would experience tremendous pain and go into hypovolemic shock(Also in wikipedia). 'Hypo' means low, 'vol' refers to volume, and 'emic' means blood. This does four things. First, the heart races to try to pump blood that is not there; second, the blood pressure drops, causing fainting or collapse; third, the kidneys stop producing urine to maintain what volume is left; and fourth, the person becomes very thirsty as the body craves fluids to replace the lost blood volume.
Jesus was in hypovolemic shock as he staggered up the rode to the execution site at Calvary, carrying the horizontal beam of the cross. Finally Jesus collapsed, and the Roman soldier ordered Simon to carry the cross for him. (Mark 15:21 "And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.") Later we read the Jesus said, 'I thirst', at which point a sip of vinegar was offered to him. (Mark 15:36)
Jesus survived the beating that day and went on to the cross-which is where the real issue lies.
He would have been laid down, and his hands would have been nailed in the outstretched position to the horizontal beam. This crossbar was called the patibulum, and at this stage it was separate from the vertical beam, which was permanently set in the ground.
The Romans used spikes that were five to seven inches long and tapered to a sharp point. They were driven through the wrists, an inch or so below his left palm.
(All the paintings show the nails pierced his palms, a standard symbol representing the Crucifixion, but it really was through the wrist, as Metherell goes on to explain)
Through the wrists. This was a solid position that would lock the hand; if the nails had been driven through the palms, his weight would have caused the skin to tear and he would have fallen off the cross. So the nails went through the wrists, although this was considered part of the hand in the language of the day.
It's important to understand that the nail would go through the place where the median nerve runs. (From wiki, Injury of median nerve at different levels cause different syndromes. Injury of this nerve at a level above elbow joint results in loss of pronation and a decrease in flexion of the hand at the wrist joint. In the hand, thenar muscles are paralysed and atrophy in time. Opposition and flexion movements of thumb are lost, and thumb and index finger are arrested in adduction and hyperextension position. This appearance of the hand is collectively referred as ape hand deformity. In addition, in palmar side of the hand sensation of lateral part of hand, first three fingers and lateral half of the fourth finger and in dorsal side sensation of distal ⅓ portions of first three fingers and lateral half of distal ⅓ portion of fourth finger is lost.)
The pain was absolutely unbearable. In fact, it was literally beyond words to describe; they had to invent a new word: 'excruciating'. Literally, 'excruciating' means 'out of the cross.' They needed to create a new word, because there was nothing in the language that could describe the intense anguish caused during the crucifixion.
At this point Jesus was hoisted as the crossbar was attached to the vertical stake, and then nails were driven through Jesus' feet. Again, the nerves in his feet would have been crushed, and there would have been a similar type of pain.
The effect that hanging from the cross would have had on Jesus; first of all, his arms would have immediately been stretched, probably about six inches in length, and both shoulders would have become dislocated. This fulfilled the Old Testament prophecy in Psalm 22, which foretold the Crucifixion hundreds of years before it took place and says, 'My bones are out of joint.'
Once a person is hanging in the vertical position, crucifixion is essentially an agonizingly slow death by asphyxiation(wikipedia again). The reason is that the stresses on the muscles and diaphragm put the chest into the inhaled position; basically, in order to exhale, the individual must push up on his feet so the tension on the muscles would be eased for moment. In doing so, the nail would tear through the foot, eventually locking up against the tarsal bones.
After managing to exhale, the person would then be able to relax down and take another breath in. Again, he would have to push himself up to exhale, scraping his bloodied back against the coarse wood of the cross. This would go on and on until complete exhaustion would take over, and the person would not be able to push up and breathe anymore.
As the person slows down his breathing, he goes into what is called respiratory acidosis(wikipedia)-the carbon dioxide in the blood is dissolved as carbonic acid, causing the acidity of the blood to increase. This eventually leads to an irregular heartbeat. In fact, with his heart beating erratically, Jesus would have known that he was at the moment of death, which is when he was able to say, "Lord, into your hands I commit my spirit."(Luke 23:46) And then he died of cardiac arrest.
Before he died, the hypovolemic shock would have caused a sustained rapid heart rate that would have contributed to heart failure, resulting in the collection of fluid in the membrane around the heart, called a pericardial effusion, as well as around the lungs, which is called pleural effusion.
When the Roman soldier came around and, being fairly certain that Jesus was dead, confirmed it by thrusting a spear into his right side. It was probably his right side; that's not certain, but from the description it was probably the right side, between the ribs.
The spear apparently went through the right lung and into the heart, so when the spear was pulled out, some fluid-the pericardial effusion and the pleural effusion-came out. This would have been the appearance of a clear fluid, like water, followed by a large volume of blood, as the eyewitness John described in his gospel.
(True, John was untrained and could not identify the clear fluid that came out, and thus wrote it as water. However, in John 19:34, it is said that 'blood and water' came out; and John intentionally put the words in that order. But according to Metherell, the clear fluid would have come out first. A significant discrepancy here, explained in the following excerpt)
I'm not a Greek scholar, but according to people who are, the order if words in ancient Greek was determined not necessarily by sequence but by prominence. This means that since there was a lot more blood than water, it would have made sense for John to mention the blood first.
There was absolutely no doubt that Jesus was dead.
as aas (In the past, if the Roman guard somehow let any prisoner escape or allowed any convict sentenced to death to live due to carelessness or other reason, the sentence would be carried out on the Roman guard. That was quite a big incentive to ensure that the prisoner, or in this case, Jesus, was thoroughly dead. But as a final argument, Metherell depicts what would happen if somehow, Jesus survived the ordeal and lived to appear to the disciples. Here, he reasons that the wounds he suffered would not recover fully permanently, much less within a period of three days. Hypothesizing that Jesus would still be alive without means of resurrection, his body would be in a total mess.)
Listen, a person in that kind of pathetic condition would never have inspired his disciples to go out and proclaim that he's the Lord of life who had triumphed over the grave.
Do you see what I'm saying? After suffering that horrible abuse, with all the catastrophic blood loss and trauma, he would have looked so pitiful that the disciples would never have hailed him as a victorious conqueror of death; they would have felt sorry for him and tried to nurse him back to health.
So, it's preposterous to think that if he had appeared to them in that awful state, his followers would have been prompted to start a worldwide movement based on the hope that someday they too would have a resurrection body like his. There's just no way.
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