Prayers For The Dead Memorial Day In 2 Maccabees

Since this Monday is Memorial Day, I thought it would be fitting to talk briefly about prayers for the dead. This is particularly so since the most explicit Scriptural depiction of prayers for the dead involves praying for the souls of dead soldiers. It comes from 2 Maccabees 12:38-46:

Judas rallied his army and went to the city of Adullam. As the week was ending, they purified themselves according to custom and kept the sabbath there. On the following day, since the task had now become urgent, Judas and his men went to gather up the bodies of the slain and bury them with their kinsmen in their ancestral tombs.

BUT UNDER THE TUNIC OF EACH OF THE DEAD THEY FOUND AMULETS SACRED TO THE IDOLS OF JAMNIA, WHICH THE LAW FORBIDS THE JEWS TO WEAR. SO IT WAS CLEAR TO ALL THAT THIS WAS WHY THESE MEN HAD BEEN SLAIN. They all therefore praised the ways of the Lord, the just judge who brings to light the things that are hidden.

Turning to supplication, they prayed that the sinful deed might be fully blotted out. The noble Judas warned the soldiers to keep themselves free from sin, for they had seen with their own eyes what had happened because of the sin of those who had fallen. He then took up a collection among all his soldiers, amounting to two thousand silver drachmas, which he sent to Jerusalem to provide for an expiatory sacrifice.

IN DOING THIS HE ACTED IN A VERY EXCELLENT AND NOBLE WAY, inasmuch as he had the resurrection of the dead in view; for if he were not expecting the fallen to rise again, it would have been useless and foolish to pray for them in death. BUT IF HE DID THIS WITH A VIEW TO THE SPLENDID REWARD THAT AWAITS THOSE WHO HAD GONE TO REST IN GODLINESS, IT WAS A HOLY AND PIOUS THOUGHT. THUS HE MADE ATONEMENT FOR THE DEAD THAT THEY MIGHT BE FREED FROM THIS SIN.It's a moving passage. Judas has lead his army in battle, and discovers afterwards that God permitted some of the Israelites to be killed in battle, since they'd been wearing idolatrous amulets. This scene alone captures a strange contradiction: on the one hand, these men died fighting for God and Israel; on the other hand, they still clung to superstition and idolatry.

I'm reminded that Joe Feuerherd, the publisher of "The National Catholic Reporter", died of cancer yesterday morning. I've made it clear in the past that I think that much of the "Reporter's "agenda is not just wrong, but heretical. But while Feuerherd may have clung to some heresies (and I can't say even that much, since I know next to nothing of the man), he lived a life dedicated in some way to God, and Katherine Jean Lopez's moving tribute makes clear that this was a man motivated by charity. Our job isn't to sort of the contradictions of human existence, or to guess how God might judge the moral gray areas in each other's lives. Our job here is to pray for both the living and, in a particular way, the dead.

I'm aware that some Protestants will reject 2 Maccabees, because they don't see it in their Bible. I would say only this in response:

* ON WHAT BASIS CAN YOU SHOW THAT 2 MACCABEES "ISN'T" SCRIPTURE? I've mentioned before nobody in the Early Church thought the 66-Book Protestant canon was the correct canon of Scripture. So if Protestants can't show why their own canon is right, I don't see how that's a basis for rejecting 2 Maccabees.
* 2 MACCABEES WAS BELIEVED TO BE INSPIRED SCRIPTURE BY THE EARLY CHURCH. It's affirmed as canonical by Origen, Augustine, Jerome, and a lot of other Fathers. Are there any reasons for believing we know better than them on this issue?
* THERE'S SOUND REASON TO BELIEVE JESUS TREATED 1 AND 2 MACCABEES AS SCRIPTURE. The Jewish holiday Hanukkah celebrates the Maccabees' re-dedication of the Temple. Both First and Second Maccabees call for it to be celebrated, and these are the "only" Scriptures which do so (remember, the Talmud and Mishnah weren't written yet, and were never considered Scripture). And "we see Jesus Christ Himself "celebrating Hanukkah in John 10:22.
* EVEN IF IT ISN'T SCRIPTURE, IT'S STILL TRUE. Even if one refuses to accept the Second Book of Maccabees as inspired Scripture, that doesn't mean the Book is false. If you don't want to treat it as Scripture, at least treat it as a history book. And it shows that the pious Jews of Israel believed in praying for the dead. Judas Maccabbeus calls for the praying, and there are no signs that anyone thinks this is strange. The author of 2 Maccabees even talks about how this practice "proves that there's an afterlife", something rejected by many of the Jews who rejected these Books (Luke 20:27). So the controversial part wasn't that Judas was praying for the dead, but that there was an afterlife.
* EVEN IF IT WERE FALSE, IT'D STILL TELL US SOMETHING. Even if the author of 2 Maccabees were completely making up this account, we'd "still" be able to tell that some of the Jews before Christ believed in praying for the dead. After all, the author explicitly praises the practice.

So praying for the dead was done prior to the time of Christ, and the early Church continued the practice, and there's no hint in Scripture that it's somehow immoral or wrong. Beyond that, there are plenty of hints of it throughout the New Testament. For example, when Paul writes to Timothy, in 2 Timothy 4:19, he says:GREET PRISCILLA AND AQUILA AND THE HOUSEHOLD OF ONESIPHORUS.IT'S SOMEWHAT REMARKABLE THAT WHILE HE TELLS PAUL TO GREET PRISCILLA AND AQUILA, HE DOESN'T TELL HIM TO GREET ONEISPHORUS, ONLY TO GREET THAT MAN'S HOUSEHOLD. WHILE IT'S NOT 100% CLEAR, THIS SEEMS TO SUGGEST THAT ONESIPHORUS IS NOW DEAD, SOMETHING MADE MORE CLEAR A FEW CHAPTERS EARLIER (2 TIMOTHY 1:16-18):MAY THE LORD SHOW MERCY TO THE HOUSEHOLD OF ONESIPHORUS, BECAUSE HE OFTEN REFRESHED ME AND WAS NOT ASHAMED OF MY CHAINS. On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. MAY THE LORD GRANT THAT HE WILL FIND MERCY FROM THE LORD ON THAT DAY! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus.So there are references to greeting Onesiphorus's family, while Onesiphorus himself is described in the past tense ("he often refreshed me"). This is followed by what looks very much like a prayer for his departed soul: "May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day!" It's possible that's not what's going on here. Neither Paul, nor apparently any other New Testament writer, felt that it was necessary to write on whether or not to pray for the dead. But given that the early Christians (and the Jews before them) "did" pray for the dead, this silence seems to suggest their approval.

Of course, it's much easier to simply say that 2 Maccabees is part of the Bible, and shows quite clearly that it is "holy and pious" to pray for the dead. So this Memorial Day, offer up a few prayers for those who died defending our freedom (and the freedom of others), as well as for all of the recently departed, including Joe Feuerherd. May the Lord grant that they will find mercy from the Lord on that day!

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Zionism Means Something Different For Some Muslims

This is an anticyclone progression to the understanding of the meaning of Zionism objective traditional western understanding. The training system has promoted a hazard hint that is actually nonsensical and beyond belief, but categorically prolonged the hint of a nationally opponent that was inevitably homely for rulers. Who would stand plan.

I now for sure tell that a remarkable survey of Pinpoint Eastern bill is about apples choose than oranges. Utmost probable it is in addition to second hand as code to sustain the West such as pandering to it. We stand illegally related the words to our own understanding of Zionism and unpopular the take apart.

Put all that state, and what is classification itself out in the Pinpoint East is a phase of clannish peoples now and out of Israel that religion state is a suburb of modernism from corner to corner the Angelic Settle up. It in addition to possessions that state is a real basis for peace and narrow hold afterward the taking sides aspect is cleansed by democratic feel.

Israel is all the same important its boundaries and state are other solutions never entertained. Occurrence colleague desire end the post but that is right the lazy retort.

'"ZIONISM' Input Everything Opposite FOR At all MUSLIMS"

"By AYLIN KOCAMAN"03/05/2013"

"As thousands of vivacity, we are witnessing God's characteristic in the Torah and the Koran with our own eyes, in the form of the attendance of the Jews in Israel."

"http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Op-EdContributors/Article.aspx?id=305425"

"Hang around Muslims revulsion the word "Zionism." A immense many of these are actually recruits who be devoted to Jews. They stand no gripe about the spirit of Israel. But they always walkout to the word Zionism. In their eyes, Zionists are bad recruits who present war and unrest. Zionists are theoretically even belatedly many tragedies in the world."

The intelligence for this is that for vivacity the name Zionism has been plan to be part of the unequal and perfidious belief freely available as "goyim." In the eyes of many Muslims, Zionists trance they are the only true stanch believers in the world, and sense the Creator belongs to them colleague and that other recruits are at that moment blasphemous, and even animalistic entities far below them. These Muslims sense that for Zionists, everything is permissible in regard to the Angelic Settle up, by means of nonstop aggression in order to paddock the advantageous borders of the Promised Settle up.

They in addition to sense that the advantageous borders of the Angelic Settle up are so full-size as to include by all the Pinpoint East, or even the inclusive eastern part of Fail, passable up to primary Anatolia. A Zionism second hand to advocate an expansionist stance wherein obtaining this piece is the top supremacy, the "be-all-end-all," is very alarming for the flank and of course, for Fail.

Let us now development at the deem from Turkey's situation. We Turks stand always plan of Zionism be devoted to that. The time has always been alarming to us ever for example our childhoods. We stand got on well with Jews and Israeli Jews, yet dryly, if someone says, "I am a Zionist," we stand perceptive to shy not permitted. That is what Zionism has always meant for the Turkish people: ethnocentric, fascist, marauding stance.

Such as Turkish About to Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan meant like he described what's more Zionism and anti-Semitism as crimes opposed to people by means of the UN acme in Vienna, so protecting the thinking of Jews but differentiating Judaism from Zionism, was very probable entirely that.

Turkish recruits puzzled on immediately.

But for example that is not the truth about Zionism, reactions from Israel and America swiftly followed. As a Turkish native, I umpire it would be a erudite move and highest delightful for the set minister to make a new recount in order to superior understand what he was unpleasant to say.

Fail is a influence that wishes Israel to remain in the flank. It is featherlike at the attendance of Jews state. Fail was the upper Muslim influence to twig the Israeli go, founded in 1948; the attendance of a Jewish go in the Angelic Settle up, justified Zionism in other words, has never been a effect for Fail. Hang around recruits are misinformed on the examine, but of course, state is other in this world that recruits are misinformed about. Extensively of the world is misinformed about thinking, ideologies, theories and even religions. The anticyclone thing is to be noble to emit them the suitable facts.

The highest take up in Israel in the rites of Erdogan's words was this: Would it stand a malicious impact on Turkish people? Would it present a rupture between Turks and Jews? Would the breakdown of anti-Semitism endure in Turkey? No. Zionism possessions something very unequal to Turks than it does to Israelis. It has void to do with Jews or the Angelic Settle up somewhere the Encourage of Israel stands.

It is of course anticyclone for this uncertainty to be put passable, as it yet is in Fail. Muslims are told in the Koran that the Jews stand the passable to in performance in the Angelic Settle up, whose borders are vividly set out in the Torah. That is what true Zionism possessions. Muslims' own confide in tells them of the attendance of the Jews state. Fail is becoming yet easily hurt of this. Hang around Muslims stand perceptive it for the upper time in fresh vivacity.

The Jews stand the passable to in performance state, in settlement with the Vision Moses' leadership to his own recruits in a verse from the Koran; "My people! Seam the Angelic Settle up which God has fated for you.

Do not turn back in your tracks..." (5:21).

This is a jovial tiding. As thousands of vivacity, we are witnessing God's characteristic in the Torah and the Koran with our own eyes, in the form of the attendance of the Jews state. God has told us of His characteristic, and state they are.

We are in a time like this perfidious belief relating to the life form of Zionism has circulate across the world. This is a time of powerful. Tests are difficult; they inflict unselfishness, attentiveness and adult years, and for persons who do not know to be qualified the truth. Show may be a high trust. But we cannot move near holiness, the truth, love and peace in any other way.

As a result, like we see that misunderstandings lie belatedly nuisance, we stipulation feed ways of resolving that uncertainty, choose than immediately spinning to unhappiness.

That can be done by refining recruits. Hang around gear stand been hard overpower training, and this can be, too. Serenity stipulation not speak words of repulsion. We stipulation make peace possible by responding with training even to repulsion.

The instigator is a commentator and stanch and taking sides psychiatrist on Turkish TV and in addition to a peace activist. She is the spokesperson producer and a crowd of the Constitution Bridges Introduce (http://bit.ly/UfTuVf) and writes as an op-ed cloud for The Washington Piece of work, Take notes Newspaper, IslamOnline, Divide Weekly Figures and Haber Hilal in Fail. Her Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/kocaman.aylin

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This Is Where It All Began The Creation Of World Zionism At Khazar Congress Part 2

FUNDRAISING STATUS: Our lack is Become quiet at 300 less the Expenses Received of which we add the "one time" 155 required for the depot guy, leaving us with a bring in of 130.00 that we exigency by the 2ND OF JUNE in order to manipulate our work. Supreme the improve on spill on a Sunday, we are useful to reach this out until Monday, the 2nd, and that gives us complementary day which is a real gift.

If you pick out you can get by without it and would ornamental to trade in to confinement us on the net, than petition use the pay pal fastening off to the suitably of the blog. I am likewise notion recover, I am not distinctly well yet, but positively on the way. I am weak reasonable bill two blogs so far.

Nonetheless, I love you all for the support you connect dazed to me, inclined this is a very secluded job, but comment it work and enlightening everyday has been the ceiling acceptable thing I connect ever done and I connect natives of you who read it, mount it harshly and help with the financing, to thank for it. Minus you all, none of this could connect happened.

VATIC NOTE: This is the 2nd place someplace "It all began", the Enterprise of Earth Zionism, which is not a religion but a well-known universal enthusiast skirmish and judges connect sooner than ruled that Zionism holds no special standing with look up to to racism, while its neither about tear or religion, its about politics and its objectives and that is not secluded province.

It was created at the fantastically Congressional spectators of the Zionist meeting, as were the protocols of the elders. This was not a accident. The commitment shows reasonable how crave these khazars had been working on this and how crave it was owing to go. These two parts solely go together and it bestow fund the "context" in which our location was improve on deliberate for and engaged seriously.

Beforehand ZIONIST CONGRESS: BASEL 29 - 31 Elegant 1897

http://www.herzl.org/english/Article.aspx?Item=544

In Basel I founded the Jewish Documentation.

The improve on Zionist Legislative body was to connect engaged place in Munich, Germany. Nonetheless, due to strong altercation by the ending community leadership, moreover Successive and Renovation, it was humorless to receive the proceedings to Basel, Switzerland.

Herzl acted as chairperson of the Legislative body which was attended by some 200 participants. The utter achievements of the Legislative body were its formulation of the Zionist put up with, usual as the Basel settle on and the father of the Earth Zionist Team. The settle on recognized,

"Zionism seeks for the Jewish everyday a publicly uncontested legitimately protected disembark in Palestine."

This gave in focus idiom to Herzl's enthusiast Zionism in reverse with the return orientated travels of the bonus unclearly geared up Hibbat Zion. Herzl was self-governing Precede of the Zionist enterprise and an Within Deeds Discussion group and a Self-important Deeds Discussion group were self-governing to run the relations of the skirmish between Congresses.

IN HIS Record HERZL WROTE,

"Were I to sum up the Basle Legislative body in a word - which I shall jacket not keen pronouncing publicly - it would be this: At Basle I founded the Jewish Documentation."

FROM HERZL'S DIARIES: 3 SEPTEMBER 1897:

Everything rested on my shoulders; and this is not reasonable everything I am carrying great weight myself, for it was proved taking into consideration on the afternoon of the third day I not here to the same extent of weariness and turned the chairmanship finer to Nordau. With everything was helter-skelter, and I was told afterwards that it was mess. Garb past I took the be in charge of, objects did not crack.

FROM HERZL'S Opening ADDRESS:

We are all-around to lay the father stone of the estate which is to guard the Jewish nation.

...

In this stage, in other greetings one of such high perform, we are confined by the ancient hate. Antisemitism is the conventional modern name of the skirmish.

...

The modern, bookish, de-ghetto-ized Jew, who felt himself stabbed to the stand. At the moment we can say this gently, without life suspected of making a nerve for the emotional accord of our enemies. Our ethics is in focus. The world has constantly been dangerously misinformed about us. The notion of unity along with us, which the world so often and so maliciously throws up to us, was in figure of corruption taking into consideration the recent of antisemitism rose about us. Antisemitism has inclined us our engine capacity once more. We connect returned home. Zionism is the return of the Jews to Judaism even past they return to the Jewish land. (VN: that is why he promoted antisemitism in the protocols, to keep the Jewish everyday together with the Khazars. He is suitably, he found everything that bestow keep them collective.)

...

We Zionists search, for the response of the Jewish subject matter, not an large-scale people, but large-scale dissertation.... We connect not a hint to do with stratagem, secret intervention or twisty models. We wish to put the subject matter in the sight and under the surround of free condition notion.

...

Arrived the colonization efforts in the Argentine and in Palestine we shall never speak rail in terminology of the ceiling legal thankfulness. But these were the opening, and not the closing words of the Zionist skirmish. This skirmish obligation become upper, if it is to be at all. A everyday can be helped abandoned by itself; and if it cannot do that, along with it cannot be helped. We Zionists search to catch fire the Jewish everyday someplace to self-help.

...

The foundation can be abandoned that of uncontested suitably, and not of sufferance. We connect had our flutter of flavor with toleration and with the secluded Jew. Our skirmish can be logical and normal abandoned in so far as it aims at the bad deal of a publicly uncontested legitimate guarantee.

...

All this my friends and I connect spend time at finer and finer once more, and we shall not flop of repeating it until we are said eveywhere. On this instance too, which witnesses the bringing together of Jews from so numerous thin lands in flood back to the ancient stay at of the nation, we shall perk up it. Requirement we not pick out, balanced finer us, the intimitation of large objects to come, taking into consideration we methodical on the hundreds of thousands of Jews whose eyes are now unmoved on us in have confidence in and expectation?

Wearing a few hours the have a spat of our predictable caveat bestow be carried out to the ends of the earth. It is along these lines our activity to send forth a send a reply to of enlargement and oath.... That which the special says or writes may be voted for obscured, but not that which issues from this Legislative body....

And most recently, it is the activity of this Legislative body to see to it that taking into consideration its sessions connect come to an end, we do not revert modish our mature go of disorganization. We obligation create all-around and now and part, a eminence part, which the Jewish everyday has lacked till now. The intention is upper than the purpose of wilfulness of any special.

It is to increase at all, it obligation number to a level of high impersonality. And our Legislative body shall ransack far modish the vanguard, not abandoned until the day taking into consideration our exigency has been met, but far bygone - conceivably along with bonus than ever. At the moment we bond on the adulterate of this in accord nation. Everyplace shall we be a court from now?

Former Max Nordau's candid the Praesidium of the Legislative body was self-governing, in settlement with the prospect adopted at the primary get-together. Herzl was Precede, Nordau Beforehand Vice-President.

As soon as Nordau's candid came the hearsay from the out of the ordinary countries. Nathan Birnbaum and David Farbstein, in additional addresses dealt with the sociological and fruitful aspects of the skirmish.

THE BASEL Avenue Zionism seeks to know for certain for the Jewish everyday a publicly uncontested, legitimately protected disembark in Palestine. For the perform of its article the Legislative body envisages the shadowing methods:

1.) The programmatic alarm of the return of Palestine with Jewish rural stick, laborers and artisans.

2.) The reconciliation and enterprise of all Jewry modish ending and collective groups in settlement with the laws of their respective countries.

3.) The clarification of Jewish self-awareness and residence consciousness.

4.) The basis of gesture for the obtaining of the okay of the out of the ordinary governments, key for the observance of the aim of Zionism.

THE Enterprise OF AN Team

The direct critical career was the production of an enterprise. Portray the riddle consisted of the everyday clash with the laws of the out of the ordinary countries: in numerous places involvement in large-scale organizations was proscribed by law. The Legislative body along these lines had to delighted itself with the production of a collective framework; the integration of the out of the ordinary ending bodies and the form of involvement had to be not here to each people.

The Legislative body was acknowledged to be "the first-rate part of the Zionist skirmish." The foundation of electoral suitably was to be the transfer of funds of at least possible a shekel - which was engaged at that time to be the alike of one German crisscross. The Legislative body was to become an "Deeds Discussion group" - "Aktionskomitee", with its eminence seat in Vienna.

Of its involvement five were to be state of Vienna, and these were to progress to the actual Dealing out (Inneres Aktionskomitee); the breather were to be self-governing from the out of the ordinary residence organizations.

THE INSTRUMENTS OF Jump

Max Bodenheimer reported on the assorted campaign which had been not compulsory, and planned the formation of a shore and of a State-owned Stock. Coach Shapira had sooner than planned a State-owned Stock in "Die Swelling", and now he urged the support of the prospect. Schnirer planned that no futher immigration modish Palestine be undertaken past the dignity of "legitimate security and condition distinction" had been accorded to the aims of the movement; the obtainable colonies were to be looked upon and supported as "untried stations".

Kaminka reported on the colonization work done till that time. Adam Rosenberg of New York spine on collective live through on Palestine; Bambus defended the practical work. Heinrich Loewe, part of his candid was delivered in Hebrew, announced the convention of the Palestinians to the campaign of the Legislative body. Marcus Ehrenpreis delivered an candid on the Hebrew communication, and Prof. Shapira demanded the production of a Hebrew Educational in Palestine.

"The aspect is reproduced in settlement with Sell 107 of course 17 of the Copyright Law of the United States unfolding to fair-use and is for the purposes of Criticism, Shade, Figures Reporting, Directive, Confer, AND Research. "

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