It Is Time For You To Decide or 
Not in 2012: 

The Harvest Is Past, The Summer Is Ended ... Jeremiah 8:20.  And  not much changed in 2011. 

Christian America, is still fighting unjust wars and invading other nations of the world whenever it pleases with the full support of religious sycophants. Sadly, the religious world is as divided as it ever was.  Religion, has more sects, denominations ... than America has parties and differences of opinion by far.

Sadly and arrogantly, the one that you happen to be a part of or listening to at the time, has something in common with the other - that of believing that whatever it is that they believe, is 'what God believes or said'.  And the problem with that is, God, apparently lacks the quality of believing. And why should God believe? By every religious standard that I am familiar with, God created all things, knows all things and therefore wouldn't have to engage in the exercise of believing anything.  It seems to me that the prudent thing to do, given this religious-voice of truth conundrum, would be to 'seek the source'!  The head of the Jerusalem church, Apostle James, apparently wrote to the dispersed, tired and burned out Jews to do the following:  "Ask God"!

Christian America, is also still a tale of 2 cities, rich v poor; upper and lower; educated and uneducated, Republican and Democrat -- and the latter are still at each other's throats, in public anyway. The number of unemployed, underemployed and temporarily employed American citizens, remains high. Americans are loosing their jobs, homes, marital partners and minds in some instances.  So what is a person to do, think or feel?

Perhaps the wise thing to do, is to stop listening to all of the so-called voices of reason and right in the land - because all too often, those voices turn out to be categorically wrong in most instances? And whether they are correct or not, each one of us is apparently not absolved from our apparent responsibility of being in charge of our lives, assuming that we are not physically or mentally incapacitated, a youngster or simply unable.  In other words. never outsource the responsibility for your life or outcome to anyone else.  Instead, take charge of your life, think, plan, read, pray or do whatever you do, but at some point make decisions that you can live or die with for that matter. And even if you turn out to be wrong, you will still be right, because you, the responsible captain of your soul, made the best decisions and choices that you could have made at that time.And, in the future, based on the understanding that you acquired from a prior decision or experience that might have gone awry, you might even make a better choice!

It seems to come with life, that most of us have a 50/50 chance of making the right decisions anyway, and other people will point out - when you or I have made an apparently, poor decision.  But keep this in mind, you are not God, and they are not God either. In other words, it is not a sin to make the wrong decision or choice; all of us do that everyday (even though some individuals will never admit it themselves). I like to quote old bishops, and I can still recall what one of the Bishops, who I sat under, once said: “My opinion is just as good as anybody elses, he said".

And isn't it the case, that each one of us has the right to opine and to be right, or wrong ?  At least that is what the old Bishop used to say, and I suspect that he being very sagacious, was correct in that regard. Too many people often fall into the trap of living their lives by what someone else has to say.  Typically, it is a suggestion or directive, one that is typically accompanied with a healthy dose of fear, guilt, retribution or negative consequences (if their prescription is not adhered to) by some weak or guilty person. Sadly, when things don't quite work out in the manner that they were told that it would, that is for the better or the worse - some individuals will return to the same person for more advice!

There are, and have been so many voices in the world, from which each one of us has listened to from time to time, hoping to find some clarity or understanding, while attempting to navigate through the unknown in and out of this world.  Some counselors, will end up helping you to develop what I will refer to as a 'condemning conscious'.  That it to say that for every action that you take, or whatever decision you make, you are persecuted by their unhealthy advice, words and voices of condemnation, that take up residence in your conscience.

And one day, what will occur, when the so-called voice of reason of that person or person, who you permitted to take charge of your conscience lets you down, or even worse falters them or themselves?  Answer?  If you are not careful, they will take you down with them, because you have never been able to, or permitted you, your conscience, your experiences and your cognitive awareness and abilities, to pilot your ship!

A better method that could be employed in order to navigate through life, or to pilot your own ship might be this: see this world as the odyssey that it happens to be. Second, understand that oftentimes, as the old Bishop used to say, your opinion, is just as good on a day-to-day basis, as anyone elses happens to be. Another problem is this:  oftentimes, some individuals elect to allow someone else to take responsibility for deciding the choices that they will make. I have seen families, even couples who have outsourced the leadership in their families, to some 3rd person, a friend, a teacher, a mentor, a pastor or a living David Koresh type-figure.  And why do people do this?

They do so for a myriad of reasons.  Some individuals, simply have never been in charge of their lives, given the overbearing parents, teachers, preachers, siblings and other guides, who to put it nicely 'tutored' them or to be more succinct, dominated them or took charge of them and their lives, during some vulnerable period(s) in their lives. Oftentimes, and in these instances the implied message that they receive, not so subtly is, "you do not know what you are doing", and "I know what I am doing", so FOLLOW ME and the script that I provide for you.  Sadly, the follow me part, eventually turns into 'OBEY ME'!

Some humans are weaker, or better yet, they are not as fully developed as others tend to be, and they are more likely to fall prey to this form of trenchant domination.  Besides, in the end, if things go wrong, the ones who knowingly elect to capitulate, can simply blame their failures or short-comings on someone else.  I have had individuals come to me in the past, in order to ask for advice.  For example, they might ask, "what would you do if...".  And similar to Rufus the Dufus, I would, without thinking, in turn share my opinion with them, only to experience a return visit by the same individual (s) in the future, and to be blithely informed, "the advice that you gave me was wrong".  Er herm!

This world is an odyssey in many respects, so live it as a “I don't know the answer to everything”, that is what I really believe,  Existentially speaking, most of us would simply like to live, partake and enjoy life along with a reasonable amount of pleasure, and a lesser amount of peril, I suspect.   Most of us, have been exposed to  voices from other people who on a regular basis supply us with a steady cadence of death, doom and gloom scenarios, along with a kind of 'the sky is falling kind of pessimism and scenarios'.  And who needs that, unless of course, the United States is bombarding your nation at the time (er herm)!

Individuals, who are the harbingers of what I will refer to as, 'a persecution complex', will remind you of all of the things that you do wrong, and teach you the art of persecuting yourself, well, that is if you permit them too.  Too many people, as I mentioned before, will be only too happy to remind you of all of the things that you have done wrong in life.  However, another way of looking at it is, to put it another way; you simply made a choice that did not quite work out, on a prior occasion and humans, do that.  So expect to make mistakes, even after you know that you did all that you could do before, including praying, in order to make the best choice, based upon what you knew or understood at the time, it is simply a part of life that we cannot escape, and you are a part of life too.

In conclusion, if you are experiencing this kind of scenario with a purported friend or an obvious foe, simply acknowledge this fact of life:  You have met 'god', and this god, happens to be the person who wants to dominate your life; and they believe that they are God, or God sent.  So, why am I writing this piece?  Did someone do something to me lately, you're thinking?  The answer is 'nyat'!  It is the last day in the year 2011, and I simply want to encourage some individuals that I know, and others that I don't know with this message, as they begin the New Year:

Live your life in 2012, and stop listening to the, everything that you do is wrong reporters in your life, or the 'you aren't any good or haven't made it yet, anyway, voices, that are in your lives - even the ones who carry around huge bibles. These voices, mostly come from overly-religious sycophants, zealots, controlling and unhappy people and overly confident ones, who have never resolved their outstanding issues, or think a bit too highly or have an exaggerated sense of themselves. And remember this:  That at the end of the day, your life is your life, that is unless you give the control of your life over to someone else, either because you neither want to be responsible for taking charge, nor to be responsible for it, given the choices that you will have to make everyday, for the rest of your life!

Won't it be funny, if when all of us reach the allegorical form of Heaven, that is portrayed in certain sacred texts, that while standing before God, he says, brother or sister, I have never known anyone to have made more screwups in life than you did, but come on in, BECAUSE I LOVED YOU WHEN I CREATED YOU AND I NEVER STOPPED, LOVING YOU!

If, a thousand years with God is only one day, each one of us exists for less than a day, apparently (we simply take out time to go to sleep and download our personal computers, every 14 hours or so).  During the day that I am spending on Earth then, I simply accept life for what it is, and do the best that I am able to do, while I am still here on location.  I see myself as being responsible for the choices that I make and have made during my one day here, whether they worked out or not - and some of the choices that I made, well, let's just say, 'DON't tell anybody', eek!  And like the old Bishop, you don't have to agree with me, however, I suppose that my 'informed opinion', is just about as good as anyone elses happens to be.  My focus happens to be more on what put me here and ITS expectation, the one that is NOT A MAN, that IT should lie!

The Rev

And if you are wondering, who is this strange minister, who hasn't been a parish minister for a decade or so now?  Answer:  I tend to be more like Moses, Elijah, Elisha, John the Baptist and even Jesus Christ of Hebrew and  Christian traditions.  I prefer being outside, and have several sets of sandals to prove it; let them have the Temples, and I will drop in for a visit from time to time.  Blasphemy and sacrilege? Yes I know - see you at the Pearly Gates; I will be standing in line with the group in sandals, wearing goatskins and donning Raybans' perhaps!

Another Inconvenient Truth: Incomplete and Fractured Frameworks!  

Are 66 books, an adequate framework to describe, confine, explain and affirm without question, everything that exists in the known Universe and beyond or the source of all things, is the question? I could only wish that each writer was present to answer for themselves.

Or, how about luminaries like Polycarp, Josephus, Erasmus, Eusebius, Thomas Aquinas, Matthew, Luke, John, Paul … If they were present today,, I would like to see if they would defend the modern-day Christian proposition, that the 66 Books are the unadulterated word of God, and furthermore that all that we really need to know is contained, confined and confirmed is this limited work.

Our critics view the ones of us who hold this position to be apostate, of the devil, misguided, uninformed and self-directed, however, is that the case?. Without trying to shake anyone's faith, we are simply challenging what I and others like me believe is misguided construct or conclusion.

Is the very phrase, unadulterated word of God, even contained in the Canon, and would it have been included if God actually directed the composition of the Canon? The Canon, a work that was inspired by Emperor Constantine is nothing more than a good start. If I am right, what have Christians and others who have been influenced and lived their lives strictly by the Canon, missed out on. If my critics are correct, that the Canon is the exclusive and unadulterated word of Jesus Christ, is still to be seen.

What have the effected missed out on throughout canonical history, to include the entity that we refer to God, as a result of such super and self-imposed limitations?  

Peace and Grace

Food for Thought for Absolutists and I Used to Be One:  Permit Me to Enjoy My Journey, and You Should Enjoy Your Journey Too!

Some individuals will draw a conclusion, without examining all of the evidence, particularly, the school of evidence that does not agree with or comport with a preconceived, or understood construct, especially one that they believe in.    Of course what you believe is true, if you confine or immerse yourself in texts, that reify and support what you already believe.



So much for the 'flat Earth belief and theorem'.  Can you imagine what individuals will believe, let's say 2 thousand years from now, that might be just the opposite of what you and I have been taught to believe, that might be absolutely true?

Perhaps, that is one of the reasons which would explain why one generation has to pass on in order to permit another generation to take over.  Humans, and other species too, I suspect, get stuck either in what they believe, in instinct or both.  The beautiful thing about what you believe, will apparently lead a person for example, to the place that he needs to get to, peace for example.  And what is so compelling about that concept is this, the route that one person had to take to get to their peace of mind, body and spirit, can be just the opposite the road that another may travel.  Our problem, as humans is this:  Too many of us believe that if you haven't traveled the road that any one of us has, in order to reach a destination, then something is wrong with us.

In the past, I loved to hear friends and relatives, mostly men, brag about how quickly they drove from coast to coast.  Someone asked me on a prior occasion when I drove across country, "how long did it take you"?  I answered to their chagrin, one week!  To my way of reckoning, how many times do you drive across the Continental USA, and if you are going to drive instead of fly, why not enjoy it.  Having said that, I am at peace with anyone who has to turn a continental trip into a race, well, as long as they don't endanger or hurt anyone else.

Religious people, are taught and believe that every person, must travel down the same highway, go under the same overpass, and wind around the same bend, in order to arrive at the same place that they did, and that is categorically, I believe, untrue.  Wouldn't you think, that if all of the members of a church group or organization, were all endowed with the same Holy Spirit, given what they believe and teach, that all of them would agree on each and every point?  And sadly, most of us know, that is simply not the case either.  Consider Jesus, based upon what I have read and studied, his biggest struggle was with orthodox believers, as opposed to non-believers, who simply could not or would not let go of what they believed, or had been taught 'by them of old times'.  Some of us are like that too.

There are approximately 38,000 Christian denominations in the world, according to the World Christian Encyclopedia, and trust me, there are about that many different points of view that coincide with the number of denominations mentioned here.  Aside from all of the other Christian denominations, pastors and teachers who believe that they alone, are the ones that, categorically, know what is true and what is not - there are all of the other religious, philosophical organizations, that believe that they are the harbingers of absolute truth as well.  So which one is right, I will tell you:  It is, of course, the representatives of either organization, or the spokesperson that you are talking to on any given day.  How arrogant, humans happen to be?

Let me suggest that you teach what you believe, in other words, explain it in this manner, "this is what I believe", tell the person why you believe it (accepting that you still could be either in part or completely wrong, and afterward and for God's sake, shut up)!  If no man knows the day or the hour when the Lord shall appear, how is it that some of us know what is and what is not absolutely true, based upon our interpretations, about everything else?  Should this be a faith-shaker?  My answer is no, it should not be and instead, it ought to be, in my opinion, a reality check, one that every human being, religious or not, should periodically experience.  And once you experience this epiphany, become far less in love with your own mind, understanding and beliefs of your friends.

I asked, what we refer to as God on one occasion, "why are there so many different religious organizations and denominations ..."  and here is what I got back in return.  And, it comes from a scripture that the Apostle Paul wrote in the Christian canon.  "Knowledge puffs up ...", and it is because "they seek an answer in theology, instead of in love".  Try that one on, will you?  In other words, instead of becoming an expert, like Reverend Camping did and as a result, completely embarrassed himself by making categorical statements, why not seek an answer, in long-suffering and kind love?

A former President of Biola University, and pastor who taught daily on a radio show called, the Biola Hour, after years of teaching intolerance, once had this epiphany after years and years of ministry, and it was this:  The more that I learned, the quieter "I" became.  At best, all we know is what we understand, and what we understand after painstaking prayer and research, can still be wrong.  So, learn to be quiet, or you will begin to believe in and conclude that your ability to understand is what is real in the whole scheme of things.

Some of us know more than what we refer to as God, even knows!  The moral: permit other people to enjoy and to maximize their journeys; the Apostle Paul took the road to Damascus, and it was there that he had his epiphany.  Not many of us will travel to the Middle-East, to journey down the road that he did, or that Jesus traveled for that matter, and neither should we!

Pastor Cornelius Solomon, Post-modernist religious and philosophical thinker!

Jesus Was Controversial Too!


The former led, to religious people, among them Priests, going to a non-believer, Pilate, to ask that Jesus be put to death.  We are headed back to the future,it would seem, in many of our religious circles.


Similar to Jesus Christ, I make no bones about the fact that I am controversial. I make it my practice to warn people in religious circles, up front, that I am controversial. For example, I do not believe that Constantine's Canon, is the unadulterated word of God. I don't believe that Jesus, would have presented it as such himself. Many of his comments, about what had been recorded in the purportedly, 'unadulterated word of God'', supports my position, that Jesus did not believe in everything, 'that people of old times, said or wrote', and I am certain that he would not have agreed with everything that was written following his departure.

Whoever started that, and spake solely based on his or her limitations, especially, given the short period of time that they spent on earth, has done the people a disservice, if not an injustice. I suspect that what we refer to as God, could not have informed us Which religious leader, of any religious organization is 100% correct, informed or misinformed? The answer is in the question, on any given day, it could be any one of us, albeit we would likely never admit it. We often substitute our understanding of a sacred text, to be what God meant or said. To answer the previous question, which of the 2 categories, the answer is, typically the one that you are hearing from at the moment. How pervasive is, 'my understanding is correct', syndrome.

The fact of the matter is that the interpretation of a text, within similar organizations is not always one and the same. And that is why we should always adhere to 2 principles. 1). We walk by faith, and not by sight (and that includes sight-reading), we still don't know. 2). Common sense should inform anyone, that each of us could read the same text, and walk away with a different understanding. Will you ever know which sacred text or teacher, preacher … is absolutely the correct one? What you can know is that you walk by faith, and that is what apparently matters the most in most any faith!of everything. Ergo, we got as much as we could digest.

I appreciate a wise old Bishop, who is now deceased, who told his ministers this: Tell them, where you are preaching, "this is what I believe and why", and then, leave it like that. Hopefully, wheat won't be uprooted, when some of God's ministers believe that they are uprooting a tare. God is love

I Do Not Go Good With Nails

Solomon