Trick Or Treating, Religious Convictions and "The Walking Dead"

Good morning post-Halloween, everyone! I hope that those that were able to, had a wonderful time trick-or-treating with their goblins and ghouls. It's one of the two favorite holidays of mine personally. The other being Christmas.

For most of my area here in Central Virginia (Lynchburg area), the children were able to Trick-Or-Treat on actual Halloween night. But there were a few areas that decided to either hold the holiday tradition on Saturday night, or wait until tonight (Monday) for them to go candy hunting due to Halloween falling on a Sunday this year.

Speaking of Trick-Or-Treating on an alternate night other than Halloween, I had become accustomed to the fact for a while when I had lived in Nevada "back in the day" of my late teens and early twenties. Nevada Day falls on Halloween. And so, being that there are many more tourists in town and also other big celebrations, along with parades, the state usually had them TOTing on the night before Halloween.

This year though, I had found out, thanks to my father that the children of (at least) their area were able to go candy collecting on the actual Halloween this year.

It should be this way everywhere. Personally, I do not see where a separate state or town should have ANY right to tell me and my kids that we cannot Trick-Or-Treat on Halloween if it falls on a Sunday. In other words, you are disgracing God by celebrating an "evil, Pagan ritualistic" holiday on the Lord's Day. And to a SMALL amount of people, it's not "right", so they want the date changed.

If YOUR Christian faith makes you feel convicted to not pass out goodies or let YOUR children Trick-r-Treat, then so be it. Do something more faith based or just keep your light off for the night and be a shut-in. But why ruin the evening for everyone else in your area by boo-hooing to City/County Counsel and force them to change for YOUR benefit of YOUR religious beliefs?

Whatever happened to "Separation of Church and State"? Does that not also apply to holidays where what may not be right for you, may just be okay with others around you? Personally, I think it is rather childish to cry foul over a freaking holiday. Just remember, Christmas is coming. And I can bet you, the ones that are "Jesus Freaks" to the fullest extent are gonna bitch to high heaven if a SMALL percentage of non-believers make a stink over the fact that religious symbols in a department store selling Christmas items.

You cannot have your cake and eat it too, people! Halloween, just like Christmas and Easter should be celebrated by the majority ON THE GIVEN DAY that it was intended to be celebrated. So what if it fell on a Sunday? Do you honestly think that God will think more of you for STILL celebrating that Pagan Holiday on any other day than Sunday? Wrong is still wrong when participating in "evil things" on ANY day of the week. Remember that.

Now, on to the next thing, seeing as I killed two birds with one stone. I feel like I'm on a roll today.

Let's talk about the new show on AMC (American Movie Classics channel). It's called "The Walking Dead". A deputy is shot and is in a coma for a chunk of time. When he wakes up, his world is completely different. In fact, deadly different. As in the walking dead different.

In the opening scene, a little girl is slowly walking as the deputy (post-hospital stint) sees her feet from under a vehicle, wearing bunny slippers. Her back is to him and when she turns around, you can see the severe bite mark on her face. She runs at him, hungry for flesh. He shoots her right in between the eyes and of course kills her for the final time.

As the show's premier episode kept on going, we got the back story of three (alive) characters and also we were able to view some pretty gruesome scenes of half or mostly eaten victims, including fellow zombies. Let's just say that all in all, NOTHING was really left to the imagination with this episode. Including the deputy's horse being torn apart and eaten by a hoard of ravishingly hungry walking poke-alongs.

As gruesome and grotesque as this show is, and knowing that it WILL GET much more graphic as the series moves along in it's rookie season, I personally do not feel that "The Walking Dead" should be on a channel such as American Movie Classics channel (AMC). It does not "fit" with the theme and feel of the channel its self. I see this show as more for the likes of HBO or Showtime. Mainly due to the show's EXTREMELY graphic nature.

"The Walking Dead" is most certainly not a television show for the faint of heart, nor for the squeamish of stomach. Some scenes even grossed ME out pretty bad. That's saying A LOT for me, if you know my taste in horror and thriller films.

So be warned my friends. If you cannot handle lots of blood, guts and gore, then I highly recommend that you do NOT watch "The Walking Dead".

Friendship 101.... The right way and the wrong way to DROP a friend.

Friendships. I take them seriously. Never with a "grain of salt". I've personally been known to cry with someone. I'll laugh with them. I will rejoice with them. I will be an ear for them, as well as a shoulder to cry on.

For friends that are here in my life for real, as well as for my "internet family" of friends. There are REAL people on the other side of this computer screen.

People with REAL feelings. Real emotions. Real hearts. And all of those can be easily shattered when you are not thinking of the REAL person on the other side.

I've had it happen to me all too many times. People saying hateful things, either to me or to friends/family. Judging my character, my choices, my parenting styles.

They might just be words to those that spew them. Or actions (even REACTIONS). But to the one that they are being aimed at, it can wound them. Deeply. On many levels.

Case in point...

There is a person I have "known" via the internet for a few years now. We hit it off pretty instantaneously. I've never judged the person for how they live their life and "run" the family. And this person afforded me the same courtesy. All was good. At least I thought it was.

Now, I guess that the "magic" in the friendship is gone. And it's apparently gone with a number of us. Because just like that, this person that I have been friends with, "dumped" me, along with some of my other wonderful friends that we (at one time) shared.

No explanation. No warning. No rhyme or reason. The person started deleting and BLOCKING people. None of us can figure out why. We don't know, nor can we think of ANYTHING that we did to offend or hurt this person (supposedly).

Must be nice to be able to just throw years of friendship and love away as if it NEVER meant a thing...Especially since it was "only" an 'internet friend'. Would this person have done this to us if it was on a more personal, face-to-face level? Maybe. Maybe not. At least face-to-face, we have a better chance of knowing what we "did wrong".

Friends come and go out of our lives. It's just a fact of life. And that's okay with me. But there is a 'right' way, as well as a 'wrong' way to do so. Especially if this 'friendship' has spanned OVER  a year's time.

Several of us are hurt and bewildered. We wish to know WHAT WE DID/SAID and try to rectify the situation. If the person wishes to no longer have friendship with us, we are okay. But we as a group that have been tossed to the wayside (at least that's how we feel) and feel that we are at the very least owed an explanation for the sudden change of heart.

But hey, you can lead a horse to water. But you certainly can't force it to drink. Am I not right? If they feel that jilted by us, even though we have never shown anything but love, acceptance and respect for them, then that's on them. I don't have to live with the guilt of how I treated three people that were nothing but kind and loving. At least I would have GIVEN AN EXPLANATION as to why I am "giving them the boot".

Like they say, what goes around that you send out, will come back and bite you ten times harder.

Make assumptions again and see where it gets you. (Defense of a friend)

With the way that I am feeling right now, I will try my best to stay calm and (for the most part) respectful. Then again, after seeing my friend, Angel get ripped apart, although in a "Christ-like manner", I don't feel like being so polite.

Then again, someone has to take the 'high road' right? May as well be me I'm guessing.

I've NEVER claimed to be a 'perfect' Christian/soul. And I never plan to. It is true that I am for equality for the GLBT Community to get married. I am one that can vote Democratically or Conservatively. I don't read, let alone have I memorized the Bible texts as much as a Christian should (in many minds).

But I love God no less. And He loves me no less. And for someone to tramps all over a friend and her PERSONAL walk with the Lord to me is a sin in and of its self. *Some* Christian "fanatics" are so freaking uptight and in to everyone else's Christian walk, snubbing them for every little "fleshly fault", that they refuse to remove the plank from their eye before removing the speck from another's.

This is why I can't stand those that are called "Holy Roller", "Bible-Thumping", "Dogmatic" Christians.

Believe me when I say I KNOW first-hand what I speak of. Especially the hypocrisy. I've lived through it, via my Dad's mother when I was little. She would force me in to attending church, scare me in to submission, and nit-picked everything I said, did, felt or believed. Even when it came to religion and MY way of worshiping, believing and practicing my Christianity.

When people in general start making generalized assumptions about those they know NOTHING about, and especially those that they THINK that they know about, said person is treading in dangerous and deep waters. They are the ones showing that they know NOTHING about a problem or situation. Especially when you don't sit down and find out what is TRULY going on from the "horse's mouth".

And for someone to make a general assumption about me, my knowledge of something, or of my faith/walk is treading in shark-infested water with me. I don't make personal "attacks" or assumptions towards others. And for a "Christian" to do it unto me is well...un-Christian like. Too bad they are so blinded by their "religious ways" that they are not able to see that they are doing more harm than good.

My friend, Angel lead me to a certain chat room a few months back for a church that she attends. Both online and in person. I watched a sermon and was fitting right in with those in the chat. For the first time in a long while, I felt like I "belonged" and that I was truly cared for. Angel gave me hope in Christianity and my faith again.

Now, that room has been shut down. No longer can I go and see those I befriended and be a part of a wonderful ministry. At least for now.

But one of the nay-sayers of the room decided to claim I know "nothing" about what all went down and why. Too bad she decided to "call me out" on false pretense and assumptions. Because I know more...WAY MORE than she thinks I do.

And worse yet, she hurt a dear friend and sister-in-Christ. That for me is 1,000's times worse. And I refuse to stand here and let it happen.

BRING BACK THE CHAT ROOM!....And stop being a "always right" Christian who talks the talk, but can't seem to walk the walk.

Thinking of changing WACKY WEDNESDAYS... (CONTEST TIME!!!)

If I decide to change Wacky Wednesdays to another Wednesday theme post, what should it be?

Please give me your BEST idea(s). The winner (picked by yours truly) will recieve a promotion of their blog, I will FOLLOW the winner's blog, and if you have one, place a BLOG BUTTON up for the world to see on my page.

So start shelling out those ideas for a new Wednesday theme and see if you can get the grand poobah prize!!!

Good luck everyone.

"He who hath not commited sin, shall cast the first stone."

Normally, I am not one to quote Biblical Scripture. But, for some reason, this one happened to pop in to my brain. And ultimately, I felt led to write about this passage. Although, I can't for the life of me remember what Book and verse it stems from.

As a child, I was "forced" in to submission. I had to submit to attending church with my Paternal Grandmother, who was an extremely devout Roman Catholic.

Throughout my childhood, she would quote Scripture to me. Especially when I was being punished. She would tell me that I made God sad and hurt His feelings.

She was also a devout hypocrite. Because many years later, after her death, I had learned of the not-so-Christian-like things that she had in her life's history.

Several divorces. One of her two sons was concieved and ultimately born out of wedlock. And that is to just name a couple of things. In fact I think that the only one that wasn't on her list of "Broken Commandments" was Adultry.

While still alive, she knew of some of my unChristianly partakings of the flesh. And she let me know how in the wrong I was. And for me, yes this DID include Adultry. While I know why I commited that sinful act, no excuse will hold up for my transgression of the flesh.

I'm far from an innocent Christian. I have made many, many mistakes in this lifetime. And I know that there are countless more coming in the years to come.

But I know that my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ will still love me. No matter how much I may hurt His feelings, or may break His heart. And as long as I ask, and truly mean it within my being, I will be forgiven.

This is why I do not judge others. Not for their "sinful acts", such as adultry, lying, stealing. Not even for loving someone else of the same gender.

In my heart, and in my mind, how can I sit in judgement of another human being, when I myself have failed at keeping the Lord's Commandments?

That question would race through my veins every time that my Grandmother would sit in judgement of me and my mistakes. When all along, she herself had her own glass house to throw stones at.

This is why I go by "Remove the plank from thy own eye thus you remove the plank from another's". As well as "He who hath not commited sin, shall cast the first stone". Because I know that my sins, while may not be as big as my neighbor's, are just as great a deal to God, as the neighbor's is.

There is only one true Judge. And I am not it. Nor are you. Only the Lord God can judge. He is my judge, and mine alone in the end.

Christianity...My brand.

What is a "Spiritual" type of Christian? Many ask me when I say that I am a Spiritual-Christian.

Within the definition, via Wikipedia.com, it states,.....

 "Traditionally, the following sects are "spiritual Christians": Molokans, Dukhobors, Khlysts, Skoptsy, and Ikonobortsy (Icon-fighters, "Iconoclasts"). These sects often have radically different notions of "spirituality". Their common denominator is that they sought God in "Spirit and Truth", rather than in the Church of official Orthodoxy or ancient rites of Old Believers. Their saying was "The church is not within logs, but within ribs".







Rejecting the official church, they considered their religious organization as a homogeneous community, without division into laymen and clergy."


Basically, this is how I too see my Christian walk with God. Not within the walls of a building. Not by paying my hard-earned money to an Organized Place Of Worship. And not within the confines of rituals (i.e.- I don't 'pray' for every tiny thing. Like to get the funds to go get the latest fashion).

Also. I have doubts concerning several areas of the Bible. There are too many holes within too many texts. Or one Book states one thing about a particular event or person. But then another Book relating to the same said person or event is totally opposite.

I'm not the kind of Christian (primarily refering to Fundamental Christians here) who are regarded as "Bible Thumpers", "Holy Rollers", "Religious Zealots" or the like.

I'm not one that will pound you over the head with Bible Verses, judge you for the way you decide to live (except for being abusive, alcoholism, or illegal drug use), or judge you for whom you love (bisexual, homosexual, or transgendered lifestyle).

What you do within YOUR life, to me has no bearing on mine. Nor is it truly my business. I have NO place to judge you. Only God Himself can do that.

Yes, I believe in "an eye for an eye". But you must first "remove the plank from your own eye, before removing the plank from another's".

If you can live with my "brand" of Christianity, then we will be just fine. And believe me when I say that there will be more Chirstian-based posts in the future on my blog.

Just give me  time.