thebradleys's Blog

I have been so frustrated by the sheer volume of hate that is propagated about race when we have so much else going on I am actually finding myself distracted.   Which is likely exactly what the goal was in the first place, so I have fed right into it. 

Pray for your enemies we are taught.  For me, and this is just my own personal thing, an enemy can be described as any individual or group that causes fear and encourages hate.

So when it is a group, do you pray for their leaders or for the group as a whole?

I get confused about this because we are supposed to pray in specifics.

I hope this makes some iota of sense.  But I need to find some peace for myself with this sooner rather than later...

Well, this seems as good a place as any to find some answers to some long standing questions I have.

In the second grade I received a Bible as a birthday gift from a fellow student.   That Bible served me well through my school's sponsoring church and during my confirmation studies at our other church.  That same said Bible, by now highlighted, dogearred, and with notes scribbled in it, went with me to yet a new church when I was in college and taught Sunday School.

AND YET that same Bible was NOT acceptable at the church I last became a member of.  I needed to use "their" denomination-specific Bible.

Now, there are hundreds (?) of versions of the Bible.  One would THINK though that while the verbage may differ, the chapters and verses would numerically align; HOWEVER, some verses mysteriously disappear in some versions.

We all know the verbage changes; for example, King James did not appreciate female priests so had them changed to male priests... the list goes on.

So tell me, while the WORDS are inspired by God, did God ALSO inspire which books (written by whom) were to be included in the actual Bible?  Has not MAN influenced what it is we are reading?  And why?