"least in the kingdom of heaven" - A Drunken Poet

2014 Christmas Season Started around Tokyo

A Drunken Poet

Once a great poet lived in Japan.

He was a drunker, a great drunker.  Though his Japanese-style poems were highly praised in literary circles in Japan, he was a helpless drinker.

But his poems were so sophisticated that no readers realized that he was addicted to alcohol.  To earn money he traveled local regions where he visited persons with a literary bent.  In their homes, he wrote his poems on colored paper and so on to enjoy hospitality and receive lecture fees.  But the great poet didn't like this road show.  Money he earned was soon used for drinking.

But he sometimes looked like a homeless person.  In one inn, he was assigned to the worst room and requested lodging charges of soon after a supper.  When he visited a home town of his friend, who was also a notable poet, and went on a visit of the house of the friend's father to see the friend, he was mistaken as a hobo and expelled, since his friend was unfortunately absent.  But when the friend came back to the house and heard of the drunken hobo, he identified the great poet to go out and find him, in vain.

Of course, since when I was a boy, I knew the name Bokusui Wakayam, because his poems are so excellent.  But it was very recently that I learnt that Bokusui was a helpless drinker.

Bokusui Wakayama (1885–1928) was a Japanese author. Wakayama was a Naturalist tanka poet who was active at the beginning of the 20th century, during the tanka revival started by Yosano Tekkan. He traveled all over Japan and Korea, which, at that time, was under Imperial Japanese control composing many tankas about the places he visited. He also loved sake. Heavy drinking eventually damaged his liver and he died relatively young.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokusui_Wakayama

One of great verses Wakayama Bokusui wrote:

Aren't the white birds so sad
As they are straying around
Without being immersed
In the blue of sky and tides? 

(translated by EEE-Reporter)


Whoever is homeless, traveling around the country, with a mind of a poet reminds me of Christ Jesus, even if the hobo is mostly drunken.




*** *** *** ***



Mat 11:11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

"the kingdom of our father David" - Economic Antisemitism

Around Imperial Palace in Tokyo

Economic Antisemitism

Are Judaists safe in this world?

Has the root cause that caused the Holocaust by Nazis in WWII suddenly disappeared from the surface of the earth so suddenly?

Economic antisemitism comprises stereotypes and canards based on the economic status, occupation or economic behavior of Jews. It also includes economic behavior, laws and governmental policies targeting the economic status, occupation or economic behavior of Jews.

...

Abraham Foxman describes six facets of canards used by proponents of economic antisemitism:
All Jews are wealthy
Jews are stingy and greedy
Powerful Jews control business world
Jewish religion emphasizes profit and materialism
It is acceptable for Jews to cheat non-Jews
Jews use their power to benefit "their own kind"

Statistics
The Anti Defamation League conducted a poll in Europe in 2007 which asked respondents if they agreed with the statement that "Jews have too much power in international financial markets". Polling data showed that respondents agreed with that statement as follows: 61% in Hungary, 43% in Austria, 40% in Switzerland, 40% in Belgium, 21% in the United Kingdom, and 13% in the Netherlands.[15][16] Another poll conducted by the ADL in 2009 found that 31% of Europeans surveyed blamed Jews for the global financial crisis that began in 2008.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_antisemitism#Statistics

 So, still more than 30% of Europeans think that there are Judaist bankers and Judaist leaders in the financial sector who could have a decisive influence on the whole society of Europe.

If this ratio becomes higher, probably, to 50% or more, another Holocaust might occur even in London.

The final solution to this problem is, of course, for mankind to abolish the money market all over the world.
.



*** *** *** ***


Mar 11:10 Blessed be the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.

"Ask, and it shall be given you" - The Thirty Years War and Judaists

A Tokyo Railroad Line

The Thirty Years War and Judaists

More than 100 years after Columbus reached America, European Judaists got a chance to expand their scopes of activities in Europe.

They had accumulated big money till the Thirty Years War that lasted from 1618 to 1648.  And their money was wanted by an emperor and kings who got engaged in this War so as to cover costs of the War.  In exchange of providing financial services for these rulers of Europe, Judaists experienced improvement of their status toward some freedom, if any, in the Christian society in Europe.  .

The Jews were reintegrated into European Society as a result of the financial burden of the Thirty Years War. 

The Thirty Years War lasted from 1618 to 1648. It began as a renewal of religious warfare in the provinces of Germany, but quickly spread throughout Europe. As it spread it began to take on a more political meaning rather than a religious one. Thus, it became a struggle for dominance between European powers.
...
England had expelled its Jewish population in 1290 and France and Spain followed suit in 1394 and 1492 respectively. Where Jews were allowed to live, they were still restricted to certain arts of the cities called ghettos. Thus, Jews were extremely isolated from European society in the years before the Thirty Years War.
This trend of isolationism was reversed by the Thirty Years War. The largest reason for the reintegration of the Jews into society was the development of a good relationship with the Holy Roman Emperor. To explain this unlikely match we must look at the advancements of Jews in the economic sphere.
...

As the Thirty Years War raged on, The Holy Roman Emperor began to run out of money. Fighting a war against three large European powers that had vast monetary resources was incredibly expensive. The Holy Roman treasury was struggling to provide the added expenses of the war. In Italy at this time there were an incredible amount of Jews. These Jews lived harsh lives. They were confined to ghettos and were legally recognized as a race inferior to Christians. However, they were extremely prosperous merchants, bankers, and traders. Thus, they had incredible monetary resources at their disposal. The Emperor saw a golden opportunity in the plight of the Jews. Because they lived such hard lives they could provide loans in exchange for certain freedoms that Christian bankers took for granted. In this way the treasury would be refilled without having to repay expensive loans.

...

In 1623, in exchange for a large, no interest loan to the Holy Roman Emperor, Jews in Italian cities were allowed to trade in wine, cloth, and grain. Christian merchants had previously monopolized this activity. This policy of freedom in exchange for money was not just practiced in the Empire. As the war continued and the other participants began to run out of money they too developed this strategy.

...

They had been systematically banished from all trade fairs because they were competition for Christian merchants. They were allowed back into the fairs because it increased their financial security, and thus. More money could be extracted from them. Thus, as a result of the cost of the war, Jews were reintegrated into society.

http://www.essortment.com/jews-30-years-war-21585.html

The status of Judaists was further upgraded and expanded when Napoleon ruled a major part of Europe through wars in the early 19th century.

But, it was all smashed to pieces when Nazis got power in Germany before WWII.

Nonetheless, the Thirty Years War is so crucial to the fate of Judaists.  Without it, there should have been no Holocaust, and hence no Israel today.

During Thirty Years' War (1618-48; religious war between Catholics and Protestants and for political hegemony in Europe), Jewish financiers and provisioners provided essential services to central European monarchs (seen as neutral). 

Court Jews continued after war to serve as financial, commercial, and diplomatic agents for rulers; useful because of their liquid capital, lack of political demands and vulnerability; amassed great wealth and connections (which often used to benefit Jewish communities) but their fortunes and protection dependent upon monarch
http://www.yorku.ca/lockshin/courses/huma2850/lectures/lecture15.html

*** *** *** ***


Luk 11:9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

"nothing common or unclean hath at any time entered into my mouth" - Heavenly Sword

Anti-Nuclear Group's Tent in Tokyo Government District

Heavenly Sword

According to Forbes magazine, the most influential person in the world is Putin followed by Obama and Xi.

Putin invaded Ukraine, Obama failed in controlling Iraq to give a chance to ISIS for its rise, and Xi has nothing to do with democracy and justice as Hon Kong protesters are not respected and Chinese ships are invading territorial seas of other countries around the South China Sea and the East China Sea.

Still the most influential persons must be Abraham, Christ Jesus, and Muhammad.

For example, if the world should be conquered by a dictator, he would delete the names of the three great historic figures from history books all over the world and forbid religious practices associated with them.  Then, outwardly, the world will be very peaceful.

Indeed, Christ Jesus said that conflicts, tensions, and clashes cannot be avoided, probably, for mankind to reach the Kingdom of God.

Matthew 10:34

Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.     

 But how will the Heavenly sword of Christ Jesus destroy armies of Russia, America, and China?





*** *** *** ***




Act 11:8 But I said, Not so, Lord: for nothing common or unclean hath at any time entered into my mouth.
Act 11:9 But the voice answered me again from heaven, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.

"there confound their language" - Christ Jesus

Around the Tokyo Station

Christ Jesus

Christ Jesus never talked about how great Rome should be.
Christ Jesus never talked about how great Pyramids in Egypt should be.
Christ Jesus never talked about how great the Greek culture should be.

Christ Jesus never talked about how great it would be to be rich.
Christ Jesus never talked about how great it would be to succeed in one'e career.
Christ Jesus never talked about how great it would be to lead a nation as a top leader.

Christ Jesus never taught how to be rich and how to solve matters with money.

Christ Jesus only told to believe in God who created all the gold and silver in this world and gave life to each one.

But those who want to earn money always admire New York, its skyscrapers, and American culture.
Those who want to promote commercialism always tell others to be rich, succeed in their careers, and try to be a top leader.

And Satan teaches those who sell their souls to him how to be rich and how to solve matters with money.

However, Christ Jesus only tells to believe in God who created all the gold and silver in this world and gave life to each one.



*** *** *** ***



Gen 11:5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.
Gen 11:6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
Gen 11:7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.
Gen 11:8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city.

"fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts"

Rainbow around Tokyo









*** *** *** ***



Act 11:6 Upon the which when I had fastened mine eyes, I considered, and saw fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
Act 11:7 And I heard a voice saying unto me, Arise, Peter; slay and eat.

"in a trance I saw a vision" - Inflation vs. Deflation

The Tokyo Station

Inflation vs. Deflation

As is often discussed in the global financial community, Japan has been in deflation in these decades. specifically since around the middle of 1990s.

After Japan became the second largest economy in the world in 1969, its economy further continued to grow, but after its economic bubble around 1989, the Japanese economy gradually into a blunting process while the US economy was boosted up riding on the IT boom and globalization of economy driven by the IT technology.  Further Japanese businesses started to move their plants and factories to China in a large scale to actively use cheap labor force in China so as to cope with the trend of globalization.

As a result, cheap products came to flood in the Japanese market and wages of Japanese workers came to stop increasing.  Though the natural environment of Japan was somewhat protected from further industrialization as many factories moved to China, this relationship with China introduced deflation in the Japanese society.

In a wider view, even the EU and North America now face deflationary pressure arising from globalization of economy that helps developing countries, like China, India, etc., carry out industrialization and export cheap products of reasonable quality to the advanced countries.  The IT technology, consisting of advanced computers and the Internet, has contributed to this new Industrial Revolution in the world.  But, it is also posing deflationary pressure to the EU, the US, and Japan.

However, it is also interesting to see a trend of monetary base, since it tells that the central banks of the advanced countries have supplied a huge amount of money for the global market to cope with deflationary pressure that was however caused by the 2008 Financial Crisis (as a direct factor).  When the financial systems in the US and the EU became unable to function normally, its influence was clearly manifested in consumers' attitudes.  The demand shrank while strong supply potential remained intact.  Businesses faced bankruptcy.  To keep a certain level of demand and operation of businesses, the central banks had to take charge of financially supporting the money market and circulating funds in society.  It was a clear tug of war between deflation power and inflation inertia.    

http://therealasset.co.uk/monetary-tectonics/


Inflation continuing forever will surely destroy the global environment as it was feared in Japan in early 1990s before many Japanese factories moved to China.  But can mankind cleverly control deflation to make all the members of the human species happy if not so materially rich?

One thing certain is the technological innovations will continue forever.  There will be always strong supply capability.  GDP of the whole world will continue to grow for centuries ahead.  But, this economic scheme is not aimed at making all the peoples in the world rich.  It is still in the hand of super-rich people who don't mind poor and unhappy people at all.  Inflation and deflation can be still a result of strategies of those super-rich people who are always trying to make themselves richer despite any crisis of the world and the earth.

We have to continue to keep watching the trend.








*** *** *** ***



Act 11:5 I was in the city of Joppa praying: and in a trance I saw a vision, A certain vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came even to me:

"Go and shew John again those things" - Saladin

The Tokyo Station

Saladin

ISIS and AlQaeda should learn from a great Muslim leader in the 12th century: Saladin.

He was from a Kurdish family and was born in Tikrit, Mesopotamia; When he died, he was buried in Damascus.

Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb (Arabic: صلاح الدين يوسف بن أيوب‎; Kurdish: سه‌لاحه‌دین ئه‌یوبی , Selahedînê Eyûbî) (1137/1138 – 4 March 1193), better known in the Western world as Saladin, was the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria and the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. A Muslim of Kurdish[1][2][3] origin, Saladin led the Muslim opposition to the European Crusaders in the Levant. At the height of his power, his sultanate included Egypt, Syria, Mesopotamia, Hejaz, Yemen and other parts of North Africa.
...
Saladin achieved a great reputation in Europe as a chivalrous knight due to his fierce struggle against the crusaders and his prodigality. Although Saladin faded into history after the Middle Ages, he appears in a sympathetic light in Gotthold Ephraim Lessing's play Nathan the Wise (1779) and in Sir Walter Scott's novel The Talisman (1825). The contemporary view of Saladin originates mainly from these texts. According to Jonathan Riley-Smith, Scott's portrayal of Saladin was that of a "modern [19th Century] liberal European gentlemen, beside whom medieval Westerners would always have made a poor showing."[106] Despite the Crusaders' slaughter when they originally conquered Jerusalem in 1099, Saladin granted amnesty and free passage to all common Catholics and even to the defeated Christian army, as long as they were able to pay the aforementioned ransom (the Greek Orthodox Christians were treated even better, because they often opposed the western Crusaders). An interesting view of Saladin and the world in which he lived is provided by Tariq Ali's novel The Book of Saladin.[107]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saladin#Recognition_and_legacy 

While Saladin’s legacy is the retaking of Jerusalem, he is also well known for his generosity and compassion. While he was a military genius and a warrior with a cause, he believed that all people were inherently good, simply misguided. The Christian crusaders who fought against him in the battle to retake Jerusalem were treated with kindness and Saladin made sure to keep every promise made to the inhabitants of the city. He agreed to a treaty allowing Europeans to hold ports on the Palestinian coast and also allowed Christians the right o make pilgrimages to Jerusalem. This taking back of Jerusalem was final in the eyes of the Muslims, and while the crusades lasted another hundred years, the Christian fervor towards the holy city waned as the renaissance and economic growth began to spread through Europe (Setton 621).

http://www.inforefuge.com/the-life-history-of-saladin

However 800 years after Saladin's death, still the areas from the Kurdistan region to Tikrit, Syria, and Palestine are in bloody wars.  Something must be wrong in the Islamic world.

Anyway, Saladin was respected even by Dante who hated the founder of Islam:

When Dante Alighieri compiled his great medieval Who's Who of heroes and villains, the Divine Comedy, the highest a non-Christian could climb was Limbo. Ancient pagans had to be virtuous indeed to warrant inclusion: the residents included Homer, Caesar, Plato and Dante's guide, Vergil. But perhaps the most surprising entry in Dante's catalog of "great-hearted souls" was a figure "solitary, set apart."

That figure was Saladin. It is testament to his extraordinary stature in the Middle Ages that not only was Saladin the sole "modern" mentioned--he had been dead barely 100 years when Dante wrote--but also that a man who had...

http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,993030,00.html

Now what we can do might be just to hope that the Mausoleum of Saladin will not be damaged by any Muslim fighters and soldiers.

Saladin died of a fever on March 4, 1193, at Damascus, not long after King Richard I's departure. In Saladin’s possession at the time of his death were 1 piece of gold and 47 pieces of silver. He had given away his great wealth to his poor subjects leaving nothing to pay for his funeral.[3] The mausoleum was originally built by Saladin's son, Al-Afdal ibn Salah ad-Din. Saladin's body was interred temporarily at the Citadel of Damascus until the construction of the building was completed in 1196. The madrasah was built later by Saladin's other son, Al-Aziz Uthman.[1] The mausoleum was rebuilt in 1898 under the patronage of the German Emperor William II who financed the repairs after he visited Damascus and found the tomb in a state of disrepair.[4]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleum_of_Saladin

*** *** *** ***



Mat 11:4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see:

"Lord hath need of him"

The National Diet Bldg., Tokyo









*** *** *** ***


Mar 11:3 And if any man say unto you, Why do ye this? say ye that the Lord hath need of him; and straightway he will send him hither.

"Our Father which art in heaven" - Faith and Oil

Tokyo

Faith and Oil

One of interesting teachings by Christ Jesus is related to ten girls

Matthew 25:1-13New International Version (NIV)
The Parable of the Ten Virgins 

25 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6 “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
7 “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
9 “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
10 “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
11 “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
12 “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
13 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour. 

This is a very cruel parable.  Foolish girls are helpless, and nobody feels sympathy for them.  It is as if they were punished only because of their negligence.  How can the kingdom of heaven be so stern to people?  Can't it be more generous and tolerant?

But the lamp might be the human soul and oil might be faith.  And a soul without faith should be useless in the kingdom of heaven.  And, more gravely, you cannot borrow faith from others.

However, this situation of the ten young women might be related to a certain incident of the days when Christ Jesus was preaching.  He must have observed ten girls a half of whom had faith and another half had not.  Christ Jesus wanted to give a warning to them, without taking a harsh stance.  He meant that every girl was given the same lamp or the soul.  To fill it with oil is their responsibility.  They had to make an effort by themselves.  And an effort cannot be borrowed from others.  

Now I think that Christ Jesus must see three girls today: a Jewish girl, a Christian girl, and a Muslim girl.  Each has her own lamp.  But who has not oil?








*** *** *** ***




Luk 11:1 And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.
Luk 11:2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.

"in remembrance in the sight of God" - Who is a Jew and What is the Solution?

Around Tokyo

Who is a Jew and What is the Solution?

Now the mainstream religion in the world is Christianity in terms of success of material civilization and spiritual culture realized by believers of a religion.

So, it is very dangerous for anybody to be identified as an enemy of Christianity, since Christians have great weapons of material wealth and spiritual influences.

As everybody sees, there are two major groups of people who might face this danger: Jewish people and Muslims.  But Muslims are large in the number; there are 1.5 billion Muslims.  They can well cope with pressure from Christians whose number is 2.3 billion.  But there are only 15 million Judaists in the world.  Being Jewish or being identified as a Judaist can be so dangerous sometimes as having been observed in Europe in WWII.  If you are subjectively no more a Judaist, you could be still persecuted, provided that you were identified as such by others with power.

But who would be identified as Jewish by dangerous Christians?    

Who is a Jew?

The 2013 Pew Research study of American Jews found that 62% thought that being Jewish was mainly a matter of ancestry and culture, while 15% thought that it was mainly a matter of religion. Of those who stated themselves to be Jews by religion, 55% thought that being Jewish was mainly a matter of ancestry and culture, while two-thirds thought that it was not necessary to believe in God to be Jewish.

Israeli immigration laws will accept an application for Israeli citizenship if there is proven documentation that any grandparent—not just the maternal grandmother—was Jewish. This does not mean that person is an "ethnic Jew", but Israeli immigration will accept that person because he or she has an ethnically Jewish connection, and because this same degree of connection was sufficient to be persecuted as a Jew by the Nazis. See Jewish ethnic divisions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_is_a_Jew%3F#Jews_who_have_practiced_another_religion

In the past, many Jewish people living in the Iberian Peninsula were forced to convert to Christianity by Spanish and Portuguese Christians around 1490 or when the era of Columbus started.  Otherwise, they were forced to leave Spain or Portugal.  But, most of these converts were not trusted ant put into the Inquisition.

At this stage of history, it seems that conversion cannot be a solution to a question on how Jewish people could secure safety if they have to resort to any means to save themselves from evil Christians such as Hitler.

Probably, the solution is for people of any religion to study harder religions, including their own religion and others' religions.

The more you learn Christianity, for example, the more you don't like to make Judaists suffer for the only reason that they are Judaists.





*** *** *** ***


Act 10:31 And said, Cornelius, thy prayer is heard, and thine alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God.

"the very hairs of your head" - The Most Influential Judaists of Today

Tokyo

The Most Influential Judaists of Today

Who are the most influential Judaists of today chosen by Israelis?

The Jerusalem Post's  Top 50 Most Influential Jews of 2014  list:
1. Jack Lew
2. Janet Yellen
3. Binyamin Netanyahu
4. Shimon Peres
5. Sheldon Adelson
6 Malcolm Hoenlein
7. Avigdor Liberman
8. Adina Bar-Shalom
9. Yair Lapid
10. Naftali Bennett 

http://www.jpost.com/Jewish-World/Jewish-Features/The-Jerusalem-Posts-top-50-most-influential-Jews-of-2014-355215

JACK LEW is the most powerful Jew in the US administration, the world’s top superpower. Formerly President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, his current post of secretary of the Treasury puts him in one of the key jobs in the executive cabinet: proctoring economic recovery, forecasting future debt, and managing a complex infrastructure of international sanctions. The Treasury, not the Pentagon, would be responsible for the weapon of choice used by Obama against a nuclear Iran, and Lew has been central in shaping the policy.

JANET YELLEN made history this year when she became the first woman ever appointed chair of the US Federal Reserve. This made her one of the most influential people in the world, and arguably the most influential woman.
She was voted No. 2 on Forbes’s list of The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women this year.

Binyamin Netanyahu, Prime minister of Israel
BY THE very nature of the position, the prime minister of Israel – regardless of who occupies that office at any given time – must be high atop any list of the world’s most influential Jews.


Shimon Peres , President of Israel
ANYONE WHO thinks that after July 26, when his seven- year term as president expires, Shimon Peres will fade into oblivion is greatly mistaken. Let it not be forgotten that he is the country’s only president who was also prime minister and vice president of the Socialist International.

Sheldon Adelson, CEO and owner of Sands Hotel and Casino, philanthropist
A TENDENCY towards entrepreneurship was already evident when Sheldon Adelson, chairman of the board, CEO and principal owner of the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, was still a boy in his native Boston. He was only 12 years old when he first went into business by borrowing $200 from his uncle to buy a license to sell newspapers.

Malcolm Hoenlein, Vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations
A NUMBER of poky rooms in the back of the Jewish Agency’s New York office on Manhattan’s East Side appear to suffice for the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations and its longtime president.

Avigdor Liberman, Foreign minister of Israel
WHAT A year it has been for Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman. He was acquitted on charges of corruption, ending a legal saga that stretched for nearly 17 years.

Adina Bar-Shalom. Founder of the Haredi College for Women
ADINA BAR-SHALOM is not a radical revolutionary. But since the death of her father Rabbi Ovadia Yosef – the leader of the Shas party – last October, the 69-year-old Tel Aviv mother of three has been increasingly daring, at least according to the standards of the ultra-Orthodox community into which she was born.

Yair Lapid, Finance minister of Israel
LAST YEAR, Finance Minister Yair Lapid topped this list.
He was chosen because he had rocketed his way to the top of the Israeli consciousness and redefined the country’s priorities away from security concerns and toward domestic issues, galvanizing an otherwise splintered Center bloc.

Naftali Bennett, Economy minister of Israel
WHENEVER BAYIT Yehudi leader Naftali Bennett was asked about the Palestinian conflict during the election campaign, he gave a short answer and tried to change the subject to what he really cared about.

http://www.jpost.com/Jewish-World/Jewish-Features/The-50-most-influential-Jews-of-2014-1-10-355218

It seems that Judaists or Israelis regard at least part of America, from Las Vegas to Washington DC, as an extension of Israel, though Israel must be destined to be part of the US and finally abandoned.




*** *** *** ***


Mat 10:30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

"for my sake, and the gospel's" - Who Instead of Judaists?

The Tokyo Station

Who Instead of Judaists?

This great era that started with the emergence of Christ Jesus should end with a final solution of difficult relationships between Judaists and Christians and , probably, those between Judaists/Christians and Muslims.

Persecution of Jews has occurred on many occasions and at widely different geographical locations. Persecution has been a major part of Jewish history, and it has affected the history and social development of the countries and societies in which the persecution occurred. Europe and the Middle East have been chief areas of persecution throughout the ages.

In the Middle Ages Antisemitism in Europe was religious. Though not part of Roman Catholic dogma, many Christians, including members of the clergy, have held the Jewish people collectively responsible for killing Jesus, a practice originated by Melito of Sardis. As stated in the Boston College Guide to Passion Plays, "Over the course of time, Christians began to accept … that the Jewish people as a whole were responsible for killing Jesus. According to this interpretation, both the Jews present at Jesus Christ's death and the Jewish people collectively and for all time, have committed the sin of deicide, or "god-killing". For 1900 years of Christian-Jewish history, the charge of deicide has led to hatred, violence against and murder of Jews in Europe and America."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Jews

However, along with prevalence of non-religious material civilization and modern culture, more and more Europeans, Americans, and other peoples seem to lose their adherence to religion.  Accordingly, only money counts but not religions.  If somebody is rich, nobody seems to care about what religion he believes.  But can it be a true solution to the inherently difficult relationships between Judaists and Christians.

Anyway, we have come to a point in history where such a solutions is requested by God, but we seem to forget even our religions.  Outwardly, the situation might look as if there were no such a problem of the difficult relationships, but probably we cannot enter a true new era if we cannot solve it definitely once and for all.

Today, no Jewish people are persecuted in Europe, America, or any part of the world only because they are Judaists.  But, has mankind truly and honestly conquered this most difficult problem in these 2000 years?

If not, the majority of people might start to find another scapegoat instead of Judaists.





*** *** *** ***



Mar 10:28 Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee.
Mar 10:29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's,

Mar 10:30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

"this do, and thou shalt live" - The Bible vs. Witch-Hunts

Around Tokyo

The Bible vs. Witch-Hunts

The most critical incident immediately before the era of Columbus and Martin Luther was intensification of witch-hunt movement, though witch hunts continued to the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries even in Protestant countries.

 In 1484, in the Late Middle Ages, Pope Innocent VIII issued Summis desiderantes affectibus, a Papal bull authorizing the "correcting, imprisoning, punishing and chastising" of devil-worshippers who have "slain infants", among other crimes. He did so at the request of two inquisitors, Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger, members of the Dominican Order, who had been refused permission by the local bishops in Germany to investigate.

(In 1487 Pope Innocent VIII endorsed the Malleus Maleficarum [the 'Hammer against the Witches']. It accused women of destroying men by planting bitter herbs throughout the field.)

In 1487, Kramer and Sprenger published the notorious Malleus Maleficarum (the 'Hammer against the Witches') which, because of the newly invented printing presses, enjoyed a wide readership. The book was soon banned by the Church in 1490, and Kramer and Sprenger censured, but it was nevertheless reprinted in 14 editions by 1520 and became unduly influential in the secular courts. In 1538 the Spanish Inquisition cautioned its members not to believe what the Malleus said, even when it presented apparently firm evidence.[25]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch-hunt

The reason why witch hunts ceased to be exercised in Europe around the 17th century is not clear.  No Popes, no kings, or no revolutionary leaders in Europe delivered a strong request or order to stop witch hunting, but it gradually vanished from the European society.

Probably, it must have been wider circulation of the printed Bibles. With the invention of letterpress printing machine, many copies of the Bibles were made available in Europe since Gutenberg printed the New and Old Testaments in 1455.

The Bible defeated Satan who drove people to witch hunts, eventually.

Then, what did the Koran defeat?

*** *** *** ***



Luk 10:26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?
Luk 10:27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.
Luk 10:28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.
Luk 10:29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?

"found many that were come together" - A Story at a Tomb around Jerusalem

Around Tokyo

A Story at a Tomb around Jerusalem

I can interpret the Resurrection of Christ Jesus in the following way.

Prior to his arrest by Roman soldiers in the night when Judas Iscariot betrayed Him, in a mountain Christ Jesus met one of His brothers and a Roman officer to plan and make arrangements about His Resurrection.

Then at the Crucifixion, a Roman soldier who had come to believe in Christ Jesus pretended to be a cool executor of the crucifixion prevented other soldiers from harming the body of Christ Jesus fatally, but let women who followed Christ Jesus take His body in a state of apparent death.

The women wrapped the body of Christ Jesus in a big shroud a rich old Israelite provided.  They carried His wrapped body into a tomb while armed guards were watching as Jewish priests asked the Roman authority.

And in the night of the next day when new guards took over, they rolled the rock that blocked the entrance to the tomb and let the brother of Christ Jesus come into the tomb chamber to help Him revive and get out of the tomb.  Then they set the rock again at the entrance.  And, in the second day, new guards took a turn.

In the early morning of the third day, Christ Jesus and His brother performed something astonishing to the guards who then fell in.a faint.  They together rolled the rock to the side so that some women, expected to come soon, could enter the tomb easily.  They also checked the shroud with an image of Christ Jesus mysteriously imprinted there and waited for His followers to come.  When the female followers of Christ Jesus came to the tomb, they saw Christ Jesus and His brother who looked like wearing snow white clothes like angels.

In this way, the miracle of the Resurrection was completed with love, faith, and cooperation of a brother of Christ Jesus who loved his brother so much and a certain Roman officer and soldiers who believed in Christ Jesus so enthusiastically.

Nonetheless, you may think that simply a miracle happened in the tomb and the rock rolled off its entrance by itself through the power of Christ Jesus.

But, as betrayal looked like so common in those days, one Roman office must have betrayed the Roman authority and anti-Christ Jewish priests to balance with the betrayal of Judas.




*** *** *** ***



Act 10:25 And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him.
Act 10:26 But Peter took him up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man.
Act 10:27 And as he talked with him, he went in, and found many that were come together.
Act 10:28 And he said unto them, Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean.

" because ye are not of my sheep" - Jesus' Miracle on Lazarus

 Sagami Bay on the Pacific, Japan

Jesus' Miracle on Lazarus

Without the descriptions about miracles Christ Jesus performed, the Gospel might be very short and simple.

A List of All The Miracles of Jesus 

Control of Nature
1. Calming the storm – Matthew 8:23-27; Mark 4:37-41; Luke 8:22-25
2. Feeding 5,000 - Matthew 14:14-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-14
3. Walking on water - Matthew 14:22-32; Mark 6:47-52; John 6:16-21
4. Feeding 4,000 – Matthew 15:32-39; Mark 8:1-9
5. Fish with coin – Matthew 17:24-27
6. Fig tree withers – Matthew 21:18-22; Mark 11:12-14, 20-25
7. Huge catch of fish – Luke 5:4-11; John 21:1-11
8. Water into wine – John 2:1-11 

Healing of Individuals
1. Man with leprosy – Matthew 8:1-4; Mark 1:40-44; Luke 5:12-14
2. Roman centurion’s servant – Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10
3. Peter’s mother-in-law – Matthew 8:14-15; Mark 1:30-31; Luke 4:38-39
4. Two men possessed with devils – Matthew 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-15; Luke 8:27-39
5. Man with palsy – Matthew 9:2-7; Mark 2:3-12; Luke 5:18-26
6. Woman with bleeding – Matthew 9:20-22; Mark 5:25-34; Luke 8:43-48
7. Two blind men – Matthew 9:27-31
8. Dumb, devil-possessed man - Matthew 9:32-33
9. Canaanite woman’s daughter – Matthew 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30
10. Boy with devil - Matthew 17:14-21; Mark 9:17-29; Luke 9:38-43
11. Two blind men – including Bartimaeus - Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; 

Luke 18:35-43
12. Demon-possessed man in synagogue – Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37
13. Blind man at Bethsaida – Mark 8:22-26
14. Crippled woman – Luke 13:10-17
15. Man with dropsy – Luke 14:1-4
16. Ten men with leprosy – Luke 17:11-19
17. The high priest’s servant – Luke 22:50-51
18. Nobleman’s son at Capernaum – John 4:46-54
9. Sick man at the pool of Bethsaida – John 5:1-15
20. Man born blind – John 9:1-41 

Raising the Dead
1. Jairus’ daughter – Matthew 9:18-26; Mark 5:21-43; Luke 8:40-56
2. Widow’s son at Nain – Luke 7:11-17
3. Lazarus – John 11:1-44

http://www.sharefaith.com/guide/christian-ministries/ministry-of-jesus/miracles-of-jesus/miracles-of-jesus---the-list.html

Except the Resurrection, the most powerful miracle is the rise of Lazarus.

Can the miracles of Jesus be explained naturally?  It is certainly possible that some might be explained with non-divine answers, but can all of them? 

Jesus raised the dead (Matt. 9:25; John 11:43-44). 

Those who were dead really only appeared to be dead--given that the people of the time were not aware of many of the medical intricacies that can lead to people looking dead when they were not really dead.  

This explanation is certainly possible, but is it really that likely?  People in ancient times were far more familiar with death than we are.  Our people die in hospitals away from the families.  Undoubtedly, we are less familiar with death then they were.  It is more probable that they knew when people were actually dead, especially since the dead were left in stasis for several days as they were washed and prepared for burial. 

The John 11 account of Lazarus' resurrection.

http://carm.org/questions/about-jesus/cant-all-jesus-miracles-be-explained-naturally

I think it was true that Lazarus had been dead already before Christ Jesus came to the tomb where Lazarus was laid down.  But how did this miracle of reviving Lazarus worked physically?  Did all the atomic elements and molecules that made Lazarus' body start to move along with the voice of Christ Jesus to the states they had been in when Lazarus was alive? Maybe.

But more simply, I think that time flew in a reversed manner inside Lazarus.  So, from the time when he was dead to the time when he was alive, the time tracked back.  After he became alive again, the time started to flow ordinarily.

Otherwise, somebody wanted to kill Lazarus.  And while Lazarus was alive, that somebody pronounced Lazarus dead.  But Christ Jesus could see the evil scheme.  He only called Lazarus making him realize that he was not dead in the darkness of death but simply in the darkness of the tomb.  Christ Jesus saved Lazarus from the fatal intrigue.

 

 



*** *** ***



Joh 10:25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.
Joh 10:26 But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.
Joh 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

"for the disciple that he be as his master"

Pacific Coast Line Southwest of Tokyo








*** *** *** ***


Mat 10:24 The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.
Mat 10:25 It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?
Mat 10:26 Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.