tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.comments2023-09-28T09:51:52.078-04:00First ThoughtsBill Shiellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12801877602798105280noreply@blogger.comBlogger69125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-37047205273215132682013-01-06T16:16:36.184-05:002013-01-06T16:16:36.184-05:00I'm glad someone is reading this.... Ha Ha. Th...I'm glad someone is reading this.... Ha Ha. Thanks for the feedback.<br />Bill Shiellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12801877602798105280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-29775763192983192982013-01-06T06:54:48.354-05:002013-01-06T06:54:48.354-05:00Bill, you go for months posting nothing on First T...Bill, you go for months posting nothing on First Thoughts, then all of a sudden these deep, thought-provoking posts come so fast, I hardly have time to digest them before another appears! I've already learned a lot about Ezekial, but especially need some time to ponder that last sentence in this post. Letting go is something I'm not very good at. Sharon (Brewer)Sharonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09408463925646609263noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-19847522173556527502012-02-21T16:09:09.134-05:002012-02-21T16:09:09.134-05:00Bill -
I was recently in a stau from Kaiserslaut...Bill -<br /><br />I was recently in a stau from Kaiserslautern to Garmisch with the girls on the way to go camping. 6 hours later -- after watching people cook, walk their dogs, etc. -- we started moving again. I feel your pain! Hope all is well in Knoxville!<br /><br />John PrinceJohnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03246383933387648913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-83120648396154037702012-02-21T12:54:10.620-05:002012-02-21T12:54:10.620-05:00This seems to happen to us every time we try to sk...This seems to happen to us every time we try to ski nearby. We have a Cataloochee story as well. Great memories for sure. Thanks for the commentsBill Shiellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12801877602798105280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-25589029549440122982012-02-21T11:58:09.884-05:002012-02-21T11:58:09.884-05:00Life's unexpected turns. I think there is fodd...Life's unexpected turns. I think there is fodder there for a sermon or two.....can't wait to hear them :)<br /><br />Bill BrewerMr. Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17539561816810864705noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-36909145133703865632012-02-21T11:54:17.919-05:002012-02-21T11:54:17.919-05:00Bill, it's those awesomely planned trips that ...Bill, it's those awesomely planned trips that always seem to go haywire. Glad you and the family are okay!Alanhttp://alanrudnick.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-21615518446129747002010-11-27T19:39:53.922-05:002010-11-27T19:39:53.922-05:00Thank you Bill for sharing the oh so important wor...Thank you Bill for sharing the oh so important words....to look, listen and anticipate the Christ child's coming! May all of our heats prepare to receive the King of Kings again and in new ways we never imagined! Merry ChristmasGreg Gibsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01277046271400030509noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-37734105973143139262010-02-02T09:37:08.191-05:002010-02-02T09:37:08.191-05:00Bummer. I would like to watch the video, but YouT...Bummer. I would like to watch the video, but YouTube has removed it from their site due to a "terms of use" violation.Bartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-36030507611773477332010-01-07T02:38:46.167-05:002010-01-07T02:38:46.167-05:00"Historical Jesus"???
While scholars de..."Historical Jesus"???<br /><br />While scholars debate the provenance of the original accounts upon which the earliest extant (4th century, even fragments are post-135 C.E.), Roman gentile, Hellenist-redacted versions were based, there is not one fragment, not even one letter of the NT that derives DIRECTLY from the 1st-century Pharisee Jews who followed the Pharisee Ribi Yehoshua.<br /><br />Historians like the eminent late Oxford scholar, James Parkes (The Conflict of the Church and the Synagogue) have demonstrated incontestably that 4th-century Roman Christianity was the 180° polar antithesis of 1st-century Judaism of ALL Pharisee Ribis. The earliest (post-135 C.E.) true Christians were viciously antinomian (ANTI-Torah), claiming to supersede and displace Torah, Judaism and ("spiritual) Israel and Jews. In soberest terms, ORIGINAL Christianity was anti-Torah from the start while DSS (viz., 4Q MMT) and ALL other Judaic documentation PROVE that ALL 1st-century Pharisees were PRO-Torah.<br /><br />There is a mountain of historical Judaic information Christians have refused to deal with, at:<br />www.netzarim.co.il<br /><br />Original Christianity = ANTI-Torah. Ribi Yehoshua and his Netzarim, like all other Pharisees, were PRO-Torah. Intractable contradiction.<br /><br />Building a Roman image from Hellenist hearsay accounts, decades after the death of the 1st-century Pharisee Ribi, and after a forcible ouster, by Hellenist Roman gentiles, of his original Jewish followers (135 C.E., documented by Eusebius), based on writings of a Hellenist Jew excised as an apostate by the original Jewish followers (documented by Eusebius) is circular reasoning through gentile-Roman Hellenist lenses.<br /><br />What the historical Pharisee Ribi taught is found not in the hearsay accounts of post-135 C.E. Hellenist Romans but, rather, in the Judaic descriptions of Pharisees and Pharisee Ribis of the period... in Dead Sea Scroll 4Q MMT (see Prof. Elisha Qimron), inter alia.<br /><br />"Historical Jesus" is an intractable oxymoron.<br /><br />The question is, will you follow the authentic historical Ribi or the post-135 C.E. Roman-redacted antithesis?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-19699918489829088072009-11-23T10:30:45.539-05:002009-11-23T10:30:45.539-05:00Great ideas! Thanks for the Salvation Army plug!Great ideas! Thanks for the Salvation Army plug!Jonathan Haskellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18335427908212814976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-74863790457371520012009-11-01T17:21:42.017-05:002009-11-01T17:21:42.017-05:00I appreciated Parker's initiative and positve ...I appreciated Parker's initiative and positve approach. Worthy of the FBI one day.Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17022472530989145255noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-45556322084951695122009-10-19T11:04:51.048-04:002009-10-19T11:04:51.048-04:00Bill, what a story! There are so many themes: fa...Bill, what a story! There are so many themes: faithfulness, searching, reaching, finding, knowing, discovering, missing, longing, pieces being reunited, surprises, and the fully human and fully God in it all. Thank you for allowing us to share a bit in this wonderful day and the days to come. We welcome David and his family to your extended faith family and friends and look forward to help bring him "home". Have a great day! SandySandynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-79331977029899759282009-08-10T18:39:10.989-04:002009-08-10T18:39:10.989-04:00Great article! I think it's great that we can ...Great article! I think it's great that we can all worship God in accordance with the faith of our fathers. I only wish there was more worshiping going on these days.Rob Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01064968260608237766noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-15876296406712036902009-07-31T13:46:10.766-04:002009-07-31T13:46:10.766-04:00Very well written and concise points about how rel...Very well written and concise points about how religious liberty benefits the church.<br /><br />I would like to offer one suggestion. You may want to change, "partisan pressures and public financing throughout the continent" in paragraph six to read, "partisan pressures and public financing throughout the island". Since the example is Ireland, shouldn't the conclusion reflect the example of Ireland rather than perhaps unintentionally extrapolating it to the entire continent of Europe? I am of course assuming that the word continent is referring to the continent of Europe.<br /><br />Also, sorry I've not been attending the past several weeks. I keep having weekend "errands" that take me back to my hometown of Clarksville. Hopefully, this weekend will be the last one for awhile. Nothing major or serious, I've just ended up driving home every weekend for the entire month of July.Robin's Nesthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12928064186448773331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-82786443686322218192009-03-13T19:28:00.000-04:002009-03-13T19:28:00.000-04:00Great points, preacher Bill. Big ideas, as I have...Great points, preacher Bill. Big ideas, as I have found, come with big, statue-quo advocates, agendas, and fights that few are willing to take on. I will grab my pitchfork and march up the hill with you and anyone who has a truly meaningful cause to pursue. The future of our communities, state, and nation certainly fits the bill. Let's roll.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for putting great thoughts to blog,<BR/>Brad HillAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-20800952843045567982008-09-27T14:46:00.000-04:002008-09-27T14:46:00.000-04:00Thank you for writing that article. My other sist...Thank you for writing that article. My other sister and I have worried so much about our sister, Linda Lee being struck dead so suddenly without being able to reconsider humanism. She was such a good and loving person. I think she spent her life searching for religious truth. She spent a lot of time researching Doestoevsky, who dedicated his life to the same search. Her other sister and I have been praying that God sent one of his angels to her. <BR/><BR/>Her involvement in the Unitarian fellowship worried us so much.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-11892392971573011622008-08-01T03:16:00.000-04:002008-08-01T03:16:00.000-04:00Thank you pastor. It is a comfort to hear words of...Thank you pastor. It is a comfort to hear words of unity, caring and comfort. I'm a UU who live on the other side of the country from Knoxville, but this has affected me deeply. <BR/><BR/>Your message was especially welcome, as I had just come from reading a set of comments on another site that included, "Jesus is the ONLY way and the Unitarian Church is a satanic cult. That unitarian church, in particular, promoted homosexual rights and founded a chapter of the ACLU. Those two people killed are both in Hell. (http://scaredmonkeys.com/2008/07/28/gun-fire-at-the-tennessee-valley-unitarian-universalist-church-in-knoxville-tn-2-killed).<BR/><BR/>Even if someone believes this, as this writer obviously does, I would prefer to think now should be a time of caring for the families and communities of the victims, not reminding them that their loved ones are in hell.<BR/><BR/>Which makes me even more appreciative of your words, and your heart. Blessings for you and your congregation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-33700228330102171602008-07-30T23:45:00.000-04:002008-07-30T23:45:00.000-04:00Thank you pastor. I'm a Unitarian from another st...Thank you pastor. I'm a Unitarian from another state, but all of us are shocked and pained by the horrible events. Some of us have assumed that some might imply that the UU's somehow deserved this violence by not accepting traditional theology. Your words remind and reassure us that true faith calls us to love the holy and one another despite the differences between us. Thank you for showing the love and compassion Jesus lived and died for. Blessings to you and your congregation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-75231282805509831462008-07-29T17:05:00.000-04:002008-07-29T17:05:00.000-04:00My prayer for the transformation of this tragedy i...My prayer for the transformation of this tragedy is that it will become something much bigger and greater and filled with love of each other that will dispel the darkness and hatred that filled Jim Adkisson. I, for one, really appreciate your asking for us to pay attention to those amongst us who "keep to themselves", because they may be issuing a silent, desperate plea through their silence. <BR/><BR/>Thank you for the wisdom and comfort you share through your ministry. I'm subscribing to your blog as of today. <BR/><BR/>May God bless and keep you.<BR/><BR/>SuzanneAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-38677736570251919872008-07-29T14:32:00.000-04:002008-07-29T14:32:00.000-04:00I was sad to learn of the shootings while in NM on...I was sad to learn of the shootings while in NM on vacation. What a clear opportunity to minister to the members UUC. Our son attends high school with a member of the UUC. Please pray for her(Molly)and her family. I do not know the condition of Molly and her family's souls. I am praying and hopeful that our son will have the opportunity to share his faith with Molly and other classmates through his behavior and words.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-4508259913957017812008-07-28T15:06:00.000-04:002008-07-28T15:06:00.000-04:00The people I have spoken to from the UU church are...The people I have spoken to from the UU church are heartbroken. . .<BR/>This is a time that we can all come together as a community and share Christ's love with those who are hurting.<BR/>Pray for the children<BR/>God bless!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-81977602050898532042008-07-22T21:56:00.000-04:002008-07-22T21:56:00.000-04:00I have found that the best place in the world to m...I have found that the best place in the world to minister to the missing is in a casino. So very many times the person sitting next to me starts pouring out their heart. Casinos are an "escape from reality" for a lot of people. I almost always let the other person start a conversation. That way I know what is on their mind. For example, one lady asked where I was from. I told her then asked where she was from. She had come from Florida, she said, to get away from the stress her granddaughter was causing her. She was having to raise her because of serious problems her daughter was having. She then talked about all those issues. She finally said, "I don't know what to do!" I talked with her for a long time about some of the issues with her granddaughter and how she could resolve some of the problems and how she could fully trust the Lord for guidance and wisdom. This is just one example of very many situations I have encountered in casinos throughout the country. Most of these people are not going to go to church to seek help, but they will trust the advice of a stranger sitting next to them. Even limo and taxi drivers in Las Vegas are so receptive of any word of guidance. By the time you get from the airport to the Strip, you know their life story. I may get excommunicated before I join the church, but I fully believe God is sending his people into the harvest. They are not coming to us. There are lots and lots of ministers and pastors in casinos these days. God has them there for a reason. We don't preach to them, we are just there for them. I would not dare question the wisdom of posting this, but I feel strongly about that we are going to have to go into the highways and byways to find the missing. I would certainly not recommend this type of ministry to people who are not strong in their faith.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16953565058615794368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-25435249975758351402008-07-09T17:57:00.000-04:002008-07-09T17:57:00.000-04:00Pastor Shiell,Thank you for making a difference. ...Pastor Shiell,<BR/>Thank you for making a difference. I'm encourage by your words and dedication to helping kids. <BR/><BR/>Looking forward to meeting you soon.<BR/><BR/>Blessings,<BR/>Sergio A. RamosAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-47859482918778864972008-05-26T20:44:00.000-04:002008-05-26T20:44:00.000-04:00Now I know why you went to St. Petersburg! Loved t...Now I know why you went to St. Petersburg! Loved the later posts about worship yesterday.<BR/>TEkklesia Cristiana Internacionalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11774602648284142891noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19461651.post-39093927638645443102008-05-25T11:09:00.000-04:002008-05-25T11:09:00.000-04:00I would do well in Russia!I would do well in Russia!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com