PRESENTATION
Welcome
to my site "Desert Road", in search of the Truth about the Creator. I
do not wish to create a new religious organization, but simply to share
my faith in the Lord who gives a meaning to life, an explanation to our
presence in this world. I do not claim to hold the absolute truth, but
I run tirelessly in the desert to get as close as possible to it.
Let us come out of our tent planted in the sand to walk in the
footprints of the Lord. Believing readers, skeptical or non-believing
(i.e. who don't believe in anything, at random, in Mother Nature, only
in "what they see"...etc) may perhaps be able to question their
convictions by browsing through the few themes developed on this site.
Walking in the desert, we can face different obstacles such as heat, thirst, fatigue, hunger, sandstorms, scorpions, disorientation, anguish, despair. On the other hand, we can find the refreshing water of the oases, calm, peace, hope, the beauty of an arched sky full of beautiful stars, serenity and joy in the company of the friend of the desert who guides our steps. In everyday life, we live some of its aspects, we evolve in a desert trying to follow the best path.
We
all grow individually through
the stages of life (baby,
childhood, adolescence, adult, senior)
with the help of people more mature than us in our environment,
parents, teachers, friends participate in our natural growth. At the
same time, from a collective
point of view, Man has been growing through successive periods of
History (Paleolithic,
Mesolithic, Neolithic, Copper Bronze Iron Ages up to now)
since the beginning of humanity. We can assume that this collective
evolution is also developing thanks to the presence of a more
intelligent identity that transforms us, in the same way as our
evolution taken individually, when we are generated by our parents. The
first generations of men on earth, like children, learned to write, to
name objects, to live with others, to distinguish between what is good
and bad. The symbolic teaching of the book of Genesis concerning the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil is the symbol of the evolution
of Man.
The Hebrew word "adam" is taken
from the word "earth" and refers to "the human of the earth (man +
woman) or mankind", we are
"adam", representing the human race.
This word does not only refer to the existence of one and only one
ancestor of Israel named "Adam", it is a popular interpretation which
is false, we will speak about it again.
On the site "Desert path", we will search for the truth about our
hypothetical Creator. In spite of the wind that covers the sand
footprints, a sun that burns and dazzles, clouds that prevent the moon
from giving us enough light at night, we will try to take small steps
in the spiritual desert of the Lord. Man's behavior, wars against the
backdrop of legend and religion, philosophical ideas that appeared
during the Age of Enlightenment veil us from the existence of the
Creator, these things do not make us want to believe in him. Yet, many
men still believe that the Creator exists, a being who would be the
Father of creation. For them, as for me, the Creator is alive, and this
thought that turns to him will not die out. Man has left the imprints
of his spiritual thoughts in caves, on stones, monuments, in papyrus
and books, showing that they have long been thinking about the
existence of "God". It would manifest itself more concretely through an
inspiration from the water of the scriptures:
Isaiah 41:18 I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
The human being is naturally inclined to think about a creator, all kinds of cultures and ages. We come from the elements of the earth in the same way as animals, but we have this intelligent mind in the image of God which attract us unto the creator. By our imagination, we created many beliefs in gods which are not always a good acts for our neighbour through illogical habits. The fruits of our evil thoughts product human or beasts sacrifices to satisfy the pleasure of gods, murders, kamikazes, sexual debauchery, disease, territorial wars. Sometimes we use the name of "God" for these beliefs which are not reasonable, we have to correct ourself to seek the Eternal's moral that he explains by his words. It may take a longtime to change the tradition, hence the importance of listening and the education.
The creator that I call "Eternal" gave us simple instructions to think with intelligence, we practice them through the free will for the love and good must be manifested in Freedom. We have the power to make a good or bad future, it depends on our thoughts and actions. We don't need to be religious to think about a creator, I was born in a non- religious family and not much interested in "God", but I was wondering during my childhood if there were one or more beings who were at the origin of our world, before being influenced by our Judeo-Christian culture. Cro- Magnon, a farmer, a scientist, an Indian, Mexican or Chinese can think "God" without being influenced by traditions or cultures too, for the creator wants men think of him, believer or not. We can read in the Bible:
Ecclesiast 3:11 He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.
Our faith is influenced by our knowledge and our culture. It is true that not everything is acceptable and good to digest, let’s check what is right and logical, updating our knowledge and approaching the truth. Our ideas and our teaching must be dissected as the fish we eat in our plates. During the times, we have often re-evaluated our knowledge, we must continue to advance toward the truth. The earth is not flat and the sun does not revolve around it (some cultures already knew that before ours), the solar system has not nine planets, was Einstein right to teach a static universe? Christopher Columbus is perhaps not the first to discover America. In the same line, archaeological sites demonstrate some errors taught at schools, for example, the archaeological site of "Gobekli Tepe" in the Middle East shows that the man was already advanced spiritually (temples) and mastered the pottery very well before the dates proposed by the classical scheme of the school. Again, the pyramids of Egypt or the huge stone blocks located in Peru at Sacsayhuaman or Stonehedge in England are interesting about the incredible competence of these ancient civilizations, we are unable to reproduce what they made some thousands of years ago. Science is a general model of precision and reflection in the education, but it is not infallible.
Some people think that an animal ancestor became a man animal by coincidence, scientists will be able to make all the kinds of experimentations, the monkeys won't change into man by adaptation (Darwin evolution). If Monkeys can't speak and loose two chromosomes and a tail with an intelligent man next to them, how can we say their ancestor did that alone? I don't deny adaptation and evolution, I just say that the creator is the solution to explain the different species, he modify a body or DNA through death and birth of creatures.
I confess that it is more rational for me to believe that a cell receives a specific information from a creator with a view to form a creature according to its kind. Cells are programmed, they receive an information from someone. For example, the observation of an embryonic cell inside a woman could go through the tadpole stage or another animal like the monkey at the very beginning of its development, but it will preserve an initial objective to design a human being by means of the information sent from the creator. In the book of Genesis, we read what says the science: "let the waters bring forth the creeping creature having life". It is a bit the same thing in the belly of women, the cell could become any creature in the water pocket, but it keep the aim to make a man. Later, species evolve in an outdoors environment which modify them (smaller, stronger, different colours, strong jaw of carnivora, brain bigger...), but we do not necessarily require to think that we jump from one species to an other during millions of years. We can be created according to specific genres, just as the story of the book of Genesis about the creation.
Dear readers, no matter what we believe at the moment, we definitely have good reasons to ask questions about the existence of the Eternal, just watching our galaxy and the universal laws , the planets, the human body (eyes, reproductive organs ...), fruits and vegetables. We all ask questions about "god", before deciding whether he exists or not:
* Who could have created in the chaos a tremendous energy that contained all the material to form our universe and men, according to the Big Bang theory? Who has ever seen a house build at random (walls, roof, fireplace, floors)? Is the universe eternal ? Is the universe can renew itself? How? Could our body be renewed by the will of the Eternal? Are we really alone in the universe?
* Why can’t I see God? Is he really exist? If we see him, would we change our bad thoughts or would we return in the same state later? But don’t we see fittingly his image when we meet good people?
* Evolution, Darwinism, Creationism? Why always opposed its words if we evolute in a creation? Isn't there a bit of truth and falsehood in?
Why does the suffering exist in this world? Why was a child born handicapped? Is the fault of a god or are we guilty? Are we guilty to let people dying in the others countries? Is not the human fruits? Who will repent?
* What will it happen after death? Do you know the testimonies of NDE (near death experience)? Is it serious and why are they similar?
* Will there be an end of humanity? If yes, some of us will survive by election (those who make the good) or by an adaptation? And if God is alive, why would he not return into life those he loves, for he is able to create or recreate indefinitely a land of life? A father or a son keep the people they have loved in the memory, why not the Eternal?
In prehistoric times (time before the invention of the writing), men painted inside the caves what they were living or imagining in everyday life. We can’t think they were less intelligent than us because they had not yet invented the writing or the atomic bomb, they were just in the beginning of our evolution.
The invention of the writing is the reproduction of our knowledge, our speech, our thoughts and our beliefs transmit on a material. When a long oral transmission precedes a written usage, the message is likely to be altered, but the fundamentally idea remains true. We know today what might have been said the Greeks and Romans, wise Tibetans, Chinese emperors, kings and we have kept some legends and myths. Some stories are not totally fictional, modifications or embellishments have been borne about a real event happened (e.g the story of Hercules, Alexander the Great, Joan of Arc...etc). In relation with the Bible, consider the famous flood, surprisingly, we find it in different cultures: Mesopotamian , Persian , Greek , Roman, Hinduism , Maya, Asian. The texts are displayed as having a historical framework, but the coating on the circumstances are maybe more figurative. His people were not all in contact with each other and they have kept the memory of a flood! The assumption that his people met to invent a similar event is still unlikely. Unless the disaster occurred early in the cradle of humanity, "the whole earth" was a part of the terrestrial glob known of these early humans (Mesopotamia / Africa...).
The Bible is a rich book in parables, historical and theological texts. It has kept an importance for many scientists, theologians and archaeologists. It contents is quite surprising for the time where it was written. It is one of the most read books in the world which can answer many questions about our existence. However, we must keep a critical mind in our reading for the texts do not fall down from the sky or are not directly written by a god or an angel, as Muslims often believe about the Koran (written centuries after the Bible and sometimes inconsistent with it). Some people may be surprised to read that a “christian” think there are errors in the Bible, there is nevertheless surprising since the information source from God is in the hands of men, able to do the best and the worst. The Bible does not say only what Eternal says, men also tell their own stories and we can understand that the Bible does not declare to be perfect, other men said before me:
Jeremiah 8:8 How do you say: We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us? Indeed the lying pens of the scribes hath wrought falsehood.
This is one of the reasons why some men are opposed to the systems of thought of their epoch, they denounce a lie. Ieshwa (Jesus) reproached to his contemporaries to build their own religion by creating new precepts who move away the universal moral principles given by the Eternal, necessary to preserve a good friendship between men.
2 Timothy 3:16 All scripture, inspired of God, is profitable to teach, to reprove, to correct, to instruct in justice:
The aforementioned verse does not mean that the Bible has not been altered because the ancient Hebrew and Greek texts discovered show some differences among them, look at the Dead Sea scrolls for example, different from the masoretic text used actually by Jews."All Scripture" is in singular and refers to the writing in the general sense of the term , that is to say the words or thoughts of the Eternal building the faith of man to elevate him spiritually during his evolution (Genesis, words, instructions, parables, prophecies...). These God’s words written by men reflect thoughts of Eternal, then, the reason they are called "divinely inspired”, it is a spiritual inspiration for men. Prophets or men of Eternal relayed a real message which gave the breath of life to other men. The four evangelists known can be compared to four students of university who note that said a teacher, they write the information they have heard from Yeshwa and we must collect the notes for each additional details. The evangelist Luke was a historian or detective and what he recuperated was not perfectly like the source. In the Bible, we find different errors:
The mistranslation (hebrew or arameans words/expressions don’t match in other languages, like greek), copying errors (absence printer), fact's errors (about historical events altered or lies). They are not in great numbers and we can’t reject the existence of the Eternal for that. Moreover, exegeses agree that texts are well preserved , they resemble more than 95% worldwide between 2500 years ago and now.
Finally, do not forget that during the wars, documents may have been lost, altered or destroyed intentionally, I think notably during the years which passed between AD 30 and 66, men who were following the teachings of Jesus were rejected and persecuted by religious leaders, Jews or Romans. They wanted to destroy the charismatic movement which annoy them, they failed because he became a very famous man by the will of Eternal, who wanted his message be transmitted. Jesus announced the destruction of the Jewish system and it temple (because a large part of the law is in relation with the temple!), This is what happened in AD 70 with the Roman invasion in Jerusalem. (1 Thessalonicians 5:21 "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good").
The religion of the Eternal is not an identification to a religious group such as the Jewish rabbinate of our time, Christianity , Islam, Buddhist, Hinduism, Witnesses’s Jéhova...then, what is the religion of Eternal ? James, Jesus’s brother, gave us a simple definition, accessible for everybody: Helping our neighbors and keep himself unspotted from the world.
James 1:26 And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain.
James 1:27 Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.
Many people claim to be religious because they wash their cups or their hands, pray at specific hours, do not eat with sinners, light candles, wear a special fabric, practice feasts, consider themselves blessing by "God" because they possess rich material. People are free to do what they want if it allows them to feel close to the Eternal, we can’t judge, but do they practice the religion of the Eternal? I just wanted to express that discrete works of charity are often higher than festivities or spectacular customs and traditions, especially when they have no meaning and we do that only because it is written.
"The corrupt world” represents the things opposed to the moral principles of the Creator, for example, don't do to others what you wouldn't want the others do to you. If we believe in him, we should be consider him as the benchmark of one who knows what is Good, just as a father is for a child. Unfortunetely, men want to decide about what is good and bad in order to satisfy their desires or to feel free, they speak in the place of Eternal or have to say they are unbeliever. Their desires are more important than those from the Eternal.
The true law of Eternal is in relation with our evolution, it is a teaching of a morale we need to acquire naturally in our heart (don't be a murder, don't rob...). We need precepts, it is a step in our life. At school, a child learns to respect the rules of the institution. These instructions are sometimes useful in special circumstances. The Judaism religion that likes following laws give us amazing sentences from Rabbis in the Talmud¹ :
"The purpose of the Torah is not to make the man a submissive creature, but a being that is in the likeness of God, that is to say, creator and free." (Rabbi Emmanuel Levyne)
"Religious precepts have been given as to purify men" (Midrash Genesis Rabbah , 44).
The Jewish apostle paul also understood the law in this way, he does not want to abolish it in the sense we need to do the opposite, he said simply that instructions will disearpear with the spiritual man :
1Timoty 1:9 Knowing this: That the law is not made for the just man but for the unjust and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the wicked and defiled, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers...
Roman 1:23 And they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into the likeness of the image of a corruptible man and of birds, and of fourfooted beasts and of creeping things.
Galatians 3:11 (Habakkuk 2:4 / Job 9:3) But that in the law no man is justified with God, it is manifest: because the just man liveth by faith.
Today,
when we talk about God, people wonders which religious groups we belong
to, in order to categorize us. That is understandable cause the large
quantities of religious groups. On this site, I did not invent a
"religious name" because the true religion is manifested
individually, with reflection in the desert. What name should we have?
Those who believed in Yeshwa‘s teaching were called "Christians" or
"the
way", they considered Jesus like the messiah.
The word "christ" is a translation o the hebrew word "machiach", the messiah, anointed one. The messiah is the man who brings the word of the Eternal, he opened a new age to establish the peace in Israel. He trigged an spritual evolution and revolution in Israel through Eternal, in the same manner of others famous men in their domains, like Copernic for example.
Christians were Israelian who consider themselves friends / brothers / witnesses of Jesus ((Please, note the word "Jew" originally did not refer to a religion, but the people of Judea). Christians-jew were not well seen in the first century (Acts 11:26; Actes 24:5). The path of the Messiah is accessible for everybody who want to believe in the Eternal, it is a spirit state, the same as Ieshwa (Jesus).
Colossians 3:11 Where there is neither Gentile nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian nor Scythian, bond nor free. But the Messiah is all and in all.
The man Jesus goes through with his ideas in staying upright, he did not bend his knees in front of the world (money, greed, Jew’s system...). In a monarchy or a republic , it is like he would be the ideal king or president. This is the reason the Eternal explains that the son who was expected has been manifested in him. "You are my son, this day I have begotten you" and "Thou art my beloved Son. In thee I am well pleased" (Luke 3:22 and Hebrews 5:5). We shall see later that the majority of christians churches has modified the identity of Jesus through the tradition and a few verses misunderstood of the Bible. Yeshua is man like us (son of man) and was never a god creator or an angel co-creator in the heaven. Knowing Jesus help us to understand better the plan of Eternel, to make men with his image (Genesis 1:26-27). Claude Tresmontant tries to bring back the true Yeshwa (Jesus) in his book the Hebrew Christ², published in 1983, far away from the ideas of trinity or a god called jesus-archangel invented who down from the heavens (catholic church, evangelist church, Witness Jeovah...).
Free message
Matthew 10:8-10, Acts 3:6 = "Freely you have received, freely give".
YIeshua
(Jesus) did not ask for money to teach, he did not make a living out of
it. His trade was probably the same as his father Joseph, a mason or
carpenter.
Today, many religious institutions train Bible "professionals",
pastors, priests, overseers, receive a monthly salary within their
religious organization, the words are no longer really free and the
dogmas taught are generally false, they repeat the world's program.
We know in what way the virtual god of money can pervert man, we
constantly see the consequences in daily life (sport, politics...). It
is sad to see this phenomenon in areas that are supposed to represent
values of social justice (humanitarian, religion...). In America and a
little less in Europe, there are many churches that collect tithes from
people who come to listen to the pastor in a place of worship. Some
will tell you that you have to give to be blessed by God.
In the past, twelve tribes made up the territory of Israel, each
of them had a portion of territory, with the exception of the tribe of
the Levites. The tribe of Levi was dedicated to the service of the
temple of the Eternal and all the tribes had to give a tithe for the
Eternal (crops, cattle...). The tithe was for the temple and the
Levites who had not received a portion of land, it was also distributed
to the poorest (orphans, widows, foreigners ...). We see a sense of
sharing rather than a source of enrichment, it was in the temple that
the wealth Deuteronomy 14:22-29
was found.
We cannot draw a parallel between this ancient Bible system and today's
religious organizations. The Levites were "poor in earth", unlike the
religious leaders who were not materially disadvantaged in comparison
with church members. In some appointments, hundreds and thousands of
people come to give a percentage of their salary to the leaders,
believing that a ten percent tithe should be given! These leaders end
up with houses or cars at exorbitant prices, they build "Bible camps",
rent apartments with swimming pools in the name of their organization.
They can easily make mass propaganda and teach their false religious
doctrines. We are going to note some important points that oppose this
kind of organization and take the opportunity to reread the words of
the apostle Paul, the Jewish hero of Christ :
|
Donation and tithe. |
Let's
not confuse the two terms. Tithing is not a law in force, it was in
force for the nation of Israel. The tribes gave a percentage of their
goods (cattle, crops) to the temple and Levites. The early Christian
assemblies made "gifts", they helped each other and gave to the poor. |
|
Acts 20 33-35 |
Paul worked for himself and those who accompanied him, he did not receive a salary from a religious leader and did not collect his speech in front of people. |
|
Acts 18:3-4 |
Paul
made tents, that was his job. He spoke about the Lord at appropriate
times, frequently on the day of rest called the Sabbath and on the
first day of the week. |
|
1 Corinthians 9: 14-18 |
Where do we
find the ordinance to "live by the gospel"? In Matthew 10:9-10. |
|
2 Thessalonians 3:6-9 |
Paul
asks that people take his model in imitation! And what is his model? He
did not receive a salary for "evangelizing" and did not ask for a share
of others' salaries. It is not the church that should receive money,
but those in need: "There is more to give than to receive". |
|
1 Timothy 5:17-18 |
The expression "double honour" for the elders is an indication that they should be given more honour and help, in the manner of the widows mentioned in verse 3 of this same chapter: "honour the widows". One should not imagine a double salary (in money) for the elders. The one who teaches rightly receives his salary from the Lord, he is also thanked (honored) by those who listen to him speak about the Lord (there could be gifts of good or money), but the setting up of a monthly salary and tithing is not biblical. |
|
John 4:36 |
The salary (reward) of the Eternal is not necessarily the same of the world (currency) further to this verse. We can also read Matthew 22:21 and Matthiew 6:24-25. |
Please
respect the work done and mention the link of the website :
http://www.desertpath.net
¹ Talmud : Talmud Menahoth 99 b; Midrash Genesis Rabbah
² "The Hébrew Christ", Claude Tresmontant, 1983
www.desertpath.net
Kevin FOUQUERE
also surnamed Yohanan
June 2014