“The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.”
(Psalms 19:8)

Enlightening The Eyes

Dear Friends,

      Greetings! Romans, chapter one, says; “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.”

      Our first article below entitled, “'Chimera' monkeys created in lab by combining several embryos into one”, shows how far man has come in manipulating and altering God's creation.

      From Wikipedia ….A chimera or chimaera is a single organism (usually an animal) that is composed of two or more different populations of genetically distinct cells that originated from different zygotes involved in sexual reproduction. If the different cells have emerged from the same zygote, the organism is called a mosaic. Chimeras are formed from at least four parent cells (two fertilized eggs or early embryos fused together). Each population of cells keeps its own character and the resulting organism is a mixture of tissues. Chimeras are typically seen in animals; there are some reports on human chimerism.

      The Chimera was, according to Greek mythology, a monstrous fire-breathing female creature of Lycia in Asia Minor, composed of the parts of multiple animals: upon the body of a lioness with a tail that ended in a snake's head, the head of a goat arose on her back at the center of her spine.... End of Wikipedia information.

      Has this ever occurred before in man's history? Yes, it has. Jesus said; “As the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” (Matthew 24:37)

     Genesis, chapter six, tells us; “Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.”

      This verse is not referring to Noah's sinlessness but to the fact that he and his family's make up, DNA, had not been corrupted through the inter-breeding of the 'Watchers', fallen angels, who produced giants through cohabiting with the daughters of men. See Genesis, chapter six.

      In the Bible in Joshua 10:13 there is a reference made to a book called the “Book of Jasher”. “The sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher?”

      This reference is refering to Jasher 88:63-65. “The day was declining toward evening, and Joshua said in the sight of all the people, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon, and thou moon in the valley of Ajalon, until the nation shall have revenged itself upon its enemies.

      And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Joshua, and the sun stood still in the midst of the heavens, and it stood still six and thirty moments, and the moon also stood still and hastened not to go down a whole day.

      And there was no day like that, before it or after it, that the Lord hearkened to the voice of a man, for the Lord fought for Israel.” Jashur 88:63-65

      Another reference to the book of Jasher is made in 2Samuel 1:18; (Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow: behold, it is written in the book of Jasher.)

      The reference made here can be found in Jasher 56:8-9. “And Jacob said unto Judah, I know my son that thou art a mighty man for thy brethren; reign over them, and thy sons shall reign over their sons forever. Only teach thy sons the bow and all the weapons of war, in order that they may fight the battles of their brother who will rule over his enemies.”

      Whether or not this is the original book of Jasher has been a subject of debate, though it would seem the preponderance of Biblical scholars seem to weigh in on its authenticity.

     However, there are several interesting verses in the book of Jasher that would seem to refer to the question of “chirmeras”. One notable quote comes from Jasher 4:18. “The sons of men in those days took from the cattle of the earth, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and taught the mixture of animals of one species with the other, in order therewith to provoke the Lord; and God saw the whole earth and it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted its ways upon earth, all men and all animals.”

       This seems to be one of the key contributing factors that brought about the Flood and the judgements of God, the corrupting of flesh, corrupting meaning to defile or pollute.

     As the days of Noah so shall also be the second coming of Jesus. Chimeras are now making front page news as evidenced by the London Guardian, and many other news outlets.

      This is what is being revealed, who knows what is going on with “black” science which some have said is fifty years ahead of current known science.

      Another event depicting chirmeras in the book of Jasher 36; “And there was a day that he (Anah) brought them (his fathers asses) to one of the deserts on the sea shore, opposite the wilderness of the people, and whilst he was feeding them, behold a very heavy storm came from the other side of the sea and rested upon the asses that were feeding there, and they all stood still.

      And afterward about one hundred and twenty great and terrible animals came out from the wilderness at the other side of the sea, and they all came to the place where the asses were, and they placed themselves there.

      And those animals, from their middle downward, were in the shape of the children of men, and from their middle upward, some had the likeness of bears, and some the likeness of the keephas, with tails behind them from between their shoulders reaching down to the earth, like the tails of the ducheephath, and these animals came and mounted and rode upon these asses, and led them away, and they went away unto this day.

      And one of these animals approached Anah and smote him with his tail, and then fled from that place.

      And when he saw this work he was exceedingly afraid of his life, and he fled and escaped to the city.”

      Astounding and unlikely as this may sound, let us put this into a bit of perspective from the book of 'Revelations' which is considered 'canon' by Christians around the world.

      “There came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men. And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.” (Revelation 9:3, 7-10.)

      We will see. We know that we are living in the last days and that men's hearts will be failing them for seeing those things which are coming upon them.

      We hope you find the rest of the articles informative.

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The Guardian

'Chimera' monkeys created in lab by combining several embryos into one

The macaque monkey chimeras each contain cells originating in different embryos with distinct genomes

Ian Sample, science correspondent

5 January 2012

The world's first monkeys to be created from the embryos of several individuals have been born at a US research centre.

Scientists at the Oregon National Primate Research Centre produced the animals, known as chimeras, by sticking together between three and six rhesus monkey embryos in the early stages of their development.

Three animals were born at the laboratory, a singleton and twins, and were said to be healthy, with no apparent birth defects following the controversial technique.

The chimeras have tissues and organs made up of cells that come from each of the contributing embryos. The mixtures of cells carried up to six distinct genomes.

Roku and Hex: Named after the fire-breathing creature in Greek mythology composed of parts of multiple animals, chimeras are organisms made up of cells from two or more genetically distinct sources.

"The cells never fuse, but they stay together and work together to form tissues and organs," said Shoukhrat Mitalipov, who led the research. "The possibilities for science are enormous."

Scientists named the singleton Chimero, and the twins Roku and Hex, meaning six in Japanese and Greek. Hex was born after merging six individual embryos, according to a report in the journal Cell. "To our knowledge, these infants are the world's first primate chimeras," the authors write.

While all three monkeys are biologically male, blood tests revealed that Roku carried both male and female cells.

The first chimeric animals were created by researchers in the 1960s, when experiments with mouse embryos showed they could combine to form a single mouse of normal size. Since then, scientists have created chimeric versions of rats, rabbits, sheep and cattle.

Mitalipov's team produced the chimeric monkeys by carefully pushing four-day-old embryos together in a culture dish and waiting for them to grow. Within a few days, 90% of them had grown into early stage embryos called blastocysts that contained at least twice as many cells as usual.

The researchers implanted the chimeric embryos into five female rhesus monkeys, all of which became pregnant. Tests on the foetuses confirmed that all of the animals' organs and tissues contained cells from more than one embryo.

Chimeric animals - mice in particular - have become a powerful tool in scientific research. They are used to shed light on the exquisite process of embryonic development, such as why a particular cell gives rise to a specific kind of tissue, and to explore how individual genes work.

The creation of chimeric animals has also been used to test whether embryonic stem cells stored in laboratories are likely to turn into working tissues when injected into the body. A standard test is to inject stem cells into an early stage embryo. If the embryo grows into a chimeric animal, it means the stem cells have been incorporated into the animal's tissues and organs.

In a series of experiments described in the same paper, the researchers found it impossible to create chimeric monkeys by injecting stem cells into early stage embryos. Only when very young embryos were merged together could they make chimeric animals.

The difficulties the scientists faced could herald future problems in using embryonic stem cells to grow new tissues in humans. While stem cells inside embryos can grow into any tissue or organ, lines of embryonic stem cells cultured in labs seem to lose this ability, at least to some extent.

"If we want to move stem cell therapies from the lab to clinics and from the mouse to humans, we need to understand what these primate cells can and can't do. We need to study them in humans, including human embryos," said Mitalipov.

Robin Lovell-Badge, head of genetics at the National Institute for Medical Research in London, said there has been a suspicion that most human and monkey embryonic stem cell lines are different.

"This work supports this notion, as the macaque embryonic stem cells tested were unable to mix in with cells of the host embryos. This may be reassuring to those who worry that human embryonic stem cells could be used to make chimeric people, although in itself this should not be a concern, as such rare individuals already exist from the spontaneous merger of two early embryos. But it may be a concern for regenerative medicine if such cells are not as flexible as hoped," he said.

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Vatican Insider

Media say Pope may resign in April

09/25/2011 

According to Italian daily newspaper "Libero", Pope Benedict XVI is thinking about leaving the papacy next April, when he will turn 85

ANDREA TORNIELLI

VATICAN CITY

There is one front page news story that will certainly not go unnoticed: that is, that the Pope is thinking about resigning during the Spring of 2012. Journalist Antonio Socci has confirmed the same in the Italian daily, Libero.

"For now," Socci writes, "he is saying that this may be true (Joseph Ratzinger's personal assumption), but I hope the story does not reach the news. But this rumor is circulating high up in the Vatican and therefore deserves close attention. The Pope has not rejected the possibility of his resignation when he turns 85 in April next year."

Socci recalls that the assumption he will resign, without any hitches, was the same thing Ratzinger talked about in an interview in the book "Luce del mondo" (Light of the World), when, in response to a question by interviewer Peter Seewald, he said: "When a Pope arrives at a clear awareness that he no longer has the physical, mental, or psychological capacity to carry out the task that has been entrusted to him, then he has the right, and in some cases, even the duty to resign." Furthermore, in another passage, Benedict XVI wondered if he would be able to "withstand it all, just from the physical point of view."

Socci makes the following observation in today's edition of Libero: "Today, Pope Benedict seems to be in really good form; just the same, there's the issue of his age and just how much energy he has left." But the writer/journalist also recalls another passage from the same book interview, which has to do with the attacks and controversies related to the pedophile priests' scandal: "When there is a great menace, one cannot simply run away from it. That is why, right now, it is definitely not the time to resign."

"It is actually at moments like these that one needs to resist and overcome difficult situations. One can only resign at a time when things are calm, or simply, when nothing more can be done about it. But one cannot run away right when the threat is alive and say, 'Let somebody else take care of it."

Anyone who knows Ratzinger would confirm that the answer he gave to Seewald, is what he feels would be best, in the event of him becoming physically, mentally, or psychologically incapacitated. However, such a possibility seems, at the moment, somewhat remote. In fact, one is immediately struck by the contrast between the front page story in Libero and the images coming from Germany, where Benedict XVI is concluding an historic trip, during which he made 18 speeches in four days. Many of these put him under considerable pressure, especially as they were entirely written by him. The German press was astonished at the old Pontiff's endurance, which he demonstrated by the fact that he was able to manage all the exhaustion from moving around; he did not sleep more than one night in a single bed. And he was successful in carrying out a packed schedule of engagements, meetings, vigils, and celebrations. 

This would show that nothing of what Benedict XVI himself said in answer  to his alleged plans to resign, seems to be materialising.

Newsmax

Prophecy on Pope Fulfilled by Eclipses? -

April 7, 2005

A 10th Century Irish bishop - St. Malachy - predicted every pope that would preside over the Catholic Church. Almost ten centuries ago, Malachy predicted this pope, (John Paul ll,) would be noted by an eclipse of the sun. John Paul II was the only known pope to be born on the day of a solar eclipse.

But the prophetic link doesn't end there. Pope John Paul II will be buried this Friday during another solar eclipse.

Astronomers say that on Friday, the day of the Pope's funeral, a partial solar eclipse will blot out most of the sun and darken a wide area of the world, from the South Pacific to the Western Hemisphere.

Solar eclipses are not unusual. But what makes this coming Friday's eclipse notable is the fact that there was a near total eclipse of the sun seen across Europe on May 18, 1920, the very day that John Paul II was born in Poland.

Adding fuel to the arcane speculation about these events is the prophecy of St. Malachy.

Malachy was discovered to have left behind a prophetic list of all future popes beginning with Pope Celestine II, whose papacy began in 1143 A.D., up to and including the 112th. The list includes John Paul and just two more popes who will follow him.

In his list of popes, he uses a single line in Latin identifying a characteristic of each pope.

The description applied to the 110th pope on his list - John Paul II - is "De Labore Solis" (Of the Solar Eclipse), which seems to add great weight to the validity of St. Malachy's chilling prophecy: that the next two popes chosen to succeed John Paul II will be the last popes. (Pope Benedict XVI is the current pope.)

After the reign of the last pope, "Peter the Roman," St. Malachy wrote, Rome will be destroyed.

As NewsMax.com reported April 3, Saint's Prophecy: Only Two Popes Remain, the 112th prophecy says, "In the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church, there will reign Petrus Romanus (Peter the Roman), who will feed his flock amid many tribulations; after which the seven-hilled city [Rome] will be destroyed and the dreadful Judge will judge the people," an indication that the world will end.

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The President Who Signed Indefinite Detention Without Charge or Trial Into Law

by American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

Global Research, January 1, 2012

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

President Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) into law today. The statute contains a sweeping worldwide indefinite detention provision. While President Obama issued a signing statement saying he had "serious reservations" about the provisions, the statement only applies to how his administration would use the authorities granted by the NDAA, and would not affect how the law is interpreted by subsequent administrations. The White House had threatened to veto an earlier version of the NDAA, but reversed course shortly before Congress voted on the final bill.

"President Obama's action today is a blight on his legacy because he will forever be known as the president who signed indefinite detention without charge or trial into law," said Anthony D. Romero, ACLU executive director. "The statute is particularly dangerous because it has no temporal or geographic limitations, and can be used by this and future presidents to militarily detain people captured far from any battlefield. The ACLU will fight worldwide detention authority wherever we can, be it in court, in Congress, or internationally."

Under the Bush administration, similar claims of worldwide detention authority were used to hold even a U.S. citizen detained on U.S. soil in military custody, and many in Congress now assert that the NDAA should be used in the same way again. The ACLU believes that any military detention of American citizens or others within the United States is unconstitutional and illegal, including under the NDAA. In addition, the breadth of the NDAA's detention authority violates international law because it is not limited to people captured in the context of an actual armed conflict as required by the laws of war.

"We are incredibly disappointed that President Obama signed this new law even though his administration had already claimed overly broad detention authority in court," said Romero. "Any hope that the Obama administration would roll back the constitutional excesses of George Bush in the war on terror was extinguished today. Thankfully, we have three branches of government, and the final word belongs to the Supreme Court, which has yet to rule on the scope of detention authority. But Congress and the president also have a role to play in cleaning up the mess they have created because no American citizen or anyone else should live in fear of this or any future president misusing the NDAA's detention authority."

The bill also contains provisions making it difficult to transfer suspects out of military detention, which prompted FBI Director Robert Mueller to testify that it could jeopardize criminal investigations. It also restricts the transfers of cleared detainees from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to foreign countries for resettlement or repatriation, making it more difficult to close Guantanamo, as President Obama pledged to do in one of his first acts in office.

The Intel Hub

The End of America as We Know It: Obama Signs NDAA Indefinite Detention Bill

December 31, 2011

On the eve of 2012, President Obama has, with the stroke of a pen, ended America as we know it.

With the National Defense Authorization Act now signed into law, American citizens can and possibly will be indefinitely detained by the military if they have been "accused" of any terrorist related activity.

In a press release published today, the ACLU further outlined their opposition to this unconstitutional law and highlighted the fact that Obama will now be known as the president who signed  indefinite detention of Americans, far from any battlefield, into law.

"President Obama's action today is a blight on his legacy because he will forever be known as the president who signed indefinite detention without charge or trial into law," said Anthony D. Romero, ACLU executive director.

"The statute is particularly dangerous because it has no temporal or geographic limitations, and can be used by this and future presidents to militarily detain people captured far from any battlefield.  The ACLU will fight worldwide detention authority wherever we can, be it in court, in Congress, or internationally."

"We are incredibly disappointed that President Obama signed this new law even though his administration had already claimed overly broad detention authority in court," said Romero. "Any hope that the Obama administration would roll back the constitutional excesses of George Bush in the war on terror was extinguished today.

Although the president and the corporate controlled media have tried to pretend that he only signed the bill because Congress took out the indefinite detention provision, the fact remains that this bill DOES give the government the ability to detain any American they claim to be a terrorist without so much as a trial.

Obama's claim that he had reservations about certain provisions also rings hollow considering the fact that the White House actually asked for the indefinite detention provision to be added to the bill in the first place!

As we all celebrate the new year we must reflect back on 2011 and realize that it is absolutely imperative that we speak out and expose these police state measures like never before.

If we do not, this country will continue on its path towards destruction and before the end of 2012 we could find ourselves in a full scale police state that has completely outlawed the alternative media and free, outside the box thinking.

US Troops going to Israel

Whiteout Press - Thursday, January 5, 2012

Jerusalem. In one of the most blacked-out stories in America right now, the US military is preparing to send thousands of US troops, along with US Naval anti-missile ships and accompanying support personnel, to Israel. It took forever to find a second source for confirmation of this story and both relatively mainstream media outlets are in Israel.

With one source saying the military deployment and corresponding exercises are to occur in January, the source providing most of the details suggests it will occur later this spring.

Calling it not just an "exercise", but a "deployment", the Jerusalem Post quotes US Lt.-Gen Frank Gorenc, Commander of the US Third Air Force based in Germany. The US Commander visited Israel two weeks ago to confirm details for "the deployment of several thousand American soldiers to Israel." In an effort to respond to recent Iranian threats and counter-threats, Israel announced the largest ever missile defense exercise in its history. Now, it's reported that the US military, including the US Navy, will be stationed throughout Israel, also taking part.

Also confirming the upcoming US-Israeli military missile exercises is JTA.org - 'global news service of the Jewish people'. In their account, they report, 'Last week, plans for Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, to visit Israel in January were leaked to Israeli media; his visit likely will coincide with the largest-ever joint U.S.-Israel anti-missile exercise'.

While American troops will be stationed in Israel for an unspecified amount of time, Israeli military personnel will be added to EUCOM in Germany. EUCOM stands for United States European Command.

In preparation for anticipated Iranian missile attacks upon Israel, the US is reportedly bringing its THAAD, Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, and ship-based Aegis ballistic missile systems to Israel. The US forces will join Israeli missile defense systems like the Patriot and Arrow. The deployment comes with "the ultimate goal of establishing joint task forces in the event of a large-scale conflict in the Middle East".

The Jerusalem Post reports that US Lt.-Gen Frank Gorenc was in Israel meeting with his Israeli counterpart, Brig.-Gen Doron Gavish, commander of the Air Defense Division. While there, the US General visited one of Israel's three 'Iron Dome' anti-missile outposts. The Israeli Air Force has announced plans to deploy a fourth Iron Dome system in the coming months. Additional spending increases in the Jewish state will guarantee the manufacture and deployment of three more Iron Dome systems by the end of 2012. The Israelis are hoping to eventually have at least a dozen of the anti-missile systems deployed along its northern and southern borders.

In a show of escalated tensions in the region, Iran test fired two long range missiles today. One, called the Qadar, is a powerful sea-to-shore missile. The other was an advanced surface-to-surface missile called the Nour. According to Iranian state news, the Nour is an 'advanced radar-evading, target-seeking, guided and controlled missile'. Additionally, the Iranian military reportedly test-fired numerous other short, medium and long-range missiles. Yesterday, Iranian authorities reported that they test-fired the medium-range, surface-to-air, radar-evading Mehrab missile. Today is supposed to be the final day of Iranian naval drills in the Straits of Hormuz.

Iran recently made global headlines when it threatened to blockade the Straits of Hormuz if Europe and the US went ahead with their boycott of Iranian oil and the country's central bank. One-quarter of the world's oil passes through that waterway every day. President Obama has announced that a closure of the Straits was unacceptable and vowed to take whatever measures are necessary to keep the vital shipping lane open.

In response to the Iranian missile tests this weekend, French authorities were the first to respond, calling it a, "very bad signal to the international community."We want to underline that the development by Iran of a missile program is a source of great concern to the international community,"the French Foreign Ministry said in a written statement. Israeli officials suggested the flamboyant Iranian military drills this weekend were a sign that international sanctions on the country were taking a heavy toll and that any additional boycotts, on its banks or oil industry, would be crippling.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said the large missile tests showed, "the dire straits of Iran in light of the tightening sanctions around her, including the considerations in the last few days regarding the sanctions of exporting petroleum as well as the possibility of sanctions against the Iranian Central Bank." While the chances of Iran going through with its threat of closing the Straits of Hormuz are slim, the deployment of thousands of US troops and naval ships to Israel shows the US isn't taking any chances.

Foreign Affairs (Published by the Council on Foreign Relations)

The Failure of the Euro

The Little Currency That Couldn't

By Martin Feldstein

January/February 2012

The euro should now be recognized as an experiment that failed. This failure, which has come after just over a dozen years since the euro was introduced, in 1999, was not an accident or the result of bureaucratic mismanagement but rather the inevitable consequence of imposing a single currency on a very heterogeneous group of countries. The adverse economic consequences of the euro include the sovereign debt crises in several European countries, the fragile condition of major European banks, high levels of unemployment across the eurozone, and the large trade deficits that now plague most eurozone countries.

The political goal of creating a harmonious Europe has also failed. France and Germany have dictated painful austerity measures in Greece and Italy as a condition of their financial help, and Paris and Berlin have clashed over the role of the European Central Bank (ECB) and over how the burden of financial assistance will be shared.

The initial impetus that led to the European Monetary Union and the euro was political, not economic. European politicians reasoned that the use of a common currency would instill in their publics a greater sense of belonging to a European community and that the shift of responsibility for monetary policy from national capitals to a single central bank in Frankfurt would signal a shift of political power.

The primary political motive for increased European integration was, and may still be, to enhance Europe's role in world affairs. In 1956, just after the United States forced France and the United Kingdom to withdraw their forces from the Suez Canal, German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer told a French politician that individual European states would never be leading global powers, but "there remains to them only one way of playing a decisive role in the world; that is to unite to make Europe. . . . Europe will be your revenge." One year later, the Treaty of Rome launched the Common Market.

***

Forbes

Belarus Has Outlawed Browsing Foreign Websites

Update: As several commenters and folks on Twitter have pointed out, the limits on browsing foreign websites is limited to a list put out by the government of Belarus, which right now stands at less than 100. I hope this provides some clarification. The restrictions on using foreign websites for business purposes seem to be in line with the LoC report. But of course, everything will be in the interpretation of the rules.

The U.S. Library of Congress reports that Belarus, a former Soviet Republic, has now essentially outlawed its citizens from browsing foreign websites. The law, which goes into effect on January 6th, puts severe restrictions on visiting or using foreign websites, the violation of which will be a misdemeanor.

Moreover, the law also requires that all businesses in Belarus conduct their transactions using "providing online services, conducting sales, or exchanging email messages."

As the Library of Congress describes it:

Commentators believe that these measures will lead to outside websites blocking access from Belarus. For example, suppose someone in Belarus buys something from Amazon, which is not a Belarusian company and thus is not registered in Belarus. The transaction is illegal, and so the Belarusian Attorney General would send a note to Amazon informing it that it is violating national law and might be sued. Probably Amazon would close access to its website for visitors from Belarus, because such visitors comprise a minor share of the company's customers but the resultant legal troubles caused by the Belarusian government might create a major problem.

The owners of internet cafes and other such sites are liable for the internet use of their customers - even to the point of being shut down if they don't report violations. Moreover, even the individual owners of a computer are liable if they allow someone else to use their computer, and that person accesses an illegal website.

I imagine that if this law is rigorously enforced, Belarus is going to end up isolated pretty quickly, at least as far as the Internet is concerned. It'll be interesting to see how the population responds. I suspect more than a few folks are going to try and figure out TOR and other circumvention methods over the next few days before the law takes effect.

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MailOnline

Nasa spacecraft orbits moon on New Year's Eve as part of $500m mission to scan Earth's nearest neighbour from crust to core

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

1st January 2012

- A Nasa spacecraft fired its engine and slipped into orbit around the moon Saturday in the first of two back-to-back arrivals over the New Year's weekend.

Ground controllers erupted in cheers and applause after receiving a signal that the probe was healthy and circling the moon. An engineer was seen on closed-circuit television blowing a noisemaker to herald the New Year's Eve arrival.

The celebration was brief. Despite the successful manoeuvre, the work was not over. Its twin still had to enter lunar orbit on New Year's Day.

New Year's Mission: One of the two twin Grail probes entered orbit on New Year's Eve

Grail is expected to help researchers better understand why the moon is asymmetrical and how it formed by mapping the uneven lunar gravity field.

The mission will cost nearly $500million.

Previous lunar missions have attempted to study the moon's gravity - which is about one-sixth Earth's pull - with mixed results.

Grail is the first mission devoted to this goal.

The Grail probes - short for Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory - have been cruising independently toward their destination since launching in September aboard the same rocket on a mission to measure lunar gravity.

Hours before Earth revellers counted down the New Year, Grail-A flew over the South Pole and slowed itself to get captured into orbit.

Mission to the moon: The twin Grail probes will study the moon's asymmetrical shape and give new answers about Earth's nearest neighbour

The $496million mission will be closely watched by schoolchildren. An effort by Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, will allow middle school students to use cameras aboard the probes to zoom in and pick out their favourite lunar spots to photograph.

Grail is the 110th mission to target the moon since the dawn of the Space Age including the six Apollo moon landings that put 12 astronauts on the surface.

Despite the attention the moon has received, scientists don't know everything about Earth's nearest neighbour.

Dark side of the moon: The probes will also study lunar gravity

'It seems that the answer is not on the surface,' said chief scientist Maria Zuber of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 'We think that the answer is locked in the interior.'

Once in orbit, the near-identical Grail-A and Grail-B spacecraft will spend the next two months refining their positions until they are just 34 miles above the surface and flying in formation. Data collection will begin in March.

A jaunt to the moon is usually speedy. It took the Apollo astronauts three days to zip there aboard the powerful Saturn V rocket.

IBTimes

Among the mysteries lying on the far side of the Moon are why it has a thick mountainous crust, while the near side which we see has low-lying lava plains and a much thinner crust than the far side. Scientists believe they may be able to finally explain the moon's asymmetry.

The side of the Moon which faces Earth is relatively flat and covered with plains of volcanic rock called "maria", which is Latin for seas, while its far side is made up of highlands and mountainous with an average of 1.2 miles higher elevation than the near side.

But the contrast goes deeper, as the crust on the farside is 50 kilometers thicker than the crust on the near side. Scientists have been trying to figure out what could have caused the asymmetrical shape. Various theories have been proposed, but no final conclusion has been made.

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WND

LAW OF THE LAND

Court case determines church must shut down

Pastor, congregation face forced removal from their own building

Posted: December 30, 2011

By Dave Tombers -

Church in Paramus, N.J. (Image by Jeremiah Smaha)

A Christian and Missionary Alliance congregation in Paramus, N.J., is facing a forced removal from a debt-free building the congregation has owned since 1929 this weekend, and they are blaming their own denominational officials for the impending ministry doom.

The Metropolitan District of the C&MA has filed a lawsuit, invoking a "reversionary" clause in documents they claim link the Paramus congregation to the C&MA. This clause, they say, allows them to step in and take over all assets of a church and their demand of the court is for the judge to order the church's shutdown.

According to court documents the district wants the assets of the Paramus church to use to further its mission among other churches.

Pastor Joseph Smaha tells WND that the congregation built the building from the ground up without one penny of help from the C&MA, yet now stands to lose it all to them in the disturbing situation.

What is Christianity? Read the words of James Ussher, one of the greatest Reformed evangelicals of the 17th Century, in "A BODY OF DIVINITY: The Sum and Substance of Christian Religion"

Well over a half a million dollars worth of real estate, owned free and clear by the congregation, could be turned over to the C&MA if the Community Alliance Church of Paramus doesn't find a miracle this weekend.

So far the courts haven't been very helpful.

A judge has ordered that the C&MA can change the locks and evict the Paramus congregation, which is set to happen in just a matter of hours, or days at the most, following a brief reprieve so the congregation could celebrate Christmas in its own building.

"Under the theory of separation of church and state, the court has been taking an ecclesiastical legal approach to this matter," says E. Allen Macduffie, the Paramus congregation's attorney.

"Basically, if the church denomination says they can do this, the court prefers to agree and let the denomination handle its own matters," Macduffie told WND.

"If the court would simply apply natural law, there'd be no question that this small congregation would win."

According to Smaha, the small church took a vote to become affiliated with the C&MA denomination in the 1990s, although he tells WND that there are huge questions on whether the process was ever fully completed.

"Representatives from the [Metropolitan] District office came to the church before the congregation voted, and then never came back," Smaha told WND.

"We thought we'd get some certificate, or letter. Anything from the C&MA welcoming us to the group. ... Instead we never heard a thing."

Smaha says the small church was out-of-sight-out-of-mind until someone from the district realized what a nice, valuable piece of property the Paramus congregation had built up.

Church in Paramus, N.J. (Image by Jeremiah Smaha)

"Suddenly the district tells us we're not a viable congregation, and they are invoking the reversionary clause," he tells WND.

That's despite growth in recent years from a low of about 20 in attendance to the current nearly 100. The church also provides a separate service for a Hispanic congregation, it has money in the bank and no debt.

Smaha said the denomination never has contributed a penny to the work.

He tells WND that back in 1996 one elder questioned the district representative about the so-called "reversionary" clause.

"He was a nice, old World War II vet, who wanted to make sure our congregation wasn't being taken advantage of," Smaha tells WND.

"The district told him, 'that clause will never, ever be invoked' except in an extreme case such as a congregational split, false teaching, or if the church just closed its doors one day," Smaha said.

Instead, just a few years later, the church stands to lose everything, because of that very clause.

WND has repeatedly tried to reach the District Superintendent, Bruce Terpeson, who has declined to respond.

WND spoke to Dan Wetzel, the interim vice president of church ministries for the C&MA, which is based in Colorado Springs, Colo.

"I don't have anything to do with the Paramus situation," he told WND.

He told WND that the district superintendents are the overseers of all matters involving churches, and not the national headquarters. When asked if he provides any oversight to the district superintendents, he replied, "No. We are not a hierarchical body."

"Each district acts independently."

He told WND that there is never a case where the national headquarters for the C&MA would "ever step in" to help a struggling pastor or church.

"We provide no direction or oversight to our districts whatsoever," he said.

"If we're invited to, we may consult with the districts," he added.

Smaha tells WND that the 82-year-old church has been through a lot over the years, and that in the lean years post-9/11 he even took a full-time job as a local firefighter so the congregation didn't have to pay his salary.

In 2006, he offered to purchase the parsonage he and his family had access to, so the church could use the proceeds of the sale for much needed renovation of the sanctuary.

In 2009, a few years after the renovation, a district representative paid the pastor a visit after being called for spiritual guidance on a disciplinary matter, and according to Smaha, "was shocked at how nice the church now looked."

"The district had no idea we had even fixed the church up," said Smaha.

Not long after that, the district launched its action to close the congregation down. In fact, Smaha said the conference cited the fact he offered to pay the building's electricity bills several years earlier as a sign it was in trouble now.

"I begged the district to come see what the Lord is doing in our church," he said. "They told me it doesn't matter."

That's when Smaha and a few others did a little research, and made a disturbing discovery.

"Closing down congregations, taking over their assets and selling everything off, under the guise of the reversionary clause, seems to be a trend with the C&MA," Smaha says.

James Sundquist has researched the subject and has produced a DVD documentary that explores what he calls the hijacking of churches in a title called, "Making Merchandise of Men's Souls."

He documents many similar cases on his PerfectPeacePlan.com website.

Sundquist points to a number of congregations that have had the C&MA step in, seize their assets, padlock the doors, and sell everything off.

"It's interesting that they only close down 'debt-free' congregations," he says. "You don't usually see them take this action with a church that rents space every Sunday."

"Bernie Madoff has got nothing on these guys," he tells WND.

WND also spoke with Pastor Joe Broze, of Chester, Pa.

His congregation was targeted by the C&MA, but through some legal maneuvering he was able to thwart the hostile takeover.

Not that the victory amounts to much more than an empty building, however.

Because of the fight, his small church, now renamed the Independent Bible Church of Chester, has been struggling to reattract the congregation that was scared off thinking the church was going to close.

In the midst of his battle with the C&MA, Broze was in a serious car accident that left him in critical condition. His son, an EMT, emailed C&MA District Superintendent Wayne Spriggs asking for prayer for Broze, saying, "it doesn't look good."

Broze tells WND that Spriggs later admitted to him that he never passed on the prayer request, because unbeknownst to Broze, Spriggs had revoked the pastor's credentials due to the property battle, saying, "We didn't owe you any prayer."

Broze tells WND that removing a pastor's credentials and decimating a congregation seem to be standard for the C&MA during one of these "takeovers."

He said he remained silent for a long time because of concerns of how the infighting would look to nonbelievers. But he said now he believes it's better that the activities be exposed.

Smaha tells WND that indeed, his pastor credentials have been revoked.

Smaha also says that the C&MA bylaws declare that a church be given 9-12 months to "fix" whatever the perceived problem is before the denomination acts on the reversionary clause. His congregation was denied even one day.

Broze said his congregation tried to help out before, when another church was being told to close.

"My congregation had to raise money to support a pastor and his 8-month pregnant wife in Malvern, Pa., after the C&MA evicted them from the parsonage, seized the church property and sold it to another church," Broze tells WND

At least in that case the pastor was given a week to get out. Broze tells WND that he was threatened with being evicted within an hour after he refused to cooperate with the "reversionary scheme" in his church.

Broze said when he declined to turn over the property deeds to Spriggs, he was told by Spriggs, "Joseph, I have full constituted authority over you. I can remove you as pastor, evict you and your family from the parsonage, dismiss the church board, change the locks, and you'll be out on the street."

Broze has served his inner city church for most of his life, many times in great peril, like the time he was mugged on the church steps and lost sight in one eye. He fell to his knees in prayer.

He tells WND that he called Wiggins seeking help, and was told that he was on his own.

He says this was Wiggins' response.

"In a few months I will be out of this denomination position so I will tell you why. If I help Joseph Broze in this problem with Rev. Spriggs, people in this church will side with you and there will be division. The money that is coming to pay district workers and headquarters workers salaries like mine will be cut and money to the Great Commission Fund could be adversely affected.

"It would be far better for you and your family to be on the street than mess things up here."

Broze tells WND that he started to cry and asked Wiggins one last time for help.

The reply?

"God will have to help you."

Broze tells WND, "That $38 million a year fund was far more important to the denomination than a poor, half-blind pastor and his wife."

Meanwhile, those who have seen the actions of this denomination up close wonder how the Christian and Missionary Alliance church reconciles its current actions with that of its founders' vision back in the 1880s.

The history of their beginning goes like this:

The Alliance movement began in the 1880s when our founder, Dr. A.B. Simpson, witnessed the physical and spiritual plight of New York City's homeless, downtrodden, and marginalized populations.

Moved by his great love for Jesus and lost people, Simpson devoted his life to sharing Jesus' light - in word and deed - with the city and, ultimately, the nations.

Our calling remains unchanged. We are committed to being points of light - sharing good news to the poor, comforting the brokenhearted, proclaiming freedom for the captives and releasing prisoners from darkness - all in Jesus' name.

As for the Paramus Community Church?

The court may defer to the denomination, and allow the 82-old church property to be acquired, but the congregation of people will go on.

Other churches in the area have offered their sanctuaries for use, and many secular buildings have been made available as well.

Smaha tells WND, "Even if our fight doesn't help our church, maybe we can help some other congregation avoid a similar fate."

He suspects many congregations will review the relationship they have with their denomination after hearing about his plight in Paramus.

***

The Ancient "Doctrine of Signatures" (Edited from longer article.)

By Richard Cassaro | December 1st, 2011

The Doctrine of Signatures is profound ancient wisdom that is purposely being suppressed. It states that every fruit and vegetable has a certain pattern that resembles a body organ, and that this pattern acts as a signal or sign as to that fruit or vegetable's benefit to us. Modern science confirms that the ancient "Doctrine of Signatures" is astoundingly accurate. Why does this vital knowledge remain hidden?

The healing and nourishing properties of any fruit or vegetable reflected in, and ultimately revealed by, that fruit or vegetables' outer physical shape, form, or "signature" in relation to the human body.

Kidney Beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function--and they look exactly like human kidneys:

A Walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds on the nut are just like the neo-cortex. We now know walnuts help develop brain function:

The cross section of a Carrot looks like the human eye. The pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye. And science now shows carrots greatly enhance blood flow to the eyes and aid in the general function of the eyes:

Celery looks just like bones. Celery specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23 percent sodium and these foods are 23 percent sodium. If you don't have enough sodium in your diet, the body pulls it from the bones, thus making them weak. Foods like celery replenish the skeletal needs of the body:

Avocadoes target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female--they look just like these organs. Avocadoes help women balance hormones, shed unwanted birth weight, and deter cervical cancers. It takes exactly nine months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit:

Figs are full of seeds and hang in twos when they grow. Figs increase the mobility of male sperm and increase the numbers of Sperm as well to overcome male sterility:

Slice a Mushroom in half and it resembles a human ear. Mushrooms have been found to improve hearing, as mushrooms are one of the few foods that contain vitamin D. This particular vitamin is important for healthy bones, even the tiny ones in the ear that transmit sound to the brain:

Our lungs are made up of branches of ever-smaller airways that finish up with tiny bunches of tissue called alveoli. These structures, which resemble bunches of Grapes, allow oxygen to pass from the lungs to the blood stream. A diet high in fresh fruit, such as grapes, has been shown to reduce the risk of lung cancer and emphysema. Grape seeds also contain a chemical called proanthocyanidin, which appears to reduce the severity of asthma triggered by allergy:

Ginger, commonly sold in supermarkets, often looks just like the stomach. So its interesting that one of its biggest benefits is aiding digestion. The Chinese have been using it for over 2,000 years to calm the stomach and cure nausea, while it is also a popular remedy for motion sickness:

Sweet Potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics:

Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries:

The Doctrine of Signatures may sound strange to us, but its wisdom is ancient, rediscovered in modern times. Of course, in modern America we've been taught by the big corporations to buy "processed foods," rather than to buy local fresh vegetables and cook them ourselves.

Left: Inexpensive processed foods we find everywhere--in the supermarket, schools, government institutions, etc. Right: Expensive natural foods that can only be found in the supermarket.

Americans have no time for cooking; most are busy working and consuming en masse, according to the messages drilled in by television, radio, newspaper, the news, culture, society. The resultant omnipresence of cheap, high-calorie, nutrient-poor processed foods (or "food like substances") in homes, schools, government institutions and food programs, and on every street corner creates default food choices that drive obesity.

These subsidized, cheap, low-quality foods are heavily marketed and consumed by our ever-widening population with an obesity rate approaching three out of four Americans. The more Americans eat, the fatter they become. And the fatter they become the more they develop heart disease, diabetes, cancer and a myriad of other chronic ailments. This is a big score for big pharma. The sicker our population becomes, the more medications are sold for high cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure, depression, and many other lifestyle driven diseases. In essence, big food and big pharma profits by creating a nation of sick and fat citizens.

This structure is built into the very fabric of our economy and culture. It could be called the medical, agricultural, food industrial complex. It is nothing short of sheer violence against us--the social, political, economic and environmental conditions that foster and promote the development of disease. However, by using this wisdom of the Doctrine of Signatures we can take more of a proactive role regarding our health. We are our best own doctor and dietician, we just need to believe it.

The Doctrine of Signatures was made popular in modern times by a Swiss physician, alchemist and philosopher named Paracelsus (1493-1541) who scholars consider to be the father of modern chemistry. Paracelsus noted how the qualities of plants are often reflected in their appearance. He thus theorized that the inner nature of plants may be discovered by their outer forms or "signatures." He applied this principle to food as well as medicine, remarking that "it is not in the quantity of food but in its quality that resides the Spirit of Life"--a belief familiar to those who choose to eat organic food while also being justifiably concerned over Genetically Modified substitutes that lack the "life force," or spirit.

***

MailOnline

Reunited after 77 years: Woman meets the daughter she gave up for adoption after she was raped as a teenager (and finds out her grandson is an astronaut)

By Daily Mail Reporter

2nd January 2012

For almost a century, Minka Disbrow tried to find out what became of the baby girl she gave up for adoption after being raped as a teenager.

She hoped, but never imagined, that she would see her daughter Betty Jane again. Her only connection to the child was a black and white photograph of the baby bundled up in blankets shortly after she was born.

Then in 2006, Mrs Disbrow, who turned 100 years old at the end of last month, received a call from Brian Lee who turned out to be her grandson. He then asked if she'd like to speak with Betty Jane - whose name was now Ruth Lee.

Back together: 100-year-old Minka Disbrow (right) is reunited with her daughter Ruth Lee in California after being separated for 77 years

Mrs Disbrow, the daughter of Dutch immigrants, had a tough childhood milking cows on South Dakota dairy farms. In 1928 while enjoying a summer's picnic with girls from a sewing class, the girl and her friend Elizabeth were jumped by three men and both girls were raped.

She said: 'We didn't know what to do. We didn't know what to say. So when we went back, nothing was said.'

When it was discovered she was expecting, her mother and stepfather sent her to a Lutheran home for pregnant girls. At 17, she gave birth to a blonde-haired baby and named her Betty Jane.

She was told she couldn't bring an infant back to the farm and at the time, a pastor and his wife were looking to adopt a child. She hoped they could give Betty Jane the home she couldn't.

Never forgotten: Minka Disbrow was raped when she was 16 and gave birth to a baby girl who she named Betty Jane and gave up for adoption

Ms Disbrow said: 'I loved that baby so much. I wanted what was best.'

She never met the couple or knew their names. But over the years, Mrs Disbrow wrote dozens of letters to the adoption agency to find out about her daughter. The agency replied faithfully with updates until there was a change in management and they lost touch.

Mrs Disbrow went on to marry a fruit salesman and they had two children. She worked as a dressmaker, silk saleswoman and school cafeteria manager across the country from Rhode Island to Minnesota and Northern California before moving to the seaside town of San Clemente an hour's drive from San Diego.

Every year, she thought about Betty Jane on her daughter's birthday, May 22. Five years ago, Mrs Disbrow prayed she might get the chance to see her.

Accomplished: Minka Disbrow shows off an shows an autographed photo of her grandson Mark Lee, space shuttle astronaut, at her home in San Clemente, California

'Lord, if you would just let me see her,' Mrs Disbrow remembered praying. 'I promise you I will never bother her.'

On July 2, 2006, she received a phone call from a man in Alabama. He started asking the elderly woman about her background. Worried about identity theft, Mrs Disbrow refused to answer any questions. Then, the man asked if she'd like to speak with her daughter Betty Jane - whose name was now Ruth Lee.

Celebration: Minka Disbrow's 100th birthday card from her long-lost daughter takes pride of place in her Californian apartment

Mrs Lee had been raised by a Norwegian pastor and his wife and had gone on to marry and have six children.

One of her son's is the astronaut Mark Lee, a veteran of four space flights who has circled the world 517 times.

Mrs Less had always known she was adopted and grew up a happy child.

It wasn't until she was in her 70s that the search for her biological parents began.

Mrs Lee started suffering from heart problems and doctors asked about the family's medical history which she knew nothing about it.

Her son, Brian, decided to try to find out more and petitioned the court in South Dakota for his mother's adoption records.

He was given 270 pages including a written account of his grandmother's rape and handwritten letters from a young Mrs Disbrow, asking about her baby.

Mr Lee went online to try to find one of Mrs Disbrow's relatives - possibly through an obituary.

Brian Lee, 54, said: 'I was looking for somebody I thought was probably not living.'

He typed Mrs Disbrow's name into a web directory and was shocked when a phone listing popped up. 'I kind of stopped breathing for a second,' he said.

On the phone with her biological daughter, Mrs Disbrow was in disbelief - especially when she was told the accomplishments of her grandchildren.

A month later, Ruth Lee and her son Brian flew to California. They arrived at her biological mother's apartment with a gigantic bouquet of flowers.

Mrs Disbrow couldn't get over how similar her daughter's hands were to her own while Mrs Lee was amazed at the women's similar taste in clothing. They pored over family photo albums and caught up on the years they had missed.

Mrs Disbrow said: 'It was just like we had never parted. Like you were with the family all your life.'

Since then, the families have met numerous times. Mrs Disbrow has gone to visit grandchildren and great-grandchildren in Wisconsin and Texas. She is planning to travel to Alabama in the spring, where they will celebrate her recent 100th birthday.

Mrs Lee, now 82, said: 'It has been such a surreal, amazing experience that I still think sometimes that I will wake up and it will just be a beautiful dream.'

Mrs Disbrow's daughter Dianna Huhn, 55, of Portland, Oregon, said the reunion has filled a void for her mother.

Mrs Huhn added: 'I have never seen my mother as happy.'

***

Until next week...

Almondtree Productions

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”
(Psalms 133:1)