Paraná Adventist College (IAP) received a grade 5 in the accreditation from the Ministry of Education (MEC). It is the first time the institution reached the maximum score. The unprecedented achieveme…… Source: https://adventist.news/en/news/parana-adventist-college-receives-top-grade-in-ministry-of-education-mec-evaluation
Thursday: Babylon ~The Center of Idolatry
Here is another clue in clearly identifying the “mystery of Babylon the great.” Idolatry was at the heart of Babylonian worship.
Read Jeremiah 50:33-38 and Jeremiah 51:17, Jeremiah 51:47. What do you discover in these verses about ancient Babylon’s worship of images and God’s response to it?
Jeremiah 50:1-46 and 51 predict Babylon’s destruction by the Medes and Persians.
Image © Lars Justinen at Goodsalt.com
One of the reasons for Babylon’s demise was their idolatry. The Babylonians believed that these images were representations of their deities. In Babylonian religion, the ritual care and worship of the statues of deities was considered sacred; the gods lived simultaneously in their statues in temples and in the natural forces they embodied. The pillaging or destruction of idols was considered to be loss of divine patronage. For example, the Chaldean prince Marduk-apla-iddina II fled into the southern marshes of Mesopotamia with the statues of Babylon’s gods to save them from the armies of Sennacherib of Assyria. (Jane R. McIntosh, Ancient Mesopotamia: New Perspectives, ABC-CLIO, Inc., [Santa Barbara, CA, 2005], p. 203).
The Bible prophets contrasted the worship of these lifeless images with the Creator God, who was both alive and lifegiving (Jeremiah 51:15-16, Jeremiah 51:19).
Read Exodus 20:4-6 and Psalms 115:4-8. What do they teach about idolatry?
Though the issues of the idolatry of spiritual Babylon go deeper than just bowing before images of wood and stone, spiritual Babylon does parallel ancient Babylon with the images introduced into its worship service. The use of images as objects of worship, or so-called “veneration,” is a violation of the second commandment because it limits the ability of the Holy Spirit to impress upon our minds the things of eternity and reduces the majesty of God to a lifeless statue. These images were introduced into Christianity in the fourth century to make Christianity more acceptable to the pagan populace. Unfortunately, these images are often given the sacredness and homage that belongs to God alone, which makes the whole thing spiritually degrading.
Amen!
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Multiple Sclerosis Research Clinic Launches at Sydney Adventist Hospital
People living with multiple sclerosis have a new opportunity to help shape the way it is treated and monitored in the future, with a new partnership between Sydney Adventist Hospital (the San) and the…… Source: https://adventist.news/en/news/multiple-sclerosis-research-clinic-launches-at-sydney-adventist-hospital
Community Services Reloaded: Food • Shelter • Healing – Love • Action • Impact
Area 6B event at Balham Seventh-day Adventist Church, unites individuals dedicated to community service, and emphasises going beyond church walls and helping those in need. With a roadmap for the future, including disaster relief and community support.Source: https://adventist.uk/news/article/go/2023-05-24/community-services-reloaded-food-shelter-healing-love-action-impact/
La Iglesia Adventista no está preparada para el cambio
En su ensayo titulado “Burocracia, relevancia y recursos: Cómo combatir la excesiva burocracia eclesiástica”, Raj Attiken, administrador de iglesias jubilado, argumenta de forma convincente que la transformación estructural es una de las necesidades más grandes y urgentes de la Iglesia. Termina con una súplica apasionada para que la Iglesia la denominación pidiera disculpas a sus […] Source: https://atoday.org/la-iglesia-adventista-no-esta-preparada-para-el-cambio/
