THE SUPERNATURAL YOU

Passover this year began on Saturday evening, March 27, and will end April 4, Easter.  Holy Week:

• This is Palm Sunday, the day in 30AD or 33AD when Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey.
• Why Palm Sunday and why a donkey?  
• His supporters laid palm branches on the ground, and a donkey symbolized peace (a horse...war). 

• 
  Some of these branches are then ritually burned on Shrove Tuesday to make the ashes for the next Ash Wednesday (meaning March 22 next year), the first day of Lent, which goes on for 46 days, as Sundays don't count.  
• Which means once/week on that day you don't need to fast, or can smoke, if that's what you gave up.  
• Ash Wednesday and Fridays are particular days of fasting and abstinence, but only for those of 18-59.
• In general, fasting means eat less, not don't eat.
• Snacking is not allowed.
• Abstinence has nothing to do with sex, it mostly means no meat, although fish is okay.  Apparently, there is some leeway for crustaceans if this is not enjoyed gustatorily.

• 
  The latest surmisal is that The Last Supper actually occurred on Wednesday night, not Maundy Thursday.  Maundy means washing the feet of the poor.
• He was crucified and passed away on Good Friday around  3PM.  
• Holy Saturday is the final day of Lent.
• Sunday is Easter, when He was "resurrected."

I thus feel compelled to today focus on something of a spiritual nature.  I've had the same tax accountant, Jimmy, now for more than a quarter century.  While he is clearly pressed to get our annual encounter completed as quickly as possible, we somehow find a lot of time just to talk.  Almost always he passes on to me a religious token of his appreciation.

This week he gave me The Supernatural You by Bill Bright.  Out of curiosity I went to Amazon and found out that this thin pamphlet, only 40 pages long, and one-fourth the page area of a normal book, is sold for $10.99.  It's not even a booklet, for ten of those forty pages are devoted to references and ads.  It was first published in 2002.

First, who is Bill Bright?  William R. "Bill" Bright was an American evangelist who was born in 1921 and passed away in 2003.  He is called Dr. Bright, but his doctorate was honorable...five times.  He founded the Campus Crusade for Christ, a ministry for university students.  This is a photo of Bill with his wife Vonette and two adopted boys.

He also in 1979 was behind the production of The Jesus Film (this is the whole movie--got an 87% rating by Rotten Tomatoes audiences).  By the end of 2018 it was available in 1,724 languages and viewed 375 million times, and is recognized by The Guinness Book of World Records as the Most Translated Film in history.  And in case you did not know, there are around 7,000 languages.  He also won in 1996 the $1.1 million Templeton Prize, which he donated to promote fasting and prayer.  

Clearly then, he deserves all the accolades he has received.  What about the pamphlet?

• Took me 15 minutes of scanning and some serious reading.
• Mixes human interest stories with the Gospel.
• Quotes from the Bible:
• Jesus declares, "If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it.  But if you give up your life for My sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will find true life." (Mark 8:35)
• There are others.
• 
  Go with God, for at the entrance of the RCA Building New York stands a gigantic statue of Atlas straining to hold the world on his shoulders, while on the other side of Fifth Avenue is St. Patrick's Cathedral, where behind the high altar is a shrine of the boy Jesus holding the world in one hand.

• 
  The bottom line is that you have no power in and of yourself to live the Christian life.  It requires supernatural power--Christ's power.
• What do you get out of this?
• Everlasting Peace (John 14:27)
• Infinite Joy 

While I continue to be in euphoria, infinite joy seems even more appealing.  So here I am this week writing about my next global adventure, while people like Bill Bright and Jimmy dedicate their life to rescuing souls.  At least I remain committed to saving Humanity and Planet Earth, to me, a higher order of salvation.

I was sent this link to the 50th Anniversary version of The Weight from five continents. Good way to spend part of your Sunday.  Actually, The Band released this song in 1968 before it was known by that name, written mostly by Robbie Robertson, but also other members of the group.  How appropriate for today, as it is about "someone" entering Nazareth, although it is 64 miles from Jerusalem.  No matter that this Nazareth is in Pennsylvania.

Other versions were by Jackie DeShannon in 1968, Aretha Franklin in 1969 and, also that year, Diana Ross & the Supremes, with The Temptations.  Finally, here is The Band performing The Weight at the original Woodstock.

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