Last Copy

I am a living book. I have chosen to be a living book. I am the last copy of this book in existence. I am the Bible.

The Bible is a true historical document.  It has survived thousands of years. The books written by Moses were written 500 years before the earliest Hindu Scriptures. Moses wrote Genesis 2,000 years before Muhammad wrote the Koran. Throughout history, no other book has been as loved or as hated as the Bible. No other book has been so consistently bought, studied, and quoted as this book. While millions of other titles come and go, the Bible is still the book by which all other books are measured. While often ignored by those who are uncomfortable with its teachings, it is still the central book of Western civilization.

            The Bible has overcome trials and was preserved for thousands of years. Just as the modern state of Israel was emerging from thousands of years of dispersal, a shepherd discovered one of the most important archeological treasures of our time. In a cave of the northwest rim of the Dead Sea, he found a jar with documents that had been hidden for two millennia. Additional finds produced manuscripts that predated previous oldest copies by 1,000 years. One of the most important was a copy of Isaiah. It revealed a document that is essentially the same as the book of Isaiah that can be found in our own Bibles. The Dead Sea scrolls emerged from the dust like a symbolic handshake to a nation coming home.

            The Bible is a miraculously true and honest book. If the authors of Scripture had not claimed to speak for God, it would be presumptuous for us to make that claim for them. We would also have a different kind of problem. We would have a collection of unsolved mysteries, embodied in historical and ethical literature. We would not have a book that has inspired the building of countless churches and synagogues all over the world. A Bible that did not claim to speak in behalf of God would not have become foundational to the faith of hundreds of millions of Christians and Jews2 peter 1:16-21. With much supporting evidence and argument, the Bible's authors did claim to be inspired by God. Millions have staked their present and eternal well-being on those claims. The Bible cannot be a good book if its authors consistently lied about their source of information.  Israel's exodus from Egypt provided a historical basis for believing that God revealed Himself to Israel. If the Red Sea did not part as Moses said it did, the Old Testament loses its authority to speak in behalf of God. The New Testament is just as dependent upon miracles. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, the apostle Paul admits that the Christian faith is built on a lie1 Corithians 15:14-17. To show its credibility, the New Testament names its witnesses, and did so within a time-frame that enabled those claims to be tested. Many of the witnesses ended up as martyrs, not for abstract moral or spiritual convictions but for their claim that Jesus had risen from the dead. While martyrdom is not unusual, the basis on which these people gave their lives is what's important. Many have died for what they believed to be the truth. But people do not die for what they know to be a lie.

            The Bible is a very important to me and millions of other people. It has persevered through time and proven itself to be true throughout history. It would be an honor for me to be the last existing copy the Bible.

Its your patriotic duty to shop

What woman doesn’t enjoy an afternoon of shopping once in a while? Women of all ages do not be    ashamed of your urges to spend money. You are fulfilling your patriotic duty. Given that the U.S. economy is based on consumer spending, it is patriotic to shop. Go shop!

            Shopping is a social activity. It connects us to a place. When you travel to a new place, whether it’s another state in the U.S. or another country, you have to get souvenirs. As a consumer in a new place, you engage with the local people and culture when you shop. Family and friends will get together and go shopping and make it a social event. It is an outing. You spend the day there and you even eat a meal there. Although, some will say shopping for non-essentials is frivolous.

            Shopping is an assertion of our freedom as American citizens. As American citizens, we have the right to spend our hard earned money that we’ve paid taxes on, on what we choose. “The way of austerity and only buying things we strictly need leads to Cambodia under Pol Pot, Afghanistan under the Taliban or China under Mao.” Lucia van der Post          

            Shopping keeps the economy alive. When you spend money, the demand of goods goes up. When the demand of goods goes up, the demand for labor goes up. A higher demand of labor means more jobs. Therefore the economy stays stimulated by consumers. The consequences of ceasing to purchase non-essentials would mean that the people who make them will be out of work and unable to even purchase essentials.

            As an American citizen, shopping is part of your patriotic duty. Shopping stimulates the economy. It allows for connections between people and places all over the world. As Americans, we have the freedom to spend our money on essentials and non-essentials.