I Am An American!

And no I didn't switch over my citizenship.

I was driving along this afternoon and it struck me, we are all Americans. The name comes from living in North America...or heck even South America. So I have determined that when some one asks if there are any Americans present, I'll say yes because I am. And I am now going to call anyone from the States a Uniter. Maybe a Stater...but no longer will I call them Americans.

(Should get some interesting comments on this one.)

Double Decker Fun

Happy Easter to all! I am writing to you from just outside of Ottawa Ontario from Diana's house. Drove here Thursday afternoon and have just been relaxing with her family since. Today we went into Ottawa and shopped around and I even got to go to an IKEA for the first time, we bought a sweet cutting board and napkin holder. Now for the big news...

Diana and I are going to go to London for our honeymoon!!! We just found out this weekend that her parents wanted to send us and they told us yesterday. Not going to lie we are pretty excited! We are flying out the Sunday after our wedding and will be there for about 9 days or so. You can bet that I will have plenty of pictures to post online after the trip! And speaking of the wedding there are only 28 more days until I am a happily married man...I can't wait! Well I should get back to hanging out with the future in-laws, peace out my homies!

Hey Judas, Could You Do Me A Favor?

This story that I am going to post is originally from CNN.com. What does this mean to Christianity and the Easter story? What's your reaction? Let's see what you think.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- For 2,000 years Judas has been reviled for betraying Jesus. Now a newly translated ancient document seeks to tell his side of the story.

The "Gospel of Judas" tells a far different tale from the four gospels in the New Testament. It portrays Judas as a favored disciple who was given special knowledge by Jesus -- and who turned him in at Jesus' request.

"You will be cursed by the other generations -- and you will come to rule over them," Jesus tells Judas in the document made public Thursday. (Watch reaction to writings, then and now -- 1:58)

The text, one of several ancient documents found in the Egyptian desert in 1970, was preserved and translated by a team of scholars. It was made public in an English translation by the National Geographic Society.

Religious and lay readers alike will debate the meaning and truth of the manuscript.

But it does show the diversity of beliefs in early Christianity, said Marvin Meyer, professor of Bible studies at Chapman University in Orange, California.

The text, in the Coptic language, was dated to about the year 300 A.D. and is a copy of an earlier Greek version.

A "Gospel of Judas" was first mentioned around 180 A.D. by Bishop Irenaeus of Lyon, in what is now France. The bishop denounced the manuscript as heresy because it differed from mainstream Christianity. The actual text had been thought lost until this discovery.

Elaine Pagels, a professor of religion at Princeton University, said, "The people who loved, circulated and wrote down these gospels did not think they were heretics."

Added Rev. Donald Senior, president of the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago: "Let a vigorous debate on the significance of this fascinating ancient text begin."

Senior expressed doubt that the new gospel will rival the New Testament, but he allowed that opinions are likely to vary.

Craig Evans, a professor at Acadia Divinity College in Nova Scotia, Canada, said New Testament explanations for Judas' betrayal range from money to the influence of Satan.

"Perhaps more now can be said," he commented. The document "implies that Judas only did what Jesus wanted him to do."

Christianity in the ancient world was much more diverse than it is now, with a number of gospels circulating in addition to the four that were finally collected into the New Testament, noted Bart Ehrman, chairman of religious studies at the University of North Carolina.

Eventually, one point of view prevailed and the others were declared heresy, he said, including the Gnostics who believed that salvation depended on secret knowledge that Jesus imparted, particularly to Judas.

The newly translated document's text begins: "The secret account of the revelation that Jesus spoke in conversation with Judas Iscariot."

In a key passage Jesus tells Judas, "You will exceed all of them. For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me."

This indicates that Judas would help liberate the spiritual self by helping Jesus get rid of his physical flesh, the scholars said.

"Step away from the others and I shall tell you the mysteries of the kingdom," Jesus says to Judas, singling him out for special status. "Look, you have been told everything. Lift up your eyes and look at the cloud and the light within it and the stars surrounding it. The star that leads the way is your star."

The text ends with Judas turning Jesus over to the high priests and does not include any mention of the crucifixion or resurrection.

National Geographic said the author believed that Judas Iscariot alone understood the true significance of Jesus' teachings. The author of the text is not named in the writings.

Discovered in 1970, the papyrus was kept in a safety deposit box for several years and began to deteriorate before conservators restored it. More than 1,000 pieces had to be reassembled.

The material will be donated to the Coptic museum in Cairo, Egypt, so it can be available to all scholars said Ted Waitt of the Waitt Institute for Historical Discovery, which helped finance the restoration.

In addition to radio carbon dating, the manuscript was also authenticated through ink analysis, multispectral imaging, content and linguistic style and handwriting style, National Geographic reported.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Hit Me Baby One More Time.

Click the title for the whole story. Simply Incredible.

Check Please!

So I was in class the other day and got to thinking that there are a lot of famous Bills in Hollywood, I then proceeded to compile a list of my top 25 famous Bills. If you think that I neglected a Bill please let me know.

• Billy Graham
• Bill Hybels
• Bill (William) Shatner
• Bill Shakespeare
• Bill Cosbey
• Bill Clinton
• Bill Paxton
• Bill Gates
• Billy Bob Thornton
• Billy Joel
• Billy Jean (Not My Lover)
• Billy Idol
• Billy Baldwin
• Billy Madison
• Bill Nye "The Science Guy"
• Bill of "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures"
• Wild Bill
• Buffalo Bill
• Billy the Kid
• Billy Joe (Green Day)
• Billy Blanks (Tae Bo guy)
• Bill Murray
• Bill Gaither
• Billy Ray Cirus
• Bill of Rights

By no means is this a complete list or is it even in order of the coolest, but two things are for sure: there are even more famous Bills out there & the new Random Link is up so check it out!