BABYLONIAN CHILDREN & THE ADOPTION CEREMONY
Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was a well respected developmental psychologist who studied how children grow and develop in their thinking abilities, and it was through his painstaking research that he was able to outline four stages of cognitive development. The sensorimotion stage (birth to 2 years), the preoperational stage (2 to 7 years), the concrete operational state (7 to 11 years), and the formal operational stage (11 years and up). But for all purposes and intent, we will only need to concern ourselves with the latter two stages (concrete and formal), as I will hope to show some striking similarities between these two stages and the development of Christian thought, or perhaps I should say the lack thereof.
By definition, children (7 to 11) years who perform concrete operations will arrange things into classes, relations, or numbers. That is, they will make logical groupings and classifications. However, they will seldom integrate their thoughts into a single, total, logical system. Whereas, the formal operations of adolescents (11 years and up) are able to apply a greater degree of reason and can systematize their ideas, so that they can construct theories. Furthermore, they are able to test their theories, and can therefore discover truth in a relative order.
By further analysis, Piaget's research revealed that children may produce the right answers in problem solving by the simple task of trial and error, but they fail to use systematic procedures to find the answers. Thus, they cannot give logical explanations of how they arrived to the solutions. In addition, they often form conclusions that are premature and false because they have not considered all of the important facts and are not able to reason logically about them. But perhaps the most compelling revelation in Piaget's research is that he was able to show that children will hold tenaciously to their initial opinions, even when they are presented with contrary evidence, and will even go so far as to try and make information and circumstances fit their preconceived notions.
Insofar as similarities are concerned, I would hope that just by a simple analysis, that the church goer would be able to make the connection between the concrete stage (7 to 11 years) and the thoughts of Christians in general. In fact, if you’re anything like me, you may have found some similarities in the concrete stage and yourself. Of course, If you’re having trouble making this connection (i.e., seeing the correlation), then I would suggest one of two things: either reread the prior paragraphs on this page until you do understand, or spend some time observing the reactions of an adult group of professing Christians when their traditional beliefs have been legitimately challenged.
The reality is that children (7 to 11 years), like Christian Adults, can be very smart and yet be very uninformed. This does not mean that they are "stupid," it just simply means that they are lacking in some of the formative principles that would acquaint them to particular facts. However, the problem, as it relates to Christians, goes beyond this cognitive analogy.
Now, this may seem like a harsh way to put it, but the fact of the matter is, most Christians do not love truth. What they do love is their pet doctrines, and they will hold tenaciously to them. So, if you present them with problem solving terminology for the conquest of their misguided thoughts, they will hate you for it: They will very discreetly cast you out of their church circle; and thinking that they are doing God a favor by excommunicating you, they will shout in unison "Let the Lord be glorified" (ls.66:5). Of course, the Pharisees behaved in much the same manner, for we are told that the disciples came to Jesus, perhaps in shock and dismay, and asked him if he knew "that the Pharisees were offended" by what he said? (Matt.1S:12). Obviously, Jesus knew that he had offended them. But the real question is, are we too like the Pharisees, becoming offended when someone has legitimately challenged our traditional beliefs, or are we receptive to the problem solving terminology?
Formal thinking involves four major aspects: Introspection (thinking about thought): Abstract thought (going beyond those things that seem real to what is possible): Logical thinking (being able to consider all of the important facts and ideas and to form correct conclusions, such as being able to determine cause and effect): Hypothetical reasoning (formulating hypothesis and examining the evidence for them, while, at the same time, considering all the variables involved). These formal operations of thought are critical tools for the intellectual development of moral maturity, and yet these are the very tools that most Christians lack. And this is a sad state of affairs when we consider that church membership is up to around two billion (i.e., according to a Christian Radio Network report). What this essentially means is that we have a whole lot of children who are wearing the bodies of an adult, but possessing nothing more than the intellectual abilities of a little child. Of course, none of these formative principles will take shape until we learn the correct definitions of each key word and the concepts behind each term. In other words, if we are going to establish these formative principles, then we must first resolve some matters of terminology.
For example, what does thinking about thought really mean? What does it mean to go "beyond those things that seems real"? What is a fact? What conditions must be met in order to establish a fact? What is evidence? What is a conclusion? How does evidence support a conclusion? My point is simply this, concepts and meanings must be understood correctly if we are going to fashion accurate conceptions and give proper explanations. Otherwise, we will be extrapolating information from loose-minded terminology and will only propagate child-like behavior.
Sadly enough, this is where the people of the church are at today. One of the primary causes of this child-like behavior stems from the fact that their mother (the religious leaders) has "taught" them to cling tenaciously to their English renditions of the Bible. As a result of this, they never question, they never challenge, and they will never "go beyond" the English to see what the more original, much older Greek and Hebrew texts have to say. So, please, let us notice the flaw of loose-minded terminology: If you were on trial for murder and your defense attorney were to use loose-minded terminology all throughout proceedings, what do you think the odds are that you would end up on death row? Case and point; loose-minded terminology can be life threatening.
Now, many people will say that I am biting the hand that feeds me, especially in what I am about to say, and indeed this would have been true if I had remained bound (i.e., illegally married) to the communion of her doctrine. But I, like many others, have moved beyond these repetitive teachings, which bear no resemblance to the lawful order of His Word, for her teachings had become as stale and moldy bread, a place where even the dogs avoid the crumbs. Yet tragically there is still a large body of believers who remain seated at her table, and as they pick through the moldy bread, looking for blessings, she leads them to believe that they are feasting on truth. But in reality they are only eating from the same lump of leavened doctrine that their forefathers ate from and have now passed on to them. Sometimes they see the mold of the past and brush it off the table, but under the table their feet, like the rest of their body, has become defiled. Buried in the crumbs, their feet no longer rest upon the true foundation, but upon manmade teachings. Of course, she doesn't feed her children with bread alone, usually, and so she has her strong points. But what part do the teachings of righteousness have with the unrighteous doctrines of men? And so I say, truly, it has appeared to us in this last age, that which was prophesied from so long ago. That is, a defiled body of believers have proven themselves to be the feet of iron and clay (Dan.2:40-43), and have likewise fulfilled the Proverb which says:
For at the window of my house I looked through the casement, and beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding, Passing through the street near her corner; and he went by way of her house, In twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night: And behold there met him a woman [church] with the attire of an harlot, and subtle of heart. (She is loud and stubborn; her feet abide not in her house: Now she is without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner.) So she caught him [the simple ones, i.e., those who possess only the concrete operations], and she kissed him, and with an impudent face said to him, I have peace offerings with me; this day have I paid my vows ["nedher, " a Hebrew word which means to promise God a service in exchange for something in return]. THEREFORE, came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee. I have decked my bed [the sanctuary of the church] with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine linen of Egypt. I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon [prayer, song, and praise]. Come, let us take our fill of love until morning: Let us solace ourselves with loves. For the Goodman is not at home, he is gone away on a long journey: He hath taken a bag of riches with him and will [only] come home at the full moon [i.e., only when the sanctuary is full and the church membership has reached its capacity]. With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, wi th the flattering of her lips she forced him. He goeth after her straightway, as an ox [nation] goeth to the slaughter or as a fool [Galatian] to the correction of the stocks.
Make no mistakes about it; this Proverb is not talking about some lonely woman at the local bar who is cheating on her truck driving husband. It’s about Mystery Babylon. That is, its talking about the Christian church of today: And many are those who are joined to her: Thus, they have become as "one flesh" (1 Cor.6:16). The fact of the matter is, the church has become a dead body of believers, and those who share in the communion of her service have thus touched her form of doctrine and have likewise become unclean (Lev.21:1 0-15; Num.19:11-22; Is.52: 11). Its time for a cleansing, but the children are refusing to get into the bathtub.
The sociological complexities of the church are many. In fact, to many too discuss here. It will suffice to say that, some are good indeed, but some are equally as bad. Yet as a corporation, the psychological impact that she has had on a child-like society is none to healthy. Look at it like this, if someone were selling a bad product, or even a product that didn't really exist, then you would expect that most people would become disappointed in that product and quit buying it. But this is not always the case with children. Although they may stop buying the sugarless candy that one company manufactures, they will still go out in search of another denominational distributor, hoping to find the sweet stuff. And so, "with the flattering of her lips" she continues to make her sells.
The church of this age has actually taken delight in selling to the "simple ones, " the doctrines of eternal torment, free will, and a countless array of name it, claim it philosophies. And today, her buildings of wood and stone stand as a place where the thoughts of her children can develop in the darkness of her Egyptian deception. And under her roof is where she has demand a weekly gathering of ritualistic unity. But the gathering of these child-like minds has done nothing but reveal the price that they have paid for this bitter, sweet unity, for they have joined hands and now shout in the unity of voice, declaring, "Don't confuse us with the truth, for we have already accepted the lies!" These "simple ones" have become haters of the truth because it brings them under the Holy Spirit's conviction, so they hide from it (Gen.3:10).
Truth demands the actions of a new mind, and yet today's Christians cling to the narrow and vindictive mentality of the Dark Ages. And it is this narrow minded mentality that has vindictively called out to the people from every street corner, saying, "Come, and join our church, for this is the tower that leads to heaven" (Gen.11:4, 5). And so, is it any wonder that John "heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not her plagues. For her sins HAVE REACHED HEAVEN, and God hath remembered her iniquities" (Rev.18:4, 5).
Today, this harlot is using her "fair speech" to lure the "simple ones, " telling them that if they do not get into her bed, then they will burn in hell forever. Truly, this has been her calling card. And with her many persuasions she has convinced many to believe that her husband will burn 99 percent of all humanity forever, and that only 1 percent will gleefully escape the wrath of her husband, who, by the way, is "gone on a long journey. " Like the Pharisees, she has perverted the true message of God by distorting it with her own brand of linguistics. But the truth of the matter is, Jesus is, and always has been, the good shepherd, and he has made it quite clear that "if a man have a hundred sheep, and one of them is gone astray," that he will in no wise leave it lost (Matt.18:2).
Children need to be cared for, protected, and fed. In this task the church is noble. Of course, even the heathen do the same. But the church, in her crafty fashion, has taken the child-care industry into the realm of co-dependency, because she has not provided her children with the necessary "skills" to achieve higher learning. In other words, she is well aware that all children will develop an attachment to their primary caretaker, and she is well aware that if they do not learn the formative principles of thought, that they will never develop and thus become dependent upon her teachings. Yet she pretends to be totally oblivious to this well known fact. So she (meaning the religious leaders) tells her children, over and over, that the way to spiritual maturity is to simply believe! In what, I'm not exactly sure? She tells them, again and again, that all they have to do is love one another! Of course, once again I say, even the heathen do this. She tells them a lot of things, repetitively, week after week. But never once does she tell them to "GET EDUCATION!" Why? Because she knows that without education these formative operations will never really take shape. Thus, her children will never be able to legitimately challenge her teachings. And, in this way, the children will always be children and the religious leaders will always be the primary caretaker. Of course this also keeps the collection tray filled. After all, children love their denominational distributors.