大èºé€². The Great Leap Forward (1958-1962)… estimated to have caused between 15 and 55 million deaths…
無產階級文化大é©å‘½. The Cultural Revolution (1966-1976)… estimated death toll ranging from hundreds of thousands to 20 million…
å…«ä¹æ°‘é‹. The Tiananmen Square Massacre (April 15, 1989 – June 4, 1989)… estimates ranged from the official figure of a few hundred to several thousand.
Would seem to be China itself…
The Athanasian Creed (Quicumque vult)
Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the Catholic Faith.
Which Faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled; without doubt he shall perish everlastingly.
And the Catholic Faith is this: That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; Neither confounding the Persons; nor dividing the Essence.
For there is one Person of the Father; another of the Son; and another of the Holy Ghost.
But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, is all one; the Glory equal, the Majesty coeternal. Such as the Father is; such is the Son; and such is the Holy Ghost.
The Father uncreated; the Son uncreated; and the Holy Ghost uncreated.
The Father unlimited; the Son unlimited; and the Holy Ghost unlimited.
The Father eternal; the Son eternal; and the Holy Ghost eternal.
And yet they are not three eternals; but one eternal.
As also there are not three uncreated; nor three infinites, but one uncreated; and one infinite.
So likewise the Father is Almighty; the Son Almighty; and the Holy Ghost Almighty.
And yet they are not three Almighties; but one Almighty.
So the Father is God; the Son is God; and the Holy Ghost is God.
And yet they are not three Gods; but one God.
So likewise the Father is Lord; the Son Lord; and the Holy Ghost Lord.
And yet not three Lords; but one Lord.
For like as we are compelled by the Christian verity; to acknowledge every Person by himself to be God and Lord; So are we forbidden by the Catholic Religion; to say, There are three Gods, or three Lords.
The Father is made of none; neither created, nor begotten.
The Son is of the Father alone; not made, nor created; but begotten.
The Holy Ghost is of the Father and of the Son; neither made, nor created, nor begotten; but proceeding.
So there is one Father, not three Fathers; one Son, not three Sons; one Holy Ghost, not three Holy Ghosts.
And in this Trinity none is before, or after another; none is greater, or less than another.
But the whole three Persons are coeternal, and coequal.
So that in all things, as aforesaid; the Unity in Trinity, and the Trinity in Unity, is to be worshipped.
He therefore that will be saved, let him thus think of the Trinity.Furthermore it is necessary to everlasting salvation; that he also believe faithfully the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
For the right Faith is, that we believe and confess; that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man; God, of the Essence of the Father; begotten before the worlds; and Man, of the Essence of his Mother, born in the world. Perfect God; and perfect Man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting.
Equal to the Father, as touching his Godhead; and inferior to the Father as touching his Manhood.
Who although he is God and Man; yet he is not two, but one Christ.
One; not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh; but by assumption of the Manhood into God.
One altogether; not by confusion of Essence; but by unity of Person.
For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man; so God and Man is one Christ; Who suffered for our salvation; descended into hell; rose again the third day from the dead.
He ascended into heaven, he sitteth on the right hand of the God the Father Almighty, from whence he will come to judge the quick and the dead.
At whose coming all men will rise again with their bodies; And shall give account for their own works.
And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting; and they that have done evil, into everlasting fire.
This is the Catholic Faith; which except a man believe truly and firmly, he cannot be saved.
Almost four-hundred years ago on May 2nd, 1611, one of the greatest influences on the English language, the Authorised Version (AV) of the bible, was published. It wasn’t the first translation of the bible into English, and it certainly isn’t the last. However, along with the works of Shakespeare and the Oxford English Dictionary, it has been instrumental in forming the English language into what we use today. To celebrate the quadricentennial of the AV, every week this year, I plan to tweet a bible verse which has become a well-known phrase.
After a lunchtime conversation with my work colleagues about the price of meat, I thought I’d have a look to see how much different meats actually cost per kg. The prices are a snapshot of the prices at Tesco on 24-Nov-2011.
| Beef | Mince | £3.28/kg |
| Burgers | £4.39/kg | |
| Stewing steak | £5.19/kg | |
| Casserole steak | £7.50/kg | |
| Shoulder joint | £7.50/kg | |
| Rump Steak | £8.61/kg | |
| Rib roast | £9.88/kg | |
| Sir loin | £15.47/kg | |
| Fillet steak | £22.98/kg | |
| Chicken | Whole chicken | £2.43/kg |
| Legs | £2.96/kg | |
| Thighs | £3.62/kg | |
| Breast quarter | £4.16/kg | |
| Breast fillet | £9.63/kg | |
| Fish | Mussel meat | £4.45/kg |
| Seafood sticks | £5.00/kg | |
| River Cobbler | £6.46/kg | |
| Whole trout | £6.99/kg | |
| Haddock fillets | £7.96/kg | |
| Cod fillets | £8.70/kg | |
| Plaice fillets | £9.17/kg | |
| Cooked and peeled prawns | £9.53/kg | |
| Raw king prawns | £13.96/kg | |
| Salmon fillets | £16.89/kg | |
| Trout fillets | £18.19/kg | |
| Scallops | £18.75/kg | |
| Tuna steak | £19.98/kg | |
| Lamb | Mutton mince | £3.18/kg |
| Shoulder | £5.00/kg | |
| Mince | £6.73/kg | |
| Leg | £8.99/kg | |
| Shanks | £8.99/kg | |
| Steak | £11.34/kg | |
| Shoulder fillets | £12.50/kg | |
| Chops | £14.15/kg | |
| Pork | Shoulder joint | £2.19/kg |
| Leg joint | £2.99/kg | |
| Pork mince | £3.00/kg | |
| Ribs | £3.36/kg | |
| Belly slices | £3.78/kg | |
| Shoulder steaks | £3.89/kg | |
| Boneless Streaky slices | £4.78/kg | |
| Trimmed rib rack | £4.99/kg | |
| Pork chops | £5.97/kg | |
| Smoked back bacon | £6.88/kg | |
| Loin Steaks | £7.71/kg | |
| Fillet | £7.99/kg | |
| Escalopes | £11.67/kg | |
| Medallions | £11.67/kg |
And these few precepts in thy memory
Look thou character. Give thy thoughts no tongue,
Nor any unproportion’d thought his act.
Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar.
Those friends thou hast, and their adoption tried,
Grapple them unto thy soul with hoops of steel;
But do not dull thy palm with entertainment
Of each new-hatch’d, unfledg’d comrade. Beware
Of entrance to a quarrel; but, being in,
Bear’t that the opposed may beware of thee.
Give every man thine ear, but few thy voice:
Take each man’s censure, but reserve thy judgment.
Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
But not express’d in fancy; rich, not gaudy:
For the apparel oft proclaims the man;
And they in France of the best rank and station
Are most select and generous chief in that.
Neither a borrower nor a lender be:
For loan oft loses both itself and friend;
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.
This above all,–to thine own self be true;
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
Farewell: my blessing season this in thee!
Hamlet, Act 1, Scene III. William Shakespeare
It would seem that, when I look around at my friends, everyone around me has a laptop. Their reasoning for having one varies from it being their main/only computer, to something which is more convenient than a desktop, through to no reasoning at all. My mum recently acquired one, and I said I’d set it up. A quick download of Xubuntu, Gutsy Gibbon, (it’s an old laptop!) and it was up and running. Web surfing is accomplished by Firefox, dial-up access and wireless networking worked out of the box. Whilst it is in my possession, I figured I might as well use it, so Pidgin, Xnest and Gnomesword/ESV were installed which enable me to chat on MSN/GTalk/ICQ, open XDMCP sessions on my Fedora 8 box and read the bible all from the comfort of my bed. (Where I am now :))
Eventually I’ll return the laptop to my mum so she can use it to check her email and browse the web. The question I’m left with now is; Do I get a laptop? Sure, it’s nice for blogging from bed, or instant messaging in front of the telly, but do I really need one? It would be useful when I’m on holiday to copy photos onto so my camera doesn’t get clogged up, to watch DVDs, to make blog posts and email, but do I really need it?
I’m not sure I need it, but it’s sure nice. We’ll see I guess…
I charge thee, fling away ambition
By that sin fell the angels. How can man then,
The image of his maker hope to win by it ?
Love thyself last: cherish those hearts that hate thee;
Corruption wins not more than honesty
Still in thy right hand carry gentle peace,
To silence envious tongues: be just, and fear not.
Let all the ends thou aim’st at be thy country’s,
Thy God’s and truth’sWilliam Shakespeare
When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.JohnÂson OatÂman, Jr.
A good thing or a bad thing? I’m not sure…
To those who regularly read this blog, I do apologise for the lack of original ramblings of late! (I get the feeling I may be apologising to no one!) This is partly due to the madness of the Christmas season, and an inability to decline requests for help. Needless to say, even though Christmas is a long distant memory, January was busy!
Over the past months or so I have learnt a few new things which are possibly worth sharing.
I read somewhere that if your blog is mostly your own ramblings, rather than links to other people’s, you probably need a dose of humility. Fortunately, del.icio.us keeps me on the humble side!
Buying fruit loose is generally cheaper than buying prepacked. Case in point – I was in Sainsbury’s last week and saw a bag of 5 apples, ready packed, going for £1.99. I saw the same kind of apples being sold for £1.39/kg loose. I thought I’d try something, so picked out 5 apples, put them in a bag and went to the checkout. They came to £0.90(!) Over a pound cheaper than the prepacked! As an added bonus, they’re also a lot fresher – crisper and tastier! (Although I guess the latter is a little subjective and might be coloured by my feeling of self-satisfaction!)
Finally, the Sony Ericsson w910i rocks! A few weeks ago, I’d contacted my mobile operator with the intention of changing my tariff to something which would suit my needs better. I’d succeeded in increasing the number of free minutes and texts, whilst paying the same monthly rate, and the operator mentioned I was eligible for a free upgrade of my phone as well. Initially I was offered the Motorola K1 KRZR, but after a week of sending texts to the wrong people, finding the keypad irritating and generally being frustrated by the unresponsiveness of the software, I sent it back and was sent the w910i. Needless to say, because my previous phone was also an SE, I got on with the interface without hitch, the hardware is much higher build quality and it’s a whole lot more responsive than the Motorola! The fact it has a beautiful screen and plays mp3s is an added bonus!
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.But, Lord, ‘tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh trump of the angel! Oh voice of the Lord!
Blessèd hope, blessèd rest of my soul!And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.HoÂraÂtio G. SpafÂford
