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the Week of Proper 10 / Ordinary 15
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Bible Commentaries
Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible Henry's Complete
I. The apostle expresses concern for the Colossians, Colossians 2:1-3. II. He repeats it again, Colossians 2:5. III. He cautions them against false teachers among the Jews (Colossians 2:4; Colossians 2:6; Colossians 2:7), and against the Gentile philosophy, Colossians 2:8-12. IV. He represents the privileges of Christians, Colossians 2:13-15. And, V. Concludes with a caution against the judaizing teachers, and those who would introduce the worship of angels, Colossians 2:16-23.
Verses 1-3
Paul's Concern for the Colossians. | A. D. 62. |
1 For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh; 2 That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; 3 In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
We may observe here the great concern which Paul had for these Colossians and the other churches which he had not any personal knowledge of. The apostle had never been at Colosse, and the church planted there was not of his planting; and yet he had as tender a care of it as if it had been the only people of his charge (Colossians 2:1; Colossians 2:1): For I would that you knew what great conflict I have for you, and for those at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh. Observe, 1. Paul's care of the church was such as amounted to a conflict. He was in a sort of agony, and had a constant fear respecting what would become of them. Herein he was a follower of his Master, who was in an agony for us, and was heard in that he feared. (2.) We may keep up a communion by faith, hope, and holy love, even with those churches and fellow-christians of whom we have no personal knowledge, and with whom we have no conversation. We can think, and pray, and be concerned for one another, at the greatest distance; and those we never saw in the flesh we may hope to meet in heaven. But,
I. What was it that the apostle desired for them? That their hearts may be comforted, being knit together in love, c., Colossians 2:2; Colossians 2:2. It was their spiritual welfare about which he was solicitous. He does not say that they may be healthy, and merry, and rich, and great, and prosperous; but that their hearts may be comforted. Note, The prosperity of the soul is the best prosperity, and what we should be most solicitous about for ourselves and others. We have here a description of soul-prosperity.
1. When our knowledge grows to an understanding of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ,--when we come to have a more clear, distinct, methodical knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus, then the soul prospers: To understand the mystery, either what was before concealed, but is now made known concerning the Father and Christ, or the mystery before mentioned, of calling the Gentiles into the Christian church, as the Father and Christ have revealed it in the gospel; and not barely to speak of it by rote, or as we have been taught it by our catechisms, but to be led into it, and enter into the meaning and design of it. This is what we should labour after, and then the soul prospers.
2. When our faith grows to a full assurance and bold acknowledgment of this mystery. (1.) To a full assurance, or a well-settled judgment, upon their proper evidence, of the great truths of the gospel, without doubting, or calling them in question, but embracing them with the highest satisfaction, as faithful sayings and worthy of all acceptation. (2.) When it comes to a free acknowledgment, and we not only believe with the heart, but are ready, when called to it, to make confession with our mouth, and are not ashamed of our Master and our holy religion, under the frowns and violence of their enemies. This is called the riches of the full assurance of understanding. Great knowledge and strong faith make a soul rich. This is being rich towards God, and rich in faith, and having the true riches, Luke 12:21; Luke 16:11; James 2:5.
3. It consists in the abundance of comfort in our souls: That their hearts might be comforted. The soul prospers when it is filled with joy and peace (Romans 15:13), and has a satisfaction within which all the troubles without cannot disturb, and is able to joy in the Lord when all other comforts fail, Habakkuk 3:17; Habakkuk 3:18.
4. The more intimate communion we have with our fellow-christians the more the soul prospers: Being knit together in love. Holy love knits the hearts of Christians one to another; and faith and love both contribute to our comfort. The stronger our faith is, and the warmer our love, the greater will our comfort be. Having occasion to mention Christ (Colossians 2:2; Colossians 2:2), according to his usual way, he makes this remark to his honour (Colossians 2:3; Colossians 2:3): In whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. He had said (Colossians 1:19; Colossians 1:19) that all fulness dwells in him: here he mentions particularly the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. There is a fulness of wisdom in him, as he has perfectly revealed the will of God to mankind. Observe, The treasures of wisdom are hidden not from us, but for us, in Christ. Those who would be wise and knowing must make application to Christ. We must spend upon the stock which is laid up for us in him, and draw from the treasures which are hidden in him. He is the wisdom of God, and is of God made unto us wisdom, c., 1 Corinthians 1:24; 1 Corinthians 1:30.
II. His concern for them is repeated (Colossians 2:5; Colossians 2:5): Though I am absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying, and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ. Observe, 1. We may be present in spirit with those churches and Christians from whom we are absent in body; for the communion of saints is a spiritual thing. Paul had heard concerning the Colossians that they were orderly and regular; and though he had never seen them, nor was present with them, he tells them he could easily think himself among them, and look with pleasure upon their good behaviour. 2. The order and stedfastness of Christians are matter of joy to ministers; they joy when they behold their order, their regular behaviour and stedfast adherence to the Christian doctrine. 3. The more stedfast our faith in Christ is, the better order there will be in our whole conversation; for we live and walk by faith, 2 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 10:38.
Verses 4-12
The Glory of the Christian Economy. | A. D. 62. |
4 And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words. 5 For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ. 6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: 7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. 8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. 9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. 10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: 11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
The apostle cautions the Colossians against deceivers (Colossians 2:4; Colossians 2:4): And this I say lest any man beguile you with enticing words; and Colossians 2:8; Colossians 2:8, Lest any man spoil you. He insists so much upon the perfection of Christ and the gospel revelation, to preserve them from the ensnaring insinuations of those who would corrupt their principles. Note, 1. The way in which Satan spoils souls is by beguiling them. He deceives them, and by this means slays them. He is the old serpent who beguiled Eve through his subtlety,2 Corinthians 11:3. He could not ruin us if he did not cheat us; and he could not cheat us but by our own fault and folly. 2. Satan's agents, who aim to spoil them, beguile them with enticing words. See the danger of enticing words; how many are ruined by the flattery of those who lie in wait to deceive, and by the false disguises and fair appearances of evil principles and wicked practices. By good words, and fair speeches, they deceive the hearts of the simple,Romans 16:18. "You ought to stand upon your guard against enticing words, and be aware and afraid of those who would entice you to any evil; for that which they aim at is to spoil you." If sinners entice thee, consent thou not,Proverbs 1:10. Observe,
I. A sovereign antidote against seducers (Colossians 2:6; Colossians 2:7): As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk you in him, rooted and built up, c. Here note, 1. All Christians have, in profession at least, received Jesus Christ the Lord, received him as Christ, the great prophet of the church, anointed by God to reveal his will as Jesus the great high priest, and Saviour from sin and wrath, by the expiatory sacrifice of himself; and as Lord, or sovereign and king, whom we are to obey and be subject to.--Received him, consented to him, taken him for ours in every relation and every capacity, and for all the purposes and uses of them. 2. The great concern of those who have received Christ is to walk in him--to make their practices conformable to their principles and their conversation agreeable to their engagements. As we have received Christ, or consented to be his, so we must walk with him in our daily course and keep up our communion with him. 3. The more closely we walk with Christ the more we are rooted and established in the faith. A good conversation is the best establishment of a good faith. If we walk in him, we shall be rooted in him; and the more firmly we are rooted in him the more closely we shall walk in him: Rooted and built up. Observe, We cannot be built up in Christ, unless we be first rooted in him. We must be united to him by a lively faith, and heartily consent to his covenant, and then we shall grow up in him in all things.--As you have been taught--"according to the rule of the Christian doctrine, in which you have been instructed." Observe, A good education has a good influence upon our establishment. We must be established in the faith, as we have been taught, abounding therein. Observe, Being established in the faith, we must abound therein, and improve in it more and more; and this with thanksgiving. The way to have the benefit and comfort of God's grace is to be much in giving thanks for it. We must join thanksgiving to all our improvements, and be sensible of the mercy of all our privileges and attainments. Observe,
II. The fair warning given us of our danger: Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ,Colossians 2:8; Colossians 2:8. There is a philosophy which is a noble exercise of our reasonable faculties, and highly serviceable to religion, such a study of the works of God as leads us to the knowledge of God and confirms our faith in him. But there is a philosophy which is vain and deceitful, which is prejudicial to religion, and sets up the wisdom of man in competition with the wisdom of God, and while it pleases men's fancies ruins their faith; as nice and curious speculations about things above us, or of no use and concern to us; or a care of words and terms of art, which have only an empty and often a cheating appearance of knowledge. After the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world: this plainly reflects upon the Jewish pedagogy or economy, as well as the Pagan learning. The Jews governed themselves by the traditions of their elders and the rudiments or elements of the world, the rites and observances which were only preparatory and introductory to the gospel state; the Gentiles mixed their maxims of philosophy with their Christian principles; and both alienated their minds from Christ. Those who pin their faith on other men's sleeves, and walk in the way of the world, have turned away from following after Christ. The deceivers were especially the Jewish teachers, who endeavoured to keep up the law of Moses in conjunction with the gospel of Christ, but really in competition with it and contradiction to it. Now here the apostle shows,
1. That we have in Christ the substance of all the shadows of the ceremonial law; for example, (1.) Had they then the Shechinah, or special presence of God, called the glory, from the visible token of it? So have we now in Jesus Christ (Colossians 2:9; Colossians 2:9): For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. Under the law, the presence of God dwelt between the cherubim, in a cloud which covered the mercy-seat; but now it dwells in the person of our Redeemer, who partakes of our nature, and is bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh, and has more clearly declared the Father to us. It dwells in him bodily; not as the body is opposed to the spirit, but as the body is opposed to the shadow. The fulness of the Godhead dwells in the Christ really, and not figuratively; for he is both God and man. (2.) Had they circumcision, which was the seal of the covenant? In Christ we are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands (Colossians 2:11; Colossians 2:11), by the work of regeneration in us, which is the spiritual or Christian circumcision. He is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is that of the heart,Romans 2:29. This is owing to Christ, and belongs to the Christian dispensation. It is made without hands; not by the power of any creature, but by the power of the blessed Spirit of God. We are born of the Spirit,John 3:5. And it is the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spirit,Titus 3:5. It consists in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, in renouncing sin and reforming our lives, not in mere external rites. It is not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience towards God,1 Peter 3:21. And it is not enough to put away some one particular sin, but we must put off the whole body of sin. The old man must be crucified, and the body of sin destroyed,Romans 6:6. Christ was circumcised, and, by virtue of our union to him, we partake of that effectual grace which puts off the body of the sins of the flesh. Again, The Jews thought themselves complete in the ceremonial law; but we are complete in Christ,Colossians 2:10; Colossians 2:10. That was imperfect and defective; if the first covenant had been faultless, there would no place have been sought for the second (Hebrews 8:7), and the law was but a shadow of good things, and could never, by those sacrifices, make the comers thereunto perfect,Hebrews 10:1. But all the defects of it are made up in the gospel of Christ, by the complete sacrifice for sin and revelation of the will of God. Which is the head of all principality and power. As the Old-Testament priesthood had its perfection in Christ, so likewise had the kingdom of David, which was the eminent principality and power under the Old Testament, and which the Jews valued themselves so much upon. And he is the Lord and head of all the powers in heaven and earth, of angels and men. Angels, and authorities, and powers are subject to him,1 Peter 3:22.
2. We have communion with Christ in his whole undertaking (Colossians 2:12; Colossians 2:12): Buried with him in baptism, wherein also you have risen with him. We are both buried and rise with him, and both are signified by our baptism; not that there is anything in the sign or ceremony of baptism which represents this burying and rising, any more than the crucifixion of Christ is represented by any visible resemblance in the Lord's supper: and he is speaking of the circumcision made without hands; and says it is through the faith of the operation of God. But the thing signified by our baptism is that we are buried with Christ, as baptism is the seal of the covenant and an obligation to our dying to sin; and that we are raised with Christ, as it is a seal and obligation to our living to righteousness, or newness of life. God in baptism engages to be to us a God, and we become engaged to be his people, and by his grace to die to sin and to live to righteousness, or put off the old man and put on the new.
Verses 13-15
The Glory of the Christian Economy. | A. D. 62. |
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
The apostle here represents the privileges we Christians have above the Jews, which are very great.
I. Christ's death is our life: And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him,Colossians 2:13; Colossians 2:13. A state of sin is a state of spiritual death. Those who are in sin are dead in sin. As the death of the body consists in its separation from the soul, so the death of the soul consists in its separation from God and the divine favour. As the death of the body is the corruption and putrefaction of it, so sin is the corruption or depravation of the soul. As a man who is dead is unable to help himself by any power of his own, so an habitual sinner is morally impotent: though he has a natural power, or the power of a reasonable creature, he has not a spiritual power, till he has the divine life or a renewed nature. It is principally to be understood of the Gentile world, who lay in wickedness. They were dead in the uncircumcision of their flesh, being aliens to the covenant of promise, and without God in the world,Ephesians 2:11; Ephesians 2:12. By reason of their uncircumcision they were dead in their sins. It may be understood of the spiritual uncircumcision or corruption of nature; and so it shows that we are dead in law, and dead in state. Dead in law, as a condemned malefactor is called a dead man because he is under a sentence of death; so sinners by the guilt of sin are under the sentence of the law and condemned already,John 3:18. And dead in state, by reason of the uncircumcision of our flesh. An unsanctified heart is called an uncircumcised heart: this is our state. Now through Christ we, who were dead in sins, are quickened; that is, effectual provision is made for taking away the guilt of sin, and breaking the power and dominion of it. Quickened together with him--by virtue of our union to him, and in conformity to him. Christ's death was the death of our sins; Christ's resurrection is the quickening of our souls.
II. Through him we have the remission of sin: Having forgiven you all trespasses. This is our quickening. The pardon of the crime is the life of the criminal: and this is owing to the resurrection of Christ, as well as his death; for, as he died for our sins, so he rose again for our justification,Romans 4:25.
III. Whatever was in force against us is taken out of the way. He has obtained for us a legal discharge from the hand-writing of ordinances, which was against us (Colossians 2:14; Colossians 2:14), which may be understood, 1. Of that obligation to punishment in which consists the guilt of sin. The curse of the law is the hand-writing against us, like the hand-writing on Belshazzar's wall. Cursed is every one who continues not in every thing. This was a hand-writing which was against us, and contrary to us; for it threatened our eternal ruin. This was removed when he redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us,Galatians 3:13. He cancelled the obligation for all who repent and believe. "Upon me be the curse, my father." He vacated and disannulled the judgment which was against us. When he was nailed to the cross, the curse was as it were nailed to the cross. And our indwelling corruption is crucified with Christ, and by virtue of his cross. When we remember the dying of the Lord Jesus, and see him nailed to the cross, we should see the hand-writing against us taken out of the way. Or rather, 2. It must be understood of the ceremonial law, the hand-writing of ordinances, the ceremonial institutions or the law of commandments contained in ordinances (Ephesians 2:15), which was a yoke to the Jews and a partition-wall to the Gentiles. The Lord Jesus took it out of the way, nailed it to his cross; that is, disannulled the obligation of it, that all might see and be satisfied that it was no more binding. When the substance came, the shadows fled away. It is abolished (2 Corinthians 3:13), and that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away,Hebrews 8:13. The expressions are in allusion to the ancient methods of cancelling a bond, either by crossing the writing or striking it through with a nail.
IV. He has obtained a glorious victory for us over the powers of darkness: And, having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it,Colossians 2:15; Colossians 2:15. As the curse of the law was against us, so the power of Satan was against us. He treated with God as the Judge, and redeemed us out of the hands of his justice by a price; but out of the hands of Satan the executioner he redeemed us by power and with a high hand. He led captivity captive. The devil and all the powers of hell were conquered and disarmed by the dying Redeemer. The first promise pointed at this; the bruising of the heel of Christ in his sufferings was the breaking of the serpent's head, Genesis 3:15. The expressions are lofty and magnificent: let us turn aside and see this great sight. The Redeemer conquered by dying. See his crown of thorns turned into a crown of laurels. He spoiled them, broke the devil's power, and conquered and disabled him, and made a show of them openly--exposed them to public shame, and made a show of them to angels and men. Never had the devil's kingdom such a mortal blow given to it as was given by the Lord Jesus. He tied them to his chariot-wheels, and rode forth conquering and to conquer--alluding to the custom of a general's triumph, who returned victorious.--Triumphing over them in it; that is, either in his cross and by his death; or, as some read it, in himself, by his own power; for he trod the wine-press alone, and of the people there was none with him.
Verses 16-23
The Glory of the Christian Economy. | A. D. 62. |
16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: 17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ. 18 Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God. 20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, 21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not; 22 Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 Which things have indeed a show of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.
The apostle concludes the chapter with exhortations to proper duty, which he infers from the foregoing discourse.
I. Here is a caution to take heed of judaizing teachers, or those who would impose upon Christians the yoke of the ceremonial law: Let no man therefore judge you in meat nor drink, c., Colossians 2:16; Colossians 2:16. Much of the ceremonies of the law of Moses consisted in the distinction of meats and days. It appears by Romans 14:1-23 that there were those who were for keeping up those distinctions: but here the apostle shows that since Christ has come, and has cancelled the ceremonial law, we ought not to keep it up. "Let no man impose those things upon you, for God has not imposed them: if God has made you free, be not you again entangled in that yoke of bondage." And this the rather because these things were shadows of things to come (Colossians 2:17; Colossians 2:17), intimating that they had no intrinsic worth in them and that they are now done away. But the body is of Christ: the body, of which they were shadows, has come; and to continue the ceremonial observances, which were only types and shadows of Christ and the gospel, carries an intimation that Christ has not yet come and the gospel state has not yet commenced. Observe the advantages we have under the gospel, above what they had under the law: they had the shadows, we have the substance.
II. He cautions them to take heed of those who would introduce the worship of angels as mediators between God and them, as the Gentile philosophers did: Let no man beguile you of your reward, in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels,Colossians 2:18; Colossians 2:18. It looked like a piece of modesty to make use of the mediation of angels, as conscious to ourselves of our unworthiness to speak immediately to God; but, though it has a show of humility, it is a voluntary, not a commanded humility; and therefore it is not acceptable, yea, it is not warrantable: it is taking that honour which is due to Christ only and giving it to a creature. Besides, the notions upon which this practice was grounded were merely the inventions of men and not by divine revelation,--the proud conceits of human reason, which make a man presume to dive into things, and determine them, without sufficient knowledge and warrant: Intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind--pretending to describe the order of angels, and their respective ministries, which God has hidden from us; and therefore, though there was a show of humility in the practice, there was a real pride in the principle. They advanced those notions to gratify their own carnal fancy, and were fond of being thought wiser than other people. Pride is at the bottom of a great many errors and corruptions, and even of many evil practices, which have great show and appearance of humility. Those who do so do not hold the head,Colossians 2:19; Colossians 2:19. They do in effect disclaim Christ, who is the only Mediator between God and man. It is the highest disparagement to Christ, who is the head of the church, for any of the members of it to make use of any intercessors with God but him. When men let go their hold of Christ, they catch at that which is next them and will stand them in no stead.--From which all the body, by joints and bands, having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God. Observe, 1. Jesus Christ is not only a head of government over the church, but a head of vital influence to it. They are knit to him by joints and bands, as the several members of the body are united to the head, and receive life and nourishment from him. 2. The body of Christ is a growing body: it increaseth with the increase of God. The new man is increasing, and the nature of grace is to grow, where there is not an accidental hindrance.--With the increase of God, with an increase of grace which is from God as its author; or, in a usual Hebraism, with a large and abundant increase.--That you may be filled with all the fulness of God,Ephesians 3:19. See a parallel expression, Which is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, fitly joined together, maketh increase of the body,Ephesians 4:15; Ephesians 4:16.
III. He takes occasion hence to warn them again: "Wherefore, if you be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are you subject to ordinances?Colossians 2:20; Colossians 2:20. If as Christians you are dead to the observances of the ceremonial law, why are you subject to them? Such observances as, Touch not, taste not, handle not," Colossians 2:21; Colossians 2:22. Under the law there was a ceremonial pollution contracted by touching a dead body, or any thing offered to an idol; or by tasting any forbidden meats, c., which all are to perish with the using, having no intrinsic worth in themselves to support them, and those who used them saw them perishing and passing away or, which tend to corrupt the Christian faith, having no other authority than the traditions and injunctions of men.--Which things have indeed a show of wisdom in will-worship and humility. They thought themselves wiser than their neighbours, in observing the law of Moses together with the gospel of Christ, that they might be sure in the one, at least, to be in the right; but, alas! it was but a show of wisdom, a mere invention and pretence. So they seem to neglect the body, by abstaining from such and such meats, and mortifying their bodily pleasures and appetites; but there is nothing of true devotion in these things, for the gospel teaches us to worship God in spirit and truth and not by ritual observances, and through the mediation of Christ alone and not of any angels. Observe, 1. Christians are freed by Christ from the ritual observances of Moses's law, and delivered from that yoke of bondage which God himself had laid upon them. 2. Subjection to ordinances, or human appointments in the worship of God, is highly blamable, and contrary to the freedom and liberty of the gospel. The apostle requires Christians to stand fast in the liberty with which Christ hath made them free, and not to be entangled again with the yoke of bondage,Galatians 5:1. And the imposition of them is invading the authority of Christ, the head of the church, and introducing another law of commandments contained in ordinances, when Christ has abolished the old one, Ephesians 2:15. 3. Such things have only a show of wisdom, but are really folly. It is true wisdom to keep close to the appointments of the gospel, and an entire subjection to Christ, the only head of the church.
These files are public domain and are a derivative of an electronic edition that is available on the Christian Classics Ethereal Library Website.
Henry, Matthew. "Complete Commentary on Colossians 2". "Henry's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible". https://www.studylight.org/


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If we are spirits having a human experience, then it is this frequency of spirit which vibrates and creates an energetic field around the human body. This field around our physical body is known as the "aura." Just like your physical body, your subtle body in the form of you aura may experience and exhibit stress, fragmentation, and a loss of luminosity. Spring is an excellent time to detoxify and regenerate, both body and spirit. Try these steps to liberate your aura's highest potential and feel the cascading effects seasons after season.
Sit in a quiet, distraction-free zone in your house. Stay seated comfortably in a position you can relax in for about 15 minutes while practicing breathing exercises. Remain conscious of what you're doing, and aware of your inhales and exhales. You can even meditate. Once you find yourself beginning to totally relax, form a white light in your mind and have it surround you. Allow it to flow throughout you, from the tips of your toes to the top of your head, and visualize it moving up and down your back, near your spine. If you get distracted or thrown off, you can get yourself back on track by re-visualizing the white light and focusing on your breath.
Avoid negative people or energy vampires. People affect more than just themselves, so be aware of how others affect your energy and vice versa. One way to protect yourself is to make sure you surround yourself with more positive people than negative ones. Spend less time time (or none at all) with negative people, once you figure who they are. Find positive people who always have a smile to offer and have kind souls. These people can help offset negativity in your aura.
Still have negative energy wafting around? Try looking inward. Start paying attention to your thoughts. Are there a lot of negative ones? Take a look at them. Are they untrue, delusional, or paranoid? All the more reason to chuck them out. Focus on the bright side of things. If you are having a really bad day, it's okay to express your feelings, but don't wallow in that place. Make your day a good one by treating yourself to your favorite tea. Play your favorite song. Find a friend to hang out with. If you notice that a negative thought is trying to creep in, confront it with a positive one. If you keep practicing this, you will be able to conquer the effects of negative thinking.
This is the most commonly practiced ways of protecting the aura. Practitioners praise it as a beautiful way to connect them to the divine, and when it's done in the mornings, it's a defining start to the day. Imagine white light coming down from the sky, divine, cosmos, universe, whatever higher power resonates with you. Connect this light to the crown of your head, and then let it spill out over you and down under your feet. You are now surrounded by a white light bubble. White is pure and highly protective. You are in control of what enters and exits your white bubble of protection.
Sometimes you just need a realignment: energy healings can help clean blockages blockages or balance misalignments. Healers also check for negative entities or emotional cords that may need to be cut. Don't underestimate the power of these energy checkups. You might find that your mood swings and imbalanced emotions improve drastically with a little help.
Smudging is a Native American practice using white sage to cleanse any negative energy. You can cleanse your house, people and things. Try smudging after you've had a lot of people in your home or if you feel particularly drained. Focus your intention on clearing negative energy to allow room for positive energy in your space and life.
∼If you like our article, give Conscious Reminder a thumbs up, and help us spread LOVE & LIGHT!∼

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Associate in Fashion Design / Merchandising
Career summary: Fashion Designers
Average Salary$73,790 National Average, Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics |
Career OutlookPoor 1% job growth by 2028, which is far below average |
Earn a degree in fashion design / merchandising from an accredited college
One of the best ways to prepare for a career in fashion design / merchandising is through a college education. An Associate will help you develop entry level skills, general fashion design / merchandising know how and the basic fashion design / merchandising experience you need to start your career off right. You may also consider a Bachelor's in Fashion Design / Merchandising to help you take your education and career to the next level. Please select fashion design / merchandising school below.
What classes will I take to get a degree in Fashion Design/Merchandising?
You'll take your general education classes, of course, but along with those will be a variety of classes more field-specific. These could include Textile Design, Fashion Illustration, History of Fashion, Tailoring, Visual Merchandising, Cloth Construction, and Draping. Real-life experience, such as that found in an internship, is also a valuable part of your education.
Job Description
What does a Fashion Designer/Merchandiser do?
A degree in Fashion Design/Merchandising could lead to a great many things. You might start out designing textiles, fabrics, or working on patterns, or else get your start working retail or as a buyer in a store. This could lead to jobs in planning and public relations, being a technical designer, a sales representative, a visual merchandiser, or a fashion writer or photographer. You could also do the actual designing of garments or come up with ideas for garments, working with others or on your own to come up with the next big trend. Fashion designers are also found in film and theater, working on costumes and other aspects of the production.
5 Common Careers:
- Fashion Designer
- Buyer
- Technical Designer, Apparel
- Special Event Planner
- Pattern Maker
How much would I make as a Fashion Designer/Merchandiser?
Depending on what job you get within the fields of Fashion Design and Fashion Merchandising, your average salary could be quite different. For example, in Fashion Design, a Fashion Designer could make $74,000 annually; and a Pattern Maker, $45,000. In Fashion Merchandising, a Buyer could make around $69,000; a Sales Representative, $52,000; a Special Event Planner, $50,000; and a Visual Merchandiser, $27,000.
Career Outlook
How popular are jobs in Fashion Design/Merchandising?
Jobs in fashion can be found anywhere and in a variety of different areas. From working with/creating raw materials (fabrics and patterns) to working in retail, public relations, merchandising in stores, or actually designing clothing, there are countless careers this degree could lead to. It can also be helpful when looking for jobs in fashion writing, fashion photography, costume design, and more. So whether or not you're the next Christian Dior, you could have a big hand in the fashion design industry and leave your own mark!
Career Path
What skills do I need to become a Fashion Designer/Merchandiser?
Fashion Designers should have a strong feel for and be well-informed about fashion trends, be highly organized and flexible, work well under pressure, be a creative and artistic person, and be able to communicate effectively with others. Fashion Merchandisers need to have similar skills, as well as good leadership ability, listening skills, an eye for fashion trends and fashion influences, knowledge of contemporary marketing, a high energy level, and attention to detail.
Salary and career outlook data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Fashion Design / Merchandising Schools (1)
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text:
(Editor's note: This is an Op-Ed from Jason Henderson, Geography Professor at San Francisco State University, who is writing a book on the politics of mobility in cities. He grew up
in New Orleans where he spent much time in the coastal wetlands of
Louisiana while also observing the activity of the oil and gas
industry. He has never owned a car.)
almost a century my native Louisiana has been expendable when it comes
to America's voracious appetite for oil. Now after over a week of
national media attention, the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill is
suddenly big enough to bring President Obama down for a disaster tour
this past Sunday.
No one can say when the gushing river
of oil will stop. But as we watch and ponder this sorry state of
affairs, environmentalists will demand loudly that Obama retract his
earlier proposal to loosen offshore drilling policy. Perhaps they are
right, but like other Americans, most of those same people will likely
keep on driving. So I take this moment to urge environmentalists to
reflect upon their relationship between oil and driving. We need oil
and are lucky as a civilization to be endowed with oil, but most people
are squandering this precious resource by driving. We need to use oil
more wisely.
I see incredible value in oil. It is one
of the most utilitarian natural resources known to humans. Oil stores
tremendous amounts of energy, it is very easy to transport long
distances by pipeline, rail, ship, and by truck, and it can sit for a
long time without degrading. It can be refined and distilled easily and
its petroleum by-products are used in plastics and pharmaceuticals, and
are part of the food system.
Wind turbines and solar
panels are made from polymers that come from oil. The new alternative
energy future promoted by environmentalists will be made from oil.
Growing plants to drive cars also requires oil. Oil will be needed to
build new high speed rail lines, bicycle networks, light rail systems,
electric buses, and new ways of organizing work and shopping through
compact urban development. In sum, we'll need to keep drilling for oil
so that we can shift to a more sustainable energy path that
significantly reduces our overall dependence on oil.
many environmentalists point out, we do not need to keep drilling
everywhere. We do not need to keep searching further offshore, or push
into remote, wild areas, or burn toxic tar sands. We need to conserve.
We need to reduce per-capita consumption. But most importantly, we need
to stop driving everywhere for everything so that oil can be used more
intelligently and judiciously.
70 percent of the oil America consumes is for transport, and much of
this is for using cars to travel relatively short distances on a
routine, daily basis. This adds up to over 21,000 miles driven a year
per car. 92 percent of American households own one car, and 62 percent
own two cars. Currently there are 250 million automobiles in the US,
amounting to 33 percent of the global fleet of cars, and 325 million
vehicles are forecast for 2050.
There is no source of
energy that will replicate this level of hyper-automobility. Electric
or hydrogen cars will need the oil-equivalent of hundreds of coal or
nuclear power plants which will also take lots of oil to build. Where
are we going to build all of those power plants? What other places are
expendable? How much greenhouse gases would come from building all of
those power plants and is it worth it simply to keep up routine
driving? Retrofitting entire cities with new plug-in outlets will
require enormous resources at a time when we can't even "afford" to
provide basic upkeep to bridges and highways much less sustain a
working public transit system.
The emphasis by many
environmentalists on "green cars" has been an awful distraction.
Replacing 250 million vehicles with hybrid or electric cars will not
cut it. These are oil consuming machines made from polymers derived
from oil and designed to travel under 30 miles a day in an urban
configuration. That oil needs to be conserved and used to make the "big
switch" that we need to survive as a civilization. Any able-bodied
environmentalist that regularly exclaims "but I need to drive!" should
really reflect on what they're saying.
Consider the
modest lifestyle changes that can be made towards routine daily
walking, bicycling, and transit. Even in many low-density suburbs in
America, 40 percent of car trips are less than five miles, within a
comfortable spatial range of bicycling. Grocery shopping does not
require a car. One can simply walk, bike, or take transit, and either
come up with creative ways to carry it, or have a jitney service take
care of the delivery.
Consider the co-benefits of
physical activity, health, reduced greenhouse gases, less noise and
less sprawl. In anticipation of rural environmentalists' need to
continue using cars, consider that 80 percent of Americans live in
metropolitan areas, and that many small towns are highly bikeable and
walkable. Most people can do the switch if they think it through. Car
sharing can provide the mobility needed in the rare instance when a car
is truly required.
Those environmentalists who are still
unwilling to give up driving should at least give up obstructing
change. In supposedly progressive cities like San Francisco, many
self-identified environmentalists balk at removing parking to create
bicycle lanes. Still other self-proclaimed environmentalists oppose
removing car lanes in order to create bus lanes that improve transit
service. In suburban areas many environmentalists spearhead opposition
to compact, modestly dense housing because they view it as a threat to
their convenient driving.
Environmentalists and political
progressives who insist on driving need to accept that we need to make
it more difficult to drive everywhere, for everything, all of the time.
We charge the poor to ride transit, and keep allowing fares to rise
while gutting service, but many environmentalists have come to expect
cheap and easy driving. The sense of entitlement to drive across the
city at high speed and easily park needs to be rethought. And motorists
need to slow down on our streets so those of us willing to make the
change can do so safely.
Instead of the same-old
approach of "stop drilling," environmentalists need to lead by example,
and stop driving so that we can keep drilling in a thoughtful and
reasonable way that minimizes expansion but enables the shifts needed.
Otherwise environmental outcries about the spill in the Gulf are
difficult to take seriously. There is a car-free and car-lite movement
in America seeking to create spaces to live and work without automobile
dependency. Please join in helping to create those spaces.
And remember, we still need oil to get us there, so we need to use it wisely.


text:
LONDON — For the past three decades, many Britons had hoped the rigid class system that defined their country from Dickens to "Downton Abbey" was finally dying. Now they fear that class, their old bugbear, is back on the rise.
From 1979, Britain was led for more than a decade by Margaret Thatcher, a grocer's daughter, and then by John Major, the son of a music-hall entertainer. The current leader, David Cameron, is a descendent of King William IV whose Cabinet is stacked with men, like him, from the country's toniest private schools and Oxford and Cambridge universities.
Even entertainment has a more upper-crust flavor these days. A recent Sunday Telegraph story with the headline "young, gifted and posh" said Britain's oldest private schools, such as all-male Eton and Harrow, had become a "production line of young talent," including "Homeland" star Damian Lewis, Benedict Cumberbatch of "Sherlock" and Dominic West of "The Wire."
Major, alarmed by the apparent reversals, recently sparked a flurry of debate with a speech that made front-page headlines.
"In every single sphere of British influence, the upper echelons of power in 2013 are held overwhelmingly by the privately educated or the affluent middle class," Major said. "To me, from my background, I find that truly shocking."
So is it true that class divisions are deepening again?
While the ancestral upper caste still retains its mystique in Britain, the numbers reflect a more complicated reality. An elite still dominates, but it is now a club where money – and the education money can buy – counts more than lineage.
This means more women, ethnic minorities and foreigners have made it to the top. But the increase in diversity masks the fact that it's becoming harder for the poor and unconnected to climb the social ladder, as the government's social mobility commission concluded in a hefty report published in October.
When the Sunday Times newspaper published its first annual "Rich List" in 1989, Britain's wealthiest individual was Queen Elizabeth II. The top 10 was dominated by established British property and business owners, including the Duke of Westminster, who owns vast swaths of central London, supermarket magnate Lord Sainsbury and food mogul Lord Vestey. It was a snapshot of an elite heavy on titled backgrounds, clubby connections and inherited wealth.
The 2013 list is a roll-call of international capitalists who have made London their base, with the Duke of Westminster the only carryover from the original roster. Even the queen has dropped out.
The top 10 now includes Uzbek mining magnate Alisher Usmanov; Indian industrialists Srichand and Gopichand Hinduja; Chelsea Football Club's Russian owner, Roman Abramovich; Norwegian shipping tycoon John Frederiksen and Heineken beer heir Charlene de Carvalho.
The changes in the super-wealthy class were triggered, in part, by Thatcher, who deregulated business and banking and opened up London's financial sector to the world.
Philip Beresford, who assembles the list, told the BBC that "when I first started 25 years ago about two-thirds of the rich list were people who had inherited their wealth. Today, approaching 80 percent are self-made and that's really a legacy of the Thatcher years."
The top 100 companies in the FTSE index also reflect the changes. When the index was established in 1984, 80 of the 100 chief executives on it were British. In 2008 the number was 64, and in 2012 it was 55. In 1984, 33 of the CEOs had gone to Oxford or Cambridge; by 2013 it was down to 15.
The increasing diversity does not extend to gender. There were no female CEOs on the list in 1984 and only three in 2013.
If business has grown more open, many Britons express concern that an old upper class is reasserting itself at the top of politics.
"No one would have imagined 20 years ago we'd be going back to Old Etonian prime ministers," said historian David Kynaston, who is chronicling the way British society has changed since World War II in a series of books. "It was kind of thought once that class was going away."
But here too the picture is more nuanced. While Britons may focus on the aristocratic lineage of Cameron and his finance minister, George Osborne, they often overlook a new category of career politicians, many of them wealthy individuals with school connections. And while gender and ethnic diversity have grown, the participation of working-class candidates who enter politics after holding "real world" jobs has withered.
When Thatcher became prime minister in 1979, she was one of only 19 women in the House of Commons, 3 percent of the total. Not one lawmaker out of more than 600 came from an ethnic minority. Almost half had attended private schools, while 36 percent went to Oxbridge, as Oxford and Cambridge are collectively known. The lawmakers included 96 lawyers, 49 teachers and 138 businesspeople – but also 98 manual workers, including 21 former miners.
In the current Parliament, 22 percent of legislators are women and 4.2 percent are from an ethnic minority. Just over a third of lawmakers went to private school and 27 percent to Oxbridge. There are still scores of lawyers and businesspeople, but only 25 former manual workers. And a total of 90 members of Parliament now give their background as "politician/political organizer," more than four times as many as did so in 1979.
"There are many more call-center workers than ever there were miners, but it's hard to envisage how a call-center worker would become a member of Parliament in the current system," said Labour Party lawmaker Jon Trickett, a former plumber and builder.
If the bastions of business, politics and the professions were hard for working-class people to storm, there was always entertainment, where a working-class hero, as John Lennon put it, was something to be. You don't need money or a degree to be a movie star or play rock 'n' roll.
Or do you?
Britain's leading actors appear to be drawn from a smaller pool compared to a generation or two ago.
In a list of actors with the highest cumulative box-office earnings on website Box Office Mojo, there are 10 Britons in the top 50. The older end of the list includes actors from working-class backgrounds such as Michael Caine, son of a fish-market porter, and 55-year-old Gary Oldman, son of a sailor and a London housewife. The 74-year-old Ian McKellen and 61-year-old Liam Neeson both attended state-funded schools.
As the list gets younger, it climbs the social scale: Ralph Fiennes, 51, grandson of a wealthy industrialist; Helena Bonham Carter, 47, whose great-grandfather was a British prime minister; and Orlando Bloom, 37, educated at private school. Of the three young stars of the Harry Potter trio, now in their 20s, Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson attended private schools; Rupert Grint went to a state school.
"I look at almost all the up-and-coming names and they're from the posh schools," actress Julie Walters said recently. "Don't get me wrong … they're wonderful. It's just a shame those working-class kids aren't coming through. When I started, 30 years ago, it was the complete opposite."
If actors are becoming posher, surely there's still plenty of room for working class heroes in popular music?
The best-selling British artists of all time, according to data from the Recording Industry Association of America, are The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Elton John and the Rolling Stones – often self-taught musicians, mostly from lower- or middle-class backgrounds who worked their way up from small, smoky clubs to the big time.
But that was several decades ago.
There's a growing perception – though hard proof is elusive – that the upper classes are gaining ground in the music business. For every working-class singer made good, such as Adele, there's a posh, privately educated Coldplay or Mumford & Sons. And there's also a new kind of class warfare between the "authentic" bands and manufactured TV talent-show products, such as world-conquering boy band One Direction, molded by pop Svengali Simon Cowell. These days in Britain, with the rise of talent-show acts and performing-arts training academies, the grassroots approach is no longer the main way to fame.
That leaves sports – especially soccer – as the one arena whose stars are overwhelmingly working class. Sport provides a parallel elite, complete with an honorary king, David Beckham, who is handsome, regal and at ease standing alongside Prince William to lobby for British sports.
But in the parallel universe of sport, only a tiny minority of the most talented can even hope to make a living.
In most areas of British life, success comes down to going to the right – usually expensive – school.
A third of Britain's lawmakers, half its senior doctors and more than two-thirds of its High Court judges went to private schools, which educate just 7 percent of British children, according to statistics compiled by the British Parliament. Well more than a third of Oxbridge undergraduates still come from these private schools, although the figure for non-white students has gone up over two decades from 5 percent to 13 percent at Oxford and 16 percent at Cambridge.
Advocates of greater social mobility point to the education system as the key to loosening the grip of a wealthy elite. Some lament the demise of Britain's academically rigorous grammar schools, where pupils were selected by exam at age 11.
As engines of upward mobility, grammar schools worked. A list of Britain's Nobel Prize winners in science over the past 35 years includes the sons – no daughters – of mechanics, gas fitters and stonemasons as well as doctors and academics. Ten out of 18 British laureates since 1979 attended grammar school.
But the grammar schools were largely abolished in the 1970s because the system put most children on a lower-tier track that gave them little chance of attending university. Now middle-class parents with means move to areas with the best state schools, or send their kids to private schools, building what critics say is an educational fortress that starts at kindergarten. In the end, British society faces a fundamental problem: For talented poor people to succeed, some less talented rich people will have to fail.
"If you talk about having a more meritocratic society … we would have to have much more downward mobility than we do," said sociologist John Goldthorpe.
And there's the rub.
Downward mobility: Who's going to campaign on that?
Jill Lawless can be reached at http://Twitter.com/JillLawless
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text:
First Images of Antarctic Volcano's Innards Revealed
What's it like to stare into the roiling mouth of an active volcano? Pretty darn cool, say scientists who work at Antarctica's Mount Erebus, home of one of Earth's only long-lived lava lakes.
But it's what's happening underneath that glowing, molten rock that is of even greater interest, and new research is offering intriguing answers to what lies beneath the lake.
For the first time, scientists have gotten a glimpse of the rocky plumbing inside the volcano. These geological conduits that pipe molten rock and gas from deep inside the Earth to the lava lake atop the imposing, 12,500-foot (3,800-meter) peak can be seen in a new video.
It's the first time seismic interferometry, an imaging technique developed in the last few decades, has been used to peer into a volcano's inner workings, said Julien Chaput, a Ph.D. candidate at New Mexico Tech, and the scientist who led the research, published in the April 14 edition of the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
"It was a crazy afterthought that we'd try this thing and see if it worked on the volcano," Chaput said. During the 2007 to 2008 Antarctic field season, a research team had set up more than 90 seismic stations around the upper portions of the mountain for a different experiment, and they decided to try the novel imaging technique as an added bonus. "It worked quite well, so we got lucky," Chaput told OurAmazingPlanet. [Images: The Majestic Transantarctic Mountains]
Mountaintop moment
The images revealed that, as many scientists suspected, Mount Erebus's insides are a honeycomb of interconnected pipes and magma chambers that twist and turn through the mountain.
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"People have always thought there was this really crazy, tilted conduit system," Chaput said. His research appears to confirm that. It revealed at least two sets of geological piping directly below the lava lake, heading in different directions. One is at an angle of about 15 degrees — almost sideways.
"We managed to highlight that volcanic systems are extremely complicated," Chaput said. The work identified many shallow structures inside the mountain that contain pools of magma, but the largest magma chamber, which could be more than 3,000 feet (900 m) across, lies about 4,000 feet (1,200 m) below the summit.
"The deeper you go, the harder it is to see," Chaput said. The research allowed them to see the upper 9,500 feet (3,000 m) of the volcano pretty well, "then it gets fuzzy."
Forecasting future
The novel process used in the research offers tantalizing prospects for monitoring other volcanoes — particularly those that threaten more than just penguins and a handful of Antarctic researchers. Chaput said it could be very useful for imaging the innards of volcanoes in the Cascades Mountains of the Pacific Northwest.
Seismic interferometry uses a handy, natural tool — essentially the volcano's own burps — as the ink, and seismic stations as the paper to make images of the mountain's insides.
Anytime a large enough gas bubble muscles its way through the volcano's plumbing, it produces a burst of energy. That energy glances off the rocky walls of the magma piping inside the volcano. If one wall is at an angle that faces a seismic station, that station makes a note of where that wall is — a bit like the way a bat bounces sound waves around to figure out where things are, Chaput said.
"The nice thing about this is that you can create images like this any time you get seismic activity of any kind — which is all the time, with volcanoes," Chaput said.
The volcano does the work for you. Over time, it gradually adds information to the image, filling in the characteristics of the lava pathways that meander through the mountain.
The method offers a way to passively — and fairly cheaply — learn about how magma and gas move around inside a volcano, which is key to better understanding what particular brand of violence a volcano may unleash, and when.
"Had they taken an image of Mount St. Helens, they probably would have known it would blow up on the side, instead of the top," Chaput said.
"One of the things we need to do if we're going to forecast eruptions is really understand how volcanoes work, and why they erupt the way they do," said Clive Oppenheimer, a volcanologist at England's University of Cambridge, who was not associated with Chaput's research. "That comes down to understanding the plumbing system that brings magma from great depth," Oppenheimer told OurAmazingPlanet.
Both scientists said that, despite its isolation and the sometimes atrocious conditions, Erebus offers the perfect place to figure that out. It stays active — but not too active — allowing scientists to poke and prod a volcano with a beating heart, yet one that is not likely to bite back. [World's Five Most Active Volcanoes]
"The generic understanding we can get from Erebus, and applied to volcanoes worldwide, is very important for identifying why volcanoes erupt the way they do," Oppenheimer said, "and why they can suddenly switch their behavior from peaceful to violent."
The research was funded by the National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs. Richard Aster and Philip Kyle, scientists at New Mexico Tech, were integral to its success.
Reach Andrea Mustain at email@example.com. Follow her on Twitter @AndreaMustain. Follow OurAmazingPlanet for the latest in Earth science and exploration news on Twitter @OAPlanet and on Facebook.


text:
Erin Scheer and Rosanna Flores are all hugs, tears, and smiles reconnecting for the first time since Rosanna saved Erin's life.
Last week, Scheer and her daughter stopped by a local convenience store during a trip to Central Texas. Suddenly, tragedy struck as Scheer collapsed in front of her 4-year-old daughter.
"I had a cardiac event. My heart stopped, and I died," said Scheer.
This security video shows Her daughter screaming for help as her mother lay clinging to life.
"To see yourself die like that, imagine not having anybody around you to save your life. I couldn't watch it the first time," said Scheer.
When all hope seemed lost, Flores and another woman sprang into action, performing CPR.
"I was glad I knew CPR to help her. Not a lot of people know CPR, but it's something anybody can learn. I didn't think I'd be thrown in the line of fire, but I would do it again any day of the week," said Flores.
Flores said she had not done training in quite some time, but she performed CPR until EMS arrived.
They shocked Scheer with paddles, gave her oxygen, and PROVIDED several other life-saving measures to revive Scheer.
"The ambulance did not have the lights on, and I was scared. I was scared that she did not make it because she was down. I didn't have anything else to do but pray," said Flores.
Scheer survived. She was transported to a local hospital, and after three days, she was released on Friday.
"My soul was in turmoil, and I had to find the woman who gave me my life," said Scheer.
After being released from the hospital, Scheer took to Facebook to find the women who saved her. Now, her life-threatening experience has left her with a lifetime friend.
Another woman, along with Flores, stepped in to see if Scheer's life, but she did not want to be on camera. She started a fundraiser on Facebook for the two women to raise money to thank you for saving her life.
Jarell Baker at KXXV first reported this story.


text:
Copr (Cool Other Package Repo) is a Fedora project to help make building and managing third party package repositories easy. The instance to be installed within Fedora Infrastructure provides Fedora maintainers with the ability to create repos of packages to build against and share with others.
Some Design Requirements
- Copr need their own builders to protect against badness when installing pkgs for builddeps into buildroots
- the system hosting this becomes more critical to infrastructure so it's probably best not to reuse fedorapeople for the hosting
Design Overview
- We're creating a new build system that's more lightweight than koji to host this. the build system will also be named Copr. It will have a small web UI and a command line client. We'll create this using TG2 as it's something we're familiar with.
- Copr will send tasks to a generic task scheduler that will drive the actual builds.
- For now, the task scheduler will communicate with the builders using func. (toshio working on this)
- The builders need to have a vm based mock to do the actual builds to protect against malicious packages compromising the builder for future builds (skvidal working on this)
- People consuming from the Copr repos need to have a WebUI for this (frankieonuonga working on this)
- Yum plugin to make configuring copr repos (with inter-repo deps) work
- Hardware to test this on (mmcgrath has provided us with test hardware) and hardware to run it in production (spot when we're ready)
- host for builders
- host for task scheduler
- host for web ui (app servers?)
- shared storage for repositories, uploaded srpms, and other things all builders need access to
- host for exposing the repositories to people downloading packages from copr (app servers?)
Packager workflow
- tool to submit an srpm to the above (using their fedora certs/account) and specify any targets/repos it should use
- user is prompted to sign the built packages (or not)
- puts them into the repo they are being built for
Scripts to start on
- sync-to-repo: takes a dir of localpkgs and remote read and write path
- syncs down the repodata from the remote read path and merges the localpkgs into that path and pushes the data back up via the write path.
Design work
Usage Cases
- Bob would like to try out a new version of GTK2. Bob does a copr build of the new GTK2 package, and then builds a number of other packages against this. Bob shares his gtk2newness copr with others for validation of the new GTK2
- Jill would like to experiment with rpm using a different compression method for packages. Jill builds a modified version of rpm for her rpm copr and builds a number of other packages with this rpm. Jill shares her rpm copr for further testing of the rpm change.
- Dave would like to experiment with kernel patches and have the repo creation handled for him. Dave continues to add patches to kernel source rpms and builds them for his copr(s). Dave shares his various kernel coprs with the community for early testing and validation. Dave spends more time working on kernel and less time dealing with repo management.
- Fedora Infrastructure would like to create a repo with updates to RHEL packages that it needs in order to manage its systems. It would like other people to be able to use the repos so that they can replicate their environment.
- The KDE SIG wants to have a repository where they can perform major upgrades that their users want but don't follow the Fedora update guidelines. By publishing to a copr repo the packages don't have to go into the main Fedora repositories but they are able to point to it for people who want to run later versions.
- The KDE SIG wants to test their updates for a Fedora release as a set so they can find regressions between the components and the release. They publish the packages to a copr repo and have their testers pull updates from there.
KDE RedHat
kde-redhat is a large external repo, asked rdieter how he manages it so far.
All I'm doing really is building stuff, either in koji or my own mock instance. Grabbing those rpms, signing them, stuffing it into repos. Whatever kopers end up being, can't be much worse than what I'm doing now. honestly.
- repos managable by > 1 person (ie, a sig)
- custom buildroots (ie, to use itself or other kopers). we've had repo heirarchies do something like that already kde-unstable depends on kde-testing depends on kde-stable
- easy mirroring, I suppose, would be nice too
- not sure what kind of workflow to get packages into kopers would look like. something bodhi like, or maybe doesn't even have to be that complicated
- maybe we could get some inspiration from how the opensuse buildservice works though I've only spent a couple of hours looking at it.
imo kde redhat is beyond the scope of Copr - it's WAY beyond 1GB per user - skv
A Fedora maintainer would be alloted up to 1GiB of storage for package repos. Packages can be built for any arch Fedora builds for (but doesn't have to be all of them). Copr would have repoview content for easy browsing and subscribing to changes. Copr's could be increased by request.
Work Flow
- Bob requests a Copr repo via the Copr WebUI -- defines what other repos are dependencies
- The Copr service creates an empty repo and generates an rpm that has yum repository definitions for the repo and dependencies on other repo-configuring rpms
- Bob constructs an srpm of gtk2
- Not a Copr issue
- Bob issues a command (cu build "gtk2newness" gtk2.src.rpm ?) to build the gtk2 package.
- first this checks the pkg and looks at the License tag to make sure it's not something we absolutely cannot build.
- this just delivers the srpm to the shared filesystem and then kicks off a build task for it in headhunter.
- Notes about building from SCM rather than SRPM; SCM server needs to be accessible from builders (currently, within Fedora's network)
- Building from SCM is not necessarily as important as being able to share changes via the SCM. If I can clone the SCM repo and you can as well to make changes but we create an SRPM as an intermediate step for build that's not much of a burden.
- Copr creates a buildroot based upon the rawhide collection and any packages in Bob's "gtknewness" copr.
- two issues here: getting koji to use arbitrary repos
- not having the above beat the crap out of fedorapeople with koji constantly hitting it for pkgs/repodata
- These are some of the reasons we need a different build system and different storage.
- Copr/headhunter builds Bob's gtk2
- headhunter takes the koji built package and adds it to Bob's "gtknewness" copr, recreating yum repodata and repoview content.
- this means having a task to build repodata
- need something in here for SIGNING those pkgs, too.
- Probably want a separate key for each Copr repo.
- why a separate key? if I'm building these for ME and mine there is no reason why I shouldn't use the same key
- Repos can have multiple people adding to them so there needs to be one key for it.
- you could use the same key for all repositories that only you contribute to but then we'd need to keep track of two different types of repository
- Bob proceeds to create srpms for various other packages and builds them in koji against his "gtknewness" koper.
- having koji know the repo exists or to have it know when the repo no longer exists.
- Bob shares his "gtknewness" koper with the world
- this is just advertising a url
- Bob creates a Desktop Live image based on rawhide and his "gtknewness" koper and shares that with the world too.
- Bob fixes bugs with his gtk2 and continues to do builds until everybody is happy
- Bob commits his gtk2 changes to package SCM and does a normal koji build.
- Bob profits.
- These last 4 items don't matter at all they are outside of scope, imo.
Content within one's Copr(s) must be content acceptable for distribution within Fedora. (The packaging doesn't need to be, just the content).
- Manual testing, reaction is one possibility
- Review process for not-yet-in-Fedora-items (just license review probably all that's needed)
Trademark Guidelines
We'd like to enable people to make development like spins of Fedora that include content from Coprs. Since all content in Coprs has to adhere to Fedora's guidelines it should be safe (?What do we mean by safe and what guidelines make it so? TK). We just need terms in the trademark that allow for this kind of spin creation and sharing so that these people don't have to spend time re-branding and can focus more on development.
New Tools
A few new tools might be needed for dealing with Coprs.
Tool to build
A script would be needed to initiate a Copr build. This will submit the build to the Copr buildsystem.
Tool to add package to a copr
The build system needs to be able to add the package to the copr on the shared filesystem and create new repodata for it. We want to be able to remove older versions of packages. But we also want to have former packages so that people can downgrade around problems if they have to.
This tool could also be used to add already built packages to an existing koper without having to go through a koji build (?Do we want this? TK).
Version 2.0
Here are some thoughts for future enhancements once we prove that we can walk. Some of these may go into the first version since we have to write a new buildsystem to deal with this.
- Copr groups. Be able to have a group copr that multiple people work on. This should be made as easy as possible to get the most people as possible working together. Start with the idea of open. Extremely useful for feature driven development.
- Copr directory. Have a page off of the copr web ui that lists all the (active?) coprs. Easy to walk the filesystem looking for */copr/*. Read from .description files in copr directories for text to display in the directory
- Autogeneration of copr-repo packages for end users to easily install to use said copr. (or maybe register .repo files with pirut to process?)
Notes from former comments
- How do we manage versioning?
- We don't. We can mandate a repotag suffix so we have something like fc13.copr but the packages in coprs can replace packages in Fedora so they can have versions that are more recent than Fedora. The repotag is there to help differentiate between copr builds and Fedora builds.
- As a side note, Coprs can very easily lead to dependency hell. PPAs have done that to Ubuntu users. Messaging about what Coprs is for and how it can lead to dependency problems is very important otherwise we'll have end users complaining about dep hell.
- How do we address the concern that bugzilla bugs will be reported against copr builds rather than Fedora builds?
- Nothing we can do about it really except ask people for their rpm -q output. We can try to message that Coprs will break your system but that's about it.
- What keys will we sign with?
- Something that isn't used for any Fedora release. However, it needs to be something that the new build system can sign with if we're going to enable group repositories.
- This would be very nice for new packages or packagers. The review process could be streamlined by running some automatic tests (such as rpmlint) on the packages as soon as they're built. Also the ability to use external yum repos would make it much easier to setup a private koji system for making derivative Fedora derived distributions. Say a company internal release or a new live CD.
- It may be possible to add an rpmlint check for packages in the build system but it wouldn't be a first implementation.
This category has the following 3 subcategories, out of 3 total.
Pages in category "Copr"
The following 4 pages are in this category, out of 4 total.


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Dublin, Ohio, January 22, 2013, 11:46 am -- /EPR NETWORK/ -- Kurt Dieck formerly SVP of Strategy and Business Execution at Cardinal Health, will lead early stage drug discovery business at Biosortia Pharmaceuticals. Dieck was named President and CEO in November 2012 and has quickly identified other key executives, including Dr. Guy Carter, former Natural Product head at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, as his Chief Science Officer. In conjunction, other collaboration partners have joined the team, including NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), NCI (National Cancer Institute) and key universities, to strategically accelerate the development of novel drug leads in the therapeutic areas of cancer, infectious diseases, inflammation and neurological disorders. Biosortia Pharmaceuticals has seen promising early results with dozens of novel compounds having already been requested, and are under evaluation with NCI and Eli Lilly.
Dieck has spent nearly 30 years in healthcare, including 18 years at Arthur Andersen as a global equity partner and then 10 years with Cardinal Health, a Fortune 20 public company, as a senior executive; there he worked with a broad spectrum of partners, including brand pharmaceutical manufacturers, throughout the supply chain. Dr. Guy Carter has over 30 years of experience working in pharmaceutical R&D, primarily in the discovery and development of microbial natural products. He previously was the leader of natural products drug discovery at Wyeth Research, as head of the Chemical Technologies Department.
"Kurt and Guy make a great team. Their complementary Pharma experiences and backgrounds create great opportunities to accelerate Biosortia's objective to become the premier, aquatic natural products company with a primary focus in drug discovery," says Ross Youngs, Biosortia's Founder and Chairman. "Kurt and Guy bring a wealth of research and business experience along with deep industry relationships in building successful Pharma partnerships. Everyone involved with this young biotech is excited about the future."
Industry observers have commented that late-stage R&D pipelines are not providing Pharma with the desired revenue growth the market is expecting. Therefore, large Pharma is evolving the way it performs R&D in order to optimize efficiency and to boost patent cliff defenses. These changes require shifting from relying solely on in-house chemistry-based R&D to acquiring and licensing external technologies and natural products based compounds in various stages of development. Biosortia's ability to supply novel, highly active and potent compounds with drug-like characteristics will increase the productivity and success rate for Pharma as well as reduce the overall cost of the discovery process. The cost to discover, develop and launch a new drug is estimated to reach nearly $3B per drug by 2015. Biosortia's business model is designed specifically to support Pharma's needs.
"With nearly unlimited microorganisms (3.7 nonillion), the aquatic environment and its consortia represent an
extraordinary opportunity…a new frontier, to access extremely potent and chemically diverse secondary
metabolites with drug-like properties with unique mechanisms of action never researched before," said Dieck. In
describing the opportunity, Dieck goes on to say, "Biosortia is on the cutting edge of natural product discovery
and has the capabilities to deliver on its aspiration. Our powerful natural products research team, led by Dr.
Guy Carter, in partnership with NOAA's Dr. Peter Moeller, a leader in aquatic natural products research, has the
experience and know-how to decipher the complex unexplored environment in a very efficient manner leveraging all the current state of the art instrumentation. The need for more efficient and effective approaches
to drug discovery has never been more important. Biosortia's innovative technologies, deep research skills and
key relationships will efficiently provide thousands of unique natural products as candidates for drug discovery at
a time when Pharma is in critical need for "high quality shots on goal."
"Aquatic microbial consortia are a rich source of metabolically active organisms including microalgae, bacteria, fungi and their secondary metabolites," states Carter. "Owing to the competitive nature of their habitat, chemical investigations of microbial consortia reveal unique structurally diversified natural products that are responsible for signaling and self-defense that have potential as therapeutics with novel mechanisms of action. Since they have been pre-optimized by nature, these compounds are typically closer to a drug candidate than a synthetic lead, thus requiring less optimization and shorter time when found as 'hits' in screening programs."
The team has also focused on agreements with strategic collaboration partners as vital components to the strategy. Biosortia has recently entered into several collaboration agreements with NOAA, Analyticon and exclusive harvesting relationships, just to name a few. Several others will be advanced by the end of January. Biosortia's cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) with NOAA's Center for Human Health Risk at Hollings Marine Laboratory provides a 5-year framework for research and development regarding the analysis and purification of novel bioactive compounds. According to NOAA's Technology Partnerships Office, "Success will result in the commercial development of new and unique chemical compounds from the sea which have benefits to human health, either through disease prevention or new treatments for disease."
Dr. Peter Moeller, NOAA's Research Scientist who leads the Toxins Natural Products Program stated after analyzing fractions of Biosortia's biomass, "Coupling NOAA's mission of characterizing toxins affecting environmental and/or human health with Biosortia's drug discovery focus turns one man's toxin into another's chemotherapeutic. The microorganisms analyzed in the Biosortia biomass identified more unique activity than I have seen in my 30 year career. The volumes achieved from a single harvest delivered an equivalent of 30 years of accumulation. This could materially change the landscape for natural products drug discovery research."
As of December 31, 2012, Biosortia has identified more than 30 bioactive candidate compounds (hits) from a fresh water eutrophic lake consortium. Therapeutic areas of focus include treatments for cancer, infectious diseases, inflammation and neurological disorders. In addition, more than a dozen of its patent protected compounds are in initial evaluation stage within Eli Lilly's Open Innovation Drug Discovery Program.
Dieck states, "Looking forward, it is with great optimism. We have a great team built around mutual respect, deep experience, and a desire to succeed and make a difference. We are aligning with the right partners and collaborators to execute our strategy with speed and discipline to provide Pharma with much high quality & diverse compounds vs. "me-too" drugs than they have had in the past 10 years. We are excited about what this company can accomplish, not only for its shareholders but also for the millions of people who have been diagnosed with various forms of chronic diseases who are looking for Pharma to identify better ways to help them extend their lives or live a more productive life. Biosortia can play a big role in identifying compounds that can help Pharma achieve these goals. I am looking forward to the challenge and opportunity to build an industry leading drug discovery company."
# # #
About Biosortia Pharmaceuticals http://www.biosortia.com/: Biosortia Pharmaceuticals is a division of Algaeventure Systems (AVS). AVS is privately held company and are the inventors of the biomass harvesting technology. Biosortia has a proven and unique ability to obtain unculturable aquatic microorganism consortia from the natural environment in unprecedented quantities that allows its research team to perform direct study of vast quantities of new natural products (NPs), the foundation of most anti-infective agents such as antibiotics for the treatment of bacterial infections. Over 76% of cancer drugs are derived in some manner from NP.
If you'd like more information about the announcement or the company or to schedule an interview with Kurt Dieck, please call:
David Coho
Tel. 614-636-4850
Cell Phone: 614-325-9804
Email: email@example.com


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'COZA Pastor, Biodun Fatoyinbo raped me'- Timi Dakolo's Wife & Mum-Of-Three, Busola, Says In Shocking New Video
Wife of Nigerian R&B singer, Timi Dakolo, Busola, has accused controversial clergyman and founder of the Commonwealth of Zion Assembly COZA, Biodun Fatoyinbo, of sexually assaulting her when she was much younger.
The clergyman is not new to controversies and has been embroiled in a series of sexual assault-related cases, that of Ese Walter being the most prominent. In an explosive interview with YNaija, Busola, recounted how pastor Fatoyinbo, allegedly raped her in her mother's house while she was still in secondary school. A distraught Busola also recounted how the clergyman allegedly tried having sex with her inside his matrimonial home when she came in to help his wife, Modele, when she had their first child.
Busola's husband, Timi Dakolo recently carried out a social media campaign accusing the Pastor of taking advantage of women in his ministry and leaving them broken emotionally. Read here.
Read the interview as reported by YNaija below and watch the full interview after:
Busola Dakolo was born and lived most of her early life in Ilorin. The first time she left Ilorin was for secondary school at Suleja and that time away allowed her really find her Christianity. She joined and rose to become the vice-president of the Gifted School Academy Suleja's fellowship and embraced a conservative approach to Christianity, growing to become distrustful of churches and fellowships that tried to copy worldly trends as a way to reach people outside the church. She returned home for the holidays to find that her sisters had started attending a non-denominational 'youth club' that embraced all kinds of people and focused on worship and fellowship over doctrine and legalism. It took a while but her sisters convinced her to go by telling her she needed to meet different kinds of people, especially former prostitutes and cultists that have given their lives to Christ.
Busola reluctantly joined her sisters for the youth club, but she wasn't comfortable there, partly because of the way they worshipped and because I was the youngest person there. After the service, there was a first timers call, and Busola stood up and introduced herself, explaining her initial skepticism and how their worship had changed her mind. After the service, the pastor of the club, a much younger Biodun Fatoyinbo came looking for her after the service.
Pastor Biodun wasn't yet married ( though he was engaged to his current wife) and the Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA) wasn't yet a church, it was called Divine Delight Club.
He expressed his surprise at how bold she was for someone so young and encouraged her to keep speaking up for herself. He also managed to convince her to sing at their next meeting before she left back for school. To sell this idea, he offered to personally rehearse with her, mentioning that he played the keyboard. This was before mobile phones and internet, so Busola's sister had to take her to Fatoyinbo, who was living with his parents at the time.
Though Busola remembers the song they rehearsed, their rehearsal was uneventful, and at the next meeting she performed, her performance moving enough that a former cultist who was attending the club public renounced his past and embraced Christianity. After, the members of the club affirmed her and Fatoyinbo convinced her through gifts of books and cassette tapes to keep attending their club when she was back home from school.
Returning to school and the more conservative worship environment she was used to was harder than she had anticipated.
For the rest of her secondary school year, she struggled with guilt, shuffling between her role in the conservative Fellowship of Christian Students (FCS) and the more liberal world of Fatoyinbo's COZA.
She felt she was living a dual life. Eventually she graduated and returned home to find that Divine Delight Club had grown into a church headed by Fatoyinbo, and her sisters had convinced her family to join the church. It felt like the only option she had to join as well.
Busola had embraced conservatism because she'd grown up in a polygamous family and she wanted some control over her own life in service of something bigger than herself. Her father was largely absent in her life and her mother had tried to shield them from the financial difficulty that came with parenting her and her sisters alone but she saw and it affected her deeply. Conservative Christianity gave her purpose and the structure she desperately craved. She joined the choir at COZA as a way to integrate into the church and rid herself of the discomfort she felt towards the church. Being in the choir made her visible and eventually Fatoyinbo would take an interest in her, inviting himself to her home under the guise of getting to know her better.
The first time he visited, he asked if she'd join him on an errand run. Her mother was concerned but didn't really push when Busola insisted that she wanted to go. They drove in his white Mercedes Benz and finally spoke for the first time. Though she was normally guarded around men, Fatoyinbo was charming, using his knowledge of her family and the absence of her father to gain her trust. Before long, he was visiting the house regularly, engaging her in ways her unavoidably distant sisters weren't.
Fatoyinbo showed up at her house unannounced. It was a Monday morning early enough that Busola Dakolo was still in her nightgown. Her mother had traveled with her sisters and were absent at service the previous sunday.
He didn't say a word, forcing her onto a chair, speaking only to command her to do as he said. It took Busola a while to come to terms with what was about to happen, and it was why she didn't struggle or make a fuss when he pulled down her underwear and raped her.
She remembers he didn't say anything after, left to his car, returned with a bottle of Krest and forced her to drink it, probably as some crude contraceptive. She remembers him saying.
"You should be happy that a man of God did this to you."
At this time, his wife had just given birth to their first child, Oluwashindara.
READ ALSO: "How God proved doctor's report wrong" COZA Pastor Shares Testimony on Fertility
Busola spoke up because her husband, the singer Timi Dakolo put up a social media post on Instagram accusing Nigerian clergy of condoning rape and sexual assault. People had approached him anonymously about Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo targeting underage girls for sexual relationships and he felt obligated to publicly speak up on their behalf. His posts had created intense backlash and support and sparked rumours about who the subject of his post was and who the victims were. This wasn't the first time Timi Dakolo had spoken up about sexual assault and he was aware of what had happened to her from the beginning of their relationship.
What motivated her to speak up about her rape was a social media post from an anonymous account that had insinuated that she had been promiscuous as a teenager and had affairs with pastors when she lived in Ilorin and questioned the paternity of her children.
The reality was, rather than the fabricated promiscuous teenager, Busola Dakolo was an isolated girl, terrified of Fatoyinbo whose salvation story heavily featured his past as a cult member. She was too terrified to tell her sisters or mother about his violence, stewing in silence for a week. Her sisters were active in the church, and to avoid suspicion she followed them to church the next Sunday. She remembers he spoke about grace during the service and after, Modele Fatoyinbo asks that she come to help her with her new baby, something she had never done before. It was normal for church members to come serve at the pastor's house so her sisters allayed her protests.
Feeling she had no options, she went to her pastor's house, Fatoyinbo tried to isolate her later that night from his wife and their daughter by insisting she slept in the family's guest room. She managed to thwart his plans, appealing to the pastor's wife to let her sleep in their master bedroom.
"No one ignores me."
He would tell her this the next morning, smacking her butt. It was an ominous enough statement that Busola became apprehensive and tried to leave for her house once it was past twilight. It was the first of many threats she would get from the flamboyant pastor. Fatoyinbo would insist on dropping her off at home, even though she protested several times. Instead of dropping her off at the junction as he had promised, he detoured, driving her away from safety and towards a secluded spot. He threatened her the entire drive, making proclamations about how he owned her and how he was angry that he had thwarted her the night before. He opened the car, pulled her out of the passenger seat and raped her a second time in the space of a week. First behind the car, then moving her to the bonnet for ease of access.
She didn't fight, she had lost all her will to. She'd protected her virginity for so long that having it forcefully taken this way broke her. He guided back into the car when he was done, and told her he loved her, speaking of how he'd told his pastors that men of God raped women, that there was nothing special about what he did.
He dropped her off outside her home as though everything was normal. She bathed immediately after and didn't leave her room for three days, but while her siblings were worried about her, no one made any connections between her sudden mood and her married pastor.
Busola's family was a 'church family', a family so involved in church activities that their home was routinely used as a hostel for visiting ministers and guests of the church.
Fatoyinbo had exploited that, and did it again when he showed up the next Sunday, to ask why she hadn't gone to church that Sunday. She was afraid of drawing attention to herself, so she went to church the next Sunday, and kept going, even though she left the choir and began to voice her dissent towards Fatoyinbo.
A dream was the catalyst for Busola opening up for the first time about Fatoyinbo raping her. Her elder sister had relocated to Lagos, and she pleaded to visit, drained from avoiding the pastor.
In Lagos, her sister who she believes has the Sight, told her about a dream she had had, where she'd seen Busola crying, blood on a chair and Fatoyinbo smiling.
She asked her pointedly, breaking months of silence and starting a flood of admissions about the rape and everything that had happened. Her sister convinced her to return to Ilorin and together they told her other sisters and her brother, who was studying at the University of Ilorin.
Her brother flew into a rage, grabbing a pocket knife and taking her to Fatoyinbo's house. He was able to intercept them before they reached his house, and together with Wole Soetan, who she suggests is now the pastor of the COZA Portharcourt branch, convince them to return home and that Fatoyinbo would follow.
The pastor and two of his church members would eventually come to pacify her family, blaming the devil and Soetan even promising to leave the church to show how little tolerance he had for promiscuity. After Soetan would confide in Busola that he couldn't leave the church because he felt Fatoyinbo was 'weak' and needed spiritual guidance and support. He convinced her siblings to keep the rape and assault from her mother. Numb to all emotion, Busola pretended to concede and after two weeks of constant visitation from the pastors and the unspoken implication that Fatoyinbo was an alleged reformed cultist with a lot to lose if news of her rape went public, she returned to the church to protect her family and project normalcy. It was clear to her at this point that she would never feel comfortable within organized religion.
Fatoyinbo continued to target Busola in the intervening months, organizing prayer sessions and specialized deliverance sessions with guest pastors to help 'repair' her 'bondage' and suggesting to her that the violence he had meted towards her was a problem they both had in common and needed communal deliverance, Busola would find out that Fatoyinbo had been telling church members that she wasn't ready for a relationship when the pastor's cousin befriended her. Their time would eventually develop into a relationship and she would confide in him about what had happened to her.
With his help, she would leave the church and join another congregation.
READ ALSO: "I learnt humility from you . . ." COZA Pastor, Biodun Fatoyinbo Loses Dad
Watch the video below: