'GodBlock - Protect Your Children'

I've officially seen it all.

Though not surprising, this was a depressing discovery I made today.

We're all aware of the various Internet Filters that are available like the one my family has used for years called Safe Eyes.

So, I guess it was inevitable that someone would create a Filter for those "On The Other Side of The Fence" so-to-speak.

 

GodBlock - Protect Your Children 

"GodBlock is a web filter that blocks religious content. It is targeted at parents and schools who wish to protect their kids from the often violent, sexual, and psychologically harmful material in many holy texts, and from being indoctrinated into any religion before they are of the age to make such decisions. When installed properly, GodBlock will test each page that your child visits before it is loaded, looking for passages from holy texts, names of religious figures, and other signs of religious propaganda. If none are found, then your child is allowed to browse freely.

In the last century, the United States has seen a resurgence of fundamentalist religion. Fundamentalist Evangelicals, Mormons, Baptists, Muslims, and Jews have held back progress in science, human rights, civil rights, and protecting our environment. How can we reverse this trend and join the rest of the world in the gradual secularization of society and government?

Most deeply religious people are born into their religion, but even children raised in a secular household are vulnerable to content on the web. That's why we've produced GodBlock. GodBlock is a web filter that blocks religious content. It is targeted at parents and schools who wish to protect their kids from the often violent, sexual, and psychologically harmful material in many holy texts, and from being indoctrinated into any religion before they are of the age to make such decisions."

There's even a depressing image on their Home Page of a young girl who's probably the same age as my daughter who's proudly wearing a GodBlock sticker on her arm like a tattoo.

(and people laugh when we tell them that Christians aren't the "intolerant" ones like we're so often portrayed to be...)

Please note that this website appeared way back in 2010 and there are suspicions that it's a hoax and a website designed to sell t-shirts as opposed to an Internet Filter. However, I'm not about to try and download the software even if I did plan to delete it right away after testing it (and I suggest you do the same only to protect yourself and your computer).

Whether it's a hoax or legit, either way, this is why the false teachers and their teachings within Christ's Church really get me fired up these days.

Yes, we come to expect fierce resistance and outright rejection like this from the world around us, and even though the New Testament tells us repeatedly to expect the same from some who call themselves our brothers and sisters in Christ, my feelings of righteous anger are amplified because we are already under constant attack from the outside, and sometimes I just need and want peace and respite from it all on the inside.

When I don't find that, and I'm always on guard or on the defense even "at home" if you will, and sometimes forced to go on the attack? Well, I'm sure you can relate to what that's like. It's not fun!

Of course, hoax or not, this shouldn't come as a surprise to any of us given what God's Word has to say about these matters and these times.

1 Corinthians 1:18 (ESV) For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

2 Peter 3:3 (ESV) knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.

Still, if true, there's nothing like blocking yourself and your children from the truth about the most important questions facing each and every single one of us, huh? Questions like: What is the meaning of life? What will happen to me when I die?

Acts 17:30-31 (ESV) 30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.

Hebrews 9:27-28 (ESV) 27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

John 3:16 (ESV) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

John 14:6 (ESV) Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Ephesians 2:8-10 (ESV) 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Let's assume this is a legit website. Let's assume that a person can get an Internet Filter like this or, at the very least, buy a T-Shirt with that kind of logo and message on it.

That being said, let's also pray that those who are thinking about buying anything GodBlock (as well as though who already have -- including the creators of this service/t-shirt company) one day meet the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, through a hearing of His Word being preached and then by receiving His Sacraments as they are baptized into His name and into His Church, and forgiven and reconciled to the Father by His Son's shed blood upon the cross for them and for all of us.

In a Lutheran layman's terms, even the most sophisticated Internet Filter is no match for the love of the Lord as found in the free gift of salvation offered to us through the life, death, and resurrection of His Son, Jesus, our Redeemer!


NOTE: I'm not a called and ordained minister of God's Word and Sacraments. I'm a layman or a Christian, Candy-Making, Husband, Father, Friend who lives in the "City of Good Neighbors" here on the East Coast. To be more specific, and relevant to the point I want to make with this note, I'm also a newly converted Confessional Lutheran who recently escaped American Evangelicalism a little over a year ago. That being said, please contact me ASAP if you believe that any of my "old beliefs" seem to have crept their way into any of the material you see published here, and especially if any of the content is inconsistent with our Confessions and Lutheran doctrine (in other words, if it's not consistent with God's Word, which our Confessions merely summarize and point us back to) so that I can correct those errors immediately and not lead any of His little ones astray (James 3:1). Finally, please be aware that you might also discover that some of the earlier pieces I wrote on this blog back in 2013 definitely fall into that category since I was a "Lutheran-In-Name-Only" at the time and was completely oblivious to the fact that a Christian "Book of Concord" even existed (Small/Large Catechism? What's that!?!). In addition, there are some entries that are a little "out there" so-to-speak since the subject matter was also heavy influenced by those old beliefs of mine. I know that now and I'm still learning. Anyway, I decided to leave those published posts up on this website and in cyberspace only because we now have this disclaimer, and only to demonstrate the continuing work of Christ and the Holy Spirit in my life (Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 1:6). Most importantly, please know that any time I engage in commenting on and/or interpreting a specific portion of the holy Scriptures, it will always closely follow the verse-by-verse notes from my Lutheran Study Bible and/or include references to the Book of Concord unless otherwise noted. Typically, I defer to what other Lutheran Pastors have already preached and taught about such passages since they are the called and ordained shepherds of our souls here on earth. Finally, I'm going to apologize ahead of time for the length of most entries. I'm well aware that blogs should be short, sweet, and to the point, but I've never been one to follow the rules when it comes to writing. Besides, this website is more like a dude's diary in the sense that everything I write about and share publicly isn't always what's "popular" or "#trending" at the time, but is instead all the things that I'm studying myself at the moment. For better or for worse, these posts tend to be much longer than most blog entries you'll find elsewhere only because I try to pack as much info as possible into a single piece so that I can refer to it again and again over time if I need to (and so that it can be a valuable resource for others -- if possible, a "One-Stop-Shop" of sorts). Thank you for stopping by and thank you in advance for your time, help, and understanding. Grace and peace to you and yours!

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