MOUNT HERMON- A MYSTERIOUS MOUNTAIN

        By Vic Odarve

Let us discover Mount Hermon. Known for its majestic beauty, this mountain is approximately 2,814 above the sea level. It borders Israel, Syria, and Lebanon. It is the main source of the Jordan River. Mount Hermon is a very large triple peaked mountain. One of its three summits is the highest point on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea. This mountain is believed to be the site of the transfiguration of Jesus Christ. In the book of Enoch, this mountain is also the site that the 200 fallen angels descended from heaven. These events have profound impacts among the religious faithful; Christians, Muslims, and Jews. Why these events happen on this mountain remain a mystery.

Mount Hermon,Israel

 

TRANSFIGURATION OF JESUS

Transfiguration is a dramatic change in appearance. In mathematical language, this is similar to transformations! A change of forms in expressions or formulas that makes our mathematical calculations simpler and easier! That’s why we have logarithms, Laplace, Fourier, Mellin and Z transformations!

Jesus also does transformation. A dramatic change of appearance or transfiguration! It was witnessed by the apostles. He transforms to other dimensions – from earthly

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appearance to spiritual or heavenly dimension of existence. Among the twelve disciples, only Peter, James, and John had witnessed their Master dramatically transfigured. This transfiguration reveals his glory as the son of God. A true nature of his divine existence!

By transfiguration, Jesus gives his disciples a glimpse of what he looks like when he will be on his kingdom with his Father. Just a glimpse! See what happened! Jesus face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light! Below are the verses taken from Matthew 17: 1-2;

1 Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James   and his brother John and led them up a high mountain

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    where they were alone.
2 Jesus’ appearance was changed before them: his face shone like the sun and his clothes became bright as light.

This thing happened at Mount Hermon….a mysterious mountain!

THE FALLEN ANGELS

There were two hundred fallen angels descended to Earth at the summit of Mount Hermon. These watchers as they are called in the book of Enoch mated with humans. This class of spiritual beings was in charged with the observance and study of creation. And what happened? They transgressed by intermarrying with humanity and introducing forbidden technologies to earth.

They saw that daughters of Adam were beautiful and good looking. All of them took unto themselves wives. This was against God’s law as angels did not need to procreate like humans. As a punishment they could not go back to heaven anymore. These angels violated both their own nature and their office. God cannot forgive their sins. Having families, these angels taught their human wives charms, enchantments, astrology, cutting of roots and acquainted with plants, sorcery, and others.

Since then, these fallen angels were living on and around the area of Mount Hermon. Their hybrid children were monstrous giants called Nephilim. The aftermath of these giants was awful. Upon their death, they would release evil or demonic spirits that will remain bound to the earth. Since then, mankind won’t have any peace. That’s why we have demons and evil spirits.
 

It was believed that the tribe of Dan which the Antichrist will come from moved to this area during the days of the Judges. They adopted the Canaanite worship of these angels. Caanites Gods, Baal and Ashtaroth, have the origin at Mount Hermon! Following are taken from the book of Enoch 6: 1-3;

And the angels, the children of the heaven, saw and lusted after them, and said to one another: ‘Come, let us choose us wives from among the children of men and beget us children.’ And they were in all two hundred; who descended in the days of Jared on the summit of Mount Hermon, and they called it Mount Hermon, because they had sworn and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it.

Again, this happened at Mount Hermon…. A mysterious mountain!

Today this mysterious mountain is one of the hot spots in Middle East. Christians, Muslims, and Jews have contested this mountain for thousands of years. After the 1967 Six-Day war, both Syria and Israel administered military posts on Mount Hermon’s slopes.

Today, thousands of visitors come and visit this mysterious mountain! Some folks believe that this mysterious mountain is one of the Earth’s portals to other universes. Perhaps a wormhole or entanglement!  A gateway to another world! Nobody knows!

A CHRISTMAS VISIT AT ELELE MONASTERY

A CHRISTMAS VISIT AT ELELE MONASTERY

by Tagamayana

I am always fascinated with the life at monastery. Here, the monks spend their lives in solitude, in reflections and prayers, and retire to a hermit life and seek truth in contemplation, and abandon the outside world for religious reasons. That is, living in harmony with nature and to the one in the Highest!

Monastery at Elele, Rivers State, Nigeria

 

A day after Christmas we visited the monastery. When we arrived, the place was calm and serene as if nobody was around.

A sharp contrast to the outside world where humming Christmas carols are often heard, people are seen shopping lazily in malls, and children’s laughter are heard everywhere you go.

Rev. Fr. Pius

“Nobody is around,” I told my colleagues. But a few minutes later, Father Pius opened the entrance door and greeted us Happy Christmas. He was a Saviourite priest in charge of the seminary. Happy and smiling, he thanked us for coming. We knew then that the monastery opened its doors for expats for a visit and for those who don't have anyone to share the holiday with or to people who don't have family or would feel lonely to celebrate Christmas.

Life was so simple. Monks were hospitable. With some foods and the special recipe they offered, we dined together and had a pleasant conversation. We enjoyed the meal.  I had learned that besides from daily reflections and prayers, their times were also devoted to reading books, raising animals, and cultivating plants and fruit trees. We spent several hours touring their gardens and livestock raising projects. It was enjoyable to see several of the fruit trees were bearing fruits and hundreds of chicken jostling each other over the feeds at the poultry. After we saw these things, we come to a conclusion how the lives of the monks are being spent in the monastery.

Expatriates visited the monastery

As we left them, the place returned to a quiet and serene as their world would be. We bade goodbye as the sun sunk to the deep of the sunset and the surrounding air began to cool. Then they would be living with nature and to God.

A visit to the monastery and share a Christmas moment with our monks seem spending our life back to the old medieval periods. Monastery is a good place for those who retreat from the heavy traffic of our everyday life and embrace solitude and for those who found the vices of the world intolerable.

Life is too short and sharing some moments to our brothers living in solitude especially Christmas is good and memorable. That is, peace to our soul, minds, and heart! A visit will lighten your heart and re-frame your perception of the holidays. Merry Christmas and a happy new year to all!

VULTURES: NATURE'S DEDICATED SCAVENGERS

 VULTURE- NATURE’S DEDICATED SCAVENGERS

BY Tagamayana

 I have not seen these birds in the Philippines. These are African vultures-one of the icon of the African skies soaring over the vast land of the continent.

Vulture soaring high at African skies

A few months back, I saw some of these birds scavenging a carcass of dead animals near the doorstep of my room. “What a big bird… a new on my sight. Bald head …devoid of feathers! This is a vulture.” I got my camera and then took a shot.

Few weeks ago our school campus had a year- end celebration where numbers of cows/cattle were slaughtered 

 

Smells the leftover of the slaughtered cows

as part of the preparation. A day after I saw a dozen of vultures sniffing and crowding the area looking for leftovers. They were jostling each other over the carcasses of the slaughtered cows. Then these birds frequently visited the area as the surroundings still filled the smell of the rotten dead animals. They were then my daily visitors for a week. It was always a thrill to see them circling and soaring first in the air for few minutes before touchdown to the ground. Now the area is already stripped clean from carcasses left behind.

 Continental flight - Africa to Asia is soaring like a vulture

Vultures are one of the icons of the African skies. They are part of nature and doing their job on our ecosystem. They are the dedicated scavengers and play their role by scavenging dead and rotten animals that no living creatures simply do. If there are any dead animals out in the open areas, vultures can be relied to clean it up. These birds are soaring at great heights and position themselves in thermals with excellent eyesight. At high altitude they can scan for rotten, dead animals over great expanses of terrain. Though fearsome in their appearance, they rarely kill animals by themselves for these birds have no sharp beaks or talons. They are also patient. If an animal is obviously about to die and a potential meal, vultures will typically wait patiently nearby until the animal dies. Without these birds who will take care the wastes like the rotten/dying/disease animals in the vast African desert, savannah, and plains?Nobody does!

Vultures are nature’s purifiers by recycling the wastes into useful one. Every living creature has its role to play to make our planet habitable. If the role is to eat the rotten carcasses, it is still a vital function so that others may survive and live. God is a great designer and the role that vultures played in an environment is a remarkable one. God truly cares the planet He created.

We may ponder the role the vulture played and how the nature works. No wonder vultures are icon in African skies and the nature’s great and dedicated dead animal’s scavengers!

PRACTICE IS NEEDED IN MATH

PRACTICE IS NEEDED IN MATH

BY VIC ODARVE

To practice is to learn. That is learning by doing! And so is mathematics! The same principle can be applied to pass the course in mathematics! An old adage “Practice makes perfect” holds true. After the classroom illustrative examples solved step by step by the teacher, students must strive hard at home to practice solving by themselves with the aid of the notes. Notes will be put aside only if their confidence is building up and that they can do it by themselves. Teachers often told the students “Don’t stop practice until you can perfect it!” That’s it!

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 Practice working out the solution after classroom can be difficult to some students. But if they continue working on the same examples, chances are they can do it perfectly. It can be developed to a habit later. It is often suggested to read and rework the exercises before going to bed and will be refreshed at early morning before going to school.

Difficult exercises in mathematics can be visualized and understood easier by breaking down to its simplest forms. The picture looks the same thing for the babies. Solid foods are broken down to its small pieces before taking it whole. But the visualization and better

 

Engineering students practice math with laptops

understanding can be achieved only by constant practice. This is the way of life …being an engineering student. Actual practice works best in mathematics because solution involves several processes before getting into its final form. It’s algorithm. The more you practice the more you understand on why the steps are being done. If done habitually you can explore more techniques and better approaches on what to do with the mathematical exercises or problems. The more you discover its secrets, the more you love mathematics. One will find this learning method quite fascinating just like wormholes…believed to be existed in our planet and were used by alien to travel to distant universes!

Teachers often told engineering students to do constant practice in solving mathematical exercises or problems whatever written on the classroom. These way teachers are molding students to create a strong study habits. That is actual practice or hands on! But sometimes students feel uncomfortable when teachers press them to do more practice at home. There were times when teachers reminded students to do constant practice, they could see their eyebrows rose up and their hairs also rose at their backs. It’s something eerie!  Teachers know best that by building this habit they are building the students character and lifestyle. Teachers also want to create the student’s landscape and its environment that they are supposed to live in! These teachers are really working hard to help weak learners and by doing so they feel happy to give the students the best education possible! It is happiness in giving your best to the profession you are in. The great teacher Saint Luke who traveled far and wide with Saint Paul worked hard in early expansion of the Christian church. Thus, he once said,

“In every way I have shown you that by so working hard one must help the weak, remembering the words that the Lord Jesus himself said, ‘Happiness lies more in giving than in receiving.’”"- Acts 20, 35

This is the strategy that works. In all human endeavor practice makes perfect!

MY MATH VISITOR

MY MATH VISITOR

By Tagamayana

Except for private institutions, the country’s federal state universities and colleges were plagued with teachers’ union strike. Students stayed at their homes waiting for trouble to settle and resume their classes afterward. But one student refused to stop her schooling!

So I am lucky to teach in one of the private universities. No teachers’ union strike! 

In one of my visit to the university library to read some local newspaper, one of the students approached and requested me to have some explanation on the math solutions previously discussed in the classroom. “Okay, what part of the topic?” I told her. She opened her notes and showed the steps where she got the problems and I did the explanation and discussion. Satisfied, she said, “Thank you Sir, I understand already”, she said. Then I said,” How was the result of your last quiz?” “I got 90 % score, Sir”, she smiled. “Good, and on next quiz you must get a perfect score”, I replied. Then she slowly walked away. I paid little attention. She got a good score. So nothing to worry!  She may just serious enough and want to do more on her study every day.

Then, the next quiz came. Only 5 out of 234 students in a class got perfect score. And she was one of them!

It was then that I gave her an attention. I noticed that during class session, she sat at the end of the last row of the seats in a packed and overcrowded room. She listened intently and focused to my discussion. No friend, no talking even on her seatmates as if she knew none of her classmates! “She must be too shy”, I guessed. 

The semestral math course was about to finish. I gave the final quiz before the final exam. “This would be the last quiz”, I told the students. Then what was the result? She got perfect score again! She had done it! “She is a good performing student” I told myself.

The next meeting I returned the quiz scripts. She was absent. For almost two weeks I could no longer see her. Then I inquired the course representative and her classmates what happened to this girl. To my surprise none of her classmates knew her. She vanished and I received no word from her and her whereabouts! I am completely blank!

After two weeks my phone rang. The girl was alive and informed me that she returned to her school at federal university since the teachers strike was over. She thanked and told me that she learned and enjoyed math during her stint in my class. It was then I knew that she was my math visitor. She was not my student! She refused to stop schooling! Then she returned to where she belonged!