God Said No!!! ☺ ♥

YOU HAVE TO THIS!!! God Said NO!!  I hope that you can get the effects on your computers! The words are great, but the movements of the faces add a lot.... I asked God to take away my habit.  God said, No. It is not for me to take away, but for you to give it up.  I asked God to grant me patience. God said, No. Patience is a byproduct of tribulations; it isn't granted, it is learned. I asked God to give me happiness...  God said, No. I give you blessings; Happiness is up to you. I asked God to spare me pain.  God said, No. Suffering draws you apart from worldly cares and brings you closer to me.  I asked God to make my spirit grow.  God said, No. You must grow on your own, but I will prune you to make you fruitful. I asked God for all things that I might enjoy life. God said, No. I will give you life, so that you may enjoy all things.  I asked God to help me LOVE others, as much as He loves me. God said... Ahhhh, finally you have the idea.  THIS DAY IS YOURS DON'T THROW IT AWAY May God Bless You,  'To the world you might be one person, But to one person you just might be the world' 'May the Lord Bless you and keep you, May the Lord Make his face shine upon you, And give you Peace......Forever' 'Good friends are like stars... You don't always see them, But you know they are always there. -- God Bless !!!

6 million matches in a Monastery Building

Think you have the time, dedication and patience to create an artwork like this? First, try and comprehend these numbers. 6 million matches. 16 years of life. Bulgarian artist Plamen Ignatov used that many matches and spent that much time to create this impressive miniature model of the Rila Monastery. Made of wood, matches and gems, it's now on display at the Museum of Archaeological in Sofia, Bulgaria.

The Rila Monastery is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It is regarded as one of Bulgaria's most important cultural, historical and architectural monuments and is a key tourist attraction for both Bulgaria and Southern Europe. It has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

The Dead Cities of Syria

Syria continues to be in the news as its government persists in its use of violence to crack down on protests inspired by the Arab Spring. It is the latest of many upheavals the country has been through since its formation as a state. In the northwest of the country are reminders of past turmoil and upheaval. Over 700 abandoned settlements bear the collective name The Dead Cities of Syria.

Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov's art

Sukkot: A celebration

Sukkot, or Feast of Tabernacles, is a Biblical holiday celebrated in late September to late October. The holiday lasts seven days. The Sukkah is a walled structure covered with plant material - built for the celebration - and is intended to be a reminiscence of the type of dwelling in which the Israelites stayed during their 40 years of travel in the desert after the exodus from slavery in Egypt. Throughout the holiday, meals are eaten inside the Sukkah and many sleep there as well. On each day of the holiday, members of the household recite a blessing over the lulav and etrog (four species). The four species include the lulav (a ripe green, closed frond from a date palm tree), the hadass (boughs with leaves from the myrtle tree), the aravah (branches with leaves from the willow tree) and the etrog (the fruit of a citron tree.) -- Paula Nelson (29 photos total)

An Ultra-Orthodox Jewish child walks over palm fronds to be used to build a Sukkah hut, in Jerusalem's religious Mea Shearim neighborhood, Oct. 6, 2011. The palm branches are used as the roof of a temporary house called a "Sukkah" which is built and lived in during the week-long Jewish holiday of Sukkot. (Bernat Armangue/Associated Press) 

Hindus honor the Mother Goddess

Hindus are in the midst of fall festivals during September and October. According to About.com Guide, Subhamoy Das, "Every year during the lunar month of Ashwin or Kartik (September-October), Hindus observe ten days of ceremonies, rituals, fasts and feasts in honor of the supreme mother goddess. It begins with the fast of "Navaratri", and ends with the festivities of "Dusshera" and "Vijayadashami."

Hindu devotees hold pots of holy smoke while dancing as a part of religious rituals for offering prayers during Hindu festival Durga Puja in Mumbai, India,Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2011. The five-day festival commemorates the slaying of a demon king by lion-riding, 10-armed goddess Durga, marking the triumph of good over evil. AP / Rajanish Kakade 

Sistine Chapel Artwork

 The Sistine Chapel is best known for two things, one being the location of Papal conclaves, two the

magnificent paintings of Michelangelo (ceiling and far wall). Other artists also contributed as we have explained in the image captions below.

Michelangelo painted 12,000 square feet (1,100 m2) of the chapel ceiling between 1508 and 1512.

There are several tremendous resources online. The Vatican Museums website is one. Another fantastic website for finding detailed information about Christian Art is Art and Bible info.

We have put together all pictures with explanations of this great masterpiece. [29 Pictures]

The Ceiling: The painting of the ceiling took four years. It took its toll on Michelangelo’s health: working on his back, an impressive amount of paint must have entered his lungs. But it was certainly worth the effort.

After finishing the work in 1512, Michelangelo switched to making sculptures, hardly painting anything until 1536, when he started on the Last Judgment.

The central part of the ceiling shows scenes from Genesis. On both sides are several Biblical prophets and some sibyls: female prophets from ancient times, who, according to the Church, had predicted the coming of Jesus. Among the prophets are all the major ones: Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah and Daniel. In the lunettes above the windows a number of Jesus’ ancestors are shown, Boaz being one of them. It is unclear who the figures in the triangular parts above the lunettes represent. The corners of the ceiling show the rescuing of the Israelites, which was seen as a prelude to the Salvation.

Hindu Festivals

Hindus around the world -- from South Asia to Britain and beyond -- observe many colorful holidays throughout the year. Recent festivals include the Ganesh Chaturthi, celebrating the birth of the elephant-headed deity, and Janamashtami, the birth anniversary of the god Krishna. The range of experiences at these celebrations runs from joyfully loud and spectacular to solemn and contemplative. Each devotee celebrates in a distinct, personal way even while joining the larger community. Hinduism is the world's third-largest religion; the majority of its one billion adherents are concentrated in India, but sizable communities exist all over the globe. I hope you enjoy these vivid, intriguing glimpses of Hindu festivals photographed over the past few months. [39 photos]

Devotees carry an idol of Hindu elephant god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, into the water from Girgaum Chowpatty beach before immersing it in the waters of the Arabian Sea on the last day of the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, on September 11, 2011. Idols are taken through the streets in a procession accompanied by dancing and singing, to be immersed in a river or the sea symbolizing a ritual send-off of his journey towards his abode in "Kailash", while taking away with him the misfortunes of all mankind. (Reuters/Vivek Prakash)  

Pope travels to Spain for World Youth Day

MADRID (AP) -- Pope Benedict XVI denounced the profit-at-all-cost mentality that he says is behind Europe's current economic crisis as he arrived in hard-hit Spain on Thursday, and said morals and ethics must play a greater role in formulating economic policy in the future.
Benedict made the comments as he traveled to Madrid for the Catholic Church's World Youth Day, a weeklong Catholic festival that is taking place against a backdrop of the European debt crisis and social unrest among the young that exploded recently in the riots in Britain.
On Wednesday night, about 5,000 people opposed to the pope's visit marched peacefully to Madrid's central Puerta del Sol plaza, which has been the epicenter of Spain's anti-establishment protests since May. A smaller number of protesters then clashed with riot police. Police said eight demonstrators were arrested and 11 people were injured. (29 images)

Priests are seen inside their temporary confession boxes as they wait for worshipers in the Retiro park ahead to the visit of Pope Benedict XVI in Madrid Wednesday Aug. 17, 2011. AP / Emilio Morenatti 

Krishna Janmashtami

Indian Hindu devotees throughout the world celebrate Janmashtami, which marks the birth of Hindu God Lord Krishna with enormous zeal and enthusiasm. Children and adults dress as the Hindu God Krishna and his consort Radha in bright, elaborate costumes and jewelry. Human pyramids form to break the 'dahi-handi' or curd pot. The large earthenware pot is filled with milk, curds, butter, honey and fruits and is suspended from a height of 20 - 40 feet. Participants come forward to claim this prize by constructing a human pyramid, enabling the uppermost person to reach the pot and claim its contents. -- Paula Nelson (27 photos total)

An Indian schoolboy is dressed as the Hindu God Krishna. (Rajesh Kumar Singh/Associated Press) 

Beautiful Photos Of Incredible India

One of the greatest country in history is rising again today. India has seen the incredible drama, biggest ideas and huge events since the beginning of history. Since Asian times Indian civilization has been driven by great ideas by the search of knowledge and truth. The land which everyone loves to visit in his or her lifetime.

Today we are showcasing a beautiful photos of incredible India to describe about its places, culture, values, tradition and people. This will be a different and an evergreen inspiration for a change. Please click the images to see the large view and to know the author and other details of photo.

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Ramadan begins

Muslims around the globe have begun their holiest month of the year by giving up food, drink, smoking and other physical needs from dawn till dusk each day. In many communities, large dinner gatherings are held each evening to break the fast. The month also marks a time for Muslims to reexamine their lives through the prism of Islamic teachings. -- Lloyd Young (38 photos total)

A student reads the Koran before morning prayer on the holy month of Ramadan at the Al-Mukmin Islamic boarding school in Solo, Indonesia Central Java province, August 2. (Beawiharta/Reuters) 

The Megaliths of Great Britain

A megalithic monument, in archaeology, is a construction involving one or several roughly hewn stone slabs of great size; it is usually of prehistoric antiquity. These monuments are found in various parts of the world, but the best known and most numerous are concentrated in Western Europe, including Brittany, the British Isles, Iberia, South France, South Scandinavia, and North Germany, the highest concentration being at Great Britain. Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales together accounts for hundreds of megalith and stone circle sites. Here is a collection of some of the more popular ones.

The most famous megalith structure is the world is the Stonehenge in the English county of Wiltshire. Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones. It is at the centre of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England, including several hundred burial mounds.

Machu Picchu (Old Peak) is a pre-Columbian 15th-century Inca site located 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) above sea level. It is situated on a mountain ridge above the Urubamba Valley in Peru. Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472). Often referred to as the Lost City of the Incas, it is perhaps the most familiar icon of the Inca World. 100 Years ago this month it was (re)discovered and Peru is celebrating this joyous occasion with a special exhibition.

 

Buddhist Temple Built from Beer Bottles

Drinking is a sin in Buddhism but they certainly don’t have any issues with building temples from beer bottles. In the north-east of Thailand, is a temple built from more than 1.5 million recycled beer bottles.

Sometimes known as Wat Lan Kuad, or Temple Of A Million Bottles, the temple uses the discarded bottles to construct everything from the crematorium to the toilets. Recycling doesn't stop at building the temple's buildings - mosaics around the temple, predominantly of Buddha, are made out of bottle caps. Besides being ego-friendly, the disused bottles don't fade, provide good lighting and are easy to clean.

The resident Buddhist monks at the Wat Pa Maha Chedi Kaew complex even encourage local authorities to deposit any used bottles at the temple which they then use to build new structures. 

Eternal Peace

Eternal Peace is a beautiful photography set made by André Wohlgemuth an Experimental Photographer from Germany.

Bonfires of Saint John and Corpus Christi

This year, the Catholic observances of Saint John's Day and Corpus Christi nearly overlapped, and festivals and solemn gatherings took place all over the world. The feast of Corpus Christi celebrates the physical body of Jesus Christ, and the Bonfires of Saint John (San Juan) celebrate John the Baptist. The festivals are observed in varying ways from country to country, reflecting older native traditions that have been combined with newer Catholic observances. From a firehose baptism in the Philippines to devils dancing in Panama to a carpet of flowers in Italy, here are some of the ways people observed these two festivals this year. [37 photos]

A long-exposure image shows light trails, produced by faithful carrying candles as they walk past the Cathedral during a Corpus Christi procession in Brasilia, Brazil, on Thursday, June 23, 2011. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) 

Summer Solstice 2011

Yesterday was the summer solstice (in the northern hemisphere), known to humans for thousands of years as the longest day of the year. In ancient times, people celebrated this day as the center point of summer. Some still observe the solstice with ceremonies and prayers, gathering on mountaintops or at spiritual landmarks. Others greet the day with parades, or by simply going outdoors and soaking in the sunshine. Collected here are images of people observing yesterday's solstice in the northern hemisphere -- and in the southern hemisphere, where it marked the darkest day of winter. [26 photos]

A couple celebrates summer solstice at the Kokino megalithic observatory, on June 21, 2011. The 3,800-year-old observatory was discovered in 2001 in the northwestern town of Kumanovo, 70 km (43 miles) north from Skopje, and is ranked the fourth oldest observatory in the world, according to NASA. (Reuters/Ognen Teofilovski) 

Night Armenian Monuments... Photographer Suren Manvelyan

Paul Delaroche (1797-1856) Art - Oil Paintings