People From Manitoba

"Religion, you see, is not in its roots adoration of a god or a goddess. Religion is fear. Religion is the spark that issues forth when the thought of death or danger strikes the individual. It’s personal. It grows out of darkness and uncertainty."

"But the possible extent of the disaster couldn’t make any difference. Way back in 1944 people had learned that lesson. Horror must be ignored, unflinchingly faced; and patient preparation made for the hour when evil could be ended in one devastating and overwhelming blow."

"Because he was a reader, a writer, and a thinker, van Vogt regarded himself as an intellectual. But if he was an intellectual, it was not of the usual sort. He wasn't silver-tongued or swift-witted. He had very little ability to remember a precise fact or an exact niggle, and no talent at all for linear thought and logical analysis. He was not a conventional man of reason. Rather, van Vogt's usual method was to fix on some question or subject in a highly single-minded way — to surround it and dwell upon it and absorb it. He might get nowhere with a problem for the longest time, but then at last the penny would drop and some insight would pop into his mind. When van Vogt had enough insights accumulated on a topic, they would assemble themselves into what he would come to think of as a system — a methodology or mode of approach that had its own consistency, if only in the manner in which it was applied by him. In later days, van Vogt would even take pride in describing himself as "Mr. System.""

"The truth of the matter seems to be that van Vogt's withdrawal into himself took place over a considerable period of time. The beginning of it may lie in the fact that young Alfred was a highly idealistic small town boy with a number of wide-eyed notions about right and truth and justice in his head. When the world failed to conform to his expectations, he found that a substantial shock. Beyond this, it was also true that Alfred was a boy who had something a little strange and left-footed about him. He didn't think or talk exactly like everyone else, and reaction to this may have had its effect on his developing personality."

"Thank the goddess! What a monstrous obscenity. Thank the goddess! Vile, lecherous, lascivious witch! Wretched debauched, wanton, bloody, devil woman!"

"The Golden Age of SF is universally dated from the July 1939, issue of Astounding because that's when "Black Destroyer," A. E. van Vogt's first SF story, appeared. Isaac Asimov's first story also appeared in the same month but nobody — as Asimov himself admits — noticed it. People noticed "Black Destroyer," though, and they continued to notice the many other stories that van Vogt wrote over the following decade. … What as much as anything set van Vogt off from other SF writers (of his day and later) was the ability to suggest vastness beyond comprehension. He worked with not only in space and time, but with the mind. Van Vogt knew that to describe the indescribable would have been to make it ludicrous, and that at best description turns the inconceivable into the pedestrian. More than any other SF writer, van Vogt succeeded in creating a sense of wonder in his readers by hinting at the shadowed immensities beyond the walls of human perception."

"He had a sense of having been saved from the necessity of making a decision rather than of having made one."

"The right to buy weapons is the right to be free."

"Give me a title and we'll start from there."

"Childhood was a terrible period for me. I was like a ship without anchor being swept along through darkness in a storm. Again and again I sought shelter, only to be forced out of it by something new."

"Holroyd took her hand gingerly. It felt warm, almost tinglingly alive, as if the life force behind it had flame in it, an electric, vibrant fire. The thought came; what an experience it would be to kiss a woman who was so alive! He looked sharply at the girl. Had that subtle suggestion flowed from her mind along her arm? He decided it hadn’t. He was perfectly capable of having such a thought all by himself."

"Religious habits had in their texture a conservatism unmatched by any other human institution."

"God, through Jesus Christ, is the victory, and the renewed earth will reflect that glory."

"The longing that God has placed in our hearts is for heaven, a better place, a better country."

"Heaven… is the eternal kingdom Christ will inaugurate at His second coming."

"The gap that separated the holy and righteous God from sincful humanity has been bridged through…Jesus Christ. Hence, in eternity God will dwell intimately with redeemed mankind. **p. 25"

"Upon death the believer goes immediately into the presence of Christ in heaven, a realm far better than this earth…Heaven is our true home."

"Although believers will not receive their resurrection bodies until the rapture, it is apparent that believers will have bodies in the intermediate state in heaven."

"Heaven is where God dwells. It is a specific place; …a place of unparalleled tranquility and beauty. It includes the new heaven and new earth."

"It is only as we fixate our eyes—our thoughts—on our future hope in heaven that we will be strengthened and enable to live wisely in this life."

"There is a day coming when all of the suffering, all of the maladies of this life are destroyed, when we, in our glorified bodies, will live in heaven, on the new earth, eternally fulfilling God’s ordained purpose for us."

"Yes, we will know one another! Yes we will have a glorious reunion! The Scriptures are not unclear on this vital issue."

"As we grow in our understanding of knowledge of Him in heaven, our worship will surely increase in magnitude."

"It is only as we focus our thoughts on heaven that we will correctly interpret life on earth."

"One of the many joys of the millennial kingdom and the eternal state will be the endless discussion, genuine fellowship with one another."

"Believers have a genuine, unfailing hope of a future reunion with loved ones…we can find joy in anticipating our future reunion."

"Our abilities and giftedness does not end of this earth; we will continue to serve the Lord in agreement with our abilities on this earth."

"In heaven we will enjoy a continuity of love in a profound way."

"The admission to heaven is faith in Jesus Christ. He is the only way. There is no other philosophy, no religion, no other way."

"Prosperity and security are ours in heaven. We will live in peace and safety.”"

"In heaven..we will not longer cry, feel sad, or face death. …Our bodies will be perfect, locked into eternal youth…ageless."

"On this sinful, fallen earth, life will remain difficult, fraught with suffering and sadness. But we are looking forward to heaven—and heaven is always better in every realm than the earth."

"The new earth will complete God’s program. It will be what God intended for Adam and Eve in Eden."

"The new earth will be like Eden. ..the deserts will gush with water. … A beautiful and bountiful land will flourish."

"On this present, fallen earth there is sorrow, suffering, sickness and death. On the new earth there will be life—everlasting life, unending health, joy, and gladness forever and ever."

"On this new earth, cleansed and renovated—this eternal new earth—we will fulfill our eternal purpose for God. It is heaven on earth—always better."

"During Christ’s millennial reign nothing contrary to righteousness will exist. You will find no liquor shops, night clubs, gambling casinos …ad infinitum on the streets of the kingdom. Logic, and more importantly, Scripture indicates that all immorality will be removed at the inauguration of Christ’s earthly kingdom."

"Christ will both judge and cleanse the entire earth at His return. He will not rule in a blemished, sin-stained earth. He will rule in righteousness on a renovated earth."

"The day is coming when God will get the attention of all humanity—worldwide. God will shake the earth."

"A magnificent restoration awaits us. … Christ comes in judgment; then restoration."

"As a believer is changed, receiving a glorified body, so similarly, the earth is changed into a new earth, unstained by sin."

"We can look forward expectantly to a beautified, restored earth where there is complete peace, tranquility and safety. No crime. No storms. Only peace. What a hope!"

"While we look forward to a new heaven, let’s first consider the new earth, for the new earth will indeed be like heaven on earth. We will live on a restored earth."

"During the tribulation there will be a national turning of Israel to the Lord; they will walk in righteousness. … God established an everlasting covenant with Israel and it will be of everlasting duration."

"God created man for fellowship… The fall of man ruined that and Paradise—that is, the garden of Eden—was lost, but on the new earth paradise will be regained and God will again fellowship with mankind in a unique sense."

"Many of the passages that describe the millennial kingdom also, in continuity, describe the new heaven and the new earth—the eternal state."

"“When we see one another in heaven, we will have beautiful bodies that will far surpass the beauty of our bodies on this earth."

"On the new earth—heaven—we will have perfect bodies, resistant to any ailment. Our new bodies will continue on forever, without missing a beat."

"Will we recognize our loved ones? Yes! Scripture is abundantly clear on the issue. Jesus showed himself to numerous people following His resurrection."

"Before the resurrection, we will have an intermediate body. Our final body will be like Christ’s."