Biggest Manchester derby ever!

United and City clash this weekend in a standout amongst the most enthusiastically anticipated derbies in late memory.

City have won three times and drew one of their last five top flight meetings with United at Old Trafford.

Altogether, there have been 171 derby games played between Manchester United and Manchester City. Amid these epic conflicts, there have been some extraordinary moments that will live long in the memory.

Jose Mourinho's United and City, under the order of his old foe Pep Guardiola, have delighted in 100 percent winning starts as countless pounds worth of summer purchases in the transfer time frame. It is being charged as the most costly match-up ever with the first ever meeting on English soil between old enemies Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola and, given their history, it will be a thriller!

In the interim, City's star striker Sergio Aguero is suspended, while United's new front-man Zlatan Ibrahimovic has started in fine form with four goals in four matches. We are set for a thriller at Old Trafford.

Jesus Christ: Self-Denial or Self-Esteem By: Johnny Kicklighter

A Review & Critique of Dr. David Tyler's book, "Jesus Christ: Self-Denial or Self-Esteem.

If one didn't look at the title of Dr. Tyler's book, "Jesus Christ: Self-Denial or Self-Esteem," they might think they were reading a book about the life of Christ instead of a refutation of the self-esteem movement. Dr. Tyler takes a different approach that's characteristic of some of the other books on critiquing self-esteem. He doesn't exclusively argue that the self-esteem position is defective from a humanistic psychological approach as Paul Vitz does. Nor does he attempt to contrast each heretical thought and compare it to an exhaustive look at scripture references. Instead, he compares the notion of selfism to the life and practices of Jesus Christ. By so doing, he demonstrates that self-esteem flies directly in the face of what Christ was teaching others, especially His very own disciples.

In the introduction, Dr. Tyler makes the case that the new pop culture words, self-image, self-esteem and self-worth have one central focus: self. This being a recent phenomena (within the past 25 years), it has had a significant influence on the church and its teachings. He quotes Robert Schuller who says that a new reformation is needed and that being one centering on self-esteem. (It's ironic that Schuller uses the word reformation. "The Reformation," nearly 500 years ago, affirmed the utter ruin and insufficiency of man's condition and reinforced the complete sufficiency of scripture, grace, faith and Christ-a complete and utter opposition of what Schuller wants.) Dr. Tyler seeks to declare that the Bible's emphasis is on self-denial, a concept that is apparently anathema to modern day authors. And where are, Dr. Tyler asks, the words of Jesus when he supposedly tells his followers to "love themselves, esteem themselves, accept themselves, believe in themselves, develop a healthy self-image, or nurture feelings of significance and worth?" Dr. Tyler looks for them in the next three chapters of his book as he explores the words, works, and parables of Christ.

Dr. Tyler explores Christ's encounter with various people. Jesus was always other-oriented in that He was continually about His father's business. His baptism, the cleansing of the temple and the meeting with the Samaritan women are just a few examples that Dr. Tyler cites as proof. The most striking evidence appears in Christ's Sermon on the Mount where Jesus tells the crowd how to obtain blessedness (happiness). One would expect to find here Christ giving exhortation on seeking self-affirmation if the self-esteem zealots were true. However, Dr. Tyler cites five Beatitudes that Christ preached which further disappoints the selfism crowd. Christ proclaimed blessedness would occur to those who are poor in spirit, mourn, practice meekness, are hungry and thirsty for righteousness, and are merciful.

Leaving Christ's words, Dr. Tyler explores the miracles of Jesus Christ. Jesus used miracles as proof of His divine authority, to give substance to His words, and also to demonstrate his other-oriented attitude by offering love and sympathy for mankind. Dr. Tyler gives several examples, healing of the leper and the Roman centurion's servant, the calming for the Sea of Galilee, the demon-possessed man, to name a few. This shows Christ was focused on meeting the needs of others. Dr. Tyler also leaves the self-love advocates with a question as to where was the person who cried "I hate myself, I feel inferior and inadequate; heal me Son of David;" (not in Galilee apparently).

Dr. Tyler uses the parables to further prove that Christ was other-oriented. He gives a brief explanation on the purpose of parables. He explains the dilemma that many find as to why Christ spoke in parables, i.e., Christ intentionally hid from the disobedient and rebellious His mysteries. Dr. Tyler's quotation from G. Campbell Morgan seems out of step however as Campbell's quote muddies the water. It appears inconsistent with Matthew 13:15b. "lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them."

Dr. Tyler closes his book by acknowledging that undeniably self-esteemism is found in the scriptures. It's origin is in Genesis 3:6, "And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat." This was the beginning of mankind becoming self-oriented. It's clear to the reader that support for current selfism philosophy cannot be gleaned from the teachings or the life of Christ. Christ was certainly focused on doing His Father's business as well as relieving the suffering of others.

Author Bio
Johnny is a counselor at Gateway Biblical Counseling & Training Center. The counseling center is a ministry of Edgemont Bible Church, www.ebiblechurch.net

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Fidel Castro was key in South Africa's liberation

History will undoubtedly remember Fidel Castro in connection with the October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. The showdown was triggered by the US discovery that the Soviet Union was installing in Cuba nuclear missiles capable of reaching the American soil. Before the dust finally settled, the crisis brought mankind to the brink of nuclear annihilation.

Was Castro excessively overzealous in inviting nuclear weapons a mere 90 miles from Florida? To him, the weapons were a deterrent to American provocations. After all, in April 1961 the US had sponsored the Bay of Pigs, the abortive invasion of Cuba to topple the Castro regime.

Since the 1959 Cuban Revolution, American policy towards Cuba has been unduly hostile. It has sustained brutal economic sanctions against the small island of 15 million people simply because US differed with its socialist ideology. Is this a case of the Cuban tail wagging the American dog?

During the 1979 Non-Aligned Movement Summit in Havana, I personally witnessed the impact of the socialist ideology that so alarmed the Americans. I saw makeshift healthcare shacks, including dental clinics, on the streets of Havana, offering free services. The US is still struggling to devise universal health coverage for its citizens.

I do not speak Spanish, Cuba's only language, but the sense of dignified affirmation was unmistakable among Cubans. This included a Black policewoman who directed heavy Havana rush-hour traffic. Her body language said it all. She knew that she was somebody, a Cuban by right, and Cuba was her society. Unequivocally, she knew that the colour of her skin was not held against her. The sense of insecurity, alienation and defiance so commonplace among non-whites of North America was conspicuously missing.

Absence of crime in Havana was startling. Inevitably, security for international delegates to the Havana Summit was crucial to the Cuban authorities. Yet, we were not assigned protection, armed or unarmed, on the streets of Havana or anywhere. And, no place was no-go zone. Amid all this, I kept recalling that Cuba was the only third world country that exported doctors and technicians as an official policy.

Mandela's testimony

By all indications, the Cuban socialist system was not so bad after all; it seemed to work for Cubans. Should they have dropped it just to suit the whims of the US?

Regarding Global Africa, Castro's foreign policy was informed by two fundamental convictions: that Cuba's liberation from Spain in the 19th Century required and got active co-operation of Black Cubans. Additionally, the Cuban society is what it is because of inputs of Afro-Cubans. They injected vital elements into the way that all Cubans think, act, eat, celebrate, dance, organise and defy. In sum, Castro leadership felt a profound sense of indebtedness to Africa, a compensation owed.

On his Inauguration Day as the first democratically elected President of South Africa in 1994, Nelson Mandela gave Fidel Castro a big bear hug and whispered, "We owe this day to you". Was Mandela overstating the case?

In 1987 and 1988 Cubans, alongside Angolan MPLA forces, engaged apartheid South African troops for 137 days in Southern Angola, ultimately driving them back to Namibia. Though not crushed, the apartheid war machine was deeply humiliated by the defeats in those series of battles in Cuito Canavale. The myth of invincibility of the white military machine in Southern Africa was forever shattered. The Cuban-MPLA triumphs so humiliated and demoralised the apartheid regime that its eventual liquidation was inevitable.

The political fallout of the Cuito Canavale encounters was indeed far-reaching. With South Africa's military intrusions out of the way, Angola focused on consolidating its independence. The way for Namibia's independence was also paved. Military resistance within South Africa was intensified. Finally, in February 1990, the ANC ban was lifted and Nelson Mandela freed.

Clearly, Castro's Cuba had much to do with the liberation of Southern Africa. And all Cuba expected in return was for its soldiers to be allowed to "bring home the remains of their dead". Indeed, Mandela meant every word in stating that Castro had played a crucial role in his nation's liberation.

While withdrawing from public life, Fidel Castro has left this world more just than he found it. Who could ask for more?
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