Judith,
Chapter 10, Verse 16
When
you stand before him, have no fear in
your heart; give him the report you have given us, and he will treat you well.”
Judith prepares for war with prayer and by the
enhancement of her beauty. She is so strikingly beautiful that in this verse
one of the guards of the Assyrian camp advises her to be confident in the
presence of Holofernes.
After bathing (during a drought) she uses all the
human arts available to her to make herself beautiful and captivating: perfumed
ointment, hair, clothing and jewelry. She understands the goodness of her body.
She knows physical beauty is good and comes from God. She also knows that the
power of her beauty comes from within her, from her holiness, from her
faithfulness to God. Since both her exterior and interior beauty come from God,
her beauty must be devoted to the
service of God. God intends to use her beauty as a weapon to liberate the
people. She will wield the weapon to the best of her ability.
·
Men
are awed at her loveliness.
·
Judith
goes out to the enemy camp and to war.
·
She
demonstrates her trust in God by walking to certain death with only her maid
and her allure.
·
The
guards are overcome by God’s weapon-beauty.
Women often desire to be beautiful, but many
unfortunately misunderstand that true beauty radiates from the soul. Remember
that your beauty must be devoted to
the service of God. Equally a man’s strength must be devoted to the service of God.
1. The ancient women cared for their
skin with oatmeal and milk, and Cleopatra was legendary for her milk baths.
2. Honey was extremely valuable in
ancient days and a symbol of divine blessing. Women applied it to their skin,
along with oils, as part of their bathing ritual.
3. Ancient women invented mineral
cosmetics, and used eye shadows, face powder, blush, and lip tints.
4.
Ancient
women did more than perfume themselves before a romantic evening: they perfumed
their beds.
5.
Myrrh
was precious perfume oil in the ancient world renowned for its ability to
soothe skin and fight wrinkles.
6.
Flax
was a common food source researchers believe the omega-3 fatty acids in flax
may help the body regulate leptin, which helps you lose weight and burn fat
more efficiently.
7.
Cinnamon
was used as sacred anointing oil and perfume; research tells us that consuming
cinnamon plays a role in regulating blood sugar.
8.
Pistachios
are rich in carotenoids, the phytonutrient that can help “block
sunlight-induced inflammation of the skin, which leads to wrinkles.
International Youth Day seeks to raise awareness to
the cultural and legal issues faced by youth throughout the world. The United Nations
defines youth as people between the ages of 15 and 24 years, although locally,
youth can be interpreted in a more flexible manner. In 1995, the General
Assembly of the United Nations (UN) adopted the World Programme of Action for
Youth with the intention of establishing guidelines and policies for action and
support that would lead to a brighter future for tomorrow's youth. The World
Programme of Action for Youth, which consists of 15 priority areas, including
education, employment, hunger and poverty, health,
environment and drug abuse,
paved the way for the UN's declaration of International Youth Day in 1999.
Since its inception on August 12, 2000, International Youth Day has served to
increase the quality and quantity of opportunities available to the youth to
actively participate in society. In 2009, the UN Economic and Social Council
further expanded each of the 15 youth priority areas by developing goals and
targets for monitoring youth progress, an expansion that now serves as the
basis for International Youth Day's annual theme. Each year, the theme is
selected based upon immediate and relevant issues that youth are facing today.
International
Youth Day Facts & Quotes
·
Of
the 1.8 billion youth in the world today, half survive on less than $2 per day.
·
Young
people should be at the forefront of global change and innovation. Empowered,
they can be key agents for development and peace.
If, however, they are left on society's margins, all of us will be
impoverished. Let us ensure that all young people have every opportunity to
participate fully in the lives of their societies. - Kofi Annan,
Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Check
out the United States Congresses program for youth: www.congressionalaward.org
[1]The
Collegeville Bible Commentary, 1986.
[2]http://www.gingergarrett.com/downloads/Top10_Ancient_Beauty_Secrets.pdf
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