Regarding all this talk of the U.S. being divided, I heard on NPR this morning that Obama got the Latino vote, the African-American vote, the Asian vote, the female vote, the young people vote, the Catholic vote and the urban vote. The categories he was lacking? Older White Men of “certain incomes” and certain southern geographic areas….
Diary
CONFESSION: Mormonism Creeps Me Out a Little
I watched the above video recently, and I have to be honest, It creeps me out a little bit. OK, a lot. The religious rituals, the secrecy, the knocking, the passwords, the spacey outfits, totally bizarre to me. And this is coming from someone who is not unfamiliar to Amish and Mennonite culture! A couple…
The Greatest Work of Art Ever Created | Work by Emilie Halpern
Currently I believe in Christ because of the aesthetics of the Christ event. That is, the who Christ was and is — the life that Jesus led as recorded in the Gospels, the things he taught, and ultimately his death that brought and end to all primitive religious sacrifice — is so compellingly beautiful that…
Money-Theism: Joerg Rieger Explains How Economics is an Odd Sort of Religion
Part of the problem with the current economic crisis is that economics is based on an odd sort of faith, expressed tongue in cheek by the term “money-theism,” which has been popularized by comedian Stephen Colbert. There are a few big faith claims, like the ideas that economic deregulation always promotes growth, that tax cuts for powerful corporations…
The Task of Interpretation: Tony Jones Answers the Questions That Haunt Christianity
So what’s left to us is the task of interpretation. Or, to frame it as a question, Can I reject the Bible’s metaphysics without rejecting its message? That’s a bridge too far for many of your fellow atheists (although they have no problem accepting Plato’s wisdom while rejecting platonic metaphysics). But it’s not a bridge…
Unemployment & Welfare: “Why can’t they just go out and find a job?”
“But you must just answer a last question. Two equally old trees are growing in a large garden. One of the trees grows in a sunny spot and has plenty of good soil and water. The other tree grows in poor soil in a dark spot. Which of the trees do you think is bigger?…
To Sell Art for Profit is to Deny It’s Worth: Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones & Pirates
“Others, like the label Records on Ribs, have developed a model of supporting artists and raising their profile (because, isn’t that sort of what a record label should be passionate about?) that allows anyone to download new music for free, and then offers them the chance to donate what they think is appropriate for it….
The Bible and Homosexuality
Recently I was involved in a long written correspondence with a friend about the Bible and homosexuality, initiated by the poster above which I posted on facebook. My friend, who is passionate about God’s written word, was upset that I was using the Bible to back up my personal opinion on homosexuality. We ended up…
Origianl Poem: Hope, Sorrow & True Love
The sorrow of true love is a great sorrow And true love parting blackens a bright tomorrow: Yet it is almost joy, since their despair Is but hope blinded by tears, and clear Above the storm the heavens wait to be seen. But greater sorrow from less love has never been, And to mistake lack…
Contemplation as Revolution | Art by Mark Waren Jacques
“[C]ontemplation represents a way to disengage from the toxicity of our current world order, not in terms of supporting violent revolution, but in an opposite move: by embracing a revolution of humility and love. We cannot beat the greedy, violent, unjust enemy-that-is-us with weapons or military might. Only by “dropping out” of the system can…