I was thinking about the word "kindness" today. When most people hear this word, myself included, they tend to think about "being nice" or some such thing. This is no doubt basically true, but as I break down the word today it also appears to me as meaning "like-ness". As in something of the "same kind". To be kind is to recognise a kinship between yourself and the object of your kindness.
Looked at this way kindness becomes a much bigger word for me. With definite "spiritual" ramifications. I recall a favorite quote of mine from the Dalai Lama: "There is no need for need for temples, no need for complicated philosophy. Your own mind, your own heart is temple, the philosophy is kindness". Can you imagine what the world would look like if we all internalized that lesson?
In a very real way then this simple quote points to the secret of life in fullness: Kindness. If you are looking for "the big answer", I think a life dedicated to growth in "kindness" is about as close as it gets. But, getting back to what I said earlier, it seems we could then also say that "sameness is the answer". The "other" is no different from "me"(insert Golden Rule here). Quantum physics of course tells the same thing: we are all connected, all "one stuff".
One of the logical conclusions that we can then draw is that there is, in the ultimate dimension, no difference between "enemy" and "friend". This is deep and also difficult teaching. Is it saying, to use a current example, that the suicide bomber is my friend? Ponder that one for while.... And if your answer is "No, the suicide bomber is not my friend". Then consider this quote: "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you" (Matt. 5:44).
Did Jesus get it wrong?
Friday, October 5, 2012
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
The "God Bless America" test
It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods or no God.
~Thomas Jefferson
Something has been bothering me for a while now. It is not that I have let this blog go unattended for almost a year (although that is a shame too). No, the thing that is bugging me, and the resultant question I have is this: when exactly was the law passed that states that every politician running for, or holding public office has to invoke the name of God at least once when giving a public speech? (this may be a little hyperbolic but it feels close to the truth). And why is it that after every speech The President of the United States has to say "God Bless The United States of America"? Is this to remind God, lest he shirk his duty to bless us? I don't know when this became seemingly required, but I bet the whole business got started after the terrorists attacks of 9/11/01. The terrorists were claiming God, and we had to claim him back. I don't have problem this in the short term. It's kind of like what U2 said when it recorded Helter Skelter: "Charles Manson stole this from The Beatles and we're stealing it back". I get it. God is good. But in this country we are hearing more and more from politicians that this is a "Christian nation". This is dangerous. One of things that made (and makes) this country great is that our founders set this nation up with the idea of a clear separation between Church and State. This country was to be about Liberty and Freedom. No religious tests, thank you very much.
I opened this blog entry with the above quote by Thomas Jefferson to make the point. And yes this is a shameless appeal to authority: If one the greatest founders of this nation had no problem with his neighbors religion, or lack thereof, why should our currents leaders be so concerned about it?
Food for thought.
~Thomas Jefferson
Something has been bothering me for a while now. It is not that I have let this blog go unattended for almost a year (although that is a shame too). No, the thing that is bugging me, and the resultant question I have is this: when exactly was the law passed that states that every politician running for, or holding public office has to invoke the name of God at least once when giving a public speech? (this may be a little hyperbolic but it feels close to the truth). And why is it that after every speech The President of the United States has to say "God Bless The United States of America"? Is this to remind God, lest he shirk his duty to bless us? I don't know when this became seemingly required, but I bet the whole business got started after the terrorists attacks of 9/11/01. The terrorists were claiming God, and we had to claim him back. I don't have problem this in the short term. It's kind of like what U2 said when it recorded Helter Skelter: "Charles Manson stole this from The Beatles and we're stealing it back". I get it. God is good. But in this country we are hearing more and more from politicians that this is a "Christian nation". This is dangerous. One of things that made (and makes) this country great is that our founders set this nation up with the idea of a clear separation between Church and State. This country was to be about Liberty and Freedom. No religious tests, thank you very much.
I opened this blog entry with the above quote by Thomas Jefferson to make the point. And yes this is a shameless appeal to authority: If one the greatest founders of this nation had no problem with his neighbors religion, or lack thereof, why should our currents leaders be so concerned about it?
Food for thought.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
What's so important about labor unions?
If you have been watching the news this past week you have no doubt seen stories of the massive protests and strikes involving the teachers union in Wisconsin. In a nutshell, the Republican Governor Scott Walker is trying to kill the "greedy" unions. He has refused to negotiate with them. And why not? What have unions does for us?
A lot it seems.
For instance, let's take the case of teachers unions and their process of collective bargaining. There are currently 5 U.S. states that have outlawed unions and what follows are their places in national SAT/ACT scores:
South Carolina, 50th
North Carolina, 49th
Georgia, 48th
Texas, 47th
Virginia, 44th
In case you are wondering Wisconsin, with it's collective bargaining for teachers, is ranked 2nd in the nation.
As I wrote in a earlier post we are already lagging behind most other industrialized nations in our educational system.
How low are we willing to go?
A lot it seems.
For instance, let's take the case of teachers unions and their process of collective bargaining. There are currently 5 U.S. states that have outlawed unions and what follows are their places in national SAT/ACT scores:
South Carolina, 50th
North Carolina, 49th
Georgia, 48th
Texas, 47th
Virginia, 44th
In case you are wondering Wisconsin, with it's collective bargaining for teachers, is ranked 2nd in the nation.
As I wrote in a earlier post we are already lagging behind most other industrialized nations in our educational system.
How low are we willing to go?
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Indian Blood
A few years back a woman from Maryland was in contact with my Dad and she gave him a genealogy that traced his (our) family tree back to the 1600's. I did not look at it closely at the time, but recently pulled it out again. A couple weeks ago I had the fortune to see some Native American dancers here in town (Saratoga Springs) for the First Night celebration. This reminded me that we supposedly had some "Indian blood" in our past. With the family tree in hand and some internet digging, here is what I discovered.
My Native American roots go back to one Nicolas Arendanki (meaning: "He who comes from beyond Arenda"). He was a Huron chieftain of the Bear Clan. "Huron" is actually a French name however, and they called themselves the Wendat or Wyandot. Nicolas died repelling an attack on the Jesuit Mission Sainte-Marie during the Iroquois massacres in Huronia in 1649. The Mission was the first European settlement in what is now the province of Ontario. In addition to the local Hurons, 8 missionaries from Sainte-Marie were also killed. They were canonized by the Roman Catholic Church in 1930. "Sainte-Marie Among the Hurons" was designated a national historic site on November 11, 1988. A reconstruction of the mission now operates as a living museum. Anyway...The Wyandot nation was divided by sub tribes or clans. The major sub-nations of the Wyandot are the Arendahronon (rock sub-tribe), the Attigneenongnahac (bear sub-tribe), the Attignawantan (cord sub-tribe), and the Tahontaenrat (deer sub-tribe).
But back to the family...
Nicolas, his Christian name, was born about 1623 in Huron Mission, Georgian Bay, Ontario. He is of historical note as he was the first Huron Chief to convert to Catholicism. He married Jeanne Otrihoandet, also a Huron, born about 1627 at Huron Mission. Their daughter Catherine, was called by Jesuit missionaries "Catherine, the beloved child of God (Annennontak) a Huron girl". The 1649 attacks that killed Nicolas were also widespread throughout the area and the Huron Nation was almost anihilated. Catherine, a new-born infant, and her mother took refuge with surviving Jesuit missionaries. When her mother died, Catherine, age 5, was taken by the Jesuits to Quebec, where she became a protege of Madame de la Peltrie, the founder of the Ursulines in Quebec, and the ward of Venerable Mere Marie de L’Incarnation convent.
In 1991 a movie called "Black Robe" (based on a historical novel of the same name) was released. It deals with the story of the Jesuit mission to the Hurons during Nicolas's time. I saw it in a theatre back when it came out. Little did I know then that this film, which I recall as quite moving, was so closely related to my own family's history.
I need to see it again.
For more info on The Hurons and the Mission here are a couple nice links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sainte-Marie_among_the_Hurons
http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/quebechistory/encyclopedia/HuronIndiansEC.htm
My Native American roots go back to one Nicolas Arendanki (meaning: "He who comes from beyond Arenda"). He was a Huron chieftain of the Bear Clan. "Huron" is actually a French name however, and they called themselves the Wendat or Wyandot. Nicolas died repelling an attack on the Jesuit Mission Sainte-Marie during the Iroquois massacres in Huronia in 1649. The Mission was the first European settlement in what is now the province of Ontario. In addition to the local Hurons, 8 missionaries from Sainte-Marie were also killed. They were canonized by the Roman Catholic Church in 1930. "Sainte-Marie Among the Hurons" was designated a national historic site on November 11, 1988. A reconstruction of the mission now operates as a living museum. Anyway...The Wyandot nation was divided by sub tribes or clans. The major sub-nations of the Wyandot are the Arendahronon (rock sub-tribe), the Attigneenongnahac (bear sub-tribe), the Attignawantan (cord sub-tribe), and the Tahontaenrat (deer sub-tribe).
But back to the family...
Nicolas, his Christian name, was born about 1623 in Huron Mission, Georgian Bay, Ontario. He is of historical note as he was the first Huron Chief to convert to Catholicism. He married Jeanne Otrihoandet, also a Huron, born about 1627 at Huron Mission. Their daughter Catherine, was called by Jesuit missionaries "Catherine, the beloved child of God (Annennontak) a Huron girl". The 1649 attacks that killed Nicolas were also widespread throughout the area and the Huron Nation was almost anihilated. Catherine, a new-born infant, and her mother took refuge with surviving Jesuit missionaries. When her mother died, Catherine, age 5, was taken by the Jesuits to Quebec, where she became a protege of Madame de la Peltrie, the founder of the Ursulines in Quebec, and the ward of Venerable Mere Marie de L’Incarnation convent.
In 1991 a movie called "Black Robe" (based on a historical novel of the same name) was released. It deals with the story of the Jesuit mission to the Hurons during Nicolas's time. I saw it in a theatre back when it came out. Little did I know then that this film, which I recall as quite moving, was so closely related to my own family's history.
I need to see it again.
For more info on The Hurons and the Mission here are a couple nice links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sainte-Marie_among_the_Hurons
http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/quebechistory/encyclopedia/HuronIndiansEC.htm
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Ground Zero and the Mosque (or why if you think it should not be built there you need to go back and study your history books)
We have a problem in this country. Well, obviously more than one, but I have a particular one in mind. It goes back to what I have said in an earlier post about the state of education in this country. Correct me if I am wrong, but I seem to remember quoting a source that has this country ranked 34th in the world in education. But despite this deficit we certainly remain an opinionated people. So... if our opinions are not crafted through education where are we getting our "facts" from? Increasingly it seems we are getting them from television. Someone on TV spouts off on some topic and if it seems to jive with our own biases it becomes "fact". People on both the left and right are guilty of this but I have to say that, in my humble opinion, the folks on the right seem to be the most grevious offenders. The latest bit of hogwash they are selling Americans is the whole "controversy" about a Mosque being built near ground zero. What a joke! Do we live in America or what? Does the concept of "freedom of religion" ring a bell to anyone? The case can be made that our nation stands or falls on the kind of principles that would allow any type of religious building to be built anywhere on private property. "Land of the Free" anyone?
When I hear people complaining about all this, you know what I think? I think the terrorists are loving it. This is a win for them. But this time it's even better: they have us abandoning our own American ideals.
Sad. Really sad.
When I hear people complaining about all this, you know what I think? I think the terrorists are loving it. This is a win for them. But this time it's even better: they have us abandoning our own American ideals.
Sad. Really sad.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
The Planet's Game
It's official...I got da World Cup fever.
The Cup kicks off in South Africa tomorrow, and not moment too soon. With all the bad news that seems to have a stranglehood on our global attention, here is a contest that has the chance to unify. Soccer (or if you prefer Football) is without question the most popular sport on the planet. And for one month, every four years, the whole world is "on the same page" on the largest scale that we will ever likely see. But even if it was not the most popular sport in the world, it would still be the greatest. There are many reason's for this fact but I would like to concentrate on just a few.
The game of soccer is truly a game for everyone. It's for the rich and the poor...all you need is a round ball and something that will pass for a goal. Many sports require expensive equipment that effectively marginalize the poor. Also, in soccer big or small body types are also welcome. Indeed many of the worlds best players are smaller in stature and even strength.
I have played soccer for years and still play in a "old guy league" and I can attest to the fact that it is also the epitome of a team sport. Weaker players can defeat stronger players if the unit as a whole is more cohesive. It is ultimately a game of imagination, not strength.
Maybe in the future (I say this donning my dreamer's cap) the day will come when our species evolves to the point where even national disputes can be settled, as the English say, "on the pitch". I will go further...why not make this goal a mission, despite it's quixotic nature?
And as all good missions need a rallying cry, I humbly offer one possible choice:
"Drop a ball, not a bomb"
Go ahead and print yourself up aT-shirt! We gotta start somewhere.
The Cup kicks off in South Africa tomorrow, and not moment too soon. With all the bad news that seems to have a stranglehood on our global attention, here is a contest that has the chance to unify. Soccer (or if you prefer Football) is without question the most popular sport on the planet. And for one month, every four years, the whole world is "on the same page" on the largest scale that we will ever likely see. But even if it was not the most popular sport in the world, it would still be the greatest. There are many reason's for this fact but I would like to concentrate on just a few.
The game of soccer is truly a game for everyone. It's for the rich and the poor...all you need is a round ball and something that will pass for a goal. Many sports require expensive equipment that effectively marginalize the poor. Also, in soccer big or small body types are also welcome. Indeed many of the worlds best players are smaller in stature and even strength.
I have played soccer for years and still play in a "old guy league" and I can attest to the fact that it is also the epitome of a team sport. Weaker players can defeat stronger players if the unit as a whole is more cohesive. It is ultimately a game of imagination, not strength.
Maybe in the future (I say this donning my dreamer's cap) the day will come when our species evolves to the point where even national disputes can be settled, as the English say, "on the pitch". I will go further...why not make this goal a mission, despite it's quixotic nature?
And as all good missions need a rallying cry, I humbly offer one possible choice:
"Drop a ball, not a bomb"
Go ahead and print yourself up aT-shirt! We gotta start somewhere.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
