I recently picked up a copy of ” target=”_blank”> A Witch Alone: The Essential Guide for the Solo Practitioner of the Magical Arts by Marian Green. The book contains 13 chapters, one for each of the 13 moons in a year. I plan to work through one chapter per lunar cycle beginning just after the new moon, as Green recommends
The rest is here:
A Witch Alone by Marian Green: Introduction
I’ve only actually known one Blaise in my life, my Uncle Blaise, who I loved dearly and who died twelve years ago of pancreatic cancer (the same disease the killed my father and that my aunt now suffers from). However, there is one other Blaise I remember from my youth, and that is St
Original post:
St. Blaise
I was just reading a synopsis of a book on the effect of technology on faith. For example: Reading and writing are individual activities. The technology of writing favors individualism over community, leading us to spiritual disciplines of “quiet time” and “journaling” and a gospel that is primarily oriented to the individual. Printing erodes the communal nature of faith.
Originally posted here:
Extent of Application
Merry Imbolc all! May the flame upon your candle burn unwavering as light returns to the world. As I begin to emerge from the dark womb of winter, I realize my rest was fitful and filled with dreams borne of the unresolved anger I harbor for organized religion and those who seek to harm others with it.
Read the original:
Imbolc: reflections, gratitude, and inspiration
Today is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, when the Catholic Church recalls the day on which Mary and Joseph brought the infant Jesus, to the temple “to present him to the Lord,” in accordance with the scripture that “Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord.” The Gospel reading for today’s Mass contains Luke’s account of the event. We are told that when Mary and Joseph arrive at the temple with Jesus, they are met by Simeon, a “righteous and devout” man, to whom it had been revealed “by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord.” When Simeon sees Jesus, he takes the child in his arms and prays, “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation.” I almost tingle every time I hear this scripture proclaimed. I can feel the joy and the peace Simeon felt when he beheld Jesus
View post:
My Eyes Have Seen Your Salvation
Oneindia Satsang With Swami Chinmayananda-On Hinduism And Philosophy Oneindia Hinduism is the way-of-life of the Hindus. Hinduism cannot be termed as a religion.
Originally posted here:
Satsang With Swami Chinmayananda-On Hinduism And Philosophy – Oneindia
I don’t mean by the title, choosing which product to buy (although when I first moved back to the US after two years of living in Nepal, India and Thailand, I found that to be no easy task). Rather, I’m talking about making choices for where we devote our energy, choosing among options that are good. If we are on a spiritual path, our choice for where to devote our energies is generally not between a good and a bad choice
Read more:
Choosing Among Goods
One of the books I’m currently reading is James Carroll’s Practicing Catholic , which was recommended to me by my friend Joe. At one point in the book, Carroll discusses the difference between Catholicism in the Old World and Catholicism in America.
Read the rest here:
Encountering Others
Career, Money, Health, Friends, Family, Personal Growth, Recreation & Fun, Spirituality…Creativity, Relationships, Community, Work, Spirituality, Physical Health, Learning…Love/Companionship, Work, Something apart from work, Health, Peace & Spirituality…Spirituality, physical, emotional, financial and relationships/family…
See original here:
IV: Pursue a Balanced Life (part 1)
· They are experienced as if they are coded messages from some transcendent realm of spirituality –…Thus synchronicities focus on the increasing interest on combining science and spirituality….
The rest is here:
SYNCHRONICITIES (MEANINGFUL COINCIDENCES) ARE in the AIR!
I am not looking for religious answers but I am open for anything that can enlighten my spirituality….I feel there is a deficit of people around me that I could talk to about life, spirituality, the universe, dimensions, densities, alien life, and all things interesting, i nspiring, enlightening, and amazing….
Read the original here:
Other wordly dreamer.
If the word “psychedelic” conjures up images of San Francisco or Woodstock, there’s much more to learn from journalist Don Lattin’s mind-blowing guided tour of the colorful people who gave birth to America’s psychedelic era in an unlikely place: Harvard University. Says Religion News Service: In his new book, ” The Harvard Psychedelic Club ,” which has received enthusiastic reviews and generated interest in Hollywood, Lattin expertly shows how Timothy Leary, Richard Alpert, Huston Smith and Andrew Weil crossed paths at Harvard in the fall of 1960 before going their own separate ways. Lattin, a veteran religion reporter who walked on the wild side more than a few times himself, traces how the four men forever changed the way people — both straight and stoned — think about spirituality
See more here:
Book traces the long strange trip of drug-induced spirituality
I’ve just finished reading The Gospel Truth: A Lectionary-Based Catechism for Adults , by Kenneth Ogorek, sent to me by The Catholic Company . For each of the Sunday liturgies in all three cycles, the book includes the Gospel reading, a short discussion linked to relevent sections of the Catechism, three questions for reflection (one intended for children) and some suggestions for further reading from both scripture and the Catechism.
View post:
The Gospel Truth
There was a particular point during my years as a Buddhist when I was struggling with the question whether to give up the vows I had taken as a Buddhist nun and to return to lay life. Aggravating my struggle was the sense that I had somehow irrevocably blown it, that I was hopelessly confused.
View original here:
Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul
Today’s second Mass reading comes from St. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians and it is a passage I think we could all benefit from reflecting on
Originally posted here:
The Body Is Not A Single Part, But Many
Hugh Owen again took the time to make a (from my point of view very long) reply to my response to him. I wasn’t able to post it with the formatting in Blogger, and it would be too confusing to take away the formatting, so I’ve put it on a separate page.
Original post:
Creation of the World – Hugh Owen’s Response
In today’s Gospel from St. Mark, Jesus “summoned those he wanted and they came to him.” The passage itself refers to Jesus’ summons of the “Twelve, whom he also named Apostles.” Those twelve were an incredibly diverse group, including fishermen, a tax collector and a zealot primarily interested in seeing the Roman forces overthrown. They included well-known names as well as some of whom we know nothing
Continued here:
Answering the Summons
We continue to hear reports of the devastating effects of last week’s earthquake in Haiti. Many are on the ground in Haiti, offering medical and other assistance. Many more of us are able to donate financially
Read the original post:
Praying for Our Brothers and Our Sisters
I was reflecting on the fact that the Christmas season is over and we are now in Ordinary Time in the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church. Although “ordinary” in this context doesn’t mean usual or average, so much as it means not-seasonal, there is some value in keeping in mind our usual understanding of the world
Original post:
Ordinary Time
Today’s first Mass reading, from the First Book of Samuel, reminds us that God doesn’t always make choices in the way we might expect. God tells Samuel to go to Jesse of Bethlehem, telling him that God has chosen one of Jesse’s sons to be his king. As the first son, Eliab, is presented to him – doubtless the oldest, perhaps the most impressive, Samuel is sure, based on Eliab’s “appearance and his lofty stature,” that this must be the one.
Read more from the original source:
Anoint Who?
Today, the United States celebrates Martin Luther King Day, one of the very few U.S. holidays commemorating an individual person. We celebrate King for his commitment to nonviolence in his protest of racial discrimination, a commitment that was rooted in his Christian faith
Excerpt from:
Martin Luther King, Jr. and Loving Our Enemies
Just before the close of business Friday (i.e., the beginning of a three-day weekend), I discovered that my laptop had a virus. Several phone calls with the University of St. Thomas IT folks resulted in the conclusions that (1) no technician would be available to to look at the laptop until Tuesday morning and (2) I should not use my laptop in the interim
The rest is here:
Attachments
This post may be opening up a big can of worms, but worms, if let on their own, can sometimes get pretty nasty, and need to be dealt with, so here goes… Some philosophers, such as Peter Knauer, have argued that the principle of double effect is the “fundamental principle of ethics.” I would argue that this position is overstated, but that nonetheless, an analogous extension of the principle of double effect might correctly be called the fundamental principle of ethical “problems,” How so?
Continued here:
The Principle of Double Effect
Paul Harvey Good stuff over at Immanent Frame: First, a little follow-up on Darren’s post from yesterday: ” Christianity and the Crash,” collects a number of scholarly responses to Hanna Rosin’s article ” Did Christianity Cause the Crash ,” from the December 2009 Atlantic . Our friends Anthea Butler and Jon Walton weigh in, along with Mark Taylor, Harvey Cox, and several others
See the rest here:
Christianity, Crashes, and Special Experiences
New Online New on All Considering A year of spiritual blogging: time for some statistics Merry Christmas Michael Mirdad interview The five stages of the soul transformation process: Michael Mirdad New on squidoo Quiz: Dalai Lama facts and trivia You’re Not Going Crazy…You’re Just Waking Up! Michael Mirdad Quiz: Wicca and Paganism facts and trivia A Course in Miracles – famous quotes and sayings Buddhist Texts Through the Ages A World Full Of Gods : The History of Early Christianity New: My spiritual Quotes Blavatsky Christmas and New Year Quotes Theravada Buddhist quotes about happiness Inspiring science quotes about Happiness The rest of my spiritual newsletter containing: Short Quotes, Editorial and Clara Codd on the Yoga of Motherhood.
See the original post here:
Spiritual Quotes, Buddhist texts, ACIM, You’re not crazy and Quizzes…
When religion reporters get together we like to discuss the great mysteries of our field. You know, questions like, “Why can’t more journalists learn that ‘Episcopal’ is an adjective, while ‘Episcopalian’ is a noun, even though it sounds like an adjective?” Here’s another one: If network-news executives spend millions of dollars on focus groups and surveys detailing the interests of viewers in average American homes, and this research keeps showing that Americans are very interested in faith issues, then why don’t we see more religion-news coverage on television? Why isn’t there a weekly show on religion news — a news show, not a shouting-match show — on Fox News (in light of that network’s heartland demographics)?
See the original post here:
Blind spot in 20-20 ‘Blind Side’ story?
Since Sunday evening, I keep coming back to the lyrics of one of the songs sung by our teen choir during Mass this week. The song is titled, The Heart of Worship and the refrain from the song goes: I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You, it’s all about You, Jesus
Read the original here:
It’s All About You, Jesus