We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness – That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the… Continue Reading
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Love of the Lord
A simple and charming hymn, taken from the Books of Psalms and Chronicles, attached to a pleasing melody, and frequently used in church services, has these words. I love you Lord, and I lift my voice, to worship you. O my soul, rejoice! Take joy, my King, in what you hear: May it be a… Continue Reading
Greed and Religion
Human greed appears to have almost no boundary. There is a large segment of the human population that seems to be determined to take whatever they can, from whomever they can, for as long as they can. There are limits to that kind of behavior, however. Other people take notice, and those who are victims… Continue Reading
Our Bipolar Religions
Compassion versus Hatred As soon as humans became humans, and as soon as there were expressions of art or literature, even in its most primitive forms, there were expressions of belief in deities, and reverence for those deities. There was, in other words, religion, as soon as we became identified as a separate species. Religious… Continue Reading
A Universe of Balance
Good equals Evil. Plato believed that there was a natural goodness in the universe, from which humans had fallen. He also believed that this natural goodness could be reachieved by these fallen humans through prolonged contemplation and clarification of their thoughts. Once that realm of perfect goodness was reached again, Plato also assumed that whichever… Continue Reading
Communion with the Divine
The music ripples and flows. Startling contrapuntals weave in and out of each other, suddenly falling away to reveal a single instrumental lyric of astonishing beauty. The themes are played against each other, varied in intensity and rhythm, thrown from set of instruments to another, flashing evanescent bright colors as they are tossed and turned,… Continue Reading
Priest Abuse
Just what in the world were they thinking? The Catholic Church, from the time of its conception, decided that only men could be priests. They also decided that those men could not have sex with women, since they were now married to the church. They were expected to be faithful in that marriage, which in… Continue Reading
All Religions Fail
Religion is a necessary ingredient in a stable and mature adult mind, isn’t it? We need to be deeply reverent of the creator of this magnificent universe, deeply grateful that our creator has given us our lives, and strive to fit as best we can into the plan our creator has for us. We sense… Continue Reading
The True Believers
It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? A true believer is someone who is an unshakable believer, someone who doesn’t waver in the face of pressure. This is not a sometime believer, a maybe believer, or a false believer. This is someone who will stand up to whatever challenges there are and will … Continue Reading
Justice and Injustice
Northern Ethiopian soldiers sweep through villages, killing all men, women and children they see, using machetes and guns. They burn and plunder, leveling those villages to the ground. Those few that escape go west to Darfur, where, if they are fortunate enough to have survived the perilous journey on foot, they live in squalid concentration… Continue Reading