Live simply and prudently, with self-control and moderation. Seek simple pleasures, those that satisfy natural and necessary desires, chief of which are food, drink, clothing, shelter, friendship and love. The words of Epicurus. Very similar to the basic teachings of Christianity, really. But what would Jesus have made of the institutions that have flourished in …
“This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.” The Dalai Lama I love this quotation. It would seem unlikely that such a straightforward and simple outlook on life from the top of the world …
“It’s all very well to show courtesy to visiting Muslim dignitaries, but the lengths we went to in Rome last week to please Hassan Rouhani were farcical. The Iranian president and his entourage must have been utterly bemused, when they went for a ceremonial event to the Capitoline Museums, to find big wooden boxes placed …
Moderation is the keynote of Epicureanism. No Epicurean can be a militant atheist like Richard Dawkins, whose books are very interesting and well-written, but who in person is too disagreeable. Contrary to Dawkins, some activities of religion are good, e.g raising money for charity Sunday schools and teaching children consideration and love, honesty and integrity. If …
“Want to keep Christ in Christmas? Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, forgive the guilty, welcome the unwanted, care for the ill, love your enemies, and do unto others as you would have done unto you.” (Steve Maraboli, “Unapologetically You: Reflections on Life and the Human Experience”). Epicureanism stands for moderation in all things, friendship, …
“This idea of two men getting married is the most bizarre idea in human history,” Bill Donohue, President of the Catholic League, told host John Fugelsang, adding that the purpose of marriage is a “duty” to procreate. “The whole purpose of marriage is to have a family,” he said. “It’s not about making people happy. …
From: Georgetown School of Medicine Student Affairs To: Students at the School of Medicine – Subject: Letter to our Muslim Brothers and Sisters at the School of Medicine Dear students, faculty and staff of the Medical School, Peace! In collaboration with all of my fellow chaplains, across this University, I wish to stand in solidarity …
Continue reading ‘Fight back against prejudice and bigotry: how it should be’ »
Americans mythologise Thanksgiving. Many know they are doing so; even more do not. The Pilgrims didn’t call themselves Pilgrims for starters. The were overwhelmingly not Puritan and they were not really persecuted at all, just annoyed at the Church of England and its bishops. They did leave England for religious reasons, but left Holland of …
Since the mainstream media are not reporting this, I thought it might be of interest to readers to complete what I wrote yesterday. After its battle in Dabiq, the caliphate will go on to sack Istanbul, destroy Israel and continue to expand, since expansion is the essential duty of the Caliph. At some point an …
Continue reading ‘The Caliphate, and what comes after the defeat of the unbelievers’ »
In the Monday edition of the New York Times Paul Krugman, deviating from his usual subject of economics, said that the objective of ISIS was to terrorize non-believers. It’s true that the “Caliphate” has a holy duty to terrorize its enemies, but this is not the main objective. In the March edition of Atlantic Magazine, …
Continue reading ‘ISIS: what the Western media is missing’ »
By now everyone knows that a resistance movement is active in reaction to the reforms of Pope Francis. Refusniks are in favour of services in Latin, are opposed to ecumenism, freedom of religion and closer relations with Judaism. The leader of the group is Jean-Michel Faure, consecrated as bishop by British bishop, Richard Williamson, a …
Websites about Epicureanism seem to proliferate, most of them saying the same things, with little new. The problem with Epicureanism in particular is that so many of the ancient writings were either lost or were deliberately destroyed by early Christians, but this does not deter people from regurgitating the fragments left ad nauseam. But to …
Please excuse the length of this posting, but I thought readers should see a report sent to members of Jewish Voice for Peace, the rapidly growing group of moderate Jewish Americans. The complaint is about the biased reporting of current events in Israel by the New York Times: “Our analysis of over 30 New York …
Continue reading ‘Events in Israel from a Jewish point of view’ »
California, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia, have banned licensed therapists from practicing conversion therapy on gays, but, amazingly, many Americans still think this “therapy” works. Earlier this year 17-year-old Leelah Alcorn, who wrote on a Tumblr post that her parents had forced her to go to conversion therapy, took her own life, provoking …
Continue reading ‘Conversion therapy for gay and transgender minors.’ »
Russia’s Orthodox Church has voiced support for Moscow’s air strikes in Syria against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group, thus: “The fight with terrorism is a “holy battle” and today our country is perhaps the most active force in the world fighting it,” said the head of the Church’s public affairs department, …
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