Women in Egypt protest military abuse.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/21/world/middleeast/violence-enters-5th-day-as-egyptian-general-blames-protesters.html
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Times Square pastor praises the generosity of New Yorkers.
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/longtime-times-sq-pastor-amazed-parishioners-giving-spirit-article-1.995734?localLinksEnabled=false
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Scott Alessi reports in U.S.Catholic magazine about the language used in the Churches opposition to LGBT rights.
http://www.uscatholic.org/blog/2011/12/catholic-church-and-lgbt-community-who-making-whom-enemy
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Tony Equale’s blog can be accessed at http://tonyequale.wordpress.com/author/tonyequale/
BEYOND RELIGION
Tenzin Gyatso is the 14th and current Dalai Lama. He was activiely exercizing the office of the head of state of Tibet when the Chinese armed forces assumed control of the country in 1959. He was 24 at the time. Since then, he has lived in India and maintained a government in exile known officially as the “Central Tibetan Administration.” He retired in March of 2011 at 76.
Since the 1600’s the Dalai Lama has been the
traditional civil authority of Tibet. But he is
also the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism.
Perhaps it is because of his double role that the
present Dalai Lama was keen to write a book called
Beyond Religion. (Beyond Religion:
Ethics for a Whole World, Houghton Mifflin
Harcourt, 2011, 188 pages). For the book suggests
that national governments should consider
establishing programs that promote “spiritual”
values and practices as part of public policy. This
may seem to contradict the separation of church and
state. But he is quick to point out that the values
he speaks about — compassion, universal respect,
altruism, fairness, justice — are human social
values. They are not “supernatural” or necessarily
religious. They belong to humanity; and since they
enhance our lives, they are in everyone’s self
interest. Nothing could be more “secular,” he
says, and therefore they are beyond religion.
They can be embraced by people of all
religions … as well as those with none.
Despite the possible confusion created by the book’s
title, there is no effort on his part to put down
religion or eliminate its role. The title is meant
only as a reaffirmation of the universal values
embedded in the Declaration of Human Rights,
adopted by the United Nations in 1948. They are
truly secular values, he insists,
and beyond any religion.
…Help me out here, someone. How do I say what I mean without sliding back into an ancient imagery built on illusion and ignorance. We once believed “God” was a humanoid puppeteer in the sky, who inexplicably refused to use his almighty power to prevent the torments that nature heaps upon us and who stood idly by while men claiming to act in his his name turned people into groveling self-loathing slaves, stole their dignity and freedom and destroyed their culture and their lives. There is no such “God.” How do you say that … and love the one that is.
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Fr. Anthony Chadwick considers Catholic Omerta
http://catholicusanglicanus.wordpress.com/2011/12/21/catholic-omerta/
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Grateful to Bob for sharing the reflection, "one war ends." This poem and more at http://www.poemataschneck.net/a/
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Will the resurgence of fundamentalist Catholicism make it necessary to fight this battle over again?
http://www.suntimes.com/news/steinberg/9524518-452/is-it-still-ok-to-elect-catholics.html
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Christopher Hitchens died last week. This article describes his final interview.