Category: Learning
Reza Aslan’s Jesus
Reza Aslan has a remarkable ability to make ancient stories come alive. I have assigned his earlier books, No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam and Beyond Fundamentalism, in und... Read More
The Chronos and Kairos of Medicine
In classical Greek art, Kairos is portrayed in a manner similar to Hermes (the Roman Mercury). He is handsome, young, perpetually in motion, swift, constantly running; he has wings on his feet and on ... Read More
On the Imperative to Understand Other Faiths Post 9/11
Growing up in a small town in upstate New York, my community mainly consisted of people like me: Caucasian, Christian, and middle class. Throughout most of my childhood, I existed in a comfortable bub... Read More
Seeds of Compassion: The Bodhi Tree, Ramadan, and Survival of the Kindest.
Earlier this month, while many people around the world were celebrating the birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the man whose immeasurable compassion has touched the world, a few were planting bo... Read More
Leading with the heart: an interfaith experience
There is so much at stake. Anyone looking around at the world knows that, and anyone who wishes for a peaceful, healthy, just world knows, too, that the changes will have to be immense. Revolutionary.... Read More
Ramadan Diary 1434/2013 Week 1
Preface For the last couple of years I’ve been meaning to keep a Ramadan journal of spiritual reflections. It seemed like a natural outgrowth of the “tweeting the Qur’an” initiative. It’s al... Read More
The Thinking Higher Bias: How society’s bias for “thinking higher” does not apply to our spiritual/religious journeys
One of my favorite songs is “Higher and Higher” by the Moshav Band. With only a few lyrics the song emphasizes a single point, or rather a single hope: for our songs (or praise) to get us ... Read More
“Welcoming the ‘Whelps’: A Queer-Allied Reading of Matthew 15:21-28,” by Catie Scudera
Matthew 15:21-28 and its corollary text Mark 7:24-30 take place within a historical context of great turmoil and tragedy for the Jewish people.[1] During Jesus’s time, Pax Romana was in effect, wher... Read More