Category: Philosophy
Who is a Muslim? Tension at an Interfaith Ramadan Gathering
I helped my Muslim friends break the Ramadan fast at the home of Abdel, an Indian scholar of classical Islam who works at the Great Mosque in Rome to facilitate interfaith dialogue and to ameliorate I... Read More
The Post-Colonial Method versus the Sociological Method in the Study of Religion: Top-down or Bottom-up?
In the current study of “religion,” two different methods have developed that are often in tension with each other. The first is the Post-Colonial Method (PCM)[1] with scholars like Talal Asad, ... 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
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
Becoming in a broken moment: learning to take imperfect action
The daughters of Zelophad, in last week’s torah portion, Pinhas, come to ask Moses to change the laws of inheritance. They are daughters of a son-less father. Based on preexisting inheritance la... Read More
On Hitchens, Flatmates, and Interfaith Gone Wrong
When I was doing my graduate research in England, I shared a terraced house with two undergrads, one of whom I will call Phil. It was rather unheard of to see Phil before noon, but one morning he emer... Read More
Theological Matrix: Worldviews Exposed
Welcome… What is “the matrix?” The matrix is the space that we as humans develop culturally. We are all human social beings, we are born into community, a world that exists beyond us... Read More
The Spirituality of Learning
Christian Scientists think of angels as bright ideas. Angels are moments of clarity and expanded consciousness, moments of fresh vision and creativity, broadened perspective, and infusions of loving i... Read More