Browsing Category:
Pat Post, Religion
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Profile of Pope Francis
by Pat_S on March 13, 2013Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires, Argentina, has been selected as the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church. He is described as a humble man who chose to live in a simple apartment instead of the archbishop’s palace. He is an intellectual, a champion of the poor and “social justice”, yet one who held the line against liberalizing currents among the Jesuits. From the National Catholic Reporter …someone who personally straddles the divide between the Jesuits and the ciellini, and more broadly, between liberals and conservatives in the church. Bergoglio has supported the social justice ethos of Latin American Catholicism, including a robust defense of the poor. “We live in the most unequal part of the world, which has...
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An Unnecessary Hypothesis?
by Maynard on September 5, 2010Maynard’s overlong rant about Big Questions What’s this about Stephen Hawking denying God? I guess maybe Maynard ought to step in and settle this issue. No, scratch that. Never mind what I ought do. I want to say something religious. It’s just that there’s a lot of social pressure these days stand silent on such topics. Unless you’re mocking them or evincing a false piety, of course. I feel more than a little awkward touching on the subject with serious intent. Well, never mind my hesitation. I’m putting on my professional hat. In this discussion, my role is clinician rather than evangelist. Dammit, I matriculated at Starfleet Academy, and I’m qualified to offer my technical comments about the existence or...
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O-Mecca Watches
by Pat_S on August 14, 2010A post by Pat For a few years now Muslim “scientists” and clerics have been calling for setting Mecca time as the new GMT. They claim it is scientifically established that Mecca is the center of the world. The proposal came up again recently when the biggest clock in the world went into operation in Mecca. Saudis hope giant clock will set ‘Mecca Time’ Saudi Arabia hopes the four faces of the new clock, which will loom over Mecca’s Grand Mosque from what is expected to be the world’s second tallest building, will establish Mecca as an alternate time standard to the Greenwich median. The clock is targeted to enter service with a three-month trial period in the first week...
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The Language God Talks
by Maynard on May 5, 2010A post by Maynard Here’s a book that caught my eye. I regard Herman Wouk as one of the great modern authors. Unlike so many writers of “important” literature, Wouk makes a point of creating stories that an ordinary human being can read and enjoy. Every American should at some point pick up his two novels (which are really a continuation of the same story) of World War II, “The Winds of War” and “War and Remembrance”. (See my earlier blog notes on these war books and also Wouk’s “Youngblood Hawke”.) Wouk is approaching is 95th birthday, so I was much surprised to see a new title appear: “The Language God Talks: On Science and Religion”. This is not a...
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This Year in Jerusalem
by Maynard on March 29, 2010A post by Maynard Passover and Easter are upon us. You’ve heard Tammy discuss the rising tensions between Israel and America. The latest round started when VP Biden’s visit to Israel coincided with a badly-timed announcement of a housing project in East Jerusalem. For a succinct summary of the ongoing debacle, including relevant historical background, read this op-ed written by the former Mayor of New York City, Ed Koch (D). A large majority of Congress objects to Obama’s hostile stance. 327 congressmen signed a letter expressing concern that “the highly publicized tensions” in US-Israeli ties will “not advance the interests” of either state.
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When Religion is a Punch Line
by Pat_S on February 4, 2010A post by Pat Don’t have a dispute with a religious person (shhh! Muslim) if you’re standing in a line in Britain. Shamso Miah punched another bank customer twice when they argued over who was next in line. Miah wound up in court but the judge, Tony Blair’s wife, decided to suspend his prison sentence. “You are a religious man and you know this is not acceptable behaviour.” Miah went to the bank directly from a mosque. An atheist group filed suit. I guess they would like to punch people once in awhile too. Complaint after Cherie Booth spares religious man jail Shamso Miah, 25, of Redbridge, east London, broke a man’s jaw following a row in a bank queue....
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NJ Muslim Anti-discrimination Cmte – “necessary evil” to condemn Muslim violence
by Pat_S on November 23, 2009A post by Pat I’ve had it with this attitude that is so typical within the Muslim community. There is a clear reluctance to speak out against fellow Muslims whenever an act of terrorist violence is committed. The Muslim community takes more effort to protect themselves from imaginary retaliation than it does to identify the fanatics amongst them and stop them. I would like to see a more strenuous effort to denounce violence in the name of their religion than a disclaimer on a website. The evil of fanaticism is active within the Muslim community. It is necessary for members of that community to take meaningful actions to eliminate it. Denounce terrorism everyday, not just on the days we count...
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Swine Flu Keeps Pilgrims Away From Mecca
by Pat_S on November 7, 2009A post by Pat The cosmic sense of humor can be so delightful. Health officials want to cancel hajj for Iranians due to swine flu The Health Ministry and the Majlis Health Committee are seriously opposed to allowing Iranians to go on hajj this year due to the swine flu epidemic, MP Mohammad-Reza Rezaii-Kouchi said on Saturday. Elsewhere in his remarks, Rezaii-Kouchi criticized the Health Ministry for reporting imprecise statistics, saying the health minister had said 50 percent of the people who go on hajj would become infected with the swine flu virus while the deputy health minister said 80 percent would become infected.
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Obama: Get Me to the Church Some Time
by Pat_S on July 24, 2009A post by Pat He already rescued the economy and knows how to reform health care in the next few minutes but there’s one problem Obama so far cannot solve. How to get to church. First he was busy transitioning, had to get the kids settled in and all that. He’s been looking for a “church home” but can’t figure out how to get a President to a congregation without being disruptive. I think the solution is somewhere between going out for ice cream and going to New York on a date. Other presidents managed to solve it. In the meantime there’s the chaplain at Camp David and Obama’s sacred blackberry. His director for faith initiatives sends him a devotional...
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Judges and Kings
by Maynard on May 10, 2009A post by Maynard I'm posting this note in contemplation of the relationship between the individual (us peons) and coercive authority (those folks with badges and bigger guns). This is one of humanity's fundamental problems, and we'll wrestle with it...
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Poll: Should the GOP reach Out to Pro-Choicers?
by Tammy on December 9, 2008I realize this is a hornet's nest, and I've posted it specifically because I want to know your honest opinion. You know how I feel. As a pro-choicer and a conservative it would do the party good to have authentic...
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Speaking in forked tongues
by Pat_S on September 9, 2008A post by Pat Realizing the experience issue isn’t going to fly, the EM is feverishly painting Sarah Palin as a chillbilly religious weird-o extremist. By so-doing they tell us more about media biases than they do about her. Although...
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The Entire History of Mankind on a Single Page!
by Tammy on July 21, 2008Maynard points to an interesting reference Wow! I was visiting my local library, trying to ignore the librarians' loud discussion about how it would be necessary to assassinate both Bush and Cheney at the same time in order to preserve...
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A ‘Mouthful of the Day’ from the Vatican
by Maynard on June 16, 2008"[P]hantasmagorical cocktail of inventions" As the Vatican flips out and condemns a new film by the makers of "The Da Vinci Code" and bans them from accessing the Vatican, churches and other sites around Italy. Vatican bans Dan Brown film...
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Bardot Convicted in France for “Racial Hatred”
by Maynard on June 3, 2008If you want a little window into what the Left has in store for everyone, take a look at this. Legendary screen actress Brigitte Bardot has been convicted in France for 'inciting racial hatred.' What did she do? She...