Monthly Archives: June 2014

o About silence

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Here is the second portion of the book The Way of Peace, the first portion of which appeared yesterday.

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MEDITATION

Meditation is not the whole of the Way, any more than flour is the whole of cookies. If you want cookies, you must also have butter, sugar, and perhaps eggs, in addition to flour. Flour is essential, however. Likewise as to the Way, meditation is so essential, as to move me to say this: if you have any interest in learning the Way, and do not now have a discipline of meditation, you should start one now — right now — before even reading the rest of this book.
Continue reading o About silence →

o The Way of Peace

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In 2010, I set out to write a little book that would set forth exactly what I believe Jesus really taught. I entitled it The Way of Peace.  Here is the first section of that text, entitled “ABOUT THIS BOOK.”

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Matthew 11:28-30: Jesus said,

Come to me, all ye who labor and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; …
and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

All my life, I have been concerned for people who seemed to me to have a harder lot than they deserved — who were loaded down with heavy burdens.

In time, I came to see that I likewise carried needless heavy burdens.

Life is difficult enough even without them. Jesus speaks here of a way to live without them. Life’s inherent difficulties cannot be avoided. Needless difficulties can be avoided, and one’s life will be far more pleasant as a result. I humbly believe I have come to understand what Jesus meant, and that is what I seek to set forth here.
Continue reading o The Way of Peace →

* I’m so jealous!

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(Originally published 06/11/13 at Trojan Horse Productions.  Reblogged 01/31/19.)

Delilah: Radio Host Talks About Why Her Show Is so Successful

I’ve never heard of this woman before. She and I appear to be on the same wavelength.

If only that were more than a pun!

Update, 2014-06-13:

A follower has advised that the link seems to point to an interview with Michelle Kwan.

The restrictions on videos on web pages here at the library are such I normally ignore them, and count on people just reading the text.  For the video interview with Delilah one wants to click on this image:

* Free speech issues, etc.

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Bookmarks:
Some news sites cracking down on over-the-top comments • Obama suggests sense of powerlessness in confronting the world’s evils • Scary people downtown • An angry young man, and divine intervention •

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* The path of presence

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Thursday, May 1, 2014.  For several days, I’ve sought a sign as to whether presence is, indeed, the way to go.  No answer could be clearer than my experience this afternoon.  I’ve gone through exactly the transition described in “Chaos overwhelms the poor.”  I have power and competence to deal with my current circumstances, with the resources at hand.  I perceive the universe as a well-ordered place.  This cosmic harmony provides the foundation for hope.  I may soon be able to face with confidence the unknown, uncertain future.

That I did all this on my own raises the question of whether there exists, in the end, the unseen world.  I have that answer already; I’ve been in this place before.

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From “Chaos overwhelms the poor:”

Jesus and others have taught an approach to life that enables one to learn to care for oneself and begin to establish harmony in one’s immediate situation.
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* Carter Scott, Karma and Chaos

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(Originally published 06/05/13 at Trojan Horse Productions.  Reblogged 01/17/19.)

Short life of Carter Scott marred by accusations of family violence

It’s difficult to start this post, as the story’s prone to leave one speechless.

What sort of karma would impel a child to be born into that context?

At the shelter, we’re compelled to attend chapel every night. A different preacher comes each night, in a monthly rotation. These generally disappoint me in their utter failure to speak to the sort of situation in question here. About 40% of the presenters are preoccupied wholly with what will become of your soul when you die; whether you’ll go to heaven or hell; and your need to “believe in Jesus” as the key to salvation. It’s all about a cognitive assent, saying “yes” to a certain set of ideas. There is no presentation of Christianity as a lifestyle, nor any discussion of the role of discipline in following Jesus.

Another 40% of the presenters are preoccupied wholly with obtaining “blessings,” principally by the means of praise: “When the praises go up, the blessings come down.” A “blessing” here is always a material, for example monetary, advantage that one has done nothing to earn. It is as if God were some cosmic King Lear jealous for flattery.

Neither group mentions the call to repent, in terms of any need to change one’s ways.

The only hell that concerns me is the living hell that folk create in this life, here and now, for themselves and their community.
Continue reading * Carter Scott, Karma and Chaos →

o Job search update, 06/02/14

Job search/Job prospects

Positions applied to in May 2014:

Office Assistant – Anatomical Lab – UMMS –Job ID #: 32309
MC Administrative Asst, Post Acute Services Job – UMMS – Job ID #: 32498
Unit Secretary – Medical Acute 11E Job – UMMS – Job ID #: 32633
Administrative Assistant – Therapeutic Living for Families
Checked “Jobs at Pratt”  05/13/14
Data Entry – Randstad
Administrative/Office Assistant – Beacon Hill Group, LLC
Administrative Assistant II – Gaudenzia, Inc.
Legal Secretary – Travelers
Administrative Assistant – USIC – S2
Administrative Assistant- Part Time  – Pennrose Management