Nenju Service – Ino’s End of Week Chant

By Heather Cox Richardson The following is via Heather Cox Richardson’s *essential* newsletter, Letters from an American. If you don’t already receive this in your inbox everyday, I urge you to subscribe. –Frank The crisis... The post via Letters from an American appeared first on Frank Schaeffer - Official Blog. [...]

If you’ve followed anything I’ve done, especially over the last five years, you know that I was part of the early “Male-Chauvinist, Religious-White-Right, Family Values” movement in the 70s and 80s, which led us down... The post For Once: Real Family Values! appeared first on Frank Schaeffer - Official Blog. [...]

By Stephen D. Foster Jr. Pat Robertson is openly calling for replacing the Constitution with the Bible as the law of the land. In the Constitution, you will not find any reference to the Bible... The post via Church and State: Pat Robertson Calls For Establishing Biblical Law As The Law Of The Land appeared first on Frank Schaeffer - Official Blog. [...]

I recently had the opportunity to chat with Dan and Andrew of the Bible Buds Podcast and I had such a great time!  We talked about chopping enough wood for a New England Winter, growing... The post “Survival of the Friendliest” with the Bible Buds appeared first on Frank Schaeffer - Official Blog. [...]

By Thomas B. Edsall Read at New York Times It’s impossible to understand the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol without addressing the movement that has come to be known as Christian nationalism. Andrew L. Whitehead and Samuel L.... The post via New York Times: ‘The Capitol Insurrection Was as Christian Nationalist as It Gets.’ appeared first on Frank Schaeffer - Official Blog. [...]

Ever since I first watched Memento and its fascinating exploration of the philosophical question of personal identity as constituted by memory through time, film director Christopher Nolan has been on my radar. And, Insomnia aside, he has consistently managed to set the bar higher and higher to the point where he stands on a category of cinematographic and philosophical genius all by himself.In addition of being a master of character development, non-linear storytelling and building hair-raising suspense—not to say anything about the pure aesthetic beauty of his films—Nolan is a director of big ideas. There's virtually no film in which he… [...]

Life is hard enough as it is. Existence, in many ways, is suffering. Obviously, some have it much worse than others, and that matters, but at some point in our lives we all experience pain, disease, loss, betrayal. We struggle with existential angst, with the fear of meaninglessness, with questions of character, with the impending coming of oblivion. We struggle to pay rent, to put food on the table, and to have enough energy at the end of the day to make a positive difference in the world.And we don't all find love. Few things make the loneliness of existence… [...]

James Baldwin, the great essayist, poet, civil rights activist, writer and orator, would have turned 93 this week. In order to commemorate the importance of his memory and legacy, we are showcasing today the very famous Cambridge debate in which—while surrounded by an overwhelmingly white audience—he courageously and adeptly defended the proposition that “The American Dream is at the expense of the American negro” against the influential conservative writer William F. Buckley, Jr.Prior to this debate, Buckley had made his reputation as a leading American conservative, at least partly, through his writings opposing the civil rights movement and desegregation, and by… [...]

Anyone who's ever contemplated Raphael's celebrated painting The School of Athens knows that the painting centers, quite literally, around Plato and Aristotle (the former pointing up toward his transcendent Realm of the Forms, while the latter attempts to ground his understanding of reality on a much more naturalistic conception). A quick glance also reveals a few other obvious personalities: Socrates, Diogenes the Cynic, Pythagoras, and Euclid (or perhaps Archimedes?). But if you look even closer, you can see that this painting is also paying homage to the Presocratics, those thinkers who dared to imagine the cosmos might be intelligible to… [...]

Art critic John Berger's recent death has left a huge void in the world of art appreciation. While his career prompted numerous controversies and instances of outrage and public condemnation, Berger's attacks on what sometimes amounts to the condescending and elitist attitude of his own profession helped popularize the appreciation of art. His 1972 BBC documentary series Ways of Seeing, as well as its subsequent eponymous book, helped bring the world of thoughtful art appreciation to an entire generation of people who may have otherwise never gotten interested in the fine arts. Unlike conventional forms of art criticism and appreciation—which tend… [...]

Zenju Earthlyn Manuel’s deepest vow is to be a person who doesn’t cause suffering and walks in peace. It’s what we all really want. The post Living My Vow appeared first on Lion's Roar. [...]

When you recognize the true nature of mind, says Dzogchen master Tsoknyi Rinpoche, all habitual patterns are naturally liberated in the space of wisdom. That includes the ultimate habit known as samsara. The post The Natural Liberation of Habits appeared first on Lion's Roar. [...]

Estar sin un punto de referencia es la soledad última. También se le llama iluminación. The post Seis tipos de soledad appeared first on Lion's Roar. [...]

 LionsRoar.com's digital editor Lilly Greenblatt looks at the hope in hopelessness.  The post Hope in Hopelessness appeared first on Lion's Roar. [...]

You have everything you need to start a meditation practice: a mind, a body, and curiosity. Begin today with this collection of starter meditations. The post 5 Meditations You Can Do Right Now appeared first on Lion's Roar. [...]

(Natural News) The U.K. government reported that more than 240 people have died shortly after getting the Wuhan coronavirus vaccines. British citizens who died after vaccination reportedly obtained either the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine or the AstraZeneca jab. These vaccine candidates were approved by the British regulator and subsequently used in mass vaccination efforts. Despite this, the... [...]

(Natural News) Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has issued a temporary moratorium on all electricity billing throughout the Lone Star State after some customers were charged thousands of dollars for just a few days of power. Following the deadly winter storm that left millions of Texans without power, Abbott convened an emergency meeting with state lawmakers... [...]

(Natural News) New research out of the University of Hamburg in Germany found that the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) was, in fact, created in a Chinese lab. According to world-renowned researcher Roland Wiesendanger, the Wuhan Institute of Virology is the true “cause” of the Chinese virus, not bats at a Wuhan wet market as the world... [...]

(Natural News) A Houston-area couple is suing Entergy, the utility company in charge of Texas energy, for gross negligence following the death of their 11-year-old son during the recent blackouts. Cristian Pineda was found dead after trying to stay warm by huddling up in a single room. When his parents found him lying there unconscious,... [...]

(Natural News) Recently released court documents have shown that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) can intercept encrypted messages in the Signal app. Federal authorities possess certain tools to access these encrypted correspondences, the documents said. The messaging app recently gained popularity following moves by Big Tech companies to curb free speech. The documents filed... [...]

Binary star systems are everywhere. They make up a huge percentage of all known solar systems: from what we can tell, about half of all Sun-like stars have a binary partner. But we haven’t really had a chance to study them in detail yet. That’s about to change. Using data from the European Space Agency’s … Continue reading "Our Part of the Galaxy is Packed with Binary Stars" The post Our Part of the Galaxy is Packed with Binary Stars appeared first on Universe Today. [...]

A secret coded message was hidden on the gigantic parachute used to land the Perseverance rover safely on the surface on Mars. And no, it wasn’t a clandestine message to the Martians. It was a message of inspiration for us humans. But it also came as a challenge. During a news briefing on February 22, … Continue reading "There was a Secret Code in the Perseverance Parachute" The post There was a Secret Code in the Perseverance Parachute appeared first on Universe Today. [...]

The HiRISE camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has done it again. The imaging team was able to capture the Perseverance rover as it descended through the Martian atmosphere, hanging under its parachute. Stunning. If you feel you’ve seen something like this before, you have. HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) also captured both the … Continue reading "Perseverance’s Landing … Seen From Orbit!" The post Perseverance’s Landing … Seen From Orbit! appeared first on Universe Today. [...]

The Low Frequency Array has mapped a portion of the sky at the lowest radio frequencies ever, revealing more than 25,000 supermassive black holes. The post A map of 25,000 Supermassive Black Holes Across the Universe appeared first on Universe Today. [...]

If the Roman Empire had been able to launch a satellite in a relatively high Low Earth Orbit – say about 1,200 km (750 miles) in altitude – only now would that satellite be close to falling back to Earth. And if the dinosaurs had launched a satellite into the furthest geostationary orbit – 36,000 … Continue reading "How Long Will Space Junk Take to Burn Up? Here’s a Handy Chart" The post How Long Will Space Junk Take to Burn Up? Here’s a Handy Chart appeared first on Universe Today. [...]

A new theoretical study has proposed a novel mechanism for the creation of supermassive black holes from dark matter. The international team find that rather than the conventional formation scenarios involving 'normal' matter, supermassive black holes could instead form directly from dark matter in high density regions in the centres of galaxies. The result has key implications for cosmology in the early Universe. [...]

Researchers have identified how the slime mold Physarum polycephalum saves memories -- although it has no nervous system. [...]

A new study explores the extraordinary rate at which the world's largest fish, the endangered whale shark, can recover from its injuries. The findings reveal that lacerations and abrasions, increasingly caused through collisions with boats, can heal in a matter of weeks and researchers found evidence of partially removed dorsal fins re-growing. [...]

According to a new study, Earth, Venus and Mars were created from small dust particles containing ice and carbon. The discovery opens up the possibility that the Milky Way may be filled with aquatic planets. [...]

When you slip into sleep, it's easy to imagine that your brain shuts down, but new research suggests that groups of neurons activated during prior learning keep humming, tattooing memories into your brain. [...]

A single high-energy neutrino may shed light on a star being swallowed by a supermassive black hole some 750 million light-years away. The post Star-shredding Black Hole Makes Ghostlike Particle appeared first on Sky & Telescope. [...]

A higher mass for Cygnus X-1, the first black hole to be discovered, challenges ideas about the evolution of massive stars. The post First-detected Black Hole is More Massive Than We Thought appeared first on Sky & Telescope. [...]

Sirius the Dog Star blazes high in the southeast after dinnertime, the brightest star of Canis Major. Spot it lower left of Orion. The stars of Canis Major can be connected to form a convincing dog profile. The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, February 19 – 27 appeared first on Sky & Telescope. [...]

NASA’s Perseverance rover, now safely on the floor of Jezero crater, will soon begin its search for evidence of past life on Mars. The post NASA’s Perseverance Arrives on Mars appeared first on Sky & Telescope. [...]

Snare a dozen bright double stars and deep-sky objects in the celestial Hare the next clear night. We also provide details on how to watch the potentially hazardous asteroid Apophis occult a star the night of February 21st. The post A Deep-sky Hippity-hop through Lepus, the Hare appeared first on Sky & Telescope. [...]