What's wrong with Alan Watts?

(T&H - Inspiration & Motivation) Who are you? - Alan Watts on the illusion of thoughts

(Frank Philosophy) The problem with Alan Watts

• Divine play/drama: lila (Hinduism)
• The cosmic illusion: maya (religion)
• The True GOD: Brahman (Monad)
• Syncretism: mish mash smorgasbord
• Voice of Zen Buddhism Alan Watts is wrong?

This yin yang is Taoist, useful in Zen ideas

Q: Wisdom Quarterly, what religion was Alan Watts?

A: While he speaks like a Hindu professing Advaita Vedanta at every turn, and often explains Zen and Mahayana concepts quite nicely, with a grasp of Theravada, by his own admission he seemed to love Taoism best of all, although born Christian and ordained as an Episcopalian priest rather than a Buddhist monk as was his early ambition in the Buddhist Society of London with Christmas Humphreys and other prominent Western Buddhists. He was an early voice in the West for explaining and interpreting Eastern philosophy for Western ears, particularly those of Beats and Hippies, remarkably ahead of his time, openminded, and quite a New Ager. We love him because he has been with us all of our adult lives through Berkeley's KPFA FM, KQED (TV), and he continues to inspire through KPFK FM in Los Angeles (Sunday mornings at 8:00 am and Thursdays at midnight) and the invaluable preservation work of Roy of Hollywood Tuckman.

(Simply Art - Inspire) Alan Watts: What if I am God but only pretending to be a human?

Valerie Bertinelli-Van Halen live, LA (4/15)

Look, Donny and Marie did it. So why can't we? - That's different! They were Mormons.

Look, Everyone! I'm a "cover girl" now!

Valerie Bertinelli-Van Halen isn’t one to hold her feelings close to the vest. The “One Day at a Time” TV star believes in the power of connection — connecting with fans to help her heal.

[After all, she lost her rockstar husband, the world-renowned guitarist Eddie Van Halen (shown above shredding on guitar), RIP, with whom she fathered and raised Wolfgang Van Halen].

Incest laws won't stop us (pagesix)

She is doing that through Indulge: Delicious and Decadent Dishes to Enjoy and Share, her cookbook. The New York Times bestselling author’s new book is a collection of 100 recipes to “nourish the body and the soul.”

She shares recipes for dishes like garlic confit LT, oven-“fried” okra, mangled animal guts in casing, and olive rotten dairy bites, spaghetti al limone, smelly patties with quick-pickled vegetables, cow limbs with bearnaise sauce, and chocolate peanut butter dates.

Twins? Inside Eddie Van Halen and Valerie Bertinelli's '80s romance (pagesix.com)

It's probably safe to say Valerie taught Eddie everything he knew about everything except guitar.

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Eddie? Eddie who? (No you didn't, Dave!)

“It’s mainly a cookbook, but an extension of Enough Already,” Bertinelli said of her 2023 book. “I wrote that after my mother and Ed (Eddie Van Halen) died. They passed away a year and a half apart. I was going through a lot of grief and going through a marriage that wasn’t working. I was going through a lot.”

She said she didn’t love anything with her life. She felt like she was “drowning and had forgotten how to swim.”

Then, being Italian, she returned to the kitchen little by little. “I started writing recipes, and I started to get excited,” she said. “I was talking about food the way I had never talked about before.”

She’ll talk about her latest feeble attempt at fame as a chef and her struggles on a book tour that stops at All Saints Church in Pasadena at 7:00 pm Monday, April 15, 2024.

The Vroman’s-sponsored event is ticketed (minimum $41 with book). “This is the biggest book tour I’ve ever done,” she said.

“I can’t wait to meet everybody. Since my last book, I’ve had a great rapport with a lot of people in my social media community. I have really terrific people who follow me on Instagram and Threads.” More

• WHO: Celebrity Valerie Bertinelli
• WHERE: All Saints Church, 132 N. Euclid Ave.,
• Pasadena, Los Angeles, California 91107
• WHEN: 7:00 pm, Monday, April 15, 2024
• COST: Tickets start at $41, includes book
• INFO: vromansbookstore.com

• Christina Fuoco-Karasinski, ArroyoMonthly.com, April 4, 2024 (A Change of Life: Valerie Bertinelli learns to ‘Indulge’ | pasadenaweekly.com); PageSix.com; Seth Auberon, Crystal Q. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Spiritual Krawl for Kris-Mass (12/24)

All-Saints Pasadena and SRF Xmas services 2023; Editors, Wisdom Quarterly

How many religions are there in the US? Probably about as many disgruntled Gods have made. And we say that because, traditionally, there have been 200 kinds of Christianity, with many sects, not to mention how each congregation differs from the next even in the same version of X-ianity.

Which religion to choose in America? Jainism?

What could we do, living in a city so liberal as Pasadena (LA County, CA), the jewel of the Other Valley, the "Varanasi of the West"? (Varanasi or Benares is the most spiritual city in India).

We did a spiritual pub crawl by visiting a Buddhist center (Mindfulness Meditation Center – Covina – Los Angeles Buddhist Vihara), a semi-Hindu temple (Self-Realization Fellowship, Glendale), and an Episcopalian church, the best one in the country: All Saints Church, Pasadena (allsaints-pas.org).

• Radical inclusion at All Saints: Whoever one is, that person is welcome. A female dressed as a priest was breaking bread and distributing blood (gluten wafers and wine with everyone's saliva mixed in) in a European cannibalism ritual where they eat their god
• The Buddhist monastery had not official event, just visitors as many Sri Lankans in the U.S. are or have family members that have become Christians, after the British and Portuguese brought the religion to the formerly occupied colony
• SRF had an inclusive service, singing Christmas carols, eating cookies, singing, performing, and reading from Paramahansa Yogananda's The Second Coming of Christ: The Resurrection of the Christ Within You, with a decidedly Indian slant to the interpretation of Issa (Jesus) as a traveler to ancient India, where he was exposed to Tibetan Buddhism, the Brahminical Vedic religion (before Hinduism had been systematized into a "religion" by Sri Shankara), and the ways of the East

While not the 8 pm service we attended, it is similar to it from SRF

We come more out of family tradition than faith.

This third place with its 10:30 pm service was very inclusive -- reading from the Quran (Koran, Islam's holy book), giving a nod to the Jews, and talking about this one guy whose birthday it was. There was singing and lesbians officiants in different colors, as if the place were Unitarian Universalists, which Pasadena has two such places of worship (Throop and Neighborhood Church).

Religion is better when it includes women.

One hardly sees so many liberals gathered in one place, talking about the big Rose Parade and football game next week, protests against Israel and for Palestine, with a great deal of respect for non-Zionist Jews, massive compassion for all the suffering of the world, not least the tiny minority of Christians in Bethlehem, where Christmas has been cancelled by Jewish Nationalist war games and actual slaughter.

To meditate is the way to the divine.

The birthday guy was apparently a Palestinian living in the West Back 2,000 years ago, angering the Temple priests and Roman officials. The whole thing left us believing, There's no way Jesus (Issa) was real. They've made him up to be all things to everyone from an obscure figure in the ancient Near East. We think there was a historical figure but nothing like this fantasy Nordic son of Zeus the churches have going. Just ask Bible scholars like Bart Ehrman and Reza Aslan.

• Head of Catholic Church in Kenya defies pope's order
• Swami Vivekananda and his profound connection with Varanasi
• Liberation Theology in Latin America once made Catholicism great

Ireland: The Battle of the Boyne, 1690 (video)

Trainspotting (2017); Derry Girl, Channel 4 Comedy; HistoryMarche, May 27, 2023; HistoryMedia HD, March 11, 2021; Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven, Pfc. Sandoval (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Battle of the Boyne, 1690 ⚔️ When the balance of power in Europe changed forever

(HistoryMarche) Battles of the Early and Late Modern Period. 📢 Narrated by David McCallion 🎼 Music: EpidemicSound.com, Filmstro.  🖼. Maps and graphics: HistoryMarche, Inkarnate. 🚩 Support HistoryMarche on Patreon and get ad-free early access to videos for as little as $1: patreon.com/historymarche. #history #documentary #historymarche

Battle of the Boyne – 1690 – Williamite War in Ireland

(History Media-HD) The Battle of the Boyne was fought in 1690 between two rival claimants of the English, Scottish, and Irish thrones – the Catholic King James and the Protestant King William – across the River Boyne near Drogheda on the east coast of Ireland.

The battle, won by William, was a turning point in James's unsuccessful attempt to regain the crown and ultimately helped ensure the continuation of Protestant ascendancy in Ireland.

The battle took place on July 1, 1690, in the "old style" calendar. This was equivalent to July 11 in the "new style" calendar, although today its commemoration is held on July 12th.

William's forces defeated James's army of mostly raw recruits. The symbolic importance of this battle has made it one of the most remembered.

How the "USA" began: Pilgrims at Plymouth?

CrashCourse (US History #2); Scholastic.com; Xochitl, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Colonizing America: Who were the first Settlers, and when is Thanksgiving?

John Green teaches us about the (English) colonies in what is now the "United States of America."

He covers the first permanent English colony at Jamestown, Virginia [not Plymouth, Massachusetts], the various theocracies in Massachusetts, the feudal kingdom in Maryland, and even a bit about the spooky lost colony at Roanoke Island.

What were the English doing in America, anyway? Lots of stuff. In Virginia, the Colonists [under British colonial rule] were largely there to extract (steal) resources and make money.

In Maryland, the idea was to create a a colony for Catholics who wanted to be serfs of the Lords Baltimore.

In Massachusetts the "Pilgrims," who were never called that except by one writer, and Puritans (who never called themselves that at all) came to America to find a place where they could freely persecute those who didn't share their religious beliefs. But there was a strong profit motive in Massachusetts as well.

Profits were thin at first, and so were the colonists. Trouble growing food and trouble with the Natives kept the early colonies from success. Before long though, the Colonists started cultivating addictive tobacco, which was a financial win for everyone involved except for the lung cancer.

So kick back, light up a smoke, and learn how America became profitable. Don't smoke, though! That was a joke. Turn on the captions; you'll like them!

Hey teachers and students, check out CommonLit's free collection of reading passages and curriculum resources to learn more about the events of this episode. Modern Native Americans have varied perspectives on Thanksgiving and the start of European invasion/colonization in America. 

Chuck Larsen's Plymouth Thanksgiving Story reveals a new native and anthropological take on the famous first Thanksgiving meal.

Field trip to Plimoth Plantation, Plymouth

Let's see "America's hometown." This trip features invading English Pilgrims Settlers and Wampanoag, "The People of the Morning," Native inhabitants. discussing their lives, their eventual collaboration, and the imaginary "First Thanksgiving." For Thanksgiving lesson plans and teaching instruments that stick to the feelgood official American propaganda story, visit scholastic.com.

Alan Watts: Buddhist Radio Los Angeles (audio)

Pacifica Radio L.A. (KPFK 90.7 FM, Sundays); Ashley Wells, Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly

You don't need it. Just be. But how?

It's hard to get enough of Spiritual Entertainer, Zen translator, and all-around brilliant Eastern Philosopher Alan Watts (alanwatts.org). Born in England, he was a Zen practitioner who studied in Japan and went on to live the rest of his life in California, where he had a TV show, Way Beyond the West, and a long-running radio show in Berkeley at KPFA.org explaining Buddhism, Taoism, Zen, Hinduism, Christianity, and Eastern and Western Philosophy in general. He was once an Episcopal priest, and all of that mixes for a fascinating talk on spirituality and the meaning of life. The only place he can regularly be heard is on "Buddhist Radio" Los Angeles, better known as Sunday mornings 8:00-8:30 AM and Thursday nights "Something's Happening" with Roy of Hollywood Tuckman, midnight to 5:00 AM. Both are available in the KPFK Archive (use drop down screen to find "Alan Watts" or "Something's Happening, Part A and B") free for 90 days from the day of broadcast. More

Relax: Music for meditation, yoga, sleep
Yellow Brick Cinema - Relaxing Music via Wisdom Quarterly

Who was Mrs. Shakespeare? (audio)

Joseph Atwill, Red Ice Radio; Dhr. Seven, Pat Macpherson, Pfc. Sandoval, Wisdom Quarterly

With his best-selling book Caesar’s Messiah Joseph Atwill established himself as one of the world’s most penetrating independent scholars, rocking the field of biblical studies and changing our modern understanding of Jesus and the Gospels of the New Testament forever.

He uncovered what has been kept hidden from the public for millennia: Christianity began as a highly complex psychological warfare campaign (psy-op) during the First Jewish-Roman War, an ambitious literature project begun by "the Caesars " (the Flavian emperors) that was later honed into a potent tool of statecraft, used to this day by the oligarchy to pacify the masses.

Shakespeare’s Secret Messiah is the forceful follow-up that could take the whole of Shakespearean scholarship in a new direction.

Continuing his exposé on the New Testament (revealing who really wrote the letters of the Apostle Paul and the Book of Revelation), Atwill demonstrates that the thrust behind the famous playwright’s work was to wreak literary revenge, "measure for measure," against the deception of the Caesars.

Caesar's Messiah (Atwill)

The Bard’s hidden war on the the Roman Catholic Church, encoded in "puzzle passages" in the plays, is the key that finally unlocks the true identity of "Shakespeare," explaining why the real author chose to hide behind a pseudonym and mask and why other anti-Stratfordian theorists have been looking in the wrong place.

Atwill shows step by step how to decrypt familiar works of literature that the average person is expected to revere but not really understand, giving the reader the skills to recognize the true political struggles that have been commemorated in a shadowy land of symbols long guarded by the ruling classes and secret societies. More

Christianity in "grave danger"

Palamedes PR via Irish Post, 3/22/19 (News); Dhr. Seven, Pat Macpherson, Wisdom Quarterly

Homo Lapsus: Sin, Evolution, and the God Who is Love is out now (Palamedes PR)

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From gospel truth to fake news: Ignoring science poses "grave risk" to Christianity

CHRISTIANITY is in danger of being dismissed as "fake news" unless its leaders start to engage with science and the debate on evolution, one of the world’s leading theologians warns.

 

The Catholic and Anglican Churches’ refusal to respond to anti-religious arguments that undermine their Faith’s validity is accelerating the decline of Christianity in all its forms on an “unprecedented scale.”

By remaining silent on the Creation versus Evolution debate, the Church is “rapidly losing ground” to high-profile evolutionary biologists like Richard Dawkins and is fueling the shift towards an atheistic, post-Christian society, it is claimed.

 

Its refusal to explain how doctrines like the Fall of Man hold-up against the latest scientific theories about the origins of modern humans is seen as “baseless arrogance” by an educated modern society that no longer accepts Biblical teachings without question.

 

If left unchecked, any arguments that counter core Christian beliefs could bring the Church to its knees within a century, Dr. Niamh Middleton of Dublin City University (DCU) said.

 

The Church’s position as a voice of authority on morality will “crumble,” and a skeptical public will write-off its teachings as “outdated, unproved, or even fake news,” Dr. Middleton said.

 

Dr. Niamh Middleton is a lecturer in Theology and Religious Studies at Dublin City University
 

Church leaders from all denominations must instead provide “robust and credible” answers by incorporating pro-Christian scientific theories -- of which there are many -- into doctrine.

 

The warnings follow a nationwide decline in religious affiliation and renewed calls for the UK government to cut the amount of public money going to the Church.

 

Dr. Middleton, an internationally respected authority on moral theology and human origins, said the rise of Scientism -- the view that only scientific claims are meaningful – poses the greatest threat to Christianity in its 2,000-year history.

 

Her pro-Christian views are shared in her new book, Homo Lapsus: Sin, Evolution, and the God Who Is Love, which is out now.

 

In it, she reconciles the Biblical story of creation and the concept of ‘original sin’ – Adam and Eve’s rebellion in Eden by eating forbidden fruit -- with the latest scientific thinking.

 

“Christianity is based on the fundamental principle that evil was a choice for mankind, and that this is represented symbolically in the Genesis account of Adam and Eve choosing to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil,” she said.

 

“Leading evolutionary biologists are now claiming that this mythological explanation is invalid because evolution made it inevitable that the earliest modern humans would choose ‘wrong’ over ‘right.’

 

“Clearly, such harmful theories are capable of undermining the very foundations of Christianity, in a relatively short period of time, unless credible and compelling scientific arguments -- and there are many -- are put forward to the contrary.

 

“But the Church is failing to act, which is being viewed as baseless arrogance and leading to Christianity rapidly losing ground to atheistic evolutionary biologists.”

 

Christian leaders must engage with science's evolutionary debate, says Middleton (IP).

She added: “The outcome will be that the Church will lose all moral authority and Christian teachings, which have defined and guided society for centuries, will be dismissed by the public as outdated, unproved, or even fake news.”

 

Christianity has been losing ground to science since the mid-19th century when Charles Darwin first proposed his theory of biological evolution in his book, On the Origin of the Species.

 

Darwin, once a devout Christian, famously lost his faith because his own theories appeared to contradict traditional Biblical teachings on theodicy, or the origins of evil.

 

He came to believe that the origins of "evil" -- all negative traits like greed, anger and violence -- which lead to human suffering were inevitable because of natural selection and the survival of the fittest.

 

Today, a new wave of so-called neo-Darwinists continue to champion this view. It undermines the foundations of the Christian faith because it leaves two options: either there is no God at all, or God himself was responsible for mankind’s suffering by creating an evolutionary process that facilitated the evolution of evil.

 

But whilst neo-Darwinist theories receive the most publicity, others contradict it and support the Church’s position that evil was more likely the result of moral choice.

 

These include compelling studies in primatology and paleoanthropology which suggest that early man made a conscious decision to become aggressive and pursue short-term personal gains at the expense of the group after thousands of years of coexisting peacefully.

 

Dr. Middleton said supporting theories like this are going unreported and unrecognized because the Church refuses to acknowledge them or accept that science and religion can live side-by-side.

 

She said the Catholic and Anglican churches must listen to theologians and, on their advice, incorporate supporting theories into their doctrine and routinely taught in churches and in schools.

 

“Science is not incompatible with religion, but this must be declared and disseminated by the Churches among the clergy, such as through an encyclical, and taught in faith schools,” she added.

 

“If Christianity is not to be relegated to the status of fairy tale then the heads of the Catholic and Anglican Churches, Pope Francis and the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. Justin Welby, must pay attention to their theologians, who are making significant strides in reconciling doctrine with science, and take seriously the challenge of Scientism and neo-Darwinists.

 

“In our increasingly secular world, an earnest engagement with science by Christianity will also refute the atheistic claim that religious adherents are ignorant, bigoted, or fanatical.”

• More info on Homo Lapsus: Sin, Evolution, and the God...

Were the Puritans misunderstood? (lecture)

Wisdom Quarterly; Prof. David Hall (Harvard Divinity), Huntington Library; Femen.org

"Criminalization of Client Canonization of Prostitute (Jacob Khrist/FEMEN.org)

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Why They Mattered: Not Nathaniel Hawthorne’s dour “Puritans” but a people of daring and ethical passion

Prof. David D. Hall

Dr. David D. Hall, Bartlett Research Professor at Harvard Divinity School and the Los Angeles Times Distinguished Fellow, draws upon his book A Reforming People: Puritanism and the Transformation of Public Life in New England in this free lecture and book signing. Reserve tickets online or call (800) 838-3006. Ahmanson Room, Brody Botanical Center

• Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens
• Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2015, 7:30 pm
• The Huntington Botanical Complex (MAP)
• Ahmanson Classroom, San Marino, California

This lecture will eventually be available on iTunes. In the meantime, listen to Prof. Hall talk about New England history:

• Witch-Hunting in Salem: Sadness of Everyday Life

(CongLib/congregationallibrary.org) Library Director Peggy Bendroth interviews Prof. David D. Hall on his book, A Reforming People on Puritanism. The conversation is divided into four sections: To begin with, What are Hall's reasons for writing this book, how did he put it together, what are the misconceptions around calling early Colonial New England a "theocracy."

Empty Mind, Full Heart: Enlightenment

Wisdom Quarterly; Roshi Albrizze (pasadharma.org); Seeds of Peace (sccpwr.org)

What can be said of emptiness (shunyata)? Emptiness, whether explained as anatta or the void, is not nothing; it is "no thing" -- no clinging to forms or ideas but instead simply being with what is (dhamma) just as it is (Wisdom Quarterly).

 
Zen Workshop

(Photographybydavidmcmeekin/flickr.com)

Zen mediation is a form of silent concentrated awareness, opening us to see each moment just as it is -- the very expression of enlightened being. As we let go of thoughts, labels, and judgments, the True Self blossoms, and we experience the Oneness of all things. Learn the noble silence of Zen meditation, and use the mind’s patterns to set up for success. As a gateway to spiritual awakening that has been with us for hundreds of years, Zen can help us be liberated from suffering and live more fully right now!
 
Workshop facilitator: Roshi Jeff Albrizze (PasaDharma.org). From Catholic altar boy to urchin on the streets of Los Angeles, from traveling Pentecostal preacher to part-time Zen Buddhist monk, Roshi Jeff’s spiritual journey has led him down many paths. He has been practicing Zen Buddhism for over 20 years and leading PasaDharma Zen Group for over 14 years.

This hour-long workshop will be held as part of the upcoming Seeds of Peace Conference on Saturday, April 20th, 2013 (11:30 am-6:30 pm) at Pasadena's All Saints Episcopal Church (allsaints-pas.org).

Wisdom Quarterly will be in attendance as will various Los Angeles area Buddhist temples. Marianne Williamson, a gifted author and contributor to a Course in Miracles, is the keynote speaker. And some 37 workshops will be available for the price of admission ($15-30). The event, held as part of The Southern California Committee for a Parliament of the World's Religions (SCCPWR), promises an exciting and informative day.

Register on line (seedsofpeace2013.eventbrite.com) and choose workshops in advance.

• Seeds of Peace: Meditation and the Engaged Life

MEDITATION WORKSHOPS

1. Isha Kriya Meditation - ISHA Foundation, Christopher Jones, M.Div., Ph.D.
2. Labyrinth - Walking the Inner Garden, Miranda Rondeau
3. Vietnamese Cao Dai Meditation, Hum Bui, M.D., Hong Bui, M.D.
4. Kabbalistic Jewish Meditation, Gilla Nissan
5. 3HO - Kundalini Yoga & Sat Nam Rasayan Healing Art, Hari Nam Singh
6. Vedanta Meditation for Inner Peace, Swami Atmavidyananda
7. Guided Meditation on the Self - Bilingual (Spanish/English), Sister Jayanti/Yanina Olmos
8. Mindfulness Meditation - Vipassana Support International, Stephanie Nash
9. Meditation on Cosmic Awareness - the Twelve Blessings, Rev. Paul Nugent, Aetherius Society
10. Color Science Meditation - Jain Center of Southern California, Chetna Sawla
11. Ignatian Awareness Exsmen, Lexio Divino Centering Prayer, Prof. Frank Rogers Jr.
12. Raja Yoga Meditation - Brahma Kumaris, Sister Gita and Sister Diane
13. Still Point Episcopal / Hindu Meditation, Robert Kornell
14. Center for Krishna Consciousness, Sura Das and Mikhano
15. Lotus Sutra Chanting - Soka Gakkai International, Patti Heckman
16. Shumei Philosophy and Spiritual Practice, Steven Tokunaga
17. Seven Pillars House of Wisdom, Darakshan Farber and Friends
18. Empty Mind, Full Heart - Zen Meditation as Enlightenment - Pasa Dharma Zen Group, Jeff “Lotus Peace” Albrizze. 
 
SOCIAL ACTION WORKSHOPS

1. “Beating Swords into Plowshares: Reducing Gun Violence," Dr. Jill Shook and Bert Newton

2. "What Religious Communities are Doing to Oppose War, Torture, and Drones," Grace Roberts Dyrness (ICUJP)

3. “Immigration Reform,” Rev. Daniel Romero

4. “Caring for All Creation," Allis Druffel, Interfaith Power and Light

5. “Prayer as Action,” Rev. Dr. Arthur Cribbs, Exec. Director CLUE

6. ”Life Choices” - An Interactive Drama Program in Schools for At-Risk Youth, Wallenberg Institute of Ethics

7. “Human Trafficking” - Jewish Labor Committee Western Region, Leslie Gersicoff

8. “Healthcare Is A Human Right,” Maureen Cruise RN

9. “The Fight Against Genocide” - Jewish World Watch, Janice Kamenir-Reznik, Co-founder and President

10. “Code Pink,” Jody Evans, Founder

11. “The Grace-Full Power of Compassionate Community Building,” Sande Hart, S.A.R.A.H.

12. "Just Peacemaking," Prof. Glen Stassen, Fuller Seminary

13. "Practical Nonviolence" - American Friends Service Committee, Eisha Mason

14. “Truth Over Fear: Overcoming Islamophobia," Salam al-Marayati and Dr. Meher Hathout, Muslim Public Affairs Council

15. “Love and Social Action,” Rev. Ed Bacon, All Saints Church

16. “Gang Violence,” Ricky Pickens & Javier Stauring

17. “Examining the U.S. Economy and Its Dysfunction,” Prof. Pamela Brubaker, California Lutheran University

18. “Spirituality and Politics,” Marianne Williamson

19. "Peace Education," Randy Christopher & Kimberly Mendendorp, Peace & Justice Academy

This public conference and gathering of all traditions will be a great opportunity to deepen our practice(s), learn more about the wonderful spiritual diversity in Southern California, and to foster fellowship with many like-minded people. There will also be the second Coachella weekend and free Earth Day events within walking distance in Pasadena's Memorial Park. Plan accordingly.

Seeds of Peace: Meditation and Engaged Life

Wisdom Quarterly; The Southern California Committee for a Parliament of the World's Religions (sccpwr.org) Annual Conference; All Saints Church, Pasadena (allsaints-pas.org)

"They cannot take away our self-respect if we do not give it to them" - Mahatma ("Great-soul") Gandhi, India's revolutionary peace leader (eaquotes.com).

Marianne Williamson will be "bridging inner and outer peace" (spiritualityhealth.com)

 

Serene wisdom

Keynote Speaker Marianne Williamson states that: "Personal transformation can and does have global effects. As we go, so goes the world, for the world is us. The revolution that will save the world is ultimately a personal one."

Nurturing compassion

Attend workshops on mindfulness, contemplation, yoga, chanting, Sufism, Kabbalah, environmentalism, immigration, just peace making, and more.

 

Back by popular demand, Seeds of Peace was created for:

• Beginners looking for a regular meditation/contemplation practice
• Experienced meditators and individuals seeking to bridge their meditative practices with social engagement
• Meditation Communities and Social Action groups who want to meet the interfaith community.

Social justice

The PROGRAM SCHEDULE includes:

11:30-12:30 Registration and networking; selecting workshops

12:30-06:30 Afternoon program including keynote by Marianne Williamson

05:45-06:30 Closing ceremony and community sharing

Prayerful action

"Prayer properly understood and applied is the most potent instrument of action" - Mahatma Gandhi

• Seeds of Peace
• Meditation and The Engaged Life
• Saturday, April 20, 2013, 11:30-6:30 am
• All Saints Church, Pasadena
• 132 N. Euclid Ave., Pasadena, CA 91101

Joyful mercy

TICKETS: $15 students and seniors, $20 Early Bird (online by April 12), $15 groups of 10 or more by April 16, $30 at door.

BOOTHS and ADS: Nonprofit full table $50, nonprofit half-table $30

Retail vendors $150, book vendors $75

Support the work of SCCPWR with a business card sized ad: $30

• REGISTER: SeedsOfPeace2013.Eventbrite.com, or mail check to SCCPWR, Ruth Sharone, 4219 Vinton Ave., Culver City, CA 90232 (sccpwr@gmail.com)

Extreme Ascetic Practices Today (BBC video)

Pfc. Sandoval, Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly; Cobwebs From An Empty Skull

 

A lotus's meaning (buzzle.com)

(BBC Four) Anglican priest Pete Owen-Jones hosts the BBC’s “Extreme Pilgrim” program. Owen-Jones is the vicar of a parish in Sussex, England. This three-part documentary follows him on a search for meaning through extreme ascetic practices of several religions, including Zen Buddhism (Japanese), Kung Fu (an offshoot of Chinese Mahayana Buddhism), Hinduism, and Christianity. Although the Buddha realized that self-mortification was not the path to freedom and happiness, these practices have never fallen out of favor. Practitioners have yet to realize what finally dawned on the seeker Siddhartha under the Bodhi tree. The path to liberation, the path of purification, is more heart-centered and mental than physical. The body is not to blame for the sources of hidden motivation behind our actions (karma). The resolution is going inward rather than obsessing on punishing/tormenting the outward. The body may be brought into complete submission, yet a defiled heart/mind will soon move one again to the edge of ruin.
 
Conversely, while standing in the muck, one may rise above the din by attending to the defilements that spring within. Like a lotus shooting skyward toward the light while still rooted in fertilizer-mud and murky water, having found the actual source of our ills, one transcends suffering. Stop. Soften. Be still. Touch the bliss -- remembering that "there is no 'path to happiness'; happiness IS the path!" Develop liberating-insight based on this tranquility. Awaken.