TruthBook Religious News Blog

In the area of religious experience, some dramatic survey findings emerge. A remarkable and consistent one-third of Americans report a profound spiritual experience, either sudden or gradual, which has been life-changing. These occurrences are often the focal point in faith development.

Turning to experiences in the realm of traditional religion, more than one in three American adults (36%) say that God speaks to them directly. About four in 10 believe that during the time of the Bible, God Himself spoke out loud to people. And almost as many thought God spoke through other people. About half of persons interviewed believe God speaks today through the Bible / Scriptures. Forty-eight percent believe God speaks through an internal feeling or impression. Nearly a quarter of the people say that God speaks through another person and 11 percent said God still speaks audibly.

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Friday, February 27, 2004

Poll shows Nigeria most religious in world

A BBC survey of people's religious beliefs carried out in 10 countries suggests Nigeria is the most religious nation in the world.

The poll for the BBC program "What the World Thinks of God" questioned 10,000 people. The results showed more than 90 percent of Nigerians said they believed in God, prayed regularly and would die for their belief.

The survey found the highest levels of belief in some of the world's poorer countries. Yet on the other side of the scale, belief was high as well in the United States.

Countries included in the poll were the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, India, South Korea, Indonesia, Nigeria, Russia, Mexico and Lebanon. Interviews were done in January.

While India and Indonesia also showed a high level of belief in God, the results suggest the levels of belief and religious activity in the United Kingdom, Russia and South Korea were consistently lower.

Results showed that in most countries, well over 80 percent said they believed in God or a higher power, with Nigeria showing 100 percent and the United States at 91 percent. The United Kingdom had the lowest score at 67 percent.

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Wednesday, February 25, 2004

All the Reviews for The Passion of The Christ

"This is the most powerful, important and by far the most graphic interpretation of Christ's final hours ever put on film."
-- Richard Roeper, EBERT & ROEPER

"Irrespective of your religious beliefs, Mel Gibson’s brutal depiction of the most renowned story of sacrifice and love is distressing to the very core."
-- Urban Cinefile Critics, URBAN CINEFILE

"As a work of cinema, The Passion of the Christ possesses a majestic beauty within its horror, one that comes most effectively through a tiny, solitary drop of rain."
-- Collin Souter, EFILMCRITIC.COM

"The Passion of the Christ is a rare thing indeed, then: a work of art that succeeds as a film, as a message, and, yes, as a labor of love."
-- Eric D. Snider, ERICDSNIDER.COM

"If this will be the most watched version of the Passion in history, then Gibson, through a passion of his own, has met an enormous responsibility head-on with a job well done."
-- Craig Roush, KINNOPIO'S MOVIE REVIEWS

"The Passion doesn't suffer from the airless, pious airs that drag down most biblical dramas: It has a muscular, pounding energy and lyrical, almost gothic beauty."
-- Rene Rodriguez, MIAMI HERALD

"The buzz is that this film is a life changing experience, and is anti-Semitic. I disagree on both counts. It is however, a powerful and effective illustration of John 3:16."
-- John Venable, SUPERCALA.COM

"One thing is certain: Gibson has delivered a film so visceral, so unwavering in his commitment, that it makes most other Jesus movies look pale and tepid."
-- Robert Trussell, KANSAS CITY STAR

"Intense."
-- Bob Strauss, LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS

"This is a good film, well-made, well-told and it is clearly a personal triumph for Mel Gibson."
-- Peter Sobczynski, CRITIC DOCTOR

"Controversy aside, it is dramatically intense, skillfully constructed and often harrowing, in ways that should have an impact on people of any or no particular faith."
-- Chris Vognar, DALLAS MORNING NEWS

"...captivating and provocative in its exquisite spirit. The Passion of the Christ is an ambitious and visceral undertaking that demands acceptance."
-- Frank Ochieng, THEWORLDJOURNAL.COM

"[A] stunning film, sometimes remarkably moving — at times sublimely beautiful, often sickeningly brutal, but never banal, nor specifically blameful."
-- Austin O'Connor, LOWELL SUN

"An unquestionable work of conviction that should outlast the controversy and trigger constructive dialogue for years to come."
-- Sean O'Connell, FILMCRITIC.COM

"A powerful, wrenching experience that makes all previous films on the subject, from The King of Kings (1927) to Jesus Christ Superstar (1973), look like Sunday School pageants, and it's not for the squeamish or the immature."
-- Jim Lane, SACRAMENTO NEWS & REVIEW

"The bottom line is that The Passion of the Christ is an astonishing cinematic achievement, utterly riveting from start to finish."
-- David Nusair, REEL FILM REVIEWS

"Never dull -- no mean feat, given that it spends two hours telling a story whose end is widely known -- and features performances that range from coarsely effective to phenomenal."
-- Maitland McDonagh, TV GUIDE'S MOVIE GUIDE

"Religion is always a delicate and personal issue, but great filmmaking is great filmmaking, period."
-- Kevin N. Laforest, MONTREAL FILM JOURNAL

"Diminishing returns set in after the first series of beating, but the film is a stunner, a must-see whatever your beliefs."
-- Harvey S. Karten, COMPUSERVE

"An all-consuming force. It never lets up."
-- Jeffrey Huston, MIXED REVIEWS

"Despite controversies swirling around the movie, one cannot deny that Gibson has made a stunning film, beautifully photographed in contrasting dark and golden hues by Caleb Deschanel."
-- Claudia Puig, USA TODAY

"There are scenes in The Passion that will remain forever with those who see it."
-- Terry Lawson, DETROIT FREE PRESS

"A film of artistic ambition and devotion."
-- Lisa Kennedy, DENVER POST

"Will rightfully be considered a landmark achievement not only for the passionate responses it is causing but because Gibson was able to give one of the oldest and best-known stories in literature such contemporary resonance and power."
-- Louis B. Hobson, JAM! MOVIES

"Powerful and upsetting."
-- Chris Hewitt, ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS

"Even though it is relentlessly intense, at times even deeply moving, The Passion ultimately leaves you numb."
-- Karen Hershenson, CONTRA COSTA TIMES

"A preeminently important cinematic expression of faith — probably one of the most important religious films of all time."
-- Steven D. Greydanus, DECENT FILMS GUIDE

"Using ancient languages, vivid images and visceral violence, Gibson has brought new life to one of civilization's oldest narratives."
-- Jack Garner, ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE

"You may not believe in the events that transpire in The Passion of the Christ, but it's hard to deny the grim potency with which they've been captured."
-- Phoebe Flowers, SOUTH FLORIDA SUN-SENTINEL

"It is, in a word, powerful."
-- Michael Elliott, MOVIE PARABLES

"A dramatically powerful statement."
-- Duane Dudek, MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL

"it's a brutally beautiful (or would that be beautifully brutal?), unnerving, and frustrating film that will undoubtedly offer up more questions than answers."
-- Spence D., IGN FILMFORCE

"The most compelling message of this unflinching, powerful, and haunting movie is that in Jesus' name we are obligated to extend our compassion to victims everywhere."
-- Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, SPIRITUALITY AND HEALTH

"Serves as a powerful condemnation of any organized religion that aspires to governance or allow clerics to preach contempt and whip sheepish followers into a frenzy."
-- Rob Blackwelder, SPLICEDWIRE

"Mel Gibson’s personal vision of the persecution and death of Christ is relentless, brutal... and brilliant."
-- David Foucher, HERE BOSTON

"One of the most overpowering experiences I've ever had in a movie theater, the film is a brutal, blood-soaked plea for compassion and forgiveness in the face of monstrosity."
-- Sean Burns, PHILADELPHIA WEEKLY

"Gibson makes many of the key scenes work."
-- Robert Denerstein, DENVER ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS

"The Passion of the Christ, while not a perfect film, will touch many emotions in those who see it. Some people may be offended, while others may be inspired. "
-- Bob Bloom, JOURNAL AND COURIER (LAFAYETTE, IN)

"Working with premier cinematographer Caleb Deschanel, Gibson effectively hurls us into Christ's living nightmare, creating a mesmerizing twilight zone that is creepy and utterly unforgettable."
-- Joe Baltake, SACRAMENTO BEE

"[Gibson] has made a serious, handsome, excruciating film that radiates total commitment."
-- Richard Corliss, TIME MAGAZINE

"Controversy aside, The Passion is ultimately a movie -- and a masterful one at that, obviously the work of an extremely talented filmmaker."
-- Paul Clinton, CNN

"A gripping, powerful motion picture -- arguably the most forceful depiction of Jesus' death ever to be committed to film."
-- James Berardinelli, REELVIEWS

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How religion defines America

Unlike some other Western countries, the United States remains an overwhelmingly religious society. The BBC programme What the World Thinks of God examines the modern world's relationship with God. Among those taking part is Dr Richard Land who explains how profoundly religion influences American society and politics.
The USA is a very religious society. Evidence abounds demonstrating Americans' deep and abiding religious convictions.

A Gallup Poll released in November 2003 found that six out of ten Americans said that religion was "very important" in their lives.

Protestant (White Evangelical) 30%
Roman Catholics 25%
Protestant (Liberal) 20%
Protestant (African-American) 8%
Jewish 2%
Other 15%
Source: City University of New York (2001)

In contrast, in Canada and the United Kingdom, two societies often perceived as quite similar to the United States, only 28% and 17% respectively described religion as similarly important in their lives.

A survey done in 2001 by the City University of New York Graduate Center found that 85% of Americans identify with some religious faith.

The same study concluded that by most standards the United States was a more professingly religious country than any European nations except Ireland and Poland.

Most Americans believe in the literal truth of Old Testament stories

The religious convictions of Americans tend toward the conservative end of the spectrum.

An ABC news poll, done in February 2004, found that approximately 60% of Americans believe that the Genesis creation account, Noah's ark and a global flood, and Moses' parting of the Red Sea are "literally true."

Belief in the literal veracity of these biblical accounts was highest among the fastest growing segment of American faith, evangelical Protestantism (nearly 90% acceptance).

How does this deep and abiding religious belief impact American society?

According to an ICM poll in January 2004, Americans believe in the supernatural (91%), an afterlife (74%), "belief in a God/higher power makes you a better human being" (82%), God or a higher power judged their actions (76%), and perhaps most tellingly "would die for their God/beliefs" (71%).

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Tuesday, February 24, 2004

'Passion of the Christ': $10 million in advanced ticket sales

Fuelled by widespread controversy and a nationwide network of churches, the new Mel Gibson movie The Passion of the Christ will open in an expanded release next Wednesday in the US, the movie's distributor said.

The movie opens on Ash Wednesday, which is marked by Christians the world over as the start of the Lenten period leading up to Easter, which commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus.

Millions of believers are eagerly awaiting what Gibson promises is the most literal and searing depiction of the Christian gospels ever committed to film. Churches have bought out entire cinemas for the screening, urging congregants to attend and invite non-believers to witness the cinematic revelation.

That is an exciting prospect for millions of America's religious Christians. Based on the expanded release schedule and some US$10 million in advanced ticket sales, box-office trackers expect The Passion of the Christ to make upwards of US$40 million over its first five days -- a box office take that would elevate the Aramaic- and Latin-language movie (with English subtitles) to instant blockbuster status.

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Theaters brace for ‘Passion’ frenzy

Theaters are gearing for what could be the biggest hit of the year.

Wondering what the climate will be outside your local theater? Will there be fire-and-brimstone shouting religious leaders, or silent, placard-holding protesters as the lines form tomorrow to get in?

The controversy around this film has been swirling like a dust cloud, and no doubt helping the box office receipts beef up well in advance of the film’s release.

In spite of -- or perhaps because of -- the concerns, promoters have expanded the number of theaters where the film will be screened.

Also, more screens will be showing "The Passion of the Christ" than originally planned.

The number of available movie reels was raised to 4,000 from 2,500, and the number of theaters playing the film is expected to rise to 2,800 from 2,000, Newmarket Films spokesperson Brooke Travis told CNN last week.

A big opening volume is considered key to a movie’s success. And all the controversy doesn’t hurt, either.

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Mary Magdalene rides a new wave of interest

Jesus' devoted follower has been inspiring a lot of enthusiasm in recent years. Experts say a confluence of feminism, biblical research and pop culture has placed Mary Magdalene in the front rank of Jesus' first followers, at least for the moment.

"She's one hot commodity right now," said Marvin Meyer, professor of religion at Chapman University in Orange, Calif. "Mary Magdalene is everywhere."

Mary Magdalene is the subject of a boom in scholarly literature, with at least six new books suggesting roles for her that range from the 13th apostle to a goddess. In 2003, the American Bible Society in New York staged an exhibit of Mary Magdalene portraits.

This wave of academic interest has been propelled into the mainstream by popular fiction. "Mary, Called Magdalene," a historical novel by Margaret George, became a best seller in 2002.

Jesus' devoted follower also has landed on the cover of both Time and Newsweek and on several national television specials. Mary Magdalene is featured in the Mel Gibson film, "The Passion of the Christ." All of this attention points to a dramatic reappraisal of the biblical figure, who some charge has been marginalized and airbrushed from the story of early Christianity.

"Mary is very close to Jesus, trusted by Jesus, was one of the disciples," said Meyer, author of "The Gospels of Mary: The Secret Tradition of Mary Magdalene, the Companion of Jesus." She was "not only in the inner circle, but maybe the most beloved of all the disciples of Jesus." According to the four Gospels of the New Testament, Mary Magdalene witnessed Jesus' crucifixion and his resurrection, rallying the depressed and disbelieving male disciples.

For 1,500 years, Mary Magdalene was portrayed, in art and theology, as a prostitute whose life was transformed by Jesus' forgiveness. This was the result of an erroneous sermon preached in 591 by Pope Gregory the Great. The pontiff, misreading the Gospel of Luke, confused Mary Magdalene with another woman described as "sinful." His finding was reversed by the Vatican in 1969.

"That is a monumental step for the Church to actually admit there may have been a misinterpretation," said the Rev. Charlie Mitchell, pastor of St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church in Altamonte Springs.

The parish is one of hundreds around the world named for Mary Magdalene, as are venerable colleges at Oxford and Cambridge universities in England. Mitchell, whose office is filled with artwork portraying the parish's namesake, uses Mary Magdalene's feast day of July 22 to remind church members of her "unique position in her relationship with the apostles."

Mary Magdalene "is a woman whose life has been completely distorted down through the ages - for whatever reason," Mitchell said.

Several authors of recent works about Magdalene say they know the reasons.

The second-century Gospel of Mary Magdalene was found in the late 19th century by archaeologists but remained largely ignored and untranslated for 50 years. It is the only account named for a woman and offers a different view of Christianity - one that describes an "interior spirituality," said Karen L. King, author of "The Gospel of Mary of Magdala: Jesus and the First Woman Apostle."

In the Mary Magdalene account, "salvation is not something that comes from an external savior," said King. "One has to seek salvation within." Thus, the Magdalene Gospel depicts Jesus as a teacher rather than as a savior who dies to atone for humanity's sins.

Mary Magdalene's account is also the "strongest argument for women's leadership" in Christian writings, said King, professor of church history at Harvard Divinity School.

"It lets us hear an alternative voice," she said, in contrast with I Corinthians and I Timothy, which urge silence and submissiveness of women.

Because Mary Magdalene may have been a rival to the Apostle Peter, other Gospel accounts with favorable references to her may have been excluded by the male church leaders who compiled the New Testament, according to King and other scholars.

"Mary Magdalene was such an important person in the Jesus movement that the Gospels could not ignore her," said Meyer of Chapman University. "But the Gospel writers were on the side of the 12 guys, the male disciples."

For Schaberg, the author of "The Resurrection of Mary Magdalene: Legends, Apocrypha, and the Christian Testament," Magdalene was "a prophetic figure, a visionary, a leader" who provided through her ministry "an understanding of women's leadership."

Donna Esbensen, a member of St. Mary Magdalen in Altamonte Springs, agrees.

"Mary Magdalen stood out as the first disciple," she said. "When she encountered Jesus, she was totally changed, not just for a short time, and she changed all those she encountered."

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Monday, February 23, 2004

'Passion of the Christ' proves to be windfall for theaters

"There was no way this movie wasn't going to happen, even though I'm not sure I have the whole answer as to why," Gibson told USA TODAY. "I just know that I was compelled to (make it)."

Opening Ash Wednesday, The Passion is an unflinching glimpse of Jesus' last 12 hours on Earth. Where most movies promise to deliver us from the profound, Gibson's film will test viewers' ability to stomach endless beatings in the name of either art or religion, depending on the beliefs moviegoers bring to the theater.

Gibson, a traditionalist Catholic who shuns the faith's concessions to modernity, appeared to be taking a huge professional gamble by financing this $30 million pet project. The third act most Hollywood insiders expected: The Passion loses money, studio executives avoid Gibson's calls, and fans dismiss him as a religious zealot who is no longer believable in secular roles.

But someone is blowing on Gibson's dice. On Thursday, distributor Newmarket Films announced a 40% increase in theaters (2,800) screening the film nationwide. Box office watchers say controversy combined with block ticket sales to church groups could well lead to a $30 million opening weekend, likely ensuring that Gibson will profit from his Passion.

Keep a few numbers in mind: In the USA, there are roughly 220 million adherents to a range of Christian faiths. There are 2 billion Christians worldwide, roughly one-third of the planet. That's a lot of movie tickets.

The director's timing couldn't be better. Christian organizations have grown increasingly vocal in national debates on everything from marriage to entertainment. John F. Kennedy's Catholic roots were considered a presidential liability in 1960. Today, President Bush refers frequently to being a born-again Christian and how that plays into his decision-making.

Gibson says it was easy to pony up his millions for this vision: "Materialism isn't one of my things. I was as happy with $5 as I am with more. It was just something I needed to do. Christ's sacrifice just grabbed me. I had no choice."

Maia Morgenstern, the Romanian actress with haunting eyes who plays Mary, says Gibson's "soul is in the script." That's not all. When Jesus is nailed to the cross in The Passion, it is Gibson's left hand that pins each stake in position.

To hear one colleague tell it, Gibson was shocked when the world took notice of the project unfolding at Rome's Cinecitta Studios.

"I remember talking to Mel just after he started filming, and he was just stunned, stunned, that anyone was paying attention," says Independence Day producer Dean Devlin, who worked with Gibson on The Patriot. "I don't think he really was prepared for the reaction.

But for Gibson's part, he still seems miles away from his next gun battle or loopy lark in women's pantyhose. He comes across as someone who has given birth to a child he'll defend until the end.

"This has all gotten pretty personal, and, you know, if you can't attack the message, then there's an old Latin expression, ad hominem, against the man," he says. "I guess I knew there were some shots coming, and it's my job to excuse those. Just take it and suffer. I think that leads to spiritual growth."

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'The Passion of the Christ' brings hopes for revival of Aramaic

Gibson's 'The Passion of the Christ' brings hopes for revival of Aramaic, the vanishing language of Jesus

Linguists hope for a boost from Mel Gibson's new film "The Passion of the Christ," performed entirely in Aramaic and Latin. The film is set to open Wednesday in American theaters.

Just a half million people, most of them Christians living in pockets of the Middle East, Europe and the United States, still converse at home in Aramaic, once the lingua franca of the Middle East and parts of Asia.

"Undoubtedly, Aramaic is in danger of disappearing," said Moshe Bar-Asher, president of the Academy of Hebrew Language in Jerusalem.

Aramaic is one of the few languages that has been spoken continuously for thousands of years. It first appeared in written records around the 10th century B.C. though it was likely already being spoken earlier.

Aramaic is a Semitic language and has similarities with Hebrew and Arabic. Water is "moyeh" in Aramaic, "maim" in Hebrew and "miye" in Arabic. Carpenter is "nagouro" in Aramaic, "nagar" in Hebrew and "najar" in Arabic.

The most popular theory on its origin says the language was first spoken by nomads called Arameans, who migrated from the barren Arabian peninsula to the lush farmlands of Mesopotamia and finally settled around Damascus, modern Syria's capital, in the 13th century B.C.

Aramaic became a common language for much of the Middle East and parts of Asia, reaching its widest influence when it was adopted by the Persian empire around 500 B.C. It was a relatively simple language, with just 22 letters, and a community of scribes and intellectuals helped spread it in a largely illiterate world, said Bar-Asher.

Texts in Aramaic have been found in places as distant from each other as in India and Egypt. Jews returning from exile in Babylon around 500 B.C. helped spread the language to the eastern Mediterranean, where it largely supplanted Hebrew.

Scholars think Jesus might have known Hebrew -- which by that time was reserved mainly for use in synagogues and spoken by upper classes -- and some Greek, but Aramaic was the language of his native Galilee.

The New Testament records Jesus' last words on the cross in Aramaic: "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" St. Mark, most likely writing in Greek, adds, "... which means, 'My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"' (Mark 15:34).

Michael Sokoloff, a professor of Hebrew and Semitic languages at Bar-Ilan University near Tel Aviv, said it is believed that parts of the Gospels were originally written in Aramaic, but that only Greek writings have ever been found.

Today, Aramaic is spoken at home by about 500,000 people -- mainly Syrian Orthodox and other Christians -- in parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey, Lebanon, India, Europe, Australia and a few cities in the United States, including Chicago.

A few thousand Israelis who immigrated from other parts of the Middle East still speak Aramaic, but are largely not passing it on to their children. Most Jews who learn the language study it only to read the Talmud, a book of Jewish law, and other religious texts written in Aramaic.

Part of the Kaddish, the Jewish prayer for the dead, is recited in Aramaic, and marriage and divorce contracts in Israel are until today often written in the language.

The script was translated into first century Aramaic for the Jewish characters and "street Latin" for the Roman characters by Father William Fulco, director of ancient Mediterranean studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.

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The Passion of the Christ tickets selling fast

The Passion of the Christ is described as the most artistic and highest quality film of it's time. Advance ticket sales have already reached 10 million. Nationwide, tickets for opening day are selling out everywhere

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Friday, February 20, 2004

A new "proof" of God's existence?

In Love, Power and Justice: the Dynamics of Authentic Morality, as well as in several earlier works, Dr. William S. Hatcher outlines a simple logical proof for the existence of God, an accomplishment made possible, he said, by reexamining a classic proof of God offered by the great Muslim philosopher Avicenna (ibn Sina, 980-1037) and applying to it some new logical tools derived from recent developments in mathematics.

"Up until the modern period, the logic that was used in philosophy was Aristotelean logic, which is the logic of attributes," said Dr. Hatcher in a recent interview. "In the late 19th century, however, there was an explosion of logical and mathematical ideas and discoveries." Among these new ideas is the logic of relationships.

"The use of Aristotelean logic in the many previous proofs of God is a major limitation," he said. "You can't really prove God logically with just the logic of attributes. If you try, you end up with the ontological proof, which is not really convincing."

"The logic of relations, I feel, is the single greatest intellectual advance in the history of humankind," Dr. Hatcher added. "To give an example: the whole field of computers is based on the logic of relationships."

By applying the logic of relations, Dr. Hatcher has been able to update Avicenna's proof, which is in some ways itself based on Aristole's "first cause" argument. The updated proof, Dr. Hatcher says, is now something a modern logician would find incontrovertibly true, given its three assumptions, which are:

1) Everything in the universe is either preceded by a cause or else contains within itself a sufficient reason for its existence.

2) For every system or composite phenomenon, any cause for the system is also a cause for every part of the system. (Every material thing, except possibly the elementary particles of quantum physics, is composite.)

3) The existence of a whole system cannot precede the existence of its components (or, he writes, "the constitution of a whole obviously supposes and depends upon the prior or simultaneous existence of its components.")

The proof applies modern rules of logic to these three assumptions, which Dr. Hatcher says are nothing more than obvious formulations of the scientific method. The reasoning can be summarized as follows: First, no composite phenomenon can be self-caused, because of the second and third assumptions. Second, since the entire universe is composite, it cannot be self-caused. It must be caused by something else, according to the first assumption.

Further reasoning proves that this something else "is a unique, non-composite, uncaused universal cause and thus the cause of everything that exists - and that is God," Dr. Hatcher said. "Moreover, granted the three premises, the denial of which would lead in each case to a highly unreasonable proposition, the entire proof is as incontrovertible as one plus one equals two."

In particular, humans have the positive qualities of consciousness, intelligence, feelings, and will. Moreover, although each human soul has these qualities to a specific, finite, and limited degree, there is no limit to the degree that these qualities can exist generally in human beings. (For example, no matter how intelligent a given human being may be, it is possible for another human to be more intelligent.) Since God is the unique cause of every human being, God must have these positive qualities (and undoubtedly others) to a degree greater than every limited (finite) degree, thus to an unlimited (infinite) degree. Hence, God is infinitely conscious, infinitely knowing, infinitely loving, and infinitely willing (all-powerful). In fact, since God is the only Being whose existence is absolute (i.e., uncaused), God has these qualities to an absolute degree.

Thus, the logical answer to the question "what is God's nature?" is to say that "God is like us except for possessing none of our limitations and all of our positive qualities to an infinite degree." Of course we cannot really imagine what it means to possess such qualities as consciousness or will to an infinite degree, but the refinement principle does nevertheless gives us at least a minimal, purely logical notion of God's nature.

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Monday, February 16, 2004

Most in US 'believe bible stories'

Most Americans believe many well-known Bible stories, including Moses parting the Red Sea and God creating the world in six days, an ABC News poll showed today.

Although most Americans believed the story of Noah and the flood word for word, a large majority rejected the suggestion that Jews bear the collective responsibility for the death of Jesus, the poll found.

The poll's findings were released a day before the network airs its interview with movie star Mel Gibson, whose film, The Passion of Christ, depicts the last 12 hours of Jesus' life on earth.

"While religious belief is a strong factor in a literal reading of the Bible, it plays far less of a role in views of collective responsibility for Christ's death," the poll found.

Overall, 64 per cent of those canvassed believed the story of Moses parting the Red Sea was "literally true, meaning it happened that way word for word".

And 61 per cent felt the same way about creation.

About eight in 10 adult Americans are Christians.

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Wednesday, February 11, 2004

GLOBAL WOMEN'S STRIKE - March 8th 2004 - Invest in Caring not Killing

March 8th 2004 -- Calling all women

5th GLOBAL WOMEN'S STRIKE

Calling all men to join with women to

STOP THE WORLD AND CHANGE IT!
INVEST IN CARING NOT KILLING!

A long grassroots history

The GLOBAL WOMEN'S STRIKE was born in 1999, when women in Ireland decided to welcome the new millennium with a national general strike. They asked the International Wages for Housework Campaign to support their call, and we called on women all over the world to make the Strike global on 8 March 2000.

The Strike came out of a long grassroots history, starting in 1952 with a little pamphlet called A Woman's Place and continuing with Power of Women and the Subversion of the Community, now a classic, in 1972, and Sex, Race and Class in 1973. All three made the case that the work women do for wages is a second job, that the work we do in the home and in the community without wages, producing all the workers of the world, and our struggle to change the world, were invisible but central.

The Global Women's Strike has extended from taking joint action every 8 March. It is now a global network that strengthens the ongoing daily struggle of grassroots women (and men).

Selma James and Nina López, 17 January 2004
womenstrike8m@server101.com www.globalwomenstrike.net

Strike demands
* Payment for all caring work - in wages, pensions, land & other resources. What is more valuable than raising children & caring for others? Invest in life & welfare, not military budgets & prisons.
* Pay equity for all, women & men, in the global market.
* Food security for all, starting with breastfeeding mothers. Paid maternity leave, breastfeeding breaks & other benefits - stop penalising us for being women.
* Accessible clean water, healthcare, housing, transport, literacy.
* Non-polluting energy & technology which shortens the hours we work. We all need cookers, fridges, washing machines, computers, & time off!
* Protection & asylum from all violence & persecution, including by family members & people in positions of authority.
* Freedom of movement. Capital travels freely, why not people

---

Global Women's Strike Co-ordination

ENGLAND
International co-ordination
Crossroads Women's Centre
230a Kentish Town Road, London NW5 2AB
Tel: 00-44-20-7482 2496 Fax: 00-44-20-7209 4761
womenstrike8m@server101.com
Website: www.globalwomenstrike.net
Co-ordination of men's actions and support:
Address above payday@paydaynet.org
Website: www.refusingtokill.net

ARGENTINA
SAC, Francia 3036, 3000 Santa Fe
Tel: 00-54-342-453 0216 & 496 0868
izanutig@gigared.com; amadecasa@gigared.com

GUYANA
Red Thread, 72 Princess & Adelaide Streets, Charlestown, Georgetown
Tel/Fax: 00-592-227 7010
thread@sdnp.org.gy

INDIA
Chhattisgarh Women's Organisation
Pithora, Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh 493551
Tel: 00-91-7707 71107
sharmanand@yahoo.com

IRELAND
10 Galway Bay Apartments, Salthill, Galway
Tel: 00-353-91 520269
maggie.ronayne@nuigalway.ie

PERU
132 Wakulski, Cercado, Lima
Tel: 00-51-1-423 1958
ccth@terra.com.pe

Jr. 20 de Julio No 159, Urbanización Fernando Belaunde Terry, Chanuchanu,
Puno
Tel: 00-51-51-356 808
pacha_aru@hotmail.com

SPAIN
Centro 'Las Mujeres Cuentan', Radas 27 Local,
08004 Barcelona
Tel/Fax: 00-34-93-442 2304
huelgademujeres8m@teleline.es

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO
NUDE, Mount Pleasant Rd, Arima
Tel: 001-868-667 5247
domestic@tstt.net.tt

UGANDA
KWO, PO Box 9344, Kampala, Uganda
Tel: 00-256-41 271012, Fax: 00-256-41 346456
akulum@hotmail.com

USA
Los Angeles Crossroads Women's Center
PO Box 86681, LA, CA 90086-0681
Tel/Fax: 001-323-292 7405
la@crossroadswomen.net

Philadelphia Crossroads Women's Center
PO Box 11795, Philadelphia, PA 19101
Tel: 001-215-848 1120 Fax: 001-215-848 1130
philly@crossroadswomen.net

San Francisco Crossroads Women's Center
PO Box 14512, SF, CA 94114
Tel/Fax: 001-415-626 4114
sf@crossroadswomen.net

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New God in our future? 'Tomorrow's God: Our Greatest Spiritual Challenge'

Humanity is going to have a new God in the very near future.

This bold and stunning prediction -- including what this new God will look like and how it will inspire the human race -- is the basis of “Tomorrow's God: Our Greatest Spiritual Challenge” (Atria Books, March 2, 2004), by New York Times best-selling author Neale Donald Walsch, author of the extraordinarily successful “Conversations with God” series.

Will we wake up and develop this life-transforming awareness of our new God now, the book asks, or will it take an unprecedented, earthshattering tragedy before those still left on Earth admit that the ideas of “yesterday’s God” no longer work?

“Tomorrow's God” predicts we will face this choice imminently. How we respond will be up to us, the book says, but one of those prospects -- breakpoint or turning point -- will characterize life on this planet before long.

In what he purports to be the dictation of an actual conversation with God, author Walsch quotes God as saying that the requirements, judgments and punishments now attributed to God will soon be gone. Gone too will be the perennial cycle of conflict and violence on Earth, which the book says is based on a misbelief that God practices, and therefore approves of and encourages, such conduct.

In place of “Yesterday’s God” will be a deity “whose only emotion is total love for all of humanity and Life itself, and whose agenda includes no objective other than to empower Life to produce more Life, more abundantly and more gloriously in each moment,” Walsch says.

While predicting the emergence of a “New Spirituality” among the world’s people, Walsch says this does not mean the creation of a new religion. Instead, he says, “Tomorrow's God” invites us to create a new view of the religions we now embrace. The idea is not that humanity will benefit from rejecting or abandoning its present spiritual beliefs, but, rather, from expanding them to include extraordinary new possibilities.

While certain principles of this New Spirituality may seem heretical to some people today, they’ll become universal truths tomorrow, Walsch asserts. These New Spirituality principles include:
• There is only One God and this One God doesn’t care whether we’re Catholic or Protestant, Jewish or Muslim, Hindu or Mormon, or have no religion at all.
• We are one with God and with each other.
• No one is better than anyone else.
• Freedom is the essence of Life, not something we earn.
• Love knows no condition or limitation.

Striking in its theology and expansive in its cosmology, “Tomorrow's God” offers the world a path out of its unremitting despair and a just-in-time detour from what many agree could be our journey to self-destruction.

The book describes not only the new nature of the God of our tomorrows, but how our re-created relationship with this new God will forever change humanity’s most important social constructions -- religion, politics, business, education. It also articulates how a host of issues, ranging from child rearing and health care to the environment, will be addressed in exciting new ways under the New Spirituality.

“Sweeping in its scope and breathtaking in its vision, ‘Tomorrow's God’ may well one day be seen as the breakthrough statement on spirituality of the early 21st century,” the book’s publisher, Atria Books, said.

Click here to Purchase

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Tuesday, February 10, 2004

NCLS to probe 'I'm spiritual not religious' sentiment

NCLS joins international research team to study spirituality

"I am not religious, but I am a spiritual person" is an increasingly common sentiment. NCLS Research is joining an international team of highly regarded researchers with a proposal to map religiosity and wider spirituality in Australia, United States and the United Kingdom in 2005.

Spiritual options are far more diverse than a generation ago. NCLS Research is keen to better understand the full spectrum of spirituality.

This project proposes to classify the different strands of spirituality that people are pursuing in Australia, United States and the United Kingdom. A second objective is to see what values are associated with the different forms of contemporary religion and spirituality. The project also hopes to build a simple tool to more regularly measure this phenomenon in the future.

NCLS Research is a joint project of the Uniting Church NSW Board of Mission, ANGLICARE (Diocese of Sydney) and the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference.

Some 7200 congregations in 19 denominations across Australia were involved in the 2001 National Church Life Survey. NCLS Research also draws from surveys of the wider community and the national census to provide resources to assist Australian churches in mission.

For more information contact: Dr Ruth Powell, NCLS Research: (02) 8267 4394, Fax: (02) 9267 7316, info@ncls.org.au, www.ncls.org.au

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Monday, February 09, 2004

Spirituality's impact on mental health

More good news surfaced recently on the mental health front. There's something almost anyone can do to lessen mental darkness and increase well-being. Consider this from a cover story in Newsweek: "[T]he impact of forgiveness, may boost health.... In a survey of 1,500 people published [last] year, Neal Krause, a researcher at the University of Michigan's School of Public Health, found that people who forgive easily enjoy greater psychological well-being and have less depression than those who hold grudges" (Nov. 10, 2003).

It's the kind of story that makes you smile. Not just because of the upbeat results. But because, well, you don't exactly have to be steeped in religious history to know that, while Krause's survey results are news, the healing power of forgiveness is not. It's more like an account of Jesus walking on water. Thought-provoking and inspiring? Definitely. But we're talking about issues that have been around for a while. Forgiveness has been in the spiritual healer's medicine chest for at least 3,000 years, as the Bible shows. It has been benefiting both those who practice it toward others (or themselves) and those who are on the receiving end of forgiveness.

Perhaps parallel surveys would produce similar good results for those who practice compassion and spiritual love. Like forgiveness, these flow naturally from true spirituality. And these, too, have a long history of healing impact when it comes to mental health.

What's at the core of true spirituality to elicit such great outcomes? Current research shines one kind of light on this question. A healing from Jesus' ministry shines another. A man from Gerasenes suffered acutely. "It was no longer possible for any human being to restrain him even with a chain.... All through the night as well as in the day-time he screamed among the tombs and on the hill-side, and cut himself with stones," says the Bible (Mark 5: 3, 5, J.B. Phillips).

What did Jesus employ in this healing? Compassion? Forgiveness? Perhaps that and more. Jesus' response displaced the problem - the legion of evil spirits that the Bible says harassed the man - and replaced it with something more wholesome.

But the mental illness wasn't native to him in the first place. He was "in the grip" of it, says the Bible. What a relief to see it as foreign! A spiritual perception reveals that mental ill health has no rightful place in a person because it has no place in the divine likeness. Perceiving a person in his or her true nature - guiltless, loved unconditionally, accepted by God - moves healing forward.

At the core of true spirituality is the calm and untroubled message from the Father to human consciousness. A message of compassion and love, underscoring the innocence of each person. A message assuring the stability of each one's mental health and well-being. A message of each person's preciousness to God. A message that is, in a word, Christ.

Just before this healing, Jesus was caught in a storm at sea. He stilled it. Maybe there was a correlation with the man's healing. Christly power stilled the outer turbulence shrieking through the storm, then stilled the inner turbulence raging through the man.

The simple, healing, calming power of Christ speaks to yearning hearts everywhere. It's not impossible to break with self-loathing when you're bathed in selfless love coming from God through Christ to you. Feeling pummeled by rejection eases when you remember Christ is saying to you, "Come unto me." And Christ is.

The spirit of forgiveness, of compassion and of love that flow inevitably from true spirituality - and that speak to each person through Christ - never stays out of reach. The simplicity of the one Christ cuts through a multitude of mental health complexities and always applies, always harmonizes, always enlightens, even the darkest caverns.

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Saturday, February 07, 2004

Bible belters change their tune

As Christian rockers find mainstream success, they ask, 'Why pigeonhole us?'

NEW YORK – Tune into the Grammys on Sunday night and you'll hear the name Evanescence more than a few times. The goth-rock group is nominated in five categories, including Best New Artist, Album of the Year, and Best Hard Rock Performance for the song "Bring Me to Life."

On their way to the Grammys, the band has shown that its musicianship is solid but its diplomacy needs some work. In the past year, the group alienated a segment of the industry they seemed to have an affinity with - the Christian market - by insisting that its albums be pulled from Christian stores, charts, and radio stations.

What sounds like heresy is really a sign of the growing pains experienced by artists of faith who are finding their way into the mainstream in larger numbers. Wanting to reach a wider audience, musicians are pushing beyond their Christian record labels to the world of MTV, and are sometimes bypassing the religious market entirely.

"Almost every week or so I hear of another band that is either stepping away from being signed only in the Christian market or just sort of ... avoiding it altogether," says Mark Joseph, author of "Faith, God & Rock 'n' Roll." "It's just exploded in this last year."

Driving the trend is a generation of young artists who don't want their music marginalized simply because they read the Bible. Many don't consider their music as being suitable only for Christians and would like to be part of a broader cultural discussion. It's the idea that if movie stars and running backs who talk about their faith aren't relegated to Christian movie studios or football leagues, why should musicians be? The way that one band, Switchfoot, has put it: We're Christian by faith, not by genre.

Million-selling rock group P.O.D. takes a similar approach. The band, formed more than a decade ago, released their first album with Atlantic Records in 1999 and has since sold 6 million albums.

All the members are Christian, but their manager, Tim Cook, says they never went the Christian-label route.

"The guys recognized that they were inspiring people and that people were attracted to what they were saying, so to place that gift in a limited environment would have been a big mistake," he says.

More options are available to new artists in part because bands such as U2, Jars of Clay, and Creed paved the way in the past two decades. (Grammy winners Jars of Clay, for example, used to call newspapers and record stores personally and ask that the band be listed under the rock/pop rather than the gospel category.)

Cultural changes have also helped make society more receptive to bands such as Sixpence None the Richer and Switchfoot. Spirituality is discussed more often in pop culture - consider TV's "Joan of Arcadia," for example, in which a teen talks to God. A greater openness to mixing spirituality and pop culture, say some of the pioneers, is making it easier for groups to get a hearing.

"People aren't as threatened by Christian ideas as maybe they were 10 or 15 years ago," says Mark Odmark, a member of Jars of Clay, who sees less pigeonholing of musicians than when his band hit the mainstream in the mid-1990s. "But I also think that the quality of the art and product has come into its own. Purely from a quality standpoint, it's not as obvious that 'Oh, it's a Christian song' because it sounds kind of dated, and it sounds not as inventive or creative."

Nonetheless, others say, the comfort level of the general populace is still not that high. "Generally speaking, if people are doing religious music, Christian music, that's not acceptable for secular radio stations," says Mark Allen Powell, a professor at Trinity Lutheran Seminary and author of the "Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music." "And that is a part of the American culture that would obviously not be true in many other societies and many other parts of the world."

For an example of the tension that still exists between the two genres, take the rock band Pillar. It was signed for a time to a mainstream label after an executive heard its song "Fireproof," based on the Old Testament story of the three men thrown in a fiery furnace. But the label then suggested the group tone down the religious language on its website when the band told fans that the choice to do the deal was God-directed.

Pillar lead singer Rob Beckley says the band won't turn its back on the Christian community, which was the first to take a chance on them. But the group does think about what it means to take a step further and reach even more people. The gospel category accounts for about 7 percent of overall music sales, "and for us to sell 300,000 records in that amount of people, then it's definitely motivating to think what could happen if we were in front of 100 percent of the listening population," he says in a phone interview.

Another factor contributing to Christian groups going mainstream is that secular music companies now own more Christian record labels. Rather than feeling threatened, suggests John Styll, president of the Gospel Music Association, some Christian labels are helping their talent with the transition. "People on the Christian side are the ones pushing this," says Mr. Styll. "These are not defections, necessarily ... as much as they are arrangements that are now made possible because of the alliances and ownership set up with these mainstream entertainment companies."

He points to one pop artist whose label helped promote her recently by working in conjunction with a sister secular label. "You had Stacie Orrico at ForeFront, which is owned by EMI, so boom, put her on Virgin and away they go.... To use a biblical metaphor, why keep the lamp under a bushel?"

Some bands are still figuring out how to successfully navigate in both markets. Evanescence, for example, initially agreed to have its "Fallen" album in Christian outlets, which seemed consistent with liner notes where one member thanks Jesus, and a song, "Tourniquet," on the album that refers to Christ. (My wounds cry for the grave/My soul cries for deliverance/Will I be denied Christ/Tourniquet/My Suicide.)

But in an interview in Entertainment Weekly last spring, the group foreshadowed their soon-to-be-announced flip-flop when they said they couldn't understand why they were being pushed in the Christian market. Evanescence declined to be interviewed for this article.

That was a classic "over reaction," says author Joseph, who is also president of MJM Entertainment Group in Los Angeles. He suggests the group should have simply indicated they didn't embrace being labeled "Christian" rock, but that they were grateful for any outlets that want to carry them.

For a better example of how to negotiate the two markets, he points to Switchfoot. "They've handled it with such class," he says, explaining that the band is doing the things rock groups do - going on tour, hiring a publicist that deals with rock stars - while continuing to produce albums that are still spiritual in nature. "It's creating a sense that you're part of a greater rock community and not off here in the corner," he says of the balancing act. "[And] at the same time, finding ways to assure people that do love you because of your faith, that you're still with them, that you haven't changed your belief."

By Kim Campbell | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

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Poll: Collegians Value Spirituality

More than half of college students place a high value on "integrating spirituality" in their lives, with 77 percent saying "we are all spiritual beings" and 71 percent saying they "gain strength by trusting in a higher power," according to initial findings from a study by the University of California, Los Angeles. And 76 percent are "searching for meaning and purpose in life," although 62 percent say their professors never provide opportunities to discuss life's meaning.

The multiyear project first surveyed 3,680 students from 46 colleges and universities last spring. The survey revealed changes between the student's freshman (year 2000) and junior years (2003). Fifty-two percent reported attending services frequently the year before they entered college, but 29 percent attend frequently by their junior year. But the study showed a rise in the number of students who say it's "very important" to integrate spirituality into their lives (51 percent in 2000 to 58 percent in 2003).

Although data specific to Lutheran students hasn't yet been culled, results showed they are more likely to retain denominational affiliation from their freshman to their junior year, said Jennifer A. Lindholm, project director.

Other findings:
66 percent are thankful to God "for all that has happened to me."
51 percent believe "in the sacredness of life."
77 percent pray.
73 percent say their spiritual beliefs . "helped me develop my identity."
78 percent discuss religion/spirituality with friends.