TruthBook Religious News Blog

Church leaders say internet downloads, as well as podcasts have encouraged more people to attend church services. Online sermons from the Bridge Chapel Christian church in Liverpool have led to a surge in worshippers attending in person, according to a report from the Daily Post. The progressive church focuses on traditional teachings of the Bible for all cultures, and has had close to 600 people tuning into weekly updates. "Large numbers of new people are coming down to the church and joining our congregation simply because of the internet downloads and podcasts," said Steve Evans, who runs the podcast service for the church.

"The sermons are playing a huge role in attracting people of all ages, especially youngsters who are searching for their spirituality," Evans said. "People talk about church numbers falling, but those who are making efforts to connect with people through things like podcasting are experiencing rapid growth."

The Reverend Dr. Shannon Ledbetter of St Mary's Church in Knowsley Village, believes the iPod could revolutionize worshipping for both the young and the old.

""For the elderly and housebound, this is a fantastic [opportunity]--all you need to do is fix them up with an iPod and they're good to go," Ledbetter said. "For the young also, there is so much information out there, which can help to answer their questions about their faith."

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Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Where in God’s Name Did We Go Wrong?

by Jean-Claude Koven

When people ask me if I am religious, I tell them I love God far too much to be religious. “Oh, then you must believe in God?” they inevitably ask. “Of course not,” I reply with a smile, “does a fish believe in water?” For me, God is all there is. What’s to believe?

Although the world’s major religions all agree that God (however they define the term) is omnipresent, it seems that very few of their followers – including their clerical hierarchy – actually understand what omnipresence really means. And therein lies the source of the world’s ills.

For a start, we take our relationship to God far too seriously. We bring so much solemnity to the way we view God – awe, veneration, obedience, and the like – that we end up creating distance between us and the object of our worship. Expressions such as “God is my judge,” “God forbid,” and “God bless you” creep into our language, and consequently our thoughts. People are actually proud to call themselves God-fearing folk. For too many of us, God is somewhere out there, watching and judging us as we struggle through our imperfect lives.

And consider this: Some religions consider the name of God so holy that it is never pronounced. Instead they create a litany of substitute terms so they can talk about God without having to commit the blasphemy of actually using his name – much as many of the characters in the Harry Potter novels avoid pronouncing the name of Lord Voldemort lest they unleash some fearsome effect. When practitioners of these religions write about their deity, they are instructed to omit the vowel: G-d. Other religions take the opposite tack. They encourage their devotees to chant or meditate on the name of God for hours at a time. To their way of believing, focusing on God leads to a state of bliss that opens the door to transcendence and enlightenment. But if God is truly all that is, what can possibly make one of his names more powerful than any other?

For that matter, what is the purpose of naming him (or her or it) in the first place? Naming anything creates a subject/object relationship between you and the thing named, and that in and of itself means a separation. Every name of God, no matter how holy, drives a wedge between the creator and the created – which includes you and me. This separation is the primal breeding ground for fear, for we then see ourselves as tiny beings, abandoned (or evicted from Paradise) and living on the fringe of an incomprehensibly huge cosmos. It’s no wonder most of humanity takes this whole God business so seriously – it appears to be no less than a matter of life and death.

But what if the phrase “God is all that is” were literally true? This is what R. Buckminster Fuller must have understood when he said, “God, to me, it seems, is a verb not a noun.” His words, when I first read them, lodged in my mind. But I didn’t get their full import until many years later, during my first visit to Findhorn, the renowned spiritual community in northeast Scotland. It was there, sitting in a circle with my fellow newbies, that the penny dropped. One young man in our group, Peter, suddenly exclaimed, “Oh, wow, I finally see it. It’s not that God is in all things; it’s that God is all things.”

His exclamation triggered two remarkable realizations for me. First, the obvious is obvious only to those who are sufficiently present to see it. The delivery of Peter’s life-changing epiphany had virtually no effect on the rest of the group. Our facilitator was so consumed by his orientation agenda that he missed the moment completely. Thanking Peter for his contribution, he simply asked the group if anyone else had anything to share.

Second, what Peter said is literally true. In an instant, Bucky’s words became crystal clear. God is indeed a verb. He is not the creator. He is the ongoing unfoldment of creation itself. There is nothing that is not a part of this unfolding. Thus there can be nothing separate from God. God is infinite and infinity is One.

From that moment, everything in my life began to change. It wasn’t immediate; it was rather like a giant oil tanker slowly making a U-turn. As if I were facing in a new direction, I looked at the world in a new way “How,” I asked myself, “do we dupe ourselves so completely? How come so few people see what Bucky and Peter see? How could I myself have been so blind?”

When we perceive God as a noun, we envision him as the creator, the architect of, and therefore separate from, his creation. Identifying ourselves as part of that creation, we see ourselves not only separate from our source but separate from each other and all other manifest things as well. This is the fatally flawed axiom underlying virtually all of the world’s faiths. They may collectively call for love and peace, but the rampant divisiveness, greed, and competition that currently pervade human culture are the only inevitable outcomes of their separative philosophies.

Once I viewed God as a verb instead of a noun, my perception of life shifted. Everything around me, manifest or no, became God. There was only God. When someone spoke to me, it was with God’s voice; when I listened, it was with God’s heart. I invite you to try it. The small shift from noun to verb may well be the antidote to the forbidden fruit that banished us from Eden. As you begin to view God not as the creator but as the constantly changing dance of creation itself, you’ll discover him in everything you see – including yourself. The old you – that fish swimming blindly in search of water – fades away as you dissolve into the simple meaning of it all. Perhaps, when your vision finally clears, you will find yourself living in the Promised Land that so many others are still praying for.

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Jean-Claude Koven is a writer and speaker based in Rancho Mirage, CA. He is the author of Going Deeper: How to Make Sense of Your Life When Your Life Makes No Sense, the Allbooks Reviews editor’s choice for the best metaphysical book of 2004. Recipient of USABookNews.com best metaphysical book award. For more information, please visit www.goingdeeper.org.

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©2005. Jean-Claude Koven / All Rights Reserved. This article is copyrighted, but you have permission to share it through any medium as long as the proper copyright and credit line is included.

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Sunday, December 11, 2005

Life-changing moments common, survey finds

The General Social Survey is one of the best known of the annual polls that delve into basic beliefs and activities of Americans. Conducted by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, the survey has poked into various rather personal realms, such as altruism, prayer and divorce.

This week, results were released from the 2004 survey asking 1,328 randomly chosen people about spiritual and religious transformations – a turning point in their lives where they became more religious or spiritual.

Many transformed: Just over 50 percent of those surveyed said they'd had some kind of faith-changing moment.

More excitement: The oddest result may be that 57 percent of the transformed respondents reported having exciting lives, compared with only 43 percent of the other group.

But not happier: But those who reported transformations were not significantly more likely than the other group to consider their lives or marriages happier.

Denomination, race: Protestants (62 percent) were more likely to say they had experienced a transforming moment than Catholics (30 percent). Blacks (64 percent) were more likely than whites (50 percent).

Most were conservatives: The more religiously conservative, the more likely that someone reported a transformation. The range went from 72 percent for what the poll called fundamentalists to 29 percent for those who said they had no religion.

Regional differences: Those who reported a transformation were less likely to be from New England (24 percent) and more likely from the South (60 percent).

More devout: Religious practice apparently makes a difference. More than 90 percent of people who say they attend services several times a week reported a transformation, compared with 26 percent of those who said they never attend.

What the experience meant: The most common life change reported by the transformed was a feeling of being closer to God or becoming more spiritual, with 38 percent making that claim.

By JEFFREY WEISS / The Dallas Morning News

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50% Americans have had ‘religious transformation’

One in two Americans have undergone a spiritual or religious revelation which has changed their lives, according to a new survey published Friday.

“Spiritual change is a powerful experience in America,” said Tom Smith, director of the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago.

“Spiritual and religious change experiences are common, with 50 percent of Americans having undergone one or more,” Smith said.

The research showed that most religious awakenings come to Americans when they are young adults, and often take place when someone is facing challenges in life, like an illness or the loss of someone close to them.

Religious transformations were least common in liberal northeastern New England, and most often reported in the conservative south, the research based on a 2004 poll of 1,400 people showed.

Polls regularly show that the United States is among the most religious of developed Western nations.

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Thursday, December 08, 2005

Grant helps fund spirituality course

A University of Texas Medical Branch faculty member has received a $50,000 grant from the George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health.

Kay Sandor, an associate professor in the UTMB School of Nursing, received a 2005 John F. Templeton Spirituality and Medicine Curricular Award, which recognizes developments in spirituality and medicine curriculum. The award is given over four years.

The grant helps fund a spirituality course for UTMB students. It also funds research about spiritual development and spiritual well-being.

“This important interdisciplinary topic, Spirituality and Clinical Care, has been a required course offering for UTMB students for eight years,” Sandor said. “The grant allows the course directors to expand and redesign the course, conduct research related to the impact of the course and develop a new interdisciplinary elective for graduate level students.”

The George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health, established in 2001, focuses on educational and clinical issues related to spirituality and health. It was established in May 2001.

Announcement of the award was made last month at the annual meeting of the American Association of Medical Colleges, in Washington, D.C.

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Poverty Poll Reveals Optimism Among Young Adults

Compassion International recently sponsored a poll of American young adults, revealing that the age group, more than any other, believes it can make a difference in poverty overseas.

The poll, conducted by the Barna Research Group, indicated the emergence of a generational difference, where young adults aged 18-21 were most optimistic about the chances of individual Americans having an influence on the world. This group was more likely compared to other age groups to say that poverty in other countries can be addressed by the efforts of individual Americans (50 percent). The percentage fell as the age groups increase.

The survey also exposed the fact that nearly 50 percent of church attendees in America have not heard a sermon on poverty in the past year, and 30 percent of those people did not have an opportunity to serve the poor through their church.

Furthermore, according to the survey the majority of Americans believe that poor children overseas should be helped by their parents or their government, rather than by individuals in the U.S – 72 percent of poll participants said governments of developing countries should take responsibility for the poor and 64 percent said parents should be held accountable.

“Many Americans don’t realize the dire poverty that families face in developing countries,” David Dahlin, senior vice president and chief operating officer of Compassion International, said. “Parents who do everything they can for their children find that, in many cases, it just isn’t enough.”

“The tsunami, hurricanes and earthquakes of the past 12 months appear to have had an effect on giving,” said Dahlin in response to the poll’s indication that giving to the poor increased in 2005. “We’re grateful that Americans responded. But we also hope they realize that even when there are no natural disasters, there are still children in other countries are in desperate need.”

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Tuesday, December 06, 2005

Marital Squabbles Can Harm Your Health

A word of caution for couples who routinely communicate through a sharp word and a slammed door: A bad marriage is bad for your health.

A new study suggests that spouses engaged in hostile relationships have consistently elevated stress levels that significantly impede their bodies' wound-healing capacity.

Proof of this apparent mind-body connection, researchers say, could have a major impact on the emphasis caregivers place on improving a patient's frame of mind prior to surgery, in order to optimize the recovery process.

"Certainly the study shows that wound-healing is far more sensitive to even minor stresses than we ever assumed, so for people facing surgery being relaxed is really important," said study lead author Janice K. Kiecolt-Glaser, of the Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research (IBMR) at Ohio State University.

The study results appear in the December issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

Avoiding the relationship pitfalls highlighted in her own research, Kiecolt-Glaser happily teamed with her own spouse Ronald Glaser -- also from the IBMR at Ohio State -- to direct a study focusing on 42 married couples.

The primarily white, well-educated spouses ranged in age from 22 to 77 and had been married an average of almost 13 years.

On two occasions -- separated by two months -- each couple was admitted to a hospital for a 24-hour testing period.

During the first session, the couples were asked to engage in two 10-minute supportive discussions regarding something each spouse wanted to change about himself or herself.

During the second session, the couples discussed marital topics -- such as money or in-laws -- specially selected to provoke an argument.

Both sessions were videotaped and analyzed for evidence of hostility. Questionnaires were also completed before and after, to gauge both hostility levels and general marital satisfaction.

To monitor the discussion's impact on healing, the researchers created eight tiny blisters on the arms of each spouse prior to the conversations. After removing the wounded skin, the blisters were covered to measure the rise and fall of reparative fluids -- such as pro-inflammatory cytokines, which are critical to the healing process. Blood samples were also drawn.

The researchers found that blisters healed more slowly following argumentative conversations than after supportive discussions.

In addition, generally hostile couples also experienced a slower healing process -- following both non-supportive and supportive talks -- than friendlier couples.

Highly hostile couples experienced healing rates that were only 60 percent of those experienced by less-hostile spouses, the study found.

Kiecolt-Glaser and her team also noted that the amount of pro-inflammatory cytokines found in the blood beyond the wound site rose to higher levels following conflict discussions than following supportive interactions.

A spike in cytokine levels outside the healing area does not aid the recovery process, but instead has been previously characterized as a secondary health threat linked to a higher risk for developing depression, as well as heart disease, osteoporosis, arthritis, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and general physical decline, the researchers said.

The researchers concluded that both short-term and long-term stress related to hostile interactions between spouses contributes to a considerable slowing of the healing process, as well as a simultaneous rise in the risk for developing serious physical and mental illness.

They further noted that because at-home spousal battles are most probably longer and nastier than the study session conversations, the findings are likely to underestimate the full negative impact of hostility.

"This study shows that the quality of important relationships has clear physical consequences, especially in marriage but in other close relationships in general," said Kiecolt-Glaser. "If they're chronically contentious or difficult there's a clear toll on the body."

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For Disney, pitching 'The Chronicles of Narnia' is a delicate affair

Donna Yourkowski can't remember the last time she took her four children to the movies.

A Christian who home-schools her kids, she thinks most movies send them in the "wrong direction" morally. But she's taking them to see "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," the Walt Disney Co. film based on the book by C.S. Lewis.

While refusing to call it a religious movie, Disney is using the same company that promoted Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" to publicize "Narnia" through churches across the country. The goal is to create the perfect Christmas blockbuster, appealing to both secular and religious audiences.

"However you're a fan, it really doesn't matter to us," said Dennis Rice, a spokesman for Disney's distribution arm, Buena Vista Pictures. "We want you to become a fan of the movie."

Rice said only 5 percent of the marketing budget for "Narnia," which opens Friday, targeted faith-based groups. Still, there were eight showings for church groups nationwide, including one in November for about 700 pastors and church staffers at the Colorado Springs headquarters of the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family.

The best-selling book, published in 1950 and the first of a series, follows four siblings sent to live in an old country house during World War II. They find the mythical Narnia through a walk-in wardrobe and help overthrow a white witch, whose spells have turned innocent victims to stone and frozen the landscape in perpetual winter.

There are Christian allusions throughout, from spiteful brother Edmund (Judas) and his noble brother Peter, a fellow "son of Adam." The heroic lion Aslan, an obvious symbol of Jesus Christ, sacrifices his life to save Edmund and is resurrected the next day in plenty of time to defeat the White Witch and her evil minions.

The story itself is popular with children and parents of all backgrounds, and is not preachy or overtly Christian, said Robert Thompson, a professor of popular culture at Syracuse University, who has not seen the previews.

Unlike "The Passion of the Christ, which grossed more than $400 million worldwide last year despite its graphic violence, "Narnia" is a movie the whole family can see, Thompson said.

Thompson thinks only a few will be turned off by the marketing pitch to Christians.

"This is a movie based on a story told by a Christian writer who brought some of his spirituality to his storytelling," he said. "What happens (after) that point all depends on who's watching."

Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc., said Disney would be remiss if it did not go after a Christian audience — which is often ignored by Hollywood.

"It's just a matter of being all-inclusive and bringing in as many people as possible," he said.

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Religion Helps Reduce Negative Prison Behaviors

By University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), A new study in the December issue of the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion finds that the practice of religion in prison reduces the likelihood of arguments and physical fights among inmates. It is the first study of religion and prison behavior using a random sample survey of inmates at a large prison facility.

Researchers, led by University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) criminologist Kent Kerley, Ph.D., surveyed 386 inmates at the Mississippi State Penitentiary. Inmates were asked about family and criminal histories, religious beliefs, participation in prison ministries and the frequency of arguments and physical fighting among themselves.

The study found that religious beliefs and participation in religious services or faith-based programs significantly reduced inmates’ chances for getting into arguments with other inmates. Inmates who believed in a higher power were 74 percent less likely to engage in arguments than non-believers. Inmates who attended weekly religious services and faith-based programs were half as likely to engage in arguments than other inmates.

The researchers found no direct link between religious beliefs and physical fighting. Religious inmates, however, generally argued less, and therefore, were less likely to get into physical fights.

“We don’t suggest that prisons devote more funds to chaplains and faith-based programs at the expense of programs that have been found to be effective such as GED and college programs and job training programs,” said Kerley. “But the results suggest that inmates should be given the options. Faith-based programs are usually inexpensive and are conducted by staff chaplains and local volunteers.”