Daily pages of reflection...for knowledge, understanding, to wisdom
Section of The Last Supper, Leonardo Da Vinci Section of The Last Supper, Leonardo Da Vinci

Beliefs and Feelings

November 21, 2019
Year 4, Day 325 | No Comments
Section of Adoration of the Magi, artist unknown

This Page goes behind the evidence, behind the actions.  We want to address reality, and we would like to find a modus operandi that grows out of the discussion of the stew of man’s making in local and national politics in 2012.  At this writing we have just concluded a long period of political maneuvering, debate advertising, distortion and some truth related to the election of the President of the United States and numerous other candidates across the nation.  The result of the election is that Barack Obama was reelected President, and the Congress was elected with incumbents and new candidates making up much the same pattern that has stalled virtually all legislation of import for at least two years. … Read more

Sexual Differential

November 20, 2019
Year 4, Day 324 | No Comments
Section of The Crucifixion, Pedro Orrente, ca. 1625–30

Today the internet told a story of an eminent entertainer (female) in a photograph story with her wife (female).  They refer to each other as my wife.  The exchange in the story is not of concern for the meaning of this Page.  In this instance language has changed in that a female has a wife and that wife also refers to the other person as my wife.  We are troubled about the meaning of gender; how world culture may be going; how to avoid serious conflict in genders identity even for biology; and, how the people will be able to keep meaning both in nature (biology in this instance) and in spirituality (the meaning of creation in nature needed for… Read more

Humanism

November 19, 2019
Year 4, Day 323 | No Comments
Section of The Last Supper, Leonardo Da Vinci

One of my interests is fed by taking for a year or so this or that publication, magazines and newspapers that I believe are excellent in the context in which they are designed, so to discover the various ways in which thoughtful writers and publishers advance the objectives of their publications.  In the digital age these have survived because they have an audience, and they advance their purpose to help their readers improve themselves in accents made by the publications.  The publications have included a number of titles:  The Wall Street Journal, Time, The Atlantic, Smithsonian, AARP, local newspapers, and others in a spectrum of interests including business, archaeology, academic journals (especially in philosophic and theological interests) and the list… Read more

Forgiveness

November 18, 2019
Year 4, Day 322 | No Comments
Section of The Descent from the Cross, Rogier van der Weyden, c. 1435

It ought to be clear that mankind weaves tangled webs about nearly all issues of life.  To these complexities we add further ones in perceptions and management, and the story of history – sometimes objective, sometimes made up (contrived) and nearly always given a spin that originates in the emotions of persons and groups.  Careful scholars know this is a burden to be borne in the pursuit of truth, reporting, and the contexts for life that may or may not be to social advantage.  To simplify matters God helps us along with various tools to extract ourselves from the intellectual, physical, even spiritual holes we dig for ourselves.  We make various mistakes, choices, even deliberate errors in thought and conduct,… Read more

Conflicting Truths

November 17, 2019
Year 4, Day 321 | No Comments
Section of Christ and the Woman of Samaria, Benedetto Luti, 1715-20

Nearing the end of these daily readings, concepts have been reviewed – vital to the announced objectives from the beginning of this journey of paragraphs, principally addressed to students of life Christian orientation.  It is to suggest how to extract from available education/experience what ought to be gained for living in the physical/spiritual context.  Formal education is expensive in terms of funding and time invested.  It needs to be treated seriously, but says too little about whole life.  The concepts of these Pages are directed toward any thinking persons who will read them, but the sooner the search begins, in a friendly context for learning, the better for the person.  We begin by extolling truth.  It is an ideal for… Read more

The Good Fight

November 16, 2019
Year 4, Day 320 | No Comments
Section of Adoration of the Magi, artist unknown

The ignorance, uncertainties, preferences, prejudices, contradictions/paradoxes and other limitations of mankind ought to serve first in making us humble.  Humility is a first step in draining from us the negatives related to our limitations.  There are also other graces necessary to the life-student, like patience, respect for others along the route of life and an attitude of discovery with competence in what we do – or try to do.  For more than seven decades I have read contradictions of scientists related to other scientists, and contradictions of theologians related to other theologians.  The same game applies to various fields advancing theories – political, educational, business – various groupings engaging intra-differences.  One wonders if any field can get similar conclusions among… Read more

Freedom Language

November 15, 2019
Year 4, Day 319 | No Comments

Our first concern for this Page relates to language and its search for meaning.  As time passes and a language grows old it takes on considerable baggage.  We have to work at getting the meaning of symbols as they either reflect important specificity, or wonder about in variant contexts in which we use and abuse the magnificent gift of language – by which we can express that which separates the human animal from the dumb animal, and the human from the divine.  That difference is found in the ability to communicate reflective thought and act upon it.  Certainly dumb animals in the seas, land, and air have means of communication, but that related to inward impulses related to limited emotional… Read more

One Life

November 14, 2019
Year 4, Day 318 | No Comments
Section of The Descent from the Cross, Rogier van der Weyden, c. 1435

Whether deliberately or through casualness, accidents and omissions, each of us chooses (becomes responsible for) an emerging design pattern for personal living.  Some of those designs look like they were painted by Dali, others by Rembrandt.  Some reflect worry and lines of hard living, others with smiles and lines of solitude.  It all begins with the accident of birth.  (That deliberate to a parent is visited upon an embryo.)  We are born, so it has now been proved, with a DNA that suggests strengths and weaknesses in our physical natures (perhaps also in our spiritual natures).  We are the products of those who have lived in the blood lines preceding each of us.  Persons may go to extremes to escape… Read more

Standards

November 13, 2019
Year 4, Day 317 | No Comments
Section of Sistine Chapel ceiling, Michaelangelo, 1508-1512

We would like to apply some adequate measurement to the meaning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  The evangelical view tries for that standard in reverting always to Scripture for resolutions of controversy.  The Catholic Church adds Church tradition to Scripture in the primary belief that authority rests in apostolic succession extending from the Apostle Peter.  The liberal groupings interpret Christianity with additional factors like cultural change, interpretations of passages based on felt current needs or circumstances, perhaps better addressed, they believe, in an eclectic and emerging culture rather than historical meaning.  From a distance, I have followed various strains from the time I was ten years old.  I was pulled in various directions, depending upon the accents of the… Read more

Understanding

November 12, 2019
Year 4, Day 316 | No Comments
Section of Christ and the Adulteress, Lucas Cranach the Younger and Workshop, ca. 1545–50

Through the years I have read widely, from many sources, covering many themes, and find the effort engaging even though it arouses within me a mild depression.  The despair is not dangerous, and in itself is an educational factor even if it is somewhat depressing to the serious mind seeking truth.  Depressing because no matter what one believes there is considerable support from carefully prepared reasonable supporting documents from contenders for contradictory arguments, themes and conducts.  Which is best? Believing in the life of the mind, and noting the dominance of emotions from the general public in most matters, I wonder if society can manage freedom well – since the ballot appears to be more influenced by emotions, money invested… Read more

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