Category: The Dish

A Poem For Sunday

Angels

All was taken away from you: white dresses,
wings, even existence.
Yet I believe in you,
messengers.

There, where the world is turned inside out,
a heavy fabric embroidered with stars and beasts,
you stroll, inspecting the trustworthy seems.

Short is your stay here:
now and then at a matinal hour, if the sky is clear,
in a melody repeated by a bird,
or in the smell of apples at close of day
when the light makes the orchards magic.

Continued here.

Exposing The Vatican

So many in the hierarchy of the church do not believe the doctrines propagated about the "objective disorder" of homosexual orientation that this sting strikes me as justified. The sting is not about sex; it’s about insincerity:

In the program on private Italian network La7, a man identified as a priest is heard saying that he "didn’t feel he was sinning" by having sex with gay men.

It reminds one of the last days of the Soviet Union: they pretend to preach something; we pretend to believe it.

Muslims Reach Out

Some cause for hope:

The pope is the first of some 25 Christian figures addressed specifically in the 29-page letter, titled "A Common Word Between Us and You."

The letter quotes the Koran and the Bible, particularly the New Testament, to illustrate how their basic principles mirror each other. It says the Prophet Muhammad’s stance was perhaps inspired by the Bible.

The letter notes that there are differences between the religions and that Islam teaches its faithful to resist those who attack them, but it concludes that the world’s two largest faiths should compete only "in righteousness and good works."

Among the 138 signatories were senior theologians from around the world, including Sheik Ali Gomaa, the grand mufti of Egypt and hence the top Sunni Muslim figure there, as well as about a dozen other grand muftis. Ayatollah Mostafa Mohaghegh Damad, a Shiite Muslim from Iran, also signed.

The First Green Bible

You could see this coming, I guess:

The Bible will contain recycled fiber and was developed along with Domtar, a paper manufacturer with a strong environmental commitment. Thomas Nelson is currently working with the Green Press Initiative, a U.S.-based organization that helps the book publishing industry reduce their paper usage, to reduce the company’s carbon footprint.

"The Bible is the most widely circulated book on the planet and Thomas Nelson’s leadership and use of environmentally responsible paper is a living legacy to the Bible’s message of stewardship," said Tyson Miller, director of the Green Press Initiative.