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POPSThe Lord of the Rings and the Esoteric Symbolism of the Abrahamic Faiths Tolkien was a Roman Catholic and he delved deeply into the world of archetypes and symbols. Mahmoud Shelton demonstrates how Tolkien used many of these symbols in a distinctly Sufic, alchemical manner in the quest pursued by, and in the lives of, his characters. The mystical traditions of all three Abrahamic religions, while possessing their own distinct perspectives and practices, are nevertheless also very close in what one might term an Abrahamic symbolic pool which is shared by all three religions in varying alignments and semantic expressions, To speak in Sufi terms, the core of the quest is the journey of return to a realization of unity with the One. The path is love, the fuel is love, and the goal is love. Alchemy is the process of transformation that love ffects.
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POPSSpiritual Self-Confidence It’s especially important to have this kind of confidence in times like these when there is so much turbulence and individual and collective insecurity about survival. Without this kind of confidence as a constant reference point, we may find ourselves at times without the emotional, psychological, or spiritual resources to fight the good fight
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POPSA Mother, a Sick Son and His Father, the Priest With little to lose, they are eager to tell their stories: the mother, a once-faithful Catholic who says the church protected a philandering priest and treated her as a legal adversary, and the son, about what it was like to grow up knowing his absentee father was a priest. “I’ve always called him Father Henry — never Father, never Dad,” said Nathan, at home between hospital visits. “I always felt he picked religion over me.” The relationship between Ms. Bond and the priest is hardly unique. While the recent scandals involving the Roman Catholic Church have focused on the sexual abuse of children, experts say that incidences of priests who have violated sexual and emotional boundaries with adult women are far more common.
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POPSIf you Care This is a petition site which allows you (if you truly Care about an issue) to sign a petition or even create your own. I think its a great idea!
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POPSOur Natural Place in the World This is just the beginning of a 3 part essay that, for me, embodied the form of spirituality I regularly experience in my life. It's always a revelation when you see something coming from another mind that has so many points of commonality with your own thinking. Part 3 held the most significance for me.
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POPSBo, the White House Dog 'Dumped' The baths, used up to 5 times a day during the spiritual holiday, before each prayer call, became a constant chore for the Secret Service Agents delegated to insure that the bath water was always at the right temperature, and purer than the bottled imported water favoured by the First Lady. Bo, the lovable retriever, who remained largely ignored after the first few photo ops in the rose garden, was forced to entertain himself due to lack of attention. Imagine his delight, when during investigation for discarded chicken and rib bones under the Obama Dining Table, he was able to find 17 private pools for his canine delight! Bo, who is black, is said to be happy in his new home and doesn't feel that his 'dumping' was racially motivated.
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POPSThe Prisoner of AMORC My name is Pierre S. Freeman. I am the author of The Prisoner of San Jose- How I Escaped from Rosicrucian Mind Control and AMORC Unmasked- Mind Control Techniques the Rosicrucian Order.
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POPSPresident Obama's Ramadan Message (Ramadan Kareem) This month is also a time of renewal and this marks the first Ramadan since the President outlined his vision for a new beginning between America and the Muslim world. As a part of that new beginning, the President emphasizes that our relationship with Muslim communities cannot be based on political and security concerns alone. True partnerships also require cooperation in all areas particularly those that can make a positive difference in peoples daily lives, including education, science and technology, health, and entrepreneurship - fields in which Muslim communities have helped play a pioneering role throughout history. As this dialogue continues and leads to concrete actions, the President extends his greetings on behalf of the American people. Ramadan Kareem.
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POPSThe 11 Keys of Spiritual Activism 4. Apply Synergy and Teamwork to Accomplish Goals. 5. Spiritual Activism is the Pursuit of Service for the Good of All, Not for the Advancement or Benefit of Individuals or Selected Communities. 6. Pursue Integrity, Honesty and Dignity in the Conduct of Your Actions. “Integrity is doing the right thing even if no one is watching.” 7. Do not Defame Your Detractors or Those Who Doubt You. 8. Raising Another Up Raises You Up As Well. 9. Learn to Listen to Your Heart and Not Your Mind. 10. Search Out Viable and Sustainable Solutions. “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day.Teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime.” 11. Spiritual Activism is about process. The process by which you arrive at the goal is as important as reaching the goal itself. If we live the change we want to see in the world, we cannot lose. We have already won.
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POPSSpiritual Revolution Get insight into most effective ancient meditation & yoga techniques for your spiritual evolution. The wisdom, surrender and an enlightened master's discourses opens the key to this mysterious world of divinity.
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POPSRomantic Science The old artificial polarities of science and spirit persist. Unnecessarily. 'The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science', Richard Holmes http://www.slate.com/id/2222360/pagenum/all
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POPSPrayer The practice of inner silence prospers the cultivation of spiritual, intellectual and physical clarity of vision. We have almost and altogether forgotten this discipline within the Christian faith.
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POPSThe rise of paganism - #open #religion #culture #environment There are probably a lot more people who believe that the way humanity acts towards its mother, nature, is sacrilege. Most of the people who call themselves atheists and agnostics would tend towards this view, not to mention the Green Spirit tendancy in Christianity, Sufis, Ba'hais, most Hindus and Buddhists, all Taoists and virtually all surviving practicioners of native spirituality would concur. It looks like we are in the majority!
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POPSWe are Storytelling Apes: let Faith decline A pithy, powerful critique of Armstrong and the apothatic tradition. Fairly clearly (I think) an equally pithy response could be made centred upon the fact that the criticisms partly support Armstrong's position, and do not contradict it. However, the critique of her overarchingness is totally valid: the examples of Hamas and women are indicative of the near universal tendency of a certain class of writers/thinkers to believe they need to pull a definitive view of everything from their glittering theories. The Case for God: What Religion Really Means, Karen Armstrong, The Bodley Head, 2009
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