News Round Up November, 2012

Wow, I haven't done a news round up - or blogged - in a wicked long time either!  Hi! 

Now that the election is out of the way, it's the time of year I start to get reflective.  First there's Remembrance Day (St Martin's Day). Then Thanksgiving, and then Advent.  I like thinking of it as Remembrance Day, and poppies, and working for no more war.  Here in the United States it's called Veterans' Day, and we remember them.  The focus is different, but important too.  A friend posted this list of 20 ways to reach out to veterans, which I like, especially after being reminded of the ongoing war in Afghanistan. 

I have been a big supporter of Pussy Riot since they were arrested for their "Punk Prayer."  I did not know what that prayer actually said, but now I do, thanks again to The Atlantic.   Very interesting and compelling.  I'm not sure how many Westerners really understand Russia's history.  I'm not going to say that I get it, but having the words translated and clarified for me, gives me a little bit more insight. I pray for those women in the labor camps, and for their country.   

And finally, Occupy.  I knew that the movement would re-invigorate itself and morph into something else that will help people.  I love this new idea of a Debt Jubilee.  I love that the idea is coming in time for Advent and Christmas.  I love that it is people helping people, and offering RELIEF from something as soul-crushing as debt.  Pure Genius.  I hope the idea takes off and magnifies and fundamentally changes the way that this country "works." 

Enjoy the autumn, and the calm, peaceful, dark season. 

Ethiopian Christmas at Bet Maryam

Check out this beautiful audio slide show from the BBC. I have added Ethiopia to my list of places I want to travel to! My fantasy tour of religious art sites (Mexico, Britain, Ireland, SW France, Portugal, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Egypt, and now Ethiopia) is expanding.

Odd Cookbooks

BREAKING:

I just received a package of ephemera from a friend in Kinston, NC. She knows of my love of old/wacky cookbooks, especially of the old-school church lady or county fair variety. Anyway, she photocopied some excerpts from Bull Cook and Authentic Historical Recipes and Practices, by George Leonard Herter and Berthe E. Herter, Herter's, Waseca, Minnesota.

Check it out -

Spinach Mother of Christ:

The Virgin Mary, Mother of Christ was very fond of spinach. This is as well a known fact in Nazareth today as it was 19 centuries ago. Her favorite music was that of the crude bagpipess of that times, and this also is a well-known fact.
Her recipe for preparing spinach spread with Christianity throughout Europe. On the eve of Christ's birth in the cave that was called a stable, Her only meal was spinach.
The early European immigrants from Germany, France and Italy nearly all brought this recipe with them.

Other chapter headings among those my friend sent:

"Sioux Method of Cracking Black Walnuts, Butternuts, Hickory Nuts and Hazelnuts"

or my favorite:

"In Case of a Hydrogen Bomb Attack You Must Know the Ways of the Wilderness to Survive"

other recipes include:

"Prairie Dog Bat Materson", "Fried Snapping Turtle or Smaller Turtle Meat, Scandinavian Style", and "Belgian Squirrel"

She says she's on the lookout for another copy for me! Yay! A quick google search tells me that I am not alone in my awe of the "Spinach Mohter of Christ" recipe. I just found 2 other quotations! There's probably more!

Sally's weekly blog round-up

Now, right up front I want to say that I don't think of Obama as the Messiah, or anything. But I do feel that Obama's heart is in the right place. And I think Obama's idea of living Jesus' teachings is much more in line with my own.
I do feel that this image is politicizing Jesus' image, which has been going on since before the Crusades. But, it does make you think for a minute, right? Powerful? maybe. Provocative? I say yes.

Here's another discussion of the political sphere pandering to a non-existent "down-home" crowd, when the majority of Americans live in cities. Some good points made in the same vein as the bldgblog posts, below.

As remarked upon elsewhere, boing boing directed me to the Sad Guys on Trading Floors. Nice.

Flood insurance reform - not a sexy topic, but something that needs to happen in the age of sprawl, from American Rivers blog.

Slam dunk commentary from Tom Friedman - I still don't forgive him for agreeing w/Bush about going into Iraq. But with this piece he is inching back into my good graces. Maybe.

US Debt Clock runs out of digits. What more can I say?

Check out the awesome Goreme Cave Churches (may still be featured to the right on the Sacred Destinations widget)! I would REALLY love to go there one day.

The EPA discards input from the open comment period on it's climate strategy paper and wastes everybody's time, including the American Rivers org. Bastards.

At least Europe votes to ban dirty coal. From Bellona.

Mexican Obama vernacular on TextMex.

The Palins' Un-American activites, sponsored by Iran, in Salon.

The call for Urban candidates from bldgblog. This has been a theme at bldgblog all week. Now this is an idea I can get behind.

Bible as glossy mag: a Swedish advertising executive's project found on boing boing. Too bad I couldn't see more of the actual product to see how they represent the different texts!

Terry at Idle Speculation posted beautiful illuminated images WOW!

My horoscope this week from Rob Brezsny is right on target, as per usual:

In her poem "Pure," Kate Knapp Johnson speaks of "those who made me real to myself." I invite you, Pisces, to take an inventory of the people in your life who've made you real to yourself. That would be excellent homework for you to do during the phase of intensified intimacy you're now in -- a time when your allies are making even you even more real to yourself than you've ever been, as well as a time when you will be returning the favor to them.

This red and white church is another of the Goreme Cave Churches. Amazing, right?

Top 5 Spiritual Movies Meme

I just found this meme-ette at BlogHer, which I figured I'd do, and all, I thought I'd share the love! So, here goes: the top 5 movies that have inspired me spiritually, enjoy:

Top 5 movies that inspired you spiritually?

The Last Temptation of Christ - I saw this movie when I was in a pretty non-Christian phase of my life. As in, I didn't call myself a Christian. I was v. upset about the whole "Jesus' death conquers Death" idea and thought that Christians were using an elaborate theology to evade the realness of death. That (they) were focusing solely on the afterlife ("heaven") instead of trying to make life better here on Earth. So, to watch (even!) Jesus struggle, the way that humans do, daily, with temptation, and understanding the "Higher Power's" plan, made sense to me. The story goes that Jesus is BOTH human and divine, and is tempted, sorely tempted, by the devil. That comes across, loud and clear. As does Jesus' compassion for the sick and the poor. The film made me realize that Christianity could be something I could get behind and maybe actually believe in.
Mists of Avalon - I had read the book in high school and liked it. But in the film, the last scene where Morgaine sees the statue of Mary in the convent sealed the deal for me. As with the next film, resilience is a v. human trait that I admire above pretty much all others.
Latcho Drom - Again, resilience. People, including the gypsies, it turns out, survive through all sorts of things, and sometimes, come through the other side with grace and art that surpasses all expectations. The music in this film stays with me, and I listen to it a lot. The similarities of styles. The emotion of the songs is amazing.
Elizabeth - I hate to admit it, but I didn't know much about this period of British history until I saw this movie. I know, I know. But it was through this that I got sucked in. I saw this and realized that the old Book of Common Prayer is actually based on something! It may not have actually achieved all it set out to (which was a mammoth undertaking - trying to unite Catholics and Protestants in England through prayer in the midst of a blood-thirsty civil war!) but it was a start. And it's still with us today. Who knows, it may actually get us through our current Anglican problems. And watching Elizabeth work through it all, watching her manipulate (a loaded word, I realize) the idea of the Virgin Queen, was fascinating.
The Miracle Maker - I just saw this movie recently, and it's a "children's movie" but it's really good. It tells the life of Jesus in such a compelling way - even though it uses PUPPETS! The scenes of Jesus' life use the words, pretty much verbatim, from the Gospels. And it sticks with you. Somehow I keep thinking about this film and remembering details that I have missed from the stories before.... so, I'm including it in my top 5.

How about you?

Happy Groundhog Day (tomorrow)

So, I knew Groundhog Day was also called Imbolc (my Irish is terrible) or Candlemas. But I never knew about the whole "Purification of Mary" aka "The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple" Sunday feast day, until recently.

I love the idea of Candlemas, and how it fits into the Solar Calendar - it's the mid-point between the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox. Handy, right? The "baby New Year" born at the Winter Solstice, is growing.

February 2nd is 40 days after the Winter Solstice, and so, according to Jewish Law, Jesus would be of the right age to take to the Temple for Presentation, and Mary would have ended her "confinement".

It's just so handy how these ideas mesh together. And helpful to me. I like celebrating of the passage of time in the change of the seasons. It makes more sense to me. Feels more real, more tangible.

I like to make a big deal out of Groundhog Day. That way we remember that Spring WILL come. The darkest days are over. I bet Mary was psyched to get out of the house too. Even if the Temple was just down the block, to be out and about after delivery and all the adjusting that has to happen with a new baby - PLUS royal house-guests on Epiphany - it's a lot! She sure was a trooper. Having also given birth in December, I can tell you, it's no picnic.

We'll see tomorrow what Phil says, but Spring WILL get here!

P.S. Doesn't that chartreuse gown on the lady behind Mary look fabulous!?

Messiness of Motherhood

In this Advent season, there's a fair amount of talk about the messiness of being a mom.

Wouldn't Mary have felt that messiness too? It's easy to get swept up into the franticness of this time, instead of being thoughtful, truly preparing ourselves. But at the same time, God knows we humans are messy people. And a lot of the ideals we have about motherhood just don't always fit the reality.

The Rev. Mama talks eloquently about the fact that part of the miracle of Jesus is that he was borne of a woman and became fully human. God knows all about us. And understands. What a blessing!

Our Lady in the Garden

Maybe this is where I first gained an appreciation for religious art. In my home town there were lots of outdoor statues of the Virgin Mary. They pretty much looked exactly like this one from Flatbush Gardener's blog. But What I love here is the flower garland. It shows such devotion on the part of the owner. And the plexi-glass protecting her too.

I grew up in a "low-church" Episcopal church in New England. There was very little decoration. Just two stained glass windows, all the rest were plain glass. That suited my parents just fine, who are both "made very uncomfortable by the 'high church' services that I attend" (their words).

I don't know enough about liturgy yet to be able to speak meaningfully on the subject. All I can say is that I like what I perceive to be the more emotional-ness of the church I attend now. There is more movement, music, color, sounds, and yes, even smells (smells and bells). But what I really enjoy is being surrounded each Sunday by such amazing religious art. I understand on a deeper level the love, suffering and awesomeness of God.

Vive Le Tour de France!

When La Segunda was an infant, her babysitter, Maija, was TOTALLY into the Tour de France. She went with her mom to the Alps and then Paris for a week and had a blast.

This past week has been so hot in Philly, that I've tuned in at night, after work, to catch up on the days' events on the Tour. Man Alive is it EXCITING! Hot, skinny men speeding up mountains - what stamina!


Anyway, it turns out that the Madonna del Gihsallo is the patron saint of cyclists. So, I'll light a candle!

Good News!

The Pennsylvania Legislature has said it's O.K. to breast feed in public. Yay!

Philadelphia, of course, was way out in front - you can always count on that - with our statute passed in 1997! But good news, nonetheless.

I love images of Mary nursing Jesus. Seems so normal and maternal.

John the Baptist cleans up...

I like William Bouguereau just as much as the next person. I love his Nymphes et Satyr painting, I have a copy at home. But this image is just too clean, too perfect. For my second favorite saint, John the Baptist, anyway. He should look disheveled and hungry. I guess he does when he's all grown up.

Look at how Mary is almost making the sign of benediction over John's head. And Jesus is playing with John. It makes for an image of a happy family, right?

The setting is sumptuous, beautiful tile work and a rich throne. I know the image is supposed to be allegorical, but it just seems off. Maybe I should just think of it as the calm before the storm....