Beware the Pure Spirit, Let the Flesh Instruct the Mind

I had the pleasure of attending a Transfaith panel discussion last night here on ETSU’s campus. There was a great deal of interest in this forum discussion, the room was packed. I had wondered whether this type of discussion was going to be well received by students on campus. This topic and the ensuing discussion were important to all of those attending. I find it amusing that the organizers of this event were atheist and agnostics ETSU’s own S.A.N.E. These fine students have presented in my undergraduate class for the past couple of years. My students are always astonished when they come to present, that is, they are not expecting such down-to-earth, laid back fellow students. I think that in their minds, they are expecting to see goth/emo students all dressed in black and spewing forth flames and nihilism from their various body orifices. SANE folks are generally disarming in their appearance and presentation style. But anyway, packed room and a small stage with various local re...

I have a new neighbor. A rock dove has taken up residence on my front porch. I have an empty hanging pot and I do believe she may have built a nest.  I can hear her on the porch. Now I just need to be careful not to spook her and her potential brood.

 It’s Holy Week, every day filled with ritual and remembrance as Christians everywhere prepare for the Feast of the Resurrection on Sunday.  Today is Maunday Thursday, a day that causes me to remember and to reflect. I no longer identify with evangelical, fundamentalist Christianity, but it is my faith of origin and there are things that I do miss from time to time. First and foremost, I miss the music associated with Christianity, and more specifically, the hymns and spiritual songs of my youth and young adulthood. Lots of emotion and feeling and imagery tied up in these songs of faith. I have a collection of hymnals in my possession. I’ve always thought that you could learn so much about a religious group through their selections of spiritual songs and hymns. My own denomination, Church of God , has a rich heritage that is expressed in song. I still know these songs by heart; they were important guides in my own religious education and instruction. Don’t ask me to name a fav...

No secret that my life is one big ol' ball of stress. For those of you who have ever undertaken a thesis/dissertation project, you do have some idea of what my life is like right now. I'd say I'm over 75% there, it's the remaining 25% that has my "panties all up in a wad." Much of my stress is self imposed and has led to a paralysis of sorts. That's the way of my world. I look forward to completing this project and feeling the sense of accomplishment that will come with it. I'm committed, I am also feeling some wear and tear physically and emotionally. To that end, I am still trying to find some balance in my life, not there yet but working towards it. I enjoy nature. I enjoy all things flora and fauna related. So I wander around outside and I take pictures of things I find interesting. It gives me some sense of peace. "The wonder is that we can see these trees and not wonder more." - Ralph Waldo Emerson  

So I'm grading papers today for my class and I come across this little beauty. Never mind that this particular student is severely anti-everything about this public health diversity class. I have several students like him every year, that is, they all rage against anything that would cause them to consider life from another point of view. Very ethnocentric, very religiocentric in their views and positions. Not in the least willing to consider the lives of those they would label as "Other." No matter, the class is still taught and I hope that they do come away with some consideration of the lives of others. Last week's topic dealt with examining LGBT populations as a groups and how from a health standpoint they face challenges that most folks don't even have to consider.  I had a panel of experts (college aged representatives from ETSU LGBT groups) come and discuss their lived experiences. This particular student felt the need to write about the "dangers of ...