It appears the late seventh, early eighth centuries Byzantium was in a state of chaos with a succession of failed rulers, ending only with the ascension of Leo III. What I find of mild interest is that the Emperor Leo overthrew, Theodosius III, was allowed to take on holy orders (according to the good folk at Wikipedia, on this day in 717) rather than the more usual quiet and often brutal execution, or simply being cast into a dungeon, sometimes... Read more

Just, well, just because… Read more

As it turns out this is the Egyptian national holiday, Sham el-Nessim. It appears to go back to the very mists of antiquity, although when Egypt went Christian the Coptic church got into the act and the date was fixed in relation to the Eastern observation of Easter. With the Muslim conquest they embraced the holiday, and today it is celebrated as a national event by, it appears, all Egyptians… Wikipedia cites Edward Lane’s book Manners and Customs of the... Read more

THE MIDDLE WAY OF LIBERAL RELIGION A Meditation on Unitarian Universalism’s Fourth Principle James Ishmael Ford 22 March 2015 First Unitarian Church Providence, Rhode Island Text As a faith tradition, Unitarian Universalism makes sacred the right and responsibility to engage in this free and responsible quest as an act of religious devotion. Institutionally, we have left open the questions of what truth and meaning are, acknowledging that mindful people will, in every age, discover new insights Paige Getty writing in... Read more

I’m so pleased to see that Richard McDaniel’s Third Step East: Zen Masters of America, to which I contributed a forward, has been released! I recommend it to anyone interested in the foundations of Zen in North America. It is comprehensive, clear, and generously written. The official press release summarizes the scope of Rick’s study: In “The Third Step East: Zen Masters of America”, Richard Bryan McDaniel continues the story, begun in his earlier work, of the spread of Zen... Read more

It has been a brutal winter here in olde New England. More than a hundred inches of snow just north of where I’m living. And yes, darn you, they say we’re facing another inch or two or three over night… But. But, in the last couple of days I’ve seen buds of various plants popping up, sometimes in the most unlikely places. One friend says he removed some snow and lo and behold there were several buds… And now I... Read more

I have a couple of English Facebook friends so I’ve been aware that a popular television show called, I think, Gearheads, I think about cars has had some major changes of personnel. Some scandal or other. I didn’t pay close attention. Until I just saw that Stephen Fry is coming aboard as host. But then one of my English Facebook friends, or maybe its a friend of a friend made a snide comment about how he has a slew of... Read more

It was on this day in 1612 that Bartholomew Legate was burned at the stake in Smithfield, England. Three weeks later Edward Wightman would be the last person executed for heresy in England. Legate is of interest to me for several reasons, not least of which was the heresy for which he suffered was socinianism, that is believing and preaching the natural humanity of Jesus. Bartholomew and his brother Thomas were born into a merchant family specializing in cloth. Their... Read more

Another under appreciated saint due to having to share the date with a super saint, is St Gertrude of Nivelles, whose feast is today, the 17th of March. Gertrude was a seventh century nun and abbess, and has become the patron of gardeners and most importantly of cats. Be sure to scratch a cat’s ears in her honor… Read more

Yes, this is St Patrick’s Day. And fond wishes for the Irish in us all. But also other things have happened on the 17th of March. One of which was on this day in 1919, when Nathaniel Adams Coles was born in Montgomery, Alabama. Nat King Cole was an American treasure, whose brief, he died at the age of 45, walk on the stage of life was flooded with light. So, a tip of the hat, or if one prefers,... Read more