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CNN has posted a history of bias against Sikhs - more reason for people to learn about religions before they attack anyone:...
Sikh temple shooting unfolding, learn about Sikhism here: http://t.co/A0ltLLIm
Sikh temple shooting unfolding, learn about Sikhism here: http://t.co/l3KrAJZf
Hackers group Anonymous takes down Vatican website: http://t.co/B6lbGAVp
WGN-TV calls doomsday prophecies "an illusion": http://t.co/mv8Gzyw7
RT @graceishuman: Really,? Asking people JUST LEAVING the service how they felt about it? Tacky, tacky, inappropriate
Whitney Houston's funeral service really took the world to church. Love Pastor Winans' honesty, very moving.
#teacher ? Here are appropriate responses to situations with your Jehovah's Witness student: http://t.co/A6UfqcgH
#Teachers: Want to know why your Jehovah's Witness student won't say the pledge and how to respond? http://t.co/EIdlgDwW
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Hinduism
Prayers from several religions will now find a place at the Ontario legislature’s opening each day, according to Religion News Service.
Making a compromise
The municipal councils used to begin their daily meetings by reciting the Lord’s Prayer, associated with the Christian religion. But in early 2008, Secular Ontario threatened to take them to court if they continued the ritual. The organization of atheist Canadians felt such an act implied that the legislature was for Christians only.
The government of Ontario has held several debates about religion and politics over the last few months. Finally they came up with a compromise in June that would keep them out of hot water with Secular Ontario.
The compromise? Keep the Lord’s Prayer, but add in prayers from eight other religions and a moment of silence for the non-religious. Among those religions whose prayers will be incorporated are Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Baha’i, and Sikhism.
Inclusion for diversity
This change is a good example of a move toward inclusion. Inclusion is a method of showing that all religions have merit and truth in some way and/or that all deserve representation and respect. It’s the idea of religious diversity — a cornucopia of religions tha twould all be placed on the same level, in the same arena. Exclusion, obviously, is the opposite. A religion is sometimes called “exclusive” when its followers claim their religion is the only true religion or that their beliefs must be followed in order to attain the goal of religion (whether that’s eternal life, cessation of suffering, or something else).
Wondering about the Lord’s Prayer?
The Lord’s Prayer is a prayer prayed by Jesus, and it can be found in the New Testament of The Bible (Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4). In those verses, Jesus teaches his followers to pray a prayer he teaches them to pray. Many Christian churches pray that Lord’s Prayer at each worship gathering, including Catholics who sometimes call this prayer the “Our Father.”
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What’s all the buzz about? Today, it’s about Mike Myers’ new film, Love Guru, set to open in theaters on June 20. The comedy features Myers as Guru Pitka who wears saffron robes, is raised in an ashram in India, carries prayer beads, and discusses karma and (obviously) love. Though some (like Deepak Chopra) have claimed the film is meant to be purely satirical, others are now speaking out against it — some calling for a pre-screening by Hindus and others calling for a complete ban. The issue is, according to Hindus interviewed by BBC News today, that all the religious symbols used by Myers in the film do not point to some made-up religion, as Myers claims. No, it points straight to Hinduism, they say. And it’s just portraying stereotypes that will hurt the religion’s image in the States. Are these symbols really Hindu though? Let’s define some of the words and symbols used in this film.
Guru: While “guru” has come to mean any sort of master teacher in either the religious or secular realm, it got its start in the religious or spiritual worlds of Hinduism and Buddhism; thus, a guru is a spiritual teacher. Often in Hinduism, that spiritual guru guides his students to be liberated (or to achieve moksha) out of the cycle of death and rebirth (reincarnation) by understanding that he is one with God/the universe (Brahman).
Mark on forehead: The mark (or “tilaka”) often found on the foreheads of Hindus is usually made up of something like soot or clay; the way it is applied (e.g., a u-shape, one dot, etc.) shows which Hindu religious tradition is followed. The mark is sometimes also used by married women to designate their marriage status.
Prayer beads: As with most other religions, prayer is an integral part of Hinduism. When Hindus pray, they often repeat prayers found in their sacred scriptures. This repetition creates a need for a system of tracking and counting the number of prayers that have been said; prayer beads meet that need.
Saffron cloths: Saffron is the color that symbolizes Brahman and the giving up of the material world. Hinduism is not the only religion that uses saffron as a symbol (e.g., Buddhists wore saffron robes after the death of the Buddha), but the color is sometimes viewed as one of the main symbols of Hinduism.
Sari: the female clothing typically worn by women in India and surrounding nations; it consists of one cloth draped around the body
What do you think? When Myers portrayed a “love guru,” was he unknowingly (or knowingly?) offending followers of Hinduism and perpetuating religious stereotypes? Do you plan to see the film? Has the negative press changed your opinion about the film? Leave your comments.
Could the violence in Tibet have actually caused the cyclone in Myanmar?
If you’re a follower of Buddhism or Hinduism, you might think so. According to Religion News Service, many in Myanmar believe the protests in Tibet over independence and the Olympic Games could have created negative karma – the result of which was the cyclone that killed some 30,000-100,000 people (depending on whose estimate you’re using).
But wait – what is karma? Are we just saying Myanmar was destined for a cyclone? Well, not really. And maybe.
Karma is the idea that our actions have consequences — both actions in this life and actions in past lives. All actions bear on consequences in this life. So, if you were a murderer in your past life, even though that life is over, it still has negative consequences for your present life. Or if you did a good deed in this life, it would have positive consequences in this life and in future rebirths. Thus karma becomes an entire system of action, reaction, over and over, lifetime through lifetime, something one cannot escape since every action will have some sort of reaction. (Thus, everything is related to everything else, a typical Buddhist concept.)
It’s more the idea of “what goes around comes around” than “this is your fate.” Fate does not come into play here. What’s in question is each choice each person makes and how natural justice ensures good or bad outcomes in the future.
Christians certainly have some understanding of karma, as it is understood that if you sin, there will be negative consequences; if you perform right action, you will be rewarded. However, it seems that karma in Eastern thought is a bit more tangible. If you do something bad, something bad will actually happen to you in this lifetime or the next lifetime, a tangible event. If you do something good, you will see rewards in this lifetime or the next, tangible rewards.
How good will the rewards be or how bad will the consequences be? According to one Buddhist site, it depends on everything from one’s intentions to how many times one has repeated this deed.
Do you believe in karma? Do you think the violence in Tibet could be to blame for the cyclone in Myanmar? Leave your comments and let readers know what you think.
Yesterday, I blogged about the latest question on On Faith. I also complained that On Faith did not include any voices from eastern religions.
I realize they weren’t responding to my blog. But perhaps a divine voice spoke to them and told them people like me were hoping for an eastern religion response. Today, they posted a response from Wendy Doniger, a professor of the History of Religion at the University of Chicago who teaches courses in Hinduism. She’s witty and to the point. And I love how she concludes that there is no conclusion.
Furthermore, I’m always dumbfounded at how eastern and western religions are thought to be so different…when really, they’re much more alike than they may seem at first glance. Doniger’s array of explanations seems to be a different take on common explanations given by western religions. After all, she herself admits that karma is really just another way of saying, “God (or god or gods or existence) is punishing me for something I did.”
Check out her post for more.