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
3 common questions teachers ask about their Jehovah's Witness students: http://t.co/kPTygb8r
3 common questions teachers ask about their Jehovah's Witness students: http://t.co/0y3R4WZV
Hey @BlackArtistNews check out this sculptor, this will blow your mind. My mind seriously can't take this in. http://t.co/I4VgB8ni
What do reporters have to say about balance in religion? Watch the video from last night's panel: http://t.co/jutu8oJ9
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Sikhism
Following are some upcoming (and current) religious holidays.
JUDAISM:
Passover (or Pesach): April 8-April 16
Commemoration surrounding Passover relates to Exodus 1-15. In the Exodus portion of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Old Testament), Moses tells the story of his and the Israelites’ escape from slavery in Egypt. God inflicted 10 plagues on the Pharaoh and the Egyptians. The 10th was the plague on the firstborns. In this plague, God said he would pass over the houses in Egypt and all firstborn sons within those homes would die. But he told the Israelites to put blood of lambs on their doorways and he would pass over their homes. After this came to pass, the Israelites were led out of Egypt. Today, Passover is a remembrance of both God’s sparing the Jews and the Jews escape to freedom. Learn about specific Passover rituals and traditions online.
CHRISTIANITY:
Holy Week: April 5-April 11; Easter April 12
Holy Week marks the last week of Lent, just before Easter. Events during Holy Week commemorate events leading up the crucifixion of Jesus:
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-Palm Sunday (April 5): Last Sunday marked the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey.
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-Spy Wednesday (April 8): This isn’t really celebrated, but this marks the day when Jesus’ disciple Judas Iscariot betrayed him to the chief priests; read about this in the Bible’s New Testament.
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-Maundy Thursday (April 9): Thursday commemorates the Last Supper which led to the Christian ritual of communion or the Eucharist. Jesus was initially commemorating the Passover feast (the Jewish seder).
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-Good Friday (April 10): Friday commemorates Jesus’ crucifixion.
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-Holy Saturday (April 11): This is the night before Easter; Christians, particularly Catholics, often attend worship services on this night.
Holy Week leads up to Easter Sunday, April 12, when Christians believe Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven. Learn more about Easter online.
SIKHISM:
Baisakhi: April 14
Learn about this Sikh holiday on ReligionTranscends.com.
Copyright 2009, Religion Transcends
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Today marks the beginning of the celebration of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights.
Diwali is the most popular of all Hindu festivals, and is also celebrated by Jains and Sikhs. During this four-day festival, celebrants decorate houses and public places lamps.
Who/what is being celebrated?
Initially, Diwali marked a Hindu harvest. But over time it became associated with a number of gods, goddesses, and associated tales.
Lakshmi: For most Hindi Indians, Diwali honors Lakshmi, goddess of wealth. For that reason, Hindus see this as a good time to start a new business or to pray for success in the coming year. The lamps placed in homes and public places at this time are used to guide Lakshmi to homes and businesses.
Kali: In Bengal, celebrants honor Kali, goddess of strength.
Parvati: Some believe Diwali is celebrated as the day when the goddess Parvati gambled with her husband.
Krishna and Vishnu: Hindus may celebrate the vanquishing of demons by these gods.
Rama and Sita: Others celebrate Diwali as the time when the god Rama and his wife Sita returned home after exile.
Lord Mahavira: Jains celebrate the day Lord Mahavira attained nirvana, eternal bliss.
Regardless of which god a given celebrant is honoring, each story tells of victory over evil, light over darkness, thankfulness and hope over despair, prosperity over poverty, and so on. Again, this is a festival of light, which has conquered darkness and empowers goodness and hope.
How is it celebrated?
Diwali is usually celebrated with lights and fireworks. Many countries have also taken to buying clothes, treats, and larger gifts at this time.
Thanks to Senate Resolution 299 and House Resolution 747, both passed by in 2007, the United States now recognizes the “religious and historical significance of the festival of Diwali.“
Newsweek recently featured a great article by Sikh comedian Narinder Singh. Check it out if you haven’t already. Not surprisingly, it is quite a humorous look at stereotypes and cultural identity.
The article came out around the same time that the International Confederation of Sikhs called for a united effort by all Sikhs to strengthen the religion.
The high court in Great Britain will soon review its open-air cremation laws, according to the Calcutta Telegraph.
Traditionally, when Hindus and Sikhs pass away, they are cremated and their ashes are released into rivers in India. In Hinduism, open-air funeral pyres (which allow for cremation of the dead on platforms out in the open) allow deceased Hindus to be reincarnated in a peaceful manner. Fire is the necessary element for creating the transition from the physical world to the spiritual world.
Hindus in the UK sought to challenge the government’s prohibition of open-air cremation last year, petitioning to maintain their religious traditions. But they lost. Then this April, when a Hindu requested that he be cremated in that manner upon his death, the high court again opened discussions of the prohibition. They are now gearing up to make a decision.
Many UK Hindus argue that the open-air tradition doesn’t hurt anyone and doesn’t endanger public health. What do you think? Should this religious tradition be allowed? Is it necessary?