Topic: Spirituality

Of pens, peonies and summer rain…

By Christine Anne Piesyk | June 29, 2008 |

‘On the Road in America’ is an occasional column of meanderings and musings, written during my semi-annual sojourn north.

After the first bursts of near tropical heat in Clarksville, the cooling summer rain in Vermont is a gift to cherish. It began last night, after a day of haze and clouds. It ushered in coolness somewhere around sunset, and by nightfall I could hear the raindrops lightly kissing the brick sidewalks, dripping lightly from the eaves. No blustering wind, no storms. Just that gentle rain.

This morning I walked by a bank of peonies, damp and brightened by that rain, slightly bent by the weight of water. The temptation to pick a few stems was strong.

We are a large group this semester at Goddard College, writers all of poetry, prose, fiction and non, memoir, plays and screenplays, even graphic novels. Unlike other residencies here, this one — by its very nature as an MFA writing program — requires a certain amount of solitude in and around such activities as workshops, advisor sessions, seminars, and sometimes heated discussions abut things like style, form, voice, perspective, language… Students meet, interact and retreat for the solitary task that is composition. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Arts and Leisure, Education, Opinion, Spirituality | No Comments

So you are in a funk …

By Rev. Charles Moreland | June 29, 2008 |

A headline boldly declared “We middle class Americans are in a Funk.” This funk is precipitated by events in our community and our nation.

We are in a funk because of economic conditions. This economic “recession,” “depression,” or “regression” is taking its toll on our optimismand depleting our enthusiasm, reducing our hopes and smashing our dreams for personal achievements.

Life for the middle class is tough (it’s that much magnified for the poor) and the outlook is more setbacks in our plans for the future. A house in our neighborhood in foreclosure, the house with the knee high weeds in the yard. Somewhere a couple has now moved on and away from this personal tragedy.

Will life for the middle class improve soon? The majority of Montgomery County residents are middle class familiesand they are being adversely affected by tooday’s sky high oil prices, falling home values, declining employment and rising prices for food and utilities. «Read the rest of this article»

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Making peace with myself

By Rev. Charles Moreland | June 11, 2008 |

I struggled with grief recently as a close friend, Georgia, who worked with me in the last election, died suddenly. She ignited my commitment to be active in the community.

Also I regret the passing this spring of William F. Buckley, world famous conservative. Although I didn’t know him, as a personal friend as I did Georgia, his contributions impressed me. Though at opposite ends on certain controversial issues, still I saw his significance. It’s easy as I review his values to find plenty of his views to denounce, reject and object to, but he brought a measure of sanity to the conservative movement where he was a prophetic voice.

As I read about his life, his principles, his prejudices, his influence for good in his eulogies, a question rises from my subconscious: What will people say about me upon my passing? There I go, trying to avoid saying that five-letter word: death. «Read the rest of this article»

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Meditation is achievement

By Rev. Charles Moreland | June 8, 2008 |

In an  issue of Newsweek arrives on Tuesday or Wednesday, I peruse the contents and give priority to articles and stories that appeal to me at the moment. After that, I read it from cover to cover, starting at page 1. Recently the story No Buddha Required captured my attention and lead the competition as to what i would read first.

Rembrandt’s “Philosopher in Meditation”

No Buddha Required is by no means a critical, derogatory or fault-finding expose of Buddhism. Being the international city Clarksville is, there are believers in this world religion among us. I know several practicing Buddhists, productive citizens who have a depth of compassion. Their teachings are respectful of all God’s creatures. «Read the rest of this article»

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Fasting: A rewarding challenge

By Rev. Charles Moreland | June 1, 2008 |

Fasting is a ritual practice common to the major religions of the world. In the Christian faith, we hear more about the custom during the holy season of Lent, when we practice self-sacrifice to regain a renewed spiritual perspective for daily living.

fasting is a sacrifice where a person voluntarily abstains from consuming food or drinking liquids. I grew up in an evangelical church environment that suggested and encouraged regular fasting as a means of spiritual growth.

As a teenager in St. Louis, I accepted the challenge of abstaining from one meal a week, a challenge for a 16-year-old boy with a typical appetite. For me, I purposely opted to abstain from the Friday school lunch. To heighten my appreciation for this weekly event, I retreated to a quiet place in the high school for an hour of meditation and reflection. This discipline became a spiritual growth hormone for me. This sacrifice aided my efforts to a good teen and to say no to the temptations of being a junior in high school. «Read the rest of this article»

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The influence of faith on public policy; where do the candidates stand?

By Rev. Charles Moreland | May 25, 2008 |

In this year with its presidential race, we continually seek information on the views of the candidates. We search for understanding of their positions.

The Iraq War, the environment, education, and taxes. It is also appropriate to look at their views on religion, especially at how it will affect their decisions is elected because religious views do influence political decisions. I still believe that a religious viewpoint is one reason behind America’s invasion of Iraq. A personal understanding of eschotology contributed to the quagmire and the deaths of thousands of our soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqi citizens.

Religion is an item discussed by the current crop of candidates on television, radio and in their speeches. We know where they go to church, how they interpret the Bible, what they pray for and other spiritual matters. It’s a major item to manipulate a portion of our religious society called the evangelicals (whom I think should be identified as fundamentalists). «Read the rest of this article»

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Tending the Earth is also a matter of faith

By Rev. Charles Moreland | May 18, 2008 |

The Christian calendar distinguishes itself with its seasons of the year. The most publicized one is Advent; the second is Lent. Lent is a custom/ritual observed by the faithful that is a temporary surrendering of a pleasure for 40 days preceding the Easter celebration. It enhances our spiritual lives.

While in Roosevelt High School in St. Louis, I worked at lee’s Drug Store, where prescriptions were filled , medical advice given to customers who couldn’t afford a doctor, and sundry items such as toothpaste and tobacco were sold. Lee’s had an ice cream bar where we served dipped cones to our customers. It was my job to staff this bar. I still remember the sad evening when Pat, a girl friend who ordered ice cream days before Lent, announced she was giving up ice cream for Lent. That’s a long time for the teen-aged boy who had a crush on her. That was my introduction to Lent and heartbreak.

Now Lent is taking on a more significant meaning; it is recognized as a ritual accommodating spiritual growth and activating our spiritual resources. It is a spiritual enabler for recognizing, surfacing, and activating our inner spiritual resources. It is an ally in releasing our God-like inner nature. «Read the rest of this article»

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Picking up the pieces after suicide

By Michael Covington | May 13, 2008 |

When a loved one takes their life by their own hands, how are we to pick up the pieces and go on with life? For a suicide survivor, life can never be seen the same way again. Many emotions and surface and submerge long after the eulogies are delivered.

Suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death in people of all ages. Also, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the average rate of suicides in the United States is 89 per day. This equals roughly one suicide every 16 minutes. In 2005, eight percent of U.S. high school students had reported at least one attempt at suicide at some point in the previous 12 months. The rate of U.S. high school students reporting that they seriously considered a suicide attempt in the last year was 16.9%. Also, males commit suicide at almost four times the rate that females commit suicide. In four out of every five cases, there are warning signs against possible suicide.

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