The middle region of the sky, where spirit lives, is radiant with the music of light; There, where the pure white music blossoms, God lives, in delight. Kabir (15c)
Blog
Religion may become extinct in nine nations?
Posted on by James Woodward
And what are we to make of this news item? Does it reflect our experience? A study using census data from nine countries shows that religion there is set for extinction, say researchers. The study found a steady rise in those claiming no religious affiliation. The team’s mathematical model attempts to account for the […]
meditation
Posted on by James Woodward
To meditate does not mean to fight with a problem. To meditate means to observe. Your smile proves it. It proves that you are being gentle with yourself, that the sun of awareness is shining in you, that you have control of your situation. You are yourself, and you have acquired some peace. Thich […]
The women who make it possible
Posted on by James Woodward
As someone who has always admired and liked Sarah Brown – for the dignity she showed through the death of a child and her self-respect whilst her husband was under attack from just about everybody on an almost daily basis – I was looking forward to reading this book. The title was fascinating. What was […]
Humility?
Posted on by James Woodward
From the Preface by the Archbishop of Canterbury Humility indeed happens when we’re not looking. And that means that we have to learn where to look if we want to grow into the truth. We must look into the purpose, the mission, of God and allow ourselves to be taken up into the terror and […]
Be at Leisure
Posted on by James Woodward
This is why the ability to be “at leisure” is one of the basic powers of the human soul. Like the gift of contemplative self-immersion in Being, and the ability to uplift one’s spirits in festivity, the power to be at leisure is the power to step beyond the working world and win contact with […]
crocuses
Posted on by James Woodward
Spring is the Period Express from God. Among the other seasons Himself abide, But during March and April None stir abroad Without a cordial interview With God. Emily Dickinson
Israel(8) Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Posted on by James Woodward
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also called the Church of the Resurrection by Eastern Christians is a church within the walled Old City of Jerusalem. The site is venerated as Golgotha (the Hill of Calvary), where Jesus was crucified and is said to also contain the place where Jesus was buried (the sepulchre). The […]
The meaning of Leisure.
Posted on by James Woodward
Leisure, then, as a condition of the soul – (and we must firmly keep to this assumption, since leisure is not necessarily present in all the external things like “breaks” “time off,” “weekend,” “vacation,” and so on – it is a condition of the soul) – leisure is precisely the counterpoise to the image of […]
Israel (7) Bethlehem
Posted on by James Woodward
Bethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank, approximately 8 kilometers south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people.It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism. The Hebrew Bible identifies Beit Lehem as the city David was from and […]
Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem
Posted on by James Woodward
Psalm 122 >> King James Version I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD. Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together: Whither the tribes go up, the tribes of […]
Ash Wednesday
Posted on by James Woodward
“Lord teach us how to pray aright … for we perish if we cease to pray.” Lent calls us to repentance and repentance involves a change of heart. Help me to realise Lord that to change my life without changing my heart is like cutting weeds and leaving roots in the soil. Give me the […]
fire
Posted on by James Woodward
An aged man is but a paltry thing, A tattered coat upon a stick, unless Soul clap its hands and sing, and louder sing For every tatter in its mortal dress, Nor is there singing school but studying Monuments of its own magnificence; And therefore I have sailed the seas and come To […]
Israel (5) Yad Vashem
Posted on by James Woodward
As I look back over my experience of Israel this visit remains fresh and powerfully disturbing. The Holocaust History Museum A decade in the making, the Holocaust History Museum combines the best of Yad Vashem’s expertise, resources and state-of-the-art exhibits to take Holocaust remembrance well into the 21st century . The Holocaust History Museum occupies over […]
Until I Was Nearly Fifty
Posted on by James Woodward
Until I was Nearly fifty I rarely thought Of age But now As I approach Becoming An elder I find I want To give all That I know To youth. Those who sit Skeptical With hooded Eyes Wondering If there really Is A path ahead & Whether There really Are Elders Upon it Yes. We […]
Growing Older?
Posted on by James Woodward
The first fifty years of life give us the text; the next thirty supply the commentary on it. -Arthur Schopenhauer
light
Posted on by James Woodward
A poet is someone who can pour light into a cup then offer it to refresh your beautiful parched and holy heart. Hafiz
Israel(4) Desert Places
Posted on by James Woodward
The Judean Desert is an area with a special morphological structure along the east of the Judean mountains. It stretches from the northeastern Negev to the east of Beit El, and is marked by terraces with escarpments. It ends in a steep escarpment dropping to the Dead Sea and the Jordan Valley. The Judean […]
Israel (3) The Garden Tomb
Posted on by James Woodward
The Garden Tomb is believed by many to be the garden and sepulchre of Joseph of Arimathea, and therefore a possible site of the resurrection of Jesus. The Garden is owned and administered by The Garden Tomb ( Jerusalem) Association, a Charitable Trust based in the United Kingdom. The Garden Tomb is a quiet place […]
Israel – January 2011 – part 2: the Sea of Galilee
Posted on by James Woodward
Matthew 4.13-23 13He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the lake, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: 15 ‘Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— 16 […]