"Jin Ho Kang and Young Sookkang delivered the closing prayer at tonight's (August 26th) convention. I found this text on the net. I hope a video clip of this will soon be available.
"Good evening."
"This is a prayer, a benediction and a blessing that we share with those who are gathered here this evening, heeding God's call to justice. Let us pray."
"God of every nation, we give our prayer in gratitude for the blessings bestowed upon us as we close this evening's convention. We give our gratitude to you for the legacy of this nation that our mothers and fathers created and sustained. We cherish freedom and liberty, welcome immigrants, embrace diversity, and savor justice and peace."
"God of every voice, we hear a call for a new day. A new day that equals economic opportunities given to widows and orphans. A new day that the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord. We hear your call for this nation to wake up to a voice that longs for leadership to be relevant to a new day."
"God of justice, in times of change, grant wisdom for Senator Barack Obama and Senator Joe Biden. May they together lead in continuing the legacy of freedom and liberty. May they lead in bringing sacred change by creating a community that celebrates diversity and difference, that demands justice for all and that seeks peace, not war or violence."
"God of grace, grant your blessing on all the delegates and leaders who join in the convention to carry out the responsibility to select nominees to the highest offices of this nation. By your spirit give them grace to listen and grace to speak. Help them to discern where you are leading this country."
"God of new creation, now may the new leadership of this country trumpet a new day for this nation and the world so that our young people shall see visions, and our old ones dream dreams. So that we sing a new song: "Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream."
"God of hope, we lift up our voice to pray for a vision-filled future for this country. May we build a bridge of harmony among all God's people. May the work of this convention provide hope for all people of God in the nation."
"This we pray in the name of the one who is life eternal."
"Amen."
Weren't the Georgians the aggressors in the Russo-Georgian conflict?
When we first heard the news at our house,
Georgia had just made a first strike.
An interesting discussion of this new hot spot appears on the truthout blog.
Maybe we just need to be armed with the right questions.
The McCain ad about Obama’s celebrity wasn’t really made simply to minimize the Democrat’s stature as a serious candidate for the presidency. The ad has a double message and is really aimed at the religious right. This ad is using code words meant to build on, and invoke, fear of Obama as a one-world leader.
The real thing the rest of us need to pay attention to; and to be frightened of; is the Fundamentalist movement in this country. The Christian Right in the U.S. are still bound and determined to transmute this country into a theocratic state based on their interpretation of the Bible.
These are the same people who are hard at work at rewriting our history, and fighting any science program that isn’t does not stick to the Creationist Ideology. With the increase of home-schooling and religious schools, a large number of our children are not exposed to anything else.
The Republican machine in this country is still working at full speed in the same old way. They are still diverting attention away from the real issues at hand. They are still using fear as their main tool in the fight for power. The media and the rest of us are generally missing the point.
So once again, we are being used and manipulated into letting down our guard. I don’t know how to fight this pernicious attack on our freedoms. It is hard to argue with people who believe they are God’s Warriors. Religious fanatics generally are not swayed by reason or logic. Or even with real evidence demonstrated in a lab.
This will be the real political battle of the century. And those of us who recognize the issue had better be armed with the tools we need to fight.
If you didn't get a chance to see the whole thing, look for re-broadcasts of Impressive Opening Ceremonies of the Summer Olympics in Beijing.
FOR THE MOMENT VIDEOS OF THE EVENT HAVE BEEN REMOVED
Just to see all the many nations participating in the games gives one pause.
Maybe the Chinese are right.
Maybe 8-8-08 is a lucky day.
There are many ways we can come together
in harmony and peace.
Maybe this is the day we begin again.
Eight for Eight
I went into the surgeon's office fully expecting him to tell me that we will be scheduling a painful procedure to force my new knee to bend at a greater angle. The Receptionist greeted me with the words; "Good Friday, Mrs. Pusateri." This made me smile.
Since I had already accepted that the proceedure might be necessary, I was not nervous. While I waited, I busied myself with writing a letter. By this time, I was sure I could handle whatever was to come next. I have been through worse things.
When the doctor entered the room, I greeted him with a smile. This always seems to surprise him, since he usually deals with patients who are in a great deal of pain. Or, maybe, he still remembers the me I was in the days before he fixed my back.
As I said before, I was prepared to hear that he wasn't too pleased.
Acceptance can make a person calm.
And, once we accept what lies ahead,
what lies ahead can change.
Instead of hearing what I thought I would hear, it turns out that my doctor was pleased with my progress. And, even though I am only able to bend my knee 98 degrees, he thinks I can take it further with more work. I don't have to have the procedure!
I was so happy, i gave him a hug.
There's more to go.
Onward. Onward.
Now it's up to me.
Good Friday to you. :-)
Eight for Eight
Looking at the news the other day, one article jumped out at me, and that was that Delta Airlines was in the process of equipping all of its domestic fleet with WiFi at every seat. Wow, this is big!
Can someone in the know out there answer the following questions and enlighten me.
1. Does this mean we will actually be able to go online during regular flights?
2. What is the proper spelling of the word?
Is it Wi-Fi, WiFi, Wifi, or wifi or is it something else?
(Wikipedia uses Wi-Fi, but this medium is spelled very differently all over the web.)
3. How is it that this would not pose a security risk, or compromise safety compared to using your phone during a flight? Can anyone enlighten me?
I happened upon Ushpizin in the wee hours of the morning.
This film is a gem. Watch it if you can.
Eight for Eight
Note to self:
Use the following words in sentences!
I nearly forgot their existence.
Life is a beautiful panoply of our experiences. Under the tutelage of our hearts we can provide egress from the illusion of the ego mind to the real.
We've got to rejoice and never forget what we really are.
There is God.
There is only God.