Fides et Ratio et Humilitas

In search of William and Anastasia,
I re-found Jesus.

The new tagline is thus “fides et ratio et humilitas”.

Faith, reason, and humility.

Not one over another, but three, equal, as one.

These, should be the foundations of things to come.

I Read The News

I read the news yesterday oh boy
The mail’s readers are enraged for the slaughter of conscious animals
But as it happened far far away from me
I was rather amused that it is a non-issue here.

I read the news today oh boy
That the educated is holding a black mass
with non-consecrated hosts
And though it happened far far away from me
I’m rather sad that the fight has been going on
for hundreds, thousands of years

I read the news today oh boy
That a boy who came back from heaven
described one form of heaven that he saw
But I read somewhere else oh boy
Another boy who came back from heaven
described a different form of heaven that he saw
And though one of them is clearly a satire
(not so sure of the other),
I’m rather depressed seeing the extent of responses.

I read the news today oh boy
That someone who is running for presidency
is a minority ethnic, of minority religion, and is dead
and though the news is fake
I feel sad that this always happens before elections.

I read Facebook today oh boy
Online petitions are rampant for causes far far away from me
While I have my cynicism and skepticism,
I keep everything to myself,
as I hate to repeat myself.

I finished my meal and went out
through the door held open by a guy
who was apathetic to my gratitude.
It was raining outside
I looked around
Everybody was returning from lunch

lambrtz Phase II and God and Religion

“In reality there are as many religions as there are individuals.”

“After long study and experience, I have come to the conclusion that [1] all religions are true; [2] all religions have some error in them; [3] all religions are almost as dear to me as my own Hinduism, in as much as all human beings should be as dear to one as one’s own close relatives. My own veneration for other faiths is the same as that for my own faith; therefore no thought of conversion is possible.”

“Religions are different roads converging to the same point. What does it matter that we take different road, so long as we reach the same goal. Wherein is the cause for quarreling?”

All by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi…whom I found a few years ago has as many opponents as there are sympathisers.

To me, religion and God matter are already clear: whatever you do, you will never know about it, at least during your lifetime (and BTW that is why it is called faith, instead of knowledge). You can believe or disbelieve anything the way you want it to be, and actually nobody can falsify your belief/disbelief without being trapped in the circular argument. For me, there are two consequences of this. Firstly, I grow more and more uninterested to discussions, let alone debates, about religions, especially if they carry high #flamebait potential. Secondly, probably ironically, I seem to embrace Roman Catholicism deeper, albeit with some questions, doubts, and disagreements, both petty and fundamental.

So yeah, there you have it. Be a vegetarian, grow your beard, worship the sun, wait for the Second Coming, embrace any belief/disbelief you are most convenient with, and as long as you are not an effin’ troll or musketman, I will not raise arms as well. While I am the same time avoid joining flamewars. Not that they matter. You win, the world is still like that. You lose, the world is also like that. Unless you are the king of your tribe.

Update 18/06/2013:

A Coptic Hymn

As an Indonesian, I automatically perceive Arabic chants as Islamic. Well I don’t speak Arabic, so when I listened the above hymn it is very very hard for me to accept that it is a part of Christian tradition. I have to listen very carefully for any word I am familiar with; I think I heard some “Kyrie”s there. Also, I live with a Protestant family, and the neighbour next door is a Muslim family, so I am wondering if they think I am listening to an Islamic prayer, as IMO Orthodox Christianity, let alone the Coptic rite, is not widely known in this part of the world. But I have loved Arabic chants for a few years already, and somehow listening to this song makes me want to attend a Coptic service someday.

Update: I played the video again and realised that the video actually begins in English (…and forgive us our sins)! Gosh, it does take time!

Another update: not only does the video begin in English, but the first half of the video seems to be entirely in English! So I can confirm that my Indonesian ears are more sensitive to the Arabic tone than the actual prayer.

A Part

Last year I wrote [this]. This year I became a part of those who sing the song, and I joyfully sang along.