Via JMG: MEXICO: Catholic Church Exorcises Satan Out Of Entire Nation Because Gays

 

Because gays and abortion, actually. Via Breitbart:

In an extraordinary act of spiritual warfare, several bishops and exorcist priests have performed what is being called a “Magno Exorcismo” (great exorcism) of the entire country of Mexico following a series of events that the bishops see as linked to the presence and influence of Satan. On May 20, the former Archbishop of Guadalajara, Cardinal Juan Sandoval Iñiguez [PHOTO], the Archbishop of San Luis Potosi, Carlos Cabrero, as well as several exorcist priests from various Mexican dioceses held a closed-door exorcism ritual at the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Luis Potosí. Bishop Cabrero explained the hush-hush nature of the ceremony, saying that otherwise “it arouses morbid curiosity and misinterpretations” when what we are after is simply “doing good for everyone.” In a telephone interview, Father Fortea declined to give details about the ceremony, but said that “undoubtedly the abortion, Satanism, corruption, the cult of ‘holy’ death and the legalization of sexual aberrations have caused great satanic infestation throughout Mexico.” All of this, he said, has unleashed widespread violence precisely because of the action of the devil. The purpose of the exorcism was to “drive the demons out of Mexico,” he said.

RELATED: On June 3rd the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that states may no longer ban same-sex marriage, although couples in the majority of Mexican states must still, for now, hire a lawyer, pay around $1000, and wait a month to obtain a judge's order to marry. Same-sex marriages have been recognized nationwide since Mexico City repealed its ban in 2010 and three states had already done away with their bans, but the latest ruling will surely expedite the removal of the remaining roadblocks.  

 

Labels: Catholic Church, exorcisms, religion, Satan

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 16/06/2015

“Por que evitamos tanto o movimento em direção à nossa interioridade? Porque talvez seja mais desafiador do que você se mover em direção a outro planeta. Porque mover-se em direção àquilo que nunca morre, em direção ao Eterno dentro de nós, é onde reside a grande aventura.”
Ouça o Satsang completo: bit.ly/1CaQvPm

“¿Por qué evitamos tanto el movimiento en dirección a nuestra interioridad? Porque tal vez esto sea más desafiante que moverte en dirección a otro planeta. Porque moverse en dirección a aquello que nunca muere, en dirección al Eterno dentro nuestro, es donde reside la gran aventura.”

“Why are we so resistant to moving our attention inwards? Perhaps because it is more challenging to do this than it is to move towards outer space. The movement towards that which never dies, towards the Eternal within us, is where the great adventure lies.”

Today's Daily Dharma: The Dawning of Truth.

 

The Dawning of Truth

If we use the practice tools that develop intelligence and clarity with a confused, selfish motivation, reality is bound to collide with our fiction. This is where practice is supposed to bring us. This is the proof that the dharma works. It?s the end of our confused, fictive world, and the dawning of truth. - Lama Tsony, "Facing Fear"

Read More

Via Equality House / FB:

Via JMG: AUSTRALIA: Anti-Gay Couple May Not Be Able To Stay Together & Legally Divorce

Earlier this week an anti-gay Australian couple earned international headlines when they declared that that they will divorce in a symbolic stand against same-sex marriage. But as it turns out, their plan to remain living together may thwart any divorce under Australian law.

The Family Law Act states that an application for divorce will only be considered if the parties had separated and lived separately for a continuous period of at least 12 months. Family lawyer Denis Farrar said the court also needs to be satisfied that there is no reasonable likelihood of cohabitation being resumed. "It surprises me that any sensible person would make such a threat, because you can't get a divorce unless you've been separated for 12 months," he said. "It doesn't sound like Mr Jensen could truthfully swear that those facts are correct. And in that case he may apply for a divorce, but he won't get it unless he lies."
Mr Jensen conceded the Family Law Act may throw a spanner in the works. "There will be issues around the fact that we would have to prove that our marriage was irreconcilably broken, which it isn't," he said. But Mr Jensen said he and his wife could look at a legal challenge, which would leave them effectively fighting for their right to get divorced. "It would be quite ironic if the state wouldn't actually allow us to get divorced," he said. "If a group of people got together and said 'actually, we want to take this to the courts', then maybe that would be something we'd be involved with. It's something we take very seriously, and we feel in our conscience that we can't actually partake in any redefined marriage."

Jensen, not incidentally, is the former director of the Australian Christian Lobby.

 

Labels: Australia, crackpots, marriage equality, religion

Reposted from Joe Jervis

US Embassy Celebrates Tel Aviv Pride 2015

Via JMG: Wingnuts Cry "Staged!" After Gay Couple Kisses When Clinton Mentions Marriage

 

The Tea Things over at Twitchy are very upset that two men could be seen kissing as Hillary Clinton mentioned marriage equality during her speech at Roosevelt Island today. It took me about an hour of sorting through the various live feeds to find the right camera angle and take a screenshot, but as you can see the couple was standing in just the right spot.

Labels: 2016 elections, Hillary Clinton, marriage equality

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Today's Daily Dharma: Not Worth Clinging

 Image: Alfredo de Stéfano

Not Worth Clinging

Whenever you see yourself identifying with anything stressful and inconstant, you remind yourself that it?s not-self: not worth clinging to, not worth calling your self. This helps you let go of it. When you do this thoroughly enough, it can lead to awakening. - Thanissaro Bhikkhu, "What the Buddha Never Said: ?There is no Self.?"

Read More

Today's Daily Dharma: Under One Umbrella

Doris Mitsch, courtesy of Clampart, New York City

Under One Umbrella

We should all be willing to suspend skepticism about unfamiliar forms of Buddhism and explore their texts and practices deeply and without presuppositions. If we do this hard work, we will find that these unfamiliar Buddhisms make sense in their own terms and deserve our respect. Whether they turn out to be more similar to or more different from our own Buddhism is irrelevant. If we investigate these myriad versions of Buddhism, we will understand how all of them are derived from the teachings of the one teacher we all revere. - Rita Gross, "Under One Umbrella"

Read More

Via Spirit Science / FB:

Today's Daily Dharma: It Starts with Humility

Image: Elegy 2011 by Cara Barer

It Starts with Humility

Humility is . . . the ground zero of spirituality, from which other helpful conditions may arise, such as gratitude and compassion.  - Henry Shukman, "The Art of Being Wrong"

Read More

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 15/06/2015

“A verdadeira felicidade é aquela que vem de dentro, pois ela possibilita a experiência da liberdade. Uma coisa é você estar com o outro por amor, porque é bom estar próximo, porque existe uma sinergia, uma afinidade, e a energia cresce nesse encontro; e outra coisa bem diferente é acreditar que depende do outro para ser feliz.”

“La verdadera felicidad es aquella que viene de adentro, porque ésta posibilita la experiencia de la libertad. Una cosa es que estés con otro por amor, porque es bueno estar cerca, porque existe una sinergia, una afinidad, y la energía crece en ese encuentro; y otra cosa bien diferente es creer que dependes del otro para ser feliz.”

“True happiness comes from within, and allows you to experience freedom. You may be with someone out of love because it’s good to be close to them, and there is a synergy. The energy of this affinity grows with every encounter. That is the complete opposite of believing that your happiness is dependent on this person.”

Today's Daily Dharma: Free of Fear

Image: Stephen Webster/Photonica

Free of Fear

Being free of fear is not a matter of never feeling it, but of not being flattened when we do. We can feel it and know it is a natural phenomenon, also an impermanent one, which will have its say and be gone. - David Guy, "Trying to Speak: A Personal History of Stage Fright"

Read More

Via Power of Positivity / FB:

Destroyed Buddha Statues Rise Again...In 3D

Via JMG: WaPo 2016 Net Favorability Poll

 

Of all the declared and potential 2016 candidates in the Washington Post's net favorability poll, only Sen. Bernie Sanders is (barely) in positive territory.

The real-world surveys show that the overwhelming majority of presidential candidates are running negative favorability scores. Quinnipiac has Bernie Sanders at +1 overall, although that's partly because 62 percent of Americans say they haven't heard enough about him to form an opinion. The closest Republican is Marco Rubio — the same number of Americans say they view him positively as those who view him negatively, meaning his score nets out to exactly zero. Clinton and Obama are tied at -4. And it's all downhill from there, all the way down to Donald Trump. Only 15 percent of Americans view him favorably, compared to 71 percent who have a negative opinion. That gives him a net favorability of -56, more than twice as bad as the next-lowest candidate, Chris Christie, with his -26 score.

(Tipped by JMG reader Daddy Ray)

 

Labels: 2016 elections, Bernie Sanders, polls, WaPo

Reposted from Joe Jervis  

Via JMG: American Airlines Joins Pride Parade

Paging Franklin Graham!

Labels: American Airlines, business, gay Pride

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: Hate Groups Publish Full-Page Message To SCOTUS In The Washington Post: We Won't Honor Your Ruling On Marriage

 

A coalition of hate groups and Christian pastors calling themselves Defend Marriage has published a full-page message to SCOTUS in the Washington Post. Among the signers at the bottom of the ad are Mat Staver, Elaine Donnelly, the Benham brothers, Alveda King, Jim Garlow, John Hagee, E.W. Jackson, Don Wildmon, Dave Welch, Robert Jeffress, and Penny Nance. From the text:

We affirm that any judicial opinion which purports to redefine marriage will constitute an unjust law, as Martin Luther King Jr. described such laws in his letter from the Birmingham Jail. We are Christians who love America and who respect the legitimate rule of law. However, we will not honor any decision by the Supreme Court which will force us to violate a clear biblical understanding of marriage as solely the union of one man and one woman. We affirm that Marriage, as existing solely between one man and one woman, precedes civil government. Though affirmed, fulfilled, and elevated by faith, the truth that marriage can exist only between one man and one woman is not based solely on religion but on the Natural Law, written on the human heart.

Bolding is theirs. (Tipped by JMG reader Jim)

Labels: AFA, Alveda King, Christianists, crackpots, David Benham, Donald WIldmon, E.W. Jackson, FRC, hate groups, John Hagee, Josh Duggar, Liberty Counsel, marriage equality, Mat Staver, Penny Nance, religion, SCOTUS, WaPo

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Rachel Maddow - Franklin Graham's anti-gay banking protest backfires

Via JMG: LIST: America's Most Well-Read Cities

Via Business Wire:

Amazon.com today announced its fifth annual list of the Most Well-Read Cities in America – just in time for summer reading season. The ranking was determined by compiling sales data of all book, magazine and newspaper sales in both print and Kindle format from April 2014 to April 2015, on a per capita basis in cities with more than 500,000 residents. Seattle, Wash., the home of Amazon headquarters, not only purchased the most books overall but also purchased the most Kindle books, magazines, and newspapers. Washington, D.C. residents, ranked #5 overall on the list, prefer the print book, outranking Seattle as the city with the most purchases of print books. California is for readers with three cities making the top 20 list this year: San Francisco, San Diego, and San Jose.

The most-purchased book in seven of the above cities was Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.

Labels: Amazon, books, internet, Kindle

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: POLL: 65% Expect Supreme Court To Rule In Favor Of Same-Sex Marriage

 

Via the Associated Press:

Nearly two-thirds of Americans expect the Supreme Court to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide when it rules on the issue within the next few weeks, according to a new poll. Only 25 percent expect the high court to leave existing state bans on gay marriage intact, while 65 percent expect the bans to be overturned, according to the poll conducted by the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute. Its nationwide survey of 1,009 adults was conducted from June 3 to June 7. Mirroring the findings of several other recent national polls, the new survey found 55 percent of Americans in favor of allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry legally, and 37 percent opposed.
The survey found sharp divisions over same-sex marriage along religious lines. Majorities of religiously unaffiliated Americans (79 percent), white mainline Protestants (60 percent) and Catholics (58 percent) favor allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry. But gay marriage was supported by only 29 percent of white evangelical Protestants and 35 percent of nonwhite Protestants. The survey also asked about perceptions of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Three-quarters of Democrats, 61 percent of independents and 50 percent of Republicans said there is a lot of discrimination against transgender people.

See more about the poll here.

Labels: LGBT rights, marriage equality, polls, SCOTUS

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: Australian Headline Of The Day

 

From an Australian version of The Onion: "In response to threats from a Canberra couple to divorce were equal marriage laws to pass, a local couple in a committed same-sex relationship have in turn threatened to absolutely not give the slightest shit were that to happen. Local couple Brett and Harry have said that while they are not heterophobic and do their best to be open to all different kinds of views if this divorce does go ahead they will have no choice but to go on with their lives completely unaffected by such a dumb stunt." (Tipped by JMG reader John)

RELATED: See my post about the Canberra couple.

Labels: Australia, humor, marriage equality, religion

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 11/06/2015

“A vontade é talvez o maior poder da alma. E esse poder é desenvolvido através da persistência e da disciplina. Por isso sempre incentivo a prática da austeridade inteligente, aquela que nasce da compreensão. Quando você faz a relação de causa e efeito e compreende a origem de determinados hábitos negativos que sabotam sua felicidade, você tem condições de reverter essa situação através dessa prática. Então, reflita sobre qual seria a austeridade que te ajudaria a fortalecer a vontade? Qual seria a prática que te ajudaria nesse momento da sua jornada?”

“La voluntad es tal vez el mayor poder del alma. Y este poder es desarrollado a través de la persistencia y de la disciplina. Por eso siempre incentivo la práctica de la austeridad inteligente, aquella que nace de la comprensión. Cuando haces la relación de causa y efecto y comprendes el origen de determinados hábitos negativos que sabotean tu felicidad, tienes condiciones de revertir esa situación a través de esta práctica. Entonces reflexiona sobre ¿cuál sería la austeridad que te ayudaría a fortalecer la voluntad? ¿Cuál sería la práctica que te ayudaría en este momento del camino?”

“The will is perhaps the greatest power of the soul. This power is developed through the persistence of discipline. This is why I always encourage you to practice an intelligent austerity, one that is born out of comprehension. When you make the link between cause and effect and can understand the origin of certain negative habits that sabotage your happiness, you have the potential to revert the situation through this practice of an intelligent austerity. Take a moment to reflect on what kind of austerity would help you to strengthen your willpower. Which particular practice would help you most at this point of your journey?”

Today's Daily Dharma: Replacing Addiction with Compassion

Image: Courtesy Don Farber

Replacing Addiction with Compassion

The real purpose of Buddhist practice is to cut down your addictions and to correct your habitual patterns and this can be achieved as a layperson or as a monk or nun. That brings us to the question of Buddhist ethics?changing habitual patterns and getting rid of the old addictions, such as attachments, and replacing them with love, compassion, generosity, and patience. - Gelek Rinpoche, "A Lama for All Seasons"

Read More

Via FB: Jesus Cures Homophobia!

Na Parada LGBT da maior cidade brasileira, evangélicos se unem para mostrar que a intolerância não pode ter lugar na nossa sociedade.  

#JesusCuraaHomofobia #MaisAmor #ParadaLGBTdeSP

These are cool... from LGBT News / FB:

 

 

 

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 10/06/2015

“As técnicas e práticas espirituais estão a serviço de propiciar serenidade mental. Mas uma coisa é a técnica meditativa, outra coisa é a meditação. Qualquer um pode praticar técnicas, mas nem todos podem entrar em estado de meditação. Esse é um fenômeno que não se domina, pois não está sob a jurisdição do ego. A técnica é uma escolha do ego consciente, mas o fenômeno de ser arrebatado pelo Divino está além dele. Você pode plantar sementes, mas não pode determinar quando elas brotarão.”

“Las técnicas y prácticas espirituales están al servicio de propiciar serenidad mental. Pero una cosa es la técnica meditativa, y otra cosa es la meditación. Cualquiera puede practicar técnicas, pero no todos pueden entrar en estado de meditación. Este es un fenómeno que no se domina, porque no está bajo la jurisdicción del ego. La técnica es una elección del ego consciente, pero el fenómeno de ser arrebatado por lo Divino está más allá de él. Puedes plantar semillas, pero no puedes determinar cuando ellas brotarán.”

“Spiritual techniques and practices serve to make mental serenity possible. A meditative technique is different from meditation itself. Anyone can practice techniques, but not everyone can enter a state of meditation. This is a phenomenon that cannot be controlled, because it’s not under the jurisdiction of the ego. The technique is chosen by the conscious ego, but the phenomenon of being overtaken by the Divine happens beyond the ego. You can plant the seeds, but you cannot determine when they will sprout.”

Today's Daily Dharma: Mindfulness from Beginning to End

Mindfulness from Beginning to End

To know the truth of what is there . . . is the beginning and end of mindfulness. - Joan Duncan Oliver, "Do I Mind?"

Read More

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 09/06/2015

“A criança nasce amando, mas logo aprende a odiar, porque entra em contato com a inconsciência coletiva. Muito cedo ela aprende a sentir ciúme e a usar máscaras para receber o que deseja. Isso aciona um círculo vicioso que faz com que o fluxo natural do amor seja interrompido.”

“El niño nace amando, pero luego aprende a odiar, porque entra en contacto con la inconsciencia colectiva. Muy temprano aprende a sentir celos y a usar máscaras para recibir lo que desea. Esto acciona un círculo vicioso que hace que el flujo natural del amor sea interrumpido.”

"When children are born, they are loving. But soon after they learn to hate, because they come into contact with the collective unconscious. From very early on they learn to feel jealousy and to use masks to get what they want. This sets off a vicious circle that interrupts the natural flow of love.”

Today's Daily Dharma: Less Ambition, Less Disturbance

Photograph by Iva Peele

Less Ambition, Less Disturbance

The beautiful thing about having less obsessions and ambitions, and just sitting straight and watching the breathing, is that nothing will disturb us. Things only disturb us when we have an aim. When we have an aim, we become obsessed. Say our aim is to go somewhere, but somebody parks right in front of our car, blocking us. If something gets in the way of our aim, it becomes a terrible thing. If we don?t have an aim, though, it doesn't matter. - Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, "Do Nothing"

Read More

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 08/06/2015

“Você pode responder às situações da vida de duas maneiras: agindo ou reagindo. A ação é uma resposta que nasce da presença, e jamais gera sofrimento. Ela é inofensiva. A reação é o contrário. Ela sempre gera uma cadeia de consequências negativas. Por exemplo, se você come porque sente fome, apenas para suprir uma necessidade natural do seu corpo, essa resposta é positiva. Mas, quando come sem sentir fome, para aliviar uma ansiedade, você sobrecarrega o seu metabolismo, gerando consequências danosas para todo o seu sistema.”

“Puedes responder a las situaciones de la vida de dos maneras: actuando o reaccionando. La acción es una respuesta que nace de la presencia, y jamás genera sufrimiento. Es inofensiva. La reacción es lo contrario. Siempre genera una cadena de consecuencias negativas. Por ejemplo, si comes porque sientes hambre, solo para suplir una necesidad natural de tu cuerpo, esa respuesta es positiva. Pero cuando comes sin sentir hambre, para aliviar una ansiedad, sobrecargas tu metabolismo, generando consecuencias dañinas para todo tu sistema.”

“You can respond to life situations in two ways: by acting or reacting. An action is a response that is born of the present moment and it never generates suffering nor causes harm. A reaction is the opposite of this: it always sparks a chain of negative consequences. For example, if you eat because you are hungry, simply to fulfill a natural need of your body, this is a positive response. But if you eat when you are not hungry, to alleviate some anxiety, then you overload your metabolism, generating harmful consequences for your whole body.”

Today's Daily Dharma: The Music of the Mind

 

Photograph by Mian61/Dreamstime.com

The Music of the Mind

The practice of meditation involves listening closely to the music of your mind. We are not concerned in the moment about how things get to be the way they are, only that they are so very much exactly what they are. - Andrew Olendzki, "The Music of the Mind"

Read More

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 07/06/2015

“Um ditado popular no Brasil diz: “Quanto mais eu rezo, mais assombração me aparece”. Essa sensação é normal no início da jornada evolutiva, porque o primeiro vislumbre da Verdade geralmente é uma grande escuridão. Quando você começa a desamortecer, ou seja, quando começa a retirar as máscaras, os monstros que estavam escondidos atrás delas começam a aparecer, e isso pode ser bastante assustador.”

“Un dicho popular en Brasil dice: "Cuanto más rezo, más fantasmas me aparecen". Esta sensación es normal en el inicio del camino evolutivo, porque el primer vislumbre de la Verdad generalmente es una gran oscuridad. Cuando empiezas a salir de la anestesia, es decir, cuando empiezas a retirar las máscaras, los monstruos que estaban escondidos detrás de ellas comienzan a aparecer, y esto puede ser bastante aterrador.”

“There is a popular saying in Brazil that goes like this: ‘The more I pray, the more ghosts appear.’ This sensation is quite normal at the outset of the evolutionary journey, because the first glimpse of the truth is usually a great darkness. When you start to de-numb yourself by removing the masks, the monsters that were hiding behind them start to appear, and this can be pretty scary.”