Via Daily Dharma

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Now is the Time | June 5, 2014

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Now is the time to free ourselves from samsara. Unless we do it in this lifetime, it is not going to happen all by itself. We have to take care of ourselves. Right now we have the ability to receive teachings and practice the Dharma. Isn’t this the right time? Wouldn’t that be better than continuing to act like an animal, concentrating only on eating and sleeping and letting the time run out?

—Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, "Taking Your Future into Your Own Hands"

 

Show Me Your Pride - By Miss Coco Peru - OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO

Via JMG: NORTH CAROLINA: Jewish And Baptist Groups Join Marriage Ban Challenge

Via the Charlotte Observer:

The Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) and the Alliance of Baptists have made it official that they are joining as plaintiffs in a Federal District Court lawsuit opposing North Carolina’s same-sex marriage ban. The United Church of Christ filed the lawsuit in April, challenging North Carolina’s state ban on same sex marriage. The suit is said to be the nation’s first faith-based challenge to same-sex marriage bans. “This precludes rabbis from participating in one of the fundamental aspects of our Jewish religious traditions with respect to a specific segment of their congregations and communities,” said Rabbi Steven Fox, Chief Executive of the CCAR, in a statement. “Depriving rabbis of the freedom to conduct same-sex marriage ceremonies in North Carolina stigmatizes our religious beliefs and relegates many of our congregants and community members to second-class status.”

The Alliance of Baptists: "By the joining the lawsuit in North Carolina, we are living deeply into our Christian values and offering a clear, Baptist voice for justice and religious liberty."

Labels: lawsuits, marriage equality, North Carolina, religion

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: Marriage Progress GIF

I believe the map maker used Census Bureau data on where same-sex couples live, not total population numbers. Source.

Labels: maps, marriage equality, United States

Reposted from Joe Jervis

JMG: BREAKING: Supreme Court DENIES NOM's Motion To Stop Oregon Marriages

Via Buzzfeed:

The Supreme Court denied the National Organization for Marriage’s attempt to stop same-sex couples from marrying in Oregon. NOM has appealed the trial judge’s decision not to let the group, which is opposed to same-sex couples’ marriage rights, to intervene in the lawsuit challenging Oregon’s ban on such marriages. The 9th Circuit, which is hearing that appeal, denied NOM’s request to stop the trial court decision striking down the ban from going into effect during the appeal. NOM then went to Justice Anthony Kennedy to ask him to stop the marriages while that appeal is pending before the 9th Circuit.

The ACLU reacts via press release:

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to halt new marriages between same-sex couples in Oregon. The National Organization for Marriage (NOM), sought a stay of a lower court’s decision allowing marriages to take place, and after the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denied a similar request two weeks ago. Both the American Civil Liberties Union and the state of Oregon filed briefs opposing NOM’s request.

“With marriages continuing in Oregon, we have 44 percent of the country living in a freedom-to-marry state: same-sex couples are now part of marriage in America today,” said James Esseks, director of the ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Project. “Across the country, more and more Americans are embracing the truth that their friends, family, and neighbors in same-sex couples deserve the protection and dignity that only come with marriage.”

Labels: losers, NOM, Oregon, SCOTUS

Reposted from Joe Jervis

#ProudToPlay: Celebrating equality for all athletes

Via Dialy Dharma

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The Intention Behind Honesty | June 3, 2014

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Just as being truly compassionate doesn’t mean always being sweet and nice (sometimes it means being cold, harsh), being truly honest doesn’t mean speaking your thoughts and feelings as they arise. Other awarenesses and intention must be at work—and a recognition that the truth is not solid.

 

—Susan Piver Browne, "Right Speech"

 

Via Daily Dharma

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Shelter from the Storm | June 4, 2014

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When we take the vows of refuge, we are also pledging to find the refuge that exists within our own lives. This taking of refuge is not some kind of evasion or escape, but is the planting of our 'selves' deeply in the nature of what surrounds us.

 

—Gary Thorp, "Shelter from the Storm"

 

Via Blue Nation Review / FB:

Via Daily Dharma

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The Art of Begging | June 1, 2014

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Although we hold the bowl open for an offering, the practice of takuhatsu [begging] does not teach us to be dependent upon society, asking for something that is not earned, or pressuring a community for an entitlement to food or goods. Rather, it teaches us the fundamental lessons of the Buddha: to be dependent on everyone, to live our original homelessness, to include the homeless in thought and deed, to share everything, to accept what comes to us, to be generous, to be humble in society.

 

—Eido Frances Carney, “Zen and the Art of Begging”

 

Via Daily Dharma

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The Remedy Is Generosity | May 31, 2014

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Generosity trusts the emptiness that runs through things, even ungenerous or ungainly things—it links to the clarity that underlies all our madness. Whenever my thoughts turn toward greed, acquisitiveness, or stinginess, my shoulders tense up, and it feels as if I’m holding my breath. To find a remedy, I don’t have to improve my thoughts, though—just be generous with them.

 

—John Tarrant, “The Erotic Life of Emptiness”

 

2014 Rainbow Flag by Gilbert Baker

Via JMG: Alcohol Consumption By State

 

Via Policy Mic:

According to a new report by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the hardest-drinking state turns out to be New Hampshire. The study calculated per capita consumption of ethanol from alcoholic beverages and found that the average New Hampshire resident consumed 4.65 gallons in 2012 — nearly twice the national average of 2.33 gallons. Among the New England states, Connecticut was the only one that didn't make the top 20 list for per capita alcohol consumption. Alaska, Louisiana, Florida, Delaware and Washington, D.C. are all big drinking regions, as are the Northern states, with the average resident consuming over 2.5 gallons of ethanol in alcohol per year. The NIAAA report also found that overall, per capita ethanol consumption increased by 2.2% — only seven states experienced a decrease.

(Tipped by JMG reader Win)

 

Labels: alcohol, maps, New Hampshire

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via Daily Dharma

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Philosophy and Religion | May 30, 2014

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Separating philosophy from religion does not work well in the case of Buddhism. Trying to tease apart these two strands of the dispensation would have seemed a futile endeavor to most Buddhists over the long history of the tradition. We in the West need to get over this false dichotomy, which has no significance in speaking about Buddhism or other Asian religions. 

 

—Robert E. Buswell Jr. and Donald S. Lopez Jr., “Buddhism: Philosophy or Religion”

 

Rudolf Brazda, last of the Pink Triangles, tells his story

Ram Dass interviews Thicht Nhat Hanh

Breathing Meditation with Thich Nhat Hanh

We Live Love Mindfully

Via DailyKos: NOM And Oregon's Catholic Bishops: Same-Sex Parent Families Are Not "Genuine Families"

In response to the marriage equality ruling in Oregon, the Oregon Catholic Conference has issued this statement. It has been posted in full on NOM's blog, who say that the group "expressed their strong disapproval" over the decision. While NOM might interpret this to mean resolve and determination on the part of the Bishops, to me it means "it's time to point and laugh again".
But there's one part of the statement that I don't laugh at. The statement is a smear of not just marriage equality, and not just same-sex parents, but their children as well. In part, it reads:

The Oregon Catholic Conference will continue to uphold the true meaning of marriage and advocate for genuine marriages and families in Oregon[.]

None of us would be surprised at their statement that same-sex marriages are not genuine. But saying that families with gay parents are not genuine families shows how little shame they have. Their message to gay parents is that your efforts to raise children in a loving home with parents who love them is not genuine. The message to their children is that your parents aren't genuine parents, and that you don't live in a genuine family. Their message to both is that your families are lesser than other families, not deserving of our advocacy or legal protections to strengthen them.
To both NOM and the Catholic Church: If you're trying to protect children and their rights, you're doing it wrong.

Originally posted to Kossacks for Marriage Equality on Thu May 29, 2014 at 04:16 AM PDT.

Also republished by Koscadia and Street Prophets .