Thursday, October 7, 2010

Islamic Center in NYC?

I don't know about you, but I am sick and tired of hearing people rant and rave about a "mosque" at Ground Zero. One, it's really more of a community center, like the YMCA (Christian in name, but I've never heard of any indoctrination going on there either). Two, you cannot judge an entire religion just by its extremists. If we could, we would say that because the KKK invokes the name of Christ, all Christians are white supremacists. Three, many Muslims were killed in the attacks as well. And atheists. And Jews. And Christians. And probably some Buddhists, Taoists, agnostics, and anything else you can think of. It was a WORLD trade center, after all, and culturally diverse.
But a Senate hopeful from Nevada seems to think that not only should the Islamic center a few blocks from Ground Zero be blocked, she is convinced that Islamic law has taken control in a couple American cities. Talk about delusional! Read about it here.
I suggest you Google a list of names of the five dozen Muslims who died that tragic day, and as you read them, think of them with the same compassion you would show for anyone else.
Then read more about this story that talks about a young man named Salman Hamdani. He was on his way to work when he stopped to offer his skills as an EMT. The pieces of his body were found nearby later. Some of my fellow ambulance crew members in my small little town are very against the community center, but they should think of Hamdani along with the 343 FDNY firefighters who died as heros that day and realize that this center is not an affront to America's freedom, but rather an affirmation of it.

Meditation: Sacred or Sin?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101007/ap_on_re/us_rel_southern_baptists_yoga

It seemed to me that the main argument this preacher has against yoga is meditation. But Psalms 12:4 says
"Consider, and hear me, O Lord, my God. Enlighten my eyes, that I never sleep in death"

Hmmm.... enlightenment...isn't that one of the goals of meditation? But what does this preacher's holy book have to say about meditation itself?

And the words of my mouth shall be such as may please: and the meditation of my heart always in thy sight (Psalms 18:15)

My mouth shall meditate truth, and my lips shall hate wickedness. (Proverbs 8:7)


Sounds to me like these Southern Baptists ought to read a bit before denouncing what many people would say is a healthy practice. And have they even looked at their own rituals? What is kneeling if not a pose/posture, and what is prayer if not meditation and those recitations of the Lord's Prayer and the Doxology sound an awful lot like chanting to me. Where do you stand?

Sunday, October 3, 2010

No Parking

Dear people who parked in front of the ambulance bay: I apologize if you feel the inconvenience of walking a few extra feet in the rain outweighs the value of a timely ambulance response. However, you cannot block firetrucks and ambulances with your vehicle. One, the time it takes to track you down and have you move your car are minutes that make a life-and-death difference to someone in need of emergency care. Two, it is illegal. Please do not cuss and argue with us. K, thanks, bye.


(The kicker to this is that they were using the fire station for a church dinner. You'd think church people would not be so mean, argumentative and selfish. Proves my point of hypocrisy once again.)

PINK!

New profile pic...pink in support of Breast Cancer Awareness month.