Alone is not how we begin life. Hopefully, our mothers felt deep joy as they held us to their breasts and shared life-giving milk, while marvelling fathers nearby embraced both with strong protective arms. Families naturally provide the necessary environment for each of us to join the wider human family. As a species, we thrive … Read more
We seem to be inherently double-minded. I find with all kinds of things that part of me thinks one way and is ready for action, but another part of me doesn’t cooperate. This could be characterized as a disagreement between higher and lower brains. My higher self knows the best action, but my lower self … Read more
After the post on Endemic Hypocrisy, which referenced Lincoln’s attitude toward enemies, I happened upon an interesting YouTube video that reported some of Lincoln’s words a few days after the Battle of Gettysburg. He was in Washington, at the bedside of a wounded Northern general, and they were discussing the recently ended famous battle. Although … Read more
Why would people reject the teachings of Jesus because of the bad behavior of Christians? People who fail him do not demonstrate that his teachings are worthless. If we humans were good at keeping our priorities straight, we would never have come up with the idiomatic sentence: Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. … Read more
Biographical sketches on Mind in Heart are meant to give glimpses into the lives of real people (ones like us) and their spiritual journeys. They may have had interesting experiences that did not impact them much spiritually, but who can tell? We each have opinions about things that most shaped us. The older we get, … Read more
Last week was Holy Week, and this, I just learned, is called Easter Week. Boy, did the disciples of Jesus learn something in those days! They didn’t learn everything, that’s for sure, because we humans can never learn everything. We constantly make the mistake of thinking we’ve got the entire picture. In our self-satisfaction, we … Read more
You can go to People Magazine for coverage of the famous ones, and there’s Instagram nowadays, not to mention many other ways. They call them VIPs, but I’ve always considered that to mean “Very Important Puppies,” such as the Basenjis, Kili, and Jaro. The lives of ordinary folks, we only learn about if we happen … Read more
No one has accused me of being out of touch with real life or being unable to imagine what truly downtrodden and suffering people must endure. But the accusation could be justified. Mine has been a cushy life. Not that I inherited wealth or was born with any amazing gifts. But white privilege has not … Read more
I offer you a metaphor of what it means to exist. Each of our lives is like this, maybe. But remember, a metaphor is a bridge to meaning. Not being the thing itself, a metaphor has limits. To use metaphor, keep what feels right and ignore the rest. Your life is like a river. Not … Read more
A spiritual confidant of mine inspired me to explore a new way to understand how Jesus has the power to be, in his own words, “the way, the truth, and the life.” Below, I’ll give you the broader context of what Jesus said, but I won’t cite chapter and verse. You will have no problem … Read more
I receive a steady stream of emails via this website that all assume I am trying to make money. They figure I’m a business, with the need for marketing my products and an incentive to pull traffic, get clicks, and attract eyeballs. examples from three separate prospecting emails: Drive targeted traffic to your website with … Read more
I want to describe an extended spiritual conversation with my friend, Sydney. We think so differently that one could suggest we come from different planets. But our attempts to communicate do not bring too much frustration to either of us. We seem to have a tolerance, bordering on love. The challenge of understanding causes us, … Read more
Excuse me, ye sensitive ones, if the term “bullshit” offendeth, but remember that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Say “flim-flam” if you prefer. Either way, this smell is decidedly not sweet. We can observe today that the social media weather is hot and steamy. We baste in it until our … Read more
On Sundays, many Christians go to worship services. They believe that expressing love and appreciation for their Creator is beneficial not only to themselves but also to the community. The various denominations differ in their forms of worship. Some mega-churches feature large bands and advanced audio equipment, accompanied by dynamic performances with talented singers. Some, … Read more
The Christmas song Joy to the World offers a glimpse of how Jesus will reign when he returns. The last stanza goes: “He rules the world with truth and grace and makes the nations prove the glories of his righteousness…” It says we will be amazed and wonder as we witness his love. This time, … Read more
In this post, I appeal primarily to Christians who underestimate the harm caused by the mistaken beliefs driving Intelligent Design. But this article may also be of interest to others, as it partially explains prevalent anti-science behaviors of today. What is Intelligent Design, and why does it matter? Wikipedia has several articles, but you could … Read more
Another insight from Jules Henri Poincaré is worth considering, to finish this review of Sean Carroll’s The Big Picture. Recall that Poincaré was a first-rate mathematical physicist in the late 1800s who also contributed to the philosophy of science. He said the only objective reality humans can get any sense of is “the internal harmony … Read more
The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself, by Sean Carroll, hardcover, published 2016. This post is a beginning and will be followed by others which delve further into the book’s interesting material. photo credit: NASA, ESA, and F. Paresce (INAF-IASF, Bologna, Italy), R. O’Connell (University of Virginia, Charlottesville), and … Read more
My surname is Moore, not uncommon in America. The first of my ancestors came to the colony of New Hampshire in 1738. Since that is eight generations before me, I have 256 grandparents from that time, only one of which was a Moore. However, many other ancestors related by marriage to those eight Moore generations … Read more
Jesus calls us to love God and also other people. How? It has nothing to do with infatuation and maybe little to do with emotion. Can this love be mostly an attitude? Can it be, to begin with, an acceptance of our common predicament as created earthly things? Other people, other animals, rocks, plants—we are … Read more