-
Starting today August 7th, 2024, in order to post in the Married Couples, Courting Couples, or Singles forums, you will not be allowed to post if you have your Marital status designated as private. Announcements will be made in the respective forums as well but please note that if yours is currently listed as Private, you will need to submit a ticket in the Support Area to have yours changed.
-
CF has always been a site that welcomes people from different backgrounds and beliefs to participate in discussion and even debate. That is the nature of its ministry. In view of recent events emotions are running very high. We need to remind people of some basic principles in debating on this site. We need to be civil when we express differences in opinion. No personal attacks. Avoid you, your statements. Don't characterize an entire political party with comparisons to Fascism or Communism or other extreme movements that committed atrocities. CF is not the place for broad brush or blanket statements about groups and political parties. Put the broad brushes and blankets away when you come to CF, better yet, put them in the incinerator. Debate had no place for them. We need to remember that people that commit acts of violence represent themselves or a small extreme faction.
Upvote
0
Upvote
0
Upvote
0
Upvote
0
Celebrating Creation Day and ‘The Canticle of Brother Sun’
- By Michie
- One Bread, One Body - Catholic
- 0 Replies
COMMENTARY: St. Francis of Assisi’s prayer to the Author of Life offers ample inspiration to celebrate this day.
The Basilica of St. Francis stands over the countryside surrounding Assisi, Italy. (photo: Brad Ingram / Shutterstock)
Sept. 1 brings us “Creation Day,” also known as “Feast of Creation” or “World Day of Prayer for Creation.” This moment returns, like the seasons, timely, routine, but not taken for granted. It invites us to reflect on creation, a mystery that marks us deeply. It is the wonder in which everything is born. It is the wonder of the flowers and the glaciers, of the sparrows and the cetaceans.
“Look at the birds in the sky; look at the lilies of the field” (Matthew 6:26-34). This invitation from Jesus to observe what is around us with an amazed and grateful eye stimulates us to study the musical score of the universe and listen to the great concert of the world — to try not to be, as unfortunately we are, the note out of tune.
Experiencing this in Assisi means letting ourselves be given the “la” by our singer par excellence, the Poverello. Eight hundred years ago — next year is the eighth centenary of “The Canticle of Brother Sun” — Francis of Assisi became a “maestro” even of our troubled era, an educator never followed enough by our gaze, so that it becomes a contemplative gaze, capable of inspiring the logic of prayerful gratitude and thoughtful care. We will ponder all of this, the heart of the ecological challenge — as Pope Francis proposed in Laudato Si — during the “Season of Creation,” which experiences its beginning on Sept. 1.
This date has a very ancient history in the Judeo-Christian tradition. For a long time, it has symbolized the creation of the world. In the Eastern Church, Sept. 1 was considered the moment in which God began the creation of the universe, a reason why it is the beginning of their liturgical year. It parallels the feast of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, which also falls in September, albeit on a mobile date. On this feast, some Jewish liturgies proclaim: “Today is the day of the creation of the world.”
Continued below.
www.ncregister.com
Sept. 1 brings us “Creation Day,” also known as “Feast of Creation” or “World Day of Prayer for Creation.” This moment returns, like the seasons, timely, routine, but not taken for granted. It invites us to reflect on creation, a mystery that marks us deeply. It is the wonder in which everything is born. It is the wonder of the flowers and the glaciers, of the sparrows and the cetaceans.
“Look at the birds in the sky; look at the lilies of the field” (Matthew 6:26-34). This invitation from Jesus to observe what is around us with an amazed and grateful eye stimulates us to study the musical score of the universe and listen to the great concert of the world — to try not to be, as unfortunately we are, the note out of tune.
Experiencing this in Assisi means letting ourselves be given the “la” by our singer par excellence, the Poverello. Eight hundred years ago — next year is the eighth centenary of “The Canticle of Brother Sun” — Francis of Assisi became a “maestro” even of our troubled era, an educator never followed enough by our gaze, so that it becomes a contemplative gaze, capable of inspiring the logic of prayerful gratitude and thoughtful care. We will ponder all of this, the heart of the ecological challenge — as Pope Francis proposed in Laudato Si — during the “Season of Creation,” which experiences its beginning on Sept. 1.
This date has a very ancient history in the Judeo-Christian tradition. For a long time, it has symbolized the creation of the world. In the Eastern Church, Sept. 1 was considered the moment in which God began the creation of the universe, a reason why it is the beginning of their liturgical year. It parallels the feast of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, which also falls in September, albeit on a mobile date. On this feast, some Jewish liturgies proclaim: “Today is the day of the creation of the world.”
Continued below.
Celebrating Creation Day and ‘The Canticle of Brother Sun’
COMMENTARY: St. Francis of Assisi’s prayer to the Author of Life offers ample inspiration to celebrate this day.
Virginia Pals Save Flowers From the Landfill, Redeploying Them to Bring Joy
A pair of Virginians who found themselves habitually dismayed by the amount of floral waste they saw over a series of weddings and funerals decided to launch a small nonprofit to reuse them.
Friendly City Florals delivers flowers to hospice care homes, hospitals, and other events like funerals and weddings to make sure that the joy and special feeling a vibrant bouquet inspires can continue to do so as long as there is color in the petals.
The story begins when Rebecca Shelly, an experienced wedding industry worker, was cleaning up in the aftermath of a wedding reception in North Carolina last year, and was agonizing over stuffing hundreds of perfectly perky peonies into black garbage bags.
Continued below.
Virginia Pals Save Flowers From the Landfill, Redeploying Them to Bring Joy
The pair now spend several days a week traveling to halls, houses, and venues to collect floral arrangements that would otherwise be thrown.
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
Squirrels Were Struggling in a Heat Wave so She Made Them a ‘Squirrel Spa’
- By Michie
- Pets & Animals
- 0 Replies
Breyana Elwell never liked rodents, but after it became clear the neighboring squirrels were suffering from the heat, she began to warm to them.
Living in New Braunfels, Texas, she maintains a sort of “squirrel resort” where the arboreal rodents can stop by, cool down, grab a bite, and lounge until the heat of the day passes.
It all started when Elwell was playing with her toddler out on the deck and the mother of two left a fan on after they were finished. A local squirrel came to realize the value of the fan and plopped himself on the railing to cool down.
Continued below.
Squirrels Were Struggling in a Heat Wave so She Made Them a ‘Squirrel Spa'
It all started when Elwell was playing with her toddler out on the deck and the mother of two left a fan on after they were finished.
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
Stray Pup Chases a Doggie Day-Care Bus and Gets Adopted
- By Michie
- Pets & Animals
- 0 Replies
A determined Lab has found a new home in Georgia after galloping alongside a doggie daycare bus until he won over the driver and found a new home.
In Franklin County, the story begins when the driver of the ‘pup bus’ was doing his rounds to bring clients’ dogs to daycare.
Coming to a house he knew well, a Labrador retriever who had been attending Keller Creek Boarding and Grooming for three years named Motley was waiting for the bus like normal, but this time he had a friend.
Continued below.
Stray Pup Chases a Doggie Day-Care Bus and Gets Adopted
In Franklin County, the story begins when the driver of the 'pup bus' was doing his rounds to bring clients' dogs to daycare.
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
Flintstones-like Home is Built Around 200 Million-Year-old Red Rock in Colorado–And is Now For Sale
- By Michie
- Entertainment
- 0 Replies
Check out this real life ‘Flintstones’ home, a property built around a giant 200 million-year-old red rock.
The two bedroom house in Larkspur, Colorado, has a unique style, with the boulder incorporated into the interior of the home—perfect for a geology (or Flintstones) fan.
The home, which is on the market for $989,900, is integrated with nature, nestled around a 45-foot-high section of one of Colorado’s beloved ancient red rocks.
Continued below.
Flintstones-like Home is Built Around 200 Million-Year-old Red Rock in Colorado–And is Now For Sale
A 2-bedroom ‘Flintstones’ home built around a giant 200 million-year-old red rock is for sale in Larkspur, Colorado.
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
This Isn’t Pasta–It’s Star-Shaped Sand Found in Japan With A Huge Secret Hidden Inside
- By Michie
- Outdoor Activities & Nature
- 0 Replies
GNN is not beyond taking a moment to admire the majesty of nature, regardless of form, or in this case, size.
If you went to one of the beaches of the Ryukyu Islands of Japan—take Okinawa for example, and picked up a grain of sand and held it under a magnifying glass, you might notice something amazing—it would have a star shape.
Japan has one of the world’s highest concentrations of star sand beaches on Earth. Sand is made up of ground stone and coral that’s been reduced to grains over many years, but star sand was once actually a living organism.
Continued below.
This Isn't Pasta–It's Star-Shaped Sand Found in Japan With A Huge Secret Hidden Inside
Japan has one of the world's highest concentrations of star sand beaches on Earth. Sand is made up of ground stone and coral, but this one is actually a lifeform.
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
Senseless Censoring by MSN
- By stevevw
- News & Current Events (Articles Required)
- 10 Replies
I think theres a number of issues happening at the same time. I think over the years authority of teachers and parents has been eroded. I remember maybe 10 or 15 years ago there was a movement by a new progressive social order about students rights. There were many social workers and youth counsellors coming in talking about young peoples rights and protecting them.I just had my response comment censored by MSN so I wanted to bring the whole argument here to do some more discussing of the subject. I responded to a person who said "students in the classroom need to be slapped up a little more often". Now I know students should never be touch by a teacher not alone "slapped up a little" but I responded to the person's comment by saying "I don't encourage physical punishment but a figurative "slap in the face" is needed...". Now the reason I said that is because my wife is a teacher and she along with growing number of teachers are get overwhelmed by disruptive students in classrooms. There is NO respect for teachers in the classroom and alot of students are just sitting in the classrooms socializing with others (and being disruptive) or they are on their cell phones. It has gotten very bad everywhere. These are some of my other comments on the subject:
- Reply to a comment1h
I don't encourage physical punishment but a figurative "slap in the face" is definitely what a lot of disruptive students in the classroom need. Send them to the office to have a talk with the principal, in school suspension or out of school suspension. If it needs to be done every day, do it. Let the administration handle the problem. If the administration says the teacher needs to handle the situation (and the teacher has), get the union involved. Here is the big problem (and a lot of parents are really in the dark about it) students think they are on equal standing with their teacher - they aren't. Students need to respect the authority of the teacher and this needs to be taught in schools starting in kindergarten. Unfortunately, a lot of students don't listen to their parents so they bring that same attitude to the classroom. It needs to be crushed when they are young because the students take it for a ride as they get older.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/students-need-tech-free-classrooms-opinion/ar-AA1oQk49?ocid=UCPNC2&pc=U531&cvid=b726edf33b314cdf9424befdfbb4a955&ei=15#comments&commentId=1252df72-45a1-452e-8c80-9c68ca4495c7
- I agree with you that some students learn better by watching something than by listening. But the teacher should be the one who runs the slide presentation, video, and electronic easels. Students should NEVER be allowed to have cell phones in the classroom and their computers should only be allowed to be connected to what the teacher wants them to be connected to. My wife is a high school teacher (for about 18 years) and one of her biggest problems in the classroom are students on social media and not paying attention to her presentation. When you try to correct these students they get defensive with the teacher. Back in the day when there was more respect for the teacher and his/her authority in the classroom, it would have been fine to bring notebooks, laptops or cell phones into the classroom. Now, students think they are the center of the universe and they can do what they want in the classroom. So, the hammer now has to come down on them because they aren't even trying to learn anything. They just want to socialize. Now, we can talk about how we should give kids a decent social time during the school day but during class time, it's pay attention time.
Because they are not using the social media to learn. They are using it to socialize with their friends and not paying attention to what is being taught to them. If the teacher had control of what the student is watching on his/her notebook, laptop, cell phone then it would work well. What happens then is the student does lousy in the class, parent/student blame the teacher when it was the student's fault in the first place by not paying attention. My wife is a teacher and every teacher she has worked with over the years, identifies this as the biggest problem. In the one school, the administration got smart and they gave teachers a software package that allowed them to see what each student was doing on their notebook, laptop or cell phone. This allowed the teacher to shut down any social media programs that students weren't suppose to be using during class time.
Any other thoughts in the classroom? What should students be allowed to bring to class? What can be done about student's visiting social media sites during class time?
That was ok except they went too far and it became student rights over all else including teachers and parents. I think this was part of a bigger movement associated with Rights based and identity politics.
The progressives have this idea that punishment is cruel and mean and we needed to understand young people and make them feel good all the time. That these students and especially those who played up the most were misunderstood and victims of a oppressive system that caused all these problems. It wasn't their fault but the mean old system.
From there it seems to have gone a downhill where students rather than feeling good, included and well adjusted developed behavioural problems and it made things worse. Rather than the age old and tested principle that bad behaviour brings bad consequences the need to take responsibility. It was sending a message that students could get away with misbehaviour because there was no real consequences.
We see this same problem in the judicial system where juvenile crime and misbehaviour has increased. Where young people don't respect the law and will brazenly commit crimes knowing there will be little repercussion. A slap on the wrist or fine or they are put through some community program where they are more or less rewarded for doing wrong.
We see this same ideology with 'Defund the police' or the idea that terror groups like Hamas are not terrorist but misunderstood victims who are standing up for this rights. Or how rioters and looters are victims and only reacting to the oppressive system. Or how Uni students have a right to be antisemetic, cancell speakers and demand the jobs of good professors because of percieved harm.
This is part of an ideology where the value of hard work, sacrifice, merit and facing responsibility for ones actions has been undermined. Where the feelings and rights of subjective identities is upheld over the harsh realities of life. The cotton wooling of young people in the name of not harming or making them feel bad as misplaced compassion.
When in reality it is these hard lessons in life, the feeling bad for wrong and the respect for the wisdom and experience of long held truth principles that have worked and brough law and order.
Relating this back to social media. It seems now social status is more important. So of course students who have been disenfranchised from the system and see it as oppressive are going to see social media as the only world they relate to.
It feeds well into the ideology as its about promoting the self, being an influencer and getting the Likes. This is now the measure of worth and not the behind the scenes hard work and sacrifice and taking responsibility. Its too conforming and the more people can show they are defying the bad old oppressive system the better they percieve their worth.
Its pretty superficial, simple and obvious but that is the new reality being created that social media has brought. Theres a detachment between the world created by social media and the real lived experience. Just like theres a detachment between making students feel good and cotton wooling them from the realities of life.
Upvote
0
Giant ‘living tractors’ are bringing nature back to post-industrial wastelands...
- By Michie
- Outdoor Activities & Nature
- 0 Replies
Water buffalo are at home wallowing in wetlands (Credit: Getty Images)
When water buffalo make a home for themselves in abandoned spaces, they can bring with them a rich array of frogs, bats and plant life.
Each autumn, as tadpoles outgrow their tails, the Kizilirmak Delta on Turkey's Black Sea erupts into chaotic commotion with the emergence of marsh frogs. While the fist-sized frogs are at home in the delta's wetlands, dozens can be seen hopping out of the muddy waters to exploit one particularly strange and unusually lively hunting ground.
Climbing up a hillside of thick fur, the frogs encounter terrain that's warm underfoot and an atmosphere that buzzes with flies. But there are risks to foraging here. The surface beneath their webbed feet twitches and shakes, and the entire floor is prone to lurching unpredictably through the air and collapsing into the mud.
This moving mountain of brawn and bugs is the muscular back of a massive water buffalo. On each of these giants roaming the delta, as many as 20 frogs or more can be found hitching a ride to their next meal.
Continued below.
Giant 'living tractors' are bringing nature back to post-industrial wastelands
When water buffalo make a home for themselves in abandoned spaces, they can bring with them a rich array of frogs, bats and plant life.
www.bbc.com
God’s Law Must Live in Our Hearts
- By Michie
- One Bread, One Body - Catholic
- 0 Replies
User’s Guide to Sunday, Sept. 1
Old engraving depicts St. Charles Borromeo in the book ‘History of the Church,’ circa 1880. (photo: Shutterstock)
Sunday, Sept. 1, is the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time. Mass readings: Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-8; Psalm 15:2-3, 3-4, 4-5; James 1:17-18, 21b-22, 27; Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23.
Today’s readings all regard the Law. Let’s look at four teachings that come from them.
The first reading text says, “Moses said to the people: ‘Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees which I am teaching you to observe, that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land which the Lord … is giving you.’” So, the Law comes with a promise. It is the basis of life and the doorway to the further blessings of the land. Many today see God’s Law as a limitation on our freedom to “do as we please.” The Law of God does not imprison; it is a defense. Every ancient city had walls, not to imprison its citizens but to protect them from the enemy.
Within the walls there was security and the promise of protection. Outside the walls lurked danger; there was no promise of safety there. It is like this with God’s Laws.
Regarding the Law of God, Moses says, “In your observance of the commandments of the Lord … you shall not add to what I command you nor subtract from it.” We might liken the Law to a set of directions to get to a designated destination. Compliance must be complete to bring us to the right place when driving. Similarly, we are directed to follow the Law of God wholly. Here, we must see God as a healer who is exacting and precise, not for his sake but for ours. God, who is our healer, points to full health.
Continued below.
Sunday, Sept. 1, is the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time. Mass readings: Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-8; Psalm 15:2-3, 3-4, 4-5; James 1:17-18, 21b-22, 27; Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23.
Today’s readings all regard the Law. Let’s look at four teachings that come from them.
The first reading text says, “Moses said to the people: ‘Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees which I am teaching you to observe, that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land which the Lord … is giving you.’” So, the Law comes with a promise. It is the basis of life and the doorway to the further blessings of the land. Many today see God’s Law as a limitation on our freedom to “do as we please.” The Law of God does not imprison; it is a defense. Every ancient city had walls, not to imprison its citizens but to protect them from the enemy.
Within the walls there was security and the promise of protection. Outside the walls lurked danger; there was no promise of safety there. It is like this with God’s Laws.
Regarding the Law of God, Moses says, “In your observance of the commandments of the Lord … you shall not add to what I command you nor subtract from it.” We might liken the Law to a set of directions to get to a designated destination. Compliance must be complete to bring us to the right place when driving. Similarly, we are directed to follow the Law of God wholly. Here, we must see God as a healer who is exacting and precise, not for his sake but for ours. God, who is our healer, points to full health.
Continued below.
U.S. Catholic bishops on Labor Day: Honor ‘human dignity of all who labor’
- By Michie
- One Bread, One Body - Catholic
- 1 Replies
Bishops speak out against low pay and lack of unionization for workers
Labor Day marks a time to "recommit ourselves to building together a society that honors the human dignity of all who labor," said two Catholic bishops in a joint statement ahead of the Sept. 2 national civic holiday.
www.oursundayvisitor.com
Upvote
0
Upvote
0
